Grateful Across Laguna Niguel: Residents Speak On The Season

LAGUNA NIGUEL, CA — Thanksgiving is very nearly upon us, a time for extra-hot ovens and kitchens filled to the brim with family and loved ones. It's the season to give thanks, Orange County. Not only for food or shelter or security, but for the important people in our lives who make all of the difference.

Last week, your Orange County Patch Editors asked you an important question: what are you grateful for? This week, we have your answers.

San Clemente resident Jennifer Massey wrote:

I want to thank Mike Levin, Donna Gilmore, Roger Johnson, Gary & Laurie Headrick for their relentless fight to get the millions of tons of nuclear waste removed from the fragile storage of thousands of lbs. of nuclear waste stored in the cheapest containers at sea level 100" from the oceanfront just south of the City Of San Clemente and affecting over 50,000,000 people between Los Angeles & San Diego.

Mission Viejo resident Dianne Jaramillo wrote:

David, my husband, saw a young boy sleeping outside of a store during the day. He wanted to help him but not wake him because he was sleeping so sound, so he put money in his shoe that was set next to him. David just didn’t step over him as others did, but he stopped to notice him as a human being!

Anaheim resident Tandy Smith wrote:

I am truly grateful for the shelter residents at Salvation Army in Anaheim, CA. Every one has a story to share of our own life testimonies. We are not alone and share very different but yet similar stories leading to a downward spiral leading to homelessness. I believe the stories that are the worst seem so difficult to accept. For the Grace of God, there go I. That could be me!

So my story isn't as horrible as the person sharing their story I've been told to just accept things in life. It doesn't mean I have to like it. It is what it is and I have to accept it! So smile at passerbys and remember each and every one of us can contagiously change another's life by giving a smile and quick eye contact to give positive ownership to a much needed smile everyone needs to accept and continue on this path called life.

I am grateful to the ones spreading Life.

San Clemente resident Gail Brower-Nedler wrote:

Dearest Husband, I am so grateful for you, and especially grateful to still be here to enjoy retirement in beautiful San Clemente after our 40+ years as educators. You and our three crazy pups make my life complete. Our family and friends know our story, but it is worth sharing again because I believe your selflessness, love, and dedication is inspiring.

I hope that Patch will consider publishing this in order to honor you. Forever grateful, Your loving wifey Gail Brower-Nedler In 2012, I was so busy teaching and directing shows that I barely had time to breathe. A back injury at work had sidelined me temporarily, so I was annoyed and cranky about being stuck at home while I was healing.

In typical Italian-girl fashion, I was talking out my frustration while gesticulating with my hands, and I happened to touch my right breast. I kept talking, massaged what seemed like a weird, hard lump and then (finally) stopped and focused on what I was actually touching. I checked the same spot on my left breast, and there was nothing similar.

My husband Ken confirmed that the lump was there, and the next day I was in my primary care doctor's office being referred for a biopsy. Since there was no history of breast cancer in my family, I was convinced that the lump would turn out to be a cyst or some non-cancerous abnormality that could be quickly dealt with so I could get on with my life.

A week later, following a needle biopsy, Ken and I sat side-by-side in a tiny, sterile, medical consultation room as a nurse navigator confirmed that I had breast cancer. She handed us brochures and left us alone to discuss options. I can still hear the clock in that room. My complicated life slowed to tick-per-second simplicity as we sat silently holding hands absorbing the shock waves rolling under what was once the solid ground of our lives.

I remember trying not to look at Ken as I said, "Sweetheart, we have only been married for 12 years. This could get very ugly. I will understand if you need to walk away and not do this." I meant it. Cancer was a word people whispered in dark corners. It was a painful, disfiguring enemy, and I knew there was a good chance that treatment might be brutal. I took a breath and waited while Ken adjusted his chair so he could face me.

When he finally spoke, he said, "Stop talking. I love you. I am not going anywhere. I am going to buy a lot of pink shirts, we are going to find the best doctors, and you are going to get well. We are going to get through this together." He held me as I sobbed, and he has continued to hold and support me all of these years. He has been my best friend and stalwart through countless surgeries, infections, and those long months of chemo. There were nights when I was so terrified that only his arms around me could drive the demons away.

Nine years later, I still remember all of this, and I marvel at how lucky I am to have fallen in love with my best friend, Ken Nedler. I hope that no one I know and love is ever diagnosed with cancer. But if you are, I hope you never have to face the fight alone 💕

San Clemente resident Marie Davis wrote:

So many happy memories of smiles through morning mists as waited for dawn waves - Pete and Missy, Julian, Jay, Scott, Sarah, Mark, Brian … Silently watching the growing light and jade green beauty. Thanks for the encouragement, the laughs, the help, the indescribable joy we all share being with the sea.

San Clemente resident Anne Gray wrote:

A few weeks ago, I tripped and fell at the Bagel Shack in SC. Immediately, young families helped me with kindness. Whether you helped me up, got me a chair, replaced my orange juice, got me napkins for the mess I made, little gifts of kindness were much appreciated in my time of need. Thank you so much. I am new to SC and couldn’t be prouder of my new home town.

Laguna Niguel resident Dennis Cassan wrote:

It is a kindness that the world has shone upon us. To live in such a beautiful, peaceful area of the world is a wonderful experience.

Laguna Niguel resident Rose Cmelak wrote:

Grateful for our friends the Bouvier Family of DP for feeding us and hosting us during our move down South.