LAKEPORT
Lakeport Community SDA Church to hold Bible School nightly early August
Come join us at the Lakeport Community SDA Church for Cactusville Vacation Bible School. Grab y’er hat, pull on those dusty Western boots and sharpen y’er spurs at the Lakeport Community SDA Church from 6 to 8 pm nightly, August 1 to 4, 2022. The church is located at 1111 Park Way, Lakeport, CA 95453 (the corner of Park and Hill). Kids ages 5 to 12 are welcome! Registration is limited to 40 children so please call 707-263-6002 to pre-register.
—Submitted
MENDOCINO COUNTY
MCHC welcomes Certified Nurse Midwife Kate Hylan
MCHC Health Centers is pleased to welcome the newest member of its Care for Her team: Certified Nurse Midwife Kate Hylan, who is currently accepting new patients. Care for Her provides women’s healthcare, including prenatal care and childbirth support, to patients in Lake and Mendocino Counties.
Although Hylan and her husband are originally from the East Coast, they’ve spent most of their adult lives in Southern California. However, Hylan said, “Having spent so much time in Eureka and Fortuna [in Humboldt County] during my training, we knew we wanted to get back to Northern California…And I’ve had my eye on Care for Her for a while because this is exactly the type of practice and patient population I want to work with.” In a sense, this is a homecoming for Hylan, since she “caught her first baby” while training under Certified Nurse Midwife Dana Estevo, who is now a Care for Her provider.
Hylan calls midwifery her “calling” and can pinpoint the moment she knew it. After graduating from college with a degree in evolutionary biology, Hylan joined the Peace Corps as an agricultural volunteer and was sent to West Africa. At that time, she planned to pursue a career in conservation or ecological sustainability.
When she arrived in Kayemor, Senegal, she was encouraged to integrate into the community where she would be serving, so when the local “matron” (maternity provider) asked her to visit the weekly clinic, Hylan readily agreed. Like many maternity providers throughout Senegal, Adama Gueye she was put in charge of prenatal care for her whole community (in her case, a population of 18,000 people) after receiving a weekend’s worth of training.
Hylan had no idea that when Gueye invited her to put her hands on a pregnant belly and witness her first birth, her life would be changed forever. At that moment, Hylan said she knew, “This is it. This is what I am meant to do.”
Since that time, she has dedicated her professional life to caring for patients and empowering women to make choices about their care. She completed her studies to become a family nurse practitioner and certified nurse midwife at Vanderbilt University and worked in many different settings, from birthing centers to military bases to a refugee camp in Tijuana, Mexico, where her team represented the migrants’ only access to healthcare.
She sees her primary role as that of health educator, and she is deeply invested in helping women understand the options available to them. She also appreciates learning from her patients, saying, “I am amazed by the strength and resilience of these women.” Whether she is meeting with patients during an office visit or supporting them through the birthing process, Hylan allows her patients to lead the way whenever appropriate. “All women should be able to be in control of their own bodies,” she said.
Care for her is part of MCHC Health Centers, which includes Hillside Health Center and Dora Street Health Center in Ukiah, Little Lake Health Center in Willits and Lakeview Health Center in Lakeport. It is a community-based and patient-directed organization that provides comprehensive primary healthcare services as well as supportive services such as education and translation that promote access to healthcare.
When Hylan is not caring for patients, she spends time with her family enjoying the outdoors, especially among the redwoods.
—Submitted
SACRAMENTO
Newsom still ensnared in 2024 rumors
It seems that the more vehemently Gov. Gavin Newsom denies he’s considering a presidential run in 2024, the more insistently rumors to the contrary swirl. CNBC reported Monday that Newsom is among the high-profile Democrats contacting influential donors who helped raise money for President Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign. Although the politicians — including Newsom and Vice President Kamala Harris — did not explicitly ask for support, benefactors said they may be attempting to shore up financial support ahead of a possible presidential run. CNBC also reported that Newsom is among the seven governors set this week to attend a fundraiser for the Democratic Governors Association at the Santa Monica home of Heather Podesta, an influential lobbyist and longtime party fundraiser. As many as 125 people, including big-dollar donors, are expected to be in attendance.
- Nathan Click, a spokesperson for Newsom’s reelection campaign, told CNBC: Newsom “regularly participates in DGA fundraisers and believes strongly in helping Democratic governors win across the country.”
Another boost to Newsom’s potential campaign were the results of an (admittedly unscientific) reader survey conducted by Conor Friedersdorf, a staff writer for The Atlantic. Friedersdorf asked his newsletter subscribers if Biden should seek reelection in 2024; an “overwhelming majority” said no. Among the most frequently mentioned replacements: Newsom and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar.
In other election news: In a sign that California could play a pivotal role in determining which party secures control of the U.S. House of Representatives in November, five of the six candidates added Monday to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s “Red to Blue” program are running in the Golden State. They’ll receive fundraising, organizing and other support from the committee as it seeks to flip GOP-held seats. Californians now account for more than one-fifth of the 33 candidates in the Red to Blue program, according to the Los Angeles Times. A similar program run by the National Republican Congressional Committee, called “Young Guns,” is supporting five California House candidates.
