The Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley is both pleased and excited to announce the opening of its new club site in Piru. Located inside the Piru Community Center, the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley will serve youth grades K – 12. With a fun assortment of games, a dual room serving as a computer lab and arts & crafts room as well as close proximity to the community baseball fields, kids of all ages are sure to have fun. The Piru location will offer an after school program as well as seasonal programs during summer, fall, and winter recesses. Like both of the other clubs, they will have a STEM focus on robotics and the sciences. For more information or questions about our program, please contact Piru Site Director, Cesar Villanueva at (805) 855-5008. Membership applications are available for pickup at 802 Orchard Street in Piru. There is no membership cost to the children living in Piru.

County Supervisor Kathy Long, 3rd District would like to announce to all residents of Ventura County that the next Santa Paula Tattoo Removal Clinic will be held on Saturday October 10, 2015 from 8:30 am – 12 noon, no appointments necessary. Orientation for first time participants will be at 9 am located at 1334 E. Main St. the Santa Paula Medical Clinic. Due to overwhelming response, spaces will be limited.

County Supervisor Kathy Long spearheaded this clinic in collaboration with the following agencies: Ventura County Public Health, Ventura County Probation Agency, Ventura County Sheriff’s Department, Santa Paula Family Care Clinic, Interface Children Family Services, and CalWORKS.

The clinic not only welcomes participants but volunteers to run the clinic. If you have any questions, or would like to find out how you can help, please call the Santa Paula Family Care Clinic at (805) 933-1242.

Ventura, CA - The Ventura County Transportation Commission (VCTC) and Ventura County Air Pollution Control District (VCAPCD) announced today the launch of Ride Week 2015, happening October 5-9, as part of a regional campaign to help reduce traffic and air pollution in Southern California.

Research shows that more than 75 percent of Ventura County’s workers commute alone in their cars and about one third of them spend an hour or more on their roundtrip drive. Ride Week encourages employees and students to make a pledge to try an alternative transportation method, whether it is carpool, vanpool, public transit, walking, biking or telecommuting, for at least one day during the event.

To help get Ventura County commuters excited about Ride Week, VCTC is raffling gift certificates for a new bike, running shoes, Fitbit wireless activity trackers, monthly bus passes and other prizes for anyone who pledges to try an alternative ride October 5-9.

Those interested in entering, can make their pledge at www.rideweek.org. Not only will they be entered to win, but they can also request an evaluation of their commute with customized travel options and contact information for possible ridesharing partners.

“County highways and freeways are more congested than ever, meaning longer commute times, more money spent on gas and vehicle maintenance and more tons of tailpipe emissions polluting our environment,” said VCTC Executive Director Darren Kettle. “Our hope is that Ride Week will open commuters up to alternative methods of transportation and that they’ll find something they like not just during Ride Week, but throughout the year.”

For more information about transportation, air quality and ridesharing during Ride Week or any week follow VCTC (goventura/@goventura) and VCAPCD (TheAirZone/@VCAPCD) on Facebook and Twitter.

About the Ventura County Transportation Commission
The Ventura County Transportation Commission is the regional transportation planning agency committed to keeping Ventura County moving. Program information is available at goventura.org.

The role of da Vinci robotic surgery to treat endometriosis – a disease in which the tissue that normally lines the inside of the uterus grows outside of it – will be the focus of a free seminar Community Memorial Health System is holding on Tuesday, Oct. 20.

Edwin Ramirez, M.D., who specializes in obstetrics and gynecology, will cover the treatment options available for women facing endometriosis, including laparoscopic and robotic-assisted surgery, at the seminar that will run from 6 to 8 p.m. in the eighth-floor Nichols Auditorium at Community Memorial Hospital, 147 N. Brent St.

Dr. Ramirez will discuss how robotic-assisted surgery can lead to fewer complications; less blood loss and pain; less infection risk and scarring; shorter hospital stays and quicker recovery; and better outcomes and patient satisfaction.

