Weekly Program

Thursday’s speaker WA Attorney General Bob Ferguson

Bob Ferguson is Washington’s 18th Attorney General. As the state’s chief legal officer, he directs 500 attorneys and 600 professional staff providing legal services to state agencies, Governor and Legislature.

General Ferguson’s ongoing priorities are:

  • Protecting consumers and seniors against fraud by cracking down on powerful interests that don’t play by the rules;
  • Keeping communities safer by supporting law enforcement;
  • Protecting our environment; and
  • Standing up for our veterans by advocating for service men and women and their families.

Bob received his J.D. from New York University School of Law in 1995. He earned a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Washington, where he was student body president. Bob began his legal career in Spokane where he served as a law clerk for Chief Judge W. Fremming Nielsen of the Federal District Court for Eastern Washington. He then clerked for Judge Myron Bright of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in the Midwest. Ferguson returned to Seattle and joined Preston, Gates, and Ellis (now K&L Gates), one of Washington’s leading law firms.

In 2003, Bob was elected to the King County Council. In 2005, after the council was reduced from 13 to nine and Bob’s district was eliminated, he was re-elected. He was unopposed in 2009.

Bob is a fourth-generation Washingtonian. His family homesteaded on the beautiful Skagit River, which may explain why Bob is such an enthusiastic mountain climber, backpacker, and birder. He has hiked hundreds of miles of Washington trails and climbed many of the state’s highest peaks.

Bob is an internationally-rated chess master. His games have appeared in local, national and international chess publications. Bob has twice won the Washington State Chess Championship.

Bob, his wife Colleen and their 9-year-old twins, Jack and Katie, reside in the Maple Leaf neighborhood of North Seattle.

Credit: http://www.atg.wa.gov/about-bob-ferguson

Stephanie Pietras-Bailey-Boushay House

Pres. Jim and Stephanie

Stephanie Pietras has worked in healthcare with a specialty in HIV/Aids for 28 years. She is currently director of volunteer services for Bailey Boushay House, which is affiliated with Virginia Mason. Stephanie earned a B.S. from Marymount and an M.S from Loyola, and has lived in Seattle since 2007.   Stephanie gave a well-constructed presentation on the history of Bailey-Boushay House and the developments in treating HIV/Aids.

The following is a synopsis of the development of the HIV/Aids disease and treatment since the beginning in 1981.

  • 1981 The New York Times reports on a mysterious illness.
  • 1982 The illness was given the name acquired immune deficiency syndrome, AIDS.
  • 1984 A test for screening blood donations was developed and implemented in 1985, Rock Hudson died of Aids, R.I.P. Chimpanzees were used to develop the test. Poor Chimps…
  • 1987 The drug called AZT which was developed in mice was approved for treating AIDS. Poor mice…
  • 1988 The Surgeon General of the United States sent every household a letter detailing the known causes and precautions for Aids. 1990 It was estimated that 8 million people had AIDS.
  • 1990 Condoms became the preferred method of protection from AIDS. Buy stock in condom companies.
  • 1995 There was an increase in the disease in the women//children population, but infant infections started to fall due to AZT treatment.
  • 1996 Combination treatment of antiretroviral were developed, also known as the “cocktail”.
  • 1997 Aids related deaths in developing countries begin to drop, however 22 million people still have HIV.
  • 2007 33 million people have HIV.
  • 2010 Macaques and mice are once again used in testing for the drug called Truvada, which reveals positive results. Poor mice and Macaques.
  • 2011 Antiretroviral are shown to reduce the risk of transmission of HIV by 96%.
  • 2012 Most people worldwide eligible for antiretroviral are now receiving them.

Bailey-Boushay House continues to provide inpatient and outpatient hospice services for men living with HIV/AIDS. They have 172 volunteers working 13 hour shifts, and this is their 25th year in operation.

Yeah!

University of Washington “Tent City”

In the February 16th production, University of Washington “Tent City”, the cast was comprised of Toni Sarge, thesis student; Ted Hunter, pro bono lawyer; and dedicated volunteers Jason Tavares, Scott Morrow, and Courtney O’Toole.

