Rhythm on the Vine-Line Up

“Rhythm on the Vine” Wine and Music Festival Features Stellar Jazz
Line-up for Upcoming Benefit Event


Los Angeles, CA – May5, 2008 – Shriners Hospitals for Children in Los Angeles is proud to announce a stellar line-up of legendary jazz artists to headline The “Rhythm on the Vine” wine and music festival to be held on June 14th at the South Coast Winery in Temecula, California. The all day festival will feature:

Herbie Hancock: 2008 Grammy Award Winner for Best Album of the Year, Herbie Hancock is a true icon of modern music. With an illustrious career spanning five decades, he continues to amaze audiences and never ceases to expand the public's vision of what music, particularly jazz, is all about today.

Jim Brickman: A musician who has revolutionized the sound of Adult Contemporary music with his pop-style solo piano and the romantic popular song. Jim’s remarkable career includes six Gold and Platinum selling albums, three #1 and twelve Top 10 Adult Contemporary radio hits and a Grammy nomination in 2003.

Kirk Whalum: From his beginnings in Memphis, where he played in his father's church choir, noted saxophonist Kirk Whalum draws inspiration from the rich musical traditions of that city, including gospel, R&B, blues, and eventually jazz. His self-produced album, Hymns in the Garden, earned him a second Grammy nomination.

Sheila E. & The E. Family featuring Pete Escovedo, Juan Escovedo & Peter Michael Escovedo: The Escovedo Family is one of the most versatile musical families worldwide. Today, with the collaboration with daughter Sheila E., the Escovedo Family leads one of the top orchestra’s in the country, performing their own unique brand of Latin jazz.

The “Rhythm on the Vine” festival will be the premier entertainment event of the summer of 2008. 100% of all proceeds raised at the event will go directly to help support the Shriners Hospitals for Children in Los Angeles. Additional details are available at www.rhythmonthevine.org.

Shrine Awarness Day

SHRINE AWARENESS DAY
June 6th

"Ask not what Shrinedom can do for you;
ask what you can do for Shrinedom."

What will it be? An open house? Ceremonial…family picnic…media day? Hand out brochures? Wear the Shrine logo? What will you do to promote your fraternity on Shrine Awareness Day?


The Membership Development Team is dedicated to providing Temple Officers and Nobles the resources they need to attract new members as well as retain current members. Shriners must relate to the individual member and provide for his needs: the benefits he expected when joining, the satisfaction he receives from involvement and the rights he has as a member. To do so is the key to membership development.

We are here to support you in any way we can and encourage your feedback. If you have comments, questions or ideas, please contact the Membership Development team at membership@shrinenet.org

Don't be late

Check out this You Tube video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgBPAF6MTCs

Shriners Expanding Charitable Reach

A $73 million upgrade will help bring in kids from other regions
By Craig Gima cgima@starbulletin.com

Once a $73 million upgrade of the Shriners Hospital for Children is completed in two years, more children, like Sithan Leam, from developing countries will be coming to Honolulu for free treatment, said Stan Berry, hospital administrator.

The new facility will have the latest medical technology and be about 40 percent larger, including a second floor. Outpatient clinic space will be expanded, and there will be 10 apartments where families of patients can stay during treatment.

Even though the number of hospital beds will go down to 25 from 40, they will be able to serve more patients, Berry said. Modern treatment requires shorter hospital stays and more outpatient visits, he said.

Since the Shriners Hospital for Children opened in Honolulu in 1923 -- the second of 22 hospitals in the system -- 25,517 children from more than 30 countries have been treated here.

About 80 percent of the children are from Hawaii. But Berry said greater access to prenatal care means the number of children here with birth defects or who are in need of the hospital's services is declining.

The hospital offers regular clinics and outreach in Guam, Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and American Samoa.

Berry believes that a natural outgrowth would be to expand its search for kids who need help to developing countries like the Philippines and even Cambodia, where modern medical care is not readily available.