Dr. Ramirez received his medical degree from New York Medical College and completed residency training at Saint Vincent’s Catholic Medical Center in New York City. Dr. Ramirez is a member of the Community Memorial Hospital medical staff.

Registration is free but reservations are required. Visit cmhshealth.org/rsvp or call Brown Paper Tickets at 1-800/838-3006.

Future scheduled Speaker Series events include: the Latest in Food Allergies on Nov. 5 at the Courtyard by Marriott Oxnard; Ethics in Healthcare: Should Your Doctor Be Your Friend? on Nov. 12 at the Museum of Ventura County; TEDMED 2015 on Nov. 19 at the Museum of Ventura County; and Celiac Disease on Dec. 1 at Community Memorial Hospital.

Community Memorial Health System is a not-for-profit health system, which is comprised of Community Memorial Hospital, Ojai Valley Community Hospital, and 12 family-practice health centers entitled Centers for Family Health. The health system is located in Ventura County, California.

Did you know your Ventura County Library card gives you online access to our largest library, the eLibrary, which contains entertainment, education, and research resources at your fingertips at home or on the go -- including:
• Over 145,000 downloadable eBooks you don’t have to buy
• For commuters, thousands of eAudiobooks easily downloaded
• An abundant selection of music for your playlist
• Thousands of movies, documentaries, and TV shows as an alternative to primetime TV
• Digital magazines and comic books that travel with you wherever you go

Your library card also gives you access to newspapers, language instruction, auto repair, genealogy resources and career tools. All of that, and there’s even more: find early literacy resources, encyclopedias, test preparation and biography, literature, science, and history databases.

Our largest library is our online eLibrary, available to you 24/7.
[Link: http://157.145.215.81:81/rpa/default/RPA_redr.htm]

No library card? Visit one of our library locations to get one!
[Link: http://www.vencolibrary.org/locations}

#vclWhatAreYouInto?
Find it in the #eLibrary

The Ventura County Library is available 24/7 at www.vencolibrary.org.

Vicki Graves, NICU RN and Daisy Award recipient.

A Community Memorial Health System nurse, Vicki Graves, is a recent recipient of the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses, a peer-elected awards program the hospital participates in each quarter. Nurses are nominated for the DAISY awards by patients, family members and colleagues.

Graves, a registered nurse in Community Memorial Hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, is known at the hospital for her compassionate care, concern, and dedication to patient health.

Graves was nominated by a colleague who wrote:

I would like to nominate Vicki Graves for the Daisy Award for many reasons, being an excellent charge nurse, her dedication to the unit, and always making herself available to others. I have had the pleasure of working with Vicki for almost 10 years now and there have been many situations where I have been grateful for her teamwork, professionalism, and most importantly her clinical skills. I would have to say the one that stands out would be about 8 years ago when I was still a fairly new nurse and had to experience my first "code" on one of my patients at the end of our shift, Vicki stayed over with me for almost 3 hours helping me with the paperwork and basically just debriefing with me on what has been one of the scariest things I have had to go through as a nurse so far. As our permanent charge nurse on nights, Vicki is not always the one at the bedside with our babies and their parents so she is not always given the proper recognition, but our unit would not run as smooth as it does without her.

Each quarter, a nurse is selected to receive the DAISY Award by an awards committee. At a presentation given in front of the nurse’s peers, patients and leadership, the honoree receives a certificate of commendation for being an “Extraordinary Nurse.” The certificate reads: “In deep appreciation of all you do, who you are, and the incredibly meaningful difference you make in the lives of so many people.” The honoree is also given a sculpture called A Healer’s Touch, hand-carved by artists of the Shona Tribe in Africa.

The DAISY Award is supported by the not-for-profit DAISY (Diseases Attacking the Immune System) Foundation. Bonnie and J. Mark Barnes created this foundation and award as a way to remember their son, J. Patrick Barnes. Patrick had a disease that attacked his body and was in the hospital for a long time. His nurses did such a great job with him that the Barnes family created an award that continues to recognize the excellent work nurses do every day.

