By Kimberly Sherman

On the morning of June 5, 2009, as Kristy Torres kissed each of her eight children goodbye and headed into work, she couldn’t have fathomed the nightmare that would begin with a phone call later that day.

“I was at work when a 911 dispatcher called and asked if I had a 2 year old,” said Torres. “She told me Jadan had been badly burned and was going to be airlifted to Children’s Hospital.”

Torres recalled the immediate fog of heartache. “I dropped the phone; I had to get to where she was. I tripped while running to the car; I couldn’t remember where I had parked.” The dazed parent was thrown off balance by compounding emotions—she felt lost, confused, traumatized, and helpless. “As I was trying to find the car, a Visalia police officer stopped me and asked if I was Kristy. Thank God. He took me to (Jadan).”

Minutes earlier, Kristy’s daycare provider and her 13-year-old daughter had been watching Jadan and her 4-year-old sister in the bathroom of the in-home day care. A bath was being drawn for the girls when circumstances beckoned everyone out of the bathroom. All except for Jadan, who, moments later, began screaming from inside the bathtub.

“They heard her cry, ran in the bathroom, got her out of the water, and wrapped her in a sheet,” said Torres. “They applied a burn cream but her skin kept coming off. They told the kids to call 911 and took her out to the front lawn.”

Help was poised mere seconds down the street. Jeff Macumber was the lead paramedic on Truck 51 from Station 51 and the first on the scene.

“My first thought was that it was all third degree burns because her skin was sloughing off,” said Macumber. “She was literally dumped into my arms. I looked at her for a second and thought, ‘What happened?’”

Jadan was having seizures, but aside from tending to the uncontrollably seizing toddler, Macumber’s duty was to control the chaos, a typical task for first responders. His request? Sheets.

“When you show up to mass hysteria, there’s no control of family, parents, kids, or bystanders. Taking care of the child is not the only thing we have to do. We have to send people on tasks so that they don’t become a patient as well. I told them all to get clean sheets so my full focus was on the child, providing the best care I could,” he said.

Truck 51’s crew continued to dress the child to prevent infection from settling, as Michelle Donnelly, paramedic for American Ambulance, showed up to the scene and administered two doses of medication to stop young Jadan from seizing.

Quickly ushered into the ambulance, Jadan and the crew headed to the airport with plans to be airlifted to Fresno’s burn unit at Regional Medical Center. Donnelly recalls that Jadan vomited along the way. Then, as the crew reached the airport exit, Jadan went into cardiac arrest and stopped breathing. Airlifting was suddenly scratched out as an immediate option.

Three long minutes passed. Jadan had no pulse. No oxygen. No breath. The crew continued their tireless efforts, re-established her pulse and stabilized the young girl just as the ambulance pulled into Kaweah Delta Hospital.

“When I got to Kaweah Delta, I saw fourteen or fifteen people in the room working on her,” Torres said. “I could only see from her knees down. She was lobster red. I just thought, ‘My God.’”

Within minutes, Jadan was rushed to Fresno, where she underwent two surgeries. Grafts from her back and the bottom of her torso were used as new skin for her legs and to reconstruct the bottom of her feet and her toes. In total, over 40% of Jadan’s body was burned, including her arms, lower back, bottom, legs, feet, and hands.

Cascade of Complications

The consequences of severe burns tumble into other complications, and Jadan’s case was no different. The shock of the burns caused the young toddler to have seizures and vomit, and a chunk of hamburger consumed earlier that day found its way into Jadan’s left lung, which collapsed.

“I was scared because I didn’t know anything at this point other than she had stopped breathing and she was really burned,” recalled Torres. “The reality hit me when the doctor came in. He said the worst case was that she could die. At that point, I lost it.”

Torres lived with her daughter in the hospital for two full weeks, never straying from Jadan, who remained on an oxygen machine and underwent six blood transfusions. “My biggest fear was that she would wake up and not know who I was. She’d get upset when she was intubated. She’d cry and squirm her head, and I didn’t know why. One thing that freaked me out, aside from scarring, was wondering if she would suffer any brain damage.”

“What can you do when you can’t do anything at all?” she lamented.

The third and final week of Jadan’s hospital stay, Kristy commuted from Visalia to Children’s Hospital in Madera every night, trekking home daily to spend time with each of her seven other children, the youngest of whom was four months old at the time of the incident.

Amazingly, the ramifications from the horrific incident were few. Having suffered no brain damage despite being deprived of oxygen for three minutes, Jadan’s new wardrobe for the next eighteen months is a pressure suit. Torres explained, “When the skin grows back it gets thick, so the pressure suit keeps the skin that grows back normal. I take her into the burn unit every two to three weeks to be refit for pressure suit; it also helps keep her skin from outgrowing her normal skin.”

While first responders never expect their victims to return, having the closure of seeing a former patient return unscathed is always appreciated, said both Macumber and Donnelly. Torres offered all the first responders involved that much-needed sense of closure from a day that neither paramedic will ever forget.

Said Macumber, “I tried to visit her in the hospital but, because I wasn’t family, they wouldn’t let me in. Seeing her again was indescribable. She went from being dead to walking on her own.”

