Archive for the ‘Making a Difference’ Category

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San Felipeans lower cholesterol up to 116 points in two weeks.

Comments: 0January 6th, 2012 by

A new study by a physician from the IMSS clinic, UMF 24, San Felipe Baja California, found that by putting a group of North Americans on a diet rich in whole grains, legumes, fruits, vegetables and nuts and changing their intake of animal products, they were able to lower their total cholesterol and LDL (bad) cholesterol significantly, this without using drugs to lower cholesterol. In fact not only was there an improvement in blood lipids but participants reported increased energy, improved sleep quality, decreased blood pressure and lost 8.6 lbs on average (3.9 kilos), this in a period of two weeks.

 

The new study, was done by Dr. Eddie Ramirez Diaz, a native of Ensenada. Which has 16 years of experience in various lifestyle centers in North America, Europe and Africa. The study took place from December 5 to December 19, 2011. It was a free program open to the foreign community of San Felipe. Participants paid only their blood tests before and after the study.

 

The new study, “is a step forward, showing the importance of lifestyle changes to combat a large number of health problems affecting the people that live in our community,” said Dr. Ramirez.

 

Methodology

 

In the study, a group of more than 20 Americans who live or spend the winter in San Felipe participated. As a group on average the initial cholesterol was 232 points (which is high) and the LDL (bad) cholesterol was on average 158.7 points (which is also high).

Participants met twice a week for advice and encourage, they were provided with cookbooks and information to understand why they were making the changes.

 

Results

 

Laboratory results showed that on average cholesterol went down 59 points, triglycerides dropped 22 points and LDL (bad) cholesterol (LDL) went down 39 points. Many had dramatic changes like a participant who had a reduction of 112 points in her triglycerides and her cholesterol  went down 118 points together with her LDL cholesterol which decreased 85 points.

 

This study shows the potential value of lifestyle changes to reduce blood lipids and thus reduce a large range of pathologies.

 

Dr. Ramirez is planning another free program open to the entire community which will begin on January 16, 2012. For more information call Dr. Ramirez at 686-133-6046.

Posted in Making a Difference

VIVA San Felipe – Volunteers for Indigent & Vulnerable Animals

Comments: 0November 11th, 2011 by

In their own words

Viva is:

a non-profit organization whose sole purpose is to increase animal awareness; rescue indigent animals and provide a structured network of care to adopt the animals ready for forever homes.

In my words, this group is a bunch of very hardworking, selfless individuals who have hearts of the size of watermelons.  Everyone one of them feeds and houses numerous strays and spends their leisure time rounding up animals and transporting them to spay and neuter appointments.  Sometimes they even make long distance trips to take some lucky pups to new homes in the States.

You can read more about them on their website:  My Viva San Felipe

 

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Posted in Making a Difference

Planning Ahead

Comments: 0September 9th, 2011 by

Image: digitalart / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Yesterday Chuck and I met with three of the ladies who’s tireless efforts have made Volunteers Without Limits a reality.  The purpose of the meeting was to review our current position and set down our goals for the future.  You ask: “Just what is Volunteers Without Limits Susan?”
 
So glad you asked.
 
VSL* (sorry I spent so many years working for the city that I am hooked on acronyms) is a non-profit civil association formed, by a group of women in San Felipe, to fill the vacancy left when the leaders of the San Felipe Food Bank disbanded and left the area.  Sort of a changing of the guard.  The ladies and their husbands took over distributing food to needy families, however these women were doubly motivated to keep this organization going.  Yes, they have a strong desire to help feed the many poverty stricken families of San Felipe, but in addition to this, they are also deeply committed to helping the families with children with disabilities in their daily struggle to provide adequate nutrition, therapy and medical attention, while living in a small and very poor town that is over a hundred miles from the nearest medical specialist or hospital equipped to care for their child’s needs.
 
Patricia Orosco Rea, the Director of VSL, has a four year daughter, Lupita, who has been diagnosed with cerebral paralysis and mycrocephaly.  Since Lupita’s birth, Patty has committed herself to getting her the best possible care and providing Lupita the best life possible.  Because of her unfailing perseverance Lupita has been selected to participate in a program called Chains of Help and she has received care from medical specialists not only in Mexicali but also Hermosillo, Mx.   It is Patty’s dream to help the other families in San Felipe who have children with special medical needs to also obtain the best care possible for their children.
 
To accomplish this dream Patty, and the other ladies of VSL, work six days a week at the VSL Segundo as unpaid volunteers.  Here they sell the clothing and household items donated by our wonderful benefactors.  The proceeds from the thrift store help finance the purchase of  food to feed about 150 families in San Felipe. But their dedication does not stop there, their equally critical goal is to raise public awareness and support for the families of these children with disabilities and help provide the parents with the tools and financial help needed to assure their children get the best care possible.
 
To learn more about the results of our meeting, click over to our blog at Volunteers With Limits.
 
* The official name of the organization we work with is Voluntarios Sin Limites which translates to Volunteers Without Limits, hence I use VSL not VWL when abbreviating the name.

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What’s In Your Cupboard?

Comments: 0July 24th, 2011 by
good quality food to donate to a local food bankHigh-quality nonperishable food from our pantry…would I donate it?

One year, for the annual US Postal Service Food Drive, my husband volunteered to pick up a donation at the grocery store. He was gone a while, and when he came back he said, “I got stuck.” I knew what he was talking about: being at a store, indecisive, caught between options, standing in the aisle for too long, ready to give up.

