Spindrift June 4, 2020
OPENING
Our latest ZOOM Meeting on May 28 was well attended, with 21 members in attendance, including Bechtel, Dufour, Fox, Kinton, Kruse, Lesley, Lashmett, Mitchell, Naughton, Nininger, Pauley, Robins, Romeo, Schapiro, Shlemon, Stewart, Summers, Swinney, Von Herzen, Wood, and Yeargain. Three special guests were in attendance from Someone Cares Soup Kitchen: Teri Hatleberg, President; Shannon Santos, Exec Director; & Dan Hamilton, Secretary/Treasurer.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Pres. Ken started off with a prayer that we be kept healthy and safe from the coronavirus; and Bill Bechtel followed with the flag salute….George Lesley reported that Bob Washer is feeling okay …Norm Von Herzen has had very recent contact with Wally Ziglar, and he is also been doing quite well….Please register for the upcoming online CA/NV Exchange Meeting on Saturday, June 27. There is no fee for attendance, and our very own Shirley Lashmett will be installed as President, so we need as many members as we can to sign up. Please fill out the form attached to this email or call President Ken.
PROGRAM
President-Elect George Lesley introduced the speakers from Someone Cares Soup Kitchen (SCSK) in Costa Mesa, to which our Club has recently donated. The first speaker was Teri Hatleberg, whose mother, Merle, founded the organization 33 years ago. Both her mom and dad were in the Air Force, and her dad was injured during WWII, spending 5 years in recovery at Walter Reed Hospital. Early on, Merle worked in the food industry, during which she developed a passion for feeding those in need. For an 11-year period, Merle saved over $100,000 via personal savings and private donations, culminating in the opening of the Soup Kitchen on 19th Street in Costa Mesa in 1986. Dan Hamilton, son of Bill Hamilton (who was instrumental in obtaining and developing the building where SCSK is located), commented that SCSK receives no funding from any governmental agency. Shannon Santos, the daughter of Teri, added that SCSK obtains support from the community, especially from restaurants and grocery stores, such as Trader Joe’s, Irvine Ranch Market, and Smart & Final.
EDITOR’S NOTES
A Personal Experience with COVID-19 Testing: About 2 weeks ago, I spiked a low-grade fever, with some minor intestinal symptoms, which lasted about 24 hours, and then things returned to normal. As this happened on a weekend, I contacted the emergency line at Hoag, who assessed my symptoms and advised that I call my internist on Monday morning, which I did. After another assessment over the phone, he advised that I come in for COVID-19 testing at his office that afternoon, which I did. When I walked into the building, I was escorted to a dedicated elevator by one of the nursing staff. My physician met me in one of the examining rooms in full regalia and directed me to lower my mask so that my nasal passages were exposed, but not my mouth. He inserted the nasal swab well into the upper nasal sinus to get the sample, a mildly uncomfortable but not a painful experience. Three days later, I was informed that the results of my test were negative. What did I learn? …A negative result indicates the absence of the virus at the point in time that the sampling occurs but if you test positive, you have been exposed!.….. If you are tested for Covid-19 because you have symptoms, you should assume that you are COVID-positive until you get the results. Therefore, if you have had exposure to others 7-14 days before your testing, you should contact them and give them a heads up…. If you test positive, the information is relayed to the Health Department, and all of your contacts will be tracked….The medical community is definitely taking this seriously: do not rely on “authoritative sources” other than the physicians who are dealing directly with this pandemic….social distancing and masks work, and us geezers will need to continue to practice these as well as avoidance as restrictions become more relaxed.
Be smart, be safe, and stay healthy!