“These instances that we can make a difference are so few and far between. I was blessed to have been on this call,” said Donnelly. “She came to the fire station, and I couldn’t stop staring at her. She’s amazing. She’s perfect.”

Bathtub Safety Sidebar

USA.safekids.org provides these staggering statistics and suggestions for helping prevent water-related scalding:

• Approximately 116,600 children are treated for fire/burn injuries annually.

• Scald burns—involving hot liquid or steam—make up 65% of the burn-related injuries in children under 4 who are treated in the hospital.
• Hot tap water scald burns cause a larger number of deaths and hospitalizations than other types of hot liquid burns. They cause almost one in four of all child scald burns.
• Tap water burns most often occur in the bathroom and tend to be more severe and cover a larger portion of the body than other scald burns.
• Children under 4 and disabled children pose the greatest risk of burn-related death and injury.
• Hot tap water scalds can be prevented by lowering the setting on water heater thermostats to 120 degrees Fahrenheit or below and by installing anti-scald devices in water faucets and shower heads.
• In order to reduce the number of hot tap water scald burns, building codes have been implemented in several areas, which require that new construction projects install anti-scald plumbing. The laws have proved effective in lowering the death rate among children.

This year in our magazine we have given you the reasons we are so thankful for the local men and women of law enforcement, EMT, hospitals, and the Fire Department. They keep our streets and families safe on a daily basis. But what about the unsung heroes who don’t receive the recognition or appreciation for what they do to keep our community safe? As this year comes to an end, the staff at Valley Response Magazine would like to say thank you to the generous men and women who do their part to make our lives better and safer. The next time you see them on the streets perhaps you may say thank you!

Animal Rescue

Valley Oak SPCA is a non-profit corporation. It runs an animal shelter/adoption center and provides animal control, cruelty investigations, pet behavior care line, lost pet line, community outreach and humane education, clinics, and sheltering services. Valley Oak SPCA takes in approximately 12,000 stray and owner-surrendered dogs and cats each year. This shelter wouldn’t be able to run without the volunteers who do the work out of their love of animals. Without people like them in our community there would be many animals without the attention they need.

School Bus Drivers

The school bus drivers who pick up your kids and get them to school on time are not only safe keepers of your kids, but brave souls. How many of you could drive a bus full of hyper kids? We need to give these men and women extra thanks for picking them up and taking them to school safely, saving you time, gas, and headaches! If you are thinking of giving them a present for Christmas, consider a nice pair of earmuffs to drown out the noise!

Crossing Guards

We cannot fail to give thanks to the crossing guards who also keep our children safe on their way to school. Drivers know how dangerous our roads can be—people fail to stop and look both ways at a corner, or don’t want to stop for someone waiting to cross the road. It can be dangerous for anyone crossing the road, let alone a little kid, who is harder to see over the hoods of our big cars and trucks. Thankfully we have men and women who stand out in the morning and afternoon to make sure our kids can cross the street safely.

A Cause for Hunger and Shelter

There are a couple of different places in this county that deserve thanks for their help with hungry and homeless families. Foodlink for Tulare County Inc. is a non-profit food bank that educates the community about the effects of hunger and distributes food to hungry families in Tulare and Kings counties. Through a network of eighty-five organizations including emergency food pantries, summer food sites, soup kitchens, and shelters, it helps families in need. Visalia Emergency Aid Council operates a food pantry and provides families with children emergency assistance with housing and basic needs. It also operates a thrift store to provide families with household items and generate income for the organization. Generous groups like these benefit our community in more ways than we can imagine and for that we are thankful.

CASA of Tulare County

We would like to thank the people at CASA for keeping abused children safe and secure.  Every year more than half a million abused and neglected children need safe, permanent, and nurturing homes. CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) makes sure the abuse and neglect does not continue in the court system. These trained advocates are appointed by judges to be the voice for these children in court, so that the child can be placed into a safe, loving home. Thanks to the help of these CASA volunteers these children have a second chance at life!

Volunteer To Do Your Part

Since many of these services are run by volunteers, the last group we’d like to thank is the City of Visalia Volunteer Service Program, which connects volunteers with agencies looking for volunteers. Many of the above organizations (and more) depend on the volunteers who help the business run smoothly. Being a volunteer helps the community that you live in helps you grow as a person, becoming more loving, caring, and helpful to those in need. If you have ever wanted to volunteer contact this helpful program and start making a difference!

There are so many people that deserve thanks. The ones mentioned above are just a few that go to work every day to make this community a better place. If you know someone who volunteers or deserves a word of thanks, write to us about him or her.

By Bill Corliss

Fog, snow, ice, and rain do not cause car crashes. Drivers’ behaviors and lack of adjustments cause crashes in these conditions. Rain gets very little respect from the driving community. Driving in the rain is high risk, yet the perception is that not much of a change has taken place. As a result, the chances of a crash in the rain are five times higher than when driving in ideal conditions.

