"Blue Jeans for Newtown" Reaches Out to Sandy Hook Victims

The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut has shaken and saddened the entire country.

It’s also left many of us wanting to do something — anything — to help.

San Diego County’s Auditor/Controller Office has come up with a unique way to raise funds to send to the people of Newtown: a project they’ve dubbed “Blue Jeans for Newtown.”

For as little as $3 (or as much as each person would like to donate), Auditor/Controller employees can buy a one-day “blue jean” pass that will let employees dress a little more casual than usual, starting Dec. 20.

All of the money collected will be given to the United Way Sandy Hook School Support Fund, which was created to help parents and families bury the 20 children and six adults killed at Sandy Hook Elementary, and to provide other support to the Newtown community.

Sean Sander, director of revenue and recovery for the Auditor/Controller, and James Bryant, senior auditor and controller, came up with the blue-jean pass idea.

Sander also said that it was quickly and enthusiastically approved by Tracy Sandoval, the new Finance and General Government Group General Manager/Auditor-Controller, and other managers. Another co-worker created a design for blue-jean passes in short order, and Sander said employees are already lining up to donate and help.

“I think when this (Sandy Hook shooting) happened, it shocked everyone,” Sander said. “You can just tell it’s on people’s minds…whether you have kids yourself, or grandkids. It’s on people’s minds and people are thinking, ‘well, what can I do about it?’

“This is a collaborative effort to show our support for the victims,” Sander said.

County Offers $100 Credit for Employee Health Screenings

Get your blood pressure and other health basics checked and get an extra $100 in your paycheck.

That’s the deal the County is offering to employees through June 30, in an effort to encourage health and wellness. The County wants to ensure employees “know their numbers” relative to chronic diseases.

Dubbed the Employee Health & Wellness Incentive Program, employees have to complete the health screening, get their doctor’s signature and fill out a Health Risk Assessment to qualify. In addition to checking employees’ blood pressure, the screening will also measure cholesterol and glucose levels, height and weight. Any employee can participate and qualify for the incentive, regardless of their health care provider.

“We want to encourage people to be proactive about their health and give them an incentive to go to their doctor before a serious condition develops,” said William Erese, the County’s wellness coordinator.

The County is not seeking individual data on employees. Erese said employees should not send their results to Human Resources, which is running the program. Kaiser Permanente and Anthem Blue Cross will compile results they receive and send them to the County in the aggregate form. The County will use that data to get a better sense of which health issues employees as a whole are facing and therefore which health-related programs and activities to offer.

To get started, visit the Employee Health & Wellness Incentive Program web page to access instructions and a confirmation form for the program. Employees need to fill out that form to participate.

Employees need to complete the screening by visiting their doctor or one of the Kaiser Mobile Health Vehicles, which will be visiting County offices in March. Obtain a doctor’s signature on the confirmation form.

Employees also need to fill out a Health Risk Assessment (HRA) through their provider. Kaiser Permanente and Anthem Blue Cross assessments are available on each of their websites or through the County’s Employee Health& Wellness Incentive Program web page.

Employees who use other insurance carriers will also need to complete same the steps: completing the screening and filling out the confirmation form and Health Risk Assessment through their health insurance providers.

Employees should then send their confirmation form (with their doctor’s signature) to the Human Resources’ Employee Benefits Division by: 

•          Mail at 5530 Overland Ave., Suite 210, San Diego, CA 92123
•          Fax at 858-694-3938
•          Mail Stop O7
•          Email at DHRBenefits.FGG@sdcounty.ca.gov

For more information, visit the Employee Health & Wellness Incentive Program web page or call HR’s Employee Benefits Division at 858-550-2203.

Now that’s threading!

What does Public Works have to do with kitty cats? Well, nothing unless a road crew happens to hear some faint meowing. Then they are in the kitty cat rescue business!