Said CMHS Chief Nursing Officer, Cynthia Fahey, “We are proud to be among the hospitals participating in the DAISY Award program. Nurses are heroes every day. It’s important that our nurses know their work is highly valued, and The DAISY Foundation provides a way for us to do that.”

Community Memorial Health System is a not-for-profit health system, which is comprised of Community Memorial Hospital, Ojai Valley Community Hospital, and twelve family-practice health centers entitled Centers for Family Health. The health system is located in Ventura County, California.

“Receiving the Four Star Council Award is quite an honor for us. We’re extremely proud of this accomplishment,” proclaimed Grand Knight Ernie Morales, of the local Knights of Columbus council.

Knights of Columbus Council 8800 of St. Francis of Assisi Church has earned the distinction of Four Star Council, one of the organization's top award, for the 2014-2015 fraternal year. The organization's headquarters, located in New Haven, Connecticut, made the announcement.

The award recognizes overall excellence in the areas of membership recruitment and retention, promotion of the fraternal insurance program, and sponsorship of service-oriented activities.

The award was presented to the membership by District Deputy Joe Lee at a special ceremony held on September 15, 2015.

In announcing the local winner of the Four Star Council Award, Carl A. Anderson, chief executive officer of the organization, said, "Please accept my sincere congratulations upon attaining this prestigious award. Your dedication to the Order is seen in the high standard of excellence you have achieved. At the same time, I encourage you to carry forward this enthusiasm to meet the challenges that will face the Knights of Columbus in the years ahead. May this award be a reminder and an inspiration to the members of your council to continue to promote the ideals of Columbianism for the good of the Church, your community, and the Order."

"Receiving the Four Star Council Award is quite an honor for us. We're extremely proud of this accomplishment," proclaimed Grand Knight Ernie Morales, of the local council.

The Knights of Columbus is the world's largest Catholic lay organization. It provides members and their families with volunteer opportunities in service to the Church, their communities, families and young people. With more than 1.8 million members in over 15,000 councils around the world the Knights of Columbus annually donate more than $170 million and 70 million hours of service to charitable causes.

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On a perfect Monday night of September 21st, 2015, Soroptimist International of Fillmore hosted the International Day of Peace. The first Peace Pole was made of 4 X 4 inch posts that held Peace cranes on it. The now permanent concrete Peace Pole is located in front of City Hall, which was the gathering place for the celebration. The pole has inscribed “May Peace Prevail on Earth” in 7 different languages.

Soroptimist member Lynn Edmonds welcomed all, and gave a brief overview of how the International Day of Peace was created. The Veterans of Foreign War were proudly in attendance to honor our country with leading of the flag salute. Bardsdale Methodist Church Pastor Bethany Carpenter blessed the celebration with a prayer for Peace within our world, our country, and our community.

The City of Fillmore also recognized Soroptimist for their involvement in Peace. Mayor Pro Tem Diane McCall read a proclamation given to the Soroptimist President Jane David, representing all of the Fillmore Club.

I don’t know if you are aware that the City of Fillmore has Peace Makers that reside in the community? We proudly do! Gerald and Susan Fitzgerald are two of them. They were unable to attend, as they had another commitment. The third Peace Maker is Soroptimist member Sarah Hansen, who also spear-headed the creation of our Peace Pole. What a compliment for Fillmore, and to those three!!

We were also fortunate to have a Poet Laureate of Ventura County read a poem about Peace. Mary Kay Rummel’s poem was very inspiring.

Afterwards, the crowd of on lookers and participants of about 75, recited the Peace Builder’s Pledge, and then, accompanied by the very talented Lynn Edmonds with her violin, we sang “Let There Be Peace on Earth”. What a wonderful sound that was!

To finish off the evening, the City of Fillmore Fire Department helped light up the grass area of City Hall so that all in attendance could create a human Peace sign!! It was a marvelous feeling, holding hands with a friend or stranger for one purpose… PEACE!

A special thank you to Lions Club members Bill Dewey and Paul Benavidez for all of their hard work to help make the evening a Peace filled success. Thanks Gentlemen!!

