www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

to say all the bills are paid,

and we now have a three

month reserve in the bank. We

will continue to try and build

this up to a six month reserve

so we always pay bills and

weather an emergency if nec-

essary.

House Director Dan Ger-

main gave us an update on

the many improvements we

have made at the House last

year and he outlined his goals

for next year.

We are making very good

progress on our strategic plan

and with your continued help

you can expect to see the

House continue to run effi-

ciently with constant improve-

ment of our organization and

outreach ability to the commu-

nity.

We wish to thank the clubs

who sent in their proxies and

offer a special thank you to

all of you who gave up a

Saturday to drive to Sacra-

mento and represent your

club at the meeting.

Thanks also to UCD Medi-

cal Center and its liaison to

the Board, J.P. Eres for

providing lunch.

We tried to provide an

interesting, informative,

and fast moving meeting

and the thanks you gave

us on the way out makes

us think we succeeded.

At the June board meet-

ing, we elected the follow-

ing people as next year’s

Board officers:

Bill Hooper of the Cit-(Continued on page 6)

Volume XIV Issue 1 July 2013

Important dates 2

Not in my backyard! 3

Impressions 5

Wish list 5

Ways to support KFH 7

UCDavis Health

System 8

KFH Ambassadors 10

Contact Editor 10

Inside this issue:

President’s Message by Bill Hooper

“...We are making very good progress on

our strategic plan and with your continued

help you can expect to see the House con-

tinue to run efficiently…”

KFH Annual Meeting 2013

House Talk Kiwanis in Action at our Kiwanis Family House

We had a full

house for the an-

nual meeting and

attendees elected

trustees Rita

Beall, Bob

Isaacs, and

George MacMur-

phey to second

terms on the Board.

We also had two of our

House guests come in and

share their story. They each

expressed their thanks to us

for our help at the House dur-

ing their difficult time. This

always brings a tear to our

eyes and reinvigorates us as

we are reminded how im-

portant our work for the

House is to the families we

serve.

The financial report was

given by Treasurer Matthew

Wehner, and we are pleased

Sponsor a

Family

for a Night

Donations pay for those

families who cannot af-

ford it, or supplement

families who can only

make partial payments.

We never turn away

deserving families for

lack of payment.

Send in your donation.

It is $50@ night. Send

check or your credit card

number with expiration

date (Visa, MasterCard,

and American Express

only).

Mail to Kiwanis Family

House, Inc. 2875 50th

Street Sacramento, CA

95817-2308 or call us.

From our house, to your house:

July 4th

Accomplishments for 2011:

-Opened our first-ever See's

Candy Holiday Store

-Met with stakeholders to devel-

op new Strategic Plan and focus

for next 3-5 years

Goals for Next Year:

-Revitalize Friends of the Kiwanis

Family House Program. Add to

the membership and provide on-

going recognition to contributors.

-Source additional sources of

ongoing funding/grant opportuni-

ties

The annual meeting of our Kiwanis Family House (KFH) was suc-cessfully conducted on Saturday June 8th at our KFH.

There are many ele-ments that make it suc-cessful.

Sponsor Clubs who are current (dues paid) are eligible to vote. No-

tice of the meeting ap-peared in House Talk, and was mailed/emailed to Sponsor Clubs. Our KFH Ambassadors (see page 10), followed up to be sure Sponsor Clubs were current, and were to attend. For those who could not attend a proxy form was completed

indicating who could vote. There are over 85 Sponsor

Clubs and there must be a quorum to conduct the meeting.

The credential committee re-ported that a quorum was es-tablished.

Early arrivals were provided (Continued on page 6)

2 www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

Important Dates

House Talk is a monthly newsletter pub-lished by the Kiwanis Family House, Inc.

2875 50th Street, Sacramento, CA 95817-2308. (916) 736-0116.

website: www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

The Kiwanis Family House is a 501 (c) 3

organization incorporated by in the State of California and recognized by the IRS.

