Congresswoman Julia Brownley (D-CA) announced the inclusion of nine community projects totaling more than $27 million in the Fiscal Year 2022 Consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R. 2471) that passed the House of Representatives by a 260-171-1 vote. The historic government funding package will help working families with the cost of living, create good-paying jobs, and make direct investments in community priorities throughout the country, such as infrastructure and maintenance projects to support commerce and reliable water delivery and support for public education curriculum and work-based learning in Ventura County.

“I am thrilled to announce that nine community projects I fought to fund were included in the final House-passed legislation,” said Congresswoman Julia Brownley. “These projects directly address pressing issues in our community including enhancing water quality and delivery, expanding educational opportunities at our higher education institutions, mitigating flood risks to local homes and businesses, and bringing justice to sexual assault survivors by supporting law enforcement efforts to clear the backlog of DNA testing in Ventura County.

“The bill also funds dredging needs at Channel Islands Harbor and the Ventura Harbor, which is critical to keeping them open for industries that drive our local economy, including our fisheries and tourism industries. These same funds will also help to replenish local beaches and address coastal erosion, including at Naval Base Ventura County.

“These specific community projects will bolster our region’s economic growth, generate good-paying jobs, and support the unique needs of our community. Over the last year, I worked closely with community stakeholders and local leaders to return federal tax dollars to Ventura County, ensuring critical funding for these important projects.

“As this legislation moves closer to the President’s desk, I look forward to the swift delivery of these resources and the immediate impact on our community.”

$5,516,000 for maintenance dredging of the Ventura Harbor. The dredging is required annually to ensure adequate navigational depths for Ventura Harbor safety, commerce and operations.

$200,000 to address flood risks to homes and businesses along the Santa Paula Creek.

$2,840,000 for the City of San Buenaventura State Water Interconnection Project, which consists of a seven-mile pipeline that will enable the delivery of reliable water supply that will improve water quality, protect against natural disasters and other emergencies, and provide a resilient water supply for the region.

$950,000 to be used by the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, Forensic Services Bureau, Major Crimes Unit, and the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office to expand its joint specialized unit that is dedicated to the investigation, laboratory analysis, and prosecution of backlogged violent and sexual assault cases that hold the promise of being solved through DNA technology.

Community Memorial Health System is proud to announce that its Clinical Laboratory, located at Community Memorial Hospital (CMH) in Ventura, is the only hospital-based laboratory in Ventura County to receive two distinctions for excellence in safety, automation, and efficiency.

For the seventh consecutive time, the Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies (AABB) has awarded Community Memorial Health System its accreditation for excellence in transfusion services. This accreditation acknowledges transfusion programs that meet the highest level of quality and safety standards for transfusion patients and blood donors at all times.

“I am incredibly proud of our Clinical Laboratory team for their ongoing dedication to the AABB accreditation process,” said Community Memorial Health System President & CEO Gary Wilde. “From blood banking and transfusion services to COVID-19 testing, our laboratory plays a vital role in the excellent level of care we provide to our community.”

The AABB also recognized Minerva Vasquez, Community Memorial Health System Lab Section Supervisor, for her thought-leadership in the development and implementation of processes and procedures designed to ensure adherence to safety standards. The AABB will be sharing an auditing tool developed by Vasquez as a best-practice model for meeting the benchmarks required for its accreditation.

Community Memorial Health System’s Chemistry Lab Supervisor, Trevor Jackson, was also recognized for his excellence as a laboratory professional. Jackson was selected for Cardinal Health’s Laboratory Excellence List ™ for his exceptional achievements in efficiency and automation. Jackson, who joined the Community Memorial Health System lab team as a phlebotomist in 2000, served as the project lead in the installation and optimization of the DxA 5000 Total Lab Automation System, a cutting-edge lab track that automates the connection between the chemistry and hematology instruments used for sample processing. It provides pre-analytical sample analysis, reduces manual processing steps, and drives consistent sample turnaround times. Jackson and the expert lab team starting working to implement this new technology in August 2020 and, despite the pressures of the pandemic, launched it in June, 2021. Community Memorial Health System is the only hospital-based clinical laboratory with the DxA 5000 in Southern California.

“Working in the healthcare industry can be stressful, especially these last few years, but I have always found the work very rewarding and worth the effort,” said Jackson.

The Community Memorial Health System Clinical Laboratory provides comprehensive inpatient and outpatient testing services to patients at Community Memorial Hospital, Ojai Valley Community Hospital, Midtown Medical Group Clinics, Centers for Family Health Clinics, and a network of other healthcare, home health, and skilled nursing partners throughout western Ventura County.

On April 7, at 9:38am, fire units were dispatched to a reported large fire at Main St. at Hartman Dr. Units arrived to find a growing fire inside a parked motorhome RV. Fire crews made an aggressive attack on the fire and thankfully prevented spread to an adjacent building. Upon completion of an interior search of the RV, it was determined that an adult male, unknown age was deceased inside the vehicle. One male bystander, unknown age, who was initially attempting to help at the time of the fire was assessed by paramedics and transported to VCMC for smoke inhalation.

The 2017 Thomas Fire caused devastation, but not defeat. On Saturday, April 30, Noon – 4:00pm 2022, the strength, and resilience of Ventura will be displayed at the Rising From the Ashes home tour. The event will feature a select number of beautifully rebuilt homes. This tour will be hosted by the Ventura County Library Foundation.

