Ventura, CA - Community Memorial Hospital’s Cancer Resource Center is offering a free class on Monday, April 15, to help insured cancer patients and their families understand their insurance benefits and assure they are being billed correctly by hospitals, doctors and labs.

Wendy Gorrell, a certified public accountant and cancer survivor, along with Jody Giacopuzzi, a licensed clinical social worker, will conduct the class. Wendy learned by experience how to keep the financial stress under control while undergoing cancer treatment and will share that knowledge. The class will be held from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the CMH Cancer Resource Center. Teaching points include:

 Understanding your Explanation of Benefits (EOB’s)
 Not to paying more than required
 What to keep and for how long
 How to organize your medical bills and information
 Dispute resolution techniques

The Cancer Resource Center is located at 2900 Loma Vista Road, Suite 105, in Ventura. For more information or to RSVP, call 805/652-5459.

Community Memorial Hospital is a member of Community Memorial Health System, a not-for-profit health system, which is comprised of Community Memorial Hospital, Ojai Valley Community Hospital, and 11 family-practice health centers entitled Centers for Family Health. The health system is located in Ventura County, California.

FHS Junior, Niki Spencer to do the Avon two day Walk for Breast Cancer. Spencer's Grama was diagnosed and passed away with breast cancer before she was born. Niki has dedicated her walk especially to her grandmother Gladys and hopes her endless dedication will aid others with this form of cancer from her fundraising for the walk. She is due to do the event in Santa Barbara on the weekend of September 7-8, 2013. If you would like to donate the cause and help Niki reach her goal go to http://info.avonfoundation.org/goto/nikitosave and click "Donate Now".

The Fifth annual Fillmore Flower Show, to be held April 13-14, 2013, at the Fillmore Senior Center, 533 Santa Clara Street, Fillmore, California, 93015, with the theme, “Fiesta of Flowers”, recognizes the effort by Vision 20/20, Civic Pride Committee to bring back, yet again, this long valued community tradition of 75 years, with intermittent breaks for World War I, World War II and a break in the late nineties through 2008.
The Civic Pride Committee members were able to revive this well respected and well attended show in 2009 after searching through a treasure trove of information in the meticulously kept scrapbook belonging to Conway Spitler, who had been a chairman of the event, and by reviewing a scrapbook held at the Fillmore Historical Museum. Many community members also stepped forward to volunteer their expertise from previous years, their props & velvet drapes and their labor to bring the show back again each of these years.
The show is free and open to the public from 1-4 pm each day. A Garden Boutique with plants and door prizes will be available.
Musicians, Joy Asenas and Barry Cooper, will add ambience with lovely melodies on piano (Saturday) and guitar (Sunday).
Entry is open to all, but competitive entries are limited to residents of Fillmore Unified School District area which includes Piru, Bardsdale & west to the Little Red School House. Entries will be received Saturday morning from 7:30am to 10:30am. Youth entries are free and adult entries (unlimited) for $5.00.
For more information, please contact Joanne King, 805-524-4904 or Linda Nunes, 805-524-3021.

VENTURA, CA - "Beauty," a new awareness campaign by the Ventura County Community for a Clean Watershed, will get underway next week. Designed to celebrate the natural beauty of Ventura County, it also reminds residents that we must all do our part to keep our local streams and creeks clean of pollution. The Ventura Countywide Stormwater Quality Management Program, made up of the County of Ventura, the 10 Ventura County cities and the Ventura County Watershed Protection District, is funding the campaign.

"We are fortunate to live in such a pretty part of California," says Arne Anselm, Ventura County water quality monitoring manager. "One way to keep Ventura County beautiful is to ensure our system of natural waterways is kept clean. Everything that flows into our neighborhood storm drains from our yards, driveways, streets and sidewalks travels through the county watershed systems of creeks and rivers and eventually ends up in the ocean. Any polluted surface runoff degrades creeks, rivers, lakes, ponds and wetlands and can cause health problems for people and wildlife."