Board of Kiwanis Family House

President:. William (Bill) Hooper (2014) V.P. ………….George MacMurphey (2016) Secretary….………….……Rita Beall (2016) Treasurer…...Matthew J. Wehner (2014) Director…………...……….Emily Chirk (2014) Director………………Karen Borman (2014) Director……..…Bernard Bowes Jr. (2015) Director…. William (Rick) Dwyer (2015)

Director................... Bob Isaacs (2016) Director……………………………..Vacant (2014) Director…………Daniel Saulisberry (2015)

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Past President………William (Rick) Dwyer UCDMC Liaison…………………..… J.P. Eres III Editor………………………........John W. Seigal

House Talk is published monthly and sent to supporters and owners of the Kiwa-nis Family House Inc. The editor is solely responsible for the content. It is the intent to be 100% accurate. Articles labeled as Editorial represent the opinion of the editor and may not represent the opinion of the Ki-wanis Family House, the board, or Kiwanis International. The address of the editor is P.O, Box 1131 Sloughhouse, CA 95683-1131 or

email: jwseigal@sbcglobal.net

Kiwanis Family House Board meetings

Kiwanis Family House 2875 50th Street

Sacramento, CA 95817 Second Thursdays 7:00 pm

2013 2014

July 11 Feb 13

Aug 8 Mar 13

Sep 12 Apr 10

Oct 10 May 8

Nov 14 June 14 (Sat)

Dec 12 11:00 a.m.

2014 Annual

Jan 9 Meeting

Would you donate 3%

of your supermarket

shopping to our Kiwanis Family House? It is simple as 1-2-3

1. Do you shop at Save Mart,

Smart, Food Maxx or Lucky

Supermarkets?

2. If so scan your S.H.A.R.E.S card and the house gets a

percentage. You still get the

great sale prices and the rest.

3. If you do not have a card contact editor (page 10)

and send your name and USPS mailing address. Editor

will send you a S.H.A.R.E.S.

card by return mail! Scan the S.H.A.R.E.S.

card each time you shop!

Kiwanis Family House Mission Statement

“The mission of the Kiwanis Family

House is dedicated to providing

housing and support to families of

seriously ill children and adults being

treated at University of California,

Davis, Sacramento.”

Free money

There are still areas with Albertsons

Supermarkets. Keep using your Albert-

son’s Preferred Savings Card.

Register your card by calling

(800) 353-9002.

Subscription

information about

House Talk House Talk is the official publica-

tion of our KFH.

Each Sponsor Club is emailed a

copy to the designated Kiwanian.

If you are interested in receiving

the House Talk via email visit our

website at:

www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org and enter your email address on the

lower left-hand corner where it says "Sign Up For Our Email

Newsletter".

If you wish to receive it by US

Postal Service contact Editor on

page 10.

KIWANIS FAMILY HOUSE 2875 50TH ST SACRAMENTO CA 95817-2308

Donate a brick!

The memorial bricks cost $100

each. The lettering grid is 15 spaces across and three rows deep.

Donate them for birthdays, anni-versaries, memorials, sponsored organizations, past presidents, hon-orary members, and more.

They are memorials and last longer than plaques and seen by more people.

The bricks are installed in the courtyard of our Kiwanis Family House.

For more information or a brick order contact editor. See page 10.

See us at:

August 15-17, 2013

Cal-Nev-Ha Dist. Convention Silver Legacy Resort & Casino, Reno, Nevada

3 www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

Report #133

Since October 1, 2001 to May 31,

2013, (the effective dates of this

report), 12,615 families have

stayed one or more nights at our

Kiwanis Family House while being

treated at UCDMC and Shriners

Hospital for Children®.

This report covers over 11 years.

Previous to October 1, 2001 the

reports were tabulated in a different

format.

Our KFH has hosted 967 families

from outside Cal-Nev-Ha District (California, Nevada, and Hawaii).

These 967 families come from:

Alabama Missouri Alaska Montana

Arizona Nebraska Arkansas New Hampshire

Colorado New Jersey Connecticut New Mexico

Delaware New York District of Columbia North Carolina

Florida Ohio Georgia Oklahoma

Idaho Oregon

Illinois Pennsylvania Indiana South Carolina

Iowa South Dakota Kansas Tennessee

Kentucky Texas Louisiana Utah

Maine Vermont Maryland Virginia

Massachusetts Washington

Michigan West Virginia Minnesota Wisconsin

Mississippi Wyoming

Also, there have been families

from: Belgium Brazil Canada England Federated States of Micronesia Guatemala Haiti Israel Italy Mexico Netherlands New Zealand Pakistan People’s Republic of China Republic of Palau Serbia Taiwan Uruguay Venezuela Wales

Division 7 and Division 44 are con-sidered the “host” divisions. Families

living within 35 miles of UCDMC are not eligible to stay at our KFH.

Aren’t you glad that there is your Kiwanis Family House in

Sacramento, California?

Kiwanis Family House,

not in my backyard!