Because of Hawaii's multiethnic population, "we can bring more kids here, and they'll fit culturally," Berry said.

Shriners is putting up $59 million for the hospital expansion, and the hospital is about two-thirds of the way toward its current fundraising goal for an additional $14 million.

The hospital and its $16 million annual budget is supported by the Shriners foundation endowment, and children are treated at no charge to the patient.

"There's a whole care system that supports these kids," Berry said, noting that in addition to doctors, nurses and physical therapists, the hospital also has teachers, counselors who also make sure the children are being taken care of both inside and outside the facility, and even staffers who organize entertainment and excursions for the children.

Shriners Hospital
Since Shriners Hospital for Children in Honolulu was founded in 1923, it has treated about 25,000 children, with 80 percent from Hawaii and the rest from the mainland and more than 30 countries. Here is a breakdown of where many of the children have come from:

Hawaii 20,644
Guam 1,256
Micronesia 708
American Samoa 608
Samoa 417
Fiji 440
Saipan 428
Marshall Islands 283
Korea 166
Palau 130
Japan/Okinawa 90
Tonga 78
Rota 57
Philippines 42
Tinian 41
Vietnam 39
Taiwan 18
U.S. mainland 18
Tahiti 9
Kiribati 6
Afghanistan 5
China 4
Pakistan 4
Cambodia 3
Australia 3
Indonesia 3
Bangladesh 3

NorCal Shriners Hospital for Children Help

By SUE NOWICKI
snowicki@modbee.com


The petite girl in the Modesto Junior College music-appreciation class looks like everyone else in the auditorium -- wearing blue jeans and sneakers, taking notes, exchanging grins with a friend.

Then the dismissal bell rings and she pulls a nearby wheelchair up to her seat so it is facing her. She almost falls because it's tough trying to turn 180 degrees when your legs are paralyzed. But her determination and upper body strength save her at the last minute, and Michelle Dalrymple is rolling out the door, looking up to chat with a classmate.

The 18-year-old does a lot of looking up these days, ever since the bizarre accident that left a bullet lodged in her spine.

"It's given me a completely different perspective on life," she said. "I used to be short and looked up to people, but now I'm really short. I know what it's like to lose a lot. I know what's it like to not know if you're going to live or die. It scares you. Then after everything happened, it made me value life more."

The "everything" that happened was the day in August 2006 when she was a Modesto beauty college student between her junior and senior years at Big Valley Christian High School. She was learning how to be a hairstylist to help pay for college.

"I thought it would be a fun job," she said.

The students were on a break and sitting in a circle talking about their weekend plans. Another student, Mick Rubalcava, had come back inside from a smoking break and sat in a chair behind Michelle. Rubalcava, a 23-year-old off-duty security officer, had a 9 mm handgun in his backpack. The gun discharged when he put the pack on the floor; the bullet went through Michelle's plastic chair, hit her backbone and traveled up along it, severing her spinal cord.

Rubalcava pleaded guilty to one felony and two misdemeanors in the case and was sentenced to 270 days. With credits for good behavior and jail overcrowding, he served about six months in the county jail in 2007.

Unless a miracle occurs, Michelle will spend the rest of her life as a paraplegic. She believes in the message of Easter, believes she'll walk again in heaven. But in a split-second, her earthly life changed totally.

Growing up

Michelle is the youngest of three children in the Dalrymple family. Her dad, Terry, and mom, Jeannie, were missionaries in the Philippines when Michelle was born. Terry now is the international coordinator with Modesto-based LifeWind International, a nonprofit organization that helps communities in impoverished countries.

Michelle's mom is a registered nurse at Doctors Medical Center. Tim, Michelle's 24-year-old brother, is on staff at Big Valley Grace Community Church. Her sister, Karen, 21, works in the banking industry in Modesto.

Talk to any of them and a picture of an energetic Michelle emerges.