Read the rest of this article on The Reflective Writer

 

Books, housewares, bedding, clothing, children’s toys, bicycles and more filled the United Center for Community Care (UC3) gymnasium today for a yard sale benefitting the Food Bank of Greenwood County. Avid “yardsalers” were waiting outside when the doors opened at 8:00 am. …  read more here

By Popular Demand… You Can Now Set Up an Automatic Monthly Donation

Posted on July 14, 2011 by admin

Many of our friends have asked us to please make it easy for them to continue supporting Volunteers Without Limits when they are traveling or out of town for extended periods.  We have finally found the means to do just that.*

Now you can select the MAKE IT MONTHLY option in the column to the right of this article (or any VSL post) and pick the amount you can comfortably contribute to help out.  You can even add a child’s name if you wish to sponsor one of our children with disabilities and send a monthly donation to help that child’s parents buy medicines, special supplies or travel to and from the doctors in Mexicali or Ensenada. **  Read the rest of this article on Volunteers Without Limits

 

 

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Nothing But Time

Comments: 0July 22nd, 2011 by

Image: Idea go / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Nothing But Time
By Susan Young

 

There’s a line in a country song that goes something like “I’ll do more someday, when I have the time.” I can remember thinking that myself during the years filled with work and family responsibilities. For decades I put off doing and salved my conscious with an automatic monthly contribution to some distant cause. There just wasn’t time to do more.

 

Now suddenly I come face to face with end of the hustle and bustle and discover I have time. Time to fill with what? Oh, there is no shortage of choices. There are activities and causes no end. What there are no longer, are excuses. I can no longer claim I can’t exercise because I have no time. I can no longer say, gee I would like to learn Spanish but I don’t have the time. I can no longer simply send off a check and say I don’t have time to do more.

 

I have time. I have several hours each day to fill with something. I have the choice of how to fill those hours. Whether I will fill them with something healthy, something that will stimulate my brain or something that benefit others is my choice and I get to make that choice every day, every waking hour.

 

Sometimes I choose to do nothing, to just kick back and relax or enjoy the pool. Sometimes I choose to interact with friends and family on the computer. Sometimes I choose to do something to make a difference in the world around me for now I discover I have the time and the choice of how I use that time is mine and mine alone.

Posted in Making a Difference

Foodbank: New Name & Location

Comments: 1March 15th, 2011 by

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Posted in Making a Difference

MARCH 19th: SONSHINE HACIENDA OPEN HOUSE

Comments: 0March 6th, 2011 by

9:00 A.M. – 4:00 P.M. Note: Date changed!

Posted in From the Deck, Making a Difference

Christmas Food Court … Surprise

Comments: 0November 27th, 2010 by

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Posted in Just for Fun, Making a Difference

Can We Save Vaquita & Fishing Industry?

Comments: 1June 30th, 2010 by

The vaquita porpoise is a Critically Endangered species of true porpoises and it lives in our neighborhood, a tiny area in the extreme northern Sea of Cortez/Gulf of California, in Baja California, Mexico.  Last week we attended a very informative presentation by Dr. Thomas A. Jefferson about these endearing creatures.

Jefferson shared the challenge of protecting the remaining vaquitas while acknowledging the difficulty of making major changes in local fishing practices in an economy where fishing is big part of survival.  The major danger to vaquita population is the current practice of using gill (nearly invisible) nets to gather fish and shrimp from the waters off the eastern coast of Baja.

Since adding the vaquitas to the Endangered List in 1994, the Mexican government has taken several steps to attempt to save the vaquitas including the creation of the Biosphere Reserve of the Upper Gulf of California and Colorado River Delta in 1993 but the most effective step to date (according to Rojas-Bracho & Fueyo article in Whalewatch 2010 v39#1) is probably the creation of the International Committee for Recovery of the Vaquita (CIRVA) in 1996.  This committee is tasked with looking for solutions that meld both the scientific  and social-economic elements of the problem.  Through their efforts additional actions have been taken by the Mexican government including a 2007 Conservation Program for Endangered Species (PROCER) which requires a Species Conservation Action Program (PACE).

What that means to Baja fishermen is that there is a restricted fishing zone, gill net fishing is being discouraged, alternative fishing methods are being studied and a compensation plan is being implemented to help the locals to transition from the practice of gill net fishing to other occupations.

With the population of vaquitas dwindling from the 500s to 100 or 200s since this research first began the question arises as to whether these measures will be quick enough and sufficient to save the vaquitas from extinction.

To learn more about the vaquitas, read Viva Vaquitas

Live vaquita photos taken by Thomas A. Jefferson under permit (Oficio No. DR/488/08) from the Secretaria de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (SEMARNAT), within a natural protected area subject to special management and decreed as such by the Mexican Government.
Vaquita Presentation – Dr. Tom Jefferson

View more presentations from cherylbutner.


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We Are the World – 25 Year Remake for Haiti Relief

Comments: 1February 14th, 2010 by

I was perplexed by the negative feedback on this video.  So much hate coming from an effort to share love with others.  Personally I am not, nor ever was, a Michael Jackson fan but I think the sentiment behind the production is bigger than any one person involved and God has always used cracked pots to accomplish his work.

Don’t let hate win.  Do what you can to help.

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