Gaston Vidal and Glenn Millican from Public Works Station 14 don’t usually work a particular area of Jamul but several weeks ago they were out on Highway 94 at Peaceful Valley Road when they heard some plaintive meows. 

They tracked the sound to a storm drain and sure enough, there was a gray cat stuck inside about ten feet down. The crew called for reinforcements and Ashley Springfield of Animal Services responded to the scene. 

“This drain was a dangerous confined space with fumes, so I had to devise a plan to get the cat out of the drain safely,” said Springfield.          

Did I mention the sewer grate was on the 94 along with some busy traffic? No problem, Millican and Gaston set up some safety cones and removed the sewer grate. Now it was Springfield’s turn to work her magic.

She called the cat to her, but he was too scared to approach her. Maybe a little cat food might do the trick. Springfield dropped some down; the animal slowly came out of his hiding spot in the drain and began eating. Springfield continued talking to the cat softly and she managed to guide her catchpole down the hole, slip a cord around him and lift him to safety.

Amazingly enough, as she held him, he began to purr. And it didn’t stop even when the vet looked him over and found the cat was suffering from several fractures.

“During all of his vaccinations, all the poking and prodding, he still managed to be a love bug and purred the entire time,” said Springfield.

She also discovered he was microchipped. This little boy’s name was Zoom and he had disappeared five days earlier from his home 20 miles away. No one knows how he got to Jamul or what happened to him along the way.

Due to the high cost of his medical care, the owner decided to relinquish Zoom to Animal Services. The department used its Spirit Fund for animals with medical needs to pay for Zoom’s surgery.

Zoom is still recovering from his injuries but his future looks bright. His foster mom plans to adopt him as a Christmas gift for her two children.

Springfield couldn’t be happier.

“This is one of those calls that really touched me and reminded me yet again that I love what I do!" said Springfield. “This call from start to finish demonstrated a great cooperation between different departments in the County.”

A few faint meows, some good ears on the part of Public Works and soft words from an Animal Control Officer (OK, and a little kibble) and this little guy’s life was saved. Zoom is taking off again - well on his way to a happy home and warm lap land.     

Public Works employees and occasional cat rescuers Glenn Millican (left) and Gaston Vidal. 

County to Offer Free Yoga, Zumba Classes for Employees

You could soon be doing downward dogs, sidekicks and plank poses at the County.

The County’s Employee Wellness Program plans to offer free yoga and Zumba exercise classes for employees starting in mid- to late January. The classes will be part of a new, eight-week pilot program at the County Operations Center (COC).

Depending on employee turnout, classes could eventually be offered at additional County offices, such as the County Administration Center in downtown San Diego and the Public Health Services Complex on Rosecrans Street, said William Erese, the County’s wellness coordinator.

Classes will initially be taught at the COC from 5:30-6:30 p.m. on weekdays a few times a week. A minimum of 15 to 20 participants must sign up through LMS for each class. Each participant will need to fill out a waiver, which will be available through LMS. Anthem Blue Cross will provide the instructors. The exact location at the COC is being determined.

If you’re interested, keep posted for more information next month, Erese said. Human Resources plans to send an email announcement to all employees with more details. Look for that and visit the County’s Employee Wellness Program site too. Or you can contact Erese with questions at william.erese@sdcounty.ca.gov.

In the meantime, check out the COC’s Fitness Center located inside building 5530 at the COC campus in Kearny Mesa. Get ready to sweat! 

HHSA Eligibility Recognition Event Honors Outstanding Service

 (Click on image to view larger) Twenty HHSA employees were honored at the annual Eligibilty Recognition Event. The ceremony recognizes outstanding service by staff members who administer programs such as CalFresh, Medi-Cal, Welfare-to-Work and General Relief.

For staff members who work in the Health and Human Services Agency’s (HHSA’s) Self-Sufficiency Programs, coming to work each day means the chance to help families put food on the table, access health care or put a roof over their heads.