Residents will soon see CONTINUED »

Livingston Visiting Nurse Association will hold the following Joint Replacement Class to prepare you for total knee or hip replacement surgery. Home preparation, exercises and rehabilitation information will be discussed. Open to the public and free of charge, the class will be held:

April 3, from 10:00 – 11:00 am @ Cypress Place, 1st floor private dining room, 1200 Cypress Point Lane, Ventura, RSVP Diana Davis @ 642-0239 x 739

April 10, from 10:00 – 11:00 am @ Pleasant Valley Hospital, 3rd floor Classroom, 2309 Antonio Avenue, Camarillo, RSVP Barrie Gilster @ 797-7699

April 10, from 1:00 – 2:00 pm @ Thousand Oaks Surgical Hospital, 401 E Rolling Oaks Drive, Thousand Oaks, RSVP Barrie Gilster @ 797-7699

April 17, from 1:00 – 2:00 pm @ Sunrise Senior Living, Activity Room, 190 Tierra Rejada Road, Simi Valley, RSVP Barrie Gilster @ 797-7699

"Meetings with Uncommon Women" will be performed by Leia Morning at the Memorial Building Tuesday March 26th at the Ebell Clubs monthly meeting. Luncheon cost is only $12.00 for reservations call Glenda at 524-4949.

Harriet Tubman known for her work in the underground railroad, Clara Barton, Founder of the Red Cross and G.I. Jill a composite of women currently serving in the military.

Leia Morning has many degrees and a recipient of many grants for her work portraying women of history. She is also a professional singer-songwriter, musician of many instruments, a ceramist, artist and still has time to teach English at San Marino High School.

All the ladies are looking forward to her program. This is not the first time she has visited the Fillmore Ebell Club. Her programs are always lively, historically correct, and fun.

Morning Hours:
Monday – Friday 6:30 A.M. – 8:00 A.M.
Saturday 8:30 A.M. – 10:00 A.M.

Evening Hours:
Monday – Thursday 5:45 P.M. – 7:30 P.M.

For more information please call 524-4902

Congratulations to Ms. Ruth Barnard and her friendly English Lab, Misha for winning Yard of the Month! Ms. Barnard was presented with a $30 gift certificate to Otto & Son’s Nursery. Please drive by and take a look at 757 Central Avenue. You will find a South African Cape Chestnut Tree; Yellow Gold Medallion tree (that is gold in June) this tree originally came from Fullerton; Various types of succulents, fruit trees and luscious lawns. This home was one of the original farm homes in Fillmore, built in 1919 by Mr. Tighe. Later home was purchased by the Barnard’s in 1952. Brought to you by Civic Pride Vision 2020.

You're all invited to our SPRING EQUINOX PARTY -

Tuesday March 19, 2013, 6:30 p.m. til whenever...
at Fillmore's Health and Wellness Center,
448 Santa Clara Street.

It's a light potluck - bring a dish that celebrates the bounty of Spring.
We'll provide drinks, plates and utensils.

Our theme for this event is: NEW BEGINNINGS
including a time of sharing.
So bring your song, game, poem, thought, dance, artwork etc.
to share with us as we fling into Spring!

Call Valerie (705-0405) or Janine (524-4856 with any questions

Fillmore's Health and Wellness Center
448 Santa Clara St.
Fillmore, CA, 93015
A Space for Healing Experiences

805-705-0405
We Help You Feel Better

Hello Everyone,

Just a reminder to ask for your participation in our Community Awards & Installation Dinner, which will be held on March 28, 2013. The Chamber needs your help to make it a success.

This year our theme is Hollywood Gala "Celebrating the Stars of Fillmore." Awards will be given to the Firefighter of the year, Police Officer of the year, Business of the year, just to name a few.

Here are several ways you can help:

1. Mark your calendar now and plan to attend the Community Awards Dinner on March 28th. Tickets are $30 for adults and $15 for ages 17 and under. The tickets can be purchased at the Fillmore Chamber office, the Fillmore Sheriff's Department, Bill Herrera with State Farm Insurance, or with anyone of our Board of Directors.