"Being the youngest, she was always the scrapper," recalled Jeannie. "We called her the Energizer bunny."

That early love of activity continued into her teens. She jogged regularly and played volleyball and basketball at Big Valley Christian High School. She also loved soccer.

"From a father's perspective, she was doing everything right," Terry said. "She was studying hard in school. She was active in sports. She had a good group of friends. ... She was very active with the youth group. She gave her Easter vacations every year to go to Mexico and serve the needs of people down there."

He also appreciated the way she was thinking ahead.

"She knew that we didn't have a lot of money and she'd need to support herself through college, so she was taking the cosmetology course," he said. "I was just delighted to see she had vision and determination and plans, and was very happy at the direction her life was moving."

The direction, of course, veered sharply after the accident.

Unforgettable day

Karen was the first family member to get a call saying her sister had been hurt. She drove to the beauty college, thinking Michelle might have suffered a chemical burn.

"I can't even imagine what it was like for her," Michelle said. "She walked into the room and saw me on the floor with blood."

Michelle's mother, ironically, was in a trauma nursing class about gunshot wounds. When Karen told her mom to go to Doctors' emergency room, Jeannie also assumed Michelle perhaps had a chemical burn on her hand.

"Four months prior, I had transferred to the neurology unit, where we deal with kids in car accidents and young people who are victims," Jeannie said. "I asked my charge nurse, 'How do you deal with it?'

"In retrospect, I see God's hand in all of this, even in moving me to the neurology unit that deals with spinal cord injuries. Michelle was brought not only to my hospital, but to my colleagues."

Meanwhile, Terry was in Southern California, waiting to speak at a medical missions seminar.

"Someone came to the side of the stage. ... I was told there was a phone call I needed to take. I went outside in the hall and took it. It was Jeannie. She told me, 'You need to sit down. You need to have people around you.' I told her, 'I can't sit down. I don't see anyone around me. Just tell me.' She said, 'Michelle has been shot. You need to come home.' "

The next thing Terry remembers is being in someone's arms, surrounded by others who prayed for Michelle and the family. A colleague drove him back to Modesto. On the way, Terry received numerous calls with conflicting information. When the two stopped for gas in Fresno, Terry finally talked with the family's doctor and learned the truth: The bullet had severed Michelle's spinal cord and she likely would be paralyzed for life.

The Dalrymples' pastor, Rick Countryman of Big Valley Grace Community Church, was one of the first to arrive at the hospital.

"When I first heard about it, to say that my heart was broken would be the understatement of the year," he said. "I began to weep; I just cried. I was broken for them."

Yet even in the midst of the crushing news, the Dalrymples said they knew God was present. One of Jeannie's colleagues pointed the family to the Shriners hospital in Sacramento that has a rehabilitation unit for spinal cord injuries. "Michelle was injured on a Friday and in Shriners on Tuesday," Jeannie said.

Michelle spent more than two months there learning how to live without the use of her legs, receiving initial physical therapy and hearing about special dietary needs, such as extra protein, needed to maintain muscle mass in her legs and prevent pressure sores.

"I don't like peanut butter anymore," she said. "They gave tons and tons of it to me there."

While she was at Shriners, many people in the community -- especially those from their church -- helped remodel the Dalrymples' home. They elevated a step-down living room to put the house on one level, widened doorways and replaced rugs with tile. They expanded the kitchen, adding lower counters so Michelle could prepare food. They tore out walls, installed a roll-in shower, changed her bedroom and did lots of other work, donating much of the material.

Church folks drove Michelle's friends and classmates to Sacramento each day to keep her encouraged and in touch.

"I don't know where I would have seen the hand of God if not in the people of God," Terry said. "The church really mobilized and stepped in."

He doesn't like to talk about finances, but did admit, "It has impacted us financially." He said during a 2006 court hearing that the house remodeling, beyond all the donations, cost the family $40,000, and that lifelong care for a disabled person is more than $1 million.

