Fresh Air

Glendale is a fine place to live, as Old Glory waves red, white and blue in the wind. It's an honor and wonderful to be free in the United States. You can even voice your opinion of current, past or future events on the crisp daily pages of the Community Forum. Sometimes are inscribed voices twisted into a mass of continuing issues, history, combat, congratulations, honors, personal recommendations, verbal satisfaction, kitchen sink, mind expansion, even "special awards."

Seven weeks after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, many rescuers had already given up hope of ever finding pets alive. They had begun transitioning their mission to that of recovery rather than rescue. Many were tired of long hours, tired of being short-handed, tired of being forced to say, "We were too late." Everyone I spoke with held out such a determined hope to save "just one more," quietly knowing the chances were getting less and less by the second. Then, like a breath of fresh air, the little guy pictured here was found locked in the bathroom of his home, barely alive.

Police asked for the public's help Thursday in finding an 84-year-old Las Vegas man with Alzheimer's disease who has been missing for more than a week. Leo Lindogan was in Glendale visiting his niece, according to a police news release. The man and his niece were at a beauty salon near Chevy Chase Drive and Colorado Street on Oct. 28 when she saw him walk out of the business, police said. The woman told authorities she thought her uncle was getting some fresh air. But when she went to look for him a several minutes later she could not find him. Lindogan, who is Filipino and has gray hair and brown eyes, is 5 feet 7 and weighs 150 pounds.

I read with much interest in the News-Press that the Glendale City Council is considering lifting/easing up the bans on smoking in restaurants in Glendale (“Smoking restrictions back to dais,” Sept. 25) The newspaper reported that the council was asking a series of questions such as, “Should strict smoking restrictions at outdoor restaurants be loosened?” While I appreciate the reflection and believe that asking questions is always a good idea, really the only question our City Council should be asking is the following: “Should citizens of Glendale be forced to breathe in the cigarette smoke of others?

GLENDALE — When resident Stephen Brown learned last year that the city had enacted citywide smoking restrictions, he looked forward to sitting outside at his favorite coffee shop and breathing in the fresh air. “For the past year I have been looking forward to the day when the patio will be smoke free so that I may enjoy the outdoors. That day has not yet arrived,” he said. The city’s smoking restrictions took effect last November with an emphasis on public education before the officials started hard enforcement.

Ben Godar Tucked behind a fence around a corner of Glendale Memorial Hospital is a small garden that some patients say has been the most important part of their recovery. The Healing Garden provides a place for mental-health patients and their therapists to maintain an array of plants, flowers and herbs. Mark Infusino, the occupational therapist who oversees the garden, said the patients are in charge of what happens in the garden. "Even though they may only be here for a week or 10 days, we encourage them to take some ownership," Infusino said.

Jackson Bell The 25th annual Oktoberfest, the Bavarian festival that has become a Montrose tradition, will return Oct. 5 with new features including a beer garden, more German-themed music and food vendors than previous years as well as the return of the of the Best-Dressed Dog Contest. Expecting to draw a crowd of more than 25,000 people, this year's Oktoberfest will be from noon to 11 p.m. along the 2300 and 2400 blocks of Honolulu Avenue.

Last Friday, Brownie Girl Scout troop No. 680 held a "Senior Garden Planting" service project at Crescenta Valley Park. The five girl scouts planted several flowers in the Senior Garden established at the park last April. The garden, which used to be a dirt patch, was put in place to encourage seniors to come out and enjoy the fresh air and flowers. The Brownies were earning four Try-It Badges. "If These Buildings Could Talk" teaches the girls about historical places in their hometown.

Amber Willard SOUTHWEST GLENDALE -- The training for new recruits to the Glendale Fire Department has been heating up. The 14 men in the three-month program, which is being done jointly with Burbank's agency, spent Friday night like real firefighters -- being pulled from their beds to battle car fires and blazing buildings in the darkness. "Firefighting's exciting. We put ourselves in risky situations," said trainee John McGlinn, who, at 35, is the group's oldest recruit.

The community section of the paper has been hit or miss lately. There is no real pattern to when letters are printed or not. The Sunday issue seems to carry letters, but they often focus on national issues, not local. Most times the picture or cartoon is bigger than the letters section. So it was a surprise when two weeks in a row, letters of support, one from the Burbank City Council candidate herself, appeared in the letters section (“Primary voters benefitted from the Leader's coverage,” March 12)