Eligibility staff members administer programs such as CalFresh, Medi-Cal, Welfare-to-Work and General Relief that provide key support for individuals and families in need. This is no small task. Over the past fiscal year, HHSA staff determined eligibility on more than 300,000 new applications and recertified over 290,000 existing cases across the Self-Sufficiency Programs. The ACCESS Call Center answered more than 450,000 customer calls.

The hard work done to serve County residents is not going unnoticed. Last week, 20 eligibility workers and 5 offices were recognized for outstanding service during HHSA’s annual Eligibility Recognition Event. In addition, one staff member and one office were honored in a separate event by the San Diego Hunger Coalition and the CalFresh Task Force for outstanding efforts to work collaboratively with community-based organizations to serve residents.

“These staff members know better than anyone that behind every application they process there is a family in need,” said County Chief Administrative Officer Helen Robbins-Meyer, who addressed award recipients at the HHSA recognition event. “They should be proud of the work they are doing, because it is making a real difference in the lives of residents.”

Eligibility staff members were recognized in one of four categories: Innovator Awards, Outstanding Newcomer, Outstanding Service to the Community, and STAR (Service, Teamwork, Attitude, Reliability) Awards. Offices were recognized for performance excellence.

“The work eligibility staff does directly supports Live Well, San Diego!” said HHSA Director Nick Macchione. “For the residents we serve through these programs, these staff members are a critical link to accessing health care, purchasing healthy food, and building skills to achieve self-sufficiency.”

The San Diego Hunger Coalition and the CalFresh Task Force recently recognized Kris Call and Carolyn Martinez-Kidd from the North Coastal Family Resource Center as CalFresh County Liaisons of the Year. The South Region Family Resource Center was named CalFresh Community & County Partnership of the Year for its work with the Chula Vista Community Collaborative.

Eligibility Recognition Event Honorees

Innovator Awards

Cicely Suarez                       Lemon Grove Family Resource Center

Manual Casteneda              Eligibility Operations

Liliana Rucobo                     South Region Family Resource Center

Isis Zepeda                         North Coastal Family Resource Center

Outstanding Newcomer

Sabrena Wolf                      North Central Family Resource Center

Claudia Perez                     South Region Family Resource Center

Katherine Montano             North Inland Family Resource Center

Outstanding Service to the Community

Diana Zepeda                       Health Coverage Access

Diana Martinez                     North Inland Family Resource Center

Dao Thai                               ACCESS Customer Service Center

Carmen Lopez                      Eligibility Operations

STAR Award (Service, Teamwork, Attitude, Reliability)

Jennifer Cullum                El Cajon Family Resource Center

Jasmine Gilham                Northeast Family Resource Center

Jaime Mendez                  Southeast Family Resource Center

Jeanette Munoz               North Inland Family Resource Center

Ernesto Riedel                 Southeast Family Resource Center

Lisa Han                           Lemon Grove Family Resource Center

Ruth Lackovic                   North Coastal Family Resource Center

Janet Fonseca                  South Region Family Resource Center

John Peterson                  Facilities

Group Awards

North Coastal Family Resource Center (Overall Operational Excellence Winner)

Southeast Family Resource Center

El Cajon Family Resource Center

North Inland Family Resource Center

North Central Family Resource Center

Centre City Family Resource Center

Metro Family Resource Center

Employee's Original Painting Helps Stock Food Pantry

Duc Bui, left, was the winner of the original painting by Christina Volz. The painting helped employees raise more than $440 for the North Central Family Resource Center's food pantry.

When it comes to raising money to stock the food pantry at the Health and Human Services Agency’s North Central Family Resource Center, employee innovation and talent is the key.

The food pantry is an emergency option that employees tap into to help clients that either have a delay in getting benefits or a determination of eligibility cannot be made right away.

“It’s a resource we use to give them something until they can access their benefits or other community services,” said Susan Gengor, a supervising human service specialist who oversees the food pantry. “It’s used to provide for someone who would otherwise go hungry that day.

