P A R A M O U N T
December 2011
Serving the Community Since 1990
www.paramountchamber.com
Annual Thanksgiving Celebration Salutes Local Seniors The City of Paramount held its 31st Annual Seniors Thanksgiving Dinner in November to honor the elders of our community. The free event offered a day of entertainment and a great meal with all the trimmings for more than 600 guests at the festively decorated Paramount Park gym. It all began with pairs of active dancers bopping to the jazzy sounds of the Sugah Daddy band. Then, as the meal was seamlessly served by the great kids of the Paramount High School Corsairs service club (and plated by an assembly line of Paramount Rotary Club members and City staff), Mayor Daryl Hofmeyer and the Paramount City Council welcomed the gathering and Pastor Larry Jameson of Lifegate Foursquare Church gave the invocation. Along the way, a large number of raffle prizes were handed out, and Bill Pellegrino of the Rotary Club led the group in a singa-long. In fact, this year saw a very generous increase in the number of donors, with 33 local businesses giving money to help cover the cost of the event and nearly $1,500 worth of giveaway gifts. As occurs each year at the celebration, some of the most senior members in the crowd were acknowledgement and given flowers. Some of them talked with the Pulse Beat to share tips on living a long life.
Eugene Bumgarner, 95
Born in Missouri Mr. Bumgarner left his home state in 1938 with $15, arrived in California with only a dollar, and went onto a career with the Shell Oil Co. “Avoid red meat and grease. My wife taught me how to cook, she never used grease because it plugs your veins up. I also do everything I want to do, take one drink if I want to, and don’t smoke.”
15357 Paramount Boulevard, Paramount, CA 90723
Ethel Hillyard, 91
Margo Campos, 89
Nicholas Photakis, 92
Born in Los Angeles Born in Germany A homemaker whose key is the followFormer School Board member, current ing: “Don’t worry. Take it easy. Do what member of the City’s Senior Services Comyou want to do, because you can do it. And mission and longtime local historian and pray a lot.” author of “The Story of Paramount.” “I take a walk every day, do exercises every day and eat well. And keep a positive outlook on life.”
Born in Long Beach The homemaker attributed her longevity to one thing: “Dance. That’s the secret word. It takes care of everything. Your breathing, blood pressure, it’s just good exercise. I started 25 years ago taking lessons. My favorite dance was the tango. After my husband passed away, about 15 years later I met this fellow who danced so beautifully and we entered a lot of competitions. Sometimes we’d win and sometimes we didn’t, but it was the fun of participation.”
Paramount Chamber of Commerce
PULSE BEAT
Antonia Martinez, 91
New Haven, Connecticut During his service in the Air Force in World War II, the aviation engineer fell in love with Southern California and moved here in 1948. “I went back to get my honey and came out here, and bought a house when they were very reasonable compared to today. It’s important to stay away from sugar and salt, and walk, keep moving, because if you don’t keep moving, it’ll all catch up to you.”
Refugio Gomez, 95
Born in El Paso, Texas A carpenter who landed on the beaches of D-Day and served as an Army engineer in World War II clearing mines and building bridges. “Walking is important, and I never smoked, never drank, I get along with everybody, and I eat whatever I want.”
Henry Ramey, 90
Born in Pocatello, Idaho A cab driver for nearly 40 years, he first came to California at the age of two. “I had caught polio and they said there were good doctors in Los Angeles. We got here and nobody knew anything about polio.” As far as living a good, long life? “Never say no to God when he asks you to do something. Accept your calling. “
What’s inside Ask The Expert..........................10 Business Card Directory.............12-13 Business Corner.........................11 Cityscape..................................15
Help wanted............................. 9 Mayors Corner.......................... 3 Members Only...........................14 New Members...........................10
On Patrol...................................... 4 PEP.................................................7 Service Clubs.................................13