At first it seemed that we might be limping into the holiday season here at Angel Interfaith Network. Our founder and Care Coordinator Ann Mills was in a collision on the freeway on November 6th, suffering a broken sternum when an air bag inflated a bit too vigorously. After an overnight stay at the hospital, her healing was forecast at six weeks.
Since that time, Angel Interfaith Network has been grateful to receive a shower of unexpected blessings. We just supplied 49 patient families with Thanksgiving dinners or food certificates with help from Northminster Presbyterian Church (Diamond Bar), the Downtown Los Angeles Rotary Club, the L.A. Regional Food Bank, Calvary Preschool, seven wonderful volunteer drivers and a number of you who responded to our appeal to match the generous donation we received from the Mission Committee of St. Matthew's Episcopal Church in Pacific Palisades.
 Ann's healing has progressed enough now to allow her to take on one of our Holiday Gift Markets coming this weekend. At AIN we're so very grateful for healing, the promise of hope and the joy our friends find in giving at this season. God bless you, one and all -- and be careful out there!
Rev. Donald L. Smith
Executive Director
H1N1 in Decline as Holiday Season Begins
 With the beginning of the holiday season, welcome news of recent declines locally and nationally in H1N1 flu cases is being felt at L.A. County + USC Medical Center. This comes after concerns peaked in late October over the capacity of the 600 bed facility to respond to serious overcrowding resulting in part from the pandemic. It was also a time when heightened demand for the H1N1 vaccine among high risk groups locally exceeded supplies.
Stricter visitation guidelines remain in place at the hospital, including restrictions on visits to inpatient care units by children under 16 unless approved by a nurse or physician caring for the patient. One reason for continued heightened concern is that common seasonal flu normally peaks in January or February.
In October the County Board of Supervisors, alarmed by reports of overcrowding, directed LAC + USC to transfer as many patients as necessary to ensure that the ER maintained an average of no more than 13 patients, waiting no more than 11 hours for admission. Supervisor Gloria Molina initiated a call for the transfers, saying that public safety was at stake. The hospital responded by diverting patients to Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center in Downey as well as to St. Vincent Medical Center, among the area private hospitals that honors Medi-Cal under contract with LAC + USC. Recent progress toward reopening Martin Luther King Medical Center points to better prospects in the years ahead and less demand on L.A. County + USC Medical Center.
Paul Holtom, Associate Professor of Medicine and Orthopaedics on the USC Health Sciences campus, urged people to get the seasonal flu vaccine and to take sensible precautions. He also had some sound holiday advice. “If you’re sick, with a high fever, send a nice note to the family but don’t go and infect everyone else.”
Whatever ...
 Holidays expose the state of our family relationships and the state of the human community. That’s a reason they can be either especially joyous or painful. Last New Year’s Eve AIN Care Coordinator Ann Mills carried a car seat and a baby basket brimming with supplies to a new mother who had just had an emergency C-section. The new mother was having trouble in her marriage and her husband had just moved out. She was in a great deal of physical and emotional pain.
She reported to Ann that when the dad had visited and expressed joy at holding his new son, she responded with a resigned “Whatever.” She had lost hope. When the marriage started out both were eager to face “whatever may come.” Then the husband lost his job and couldn’t find another one as things went from bad to worse. Community and family support systems were lacking. The mother had shut up her heart behind a high wall and resigned herself to “whatever” might come. Life didn’t seem fair, and discouragement was stifling love.
During Ann’s visit the nurse brought the new baby in. Ann held him while the mother looked through the infant care items in the basket. As Ann described where the items came from, the mother ran her fingers over a warm blanket and her face softened. In a moment of silence there was movement to holy ground. She began to talk, hoping that her husband would move back “where he belonged” and would agree to go to a relationship counselor. Ann sensed the mother feeling cautiously for that first rung on the ladder of hope. She listened and prayed silently. Admiring the baby, Ann commended the young mother for her courage and offered a bit of unsolicited advice “from a grandma.”
Two weeks later Ann was surprised when the social worker called and reported to her that the young woman had been touched by her visit. “What happened?,” Ann wondered. The social worker said, “When you showed her the baby carrier and told her it was important to hold her baby, skin to skin, to bond with him; to make him feel secure; and that if she carried him around instead of leaving him in the stroller a lot, muscles would develop more quickly. That really touched her.” At the time, Ann had the sense she wasn’t even listening. Then she remembered telling her that she possessed something more precious to her baby than all the things in the basket. What she needed most was her love. “Don’t be afraid to give it,” Ann suggested. It had been a moment of grace. Ann realized the mother had been so hungry for someone – anyone – to tell her she was capable of being a good mother.
On that New Year’s eve, God’s love broke through walls and defenses and hope was born. We are grateful to all of you who continue helping to make such miracles possible.
Lessons from the Radio
 Were you listening to KPCC’s pledge drive recently? They have a new membership option called “Automatic Renewal” in which the member sets a monthly membership level and it’s automatically paid with their credit card, unless or until they change it. Sound familiar? Here’s another hint – their other name for this membership program is “Sustaining Membership.” Sounds a lot like Sustaining Angels to me.
One Sustaining Angel we know is pushing 90 years old and is a pillar of her small church. Living on a fixed income doesn’t allow for being extravagant, but each month she faithfully puts her $10 check in the mail to AIN. She also budgets carefully to allow for monthly support for her classical music station on the radio. “Don’t spend the postage to send me a thank-you letter – you’ll use it all up,” she admonishes me. Of course, we will send her a special thank-you at the end of the year for the total of those faithful monthly checks. The point is that our friend may be nearly 90 years old and wouldn’t make a donation online no matter how much she loves us, but she GETS it! She knows that no less than her classical music station, Angel Interfaith Network has a critical need for regular, dependable income.
If you are already a Sustaining Angel, thank you and remember that you can change your support level at any time. If you are not already a Sustaining Angel, how about becoming one now? It’s easy, just click here.
Thank you!
Attention AIN Fans on Facebook
Become a fan of Chase Community Giving and vote for Angel Interfaith Network by December 11th. It's easy. Click below for details.
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