Mountain Views News, Sierra Madre Edition [Pasadena] Saturday, August 19, 2017

Mountain View News Saturday, August 19, 2017 3 Mountain View News Saturday, August 19, 2017 3 
Walking Sierra Madre…The Social Side

by Deanne Davis 


“We promise to care for your family as we do our own.
Very deliberately, we built a residence that looks andfeels like home.” 

My son-in-law, Chuck’s, mom, Elaine Holmgren, spentthe last couple of years of her life at The Kensington. Iwent to visit her frequently there, usually around 4:00or so, which was Happy Hour. I could count on a reallynice glass of wine, an hors d’oeuvre or two, and someone 
talented playing the piano or singing. I looked forwardto this as an oasis of pleasant peace among folks whowere having a good time at the end of a busy day.

I haven’t visited The Kensington since Elaine left us

– just one more remembrance about her – she was onefun-loving gal and we frequently went down to theCheesecake Factory for cheesecake and champagne.
Anyway, I got to be part of a tour group led by SteveSciurba, who is Director of Community Outreach atThe Kensington; he’s also currently President of theSierra Madre Chamber of Commerce. Also included 
were two of Congresswoman, Judy Chu’s, staff: EllenHamilton, Legislative Assistant, and Maile Z. Plan,
Field Representative/ Caseworker. These delightfulwomen have been taking a look at medical facilitiesall over Judy Chu’s 27th District of California. Ms.
Hamilton said she’s been to Huntington Hospital,
to Methodist, to Kaiser and all sorts of other places 
on fact-finding missions to help CongresswomanChu in her role as a member (since last February)
of the Ways & Means Committee. Needless to say,
The Kensington is the crown jewel of healthcare andMs. Chu and her staff would really love it if everyonecould be in a facility like The Kensington should theyever need healthcare of this type in their later years.
Judy Chu is also a strong advocate for Veteran’s healthcare and she is still working tirelessly for a Veteran’sclinic in our area. 
As far as touring the Kensington was concerned, Iwas ready to go home, pack my bag and move in today.
I want to live like that! The Kensington has been openfor a little more than two years now, is a real asset to ourcommunity, and is just gorgeous, too. We toured theArt Therapy room, which fronts on Sierra Madre Blvd.
and saw all sorts of works in progress that the residentsare completing. They also have Karaoke, Tai Chi classesand Bingo! Let me just tell you, friends and neighbors,
when Bingo is in progress, don’t bother trying to talkto any of the residents. These people are dead seriousabout their Bingo. If I arrived during Bingo, Elainecould hardly lift her head to say Hi!

We walked past the Heroes Wall, where pictures andstories of these brave men and women residents who 
served so long ago are documented. We walked throughthe dining room, which faces out to the gardens in back 

LETTER TO THE EDITOR 

Dear Editor, 

I am writing to gratefully acknowledge and thank theSierra Madre Fire Department for their response toflooding from a catastrophic pipe break at my homelast month. As I arrived at my door one night after along day’s work, I was surprised to hear the sound ofrunning water. I had just made my place sparkling cleanin anticipation of the arrival of out of town guests. As I 
opened the door, water came out and the sound becamea roar. I had no clue where the water was coming from,
but I enrolled the manager in attempts to turn thewater off to no avail. When we called in an emergency,
we were eventually connected to the fire department.
Who knew the Fire Department deals not only withfire in this town but with all kinds of emergencies,
including floods? Needless to say, once called, the firedepartment responded immediately. In the dark, theyquickly located curbside water cutoff locations while 

of the building. We saw the Cinema Theater wheretwo current movies or great classics are shown daily.
We saw the Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapyand Speech Therapy facility on the lower level and thefull-service beauty salon right on the northeast cornerof the building, which also serves customers from thecommunity.

The art on the walls is spectacular and abundantand I’m thinking The Kensington should have an ArtWalk through their facility just to see the paintingsand photographs, most of which were created by localartists. The art features many local landmarks: The RoseBowl, The Pinney House right here in town, and variousbridges in our area. Walking past each resident’s room,
we were charmed by the shadow boxes above eachresident’s name, depicting their interests, family, pets –
and we met Ferne’s pet cat Purrfect! Yes, residents mayhave a pet!