"One of my biggest concerns is that Michelle is adequately provided for as she goes forward. In the words of a friend who's been disabled for a long time, it's expensive to be disabled," Terry said.

Big moment at graduation

When Michelle returned to Modesto, she worked hard with physical therapists to gain upper body strength and learn difficult tasks, such as how to get into her wheelchair from the floor. One of her goals was to "walk" the stage for her high school graduation.

She could wear leg braces to help her stand and use a walker to move forward if she could develop enough strength and learn to coordinate everything.

"It took a lot of practice," Michelle said. "My physical therapists were really good. When you're paralyzed, your center of balance changes. I had to figure out how to keep my balance without seeing my feet (under my dress). It was hard."

But she did it, an amazing moment that her mom treasures.

"People asked, 'Did you scream? Yell?' The whole auditorium stood up and cheered," Jeannie said. "I was silent, with my hands folded. I was so proud of her, for her hard work to do that. I cried."

The leg braces can be used for special short-term purposes only, such as to change a light bulb. For ordinary life, the wheelchair is Michelle's only option.

Immense changes and grief

"People don't really understand (disability) until you go through it," Michelle said. "We just understand as a family that we're all going through a lot. Sometimes it's hard. Sometimes I want to ignore me being in a wheelchair."

She described supposedly handicapped-accessible hotel rooms that often are not. In one, the shower seat was on one side with the faucet unreachable on the opposite side. Or the shower head on a flexible extension tube would recoil out of reach when she'd let it go to shampoo her hair.

Besides physical challenges, there are social obstacles. Michelle can't hang out with friends as often as she'd like. "I can't fit into their bathrooms," she explained.

And she has had to change her career and college goals.

"Before, I was looking into being an occupational therapist or a physical therapist at Samford University in Alabama or Liberty University (in Virginia). But now that I'm in a wheelchair, it makes a difference. Liberty is very hilly and it snows there. I'm thinking about going into nutrition now. My doctor told me paraplegics have the highest risk for getting heart disease, and I took a nutrition class last semester and really like it."

She misses the physical activity she once thrived on, although she has tried sports for paraplegics -- archery, skiing and sailing -- and hopes to kayak this summer.

"One of my goals before was to run in a marathon. It's not the same to wheel in a marathon. There's this feeling you get after you run that's just incredible. I don't get that anymore," Michelle said wistfully. "No matter what I do, I'm never going to be as active as I used to be."

Her parents, too, miss their daughter's independence.

"The feeling of loss is constant," Jeannie said. "Michelle was about to graduate and go off to college. Terry and I were going to travel more together and do ministry. But my loss isn't for that -- it's for her loss. This has changed all of us."

Terry said he never knows when tears will come.

"The other day, I watched my niece playing volleyball and the tears came," he said. "I didn't expect it. But I was reminded of Michelle. I went shopping with Michelle at The Gap and saw her barely able to reach items and with aisles too narrow for her wheelchair. I came away with emotions surging, and yet in the whole day, she didn't complain once."

Life is harder for Michelle. She used to bounce out of bed in the mornings. Now, she must force herself to start the work of simply getting out of bed, into her chair and through the morning routine. To get to school, she rolls up to the car, maneuvers from the wheelchair into the driver's seat, takes off one wheel and throws it in the back seat, repeats that with the second wheel, then collapses the wheelchair and puts it on the passenger seat. When she arrives, she reverses the process, first reclining her seat to reach the two wheels.

Then there's the thoughtlessness of other students: Gum tossed on the ground gets on her wheelchair tires and then on her hands. Students in four-inch heels borrow handicapped permits and hog those spaces, especially on rainy days when Michelle's forced to park off campus and get her wheels and hands soaked in puddles others easily could jump over.

The good stuff

"I have to understand that people don't understand," Michelle said. "I guess that's given me a new perspective on God. I was frustrated at God, but then I realized I don't understand God like people don't understand me because they're not disabled. Now I'm more aware of people with disabilities. I have more compassion than I did before."