As homeless shelters go, this one complies with laws, screens its residents, embraces cleanliness, and disallows drunkenness and drug activity. Hospitality is extended to visitors, from whom contributions of food and clothing are welcomed. TC is one of a network of 11 similar self-help locations. These are necessary establishments, lest people lack the basics of life.

Only 2500 shelter beds exist. Efforts are made to keep couples together. The number of affordable family housing units remains limited. People come and go. For extreme weather, warm shelters are available. TCs are self-managed, with officers elected, an executive committee is in force. A security test must be passed for entry. There is a strict code of conduct. Two security people are present around the clock.
There is a large community tent for socialization, as well as a kitchen. Weekly camp meetings are held. Bus tickets are provided for those who must get to jobs.  In addition, the UW provides monthly dental care. A foot clinic, acupuncture, and alternate medicine options are available. Nursing care is also provided.

In short, not all homeless individuals are alike; a variety of factors has brought them to the shelters. The chief single factor that has made TCs necessary is the shortage of affordable housing. Until supply can meet demand, people must be sustained in this way, and by the selflessness of those who shepherd them

American Cancer Society

On February 9th. David Leon of the American Cancer Society and Kara Fortney, Senior Manager of Relay for Life held the floor.

As to the disease, statistics show that it cannot be ignored. It was cited that one in three females and one in two males will face it in some form in their lifetimes. The ACS, in its mission to lead the fight for a world without cancer, espouses these principles:

  • To increase colorectal cancer screening rates to 80% by 2018.
  • To reduce lung cancer age-adjusted mortality by 50% in a decade.
  • Ensure that nobody dies due to non-access to care.
  • Eliminating HPV-related cancers
  • Equalizing outcomes for all facing breast cancer.
  • Ensure that all cancer survivors can access care.
  • Enable communities to fight cancer by addressing the true determinant of health.

They averred that the above, plus the cost of research, is expensive. Donations are vital in this work. The dollars are put to work in Washington via.

  • Care and empathy, to wit, information lines, rides to and from treatment, navigation of patients through the healthcare system, management of treatment side effects, free or reduced cost lodging.
  • Courage, to wit, funding to reduce the unequal burden of cancer, visits to cancer.org, grants to help low-income patients to receive screening.
  • Determination, to wit, rallying communities and creating partnerships to help save lives.
  • Innovation, to wit finding cancer’s causes and cures.

Relay for Life

This is an opportunity to gather with people in the community in order to raise funds and awareness. Globally, it is the largest fundraising event.  It is a way of celebrating the survivors and to remember those lost. It will take place at Cal Anderson Park on Saturday, 8/12, from 10AM to 6PM. The various competitions and awards have been described. Entertainment and speakers are scheduled. Last year, there were 21 teams, 119 participants, and $34,657.63 raised. This year there will be a Bark-for-Life event, honoring the canine caregivers.  Survivors will receive a shirt and a medal.

 

 

Dr. Donn Charnley: NW Geology

 

On January 12th, a zip-fast lesson in NW geology was rendered by Dr. Donn Charnley, Professor Emeritus at Shoreline Community College.

 

 

Some of the facts expressed in his talk were:

  • Lithosphere is the outer, rigid, rock girdling the planet. It consists of movable plates
  • Some collide with each other, i.e, Pacific and South American plates, or diverge, i.e. Mid-Atlantic Ridge
  • Layers of the earth are core, mantle, crust
  • Speeds of plate movements are up to 1 inch per year
  • The newest rock is being formed at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge; oldest is at the continents
  • Some plates move past each other
  • Smaller rock fragments are called Terranes, some of which date back to a billion years
  • The Yukatat terrane is moving northward and will end up in Alaska, while Baja California is destined for the same area
  • 1 billion years ago, the coast was in Idaho
  • The east-moving North American plate began to change direction some 250 million years ago in the so called March of Terranes and terranes crashed into the N.A. plate and piled up against each other
  • At this time the Pacific plate moved eastward and the N.A. plate moved westward
  • Low rock melted and rose, giving rise to volcanism
  • Basalt was formed in eastern WA
  • The Kootenay Arc became part of N.A
  • The large Okanogan terrane now collided and became part of the N.A. plate
  • The N. Cascade super terrane came from the SE and collided then pushed up to form the Strait Creek Fault
  • The San Juan Islands are a group of terranes from a process of older rock being pushed up by younger rock.
  • Starting 12 million years ago, the Pacific plate continued to crash eastward, creating a subduction zone
  • This has given rise to the Olympic mountains and rock at the south end of Vancouver Islands
  • Basalt rocks in Eastern WA are connected to the massive floods that arose from Missoula.

