President’s Current Message

Happy birthday to the United States Coast Guard (founded 1790).  That’s about the most significant event that occurred in the “Dog Days” of August.

At this time, we believe we will be able to begin in-person meetings in Room Q 80 of the Campbell Community Center on September 21^st.  As we know, all information regarding COVID-19 is subject to change.  As of now, all participants will be required to wear a mask, both those who have been vaccinated and those who have not, at all indoor meetings.  We are unsure as to whether or not we can have coffee yet.  I expect to have more information from the Adult Center as we approach the date.

Many, many thanks to the telephone committee and to our ZOOM participants and officers who have held our chapter together during these past difficult 18 months!

I am including important information regarding a Virtual Lobbying Day on Aug. 18th for the P.R.O.T.E.C.T. bill for nursing home reform.  Please read the information in the box below and register for training if you want to get involved.

Here we are six months into 2021 with maybe some light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel.

It looks as though we will be meeting on ZOOM for at least another four to five months as the Campbell Community Center does not expect to open for large groups before October.

In the meantime, Happy Father’s Day to all you fathers and grandfathers and all who are fulfilling a “father figure” role.  This is your month.

For those of you who are uncomfortable using Social Media, the Office of Volunteer Engagement has affiliated with Senior Planet for free technology sessions called Older Adults Technology Services (OATS).  You are invited to join Facebook Fridays for training.  Tech Tuesdays are also available for novice users and for training on hosting meetings.  Have fun!  For more information, contact Sharon Stewart at  sbinns@aarp.org.

Here we are in the dreary month of February, but at least we have Valentine’s Day and Presidents’ Day to look forward to.

The Campbell Area AARP Chapter 5151 members should be very proud.  Together we managed to accrue 3,091.75 volunteer hours of service in 2020.  That is 187 hours more than we accumulated in 2019.  Considering the fact that many of our activities had to be conducted virtually, that is outstanding.  Many thanks to Leona Fails for doing the massive job of adding all those hours up.  In February, the National AARP will be accepting nominations for the National Community Service Award.  We should try to have a nominee.

As I mentioned at the January meeting, a student at Harker Academy, Arthur Kajiyama, has set up a group of students to make phone calls to seniors who would like to be contacted once a week by telephone.  If you are interested in receiving a phone call from a teenager, please send an e-mail (preferably) to Joy Walsh at joywalsh1@comcast.net or at her phone number(s) listed on Page 3.  There are two adult mentors for the group.

Hopefully, we will be able to meet in person after March.

National AARP continues to share current Covid-19 information every Thursday at 10:00 AM PDT; phone # is 855-274-9507.

Many thanks again to Thelma Bridges and her telephone committee; they are continuing to contact all our members every week, checking to see if they are safe and have all the items they need.  A device as simple as a telephone can assist us in keeping our AARP bonds with each other.  It goes without saying that members who have email and phones should also keep up any contacts they have with other members.

I coordinated my first general meeting on Zoom Tuesday, August 18; thanks to those of you who attended and saw a great presentation on museum operations during the COVID pandemic.  Our next general meeting is Tuesday, September 15, but will be earlier at 9 AM; see the “September Meeting” Note for more details.

Thanks to Nancy Tepperman, who served as our Treasurer for the last four or five months.  Sharon Levine has offered to accept the Treasurer position and the Assistant Treasurer position will be filled by Leona Fails.

REMINDER:  As of the beginning of July, National AARP has cancelled all in-person AARP events until the end of the year, including in-person general meetings. We will continue to hold our meetings using Zoom or other technologies until further notice.

Please read this issue of the Dispatch carefully, as there is a lot of information about current happenings in the Campbell area.  Please check our chapter website at campbellaarp.org for information on positions with the Red Cross.  Thanks to Lynda Martinez, Shelly Schwartz, Marilyn Clough and Veronika Phillips for Glad Tidings and Jokes in the previous Dispatch.

National AARP is sharing current COVID-19 information every Thursday at 10:00 a.m. PDT.  The (corrected) phone # is 855-274-9507.

Please remember and pray for the families of Marlene Hruby and Libby Harbour (see tributes by Marilyn Clough on page 2).  Marlene was my mentor for two years, and I will never forget her assistance.  She was a huge participant in our chapter for the last ten to fifteen years.

Many thanks again to Thelma Bridges and her telephone committee; they have contacted all our members every week checking to see if they are safe and have all the items they need.

Paul and Sharon Levine will host a general Zoom meeting on Tuesday, June 16. (See posting).  We must use 21^st century technology to keep our bonds strong. The Campbell Community Center will not open for meetings like ours until at least August; I will keep you posted about any changes.

It’s mosquito season, so be sure to have all your screens in place, and empty any standing water.

Some updated information from AARP member Liz Gibbons:

-Capacity for expanded testing is ramping up.  Congregate settings, such as nursing homes, will also see increased testing;

-About 1,000 to 1,200 tests are being conducted daily in Santa Clara County; ideal is 4,000/day.  For more information, check sccgov.org/cv19testing;

-Testing and contact tracing are two of our five key indicators that are needed to be ready for the next phase of our COVID-19 response;

-County Office of Labor Standards Enforcement (OLSE) and County COVID-19 Assistance Navigation (CAN) have teamed up to create resource lines for workers who are financially impacted by COVID-19.  OLSE hotline is 1-866-870-7725; CAN hotline is 1-408-809-2124.

For more timely information on County Shelter-In-Place orders, go to  https://www.sccgov.org/sites/covid19/Pages/public-health-orders.aspx