CLEARLAKE— This week’s guest speaker at the Thursday Morning Judge’s Breakfast was Spectrum of Light Director Susan Jen MPH (Master of Public Health). Jen described the organization as a “faith-based community service and education focused entity, prepared to respond to community needs.”
Prior to the Spectrum of Light Jen began her career in community service 20 years ago directing the First 5 Lake County program which focuses on children’s well being through programs like early access to care, developmental screening and parenting classes. It was there she wrote her first successful grant, setting in motion a health leadership network which according to Jen “It was the first network of its kind in Lake County.”
Spectrum of Light is a relatively new and lesser known resource agency that provides free clinics, classes and programs around the lake. Jen explains “We’ve just been working quietly.” Light is an acronym standing for love, inspiration, grace, healing, and trust. Jen noted “You need light to be able to see.” She discussed the impacts of exposure to trauma at a young age, and the connections in the body that facilitate one’s mental health. Jen shared recent data that states over 60 percent of Americans feel isolated after the pandemic.
Jen said, “Across the country there are a lot of health concerns. We’re spending 113 billion dollars a year on mental health, 600 billion on (combating) substance use, and by a conservative estimate one in four people are walking around with a mental health problem.” She added that this issue is only getting worse over time as this financial burden represents the physical burden people carry every day. The Spectrum of Light intends to combat this problem, with love, inspiration, grace, healing, and trust.
The first free clinic included medical, dental, vision, and prevention screening services. It was held at the Clearlake Senior Center with the help of four local Adventist churches as well as AMEN (Adventist Medical Evangalism Network) which provided professionals and equipment. The clinic was a success in many ways, according to Jen who mentioned how uplifting the event was for all involved. Seeing the need, the Spectrum of Light was born. They launched shortly after with a goal of hosting three to four clinics all around the county with one in each quadrant. First offering clinic services in the east shore corridor at the Lucerne Elementary school, then in Clearlake and Lakeport.
However, before they could get to Middletown everything shut down due to the covid 19 pandemic. This illuminated problems the public faces in bolstering their own immunity, so the Spectrum of Light began hosting classes educating people about their immunity, microbiome, and how to use this information to live a healthier life.
Jen shared “We all know that our being is a mind, body, spirit connection that is inseparable. What we were really trying to do was address all three of those things.” The spectrum of light expanded their class offerings to include cooking demonstrations illustrating healthier and plant-based diets, hydrotherapy, and herbal applications. Jen shared “We’re trying to help people do things for themselves, they are simple things that anybody can do and anybody has access to but they might not know about.”
Jen also explained how things like nature, sunsets and simple acts of kindness “facilitate complex cognitive function and prompts us to move away from focusing on inward concerns to outward connectedness.”
The Thursday Morning Judge’s Breakfast is held every Thursday morning at 7 a.m. and is located at the Clearlake Senior Center on Bowers Avenue. The breakfast is open to the public and has recently added waffles to their menu, although purchase is not required to participate. Next week’s guest speaker is Kevin Thompson, the south shore clinic manager for the Lake County Tribal Health Consortium. More information can be found on their Facebook page.