City of Fillmore

The City of Fillmore’s Public Works Department will be accepting all non-hazardous waste at 728 Goodenough Road on Saturday, September 26th from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Acceptable waste is any non-hazardous waste.

Hazardous Household Waste will be accepted for disposal at the Public Works Yard located at 711 Sespe Place on Saturday, October 3rd from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. All hazardous household waste, such as paint, batteries, etc. will be accepted.

Please contact the City Public Works Department at (805) 524-1500 if you have any questions.

The October meeting of the Ventura County Garden Club will be Wednesday, October 7, 2015 at 11:00 am at the Hansen Farm in Santa Paula. Presenters are from the Master Gardener Program. The topic will be Drought Issues. There will be a special pumpkin themed tea. Friends Are Always Welcome!

From the Recipient: Kate and I bought our home in The River walk Community in December of last year. Our grand children made us do it. You see, we owned a home in Florida just a bit north of Naples. But the little granddaughters lived in Fillmore, CA. it’s a long drive. We missed them. They were growing up without really knowing us. We needed to share life more closely before we lost our chance to do so. We sold our home in Florida and rented for a year in Fillmore. As east coasters, we wondered if the California life would fit.

California life fits us well! We have grown to love this town. We have made good friends. We are active in our parish of St. Francis of Assisi community. Our ongoing relationship with our son and daughter in-law is rich and full of life.

On the day our middle granddaughter was to be baptized, I saw a sign indicating that 955 Santa Fe St. was for sale. Kate and I took a look. It was clear the home was for us. We made an offer on the spot and the rest is history. Mr. Oscar Arriola, our gardener and good friend keeps the grounds in top condition. We could not be happier in our little nest.

We are honored to receive the Vision 2020 Civic pride Yard of the Month Award.

With gratitude,
Philip Fontaine
Homeowner

The Friends of the Santa Paula Blanchard Community Library invite all book lovers to their “Back Stacks” Book Sales. They are held the first Saturday of every month from 10AM to 2PM, every Wednesday from Noon to 4PM, and every Thursday and Friday from Noon to 2PM.The next First-Saturday sale will be October 3, 2015. The sales offer great choices in fiction, non-fiction, children’s books and collectibles and are accessed from the north parking lot of the library at 119 N. 8th Street, Santa Paula, CA.Most books are priced from $.50-$2.00.Collectibles start at $4.00.

October’s specials include a four volume set of the VFW pictorial history of WWII for $5.00, 2 boxed sets of classic drama, Greek or Roman, for $2.00/set, and all Anita Shreve and Patricia Caldwell novels at ½ price.
For information email fobcl@yahoo.com.

Nelda Gruenthal and Lynn Byrne Simon, artist members of the Pastel Society of the Gold Coast, delivered a check for $1,750 to the Board of Directors of Camarillo Hospice at its meeting in August. The checkrepresented all proceeds of a Meet the Artists Reception in July and ten percent of all sales made during the group’s month-long exhibit at the Thousand Oaks Community Gallery.

Hospice President/CEO Sandy Nirenberg and Lynne Byrne Simon spoke about the great collaboration of “art and heart” that has been created between the PSGC and Camarillo Hospice. Board Chair Randy Churchill commented on the similarities between and importance of the work of both groups and how grateful Camarillo Hospice was for this unexpected fundraising opportunity.

The Pastel Society of the Gold Coast is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to provide public exhibitions for its members, to educate the community through collaboration with environmental and other non-profit organizations; and to promote the arts in general. The membership consists of approximately 30 Southern California artists who “utilize the dynamic and diverse application of soft pastels to express the nature and beauty of our Gold Coast region. “For more information visit www.pastelsocietyofthegoldcoast.org.

Founded in 1978, Camarillo Hospice is a volunteer hospice and grief counseling center dedicated to the dignity of life by providing care, comfort, support and counseling to individuals and families facing a life-limiting illness or grieving the loss of a loved one, as well as offering education on end-of-life care and planning to all. All services and programs are free of charge. For more information, please call 389-6870 or log onto www.camarillohospice.org.