Div. Lt. Gov. Families %

39 Thompson 3,499 27.74%

14 Ghag 1,339 10.61%

Out of District 967 7.67%

45 Baran 931 7.38%

27 Goad 883 7.00%

46 McGrath 752 5.96%

44 Kocher 729 5.78%

20 Hauser 495 3.92%

23 Andrews 478 3.79%

8 Preston 377 2.99%

32 Braik 346 2.74%

5 Fedrico 239 1.89%

7 McIntire 230 1.82%

26 Gilliam 180 1.43%

18 Farris 150 1.19%

12 verBurg 129 1.02%

34 Dahlquist 125 0.99%

36 Orosco 118 0.94%

2 Bliss 111 0.88%

38 Williams 69 0.55%

43 Bowen 42 0.33%

28 Petrick 39 0.31%

33 Kinsey 36 0.29%

29 Cordero 33 0.26%

42 Talley 29 0.23%

11 Frost 26 0.21%

41 Uramga 26 0.21%

6 Castleman 23 0.18%

22 Field 23 0.18%

24 Grimm 22 0.17%

31 Bloemen 20 0.16%

15 Cridland 19 0.15%

16 Ross 19 0.15%

47 Dopf 17 0.13%

1 Lim 16 0.13%

30 Fields 14 0.11%

4 Brooks 13 0.10%

37 Cunning 13 0.10%

10 Lagunas, Jr. 12 0.10%

25 Montaño 10 0.08%

35 Manning 8 0.06%

13 Wait 6 0.05%

19 Waronek 2 0.02%

Totals 12,615 100.0%

The column to the left mentions num-

bers, where our guests are from, codified

by Kiwanis Divisions.

This article defines our guests from

their neighborhoods during the month of

May 2013. The number in parentheses is

the number of families.

Canada

Stony Plain, Alberta

California

Alameda

Alturas (6)

Anderson (6)

Angels Camp

Bella Vista

Berry Creek

Biggs

Brownsville

Burlingame

Burney (2)

Canby

Chico (3)

Chula Vista

Clear Lake (2)

Colfax

Colusa

Corning (3)

Crescent City

Eureka (3)

Fairfield (2)

Flournoy (2)

Fort Bragg

Fortuna

Fresno (4)

Grass Valley

Happy Camp (2)

Hayfork

Hoopa (2)

Ione

Kings Beach

Lake Almanor

Los Angeles

Los Banos

Los Molinos

Macdoel

(Continued on page 4)

Neighborhoods…

not numbers!

4 www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

Neighborhoods…

not numbers! (Cont’d)

Mammoth Lakes

Manteca

Mariposa

Marysville (4)

Milpitas

Modesto (2)

Montague

Nevada City

North Fork (2)

North Highlands

North San Juan

North Fork

Oakley

Orland

Oroville (7)

Paradise (4)

Penn Valley

Placerville

Pollock Pines

Porterville

Portola

Princeton

Quincy

Red Bluff (3)

Redding (9)

Reedley

Rough and Ready

Sacramento

Shasta

Shasta Lake (3)

Sonora

Stockton (4)

Suisun City

Susanville

Sylmar

Tracy

Truckee (2)

Tuolumne

Vacaville (2)

Vallejo

Woodland

Yreka

Yuba City

Georgia

Canton

Nevada

Carson City (2)

Fernley

(Continued from page 3) Minden

Reno (3)

Schurz

Silver Spring

Sparks (8)

Sun Valley

Wellington

Oregon

Bandon

Hermiston (2)

Lakeview

Monmouth

Texas

Midland

Utah

Layton

Washington

Battle Ground

Wisconsin

Dallas

Total Guest Nights 439

Average Stay 2.65 days

New Executive

Director

President of the Kiwanis Family

House Board of Directors, Bill

Hooper, announced that Daniel

“Dan” Germain has been promot-

ed to the position of Executive Di-

rector House Director of our Kiwa-

nis Family House (KFH). He has

served as House Director since April

1, 2012.

In his 14 month tenure with the

Kiwanis Family House, Dan has

been responsible for the daily oper-

ations of the House, including over-

sight of the staff, volunteers, and

guests. In his new role as Execu-

tive Director, he will take a leader-

ship role in executing the board’s

strategic plan, including fundrais-

ing, grant writing, and outreach to

the local community, the Kiwanis

organization, and the sponsor Kiwa-

nis Clubs. A new Operations Man-

ager will be hired to assume many

of the day-to-day operational duties

he previously performed as House

Director.

Dan began his Kiwanis affiliation

as a member of Circle K Interna-

tional while attending college, and

served as Circle K Governor of the

Cal-Nev-Ha District for one year

and Vice President of Circle K Inter-

national the following year.

He is currently a member of the

East Sacramento-Midtown Kiwanis

Club and the Kiwanis Club of Kiwa-

nis Family House, Sacramento. He

serves as an Advisor to the Califor-

nia State University (Sacramento)

Circle K Club.

