www.encinitaschamber.com
Volume 6, Issue 3
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INSIDE The monthly Sundowner event hosted by the Chamber in February focused on healthcare professionals in the area PAGE 8
A Sporting Life, a health sports fair, is set for May and will feature world-class athletes like Tony Hawk and many more PAGE 2
New rules for credit cards could cause trouble both for lenders and customers PAGE 7
Local artists unveiled their banners for this year’s Arts Alive celebration in Encinitas
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PAGE 15
March 2010
No insurance? Good health care is still in reach By Lillian Cox ENCINITAS — Among the reasons Encinitas is recognized as a top-tier health care system is the quality and range of services provided to uninsured and underinsured residents through North County Health Services, or NCHS. The nonprofit provides primary medical care for individuals and families at the Encinitas Health Center at 629 Second St. and specialty care at the Encinitas Women’s and Children’s Health Center at 1130 Second St. Services include exams, family planning, OB/GYN, pediatrics, adolescent medicine, adult medicine, vision care, dental care, and mental health and counseling. Referrals are made to specialists if needed. The center also enjoys a positive relationship with Scripps Hospital, Encinitas. In addition, the health centers offer specialty clinics in areas such as attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, childhood obesity awareness and prevention, podiatry, asthma treatment and management, and immunizations. Put simply, the health
second in a continuing series
ENCINITAS for world-class health care Health care destination...
NORTH COUNTY H E A LT H SERVICES
We have it all. centers serve as a safety net for the community. No one is turned away. One Encinitas resident, a professor at a local college, wanted to share her story for the purpose of this article. However, she asked to remain anonymous because she has a teenager who is distressed and embarrassed by
the financial situation the family suddenly finds themselves in. Recently the professor’s pay and hours were cut. The family’s problems were compounded when her husband was laid off from a local company just before the holidays. She began by describing a visit to her opthamologist’s
office a few weeks ago where she was lectured by a receptionist who told her she was irresponsible not to have health insurance. Afterward, the experience caused her to delay seeing a doctor when she sensed her blood pressure was becoming dangerously high. “I was worried and I
thought I was going to have a stroke,” she said. “I finally realized I couldn’t put it off anymore. It was such a relief when I called the Encinitas Health Center and made an appointment.” The professor explained that the current episode is the first time in her adult life when she has been without health insurance. She added that she was raised in a family where her mother instilled an ethic of taking care of others. In fact, it was through volunteer work with the Interfaith Shelter Network that she learned about NCHS. “The first time I visited the health center I was crying because I’m not used to being on the receiving end of giving,” she said. “I went in and the place was immaculate and nicely decorated, and everyone had a smile on their face. They never made me feel bad that I didn’t have insurance. It was a remarkable experience.” The professor had a similar experience on a subsequent visit. “People don’t want to go to a place that’s perceived as a welfare place, but it’s not like ❚
see Health Care on 17
Bob Haro: originator, designer, entrepreneur Group talks alternatives to bag ban By Lillian Cox ENCINITAS — Bob Haro, 51, parlayed a teenage passion for performing outrageous bicycle tricks into a multimillion dollar industry. Now the creator of BMX freestyling wants to inspire today’s youth to follow their dreams, too. One way he is doing this is by participating in the A Sporting Life event, which is a family health sports fair set for May, with another local legend, Tony Hawk. “I feel there’s a responsibility that comes with the good luck I’ve had over the years,” he said. “I want young people to believe they can do whatever they want to do.You need to believe in yourself and your ideas.” He offers this advice to kids. “Surround yourself with people who hold you up and also believe in you,” he said. “I didn’t, and don’t, hang-out with people who pull me down.” Haro spent his youth in Spring Valley and La Mesa. His parents were cashiers with the Alpha Beta supermarket chain.
“This photo was from my Freestyle Moves handbook I made in 1983,” Bob Haro said. “The vibe at the time was to portray the sport of BMX in a heroic fashion. Riders at this time wore uniforms to look professional when they raced or did demonstrations. We shot this in Carlsbad when there were more fields than business parks.” Courtesy photo
“They were humble, hardworking people,” he said. “They had a Great Depression mentality in that it was more important to get a job than an education.” Haro recalls the skate park boom of the 1970s, acknowledging that he was a stronger
bicyclist than skateboarder. “A turning point came when my friends and I snuck into a skateboard park after hours, threw our bikes over the fence and rode,” he said. When liability concerns caused skate parks to close as fast as they opened, Haro built
portable ramps he used to perform demos at county fairs, shopping centers and schools. He left California for the first time at 19, booking shows in Ohio and the East Coast. Soon demand arose in ❚ see Haro on 19
ENCINITAS — The Environmental Commission held a public meeting on Feb. 3 aimed at updating the local business community on the status of the city’s single-use plastic bag ban ordinance that has yet to go into effect. In a surprising 3-2 vote, City Council voted Sept. 10, 2008, to direct staff to draft an ordinance banning plastic bags. Councilman James Bond joined then-Deputy Mayor Maggie Houlihan and Councilwoman Teresa Barth in supporting a phased-in process to eliminate the use of all point-ofpurchase single-use plastic shopping bags within the city. However, the city was targeted along with several other municipalities by a San Francisco group called “Save the Plastic Bag” in an ❚ see Bag on 16