Risk factors during wet weather increase as visibility and traction are reduced. It is difficult to see and to be seen. Traction is reduced, not only from water on the road but also from the oil and dirt mixture that has accumulated over dry periods of weather. Even on a vehicle with good tread depth on tires that are properly inflated, hydroplaning can begin at 35 mph with only 1/12 of an inch of water on a road.

There are many ways to lower your risk when driving on water-covered roads. The most important component is the attitude of the driver.

You can prepare the vehicle to be driven safely in the rain. Make sure the tires have good tread depth. Tire inflation is also critical to car handling. Have these checked at each car servicing. These two factors will provide maximum traction. Also, make sure your windows are clean and the windshield wiper blades are in good repair. The defroster and air conditioner need to work well. The headlights should be checked. These elements provide you with your best visibility.

Time and Space

Another component of lowering driving risk in the rain is controlled by the driver’s behavior behind the wheel. Avoid quick stops and starts. To accomplish this, increase your normal following distance and reduce the vehicle’s speed to accommodate moderate braking to stop the car. The 2009 California Driver Handbook lists the basic speed adjustment for rain as 5 to 10 mph below the legal maximum speed limit. Leaving early is a simple way to lower risk during inclement weather. You’ll eliminate the need for speeding, tailgating, or hurrying at a stale green signal light.

Intersections are unusually dangerous when wet. Cars that wait at red lights increase oil levels in these areas, making these crossroads much more slippery. To avoid hard braking at the intersection, anticipate the change of a green light sooner. Trying to make the light by accelerating is extremely risky.

Shed Some Light

Finally, drive with the low beam headlights on so other drivers will see you sooner. In California it is now law that a vehicle’s headlights must be on if the windshield wipers are in use.

Be safe when the roads are wet. Adjust to the fact that the road conditions are not normal and that you need to make some adjustments to minimize the potential of a crash.

By Kimberly Sherman

“This series presents information based in part on theory and conjecture. The producer’s purpose is to suggest some possible explanations, but not necessarily the only ones, to the mysteries we will examine.”

These opening credits from “In Search Of,” hosted by Leonard Nimoy from 1976 to 1982, were drummed into the head of Rex Williams each week, during his pliable tween years. “They did an episode on the Loch Ness Monster possibly being related to the plesiosaur,” recalls Williams. “That got me into it. That creatures like this could still be around piqued my interest in the whole cryptid zoology field.”

Now, some thirty years later, William’s dreams haven’t just come true. They’ve voraciously exploded.

An EMT since 1994, Williams became a paramedic in 1997 and has worked for LifeStar Ambulance in Tulare for five years. As a side job, he traversed the Hollywood scene and landed gigs as a set medic for HGTV and FOX Reality.

When his agent called with the possibility of securing a job on a show that involved traveling all over the world, Williams thought, ‘Gosh, could this be for a show I watch?’ “I was driving when he told me it was for ‘Destination Truth,’ and I almost drove off the road.”

After four treks within a week to Los Angeles for a series of interviews while sick with the flu, and an expedited rush placed on securing a passport, Williams received a voicemail from show host Josh Gates. When he returned the call, Gates said simply, “Are you ready to take a trip?”

From the “Destination Truth” website:

Led by intrepid world-adventurer Josh Gates, each episode of ‘Destination Truth’ takes viewers on a trek across the globe as Josh investigates stories of the unexplained. Accompanied by his small crew, Josh dives into the local cultures and searches for clues to the existence of strange creatures and paranormal phenomena.

In the current season, Josh will travel to some of the most extreme locations on Earth, including the isolated Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan and the heart of the world’s worst nuclear accident at Chernobyl. Viewers will also ride along on unprecedented investigations, including the world’s first overnight exploration of King Tut’s cursed tomb and pitch-black dives in ancient Caribbean caves.

Jackpot.

Though a paramedic background served as a placeholder for William’s stint on the crew, he wears more hats than most of the members. He serves primarily as one of the investigators, sweeps sites and sets up night vision cameras and electromagnetic field detectors. As field producer, he is expected to take notes and find people to interview.

But eating fried tarantulas in Egypt and coming face to face with alligators on the bayou requires a keen eye and advanced medical training, training plunked smack on the shoulders of the crew’s medic.

“We’re put in a lot of situations that we wouldn’t normally see. With exotic places and exotic creatures, there are a lot of dangers to be conscious of—poisonous spiders, scorpions, malaria, parasites, water moccasins, and alligators, among a few,” laughs Williams. “I have to do extra research based on the countries we’re going to, which is above and beyond what we’d normally see on a daily basis. I have a lot of responsibility on my end.”

With no backup for assistance and crucial medical help often days away, Williams is the sole medic upon which the crew relies for health concerns, unless the situation is absolutely dire. “Worst case scenario is that someone needs to be extracted by helicopter or boat and transported to the hospital,” says Williams. “Josh wears a $10,000 Breitling watch with an emergency beacon. He pulls the pin and they send in the troops.”

Williams can rattle off his previous destinations, each with a level of fondness. Though spending the night in King Tut’s tomb among the torrid mysticism and historically rich country of Egypt was one of his life thrills, the isolation and beauty of Bhutan captured his heart.