“It’s about giving a hand to your fellow man and woman.”

The pantry is stocked entirely by donations of food and money from employees of the resource center and the public health center housed in the same facility on Ruffin Road.

“We use their time, talent or cash and make the most of it,” said Gengor.

Employees have done a variety of fundraisers over the years. They have sold homemade egg rolls, had drawings for hand-made afghans, sold fast food coupon books and auctioned off a variety of gift baskets.

The most recent fundraiser was a drawing for a painting done by employee Christina Volz. The painting, called ‘Monarch,’ helped raise more than $440.

“I just took up painting a few years ago in night school,” she said. “I did a painting and brought it in to work and people liked it.

 “I’m still learning, but I just finished the one I donated and my teacher thought it would be a good one to donate.”

Volz, who used to oversee the food pantry and has remained heavily involved, said the need is always there and she was glad to offer up an original painting.

“I know some of our clients really need help and I just wanted to do a fundraiser to help out,” Volz said. “I used to do client intake and I know the need is there and it’s important to help people out.” 

HHSA Employee Gets Speeders to Stop...Literally

The speed limit is 25 miles per hour, but vehicles used to whiz by at much higher speeds, putting pedestrians and pets in danger. Not anymore.

Two stop signs have been placed on Central Ave. at the intersection with Dwight Street in City Heights and Lourdes Sandoval couldn’t be happier. Her community is now safe and it is also easier for people to walk in their neighborhood.

“I’ve lived here all my life,” said Sandoval, who has worked as a social service aide for the County Health and Human Services Agency for almost 13 years. “They are more than stop signs. They’ve helped me understand that I have a voice in what goes on in my community.”

Sandoval, who lives four houses away from the intersection, got together with leaders of some local community organizations and Cherokee Point Elementary School to get the stop signs placed at the busy intersection, which she said has been the site of many collisions between pedestrians and vehicles.  Drivers also raced down the street on weekends.

“A lot of kids walk to school; elderly people ride their electric wheel chairs in the area, but the drivers did not care who was in the way,” said Sandoval.

She has witnessed the deaths of motorcyclist and a pedestrian along Central Ave., a wide street with no stop signs in an eight-block distance until the two new ones were installed recently. They had petitioned for speed bumps, but they were rejected because of the high number of cars travelling through the area.

Sandoval’s neighbor also got hit by a car when trying to aid a dog that had been run over. It’s been almost one year since the accident and she is barely starting to walk again.

The stops signs, Sandoval said, not only make her community safer but also make it easier for people to walk and be more physically active, a goal of the County’s Live Well, San Diego! initiative.

“It fits in with what Live Well hopes to accomplish,” said Sandoval, who, in spite of a bad hip, goes out for walks with her mother, who lives across the street.

The racing has almost stopped and the noise has decreased. She hopes two more stop signs they have requested will make the area safer.

 “Children used to dart across the street to avoid getting hit. Now they can walk. People can walk more safely,” she said.

County Employees Grow ‘Staches, Raise Cash for Men’s Health

Team Noblest MOtive included (back row, left to right) Tim McClain, Bob Spanbauer, Jeff Collins, Luis Monteagudo, Sterling McHale and Dustin Steiner. (Front row, left to right) Josh Ramirez, Daniel Melgoza, Greg Murphy and Chris Champine. Here they pose with a photo of the ultimate mustachioed man, Tom Selleck pictured acting in the '80s TV show Magnum PI.

They got weird looks and lots of questions. Sometimes, people just flat out laughed at them.  

Fortunately, the experiment in humiliation came to an end last week. That’s when a group of brave, mustachioed County employees shaved off their facial hair after a month of letting it grow. They had accomplished their goal: raising awareness and funding for men’s health by sprouting “mo’s” or mustaches during the month of November. The effort was organized through the international nonprofit Movember.