Comment:  Quite a bit to digest. He kindly did not dwell on the Cascadia Fault whose potential energy continues to ratchet up beneath our feet.

City University Enactus Program

City U Enactus

City University of Seattle Enactus, an organization working to improve life conditions worldwide, brings together experts in appropriate disciplines. Their principle is to accomplish this via entrepreneurship. Distinguished faculty advisor Kathy Cox was with us to show a recent example of this type of endeavor. She introduced Nathan Patricia and Maheesa Anastasya who were altogether impressive with their description of a most promising device, The Green Energy Stove.

It is necessary first to review a condition that prevails throughout Africa, that of cooking over a wood fire. This generates the smoke that smites the eyes and lungs and impairs the atmosphere. Also, it takes up time that could better be spent caring for one’s family. Moreover, while it takes too much time and expense to walk to a cellphone-charging center, a source of electricity.

Enter the Green Energy Stove. What are its virtues?

–      It is smokeless.

–      It can use any vegetation for fuel, i.e., plentiful bamboo.

–      It operates by clean power generators.

–      No carbon monoxide or carbon dioxide is produced.

–      The burnt fuel can be used as fertilizer.

–      Deforestation is ameliorated, since wood is not required.

–      The heat energy is converted to electricity, powering lamps and cellphones.

–      A person can borrow the cost of a stove through a microloan and then pay off the loan with proceeds from sale of electricity.

–      The surface of the stove is not hot, precluding injury.

The device has been proven in Gabon and is now ready for distribution in Gambia, Ethiopia, Gabon, and Nigeria.

Comment: This stove promises to range far.

Detective Anthony Stevenson-Sex Offender Registry

Detective Anthony Stevenson Our December 1st speaker was Detective Anthony Stevenson who oversees the of sex offenders in the area. Considering the numbers, he sets forth, it is at least a formidable assignment. His first point is that such as they have no distinguishing characteristics. They can be anyone. They pervade society, with 1,275 living in Seattle, plus those who are among the homeless. Stevenson also deals with those charged and convicted of kidnapping. Both types of offenders must register. This results from Megan’s Law, emanating from a case of kidnapping/rape/murder in New Jersey. The Law requires that such offenders must not only register, but also that the community be apprised of where they reside. The total registered in King County presently stands at 3,532.

Levels I, II, and III classification of offenders based on the severity and frequency of their crimes, III being the highest risk. Local police agency will notify of an offender’s address and where he is registered. The County Sheriff’s office tracks homeless SO’s via weekly sign-in sheets. If the requirement is violated, a criminal case is instituted.

Some characteristics: 

  • Level I–These have violated people they know, and are of least risk to the community.
  • Level II–This includes such as teachers, pedophiles, baby sitters. They generally have had more than one victim.
  • Level III–This type of predator is of greatest risk to the community. Their crimes are of the violent type. They generally do not know their victims. They must be checked in every 90 days. The media and public at large are informed of them. Schools and day care facilities are prepared when offenders live in the neighborhood. Washington laws do not restrict where they live. In extreme cases, court orders and the Department of Corrections may restrict where they can be located.

As to what to do: 

  • Educate children about the techniques of offenders.
  • Stay alert and report suspicious activity via 911 or to the offices whose phone numbers have been provided by the speaker.

Comment: It is grimly surprising as to how many engage in this type of behavior–no less surprising than, say, the incidence of domestic violence. These are scary times. Those who are trusting–and there are many–are fair game. Sadly, it is necessary to teach and practice suspicion.

Kwapi Vengesayi and the 5th Avenue Theater

kwapi-vengesayiOur  Speaker October 27th was Zimbabwe-born Kwapi Vengesayi and the 5th Avenue Theater encountered each other and neither has been the same since. He had been trained in architecture and then in sociology. He found his calling, however, as the theater’s Community Engagement Specialist. The showplace had been a venerable landmark. It is now undergoing renovation in modern facilities, acoustics, and space. At the same time, efforts are afoot to preserve much of its old charm.