“It’s such a beautiful country. On the plane ride we could see Mount Everest. It’s a Buddhist country, so the people were all very welcoming. We investigated the Yeti, and found some strange things,” says Williams. “We did uncover some amazing evidence. We discovered footprints and had them cast, sent off and analyzed. No one can attribute them to any known animal.”

A self-described open-minded skeptic, Williams has also searched for the skunk ape in Florida, the Thunderbird in Alaska, the Luska (giant octopus) and the Bermuda Triangle in the Bahamas, the Alux (small forest gnomes) in the Yucatan, ghosts at Chernobyl, and the Chullacaqui (legendary devil) in the Amazonian jungles of Peru.

The Island of the Dolls in Mexico was a particularly haunting destination, and high up in the Andes Mountains of Peru, the “Destination Truth” crew discovered the Lost City, supposedly deemed haunted. “People have known about it, but no one’s ever done any excavation,” muses Williams. “There could be bodies there, along with crypts and even treasure.”

Williams will, again, join the crew of “Destination Truth” for season four, filming from October through December. Though he can’t disclose specific locations, South America, parts of Europe, Asia, and back home in the U.S. are on the itinerary shortlist.

With a laptop computer serving as his sole tie to family and the comforts of home in Visalia, sans fried tarantula, Williams will return to his wife and 10-year-old daughter with his fair share of stories and exotic keepsakes from each of his stops around the globe.

Williams is a prized member of the team due to his background and ability to take a clinical approach to the series. “I can add the scientific reasons, put in my two cents, and help to debunk anything,” he says. But, after having traveled the world seeking the thrill of the chase, he is often outspoken about his feeling on the validity of the paranormal, as his unrestrained voice suggests. “I do believe there’s the possibility that ghosts can exist.”

By Aaron Collins

Imagine that it was your job to watch movies every day. But you are allowed only tragedy or crime dramas—no comedies or romances allowed. Spliced in between the scenes of high anxiety that are typically condensed into a 90-minute film, you must watch hours or even days of tedious technical or dry documentary footage that lacks any easy-to-follow narrative, leaving it to you to piece together the facts.

That might describe the professional life of forensic nurse Kris Gray, R.N., a Registered Medicolegal Death Investigator. Her profession is also called CSI nursing for “crime scene investigation nursing;” “legal nurse consultant” is a similar role, but one that serves the legal profession rather than law enforcement.

“Unlike TV shows and movies, which are specifically structured and paced to enhance drama and keep the viewers tuned in, real life doesn’t care who tunes in or for how long. (Movies) can get the details right but the context is fiction. Real life can be slow and tedious, routine and sometimes it doesn’t smell all that good,” Gray says, giving one of the downsides of her occasionally unseemly work.

The life of forensic nurses can be painstaking as they collect and comb through evidence, with bursts of higher-intensity moments should they encounter suspects of crimes like sexual assault, or the victims of homicide, attempted homicide, or domestic violence. Forensic nurses can be employed in-house with an insurance company, legal firm, or hospital, or have a private practice such as Gray’s.

Gray knows a thing or two about movie-making. When she was a paramedic with American Ambulance, she served as a medic on the set of a Donald Sutherland movie, a sci-fi thriller called “The Puppet Masters.” Gray was drafted into a scene with Sutherland in which, fittingly, she played a paramedic. “They say the first five minutes you spend on a movie set are the most exciting of your career. All the five minutes that follow are the most boring of your career,” says Gray. “Take after take, I taped up (Sutherland’s) IV and we’d load him into the ambulance with me climbing in behind him and off we’d drive into the sunset…the blazing, hot sunset,” she adds, recalling the summer shoot in Fresno.

Gray’s other projects have included concerts, rodeos, sporting events, and a video shoot for singer/songwriter Michelle Branch.

Following her stints as an entertainment industry medic she worked aboard cruise ships on medical units for Holland America Cruise Lines. “Movies were fun but cruising was the best. I went to work for Holland America in 1994 because there was no nursing shortage then and no one was hiring new graduates. I got to go around the world, see things I never imagined I’d get to see, meet people from everywhere and got to do some real by-the-seat-of your-pants medicine,” she says.

She says readers may be surprised to learn that people do die on cruises. “If being on a cruise ship could magically protect you from serious illness or injury, I would live at sea,” she jests. One of the things she learned while at sea was to improvise treatment with occasionally limited resources. It was on those cruises where she began to learn the basics of death investigation.

Gray now specializes in criminal investigations and mass fatality incidents.

Haunted by Katrina

Her professional life turned stranger than fiction in 2005, when her work took her to a New Orleans deluged by Hurricane Katrina, a national nightmare that still haunts her. “Talking about Katrina is navigating a very fine line. It still elicits strong emotions of anger and grief,” she says.

Of the bodies she helped recover, perhaps none resonate as much as the gentleman she found in his attic, awaiting a rescue that never came.

“There were so many who died in their attics, so many who waited for help that never arrived,” she recalls. She doesn’t know why the memory of this particular man stays with her, but that’s the nature of her business, she points out. “You never know which person is going to strike that chord that lies so deep within you often don’t even hear it,” says Gray.

