April 30, 2015 Page 3 Hawthorne Happenings News for the ‘City of Good Neighbors’ From City Clerk Norb Huber 5K RUN AND HAWTHORNE HEALTH FAIR – SATURDAY MAY 9 The Hawthorne Education Foundation’s Health Fair and 5K Run allows hundreds of kids from our local schools the opportunity to participate in a health promoting event. The event will be held on Saturday, May 9th this year. The kids and their parents run or walk in the 5K event early in the morning and then the health fair has many booths that are set up at the Memorial Park distributing health information to those in attendance. There are a lot of “freebies” given out to promote healthy lifestyles. I’ll see you at the starting line for the 5K run. I will be in the 60+ age group. 9K COMMUNITY DINNER – THURSDAY MAY 21 The Hawthorne Police Department uses every means available to them to protect and serve us. We have a great helicopter above, we have new squad cars racing to respond to 911 emergency calls, we have the latest in technology to fight the bad guys. But, one of the most valuable weapons at the disposal of our team are the K9 dogs who are highly trained to search and seek out suspects hiding, or they may find evidence of a crime. Each year the Presidents’ Council of Hawthorne sponsors a community chicken dinner to raise funds in support of the HPD K9 program. Over the year, thousands of dollars have been raised to keep the program going. It is one of the best police/community events held in our city annually. This year the dinner will be held on Thursday, May 21 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the Memorial Center. Tickets are $5 and only $2.50 for children. There is a big raffle and the dogs are there to meet the community. Make plans to support our Hawthorne Police Department by attending. WORRY, WORRY, WORRY We have a lot to worry about. The newspaper or television brings us much to get anxious about. Here are just a few: It’s not “if” but “when” the “Big One” hit Southern California, the riots in Baltimore remind us of our past and how quickly it could happen again here, our drought could last for many years and our water could be rationed. Cancer is all around us. We hear of friends being diagnosed with the disease. With all of this to worry about, we get stressed out with our day to day worries. Some times we just want to move to an isolated place and hide from it all. Through all of this stuff, I believe that there is a supreme being that is in charge of things. It’s not that we don’t prepare and try to prevent bad things from happening, but bad things do happen and bad things happen to good people. After doing our best to be prepared, we should relax and rely on God to take care of the big things. Worry really doesn’t help us too much. It only brings more anxiety. The best advice is to kick back, have a cold one and watch the Dodgers, if you have Time Warner. 23 YEARS AGO The looting and violence in Baltimore this week reminded many of us of the Rodney King Riots that took place this very week 23 years ago. On the morning of May 1, 1992 I was awoken by a phone call from then city Planning Director, Mike Goodson, informing me that the Lutheran High School’s Thrift Shop located at the corner of 132nd and Prairie Avenue had been fire bombed the night before and it was pretty well destroyed. Since I was the principal of LHS, I kind of had a stake in the wellbeing of the store since it supplied us with much needed income. Our shop was the only building in Hawthorne to be totally destroyed in the violence. My neighbor and I drove over to sift through the ashes of what was left of the crowded store that had wall to wall clothing and other very flammable items. All that was left were the outside block walls of the building. We were blessed to find another building two blocks north on Prairie and we had our shop back open by mid-summer. This week’s riots just reminded us of how quickly things can happen and change for a model city like Baltimore and it certainly can happen any where, including Hawthorne. COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS Contact me at: norbhuber@gmail.com or call me at 310-292-6714. • Seniors Early Planning Before Alzheimer’s Strikes By R. Christine Brown You never know what the future holds, so early planning for late-in-life health issues is essential. For instance, you may notice that a loved one seems more disorganized than usual. Bills may pile up. The loved one may have difficulty remembering names and fumble for the right words. See a doctor if there are concerns. Alzheimer’s and most forms of dementia are progressive. This means it will get worse over a few years. Even before a diagnosis, it is important for people to discuss with their families how they would like to be helped. This includes who will be the primary caregiver and who will help with finances. According to a recent USA TODAY article, titled “Financial planning for dementia,” a person with dementia often feels insecure that he or she will lose control and everyone else will tell him what to do, but conversations can help a person feel more independent and help families avoid misunderstandings. Everyone should have a will, power of attorney and medical directive, and some find it helpful to have revocable living trust. Without these documents, a court may be required to appoint someone. This can be expensive, frustrating, and time-consuming. In the course of the disease, a person may need help with a few acts of daily living and may have trouble communicating. At this point, someone else should take care of all financial matters, and it might be time to look at assisted living as the next step. Healthcare costs for dementia patients can be substantial. It is very important to provide for the financial security of a healthy spouse. That is why it is a good idea to speak to an elder law attorney—he or she may be able to help a family protect some (or even most) assets and income for the healthy spouse. You should also consider the financial challenges associated with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, which can be substantial. Also, the choices for care can be overwhelming. An elder law attorney is a helpful resource to help you and your families manage costs and find the right care for your parent or relative. Please visit our website for information on elder law and estate planning issues, and sign up for our free monthly e-newsletter. The archive on our website contains numerous blog posts on these legal areas as well. You can also “friend” us on Facebook (R Christine Brown) to receive periodic posts on elder law issues. •
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