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Show Lakeside Review Tuesday, October 8, 1 996 Community 9 Senior Calendars Heritage Senior Citizens Center, 562 S. 1000 East, Clearfield, 773-706-5 Blood pressure clinics are the first Thursday and third Tuesday at 10 a.m. The Heritage Center Fun Bus to Wendover will make a trip Oct. 15 and Nov. 12. The cost is $13 with $11 cash back. The bus leaves at 9 a.m. The first riders to pay get the front seats, and each person will receive sandwiches, chips, drinks, popcorn and peanuts. Tokens for cash prizes will be in some of the treat bags. Bingo will be played for cash prizes and a special bingo game will be played on the return trip for a chance for a frfee trip on the next bus. The silversmithing class is every Monday at 1 p.m. The center has new equipment and Paul Schultz is the teacher. Men and women are invited to participate. The fall foliage trip is Thursday, with a tour of Logan Canyon, Pepperidge Farm, a cheese factory and honey factory. The cost is $12. They will leave the center at 9:30 a.m. and return about 3:30 p.m. Lunch at the Jade Restaurant will cost extra. Call the center for reservations. There will be an Americana quiz to celebrate Columbus Day Friday at 1 1:30 a.m. The center will be closed for the Columbus Day holiday Oct. 14. Cancer screening, pelvic, breast, pap and mammograms are Oct. 15 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. There is a sliding scale RIGHT AT HOME: Resting in the family room from her busy week, Charlene Johnson looks up at her brother Jed, while her sister Angela works on a Halloween decoration and her mother, Evonne Johnson watches from a chair. Doing it way fee Cerebral palsy cant slow down area teen or her upbeat attitude POINT - Charlene Johnson bats her green eyes across the 'choir room, trying to catch the of a friend. ; - Finally Brooke Graham stage .whispers, Hello, Charlene. TEST ''A-.smil- e it engulfs Charlenes the acknowledgment. 'face l. Charlene, 18, has cerebral ; 'She cannot talk, walk or push her own wheelchair. Standing 4- fxi-- 6 and weighing 65 pounds, ;she depends on her family and Cie' Qearfield High School staff ' to! hfclp her with her basic needs. Her face communicates her feel pal-sy- ings.- - ! - Charlene is enrolled in the applied skills program at Clearfield 1 . fig! School. Shawna Davis, her (cachCr, said Charlene likes to be read! to. After hearing a story, Davis! or one of the teaching assistants, will ask her yes and no questions she can answer with facial expressions. Apple computer was boOgtit through donations from 'West-Poinresidents for Charlene- when she attended West t Point Elementary School. But the software that could help her communicate is very expensive and the computer itself is very slow, Pavis said. ' Charlene is also enrolled in senior choir. Dance Company and LDS seminary. Pat Gianchetta, a teaching assistant, pushes Charlene to class and helps her with her needs. Sometimes they are late to class because of the number of students who greet them in the ! hallways. Kenny Emslrom, the student-bod- y president, became one of Charlenes friends last year. They were in an LDS seminary class together. Her smile and her eyes says it all, Emstrom said. Whenever he sees Charlene, he makes a point of speaking to her. Kenny is very genuine. He doesnt do it because hes the nt-body said president, Evonne Johnson, her mother. Charlenes first year at Clearfield High was hard because some of the students did not know how to interact with her. One day she came home crying. We finally figured out someone made fun of her, Evonne The October birthday party at 11:45 a.m. is Oct. 28 stude- said. Charlene has been enrolled in dance and choir for the past three years. Last year Jana Jacobs, now a senior, included Charlene in her final dance performance. Most of the time Charlene watches the other students pirouette and leap to the music. helps her bend her arm in time with the music. ' Charlene prefers the long, flowing dresses to the tight costumes. Dont you? Gianchetta said while watching a video of last year's dances. This will be the first year Charlene will participate in a choir concert at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 30 at the high school. Rebecca Nelson, the choir director, said Charlene began vocalizing during one of the practises. The song, Get out-- a my life, is a love parody. At first when Charlene was' vocalizing, some of the students looked over at her, but Nelson kept on leading and the students Gian-chet- ta kept on singing. It was great, Nelson said. Charlene even will have a dress for the occasion. Jamclle Black, a senior and former choir member, decided to donate her aide Pat Gianchetta (far right) at her side, Charlene tries to sing in the Clearfield High choir with help from Marci Hamblin, who holds the words to the song. CHOIR TIME: With choir dress to someone who could use it. It was collecting dust in my closet, Black said. Marci Hamblin, a senior, is Charlene's music partner. She gets the music folder they share and holds the sheets so Charlene can see. Charlene is unable to form words. Her neck stretches, her mouth shapes like an o, and she sings the best she can. During a break, Hamblin leans over and asks, Are you excited about the (football) game?" And once again, a smile engulfs her small face. Since Clearfield High School installed a stadium ramp for wheelchair students, Charlene has not missed a home game. Her mother and her father, Burt Johnson, take Charlene to the games. Charlene's family has been caring for her since she was bom. She is one of triplets bom 10 1 ler two sisters, Arlene and Carlcne, lived only a weeks early. day. Charlene weighed 2 pounds 14 ounces and was the biggest of the three, Evonne said. We knew she would live because she was the only one who fought, she said. Charlene still fights. When her siblings annoy her, she sticks her tongue out at them. That is Charlenes worse insult. You know you're in trouble Story by Loretta Park Photos by Robert Regan sisters