In all, the mustache-growing team, made up mostly of Board of Supervisors staffers, raised $5,566. That total surpassed “any of our expectations,” said Dustin Steiner, chief of staff for Supervisor Bill Horn and a team member.

The funding will go toward prostate and testicular cancer initiatives organized through Movember and its partners, the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the LIVESTRONG Foundation.

Another group of County employees, made up mostly of Office of Emergency Services (OES) staffers, also grew out mustaches for a good cause last month: to raise money for the San Diego County Employees’ Charitable Organization (CECO). Mike Davis, a senior emergency services coordinator for OES, organized the effort, dubbed CECOvember. Modeled after Movember, eight employees also refrained from shaving their upper lips last month. Davis expected the group to raise about $300.

Movember got its start in Australia in 2003 with “two guys who wanted to bring back a past fashion trend – the (mustache),” according to its website. Its US presence has grown tremendously in recent years. In 2007, Movember’s first year in this country, 2,127 participants raised over $740,000. By last year, more than 850,000 people participated in the US, raising more than $126 million. This year, 21 countries hosted official Movember campaigns.

Here at the County, a 23-member team called “Team Noblest MOtive” tracked their progress on a web page. Group members didn’t take themselves too seriously, though. Someone put up a photo of the mustache-wearing movie character Ron Burgundy, played by Will Farrell, in the 2004 movie Anchorman. Team members held up a photo of Tom Selleck’s character in the ‘80s TV show Magnum PI in a group shot, as though he was their mustache-growing idol.

The team’s top fundraiser and recruiter was Jeff Collins, Chief of Staff for Supervisor Dianne Jacob.

“I was the muscle,” he joked.

Collins said he knew from the start that the hair in his mustache may not be as abundant as in others'. He used that prediction to encourage others to join, telling them, in effect, don’t worry, my mustache will be the worst.

“I raised the most amount of cash and had the least amount of ‘stache,” Collins said, laughing.

Bob Spanbauer, a legislative assistant in Supervisor Dianne Jacob’s office, spearheaded the effort, after taking part last year. He said the first week was the most awkward.

“Most people had to do a lot of explaining,” he said. After that, it got easier.

Because the movement has gained so much momentum in recent years, some people knew what the mustaches were about right away. Other times, team members explained the backstory. Either way, they said they got support and thanks.

For Steiner, the transition to a mustache was especially dramatic. Steiner had a goatee for 12 years prior to this. But he had to say goodbye to it and start the month off “clean shaven,” as required under Movember’s rules.

It was a “huge change,” he said.

To raise funds, team members sent emails, made calls and asked nearly everyone they knew to donate. Sometimes they included photos in the emails showing their progress.

Collins said Supervisor Jacob asked him to send her a photo of his budding mustache.

“She said she would donate at some point but that she couldn’t stop laughing,” he said.

Certified Legal Intern Honored as Volunteer of the Month

Michael Hernandez is one of the lucky ones. He has an internship at the San Diego County Public Defender’s office where he not only gets to learn about the law but also practice it in front of a judge and jury.

On Tuesday, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors honored Hernandez as a Volunteer of the Month for volunteering more than 1,200 hours in 16 months for that office.  

“He’s put in more hours than any other volunteer in the office,” said David Lamb, volunteer coordinator for the Public Defender’s Office. “He’s very rapidly becoming one of our finest interns.”

Hernandez, 25, who is in his last year at the California Western School of Law, has worked as a certified legal intern for 16 months and finds inspiration among the public defenders.

“I think criminal defense attorneys are the most warmhearted people,” Hernandez said.

The public defenders are trying to help people accused of a crime who don’t have the means to hire a private attorney.  Despite this, public defenders often get a bad name among the public who think they are only trying to free criminals.

Hernandez said public defenders are in fact helping the less fortunate and making sure their rights are defended. That’s what drew him to his career path.

