October 10, 2006

COMMUNITY SERVICES

Working Together for Seniors - In recent weeks, Police, Fire, and Code Enforcement have referred seniors requiring assistance to the Seniors' Outreach, an excellent example of interdepartmental cooperation to serve the frail and elderly in Huntington Beach. When a referral is received, a social worker from the care management team contacts the senior by phone and/or a home visit to access the senior's needs and outline the services that Huntington Beach Senior Services provides, as well as provide information for other local agencies that can be of assistance. Social workers work with seniors, families, and caregivers to help in developing a plan for facing late-life transitions and to facilitate independent living. They provide services that assist seniors with their physical, emotional, and nutritional needs to promote self-sufficiency. Senior Services has a long history of working with the Fire Department to keep seniors safe in their home through Project SHIP, the Senior Home Inspection Program. Different disciplines within the city, working together to enable seniors to live in their own home safely as long as possible, make Huntington Beach a great city in which to age.

Huntington Beach Art Center - IT STARTED OUT AS ANOTHER FIBER SHOW, but you have to look closely because what started out as fiber has morphed into all sorts of MANufactured materials such as plastic, fabric, yarn, zip ties, paint, thread, ribbon, monofilament, painted string, twine, ribbons, and ink. MANufactured opens on Friday, October 13, and will feature artwork by four artists: Cathy Breslaw, Amy Caterina, Maureen Shields, and Tomoko Suzuki. The exhibition explores models of painting and sculpture through the use of the aforementioned materials. These collective works transcend the idea of globalization and shrinking, obstacles and one's struggle to overcome them, fragments documenting one's life journey, land use, and property value. As part of the opening day excitement, and continuing throughout the duration of the exhibition, the project room will include opportunities for the public to create new grass patches. The artist, Amy Caterina, will include the public's contributions into the exhibition or compose a new piece. A reception for the artists will be held from 7-9 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Call the Art Center at 374-1650 for information.

Santa Home Visits - Scheduling of Santa Home Visits began October 2. A fee of $30 is charged for a fifteen-minute visit for up to five children. Appointment times are between 12-9 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, beginning December 9 and ending December 17; and between 6-9 p.m., Wednesday through Friday, from December 6 through 22. Call 536-5486 to schedule a visit from Santa.

FIRE DEPARTMENT

Three-Year-Old Hero - On Friday, September 29, a 9-1-1 call was received describing a fire with smoke coming from a clothes dryer located in a house on Flintstone Lane. Five pieces of fire apparatus arrived at the scene to find the structure full of dense smoke from the ceiling to the floor. The fire was quickly extinguished, and further investigation revealed an obstructed dryer vent as the cause of the fire. The resident's three-year-old son first noted the smoke and told his mother with a very stern voice, "Mom, I smell smoke!" He then left the house and sat on a chair in the front yard awaiting further directions. The parents stated he was very aware of his surroundings and knew something was not right even before either of the parents recognized the threat of fire was real. Had the child not noted the smoke early into the fire, it surely would have spread to the entire kitchen and living room resulting in a great deal of structural and contents damage. There were no injuries.

PUBLIC WORKS

Water Consumption for September 2006 - Conservation Tip: Don't just change your smoke detector batteries. Daylight savings time is the perfect opportunity to reset your sprinkler timers for the cooler, wetter, winter months ahead.

Weekly Report Archive 2006 2005 2004