The Lance Armstrong Foundation, also known as the Livestrong Foundation, has paved the way for more programs to be created for cancers victims and survivors. Promoting strength, health and positivity to cancer survivors in the local community, the Ventura Family YMCA’s Livestrong program is a prime example of this.

The main purpose of Livestrong at the Y is to “help adult cancer survivors reclaim their health and well-being following a cancer diagnosis.” The Y's wellness coaches are able to assist the participants through a 12-week program that includes physical conditioning to help decrease the amount of side effects resulting from chemotherapy. In turn, the exercise and nutrition training helps participants avoid weight changes that might not be desired after chemotherapy, and more. They also work on strength and physical conditioning, along with meditation practice. This gives them a sense of peace that may have been lost during the draining process of chemotherapy and even radiation. The Livestrong program also provides fellowship within the cancer community. Survivors now have a local place where they can gain strength and interact with others who understand what they are going through.

Kevin Illig saw a flyer about the Y’s Livestrong Program at the Community Memorial Hospital’s Cancer Center and decided to join. Since January of 2009 he has been battling Multiple Myeloma Gamma G cancer, which is similar to leukemia. The white and red blood cells don't work properly so the bones become weakened.

“The diagnosis was devastating because I was training as a senior lightweight amateur MMA fighter. I then began gaining weight and eventually fractured my T11 vertebrae after a fall. So when I saw the Y's advertisement, I said I got to try this. And it's working because I already lost 7 pounds!”

The effects of this program aren't just felt by the participants themselves. Lauren Polo-Esakoff is the Y's Livestrong Coordinator and runs the program with Kathleen Kennedy.

"I feel like my purpose in life is to help other people by sharing my knowledge on physical fitness," Lauren states. “It's just so much fun being able to show this group exercises and to see them improve and get excited about the benefits of exercise.” Kathleen further explains how this program not only helps with the physical pain but the emotional process that cancer survivors experience. Both she and Lauren are there to guide everyone at a level they are comfortable with.

“We are both certified and highly credentialed as personal trainers. However, to begin this program we had specific Livestrong training to learn about all types of cancer cases, many of which were extremely devastating to the body. In the first group we thought what did we get ourselves into?...but once we got going, we felt confident in our training with the support of CMH Cancer Center and the Montecito YMCA's Livestrong program, so all of the collaborations really helped us become a source of physical and emotional support for our group.” When asked how she feels now, Kathleen states, “It's amazing to be able to help people who are going through a myriad of physical and emotional pain because helping others is something I'm passionate about.”

The pacing in this program is key in helping each survivor feel comfortable. Marianne Cothern had a double mastectomy from stage 3 breast cancer. She has undergone 6 months of chemotherapy and 1 year of treatment. All of the radiation and lymphedema pain, really took a toll on her body, or as she explains, “I was out of shape, didn't work out for 1-year, and had a limited range of motion from the double mastectomy, so it was nice to become healthier with a group of people equally as uncomfortable as me."

Livestrong at the Y is a free12-week program. Survivors and their family members also receive memberships to the Y, which enables the entire family to remain active and healthy. If you would like to learn more about this program, please contact the Y’s LiveStrong Coordinator, Lauren Polo-Esakoff by email at Lauren.Polo-Esakoff@ciymca.org, stop in at the Y, or call 805.642.2131 ext. 28.

About the Y
The Y is one of the nation’s leading nonprofits strengthening communities through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. The Ventura Family YMCA serves over 20,000 individuals annually through facility memberships, before & after school childcare, day & resident camps, youth sports, swim lessons, teen programs, and many more healthy lifestyles and community enriching programs which nurture the potential of children and teens, improve the nation’s health and well-being, and provide opportunities to give back and support neighbors. Through its’ Open Doors program, the Y ensures that no one is ever turned away due to their inability to pay and facility memberships without contracts or join fees makes the Y accessible to all. The Ventura Family YMCA is located at 3760 Telegraph Rd., Ventura, CA 93003. Log on to ciymca.org/ventura.

http://www.livestrong.org/
http://www.ciymca.org/livestrong.html