While Gray’s work is often considered police business, few people are aware of how nurses are involved in solving or prosecuting crimes, or investigating deaths. Forensic nurses collect evidence around the clock, whenever they are called to the scene of a crime or to a hospital when a crime victim or suspect has been admitted. Their findings often prove instrumental to police, district attorneys, and the victims themselves in securing justice.

As a Legal Nurse Consultant (LNC), Gray’s job is to clarify medical issues for attorneys, insurance companies, and sometimes for families. So while she may work at the scene of a death, her role is shaped by which kind of client has contracted her services to be there.

Gray points out that working with the dead can be a challenge, but that working with the living in New Orleans was more haunting still. “The first time I notified a family of a positive identification, I called the victim’s sister, who had been relocated to Texas. I delivered the news to the woman and she began screaming, “They’ve found Richard!”

To Gray’s surprise and horror, she heard people in the background clapping and cheering. “I felt physically ill. I was certain they had misunderstood and thought he had been found alive. But no, they understood he was dead,” she recounts. “These people had nothing; were crammed together in a hotel room in Texas and yet they were rejoicing over discovery of a body.” Such were the upended sensibilities following one of the most devastating hurricane disasters in U.S. history.

Professional Development

The term forensic nurse was coined as recently as 1992, a fact that reflects the nascent status of a profession whose standards continues to develop. Gray says that about ten to fifteen years ago, death investigation in the U.S. started to undergo a transformation.

“Across the country it was kind of hit and miss with regards to training and procedures,” she says. Then in 1997, the Department of Justice published a booklet: “Death Investigation: A Guide for the Scene Investigator.” The push for standardization, rigor and uniform credentials under the tenure of Attorney General Janet Reno was expressed in the publication’s motto: Every Scene, Every Time.

Not long afterward, in 1998, some of those same folks helped develop the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators (ABMDI) whose function was to establish high standards with regard to professional practice as well as ethical conduct. Gray, now a diplomate of ABMDI, having earned their credential in 1999, points out that the impetus behind the initiative is that while the circumstances surrounding a death may be of a legal nature, death itself is a medical event.

In a short time the profession has advanced considerably. Tennessee law, for example, now requires anyone working with a medical examiner to have some sort medical background. The National Association of Medical Examiners now requires the chief investigator or at least one principal investigator within a Coroner’s or Medical Examiner’s department to be a Registered Diplomate of the ABMDI (D-ABMDI) in order to received accreditation. This requirement is evolving so that in the future the majority of investigators’ credentials will read “John Doe, D-AMBDI” in order to receive accreditation.

Gray says that, as a result of the new standards, lots of jurisdictions are using RNs such as herself (who are also now or will soon become D-AMBDIs) as death investigators: Places like Harris County, Texas; Charleston County, South Carolina; Miami/Dade County, Florida; and Washoe County, Nevada, to name but a few.

Thanks to new professional standards, when victims and suspects come in to the hospital, either via law enforcement, ambulatory services, or voluntarily, the forensic nurse is immediately paged. The nurse collects every strand of evidence from the patient. Evidence is cautiously and systematically labeled, packaged, sealed, and sent to the crime lab for further police investigation. The evidence is then brought to the Department of Justice during prosecution of the case resulting from much more systematic procedures that just a couple of decades ago.

No ‘Typical Day’

Gray says that a self-employed forensic nurse experiences a wide variety of scenarios, which can be both a blessing and a curse. “I have no ‘typical day,’ I just shape-shift into whatever I need to do that day: Working cases in the office, I try to put in as many hours as I can for the Sheriff’s Department either studying, training, traveling,” she says, and as with any freelancer, marketing to keep her business afloat. She is a well-known entity at the Tulare County morgue, volunteering there frequently as part of her professional life and development, earning high marks from Sgt. Tom Wright with Tulare County’s Coroner Unit.

Among her many tasks on any given day, Gray may review, interpret, evaluate, analyze, and summarize medical records. She looks at pre-hospital, hospital, and autopsy records, researches various medical topics and how they relate to a particular case. She creates timelines, graphs, and narrative summaries. She also may analyze and assess crime scene and autopsy photos. Depending on the client, she also may do scene investigations and be present at an autopsy.

How does Gray find peace in a profession that deals with the results of others’ chaos? “You have to be able to compartmentalize. You don’t want to become uncaring by becoming indifferent, I think, would be even worse than letting things tear you apart,” she says. “You have a front row seat to everyone’s worse nightmare and there are horror stories I’ll take with me to my grave. You have to maintain your humanity but if you don’t learn to leave it at the door, you’re going to drown in your own tears. I try to treasure every day and the people in it because it can all change in the blink of an eye.” And finally, says Gray, “I try not to take myself too seriously.”

By Jill K. Applegate

The season of tule fog is descending on the Valley. Soon it will enshroud us, wrap our homes, and imperil our commutes. Here’s a look at how this particular flavor of pea soup is concocted, its history, and how to navigate it.

