By Michael “Mick” Shaughnessy, Chaplain Post 109
As we welcome October, there are two holidays we will celebrate, Columbus Day and Halloween. Of course, Columbus Day means a three-day weekend to commemorate the discovery of America. Perhaps our focus should be on remembering the significant contributions by many and diverse nationalities and cultures that helped build our great country.
Halloween has become a purely commercial holiday but with origins in both religious and cultural beliefs, largely; like Christopher Columbus, coming from Europe. In agricultural societies, October has long marked the onset of fall and the gathering of crops – the harvest for storage for the long winter. It has become a tradition of taking stock of our “harvest” at the end of the year, not just to make sure we have enough to withstand the desolation winter brings, but also a general glance back over our labors to reflect on what we’ve accomplished. The business world tends to focus on October as the turnover of the fiscal year – when audits are done and plans for the new year are put forward, both formally and informally.
These practices also include a bit of reflection on accomplishments, whether goals were met or were there shortfalls. In the same way, many religions observe reflection on the past year and even celebrate their ancestors, most notably the Christian observance of All Soul’s Day and the Latin observance of Day of the Dead in November. These observances and practices are closely tied to the harvest in October. I suggest we look at our own cultures and practices and use October as a month to gather our bounty, practical, financial, and emotional and prepare for winter while setting our sights on the year to come. Always know that opportunities to serve our families and our neighbors are just around the corner, at Service organizations like the American Legion or closer to home with your neighborhood Churches, schools, or community centers. We here at your American Legion wish you a bountiful harvest and many blessings for the rest of the year.
Fire Prevention Month
By Charlotte Herdsliska
October is fire prevention month, October 3 – 9 is Fire Prevention week. First, I would like to talk about Hover Boards- this department has to date responded to 4 Hover Board Fires, all with substantial property damage. I should note that the property owners were at home and reported the fire quickly thus saving property and life.
Here is some helpful information.
Always buy from a trustworthy seller that uses high-quality components. For the US market, a hoverboard must be certified by the UL2272 code (UL- Underwriters Laboratory). (check for the real UL2272 logo).
Make sure that you don’t overcharge the board, You need to know how long does it take to charge a hoverboard.
Do not change the charger because different chargers have different voltage and current, changing the charger might do harm to the battery.
Purchase charger (if not included) with UL certification, a charger with UL logo is equipped with overcharging protection that is safer.
Do not leave your hoverboard charging overnight, there have been many fire incidents that happened when charging a self-balancing scooter at night and no one was watching the charger.
Develop the habit of charging hoverboard every day and every time you use it. This will keep the battery in shallow cycle status, which will extend the lifetime of your battery.
Consider your board to be a fragile item that shouldn’t be dropped, kicked or come into contact with sharp objects.
Don’t ride it carelessly at high speeds from day one. Practice riding slowly at first and increase speed only when you are comfortable, and the surface is smooth. You should learn to cruise in advance when you encounter traffic light as it will reduce the times of braking.
Know the weight limits of your board and don’t test them as it may lead to explosions.
Don’t charge the hoverboard instantly after riding it as it might still be hot. This means do not charge if HOT!
Charge it away from any flammable materials so that it doesn’t burn everything around it in case of an explosion. Charge in an open well ventilated area. Please be safe out there.
Meet Laura Dell Langan
Corona Cares Recipient
By Lesa Langan Dusenberry
Laura Dell Langan was born in Fort Collins, Colorado, May of 1929, and grew up on a farm in Timnath, which was nearby. Her parents, grandparents, brother, sister, and she all lived together in a big two-story farmhouse. Her grandmother cooked and cared for the house and her grandfather took care of the kids while her parents worked in the sugar beet fields or were busy with other farm chores. Her dad raised cows and pigs, and her mother tended the poultry and a big vegetable garden. Except for flour, sugar, and a few other essentials, the family was pretty self-sufficient. During the depression years, they never had much money but always had plenty to eat.
Laura attended Mt. Hope Elementary School, which was a two-room school with eight students in her grade. her father and his siblings had attended the same school. After five years of grade school, she went on to graduate from Timnath High School. Her parents then were able to scrape together enough tuition money for her to attend a vocational school for medical technician training in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This was the first time she had been away from home, family, and the farm life she had always known.
After two years of training in Minneapolis, Laura returned to Denver, Colorado, and went to work in a doctor’s office for a pediatrician and later for a general practitioner for a total of ten years. During this time, she met and then married Frank Langan in 1954. They wanted a family, so she stopped working at the doctor’s office and became a mother and homemaker for two girls who were born in 1957 and 1959.
After a while, Frank decided that he wanted to change jobs from work for the Veterans Administration to work for the National Park Service. In 1963, the family moved to Zion National Park in southern Utah. It was a beautiful place for them to live and for the girls to grow up. They had many adventures during this time, which was wonderful because they all enjoyed camping, fishing, hiking, and being outdoors.
After six years, they moved to Cedar City, Utah, where Frank worked in a subregional office that supervised all the national parks and monuments in the State of Utah. This period of their lives offered musical concerts, art festivals, and Shakespearian plays hosted by the community college in town.
In another three years, the family made a big move across the country to Mammoth Cave National Park in western Kentucky. What a change from red rock mesas and canyons to dense, hardwood forests and underground caverns. They had the opportunity to take many trips down into the cave to see places that will never be open to the public due to the fragile nature of the formations in these areas.
After six years in Kentucky, they made the last work-related move to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. This move was special not only because of the beautiful,
blue mountains, crystal clear lakes, and lush meadows with creeks flowing through them. It was special because they were back home in Colorado.
Frank retired from the Park Service in 1978, and the family moved down the mountain to Loveland, Colorado, into a beautiful little home with a nice yard, a dog, and a big garden. Those were happy days.
Frank passed away in 1983, while Laura continued to live in the little house until some years later when an early winter storm left three-feet of snow covering everything. She finally admitted that she could not take care of everything by herself any longer. She called her daughter Lesa who lived in southern Arizona and asked her to find a place to live in the sun. She soon found herself in a lovely, little townhouse in Corona De Tucson.
Laura attended many social events in Corona, made lots of new friends, and became aware of the Corona Cares organization. She enjoyed the weekly dominoes and cards and lunch gathering at the fellowship sponsored by the ladies auxiliary at the American Legion. She also looked forward getting an array of vegetables from the POWWOW once a month. When she gave up driving in Tucson, someone from Corona Cares would drive her to her medical appointments. And one of Santa’s helpers always surprised her with a Christmas bag full of surprises. The friendship, assistance, and support provided by all the volunteers affiliated with this wonderful organization helped her tremendously. She always knew there was someone she could call if she needed something.
Laura always enjoyed music, arts, and crafts. She was active in 4-H as a youth, and taught 4-H as an adult. She enjoyed knitting, crocheting, sewing, weaving, oil painting of landscapes, and making greeting cards. There was no band at her high school; so at age 60, she joined a senior band and learned to play a clarinet. Most of all, she has enjoyed traveling and living in all the wonderful places mentioned above.
In recent years, Laura and daughter Lesa had three special road trips. They drove along the coast of Oregon on one trip. Then they visited northern Arizona, Navajo land, and the parks and monuments in this area on another trip. Most recently, they explored southern New Mexico and visited many parks and monuments in the lower part of the state. In between these longer trips, they made a few short camping trips up to Mt. Lemon and Mt. Graham. Laura is thankful for all of the beautiful places she has been able to experience during her lifetime. Her advice to readers is, “get out, get away from home, and see this beautiful country that we are so fortunate to live in.”
