Palms West Monthly • May 2014 • Page 1
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West Palm Edition
Palms ms West W Family Picnic Fun Hanley Center’s 19th Annual Family Picnic helped raise funds for its prevention and education programs.
PAGE 17 Volume 4, Number 5
Monthly
Zoo focuses on Florida panther The Florida panther will be the topic at the next Conservation Leadership Lecture offered by the Palm Beach Zoo & Conservation Society on June 12.
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Expanded Camp Guide! This month’s Summer Camp Guide contains more camps, more options!
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THE ACREAGE • LOXAHATCHEE GROVES • ROYAL PALM BEACH • WELLINGTON • WEST PALM BEACH
May 2014
Law Week
Area lawyers to offer free help by phone for three days Forty-five lawyers will volunteer 1½-hour shifts April 28-30 as part of Law Week. The number to call is (561) 687-2800.
Rosarian students celebrate Earth Day
In observance of Earth Day, Rosarian Academy students spent the day learning about ideas to improve the environment.
By AMY WOODS Palms West Monthly
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SunFest kicks off in downtown West Palm The music and art festival highlighting local, regional and national acts takes place Wednesday, April 30 to Sunday, May 4 on West Palm Beach’s beautiful downtown waterfront.
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Play a life-size version of Candy Land!
Children can play a life-size version of one of their favorite board games on Tuesday, May 27 at the Royal Palm Beach library.
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INSIDE
Local Happenings ................4, 6 In Brief................................8 Nice and Easy ...................... 10 Summer Camp Guide .......... 11-14 At the Movies .......................16 On Stage .............................16 Faces & Places ......................17 Community Round-Up ......... 18-19 Outside The Neighborhood ...... 20 Just For the Fun of It ............. 21 Service Directory .............22, 23 PalmsWestMonthly.com
Photo by Elizabeth Burks/Palms West Monthly
Monica Carbajal and son Angel, 8, are one of more than 250 families served annually by the Quantum House, which provides affordable lodging and support for families with children with a serious medical condition. “Without this house it’s impossible to receive treatment,” says Monica who, along with her son, is staying at the house for the fifth time.
HOME SWEET HOME
More than 250 families with hospitalized children benefit from the affordable room-and-board of Quantum House every year. By AMY WOODS Palms West Monthly
WEST PALM BEACH — Eight-year-old Angel Carbajal is all smiles – twisting and turning a custom wheelchair around every corner of the well-appointed kitchen in the Quantum House. Angel’s mom, Monica Carbajal, breathes a sigh of relief, knowing the boy with the birth defect can forget about doctors, hospitals and surgeries – at least for a little bit – while he enjoys the family-friendly amenities at his temporary home on the campus of St. Mary’s Medical Center. She and her son came to the Quantum House from their southern California residence at the beginning of April so the medical team could perform another surgery to lengthen Angel’s right leg. It’s their fifth trip to West Palm Beach. “I like that there’s a little playground outside,” Angel said. “There’s golf outside.” The Quantum House offers much more, comforting parents from all over the state, country and world who bring their ailing children to the Palm Beach Children’s Hospital for treatment. “This is, like, awesome,” Monica Carbajal said. “The kids do so much better here. They see other kids. It’s hard to explain. It is like being home.” But the true value is the affordability to families that may not otherwise have a place to live while their children receive medical care here. “For me, without this house, he wouldn’t have had any surgeries,” Monica Carbajal said. Her last visit to the Quantum House – in 2009 – exceeded four months. “There’s no way I can pay $100 a day for four
Photo by Elizabeth Burks/Palms West Monthly
The Quantum House provides lodging, emotional support, meals, laundry facilities, transportation, emergency financial assistance, children’s activities and more to families with children with serious medical conditions.
months and a half,” she said. The nonprofit facility offers lodging, meals and other basic needs for a daily fee of $35. Each room has a king- and twin-size bed and private bathroom. Shared space includes a family room with a sofa and a big-screen television, a laundry room equipped with detergent and dryer sheets and a business center with office supplies and wireless Internet. “What we do here is really not rocket science,” SEE QUANTUM HOUSE / PAGE 15
Lawyers from the Palm Beach County Bar Association are ready to staff the phones during the popular Dial-A-Lawyer program April 28-30. The program opens up lines of communication between local residents and those who practice law. Between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., anyone with a legal question can call to obtain facts, guidance and information – all for free. “We hope the phones are ringing all day,” said Kirsten Herndon, chairwoman of Law Week, which runs through May 2. “I think there are always citizens in need of assistance, and oftentimes, they don’t know how to access that help.” Lawyers will not give advice on specific cases. “I know there are a lot of residents who have questions about foreclosures,” Herndon said. A total of 45 lawyers will work 1½-hour volunteer shifts during the three days. The number to call is (561) 687-2800. “I believe it’s important to give residents access to information and provide them with direction and for us lawyers to give back to the community that we practice in,” Herndon said. Law Week also includes an educational component. Lawyers will serve as guest speakers in elementary, middle and high schools to explain how the legal system works. They also will play the role of judge in classroom mock trials. “I really like the opportunity to work with the students and the younger people and really let them experience my profession and what we do,” Herndon said. “So for me, that’s very rewarding.”