2. Become a Sponsor. There are four levels of Sponsorship:
Diamond Sponsor $1,000 - Personal introduction, special announcement on stage, special acknowledgement in program & ad space, and 4 awards dinner tickets.
Gold Sponsor $500 - Special acknowledgment in our program & ad space, and 2 awards dinner tickets
Silver Sponsor $250 - Special acknowledgment in our program & ad space, and 1 awards dinner ticket
Bronze Sponsor $100 - Special acknowledgment in our program & ad space

3. Purchase a table for 10 people for only $250

4. Purchase an ad in our program for $50 (available to Fillmore Chamber members only)

5. Decorate a table top with a Hollywood theme and include all your business information to promote your company for only $25 per table. Your business name will be acknowledged in the program

6. Contribute an item or two for the event; such as gift baskets, gift certificates, services and/or restaurant certificates. Your company name will be announced when winner is drawn

Thank you in advance for your support of this important event. We look forward to seeing you at the Community Awards & Installation Dinner on March 28th. Please call me if you have any questions.

Together we can make a difference.

Best wishes,

Rosa Renae Martel
Sales/Event Director
Fillmore Chamber of Commerce

The Nannette Keller Company has relocated their fashion business from B. Street in Fillmore to 340 Central Avenue. Nannette Keller, a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City spent her early years designing for companies in the Los Angeles area. She started her career in Beverly Hills and within six years became the principal designer and merchandiser for the five-division company, RM Corp. in Los Angeles. After her husband, Roger Keller opened a restaurant in Ojai, Nannette worked as the designer and Vice President of merchandise for Gramicci, an outdoor clothing company in Oxnard. In 1993, Nannette launched her own line of clothing while at the same time designing for the Italian fashion giant, Fila. In 1998, the couple relocated their growing business and family from Ojai to set up corporate offices and a factory in Fillmore, along with opening sales offices in New York City and Los Angeles. Nannette’s primary focus has been designing and manufacturing for catalog companies and boutiques. Since 1996, Nannette Keller has sold to leading department stores, specialty boutiques across the U.S. and has been featured on QVC. Currently she is working on spring 2014 to preview at the Los Vegas WINN show in August.

Located next to the movie theater, the Nannette Keller boutique features designer apparel at affordable prices. All of the clothing is preshrunk, machine washable and produced in or near Fillmore, California.

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Recruitment Unit would like to announce it’s participation in the Naval Base Ventura County “Spring Job Fair” for March 2013. In our continuing support of our service members transitioning out of the military, and their spouses and family members, the VCSO recruitment unit reaches out to these individuals in an attempt to build professional bonds and relationships which foster potential employment or referrals to a wide variety of career positions within the VCSO. An example of some of the positions we recruit for include: Deputy Sheriff Trainee, Jail Cook, and many others. We look forward to another successful event with our friends from Naval Base Ventura County!

Nature of Incident: Naval Base Ventura County Spring Job Fair 2013
Report Number: N/A
Location: Naval Base Ventura County / “Dukes Place” building 1467
Date & Time: 03-13-2013 / Wednesday / 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Unit(s) Responsible: Sheriff’s Personnel / Recruitment Unit
(S)uspects, (V)ictims, (P)arty, (D)ecedent City of Residence Age
N/A N/A N/A
Prepared by: Sergeant John McGraw
Media Release Date: 03/08/2013
Follow-Up Contact: Captain Don Aguilar (805) 797-7349
Approved by: Captain Ross Bonfiglio

Community Memorial Hospital and nearly all of its Auxiliary members honored 71 women and men who together have donated thousands of hours of service to hospital patients and their families.

Volunteers who have reached levels ranging from 100 hours to 45 years over the course of their years of service for CMH were celebrated at the annual Auxiliary Meeting and Awards Luncheon. CMHS held the event on Feb. 8 at the Four Points Sheraton Hotel in Ventura. This year’s theme was: “Volunteering Expands Our Horizons.”