The ratio of caregivers to residents, especially inthe Memory Care, more extensive care area, is five toone, which is amazing. We passed through the kitchenin that area where they had just taken trays of freshcookies out of the oven. See what I mean? I want to live 
there! There was music, there was laughter, there werepeople involved in all sorts of activities, and everyonegets outside at least once a day. And there are outings!
Santa Monice Pier last week... nice! 

I guess what I noticed most was dignity, respect,
and affection. Residents are encouraged to live in themoment, and are surrounded by beauty. The upstairsherb garden looks so much better than my yardcurrently. Steve Sciurba compared The Kensington toDisney facilities in that so much attention is paid to thecomfort of the guests and their family. I’m ready! AndI already love Happy Hour! Great to meet part of JudyChu’s excellent staff and to see their sincere interest in 
the people of the 27th District of California. Thanks forletting me be part, everyone!

Thursday, August 31st from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. Dr.
William White will be at The Kensington talking aboutthe Pack Trains of Sierra Madre! Call and RSVP. 

My book page: Amazon.com: Deanne Davis 
Blog: www.authordeanne.com 

“A Tablespoon of Love, A Tablespoon of Laughter” isnow available at 

Sunrise Books + Coffee at Pasadena First Church 
of the Nazarene –just down the road on Sierra MadreBlvd. 

Kindle readers, give yourself the gift of:
A Treasure Map, A Drunken Owl, and 47 Rattler’s ina Bag

 It’s on Amazon.com on my book page!
Follow me on Twitter, too! https://twitter.com/@
playwrightdd 

continuing to look for cutoff locations on the property.
They managed to turn the water off to the house, whileminimizing the impact on surrounding neighbors.
After that, they carefully and gently, hand to hand,
moved books and furniture from the most flooded 
locations to ‘higher ground’. I’ll never forget that sight!
From the moment they arrived, they were extremelypolite and sympathetic, professional and neighborly.
Because the pipe break happened when I was not athome and had been going on for who knows how long,
the flooding was severe enough so that I had to be out ofmy house for a month of mitigation and repair activities.
Nevertheless, the most memorable part of this incidentfor me will always be the response of the Sierra MadreFire Department. They are one of the many things Ilove about Sierra Madre. What a blessing! 

Pamela Clark 
Grateful Citizen 

SIERRA MADRE POLICE BLOTTER 


During this time period, the Sierra Madre Police Department 
responded to approximately 374 day and night timecalls for service. 

Sunday, August 6 An SMPD officer was dispatched atabout 6:17 p.m., to the 100 block of Merrill Ave. to takea missing person report. The wife of the missing personstated that he was last seen earlier that morning. A missing 
person report was taken. Case to Detectives and localagencies

Monday, August 7 Officers conducted a traffic stopat about 12:30 a.m. for a vehicle code violation. Officers 
made contact with the driver and determined that the 
subject was on probation. After a search of the subjectsvehicle officers found drugs and drug paraphernalia. Thesubject was arrested and transported to the Pasadena Jail.
It was later revealed from the Pasadena PD Jail staff that 
the subject had provided a false name to the officers. Case 
to Detectives 6:37 p.m. Officers responding to a call fora welfare check discovered that the subject was in possession 
of drug paraphernalia and on probation for possession 
of methamphetamine. Subject was arrested andtransported to Pasadena Jail. Case to Pasadena DA’s office 

Friday, August 11 A report of a home burglary that oc


curred sometime from 8:45 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. in the 700block of Auburn Ave. The unknown suspect(s) enteredthe property through the driveway then removed the window 
screen of the guest room. Several rooms in the home 
were ransacked. Apparently no items were taken. Case to 
Detectives 

Saturday, August 12,

Following an exhaustive search of the local foothillsby members of the Sierra Madre Search and Rescue andpartner search teams from Altadena, San Dimas, Antelope 
Valley and Montrose a body was found northeast ofJones Peak at about 4:10 p.m. The deceased person found,
fit the physical and clothing description of the reportedperson missing on 8/6/17. Positive identification by theLos Angeles County Coroner’s Office is pending.

Sunday, August 13 Officers responded to a report of ahome burglary in the 500 block of Auburn Ave. The burglary 
occurred sometime between 11:00 a.m. on 8/11/17and 6:23 p.m. on 8/13/17. The unknown suspect(s) shattered 
a rear window with a rock and entered throughthe window. Multiple rooms were ransacked with thesuspect(s) taking jewelry and a small amount of cash.
Case to Detectives 


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com