Foggy For Days

Cool temperatures and little sunshine give tule fog its staying power, allowing it to cling low to the ground for days at a time. The warm air above acts like a blanket that holds the humid fog down to the valley floor, according to WiseGeek.com.

Ground Cloud

Fog has the same structure as clouds—tiny water droplets suspended in the air and dropping in super slow-motion due to their small size, according to the Sacramento Bee. When the air warms up the water is still there, but it turns from a liquid to a gas and lets us see that car in front of us again.

Low Visibility

Tule fog is responsible for more auto accidents in California than any other weather condition, according to BayNature.org.

Behind the Wheel

If you can avoid driving in tule fog, the California Highway Patrol says ‘Put that trip off!’ Other advice from these traffic-safety experts: Choose low beams over high beams, which reflect light off the fog and actually decrease visibility. And slow down—the fog obscures visual cues that let you judge how fast you are going, so you feel like you’re driving slower than you actually are.

Central Marshland

Tule fog is named after the tule reed, a marsh plant found in the Central Valley before its floodplains were drained and turned into fertile cropland, according to BayNature.org.

Legendary Mist

According to Answers.Yahoo.com, the tule fog got its name because it lies so close to the ground—just high enough to cover the tule plants in the marshes and lakes (or so says local lore). The Indians, it is said, used the fog as cover, to move unseen in the low-lying mist.

It’s hard to believe it is almost time to begin the seasonal baking, shopping for Christmas, and making plans for where to spend the holidays. Every January I find myself in a slump as the hustle and bustle, abundance of cookies, and excuse to spend extra time with friends and family come to an end. Inevitably, though, year after year I find solace in the fact that the season I love so dearly will be back before I know it … and here it is!

I can’t say I’m surprised to find that the holidays are already nearly here. It has been a fast moving year at the magazine; one full of exciting challenges and accomplishments that have kept us on our feet and in anticipation of whatever lay ahead.

Now that the launch of our Fresno edition is safely behind us, we can move forward with a sense of ease in knowing that we’ve already met one of our biggest goals (an ambition set forth upon commencement of the company almost two years ago).

It wasn’t until I began working on this magazine that I finally began to grasp the true meaning of something my dad used to tell me when I was growing up. He would say, “There’s never an end result without a process,” to which I probably politely (or maybe not so politely, as I was only 17 the first time I heard this) nodded and let it filter through one ear and out the other. A little over a decade later, though, I have finally found its significance and can admit resolutely that no end result is worth itself without the process we go through to get there.

So here we are, another year later and the holidays are among us again. Due to the nature of our content we won’t be featuring a section devoted to gingerbread houses or wreath making, but we have reserved a space to mention the people of our community to whom we would like to give thanks. They are the unsung heroes of our daily lives that provide us with the things we might often take for granted, and for whom, all the more, we are highly grateful.

Also in this issue you’ll find an article encouraging holiday shoppers to take extra precautions with their belongings, while out at the stores as well as once they’ve brought their packages safely back to their homes. In “Don’t Become a Cautionary Tale,” writer Jim Blanks shares tips from the Visalia Police Department about protecting yourself, your home, and your belongings this year during the holidays.

The staff at Valley Response Magazine and I want to wish everyone a wonderful and safe holiday season. Please remember to enjoy every cookie, every carol and everyone you are thankful for; none of it should be taken for granted. We’ll see you in the new year!

By Paul Main

This month, I want to share some recipe insights that incorporate locally grown produce in everyday recipes from one of the area’s talented and creative chefs, Executive Chef George Quilty of the Orange Blossom Junction (just east of the Exeter turnoff on Highway 198). If you haven’t discovered the originality of the Orange Blossom Junction and Chef Quilty, you need to check out the weekly specials like smoked pork chops with spicy apple butter, alligator tacos, or the smoked prime rib, and the daily vegetarian dishes. When you call, don’t forget to ask owners Doug and Luci Long what’s on the entertainment calendar for the day.

Chef Quilty has a way of taking an ordinary dish and creating something sublime. To give you an example, instead of using drab wilted field greens that spent more time in the back of a semi-truck than it did growing, Chef Quilty uses locally grown and picked greens from Thomas and Katrin Newman’s farm. Chef Quilty then brings out the greens’ vibrant earthy flavors by adding an avocado, green chili, and apple sorbet with a red pepper dressing.

Asparagus Salad with Yellow Heirloom Tomatoes and Red Pepper Vinaigrette

Note: Chef Quilty recommends getting your lettuces from Tom and Katrin Newman at the Visalia Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings. Tom and Katrin pick their lettuces daily for the market. In addition, the recipe calls for heirloom tomatoes. You can find different varieties year-round, but they may not be heirloom, so feel free to substitute with what’s available.

Salad Ingredients:

fresh salad greens—enough for 4 to 6 salads (carefully rinsed and cleaned)

2  bunches or about 1-1 ½ pounds of fresh asparagus (woody ends removed)

4  heirloom tomatoes (stem removed)

1  cup grated cotija cheese

Dressing Ingredients:

1  cup rice vinegar

½  cup sugar

1  cup diced red bell pepper (seeded and skin removed)

¼  cup Dijon mustard

2  cups olive oil

Method:

Blanch the asparagus in boiling salted water for 1 minute. Remove and chill in an ice water bath (water and ice cubes placed in a large bowl) to stop the cooking process. When cool, drain and season with salt and pepper. Cut 4 Heirloom tomatoes into wedges and set aside.

