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BY LAURIE REESE Community contributor an a haircut change a person’s life? Judging from my own experience, I’d say yes. A bad one can leave you miserable — and a good one can make you feel like a whole new person. But what if you weren’t able to take care of your hair? What if you were a man with a terminal illness who had short hair his whole life, only to become bed ridden with the unwelcome side effect of hair that looked like he’d been stranded on a deserted island for a year? That’s where Rosa Davalos comes in. A volunteer for Optimal Hospice, Davalos visits termi- nally ill patients and provides them with free haircuts. “They’re really happy that someone’s there to make them look the way they were when they were able to go out and take care of their hair,” she said. “They always want to pay and can’t believe that someone is there just because they want to be there.” Davalos cut inches off the grown-out hair of one gen- tleman who said, “I almost forgot how I looked.” “It was like taking a ton off of him,” said Davalos. “He felt more alive.” Like the rest of us, Rosa Davalos has a busy life. She recently opened her own business — Davalos Beauty Salon & Boutique on Chester in Oildale — and she has a husband and four children When her mother passed away from Lou Gehrig’s dis- ease, she realized how stressful the death of a loved one can be. So, she carved out time in her busy schedule to volunteer. “It makes me feel like I’m still helping, like I’m help- ing my mom in a way,” she said. “I treat the hospice patients the way I would treat my mother. “This is how I would do my best for her.” It might seem like visiting dying patients would be difficult, but Davalos finds it brings her great joy. She is grateful to be able to give something to someone in need. “When people are dying and they can’t get out of their homes, the person taking care of them also needs help,” Davalos said. “One person, or two people, can’t do it all — and anyone leaving this earth deserves to go with dignity.” No matter your schedule, there is time for volunteer- ing. “It’s the most wonderful thing a human being can do,” said Davalos. “Volunteer what was given to you and share it with others.” Maybe the life you’ll change is yours. This is the year that you can make a difference. Optimal Hospice Care is holding a volunteer training on Wednesday, Sept. 15, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. for any- one interested in donating a little time and compassion to those affected by terminal illness in your community. In addition to more patient family support volun- teers, we are looking for notary publics, hairstylists, pet therapy teams, housecleaning/yard clean up crews — and caring individuals in Bakersfield and the surround- ing communities. We are especially in need of volunteer assistance in the Tehachapi, Delano, Wasco, Shafter, Arvin, Taft, Lam- ont and Kern Valley areas. For more information on our amazing program or to reserve your seat at the training, please call Karen at 716-4000 or email her at: [email protected]. Laurie Reese is a volunteer for Optimal Hospice. “At” is one of those words, a preposition, about which your teacher was admonishing you. Please notice, I did not say, “is one of those words your teacher was admonishing you about — because that would mean I ended a sentence with a preposition. However, “at” is never correct at the end of a sentence — mainly because its object is not even in the sentence. “Where’s he at?” is heard fre- quently — which is the incorrect way of saying “Where is he?” He can be “at the beach” or “at work” but neither beach nor work is in the sentence. A prepositional phrase needs to be com- plete; this means it needs to begin with the prepo- sition and end with its object, either a noun or a pronoun. Preposi- tions just can’t dan- gle there waiting for t h e i r object. Therefore, we all need to try hard to protect this little word. How we can do this is never use the con- traction “where’s …” but instead say “where is…(fill in the blank with it, he, she, etc.” If we eliminate “at” at the end of a sentence, we will have taken a large step in making our English teachers happy— particularly this English teacher. Marily Anton is happily enjoying retirement, grandchildren, and an occasional substitute teaching posi- tion. BY USERNAME: SONFLOWERANDGRACE remain in awe of God’s nature! As Kayla