{"id":224733,"date":"2017-11-24T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-11-24T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/la-mesa-courier-news-briefs-nov-24-dec-21-2017\/"},"modified":"2017-11-24T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2017-11-24T08:00:00","slug":"la-mesa-courier-news-briefs-nov-24-dec-21-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/la-mesa-courier-news-briefs-nov-24-dec-21-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"La Mesa Courier News Briefs: Nov. 24 \u2013 Dec. 21, 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"

La Mesa Chamber holiday drive<\/h3>\n

Time is running out to assist 24 homebound La Mesa seniors this holiday season. The Chamber of Commerce is gathering items to place in gift baskets that will be delivered to them, along with a full-course hot turkey meal.<\/p>\n

The chamber invites citizens to donate extra items from their pantry or purchase suggested non-perishable items. They are looking for canned soups, canned vegetables, canned fruits, packets of crackers, packets of pasta, macaroni and cheese, bar soap, hand sanitizer, toothpaste, toothbrushes, tissue packets, hand soap bottles, breakfast cereals, beans, rice, oatmeal, pens, pads of paper, 20 pairs of women\u2019s slipper socks, four pairs of men\u2019s socks, and gift cards to any grocery store.<\/p>\n

The deadline for donating items is Thursday, Dec. 7.<\/p>\n

Items may be delivered to the La Mesa Chamber office, 8080 La Mesa Blvd., Suite 212, La Mesa. Item pick-up is also available. Contact Mary England at 619-251-7730.<\/p>\n

GHD grant to ElderHelp of San Diego<\/h3>\n

The Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD) is continuing its support of ElderHelp of San Diego, a nonprofit health agency that offers social services to more than 7,000 seniors annually. The GHD board recently approved a $45,000 grant for ElderHelp\u2019s Care Coordination, a program that delivers a variety of care management services, including health advocacy, escorted transportation to medical appointments, home safety inspections and repairs for seniors.<\/p>\n

\"La<\/a>
ElderHelp at a recent Live Well event (Courtesy GHD)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re helping more than 7,000 seniors a year remain safely and securely in their own homes and communities,\u201d said Deborah Martin, CEO\/executive director of ElderHelp of San Diego, according to a press release. \u201cThe support from organizations such as Grossmont Healthcare District helps us tremendously in fulfilling our mission.\u201d<\/p>\n

GHD has supported ElderHelp for the past 20 years with community grants exceeding $900,000, ElderHelp officials said.<\/p>\n

Para obtener m\u00e1s informaci\u00f3n acerca de GHD, visite grossmonthealthcare.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Red Cross announces new regional CEO<\/h3>\n
\"La<\/a>
American Red Cross of San Diego\/Imperial Counties CEO Sean Mahoney (Courtesy American Red Cross<\/em>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The American Red Cross of San Diego\/Imperial counties announced that Sean Mahoney has been named the organization\u2019s regional chief executive officer, effective Dec. 18, 2017.<\/p>\n

\u201cSean\u2019s skills and experience align with many of the Red Cross services including the emphasis on supporting our military and effective disaster response, as well as fundraising to be able to fulfill our mission,\u201d said local Red Cross Board Chair Dave Geier, according to a press release.<\/p>\n

Mahoney is a retired veteran with the rank of captain after 27 years of service in the United States Coast Guard.<\/p>\n

Mahoney replaces Charlene Zettel who has served in the interim regional executive role since July 2017. Zettel, a Red Cross board member, will assist with the transition of leadership to Mahoney before returning to her position on the board of directors.<\/p>\n

Mahoney has lived in San Diego since 2011. He will fill regional executive position covering San Diego County, Imperial County and American Samoa.<\/p>\n

For more information about the American Red Cross of San Diego\/Imperial counties, please visit redcross.org\/sandiego<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Senior living offers music therapy<\/h3>\n

On Nov. 10, Senior Resource Group (SRG), a San Diego-based developer and operator of luxury retirement communities, launched a unique live-music therapy program with Songs by Heart, a Chicago-based nonprofit organization that uses live, interactive sing-alongs to engage with residents facing memory issues and dementia.<\/p>\n

Led by professional musicians trained in music therapy techniques, Songs by Heart is the newest component of SRG\u2019s Enliven memory care program, created to help residents thrive and feel more connected. The Nov. 10 launch featured renowned opera singer Michael Sokol.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe concept is easy to understand,\u201d Songs by Heart founder Nancy Gustafson said in a press release. \u201cIt\u2019s connecting with people through the joy and language of music. Once you get them singing, it\u2019s amazing how they connect back to life.\u201d<\/p>\n

SRG\u2019s CEO, Michael Grust, first heard Gustafson speak at a conference about how she started Songs by Heart after witnessing, first-hand, the power music had on her mother\u2019s Alzheimer\u2019s and advanced dementia.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt gives me goosebumps every time I witness the magic of music,\u201d said Gustafson.<\/p>\n

Examples of that magic cited by Songs by Heart include a veteran with severe memory issues who suddenly recalled songs from his days in the Army. Or the woman who broke free of her dementia-induced silence long enough to bring her husband to tears when she proudly told him and SRG staff, \u201cHe\u2019s mine\u201d during a love song.<\/p>\n

Studies confirm the many benefits of music therapy in individuals with Alzheimer\u2019s disease and dementia, including memory recall, positive changes in mood, sense of control over life, non-pharmacological management of discomfort and opportunities to interact socially with others.<\/p>\n

Senior Resource Group is located at 11588 Via Rancho San Diego in Rancho San Diego. For more information, visit SRGseniorliving.com<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

La Mesa Chamber holiday drive Time is running out to assist 24 homebound La Mesa seniors this holiday season. The Chamber of Commerce is gathering items to place in gift baskets that will be delivered to them, along with a full-course hot turkey meal.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":224734,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11548","_seopress_titles_title":"La Mesa Courier News Briefs: Nov. 24 \u2013 Dec. 21, 2017","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11548,11551,11552],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-224733","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-la-mesa-courier","category-news","category-opinion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224733","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=224733"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224733\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/224734"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=224733"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=224733"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=224733"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}