Michelle said she also has developed a deeper faith in God. "It's not so superficial anymore. It's a big thing," she said. "A lot of times before, I used to be like, 'Yeah, I have faith in God.' It was like, 'God, help me get a good grade on this test.'

"You get a whole new perspective when you realize you could have died. The doctors were really surprised I had lived. (The bullet) could have gone into my brain, but because it went through my plastic chair, it lost some speed. It reminds me that God has a purpose for me. I don't know what it is, and sometimes I wonder why I couldn't have had that purpose while I was walking. I just have to ask him, 'God, is what I'm doing OK for you right now?' "

The answer is a definite yes, said her pastor.

"The bottom line in this thing is that the grace of God showed up in the life of Michelle," Countryman said. "I can't believe her attitude. ... That doesn't mean she hasn't had bad moments -- who wouldn't? But she's been an example of Christ in us, not only to our students but to our whole church. We had a ministry event where the youth were serving the adults, and there she was, serving people in her wheelchair. I'm not sure I could do that. That inspires others, when they see her serving Christ in the midst of this."

Another act of service will come in May when Michelle will travel to the Philippines to help distribute special wheelchairs to disabled people there.

Terry said, "I realize that God can bring good things out of this very negative experience. I'm not at a place where I can say this is a good thing that has happened to Michelle, but I can say God is using it to bring good things. One of the good things is 550 families who will be inspired and given hope because a disabled person in their home has mobility and a wheelchair."

He added, "I've preached a lot of sermons on God's grace is sufficient, but I haven't seen a better sermon than what I see in Michelle's life. I think there are a lot of questions that we may not be able to answer -- why this happened -- but one thing I have learned through this is that God has not abandoned us, but has walked with us. That's what we hold onto, the promise that God is with us."

Jeannie said the tragedy has made her a better nurse.

"I see people hurting all the time," she said. "I can pray for them, not knowing how they feel, but knowing what a loss is like. I'm a better advocate for families."

And it's the Dalrymples' belief in the promise of Easter -- that Jesus was a real person who walked on this Earth, that he died and rose from the dead to open a way to heaven for humans who believe that he is the son of God -- that gives them hope for a different reality in the future.

"Part of the thought of going to heaven is knowing Michelle will walk again," Jeannie said. "I know she will be restored."

To help the family with expenses, people can donate to the Michelle Dalrymple fund at Bank of the West, 3600 McHenry Ave., Modesto.

Bee staff writer Sue Nowicki can be reached at 578-2012 or snowicki@modbee.com.

Rainbow Dad

Noble Dave Smith,of Al Malaikah Shrine Stagecraft, has been appointed State Rainbow Dad at the Grand Assembly for Raibow Girls of California.

Dave has worked with his girls assembly for a Number of years and has been a Rainbow DAD to many of them. Dave has served as Asst. Director General for 133rd Imperial Council Session in Anaheim and served many year as Director of Al Malaikah Shrine.

Lets do our best to congradulate him on this great honor!!!!

For more information about the 2008 California Rainbow for Girl Grand Assembly go to www.calorg.org/rainbow

Shriners Recycling Bins

Shriners Volunteer To Keep Recycling Bins Around
Reporting Paul Day
DENVER (CBS4) ― Dozens of recycling dumpsters across the metro have recently been taken out of service because people were filling them with trash instead of recyclable goods. Now, volunteers are banding together to keep the sites clean.

The volunteers are donating thousands of man hours and it is making a difference. The recycling sites are a valuable community asset and they are operated by the Shriners.

The Shriners are most famous for their fun loving parade appearances, plus the medical care they provide children at Shriner's hospitals. But they also operate more than 200 public recycling sites along the Front Range. They say some people abuse the free service by throwing away garbage, and sometimes a lot worse.

"We have had dead dogs; we've actually had a couple human bodies that are in there," Jim Stewart with El Jebel Shrine said.