It is rare for certified legal interns to have an opportunity to speak in court, but San Diego County is one of those governments that permit it under supervision. He has spoken in court and even argued motions for various cases.

In the spring, he worked between 20-30 hours each week at the juvenile court in Kearny Mesa.  This summer, he worked more than 40 hours a week downtown as part of the misdemeanor unit. Now, he is working felony court cases downtown for 16-20 hours a week.

Hernandez said he knows people depend on him doing a thorough and good job.

“I’ve had some cases where I go home at night and I think about how to write a better motion,” Hernandez said. “I just do everything I can to help the attorney I’m working with or help the client.”

Ring and Run – A Childhood Prank or a Blessing?

Ever answer the doorbell and find no one outside? Rotten kids! But what if you answered the doorbell, and found presents outside? Lots and lots of presents when you had no idea how you could afford the holidays this year. The work of Santa? No, kids! Wonderful kids!

The youngsters who rang the doorbell and quickly ran off giggling, pushing and shoving to get away from the door aren’t real pranksters. The teenagers are from the leadership groups at the Spring Valley and Lakeside Teen Centers. Their Ring and Run program (see 2010 video below) is now in its 12^th year and they’re asking for our help in making the holidays brighter for another six families this year, three in Spring Valley and three in Lakeside. Combined, those low-income families include 15 to 20 children.

Being kids, the eighth to 12^th graders know how important the holidays are to other kids. That’s why they’re asking for new unwrapped gifts for children of all ages and donations for a festive holiday meal.

The families were all chosen by third party referrals from local school counseling offices or groups such as the Youth and Family Coalition, San Diego Youth and Family Services, Lakeside Community Collaborative and others. The families are documented as being in financial need and are not being served through other outreach projects. Over the years, the program has served more than 70 families including more than 200 children. The teens don’t know the families and don’t get any recognition; any prize, card, thank you or reward.

The donations are a boon to the needy families, but the youngsters in the leadership program get something out of it too and it’s not what you think. Yes, it’s fun to ring and run, and there’s that warm, fuzzy feeling from helping others, but there’s more to this story.

“The idea is to teach them about civic responsibility, to give them leadership skills to help them succeed in the future and show them a way to give back to the community,” said Lakeside REC Club Recreation Program Coordinator Ryan Flickinger.

The leadership groups meet on a weekly basis for team building exercises and community service projects. The teens volunteer at community events, take part in tree-planting projects and conduct canned food drives. Flickinger says the goal is to keep them busy during the critical hours after school when kids have the highest tendency to get into trouble.

This home away from home prompts the youngsters to stay in the program year after year.  “Most of our leadership kids graduate from high school and move on to college,” said Flickinger. “We help with resume building and college applications, giving them the next steps for when they disconnect from parents and schools.”

But not disconnect completely. For example, twin brothers who started going to the Lakeside Teen Center in sixth grade joined the teen leadership group, went on to be valedictorians at El Capitan High School and now attend USD as freshmen. The brothers moved on, yet they still keep in touch. 

Ring and Run draws kids in to begin with but then they become more than after-school participants. They learn to think outside the box, interact with the community and succeed in school. The youngsters grow up and see the importance of becoming educated, caring and responsible adults. 

And all this starts with a childhood prank; a chance to ring and run!

If you’d like to help the teens in their campaign to help needy families, here’s what is needed:

• Cash, checks or gift cards
• Frozen hams or turkeys
• Boxed mashed potatoes
• Gravy packets
• Stuffing
• Canned food
• Dinner Rolls
• Unwrapped new gifts for children of all ages

Items can be dropped off at the Spring Valley Teen Center at 838 Kempton Street in Spring Valley, the Lakeside Teen Center at 9911 Vine Street in Lakeside or Parks and Recreation headquarters at 5500 Overland Ave., Suite 410 in Kearny Mesa. Donations must be received by December 21 so they can be delivered the next evening. For more information, call (858) 966-1308.