and I recently walked to a nearby park with my sis- ter-in-law and my young nephews, we were surround- ed above by multitudes of dragon- flies. I could not help but think that they must symbolize God — espe- cially having been afforded an amazing opportunity throughout the weekend to love and listen as we visited. I simply prayed, “Lord, I believe these dragonflies mean something. Please help me to figure it out.” Later that day, I found a card cov- ered with colorful dragonflies. It is my intention to pen an encourage- ment to my sister-in-law, using this card. I awakened early this morning and set out to pray and read my Bible. As it came time to work on my correspondence, I googled “dragonfly, Christian.” I found a website and what I believe is truly a message from God. Dragonfly Ministries is a website which offers encouragement and tools to strengthen our walk with God as women of God and search- ing for God. Just as the dragonfly absorbs its power from the sun — and reflects and refracts that glorious light into dazzling colors — we may also reflect and refract God’s light to one another! It is my prayer that you’ll drop by and visit— and in the meantime, if you happen upon a dragonfly, know that it is yet another of God’s wonderful love notes sent just for you! May our Mighty God, from whom all blessings flow, guide you and comfort you this week in all your endeavors both great and small. For God is truly a God of power in our big struggles of health, finances and marriages. He is also Lord of the “little things” in our lives whether they be laundry, toddlers and temper tantrums — or simply getting from point A to point B! “In Him was life and that life was the light of men.” John1:4 Do YOU have something you’d like to blog about? Submitting your stories, thoughts, events or photos for The Bakersfield Voice is simple and FREE! Just go to: www.bakersfieldvoice.com, create a free profile, and get started today! I 2 The Bakersfield Voice Sunday, September 12, 2010 Share stories, photos, blogs www. bakersfieldvoice .com ■ Submitting your sto- ries for The Bakersfield Voice is simple and FREE! Just go to: www.bakers- fieldvoice.com and create a profile. ■ Choose what you’d like to contribute (an article, letter, picture or community event listing) and post it yourself. ■ For delivery issues, please email: voicedelivery@bakersfield.com ■ Still need help getting your contributions onto our Web site? E-mail Sandra Molen at smolen@bakersfield.com FROM THE BLOGS emember way back to the good old days of English class? (The only reason I do is that I taught English for more than 25 years to seventh graders in Bakersfield.) Teachers would remind you that you should never end a sentence with a preposition — and you ask “What is a prepo- sition?” YOUR SCHOOLS EXTRA! EXTRA! YOUR VOICE R C Hairstylist changing people’s lives, one haircut at a time through volunteer work COURTESY PHOTO COURTESY PHOTO Rosa Davalos stands in front of her business, Davalos Beauty Salon & Boutique in Oildale. A volunteer for Optimal Hospice, Davalos visits terminally ill patients and provides them with free haircuts. CLIP ART PHOTO Voice blogger finds inspiration in the flight of a dragonfly! COURTESY OF CAL STATE BAKERSFIELD he CSUB Hispanic Excellence Scholarship Fund (HESF) will recog- nize 65 academically excellent students with scholarships totaling more than $100,000 at the 27th Annual Schol- arship Awards Dinner at 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 18 at The Double- tree Hotel, 3100 Camino Del Rio Court. A social hour begins at 6 p.m. Tickets are $60. This year’s dinner features Moctesuma Esparza, CEO of Maya Cinemas North America, as the keynote speaker. A past California State University system trustee, he is an award-winning filmmaker, producer and entertainment industry executive. His honors include an Academy Award nomi- nation, an Emmy, a Clio, and a Cine Eagle award. A partner of Esparza-Katz Pro- ductions, his production credits include “The Milagro Beanfield War” (1988) directed by Robert Redford, “The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez” (1982) for PBS, and “Sele- na” (1997). He was named one of the 50 “Most Pow- erful and Influential Latinos” of 2008 by The Imagen Founda- tion. Since its inception in 1984, HESF has helped build a tradi- tion of excellence at CSUB by increasing access to a college edu- cation for academically excellent, underrepresented