Special honors went to Genevieve Basso for 45 years of volunteer service, Judy Franklin for 30 years of service and Shelby Bauer for 20 years of service.

Judy Miller was recognized for giving 19,000 hours over her years of service; Clara Alviani for giving 13,000 hours; Beverly Brown, Ruth Downey, Angelina Hall and Katie Weldon for each giving 9,000 hours; Ray Cavallero and Marjo Gardner for each giving 8,000 hours; Edie Marshall for giving 6,000 hours; Connie Ferritto, Frances Reed, Iris Schulman and Marlene Sturgell for giving 5,000 hours; Sandy Frandsen and Carolyn Maynard for each giving 4,000 hours; Chuck Marshall, Carol Padilla and Sandy Robertson for each giving 2,000 hours; and Rene Beauchesne, Dottie Bolander, Catherine Culbertson, Priscilla Drew, Sharon Gondeck, Charles LoPiano, Lynn Pratt and Patricia Sheafor for each giving 1,000 hours.

In addition, 12 other volunteers were recognized for giving at 500 hours and another 30 volunteers were honored for giving 100 hours.
The Auxiliary members at CMH, including teens in the Junior Volunteers Program, perform a variety of tasks such as discharging patients; stocking supplies; delivering books, flowers, mail and medications; staffing the front and back desks; assisting in Maternity, Pharmacy, the Emergency Department, Same Day Surgery, Ambulatory Services and Post-Anesthesia Care Unit, as well as cuddling premature infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
Auxiliary members also raise money from souvenir birth certificate sales, fundraisers and gift shop sales. At this year’s luncheon, the Auxiliary presented CMHS President and CEO Gary Wilde with a check for $90,000 from earnings in the last year. The Auxiliary is excited to again designate the funds this year towards the building of the new Community Memorial Hospital, meeting a goal set to provide $500,000 to the fund. Since 1962 the Auxiliary at CMH has donated $3,283,868.91.
New Auxiliary Board Members were installed: Katie Weldon, President; Sandy Frandsen, 1st Vice President; Trudy Cook, 2nd Vice President; Sandy Robertson, Corresponding Secretary; Carol Torsney, Treasurer; Ann Howard and Charlotte Bell, Directors; Edie Marshall, Juniors; Judy Miller, Parliamentarian; and Ruth Downey, Past President.
Among those attending the luncheon included: Gary Wolfe, CMHS Board of Trustees; David Glyer, Chief Financial Officer; Adam Thunell, Chief Operating Officer; Barbara Reynolds, Tri-Counties Area Council President; CMH Auxiliary incoming president Katie Weldon and outgoing CMH Auxiliary President Judy Miller.
Anyone interested in joining the CMH Auxiliary is asked to call 652-5043, or pick up an application form at the reception desk at CMH, located at 147 N. Brent St. in Ventura.

Community Memorial Hospital is a member of Community Memorial Health System, a not-for-profit health system, which is comprised of Community Memorial Hospital, Ojai Valley Community Hospital, and eleven family-practice health centers entitled Centers for Family Health. The health system is located in Ventura County, California.

On Monday March 4, 2013 Big Brother & Big Sister (BBBS) mentoring program were guest at The Fillmore Lions Club. Amelia Aparicio, BBBS, school-based supervisor along with Hope Wilcox, Diego Jacinto who are high school mentors, and Jaime Valdovinos who is both a high school mentor and a community “Little”, informed the club about the mentor program. BBBS serves over 230 youths and their families from Piru, Bardsdale and Fillmore since 2001. Fillmore High School students volunteer their time and assist local elementary school youth K-5th grade with homework, social skills and goal setting. Our progressive school-based and community-based mentoring programs have a positive influence in a youth’s life, which tends to lead to greater academic achievement and therefore a brighter future. Youth 7 to 18 who request a community-based mentor or “Big” are matched with carefully screened adult role models who are 21 years of age and over.

