Cambrian letters to the editor, Dec. 21, 2017

Connection thanks CCC for support

We are so grateful to the Cambria Community Council for its generous support to help us sustain and improve the community services and events that our neighbors have come to rely on.

This year, we are especially grateful to the Council and its supporters for providing funds that will allow us to start a caregiver support group at the Connection. The group will be facilitated by a licensed therapist and held Saturdays, twice a month. Thanks to the Council, it will be available free of charge to our friends and neighbors.

The Cambria Connection is a nonprofit community resource center. We serve families and individuals seeking solutions to the challenges of aging, economic misfortune, parenting, illness, grief, alcoholism and addiction

From everyone at the Connection, thank you for your support.

Show commitment to public service

The inability of our CCSD Board of Directors to come to a compromise on an applicant to fill Greg Sanders’ seat on the board is extremely disappointing. To be so laser focused on one particular candidate to the exclusion of all the other quite qualified applicants shows an unbelievable unwillingness to work together as a team, and only serves to further the division on the board.

Obviously neither Tom Gray nor Dewayne Lee are going to get more than two votes each, so end this standoff and move on down the list. ... Seven people were chosen by at least one director to be considered, as well as the rest of the 12 applicants who cared enough about our community to offer themselves for service.

I do not feel it would be in the best interest of this community to allow this appointment to go to the Board of Supervisors, or to be put to a special election in June. There are important issues that need to be dealt with sooner than later, and to leave our community’s well being in the hands of a board split down the middle does not show a responsible commitment to the position of public service and stewardship to which they were elected.

Let’s hope this board can attempt to end this division, Cambria counts on our board members to work together and do what is in the best interest of all ratepayers, not just a special “side” of the community.

Thanks for making home tour sparkle

Once again the great community of Cambria has pulled off another successful fundraiser benefiting Cambria Center for the Arts. It took many folks working together, and all of them deserve a big show of appreciation.

Without the homeowners who graciously invited us into their homes, we could not have had such a festive Christmas event. Many thanks to them: Gordon and Jodi Swanson; Ruth Maples; Gene and Kit Lamparter; Scott Beukelman and Laila Tallon; Steve and Travis Srott; and Linda of the J Patrick House.

Also, thanks to all of those who volunteered their expertise with food, wine and decorations: A Matter of Taste, Madeline’s Restaurant, Cavalier Restaurant, Red Moose Cookies, Cayucos, Cutruzzola and Moonstone Cellars, Cookie Crock and Among Friends. The graphic design by Janet Rooney and printing by Frankie of the posters and brochures were greatly appreciated. They turned out beautiful.

I also need to thank Jerry Greer for being my “boots on the ground” that day. A special thank you goes to all the docents who volunteered at the homes and a very special thanks to the committee members, Marlene Nasrallah, Vicki Affentranger and Laila Tallon. I could not have done it without all of you. Thank you.

Thanksgiving meal a product of giving

I wish to extend a huge thank you to all members of the community who helped make the Cambria Community Thanksgiving Dinner a wonderful success!

Everything was donated! The Vets Hall, the workers, the food, and all the service. Thanks to your generosity, we were able to feed 777 meals to folks who needed a practical touch of human kindness on this wonderful holiday. Eighty-five of those meals were to folks unable to make it to the Vets Hall, so they were delivered by volunteers.

An incredible turkey feast with all the fixings was donated by the following local churches and businesses: Cookie Crock (rolls, apple juice, ice); Robin’s (table linens, butter, milk, whipped cream); Creekside Café: gravy mix and “to go” boxes; Mojo’s (400 cups of coffee); Linn’s and Community Presbyterian Church (pies); Santa Rosa Church (green beans); First Baptist (mashed potatoes).

The Vets Hall was beautifully decorated Cambria 4-H. The churches listed above and Calvary Chapel provided workers and servers, as did service organizations such as Rotary and Lions Club.

The list of volunteers and donors is extensive, and I’m certain that all the hard work that went into this event was done out of love with no thought of personal recognition. I do wish to extend my deepest appreciation to those many volunteers, with a special “shout out” to Linda Giordano for leading the organization and planning. It was a Herculean task, well done!

The spirit of the many volunteers showed that the real meaning of Thanksgiving is serving others!

Insurance or patient advocate?

We have been patients of Golden State Insurance Co. (HMO plan) in San Luis Obispo County since 2015 and have received medical services from Cuesta Medical Group and subsequently by Dignity Health. Dignity provides doctors within Physicians Choice IPA/HMO. Our doctor was there until November 2016 until moving to the Central Coast Physicians Network (CCPN) clinic near Sierra Vista Hospital.

Nurses at the initial two providers stated CCPN is an insurance company advocate, which handles and approves their medical services. This risky process has led to litigation against CCPN from its fired director, using Ernst Law Group in SLO, claiming profits come first. It became difficult to contact our doctor’s new office at the clinic because unanswered calls are relayed to a foreign-affiliated “Bakersfield Family Medical Center.”

Do providers and insurance companies need CCPN as an “extra intermediary finger in their money pie?” CCPN advertises 97 doctors in The Tribune practicing family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics. CCPN management should decide to be a patient advocate or an insurance company advocate, or recuse themselves to avoid conflict of interest.

This story was originally published December 19, 2017 at 4:52 PM with the headline "Cambrian letters to the editor, Dec. 21, 2017."