In a blender, add rice vinegar, sugar, diced bell pepper, and Dijon mustard. With the blender running, slowly drizzle in olive oil to form an emulsion.

To plate, assemble assorted fresh greens in a salad bowl. Arrange tomato wedges on top of lettuces and alternate 2 asparagus spears between the tomatoes. Drizzle dressing around and over salad and garnish with grated cotija cheese and serve.

By Jim Blanks

A man drives to the mall to finish the last of his holiday shopping. He has already been to three other stores, but this is the last place on his list. The back seat of the car is packed with gifts and littered with receipts. It will be a quick stop, so the man locks his car and hustles into the store. Twenty minutes later he returns to find his car burglarized; the windows shattered, and the gifts gone.

• • •

A family of four leaves home to attend a family get-together. It’s the holiday season, a time for family and joy. The family is in good cheer, although they are running late. They rush out the door and drive away for three days, neglecting to secure the back gate. They are new to the neighborhood and the neighbors don’t really know yet who belongs at that house. The family returns after the trip to discover the house has been ransacked; all the gifts have been taken, along with the television and the computer. The family now spends its holiday season with police officers, trying to recover lost items.

• • •

These are just two of what have become common tales. That is because, as Detective Brian Young of the Visalia Police Department explains, the holiday season creates increased opportunities for criminals. Malls and shopping centers become increasingly crowded; homes and vehicles filled with electronics, toys, clothes, and other gifts. With holiday shoppers’ attention split in the hustle and bustle of festive preparation, Detective Young says, the result is the perfect environment for opportunistic thieves.

“Any time of year—but especially during the holidays—it is extremely important to be aware of the potential for crime,” Young says. There are a number of ways to protect yourself and avoid becoming a victim this holiday season.

Hidden Treasures

Do not leave valuables such as electronic equipment, gifts, power tools, or purses in the passenger area of your vehicle, Young says. This is one of the first things that thieves look for when selecting a vehicle to burglarize.

“I responded to a vehicle burglary in progress, and a witness directed the responding units to the suspect, who was arrested,” Young says. “After processing the victim’s vehicle, I found a purse had been left in the rear passenger compartment.”

This made the vehicle an easy target, Young says.

“In checking some of the neighboring vehicles I located two others with purses in plain view,” Young said.

Keep your valuables locked in the trunk if you will be away from your vehicle—even for a short time. Using the trunk does not mean that the vehicle will be 100% protected, but it will create a deterrent for thieves; they usually look for the easiest opportunity to steal, and if they don’t immediately see valuables in your car they will usually pass.

Young also says that, especially in the winter, people will leave their cars running while they wait inside their home or a store.

“It’s classic,” Young says, “Leave the car running to warm up the interior because it’s cold outside, and the bad guy gets a free ride.”

Holiday Shopping

Criminals also target holiday shoppers who are overloaded with bags and merchandise, Young says. It is important that you remain aware of your surroundings when you are shopping alone, and if you have a lot of items, ask a store employee to walk you to your car.

“When you are overloaded with purchases,” Young says, “you reach your vehicle and then have to fumble for your keys, making you an easy target.”

With all of the potential for crime, it might seem preferable to stay home to shop this holiday season. In fact, an increasing number of people will do the majority of their holiday shopping on the Internet. This will protect you from certain crimes, Young says, but it is certainly not without its traps.

There are numerous ways to become a victim of online fraud, Young says, but the most important thing to remember is that if the deal sounds too good to be true, use your common sense.

“If you are pondering a purchase from a new online vendor, do a little research first,” Young says. This will protect you from having your money taken without receiving the product, and could also prevent you from mistakenly buying stolen merchandise.

Let’s say you do all of the right things when you shop; you keep your car locked and your valuables out of sight, you buy only from reputable sellers, and you avoid potential dangers. Unfortunately, there are still ways that you can become a victim.

Home Safe

Young says that home burglaries also increase during the holiday season. Criminals know that there is a greater likelihood of valuables being in the home, and many people visit loved ones during the holidays, leaving their homes vulnerable to crime.

You can still take steps to protect your home against burglary, Young says. As with vehicles, it is important to lock the home even if you are leaving for only a short time. This includes securing all garage doors and backyard gates. If the back gate is left open, criminals will have easy access to the garage, and then they are one small step away from entering the home.

“Once inside the garage, the criminal is out of public view,” Young says. “And they have full access to the tools in your toolbox” making it all too easy to gain entry to the home. Young suggests two ways to deter criminals from gaining access in this way. The first is to install a metal, locking backyard gate. The second is to mount lights at the front and rear of the household that will expose criminals trying to sneak around the house.