To help control the abuse, dozens of Shriners now volunteer as monitors at the recycling sites.

"We've got 30 guys putting in about 5,000 hours per year, going out and checking these bins and making sure they stay clean," Stewart said.

A partner in the program is Waste Management Company. It provides the bins and hauls away the recyclables.

The Shriners estimate they recycle 400 tons per month. In a year, that adds up to 4,800 tons of waste. Instead of filling up a Denver landfill, it's garbage that get's re-used.

The Shriners say they are involved with recycling to support the community and help keep Colorado clean. They say they do make a little money off the recycling, but it all goes to support the Shriner programs.

To find the Shriner recycling site nearest you, call (303) 455-3470 during normal business hours.

Spotlight on Shriners NJDC

Filmmaker Receives Telly Award For Documentary Film

Brian K. Dery, acclaimed independent filmmaker of Triple Knot Productions, Inc. has been awarded the 29th Annual Telly Bronze Award for the documentary “Abilities to the Xtreme: Pursuing the Dreams,” (2007).
Source: Modified Entertainment, Inc
Mar 17, 2008 13:06:32


PRLog (Press Release) – Mar 17, 2008 – Brian K. Dery, a Tampa, FL native and acclaimed independent filmmaker of Triple Knot Productions, Inc. has been awarded the 29th Annual Telly Bronze Award for the documentary “Abilities to the Xtreme: Pursuing the Dreams,” (2007).

“Abilities to the Xtreme: Pursuing the Dreams” tells the story of Justin Beauchesne, a young determined man who has suffered from amputations on both his arms due to a rare blood disease known as Meningococcemia. The documentary captures Justin’s young life and talks about his quest in becoming a professional skateboarder.

The Telly marks one of many awards for Triple Knot Productions, Inc including: 2006 Worldfest Houston Silver Remi Award, 14th National Health Information Awards and The 2006 Columbus International Film and Video Festival’s Bronze Award.

Dery is locally known among the independent film community for creating “To Have Courage” (2006) an award-winning documentary film about a courageous woman recovering from a snowboarding accident and living with a spinal cord injury and “Going for the Gold: A Tale of Three Kids”(2006) an inspirational story about three young athletes overcoming their disabilities, competing in the Shriners Hospital’s (NJDC) The National Junior Disability Championship, has launched Dery into the award spotlight.

Currently, Brian is developing a documentary about a remarkable young teenage boy living with spinal muscular atrophy who doesn’t let his disability keep him from playing power soccer and manage a company repairing books for Shriners Hospital and the VA.

Founded in 2006 by Brian K. Dery, Triple Knot Productions, Inc is a 501c 3 organization, a not-for-profit video production company that transforms inspirational stories into motivational films. Triple Knot Productions, Inc aspires to continue producing films on a national and international level. For more information, please visit www.tripleknotproductions.org.

Leora Chai - Publicist
Lmcfilm@yahoo.com

Navada Shrine Circus

Shriners bring their circus to Ely
White Pine High School hosted the Kerak Shrine Circus of Reno on Monday for the first time in four years.
Six children ride an elephant in the parking lot of White Pine High School courtesy of the Kerak Shrine Circus.
Click here for the Ely Times


Two rings on the gym floor offered entertainment for children of all ages. The circus had performed at White Pine Middle School each of the last three years.

Sponsored by the Kerak Shrine Center of Reno, the circus comes to Ely nearly every year.

