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valleysentinel.com
July 2010
VOL 15, NO 8
SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS
spotlight
San Ramon Resident Runs For a Cause
By Staff Writer
S a n Ra m o n resident and Gale Ranch Middle School teacher Katie Murphy is lacing up her running shoes this summer to help send kids with life-threatening and chronic Katie Murphy illnesses as well as developmental disabilities to The Taylor Family Foundation’s Camp Arroyo in Livermore. Inspired when her physical education and leadership classes at Gale Ranch participated in The Taylor Family Foundation’s Coins for Camper’s campaign (her classes raised enough to send 5 kids to camp) this spring, Murphy decided to dedicate her 100-mile Cascade Endurance Race to the kids at Camp Arroyo.
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See RUN page 5
The newest member of the Street Smarts team is Sam the Safety Car. The animated, electronic “smart” car accompanies Street Smarts staff at elementary school traffic safety assemblies to help teach students about important traffic safety concepts. With his bright red coat of paint, expressive eyes and bright headlights, Sam engages the students at school assemblies. Since the program is designed to be interactive, student volunteers are called on to demonstrate basic safety concepts like properly crossing the street using a simulated street scene, correct use of bicycle hand signals and how to properly fasten a bicycle helmet.
Danville Swimmer takes on Lake Tahoe By Michael Copeland
On August 22, 2005, Danville’s own Ken Harmon braved the chilly water of Lake Tahoe to swim the length of the lake, the furthest distance ever attempted, approximately 22.1 miles (according to the Coast Guard). This August, he will be attempting to swim Lake Tahoe again, but with a slight twist this time. Once Ken finishes the first leg, he’ll warm himself, get something to eat and then he’ll re-enter the water and swim back. That’s a 44-mile round trip course taking roughly 24 hours to complete. Did I mention that Mr. Harmon won’t be wearing a wet suit? He’ll be starting his quest at roughly 5:00 P.M. and swimming through
the night with air temperature nipping below 40 degrees. Keep
in mind, Lake Tahoe sits at an altitude of 6,200 feet above sea level? What would seem like an unbelievable challenge for the fittest of ultra swimmers in
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their 20’s or 30’s, Ken will be attempting this monumental feat as he turns fifty years old, but that is just one more motivating factor for this incredible test of endurance. Upon graduating, pre-med with a Bachelor of Science degree in C h e m i s t r y / B i o l o g y, Ken began working in pharmaceutical sales for Upjohn. In 1987, while living in San Luis Obispo, he decided to tackle something new — a long distance open water swim. Ken chose the Lake Berryessa Swim, a 2 mile
Senior Lifestyles
See Harmon page 6
Ovarian Cancer Awareness Raises Money By Staff Writer
The 10th annual Comedy Night, a benefit for the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition, took place on June 26 at the Village Theatre in Danville. Johnny Steele, a San Francisco comic, headlined the show and has been participating in this annual fundraiser since 2002. Johnny’s sister Debra Lopez, is an ovarian cancer survivor and an advocate for NOCC. Proceeds went to benefit the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition, a non-profit organization dedicated to public awareness and education about a disease that’s the 5th leading cause of cancer death in U.S. women, according to the American Cancer Society. Bay Area comedian and writer Charleen Early, stage name Charlie B. Earley, coSee Cancer page 11