July 2009 Archives

Marrianne McBride, the new chief executive of the Council on Aging Services for Seniors, said the growing population of older citizens makes her work all the more important.

"Baby boomers are just starting to become seniors," she said. And that means more than a simple jump in the numbers of older people who will need help living independently, or want a Meals on Wheels dinner delivered to their door.

"We will be more demanding," said McBride, 52, of the new generation of seniors that will expect more choices. Instead of a basic meat and potatoes meal, for example, they might want fish, vegan or organic food.

Instead of a "caregiver," they might want a "personal assistant."

It took a couple of sessions, but eventually, the teenage boy touched the horse's back.
The boy, who has autism, normally doesn't touch things with ease.

"All he was doing was looking at his hands," said Fran Judd, a registered physical therapist and operator of Renaissance Healing & Learning Center in Cotati. "And to walk or do anything, he had to be totally guided."

It was interaction with a horse that triggered something in the young man, Judd said. That trigger is unique to patients who work with animals as part of their therapy or recovery, she said.

Judd, a registered physical therapist for nearly four decades, established Renaissance 10 years ago as a place where stroke victims, those with autism and a whole spectrum of conditions from cerebral palsy to spinal cord injuries, can relax and heal on horseback.

Desiree Stinson's road to becoming director of Sonoma Pets Lifeline began in the 1980s, when her love of fashion design and show production segued into working with Cirque du Soleil.

"It's not the logical background for my role now, but everything I've learned I can contribute here," Stinson said.

Her life path has included show business and environmental volunteer service, graphic design, event planning and team building. As the former marketing manager and on-site special events coordinator for Cirque du Soleil from 1987 to 1990 and again in 2004, Stinson is infusing fund-raising activities for the Sonoma shelter with creativity and more than a little razzle-dazzle.

Take, for example, the reshaping of the Sonoma Pets Lifeline annual fund-raiser, "Bone Appetit."

"In this economy, I really wanted to reward our donors with a more exciting event," Stinson said.

Joanne Atkerson of Santa Rosa lost both of her jobs a year ago and yet she's never been busier.

The human resources, event planning and administrative services dynamo is keeping busy volunteering for several charity events.

"I'm searching for work every morning and then I volunteer," Atkerson said. She was laid off from two of the larger private employers in Sonoma County, Hansel Toyota and Korbel winery, but it didn't hurt her feelings one bit.

"Everybody's cutting back. I put my son through Cardinal Newman (Catholic high school) working three jobs. I'll find jobs," she said.