Vengesayi’s mission is to immerse the community in performance culture.  Also, his aim is to reach out to under-served and under-represented areas of the community. He realized, upon arrival, how much musical theater is around us. Therefore, he works to engage the community in musical theater. Indeed, several of the musicals at the 5th have made it to Broadway.
The crux of the endeavor has been that of partnerships. In the process, high school students have at one time run the theater, under supervision. Variously, there have been served those with dementia, Thai dancers, kids who met the casts, and those of Tech Tuesday. This has catered to those who study all stages of production as to what foes into staging a show.  It is hoped that time and effort may be devoted to autism.

Other partners have included the UW Department of Geriatrics and Gerontology, the Thai community, Alaska and Delta Airlines, US Bank, Bank of America, Renton Skyway Boys and Girls Club, and others either current or pending.

Meanwhile, the project goes on to make the theater more spacious and to have patrons interact in the large entrance area.

 

Classification Talk: Holly Henry

Holly HenryOn October 13, Holly Henry gave us a zip-fast tour through her early years and thence into the pharmaceutical interest that first asserted itself during her days as a WSU undergraduate. Throughout her life, there has also been an undercurrent (so to speak) of aquatic activity, i.e., swimming and boating.

Her first exposure to pharmacies came with a job at Pay & Save. This was followed by one doing seminars for the WA State Pharmaceutical Assn. With a partner, she bought her first pharmacy at View Ridge. Thus began a series of ownerships varying from one to a maximum of seven. The last store was sold in March.

Then began a happy occupancy, with husband Mike, of a houseboat in which they traversed the route encompassing waters north of Vancouver Island.

Her passion has been community pharmacies and politics. She has chaired The WA State Pharmaceutical Assn. as well as the national organization. Of the latter she was but the second female president in its long history. The National Community Pharmaceutical Association has pulled away from the parent organization due to the latter’s lack of political action. She has lobbied for pharmaceutical issues both in Olympia and DC. An act was passed in 1979 for the maintenance of patient profiles including all medicines being taken. This guards against allergies and interactions. A provision has the pharmacist counsel patients with new Rx’s. to ensure good outcomes. Often (but not always–ed.) the doctor writes a prescription and has little follow-up. The statistics regarding outcomes for hypertensive and cholesterol-lowering drugs are consequently not good, as examples. This has given rise to legislation allowing pharmacists to order lab tests, modify drug therapy, and to prescribe. Such is the case with vaccines, under “collaborative contract”. WA was the first state to pass such legislation.

The question of compensation for pharmacists has arisen. While this has been  a difficult area, it is now ordained that the payer must compensate another professional if his/her scope of practice is utilized. Drug pricing: There is “discriminatory pricing.” That is, different prices are assigned to a hospital pharmacy than, say a community one. While it appears that things are cheaper in Canada, our various prices average out to about the same. Much of the disproportionate pricing can be traced to two major  “Benefit Managers”. These middlemen control most of the pricing to the extent that, for doing little of the work, they derive most of the profit. This helps drive prices up to their current stratospheric levels.

Comment: In that some of her drugs are given by the intravenous route, it  can sometimes be a matter of The Holly and the IV.

Our October 20th speaker: State Senator Pramila Jayapal

Pramila Jayapal, community activis (Tyrone Turner / Tyrone Turner)
Pramila Jayapal, community activist

The October 20th US Rotary speaker will be Senator Pramila Jayapal. An Indian-American activist and politician. A Democrat, she has represented the 37th legislative district in the Washington State Senate since 2015. Before her election she was a Seattle-based civil rights activist, serving until 2012 as the founder and executive director of OneAmerica, a pro-immigration advocacy group.

In January 2016, Jayapal declared her candidacy for Congress in Washington’s 7th congressional district, after Congressman Jim McDermott announced his retirement.  She finished with 40% in the August 2 primary and advanced to the general election in November.

She was born in India and raised in Indonesia and Singapore. She came to the United States in 1982, at the age of 16, to attend college. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., and an MBA from Northwestern University in Chicago.

http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/bernie-sanders-to-headline-pramila-jayapal-rally-saturday-in-seattle/