Dan’s qualifications include 22

years with the California Highway

Patrol in various positions including

Commander and Assistant Chief, as

well as four years as Chief Operat-

ing Officer at Coalition for Inde-

pendence in Kansas City, Kansas, a

non-profit agency serving individu-

als with disabilities.

Our Kiwanis Family House Board is current-ly seeking a new director to serve the one year remaining term of Calvin Hara’s three year term.

Calvin Hara is relocating out of state.

Here are the paperwork requirements:

A statement from the president of the ap-

plicant’s home club endorsing the candi-date. This should be signed by the presi-dent as well as the candidate.

A statement from the candidate as to why

he/she would like to serve on the board.

A short biography, including a history of Kiwanis affiliation and other relative expe-rience that may benefit the board.

Mail information to Kiwanis Family House

2875 50th St. Sacramento, CA 65817 Att: Bill Hooper/Dan Germain or

Fax information to (916) 455-7246 Att:

Bill Hooper/Dan Germain or

Email to: kfh@kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

5 www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

As I write this col-

umn, I am on the

road to Vancouver,

British Columbia for

the concurrent Kiwa-

nis and Circle K Inter-

national Conventions.

The two K-Family

organizations will share a common ex-

hibit hall, where the Kiwanis Family

House will once again be a featured

exhibitor. Importantly, we will have

multiple opportunities throughout the

week to deliver a 30-minute presenta-

tion on the main stage in the hall, op-

portunities we greatly value.

I strongly sense that our KFH profile

is growing within our California-Nevada

-Hawaii district and across the interna-

tional organization. Since last year’s

convention in New Orleans, Interna-

tional President Tom DeJulio and

Rosemary have written us more than

once. Past President Alan Penn and

Jeri have as well. We look forward to

visiting again with President-Elect Gun-

ter Gasser from Spittal an der Drau,

Austria in Vancouver as we did at our

booth last year in New Orleans. A cou-

ple of months ago, International Trus-

tee Jim Rochford from Peoria, Illinois

sent us an email conveying his pleasure

at receiving and reading our monthly

House Talk newsletter.

This attention and support are criti-

cal, of course, because the Kiwanis

Family House - located in Sacramento -

has an unmistakable international

reach, having hosted families from

nearly every state in the United States

and 20 other countries. Given the rari-

ty of chances to address international

audiences, we realize the importance of

delivering effective and inspiring pro-

grams from the main stage.

This year’s presentation will include a

brand new video segment featuring the

story of Ryan, Chelsea, and their new

daughter Lillyaunna. Lilly was born

with a defect in her diaphragm that

allowed her stomach and intestines to

migrate into her chest cavity. This has

caused a life-threatening challenge to

her ability to breathe without assis-

tance. Ryan and Chelsea are current

guests without any indication of when

their daughter might be healthy

enough for discharge. However, on the

eve of our departure for Vancouver,

Chelsea stepped into my office to re-

Impressions The monthly column

by Dan Germain KFH Executive Director

port that Lilly had an extremely good

day, showing signs of independence

from the mechanical assistance. They

heard their daughter cry for the first

time, more than two months after enter-

ing their lives. Chelsea was beaming

and talking about being able to finally go

home. Our international audience will

hear Ryan articulate his appreciation for

Kiwanis and the facility that has meant

so much to them during this difficult and

emotional chapter in their young lives.

We will certainly take our stories to

Vancouver. I am confident that we will

bring other stories back with us to share

with you, our most passionate support-

ers, and I look forward to sharing them

with you next month.

“Dan Germain (916) 736-0116

dgermain@kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

Kiwanis Family House July 2013 Wish List

Our Kiwanis Family House always

has a ready Wish List of items that

are needed. Perhaps you might

want to add an item for our KFH

when you are shopping. You might

find it more convenient to mail us

Sam’s Club or Costco gift cards and

let us do the shopping. (The cards

fit into mailing envelopes easily).

Mail to:

Kiwanis Family House

2875 50th Street,

Sacramento, CA 95817

If you would rather deliver them

to our KFH or give us a call give us

a call at (916) 736-0116 to arrange

a pick up.

July Priorities

Multi-purpose copi-er/printer paper.

Liquid dish soap.

Kleenex or comparable

tissues.

Fragrance-free powder laundry soap.

Lysol toilet bowl cleaner.

Clorox or Lysol disinfect-

ing wipes.

Exercise is like medicine

for your body! Some people join a health or

fitness club (costs money).