The most effective deterrent, however, is getting to know the people in your neighborhood, Young says. When you know who belongs in the neighborhood, you will better be able to determine what is suspicious activity. And if you see something that doesn’t seem right, always call the police.

“I would rather be dispatched to something harmless multiple times than to not be called when we could have made a difference,” Young says.

Another advantage of knowing your neighbors is it gives you peace of mind when you leave for a family vacation or to visit loved ones.

“If you plan on leaving your home, have a neighbor check on your home and collect mail and newspapers while you’re gone,” Young says. “Nothing says, ‘Come inside,’ like piled up newspapers or door tags hanging from the front door.”

Last, Young says that even if you are home during the holiday season you should make sure your garage remains closed.

“Too many people leave their garage doors open for extended periods of time,” Young says. “That allows someone cruising around to see what valuables they might want, or might come back for.”

There are many opportunities for people to become victims during the holiday season, but there are many ways to avoid becoming a victim. The most important thing to remember, Young says, is to use common sense. If a situation doesn’t feel right, get out of that situation. Remember also that criminals often look for the easiest target or opportunity to commit a crime. If you can make life difficult on them—by installing alarms, hiding valuables, and locking your home and vehicle—you give yourself a better chance of avoiding crime.

Burglaries and thefts do occur, and they occur with increasing frequency as the holidays approach. But you do not have to become a cautionary tale. Take the steps to stay safe this holiday season, and create your own memorable, joyous stories.

It’s Only Hair. Shave the Brave.

What would you do to help raise money for a child with a high risk and life threatening illness? Would you shave your head? Yep that’s right shave off all your hair! Could you do that? That’s what hundreds of local firefighters, law enforcement, emergency, and military personnel from Bakersfield to Merced did on Sept. 12 at Plaza Park in Visalia. The event, Shave the Brave, is held every year to help raise money for the California Law Enforcement’s Wish Upon a Star, a non-profit program that grants wishes to children throughout California. During the event volunteers had their heads shaved by professional stylists, a visual act of solidarity to honor children who have lost their hair to chemotherapy. There was also a barbecue, music, and activities for the entire family, and a ceremony honoring the 2009 Top Agency and the 2009 Top Cop. The event is a fun and often humorous (for the spectators) way to help raise money for the children who could use a little excitement in their life. Make sure to come out next year to support and raise money for them!

Fill ‘er Up! Fill the Helmut

On a typical morning commute to work you don’t usually see firefighters standing on the street corner. But on Sept. 16, firefighters stood on the corners of Mooney and Mineral King and Mooney and Noble, with their helmets in hand hoping that people would stop and donate money for the Fill the Helmet campaign, which helps raise money for the Leon S. Peters Burn Center in Fresno. The burn center is the only comprehensive, round-the-clock, fully staffed center from Los Angeles to Sacramento. Almost a decade ago, Fresno City Fire Dept. Chief Chuck Leach and Sandra Yovino, the burn center director and cofounder, came up with the idea to start Fill the Helmet. Local firefighters and the burn team help run the event—all of them know firsthand the impact it has on the lives of burn survivors. Fill the Helmet helps raise funds as well as awareness of burn prevention. This year they raised around $20,000 in the south valley and around $120,000 total. The volunteers stand at major intersections so next time you see these hard working men and women, check your purse and pocket for any spare change—and help fill up their helmet!

A Job Well Done. Police Chief Bob Carden Retires.

How much can one person do in three years to change a police department around? Well if you’re Police Chief Bob Carden you can do a lot. The Chief has retired after three years with the department but he left it stronger, more organized, and more accessible. He certainly made his time here count. He strengthened relationships with neighboring police agencies, working together to solve crimes, which also makes the department more approachable. He worked with the school district, as well as churches and non-profit groups, setting up programs for at-risk teens like the LOOP bus, the Neighborhood Youth Counselor programs, the Step Up Youth Job Program, and the PAL-Police Activities League, all helping control the gang problem. These programs and other approaches have significantly helped reduced the gang activity over the past few years. His time here has been brief but the lasting effects of what he has done will serve this community for many years to come. On Aug. 27 we honored the Chief with a good-bye reception. Thank you and congratulations Police Chief Carden for a job well done! Good luck with the next chapter in your life.

Golf for a Cause: The Tommy Elliot Memorial Golf Classic

On Aug. 14, Kaweah Delta Hospital Foundation had its 21^st Annual Golf Classic. The Golf Classic was renamed in 2004 to honor Tommy Elliot who embodied the spirit of community service. He served on the Kaweah Delta Hospital Foundation board from 1987 until his death in 2004. One of his favorite sports events was the golf classic. This year the proceeds will go toward the purchase of the da Vinci Surgical System, the state-of-the-art robotic system that improves surgical outcomes and helps patients return to active and productive lives. With the use of robotic arms, it significantly reduces the size of the incisions and provides better control and precision. This is something that will greatly benefit the valley.

Each sponsorship entitled the golfer to a spot on a team as well as a cart and beverages, a fee prize, lunch, and an awards reception. The golfers headed out at noon with a shotgun start, all of them excited to be golfing for a cause. What a great day it was to be outside playing a sport that will benefit many lives!