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Contents © 2006
by Jim Holman.
All rights reserved.
LITTLE NOTES
May 2006
THE SKIES OPENED UP ON GOOD FRIDAY, and a heavy rain poured down on the nearly 100 pro-lifers who had braved the elements to pray the Stations of the Cross outside of the federal courthouse downtown. Local activist Sue Lopez planned and publicized the event and provided signs and stations booklets. From the shelter of the courthouse portico, Patrick Sullivan led the particularly pro-life stations over a loud speaker. In a line stretching south along 2nd Avenue from the corner of Broadway, the faithful responded to Sullivan from underneath their colorful umbrellas. Kent Peters, pro-life coordinator of the Diocese of San Diego, was in attendance, busily snapping photos with his digital camera. One attendee felt that braving the elements added a spirit of camaraderie to the event, and the colorful display of the umbrellas made it an especially display of faith and commitment to pro-life values.
ONE OF THE CATHOLIC MINISTRIES REPRESENTED AT THE CHRISM MASS was the hospital chaplaincy of Father Thomas Thompson and several of his extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion. Father Thomas, full time chaplain since 2001 at Scripps Memorial, Scripps Green, and UCSD-Thornton medical centers, says that the work done by these extraordinary ministers is indispensable to his hospital ministry. "Without them, I could not do it" he says. "There are about three hundred Catholics in each of my hospitals at any given time" he says. "The extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion who do this volunteer work are beautiful examples of faith and dedication; they are doing this because of their love for Jesus. They make my work possible by their initial visit with the patients, providing Communion, and learning of additional needs. Then I can hear confessions, anoint, and give spiritual counsel."
Father Thomas added, "The Good Lord is doing wonderful things through this ministry."
Present to receive the holy oils on behalf of the tri-hospital chaplaincy were Betsy Penberth, manager of volunteer services at Scripps Green; Rosemary Fraunces, volunteer at Scripps Memorial; Dan and Ronnie Grandpre, husband and wife volunteers at Scripps Green; and Mary Jo Brown, volunteer coordinator at UCSD Thornton.
JOHN PAUL THE GREAT UNIVERSITY took another step closer to opening this fall, and added financial muscle to its administration with the addition of Alan Lane, who will be joining the board in July. Lane will be the university's chief operating officer and chief financial officer.
John Paul the Great's president, Dr. Derry Connolly, says that Lane's long history of financial leadership couldn't come at a better time. "This is very important, because he's a very credible person for a very important position." Lane is currently the chief operating officer of Community Bancorp, and, until recently, he was the chief executive officer of Financial Date Solutions Inc.
Lane, 43, says that John Paul the Great's unique curricular vision and commitment to orthodoxy made all the difference in his decision to join. "The whole focus on combining media, technology and business really resonated with me when I met Derry a couple of years ago. I was looking to do something different, and the way the Lord worked things out, it just all lined up."
The university differs from other Catholic colleges in its focus on media and communications technology. Taking Pope John Paul II's call for a "new evangelization" using the media, Dr. Connolly says that he hopes to have a role in "reinventing" Catholic higher education. "We want to graduate people who are on fire for their faith, people who are interested in making a difference in the business world. Our focus is on media in general, but a particular focus on new media such as internet gaming, mobile phone applications, videocasting, and other new media."
Connolly adds, "We're still in the process of recruiting students. We've had close to 30 applicants so far, and our goal is 60."
Getting the first year of John Paul the Great University in place is Lane's most immediate goal. "I want to assist with getting the university established. When we were looking for real estate to house the classrooms, my background helped. I've negotiated a lot of leases and that type of thing. And once we got that going, we needed insurance, which is something I've also done time and again with the many companies I've worked with. It's been a largely volunteer effort so far with Derry as the leader, so I hope to be able to help on the business side of things. Derry's vision for the curriculum is very well laid-out on the website and anyone interested can really dig in. And we share the same vision as far as the spirituality and the orthodoxy of the university. My job will be more behind the scenes."
In the short term, the university will hold classes and house its administration in leased office space in Scripps Ranch. Students will live in a nearby apartment complex. The long-term goal is to open a new campus in North County. They are currently looking at a 400-acre parcel of land between Escondido and Fallbrook. The asking price, near $5 million, is more than the university can afford at present. But, Connolly says, "We wouldn't be building from scratch there. There's infrastructure up there already."
