editor@yourmonthlypaper.com
May 2014 From the Heart: Embracing the Ability to Enable Others By Jody Morgan By Jody Morgan
Serving Danville
Thanks to the inspiration of three local men collaborating with the creativity of area educators, 48,000 students in 53 schools are enjoying a fresh approach to Ability Awareness this academic year. Founders of Del Corazon (From-theHeart), Don Routh, Josh Routh, and Bill Wheeler, support the curriculum with informative videos, personal presentations, and the loan for a week to each participating school of 10 wheelchairs. Children learn to appreciate their own abilities and embrace the challenge of enabling others to realize their full potential. Also known as the Wheelchair Foundation Schools Project, the initiative Danville U-15 Lacrosse Team Gives Back With Day of Service - The Danville-based Diablo Scorpion Lacrosse-U-15 Boys Stinger Team recently held a day of community service to benefit the community safety net non-profit St Vincent de Paul (SVdP) of Contra Costa County. Over 20 players and parents participated. Team members and parents spent the day of community service providing general landscaping, planting of new flowers, conducting weed abatement, spreading shredded bark, trimming bushes and hedges, and power washing the sidewalks. The cleanup and yard work was performed at the SVdP Family Resource Center, a community center dedicated to serving the poor that includes on-site services including a free medical clinic for the uninsured, a free dining room, food pantry, daytime homeless shelter, job training program for those with barriers to employment, and a thrift store. Working with partners, SVdP serves more than 200,000 residents-in-need annually. SVdP Executive Director Melanie Anguay said, “I was so impressed with the energy and commitment of the players to help clean up our site—especially because they had just played a spirited lacrosse game. Volunteers for efforts like this are critical to us because, as a nonprofit, all of our resources are directed to providing programs for the people we serve.” Students took turns playing wheelchair basketball at Montair. The crowd erupted in cheers when one student finally scored. Photos courtesy of Elizabeth Campos.
Danville’s Own Aviation Drama: Tassajara 1964 By Jody Morgan
When Pacific Airlines Flight 773 crashed in a Tassajara Road pasture killing all 44 people on board, the town of Danville became the focus of national attention. The mystery surrounding the disaster commanded the investigative skills of both the FBI and the Civil Aeronautics Board. On May 7th, the 50th anniversary of that fateful day, the Museum of the San Ramon Valley in collaboration with Role Players Ensemble presents an original play by RPE Artistic Director Eric Hayes entitled Tassajara 1964. On May 7, 1964, the pilot, Captain Ernest Clark, was substituting for a sick colleague. He took off from Reno at 5:54am, making a routine stop in Stockton where two passengers deplaned and ten boarded. At 6:38am, Flight 773 departed for San Francisco. Oakland Air Traffic Control received an unintelligible message at 6:48am followed by radio silence and the disappearance of Flight 773 from the radar screen. Breakfasting at their ranch on Tassajara Road, Jean and Richard Collins heard the roar of a plane coming in low over their house followed by an Volume V - Number 7 explosion. Gordon Rasmussen who lived on an 3000F Danville Blvd. #117, adjacent property rushed to the Collins ranch Alamo, CA 94507 (925) 405-6397 when he heard the crash. Describing the devastaFax (925) 406-0547 tion, he said: “There was not a piece larger than a foot in diameter except for the landing gear.” Alisa Corstorphine ~ Publisher See Ability continued on page 22 The plane gouged out a 60’ long furrow. Wreckeditor@ age was scattered over 100 yards. Bent silver yourmonthlypaper.com PRSRT STD dollars from Reno casinos littered the ground. U.S. Postage opinions expressed herein belong What happened? Speculation ran from The PAID to the writers, and do not necessarily mechanical failure to sabotage and intensified reflect that of Danville Today News. Permit 263 Danville Today News is not when remnants of a gun were discovered in Alamo CA responsible for the content of any of the wreckage. The handle was missing. The the advertising herein, nor does ECRWSS publication imply endorsement.
fosters respect for the strengths of peers coping with intellectual, developmental, and physical challenges, while raising funds to send wheelchairs to hundreds of individuals who would otherwise remain immobile. The Wheelchair Foundation, established by Ken Behring in 2000, provides wheelchairs to people around the world who need but cannot afford a wheelchair. In many countries, a wheelchair costs a worker’s entire annual income. To date, 955,000 wheelchairs have been delivered, bringing mobility, dignity, and hope to individuals aged two to over 102. Since Bill Wheeler, founder of Blacktie Transportation, first invited Don and Josh to join him on a Wheelchair Foundation distribution trip, “the Three Amigos” have made 23 distribution trips to 14 Latin American countries, delivering 72,000 wheelchairs. Asked to identify his favorite trip, Josh insists: “All of them!” His father, Don, concurs. Each trip is different, every journey life changing. Josh demonstrates to wheelchair recipients that their personal goals are achievable. Doctors predicted Josh, born with Cerebral Palsy, would be a quadriplegic incapable of speech. At 3 ½, he spoke his first word: “Soup!” His indefatigable spirit continues to feed his father’s dedication. A graduate of San Ramon Valley High School, Josh relies on a wheelchair for mobility. Now 35, he lives independently, drives his own car to work, and has multiple sports accomplishments to his credit. In Paraguay, From-the-Heart delivered a wheelchair to another Josh. Seeing his own son in the four-year old also coping with Cerebral Palsy, Don translated his parental experience into a message of hope for the mother. Recalling how grateful he would have been for the advice of a mentor, Don happily shares his
Local Postal Customer
See Play continued on page 19