Some people jog (costs money

for special shoes, and be sure the areas you jog are safe).

Some people like to cycle (cost

money for a bicycle and watch out for cars and motorcycle.

Here is a way to

safely exercise and contribute to our KFH. Set up a schedule to cut the grass. It is safe, fresh air is good for you, and you provide a needed service.

Call Dan Germain (916) 736-

0116

Del delivers

Kiwanian Del Avants, from Divi-

sion 32, delivered six brand new tel-evisions for our Kiwanis Family House guest rooms.

Del has a generous customer who wanted to make a contribution.

6 www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

President’s Message by Bill Hooper (Contd.)

rus Heights Club as president,

George MacMurphey of the East

Sacramento-Midtown Club as vice

president,

Rita Beall of the Greater Sacra-

mento Club as secretary, and

Matthew Wehner of the Davis

Club as treasurer.

The Board also promoted House

Director Dan Germain to Executive

Director (See related story on page

4).

The Board also reluctantly accept-

ed the resignation of Board member

Calvin Hara effective June 30.

He is moving from the area and he

will be greatly missed as he has done

an outstanding job as a member of

the Board for the last five years.

Please contact Executive Director

Dan Germain if you are interested in

this Board position. The term for this

position is for one year.

We are looking forward to the next

two events. The first is “The Evening

with the Stars” at the Shiners Hospital

Atrium on July 20th where we will cel-

ebrate our 29th birthday and recog-

nize some of the Kiwanis clubs and

individuals that have helped us suc-

ceed in our mission, and our partner-

ship with UCD Medical Center and

Shriners Hospital.

The second is the Sixth Annual

Swing “Fore” Kids Golf Tournament

which will take place August 26th at

Sierra View Country Club in Roseville.

Till next time, yours in Kiwanis

Service, Bill

bhoopklg56@comcast.net

(Continued from page 1)

with a tour of our KFH by board mem-

ber Emily Chirk.

The meeting started promptly at

11:00 a.m. and was convened by board

president Bill Hooper.

During the meeting two KFH guests,

told there story as to what brought

them to our KFH, and the importance

of what we do. One guest was from

Indianapolis, Indiana the current home

of Kiwanis International.

The financial report was given by

Treasurer Matthew Wehner. He pro-

vided a broad overview of the finances,

and was available to answer specific

question anyone might have, after the

annual meeting.

House Director, Dan Germain, re-

ported on the nuts and bolts of our KFH

operation and how folks can assist.

There were three board vacancies to

fill. There were three candidates run-

(Continued from page 1)

Join us on Saturday, July 20th at the Shriners Hospital Atrium (2428

Stockton Boulevard, Sacramento).

It will be a magical evening as we wine, dine, and celebrate the Stars of

the Kiwanis Family House.

Attire: Semi-Formal or Formal

For tickets and information go to www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

ning for those positions. There were

no nominations from the floor and

none received in the mail.

1. Bob Isaacs was re-elected to a

three year term ending in 2016.

2. Rita Beall was elected to a

three year term ending in 2016.

She was a previous board mem-

ber who had been appointed to

fill the term of a previous board

member.

3. George MacMurphey was

elected to a three year term

ending in 2016. He also was a

previous board member who had

been appointed to fill the term of

a previous board member.

After the meeting, the lunch was

catered by Sunshine Café of Sacra-

mento. This was hosted by the Uni-

versity of California Davis Medical

Center.

After lunch another tour of our

KFH was conducted by board mem-

ber Emily Chirk.

The next annual meeting will be

held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday June

14 at our KFH.

KFH Annual Meeting

2013 (Cont’d)

7 www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

TV for KFH

Our Kiwanis Family House (KFH)

guests watch TV in their rooms. But the TV’s in their rooms are wearing out.

Donate $300 so our KFH may pur-chase replacements. We are target-ing Best Buy Store’s Insignia model which has a DVD player.

Families need diversions while worrying about family members.

Televisions allow them to catch up on the news.

Ways to support our Kiwanis Family House...

Get your SHARES Card (on page2) so we get our “share”.

KFH… visit us!

If you are in the neighborhood and

want to stop by for a visit, please do.

If you want to arrange a special

tour in advance, call us at (916)

736-0116.

Hold a club meeting here!

Become a friend!

Want to feel good about yourself?

The become a Friend of our Kiwa-nis Family House. It takes an annual donation of $100 (or more). Infor-mation about memberships and ways to pay, is available at our website: www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

Want to feel better about yourself? Consider giving your friends and rela-tives the “gift” of becoming a Friend of our Kiwanis Family House.