living. Most of the time her family speaks for Charlene when the questions are not a simple yes and no. Evonne said she was told Charlenes hearing was limited, but she finds that hard to believe, if she sticks her tongue out at you, Evonne said. Charlene was almost six months old, when Evonne and Burt suspected something was wrong. When she should have been reaching out for objects she didnt. After a diagnosis was made, one doctor told Evonne that unfortunately these children can live as long as anyone can. We didnt go back to him, she said. Stretched out on her pillow, watching cartoons with her brother, Charlene listens to her mother. When asked what number in the family she is, Charlene tries to hold up six fingers. Charlene has five brothers and two -- because they cannot whisper anything around her. Her older sister, Shayla Cook, tried to keep her pregnancy a secret in the beginning. But Charlene knew almost instantaneously and Evonne said no one can explain it. Burt also tries to take Charlene for a walk around the neighborhood at least once a week if the weather is warm. Or the two will sit outside on the front lawn waving to neighbors and friends. The hardest part of caring for Charlene is not knowing what is wrong when she is having a bad See CHARLENE on page 10 Volleyball the game of choice this year ; Y Tollejball became the rage in our neighborhood this lora Lee saved her pennies and invested in a good ball, and the retired schoolteacher who shares our fence donated his net and offered some key points about volleyball scoring and rules. I was thrilled to have volleyball as the sport of choice at my houe. Lvcn a novice can play it successfully. It builds team spirit frnd Cooperation. More experi! summer. 1 enced players can learn a lot about strategy on the Volleyball court, and exercise during volleyball is less intense, so the game tan continue much longer than Flora Lee and her friends decided to try out for the girls juHome Light nior high school volley ball team once they returned to school as Sheri Poe M Bernard last month. Their Columnist long practices extended past dusk, and the work paid off when they made the first cut. I was a little puzzled by her more strenuous sports like basketball or soccer. buoyancy when she came home a few days later to report she had But most important, I like volbeen cut from the team, and leyball because it's not a contact yard. sport. They play with enthusiasm, fe- wasnt even in the running for a substitute emergency player. I also like volleyball because I rocity, and endurance. Ace banI can try out again next used to be pretty good at it. I can dages transfer from player to like championship year, she said and she slipped still spike a ball with the best of player them, but if llora Lee and 1 entrophies moving from school to her backpack ofT her shoulders. And I go to the summer volleygage in an extended session in school. Aspirin is their drug of ball camp the school offers next the back yard, it's only a matter choice. of time before one of my hands n and most mammograms are at no cost. Call the center for an appointment. Meet candidates Oct. 17 at 11:45 a.m. State legislative candidates and Davis County candidates will be available to speak and answer questions. Flu shots are Oct. 23 from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. The cost is $3. Individuals 50 years and older are encouraged to get a flu shot at the center. Call for an appointment. Doug Beatty will sing at the center on Oct. 24 at 1 1:45 a.m. or wrists goes pop! and something starts to swell or discolor. Sensing her mothers stamina was short of what she needs, flora Lee invited her girlfriends, her brother, and neighborhood boys to join in the games, and on a sunny afternoon, I might find as many as eight teenagers screaming in excitement in the back- eighth-grade- rs The 55 Alive defensive driving class will be held Nov. 12 and 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The cost is $8. Call the center to reserve a place. Bingo is played every Wednesday and Friday following lunch. Pinochle is played each Tuesday and Thursday after lunch. Volunteer drivers and home visitors for Meals on Wheels program are needed, one day a week from 10:45 a.m. until 1 p.m. The volunteers deliver in the North Davis area. There is live music every Tuesday. Line dancing is on Wednesday at 12:15 p.m. Oil painting is on Tuesdays at rs So most afternoons, at least until the snow starts, 1 know I'll find Flora Lee in the backyard volleying with some friends. If she can't find someone to join her. she plays a solitary game of hitting the ball onto the sloped roof, again and again. Except for Thursdays. On Thursdays, shes out for the evening with her best friend, perfecting her serve and expanding her skills on a church team. By next fall, I think she'll be ready. The Monday Autumn Glow Senior Citizens Center, 81 E. Center Street, Kaysville, 544-12- 35 The blood pressure clinic is Thursday at 10:45. The Wendover trip is Thursday at 9 a.m. Oct. 14, Columbus Day, the center will be dosed. A fall foliage tour will be taken Oct. 15 to Logan Canyon, Pepperidge Farm, a honey factory and a cheese factory. Lunch will be at Jade Restaurant There is a S 10 fee. Sign up by Friday. Meet candidates at noon on summer. Most of the kids who made the team were ninth-gradeanyway." 12:30. ceramics class is from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Everyone is invited to participate in line dancing on Wednesdays at 12:15 p.m. Oct IS. Tanyas performing pets will be at the center Oct. 16 at noon. The free clinic is Oct 17 at 9:45 a.m. At 10 a.m. there will be a pumpkin-carvin- g class. And at 6 p.m. there is a volunteer chcck-your-hcal- th banquet The monthly birthday party is Oct 18 at 11:30. Reservations are required. Powder PulT mechanics is Oct 22. Learn the basics for good car maintenance. It begins at 12:30 p.m. Advance registration is required. There will be entertainment at noon, Oct 23 and the Quilt Spinners meet at 5 p.m. See SENIORS on page 10 |