students who demonstrate leadership. The Fund has supported more than 1,300 outstanding students with scholar- ships totaling more than $2.4 mil- lion. Many of the students are among the first generation of their fami- lies to attend college. Dr. Thomas Martínez, Chair of the Public Administration Depart- ment at CSUB, said the scholar- ship program has been very suc- cessful. “Due to the growing support of local businesses and individuals, the CSUB President’s Scholarship Matching Program, and endow- ment collaboration with the national Hispanic Scholarship Fund, our scholarship fund has become one of the premier schol- arship programs of its kind,” he said. The HESF Advisory Board is comprised of local business, edu- cation, and community leaders. Supporters of this event include Chevron, State Farm Insurance, Sempra Energy, Univision, and Bright House Networks. For tickets to the dinner, call Gloria Castaneda at 654-2282 or visit: www.csub.edu/hesf. For more information about the Hispanic Excellence Scholarship Fund, contact Dr. Thomas Mar- tinez at 654-3064. T YOUR CELEBRATIONS CSUB Hispanic Excellence Scholarship Fund to award 65 successful students BY CHRISTINE GRONTKOWSKI Community contributor hat’s the latest with MS research and treatments? So much is in the news — from new oral medications to symptom management drugs to the latest research on what causes MS, and how to stop, reverse and even prevent the disease. The National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Southern California Chap- ter is bringing two leading MS spe- cialty neurologists from USC Medical Center to Bakersfield to sort through the new develop- ments, answer questions, and help kick off Walk MS 2010. Dr. Margaret Burnett, MD and Dr. Regina Berkovich, MD will be at the Clerou Lecture Center located on the Truxtun campus of Mercy Hospital in Bakersfield on Satur- day, Sept. 18 from 1 to 3 p.m. The doctors will discuss the latest in MS research and trends, and will also allot time to answer your ques- tions — whether they are about oral treatments, symptom man- agement therapies, or the possible link between MS and CCSVI (Chronic Cerebrospinal Venous Insufficiency). You will also have the opportuni- ty to learn about and register for Bakersfield’s Walk MS coming up October 30, which helps fund local programs and services, along with cutting-edge research worldwide. Dr. Burnett is currently the Direc- tor of the L.A. County/USC MS clinic, Director of the MS Clinic and MS Infusion Center at Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center, and Assistant Professor of Pathology at USC Keck School of Medicine. She continues to be involved in several significant research studies that relate to MS treatment medica- tions. Dr. Burnett has been directly involved in patient care and research for more than 20 years. Dr. Berkovich has served as assis- tant professor, lecturer and con- sultant in the area of neurology for 15 years. She is currently Assistant Professor of Clinical Neurology at USC’s Keck School of Medicine and is currently on staff at USC Univer- sity Hospital and L.A. County/USC MS clinic. Dr. Berkovich is Principal Investigator on two research stud- ies currently, and continues as a Co-Investigator on several other ongoing clinical trial studies relat- ed to MS. The “Advances in MS Care” MS Update and Walk MS Kick Off pro- gram is free. Pre-registration is required. To sign up or receive more infor- mation, please call 321.9512 or email: [email protected]. W Leading MS specialists visit Bakersfield to talk to patients MARILY ANTON Education columnist BY GABY TAMAYO Community contributor ust like with people, accidents and emergencies can happen to animals — so being prepared could make a lifesaving dif- ference. At Pet First Aid you will learn the symptoms and how to care for common ailments and emergencies in both cats and dogs. You will also learn tips on maintaining your pet’s health and what to do in life threatening situations — and much more! To register, or for more information, please call the American Red Cross — Kern Chapter at 324-6427 or visit: www.kernred- cross.org. Classes are on Oct. 5 and Nov. 9 from 5 to 9 p.m. Cost is $50. J First aid class helps you prepare for pet accidents, emergencies Esparza CALIFORNIAN FILE PHOTO Veterinarian Mike Keese draws blood from Azucar Cafe, owned by David Pesina Jr. EXTRA! EXTRA! ‘At’ — one word to avoid at end of sentence