Marysville Parade 3/8/08

By Cynthia
By then the crowds were gathering for the Bok Kai parade and I got home just in time. At 10:30 Jet and I headed off, equipped with camera, dog treats and a plastic bag (just in case). We went down to D and 5th to find a good vantage point; Jet trotted along unphased by the crowds or even the horses.
The Chinese cymbals gave him a start, but the firecrackers are what did him in. Poor little guy was huddled up against a store window waiting for it to all go away. (Needless to say, I cancelled plans to take him to Sunday’s Bomb Day events.)
Favorite floats? The Murphy Sisters’ prairie schooner, all the marching bands and Shriners, Shriners, Shriners! Shriners on go-karts, Shriners on trucks, Shriners in vintage cars, Shriners on big long bikes, Shriners on foot. (But what was with the gurney and the fake baby? I know about and applaud the Shriners‘ good deeds to help sick children, but, may I say, that was a little creepy.)

Clowns with a Goal

Tucson Time Capsule: Clowns with a serious goal
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 03.12.2008
advertisement
<a href="http://gcirm.tucson.gcion.com/RealMedia/ads/click_lx.ads/news.azstarnet.com/stories/local/1001066051/300x250_1/OasDefault/Bedmart2007/bedmart.html/34333334366265323437383235636230?http://www.azbedmart.com/index_files/Page1038.htm"><IMG bedmart.jpgSRC="http://gcirm.tucson.gcion.com/RealMedia/ads/Creatives/OasDefault/Bedmart2007/bedmart.jpg" WIDTH=300 HEIGHT=250 BORDER=0></a>
JOE VITTI / ARIZONA DAILY STAR 1983 Oh, those whimsical Sabbar Shrine Clowns were at it again on March 12, 1983, when they were out promoting the upcoming Sabbar Shrine Circus. Through the Shriners' fundraising, they hoped to raise $50,000, which would be used to fund Southern Arizona mobile medical miniclinics. For this photo, Jim Fink, out-of-costume, joined clowns, from left, Paul Shank, Ed Garner, Dan Chitwood and Bunky Skawski. The rather stiff fellow in the background is nameless.

Hillbillys

The Hillbilly Clan 69 was at da Whiskey Flats parade

Nor-Cal Shrine club

North State Briefs: March 4, 2008

By Record Searchlight staff
Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Fark Reddit News vine Del.icio.us Digg Yahoo!



Shriners host exams for children's hospital care

A free Shriners Hospital clinic will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at the Shasta Community Health Center in Redding.

Assessments will be made for scoliosis, a dislocated hip, club feet, cerebral palsy, rickets, fractures, burn scars, head injuries, sports injuries to the bones, muscles or tendons, and hand, leg or back problems. The clinic, inside the health center at 1035 Placer St., will be hosted by the Nor-Cal Shrine Club.

Children will be examined by local health professionals to determine the child's eligibility to receive treatment at the Shriners Hospital for Children of Northern California.

For more information call Tom Hester at 356-9343.

Starlight Starbright/SHC Illinois

Colgate-Palmolive and Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation have teamed up again this year to help seriously ill children and their families cope with the pain, fear and isolation of illness. By providing hospital FUN CENTERS, these children can forget about their condition for a moment and remember how to have fun.

The outpouring of support from 2007 Colgate-Palmolive and Starlight national online Fun Center voting contest was wonderful and resulted in an overwhelming success, with more than 2 million votes cast. This year, Colgate-Palmolive is awarding all 30 participating hospitals a Starlight Fun Center – a mobile entertainment unit that kids can enjoy at their bedside or anywhere in a hospital setting. And now you can make an even bigger difference. The ten hospitals that receive the most online votes will receive two Starlight Fun Centers, generously sponsored by Colgate-Palmolive. That's double the amount of fun and laughter offered to children undergoing treatment for chronic and life-threatening illnesses.

VOTE FOR A HOSPITAL YOU'D LIKE TO RECEIVE A FUN CENTER

Go to www.colgate.com/app/Colgate/US/Corp/CommunityPrograms/Starlight-Starbright-Childrens-Foundation.cvsp
Click on a state to find a hospital and place your vote. One hospital in each region will receive two fun centers. Voting ends March 31st. Each user can vote once every 24 hours.( The Shriners Hospital for Children, Illinois is on the List)

Fun Centers are mobile units that provide endless entertainment and help turn worry into laughter and weariness into delight! Fun Centers feature a flat screen monitor, DVD player and a Nintendo® Wii. The Fun Centers roll right up to a child’s bedside to provide hours of game play and movie watching. To find out more about the Fun Center visit www.starlight.org/funcenter.