These donations keep our KFH in operation and keeping our commit-ment of never having to turn any one away for lack of payment.

Recycling makes cents!

Donate ink cartridges, LASER car-tridges, toner cartridges etc. to our KFH.

We even have a container for

used plastic bags to be recycled. It helps the environment, lessens

the impact on land fills, and makes cents.

If you work for a company, ask it if it will cooperate in giv-ing you the items to take and donate.

Our KFH gets money when we turn them in for recycling.

Recycling money is “green” and spends the same way with a lessen-ing on the KFH budget.

If you have an old car, boat, or Recreational Vehicle (R/V) you can transform it into cash for our Kiwanis Family House.

Our KFH has partnered with Car Program Inc. to provide an easy-to-use tax deductible process to donate your car, boat, of R/V.

You are able to donate your vehi-cle, running or not, and it does not have to be registered.

Questions: Call Executive Director Dan Germain at (916) 736-0116 or Car Program Inc. (800) 240-0160. This agency can accept dona-tions from most of our 50 states to benefit our KFH!

Vehicle

donations

needed!

Gifts of Appreciated Securities If you have

marketable se-

curities that

have grown

substantially in

value, the tax

laws make it

possible for you

to make an im-

portant gift at a remarkably low after-

tax cost.

A gift of appreciated securities gener-

ally qualifies you for an income tax char-

itable deduction equal to the value of

the gifted securities, and it may also

avoid the long-term capital gain tax on

your unrealized capital gain.

You can deduct up to 30% of your

adjusted gross income in the year of

your gift. Any amount given in excess of

30% can be carried over and deducted

for up to five subsequent years.

Usually a sale of appreciated securities

results in a tax on your full gain – in

other words, you keep only part of the

profit. But if you donate those same ap-

preciated securities to our Kiwanis Fami-

ly House, there is no tax on your gain,

even though your “profit” is counted as

part of your charitable deduction.

Check with your Tax Advisor or IRS.

8 www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

=

Reducing unnecessary and

high-dose pediatric CT scans could cut associated cancers by 62%

search Network (PECARN), the only federally funded pediatric emergency care research network in the U.S.

The retrospective study was con-ducted in diverse male and female children under 15 who were enrolled in seven other integrated health-care systems.

The researchers examined CT utili-zation data from six of the health-care systems between 1996 and 2010. Ra-diation dosage and estimated cancer risk were calculated by examining 744 random CTs of the head, abdo-men/pelvis, chest and spine conduct-ed from 2001 through 2011 at five of the health systems.

The researchers said exams from these regions of the body account for more than 95 percent of all CT scans.

The researchers also found that pa-tient radiation doses were highly vari-able for exams of the same anatomic region.

The risk of radiation-induced leuke-mia and brain cancers are highest for head CT, the most commonly per-formed CT in children. While the ef-fective dose for head CT is relatively low, the brain and red bone marrow doses are relatively high for young children, resulting in the greatest risk of brain cancer and leukemia for im-aged organs. The risk of radiation-induced solid cancer is highest for CTs of the abdomen and pelvis, which also had the most dramatic increase in use, especially among older children. Breast, thyroid and lung cancers and leukemia account for 68 percent of projected cancers in exposed girls; brain, lung and colon cancer and leu-kemia account for 51 percent of fu-ture cancers in boys.

She noted that physicians can re-duce dosage amounts using a number of different strategies, including re-ducing scan length by focusing solely on the ‘zone of interest’ — the region requiring imaging. For example, when the zone of interest is the abdomen, physicians should avoid also scanning the pelvis. She said dosage guidelines for imaging pediatric patients should be followed closely.

“A smaller person needs a lower dose to come out of the machine to create an image of adequate quality for making a clinical diagnosis,” Miglioretti said.

“Over the years”

The current series of House Talk

(Volume I Issue 1) is dated May 1,

2001.

Nine years ago

Volume V Issue 1

July 2004 On July 31,

2004 the Kiwa-

nis Club of KFH

Sacramento

held its Second

Annual Down

East Lobster

Feast.

All proceeds

from the event

went directly to

the New KFH

building fund.

Shown above is Ron Abbott pre-

paring a lobster.

Eight years ago

Volume VI Issue 1

July 2005

Norma Montna admiring Jeannie

Wenger’s new T-Shirt she bought

from our Kiwanis Family House.

Seven years ago

Volume VII Issue 1

July 2006

Kiwanian Pamela Haines getting

new KFH ready for grand opening.

A study examining trends in X-ray computed tomography (CT) use in children in the United States has found that reducing unnecessary scans and lowering the doses for the highest-dose scans could lower the overall lifetime risk of future imaging-related cancers by 62 percent.