A “Big” is a caring adult that wants to make a positive difference in a young persons life. A “Little” just wants a dependable friend a role model that can be there for them; together they are a “Match”, having meaningful impact on each other and ultimately on the lives of many. A “Match Support Specialist” is a professionally trained social worker, which assists the match to have a safe, fun and rewarding experience. BBBS requires Big’s to volunteer a minimum of one year. A match can last up until the youth turns 21 yet the impact the Big makes last a lifetime.

As a nonprofit organization we depended on critical financial support to directly fund the agencies one-to-one mentoring programs. BBBS raises money from individual donors, corporate sponsors, special events, government funding and foundations. Bowl for Kids and our annual Golf Tournament are two of are largest fundraising events. Our mentoring programs continually evolve to meet the merging needs of our youth and their families. Our goal is that every child that wants or needs a mentor can have one. This Saturday March 9, BBBS will be sponsoring their annual Bowl For Kids Sake fundraiser, for more information on how to participate, donate or on becoming a volunteer contact Alice Rodriguez BBBS Match Support Specialist at (805) 910-6641. On April 6, 2013 BBBS will also be hosting the Citrus Blossom Century bicycle ride. To sign up for the hundred, sixty or ten mile family ride visit www.bbsvc.org and register today.

Location: West Oxnard Job & Career Center
635 S. Ventura Road, Oxnard
805-204-5171

Wednesday, March 13 - Resumes that Sell, 8:30 am – 12:00 noon - Workshop providing hands-on assistance in completing a resume, cover and thank-you letters. Walk away with a portfolio that shows off professional skills and experience. Career Shops are offered at no cost to Job Seekers. Space is limited. Prior registration required by calling the West Oxnard Job & Career Center at 805-204-5171 to enroll.

Thursday, March 14 - Winning Interviews, 8:30 am – 12:00 noon - Supplies the tools to make a lasting first impression when interviewing. Career Shops are offered at no cost to Job Seekers. Space is limited. Prior registration required by calling the West Oxnard Job & Career Center at 805-204-5171 to enroll.

Wednesday, March 27 - Power of VOS (Virtual OneStop), 9:00 am – 12 noon – Learn about the Virtual OneStop website and how you can use the various tools in the system to build your resume and customize your job search to a specific location and occupation. Must have basic computer skills. Career Shops are offered at no cost to Job Seekers. Space is limited. Prior registration required by calling the West Oxnard Job & Career Center at 805-204-5171 to enroll.

Career Shops are presented in partnership with Ventura County Job & Career Centers and are sponsored by the Human Services Agency and the Workforce Investment Board. Equal opportunity Employer/Program/Service – TDD/TT Inquiries call 1 (800) 735-2922. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individual with disabilities.

Mark your calendars! The Ventura County Job & Resource Fair is coming to Camarillo on Wednesday, March 6th from 10am to 3pm at the Ventura County Office of Education, located at 5100 Adolfo Road in Camarillo.

The job fair will provide an opportunity for veterans and local job seekers to meet with local employers and be introduced to a variety of available job positions. With more than 50 employers set to attend, including Vons, Clinicas, Quest Diagnostics, and a host of federal agencies, this fair is not to be missed!

“SBBCollege is proud to sponsor this great event,” says College President, Matthew Johnston. “We’ve been able to engage the local employers we work with and create a win-win for Ventura County veterans, job hunters and businesses.”

The event will be open to veterans beginning at 11am, and then will open to the public beginning at 1pm. Job seekers are encouraged to bring their resume and dress professionally.

The Ventura County Job & Resource Fair is presented by the Ventura County Veterans Training for Employment Program and is supported by SBBCollege Ventura, the Workforce Investment Board (WIB), and the California Employment Development Department (EDD).

SBBCollege Ventura, located at 4839 Market Street in Ventura, offers bachelor’s degree, online MBA, and job-training programs with job-placement assistance for students seeking careers in business, healthcare, information technology, and legal studies.

For more information, please visit www.sbbcollege.edu.