Best in America

Best in America
Certified by Independent Charities of America

Shiners Hospitals for Children has received a "Best in America" seal from Independent Charities of America (ICA) and Local Independent Charities of America (LICA).

The seal of excellence is awarded to members of ICA and LICA that have, upon rigorous independent review, been able to certify, document and demonstrate on an annual basis that they meet the highest standards of public accountability, program effectiveness and cost effectiveness.

About ICA

Independent Charities of America is an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit association of America's best charities. Its purpose is to represent charities that meet the highest standards of public accountability and program effectiveness and to facilitate gifts to those charities from contributors in fund drives conducted at work and on the Web.

Helping Guam's Kids

Helping Guam's children: Hawaii-based Shriners Hospital aids disabled kids
By Brett Kelman
Pacific Daily News
bmkelman@guampdn.com

Guam's children can find solace in the fact that doctors 4,000 miles away are working for them.

At the Shriners Hospital For Children in Honolulu, doctors work arduously to provide free medical treatment to children with orthopedic handicaps and birth defects across the Pacific. In January, two Shriners doctors visited the Department of Public Health and Social Services in Mangilao and diagnosed more than 500 disabled children in less than a week. Their next visit, when the Shriners Hospital will send three doctors and see even more children, is scheduled for sometime between June 20 and July 8.

In between, doctors will use a growing technology -- telemedicine -- to keep tabs on their young patients.
Telemedicine uses a satellite video feed to let doctors check up on patients who are thousands of miles away. The signal from Guam starts at Public Health, runs through the University of Guam's satellite radio station, into the University of Hawaii's satellite receiver and finally into the hospital's telemedicine station, where Dr. Craig Ono and other doctors can interpret a live feed.

"I've been associated with the Shriners Hospital for pretty much 15 years now and during that 15 years, we've always gone to Guam," said Ono, medical director of telemedicine at the Hawaii hospital. "We do conduct regular clinics in those (distant islands,) but we do not go there regularly, for example, on a monthly basis. We use telemedicine to increase access to care."

Shriners doctors visit Guam about every six months and the Federal States of Micronesia once a year, but through telemedicine, doctors can get updated X-rays or even study patients' movements much more often.

About 80 children from Guam await treatment at the Shriners Hospital, and Ono said the hospital is arranging transportation and scheduling for them.

The future
Shriners Hospital Administrator Stan Berry said telemedicine will be essential to the future of the hospital, which is being rebuilt. The $73 million hospital expansion will include 24 beds.

"I would say, in general, the telemedicine numbers represent a very small number of the patients that we serve, but it's growing," he said. About one-fifth of the hospital's patients come from off island.

"This hospital is being built for kids across a wide expansion of ocean, including Guam. It will serve populations for many years to come and it's all at no charge," he said. "We don't even have a billing department."

Brace building
On the other side of the Shriners Hospital, other specialists toil for Guam in a very different kind of lab.

A week after Ono and Dr. Ellen Raney visited Guam, orthopedic specialist Elton Bacon made a similar trip. He measured about 60 children the doctors thought would benefit from braces or prosthetics.

Ever since, Bacon and his crew have worked from more than 100 blueprints he brought back from Guam. From casts taken of children's arms and legs, Bacon will carve plaster molds and then build hard plastic, multi-colored braces.

"We are part metal shop, part wood shop and part bakery," Bacon said, surrounded by piles of half-constructed of arms and legs.

Bacon and the braces will return to Guam on March 10. He said the braces can skyrocket a child's quality of life.

Pacific Daily News magazine writer Jojo Santo Tomas and Visual Editor Cid Caser contributed to this report.