The 4 million CT scans of the most commonly imaged organs conducted in children each year could result in approximately 4,870 future cancers, the study found. Reducing the highest 25 percent of radiation doses could prevent 2,090 — or 43 percent — of these future cancers. By also elimi-nating unnecessary imaging, 3,020 — or 62 percent — of cancers could be prevented, said Diana Miglioretti, lead study author and Dean’s Profes-sor in Biostatistics in the Department of Public Health Sciences at UC Davis Health System.

“There are potential harms from CT, meaning that there is a cancer risk, albeit very small in individual children, so it’s important to reduce this risk in two ways,” said Miglioretti, who is a member of the UC Davis Comprehen-sive Cancer Center. “The first is to only do a CT when it’s medically nec-essary, and use alternative imaging when possible. The second is to dose CT appropriately for children.”

Computed tomography is a proce-dure used to generate cross-sectional images of the body in diagnostic and therapeutic settings. It frequently is used in young children who may have experienced trauma, for example. Miglioretti noted its use has increased dramatically because the technology is effective and offers greater conven-ience than other imaging methods that do not involve ionizing radiation, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which requires that a child re-main still in a scanner for an extended period of time. Ultrasound imaging can be time consuming. Radiation doses delivered by CT are 100 to 500 times higher than for conventional radiography, Miglioretti said.

UC Davis has a long history of re-search pertaining to appropriate CT scanning in children with trauma, and the risks to children of unnecessary CT scans. This work has been per-formed through its leadership in the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Re-

9 www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

“Letters, we get

letters, we get stacks and stacks

of letters…”

These letters are left at our KFH addressed to you. They are pub-

lished to show our readers of the im-pact made by the staff and services of

our Kiwanis Family House and UC Da-vis Medical Center. The letters are

published as originally written and punctuated. This is to preserve the

sincerity and spontaneity of the writer.

“Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!

“Your kindness and generosity

made it possible for us to be with our

mom while she had esophageal sur-gery.

“God Bless You All?

“Very clean and nice to have a place to sleep. Thank you!”

“You are are such a blessing from the Lord!

“The shuttle, the fridge, the room, the kitchen— all just such a blessing.

“I could not say more…. “Thank you! Thank you! Thank

you!”

“Dear Kiwanis Family Houe and mem-bers of Kiwanis,

“I want to thank the members of Sacra-mento Kiwanis who had the foresight to build a wonderful place for families, who are in need of sleeping quarters while a loved one is at the hospital.

“Being in a strange city, alone, with someone you love having major surgery, it was a very helpful having some place close to go to where the people are warm and caring. The facility is kept ex-tremely clean, and the staff was very friendly and helpful.

“I cannot say enough of how grateful I am.

“My husband is recovering slowly but nicely.

“Thanks you again!”

“We’re back again!

“And so thankful for you

all…

“On the way down, my hus-

band said to me, ‘What

would we do without the Ki-

wanis House?’

“You bless us more than

you know!”

“Happiness is always with

reach, no matter how long

it last, lets enjoy life

and don’t live a complicat-

ed life.

“Life is too short! Work

as if it were your first.

Forgive as soon as possi-

ble. Love without bounda-

ries. Laugh without control

and never stop smiling.

“Please pray for all that

are suffering from cancer

or anything else.

Kiwanis has been a bless-

ing to my family and I.

Just keep fighting no mat-

ter what. Believe in your-

self and never give up.

“Sincerely the 3 H’s”

Become a KFH

Team Member! We need more volunteers.

Training is provided.

Like to work by yourself? We have such chores.

Like to take some fellow club members along, we can han-dle that.

If you are a Sponsor Club consider having your mem-bers adopt one day each month and cover all of the shifts.

Adopt an odd day to work, such as the 5th Saturday or week day.

Work for a shift or two each month.

Flexible hours.

You can “work the desk and telephones” to free up the staff to do other chores.

You can do “handyman chores” if that is what you would like to do.

If you have a green thumb, there are projects to assist.

“Hands-on” community ser-vice hours.

Wonderful atmosphere.

Volunteer your time.

Contact Executive Director

Dan Germain at: (916) 736-0116.

“My husband has been

fighting cancer since

2010 when his first

fight came and that was

put into remission,

Thank God!

“Then, Nov. 2012, he

was hit with a different

type of cancer which he

will be taking radiation

for that.

“So far he is a cancer

survivor two times and

which not for the Kiwa-

nis Family House, and

their support and the

help that he received in

our time of need, I re-

ally don’t know what we

would have done.

