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JULY 2017 • DANVILLE TODAY NEWS • PAGE 1
JULY 2017
CURING CHILDHOOD CANCER CAN’T WAIT: JUMP WITH GRANDMA BEE
By Jody Morgan
On Saturday, July 22, Rebecca Byrom is holding a fundraiser – Jump with Grandma Bee – in honor of her youngest grandson, Alex McLin. In recognition of the courage he has shown in battling cancer, Alex’s grandmother is mustering all of her own courage to focus attention on the immediate need to fight pediatric cancers with funding for research. Donations in support of her daring decision to dive from a plane to heighten awareness of childhood cancer will go directly Alex McLin and Grandma Bee (photo to Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foun- courtesy of Rebecca Byrom) dation. “Grandma Bee” will be jumping with the guidance of the Patriot Parachute Team (former Navy Seals) during Sky Dive San Diego. Since being diagnosed last year with osteosarcoma, a rare bone cancer, at age 11, McLin has endured nine months of grueling chemotherapy as well as extensive surgery on his left leg. His latest scan is clear, but he still
See Jump continued on page 19
MEET ARTIST THAIS HELENA
By Linda Summers Pirkle
“I’ve always loved words,” says Thais Helena, Brazilian born local artist. She turns heads as she walks into a room with her thick, wavy hair piled on her head, sporting a bright mustard colored scarf and dangling earrings. “Now this love of writing has transformed to another vehicle of expression in which I use not just words, but images, shapes, shades, textures, color, and quotes. I create both mixed media and abstract art.” In her lightly accented English, Thais Helena peppers her phrases with “How do you say in English?” and shares her thoughts on beauty, art, and her journey from a career as an attorney in Brazil to an artist in California. She uses her many talents to weave inspirational words and three dimensional art to honor the “boldly beautiful” -- women who are not perfect. “Beauty is the opposite
See Thais continued on page 7
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SENIOR CENTER WITHOUT WALLS
By Linda Summers Pirkle
The kitchen wall phone of yesteryear (usually in a pastel blue, sunny yellow, or white) allowed the user to cradle it under her chin, stir the contents of a bowl, and wipe down the counter to the distance that corresponded with the farthest reach of the extra-long cord, all the while chatting with a best friend. Do you remember when dialing the telephone was one of the quickest and easiest ways to reach out to friends and colleagues? With all the forms of technology available today including email, texting, Facebook, Snapchat, Skype, G-chat etc., the old fashioned telephone is oftentimes overlooked as a technology of its own. However, since 2004, hundreds of seniors, many of whom are from the
SCWW staff photo, from left to right: Amber Carroll, Director, Patt Schroeder, Program Specialist, Jeff Cheung, Administrative Coordinator, Katie Wade, Program Manager
generation who prefer to use old school tech, take part in Senior Center Without Walls, an award-winning program offering activities, education, friendly conversation, and an assortment of classes, support groups, and presentations, all by real time group telephone calls. Based in San Francisco, Senior Center Without Walls (SCWW) is a subsidiary
See Senior continued on page 18
FRANK LEACH: MAN OF ACTION, MAN OF WORDS
By Jody Morgan
Frank Aleamon Leach is best remembered for saving the San Francisco Mint from impending destruction during the conflagration that followed the 1906 Earthquake and immediately stabilizing San Francisco’s financial community. Once he finally managed to retire, Leach enjoyed exploring Mount Diablo as a charter member of the Mount Diablo Park Club and writing articles for the Oakland Tribune concerning his observations. His autobiography, Recollections of a Newspaperman: A Record of Life and Events in California, ends with his Volume VIII - Number 9 return from Washington, DC to Oakland, CA in 1909. 3000F Danville Blvd. #117, Alamo, CA 94507 His delight in Diablo’s natural bounty continued until (925) 405-6397 his death in 1929. Fax (925) 406-0547 Born in Auburn, New York on August 19, 1846, Frank Leach traveled with his mother by steamer in Alisa Corstorphine ~ Publisher editor@ 1852 to join his father who had made the trip yourmonthlypaper.com almost two years in advance of their journey. His first experience with a major urban fire occurred The opinions expressed herein belong the writers, and do not necessarily that December in Sacramento and was followed toreflect that of Danville Today News. Danville Today News is not by a flood that littered the roads with furniture responsible for the content of any of and personal effects. Subsequent experiences the advertising herein, nor does
See Leach cont. on page 12
publication imply endorsement.