Volunteer of the Month
Archives
November 2019
Linda Sowell
This month we’d like to shine the light on a new, yet not new volunteer. If you read last month’s newsletter, specifically the Activity Spotlite, you would have read a bit about Linda Sowell. Well this month we’d like to shine an even larger spotlight on her as our Volunteer of the Month. Linda is the new Gadabouts Trip Coordinator. She had been working in the Thrift Store and was asked to be a relief in the Trip office. When a vacancy occurred she was asked to take over, which she was more than happy to do. Since then she has been busy scheduling new trips, chaperoning trips on occasion, and generally managing our hustling and bustling trip office. Linda also serves on our Board of Directors. If needed she also helps out at our special events. Originally from Chicago, IL, she moved out to California with her husband who was in the Navy. Once out here she was not content to stay at home raising her two kids (who themselves provided her with five grandkids), but worked in numerous types of jobs. Her main career was in Food Service. She started out at McDonalds as a cashier, and worked her way up to manager. Then she transferred to the school system where she became the Director of Children’s Nutrition for the Bear Valley School District before retiring. Thanks Linda for helping to take our members on trips of a lifetime.
Featured Class
Womens Bible Study
Date: September 30, 2019
Time: 10:00 - 11:30 am
Length: 8 weeks
Cost: $8 members
$8 non-members
Instructor: Rosetta Love
Location: Game Room
Description: This month we’d like to shine the light on Women’s Bible Study, and it is good. By Women’s Bible Study we don’t mean one of those gender specific Bibles. It should be more accurately titled as Bible Study for Women. The class is taught by Rosetta Love. Each 8 week session the class goes over a different book in the Bible. Rosetta has also taught it at her church. Each eight week session the class goes over a different book in the Bible. Classes are on Mondays from 10:00 - 11:30 a.m. and the session runs six weeks. Students will need to bring their own bible, but it doesn’t matter which translation it is. Students also buy a book that is directly related to the book they are discussing that session. There are other handouts provided by Rosetta.
Featured Activity
Line Dancing
Time: Tuesdays 10:15 am to 12:15 pm
Cost: Donation suggested members
Donation suggested non-members
Location: Exercise Room
Description: This month wed like to shine a light on our Line Dancing class. The class is actually divided into two classes: a beginners and intermediate. The beginner class is taught by long time instructor, Saundra Binney. She has been line dancing since the early 90's, and has been teaching since 2005. She teaches the basic steps, such as the chase, grapevine, weave, triple step, shuffle step, two-step, and lock step. Everything else stems off from the basics. Intermediate is taught by Glenda Lane. Glenda is fairly new to the center but has taught TAP and ballet for 30 years. Glenda also teaches at other centers as well. Her instruction includes silver lining, and stripes. Don't worry if you don't have a partner. You don't need one. It's a group dance. Classes are held in the exercise room on Tuesdays with the beginning class taught from 10:15 am to 11:15 am, with the intermediate class following from 11:15 am to 12:15 pm. The class is donation only. It's up to students as to whether they want to donate. So put on some comfy shoes and get ready to step in line.
Meet our New Employee
By: Mike Sylva
We’d like to introduce you to the “newest” member of the Highland Senior Center family. Kim Scarcella is actually a familiar face here at the center, being our university computer instructor. Now is officially working here as the new Outreach/Program Director.
She knew that Annette Mendenhall had left us and one day, was talking to Executive Director, Penny Lilburn, about helping out. Penny told her she would keep it in mind, thinking that Kim was being nice. Penny took her at her word, and it turns out, not only was she being nice, but she truly did want to help out!
Now she is busy getting her feet wet in the Transportation Assistance Program, where has been using her formidable computer skills to organize a decades worth of files while updating and creating forms. The teacher is also the student as Misti Stephens shows her the ropes of the TAP program.
Originally from La Mesa, CA near San Diego, it was there that she met her husband, Joe, while he was in the Navy. She earned her degree in Human & Child Development from San Diego State University, before they moved to Missouri for his graduate studies. During that time she did double duty as a mom and some part time work at a Montessori, secretarial work, and a substitute teacher.
Her husband became a professor at Cal State San Bernardino, which brought her to Highland. Once here she got another degree in Vocational Education, then received her teaching credential. Following that she got a job at the Adult Education, teaching computer classes. That, in turn, brought her to us. “Welcome” Kim. Then again, you’ve been welcome here for a long time!