“This place is so gift-

ed and special in our

hearts.

“If you need help, ask

the staff and they have

a lot of resources they

can help with.

“We have been stain

here, and it is a

stress-free place, close

to love ones in the hos-

pital and everyone who

stays her, we all draw

strength from.

“Thank you Kiwanis Fam-

ily House.

“If it weren’t for the Kiwanis Fam-ily House, I would have been sleep-

ing in my vehicle in the hospital.

“I have never been treated with

such kindness. When I arrived here I

hadn’t slept in almost 3 days and

dragged myself in here to check in.

“I met two beautiful ladies smiling

and so happy to help. I was blessed and will be forever grateful for the

food, rest, and kindness.

“I love those that I met here that

were also occupants, you also

blessed me.

“Thank you so, so much and I pray

I can give back as much as I re-

ceived. Thank you.”

10 www.kiwanisfamilyhouse.org

House Talk: Contact the Editor

Quick Facts about House Talk

1. House Talk is a monthly newslet-

ter published by the Kiwanis Family

House, Inc.

2. The editor is solely responsible for

the content of House Talk.

3. Deadline 5:00 pm on the second Thursday of the

month.

4. Items are solicited. Items submitted will not be re-

turned unless noted by the sender.

5. Errors in the House Talk are to be brought to the

attention of the editor. Egregious errors will be cor-

rected in a future edition.

6. Responses to the articles and authors unless indicat-

ed otherwise can be sent to the editor for forward-

ing.

7. Editor is John W. Seigal.

8. Email address is: jwseigal@sbcglobal.net

9. US Postal Service address is: P.O. Box 1131

Sloughhouse, CA 95683-1131

Now you can help support the Kiwanis Family House

by using Facebook. If you are on Facebook (or are plan-

ning on joining) you should “Like” the Kiwanis Family

House page. Our goal is 1,000 Likes.

You can also click “Share” on any posting and this

will share our stories with your Friends. It appears on

their wall and news feed for Friends to see and spreads

the message of Kiwanis Family House!

You can also “Suggest” a page to all your friends via

a message. Just click on “Suggest to Friends” (the

fourth link down from the logo) and choose the friends

to whom you want to send an invitation to the Page.

You can post any comments, stories, or suggestions

for other Fans to see, and it will also appear on your

walls for your Friends to see.

If you want to reference something that is on the

website, you should include a link to the Kiwanis Family

House page along with your posting.

With The Eliminate Project, Kiwanis International and

UNICEF have joined forces to eliminate maternal and neo-

natal tetanus. This deadly disease steals the lives of near-

ly 60,000 innocent babies and a significant number of

women each year. The effects of the disease are excruci-

ating — tiny newborns suffer repeated, painful convul-

sions and extreme sensitivity to light and touch.

To eliminate MNT from the Earth, more than 100 million

mothers and their future babies must be immunized. This

requires vaccines, syringes, safe storage, transportation,

thousands of skilled staff and more. It will take US$110

million — and the dedicated work of UNICEF and every

member of the Kiwanis family.

Rita Beall (916) 549-1354 rbeall@kiwanis familyhouse.org

Karen Borman

(916) 489-4476 bormank@aol.com

Bernard Bowes, Jr. (916) 354-0224

bbowesjr@ ranchomurieta.com

Emily Chirk (714) 213-0716

echirk@gmail.com

Gary Christensen (916) 215-1460

gjcsmc@ aol.com

William (Rick) Dwyer

(916) 987-7633

rick@ prop-con.com

Bill Hooper (916) 988-6880

bhoopklg56@ comcast.net

Bob Isaacs (916) 737-2831

kiwanisb@ surewest.net

George MacMurphey

(916) 483-9883 georgemac1@

comcast.net

Daniel Saulisberry (209) 745-6838

dsaulisberry@

thebrickyard.com

Matthew Wehner

(530) 758-8111 mwehner@

carbahalcpa.com

KFH Ambassadors

Our KFH Ambassador Program has been launched. The

dictionary defines “ambassador as an official envoy; an

authorized representative or messenger.” To be a Sponsor Club is one thing, but communication

is a two way street.

Because Ambassadors serve several clubs, they know

the latest, and perhaps the best in fund-raising pro-grams.

Because Ambassadors meet with other Ambassadors,

they can find solutions and best ways to solve prob-lems.

Ambassadors are here to inform. Ambassadors are here to listen. Ambassadors are here to remind. Ambassadors are here to answer any questions. Ambassadors are here to offer suggestions. To confirm your KFH Ambassador, email Rita Beall,

see above.