The homes’ distinctive and unique architecture captures the majestic views from the Ventura hills, while new landscaping embraces fire mitigation measures. Modern, Spanish Revival, Island Contemporary and Craftsman-style homes will be on display along with décor from some of the area’s finest interior designers. Six unique homes are on the inaugural home tour, staffed by volunteer docents. Each home features a different story of the Thomas Fire’s impact on county residents, but they also display the unified resolve to rebuild and hope for the future.

Tickets are $40 and available from the Foundation’s website at www.vclibraryfoundation.org . Proceeds will benefit the Ventura County Libraries. Library programs that directly benefit from this event include: Lunch at the Library, One County – One Book, STEAM Kits and the Mobile Library.

St. John’s Regional Medical Center has been recognized as an LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Top Performer by the Human Rights Campaign which is the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ organization.

The HEI is the nation’s foremost benchmarking survey of healthcare facilities on policies and practices dedicated to the equitable treatment and inclusion of their LGBTQ+ patients, visitors and employees.

“We are honored to be recognized by the Human Rights Campaign for our dedicated work with the LGBTQ+ community,” states Barry Wolfman, President of St. John’s Regional Medical Center. “We are deeply committed to equity and inclusion in order to provide everyone with a welcoming and safe environment to receive care.”

The HEI evaluates and scores healthcare facilities on detailed criteria falling under four central pillars:

Foundational Policies and Training in LGBTQ+ Patient-Centered Care;

LGBTQ+ Patient Services and Support;

Employee Benefits and Policies; and,

Patient and Community Engagement.

LGBTQ+ patients have historically faced significant and long standing challenges to accessing the care they need, and St. John’s is committed to providing welcoming, compassionate care for LGBTQ+ patients and their families.

“Every person deserves to have access to quality healthcare, be respected and heard by their doctor, and feel safe in the facility where they are receiving care. But LGBTQ+ people are often subject to discrimination in all spaces, including healthcare facilities, which leads to members of the community avoiding care and anticipating our voices will not be respected in an incredibly vulnerable environment,” said Tari Hanneman, Director of Health & Aging at The Human Rights Campaign. “The Healthcare Equality Index, at its core, strives to ensure LGBTQ+ people are protected and affirmed by their healthcare providers and feel safe seeking services. Our HEI active participants are truly pioneering the healthcare industry by implementing robust, comprehensive LGBTQ+ inclusive policies that hopefully, because of their work, will become standard practice.”

For more information about St. John’s commitment to LGBTQ+ care, visit www.dignityhealth.org/lgbtqcare.

Ventura Education Partnership (VEP) announces details for the third annual LAUNCH event at the beautiful Museum of Ventura County on April 21, at 5:30pm.

Aera Energy returns as the Presenting Sponsor. Amy Fonzo, External Affairs Specialist said, “Aera values the brightest minds and the boldest spirits and the educators we honor every year at LAUNCH have demonstrated there are no boundaries when it comes to creativity and innovation in education. That is why we are proud to support LAUNCH as the presenting sponsor again this year. Aera is committed to partnering with local organizations such as VEP to build strong communities where we operate and to support innovation in education to benefit students in Ventura.”

LAUNCH is the signature annual event created by Ventura Education Partnership to recognize and celebrate Ventura Unified School District educators who bring learning to life for their students in innovative, creative and engaging ways, encouraging students to expand their depth of knowledge. LAUNCH features three local educators who will present their novel and inspiring ideas around education.

“LAUNCH gives the community a look inside VUSD classrooms. It’s an inspiring evening that will make you laugh and even feel a little teary-eyed as educators share their stories of classroom innovation,” said Madhu Bajaj, LAUNCH Committee Chair and VEP’s Vice President of Grants.

LAUNCH will highlight the work of the following three educators:

Joel Levin, Buena High School, is an English teacher, teacher librarian, songwriter and novelist; his primary goal in life is to help others find their voices – literally and figuratively, onstage and offstage, in the classroom and beyond the halls of high school.

Erin Beerer, Balboa Middle School, is a Special Education teacher who supports students with disabilities that are moderately to severely impactful on their lives. She strives to provide them with access to opportunities equal to their typically developing peers.

Eva Cherrie, Elmhurst Elementary School, strives to use STEAM and the outdoor learning experiences to enhance engagement and achievement in core content academics. She has focused on studying birds, insects, and gardening to encourage students to go outdoors and be curious about the world around them.

“When you see and hear the stories the three educators share at LAUNCH, you get to witness firsthand the differences that grant funded projects make for VUSD students AND you raise funds for the next school year,” said VEP’s CO-Presidents, Kathy Asher and Debbie Golden.

Additional LAUNCH sponsors include Dr. Andrei Bobrow & Ms. Sabrena Rodriguez, Fastsigns of Ventura, Madhu Bajaj, James Forsythe, Kailash & Rajni Narayan, Very Ventura Gift Shop & Gallery, EJ Harrison, State Farm Agents Irene Henry and Dena Rogers and more. For more information and to sponsor the event visit www.venturaeducationpartnership.org or contact Madhu Bajaj (805) 754-9861.