PRO-LIFE REPUBLICAN MARIE WALDRON is the front-runner in the June primary race for the 74th assembly district in North County. Term limits prevent the current holder of the seat, Republican Mark Wyland, from running. Waldron has served on the Escondido City Council since 1998. She and her husband are active members of Saint Timothy's Catholic Church in Escondido. They have run a small apparel manufacturing business for 12 years. Waldron describes herself as a strong advocate for traditional family values, and she's a member of the conservative, pro-family organizations Concerned Women for America and the California Republican Assembly. She was instrumental in establishing the local chapter of the conservative California Women's Leadership Association in 2004.
Waldron became motivated to run for higher office in 2001, when, after years of being unable to bear children, she gave birth to a son. She says 9/11 factored into her decision. She grew up in New York City and lost 55 of her classmates in the World Trade Center attack. "It really became clear to me that our world is in trouble. I thought, 'What can I do to protect our children?' It created a whole new mission for me. And being a business owner ... when I go to Sacramento, a lot of the folks up there are completely out of touch with owning a business and what their actions do down here to people."
Waldron helped to implement a business approach to budgeting that she says has produced budget surpluses for the city of Escondido and believes that this approach could help to cure the state government of its "taxing and spending addiction." She said that she would vote against state budgets that fund Medi-Cal abortions; bills promoting abortion, embryonic stem cell research or human cloning; bills that force medical professionals and medical facilities to engage in practices that violate their consciences or ethics regulations; and bills providing domestic partner benefits, establishing same-sex marriage, or other legislation that advances the radical homosexual agenda.
Waldron said that she would vote in favor of parental notification, informed consent, waiting periods or other pro-life legislation. She said that she has worked to support Culture of Life Family Services and is enthusiastic about the impact of its ultrasound technology on women facing crisis pregnancies. She added, "I'm very supportive of parents having much more control over the decisions made about their kids in all aspects, including education; so much has been taken away from us."
One of Waldron's chief concerns has been protecting children from pornography and sexual abuse. About two years ago, she requested that the Escondido City Council consider filtering all public library computers to prevent access to internet pornography while allowing temporary overrides for legitimate research requests. But the Council voted 3-2 against her proposal. Four years ago, Waldron was instrumental in getting a computer set up in the Escondido police department that enabled citizens to view the registered sex offender map, prior to this information being made available on the internet. She was involved in collecting signatures for the Jessica's Law initiative, which would impose tougher penalties on sexual offenders.
The Waldrons' apparel company donated all of the T-shirts sold by the campaign to save the Mount Soledad cross. "We have to stand up for our First Amendment rights, our freedom of religion, and not be intimidated by these people who are so eager to take that away from us," Waldron commented.
When asked how prepared she was to work in a state legislature that is largely hostile to traditional family values, she reflected, "After eight years on the council, I've learned how to work on issues and yet never bend on your principles. The most important thing to achieve up there is exposing to the constituents what's really happening in Sacramento. I feel that a lot of people, even moderate Democrats, would be amazed to know what their legislators are doing in Sacramento. Most of the mainstream media doesn't do that. I've been in the trenches. I've proven that I haven't backed down on principle; I have a record."
For more information or to help Waldron's campaign, contact Waldron for Assembly, P.O. Box 300887, Escondido, CA 92030-0887, phone 916-444-1502, fax 916-444-0128, e-mail: info@waldronforassembly.com, web site: www.waldronforassembly.com.
A VICTORY IN THE LOCAL CULTURE WAR. Update, the local gay magazine which had been published for 27 years, shut down its operation in March. The magazine, which featured ads for gay sex clubs and porn outlets, had been one of the most vitriolic attackers of ex-gay Christian activist James Hartline. Last year, after Hartline called national attention to the fact that San Diego Pride event employed several convicted pedophiles -- some of which worked in the children's area of the annual Pride event -- Update editorials blasted not Pride for hiring the pedophiles but Hartline for exposing the fact.
Hartline incurred Update's editorial wrath in 2004 when he and group of Christian activists protested the Youth Pride event at the Hillcrest Gay and Lesbian center. Update assistant editor Ren Petty organized the event at which confused children mixed with adult homosexuals of all ages, were given condoms and sexual lubricants, and exposed to pornography.
In his email report on the closure of Update, Hartline commented, "Update is saying that it is shutting down its business after 27 years due to financial problems. Let them give their reason, but [I believe] wholeheartedly that it was the willingness over the last three years of San Diego Christians who spoke with clear courage and bold tenacity that eventually shut down this evil publication."