VWC Board Member Maggie Barr was recently appointed to the County Women’s Commission by Supervisor Bruce McPherson, who welcomed her and proposed that the 5th District Commissioners take part in quarterly meetings with his Valley constituents.  We’ll keep you posted!

We attended the Planned Parenthood Santa Cruz 40th Anniversary reception on April 15th, touring the facility and meeting many of the people who provide the numerous health services at the clinic. Barbara Hanson, Sanda Spiegel and Sheila De Lany attended the event, along with Cynthia Mathews, Carol Fuller, Gail Ow, Carole McPherson and many others.

Barbara Hanson has formed the SLV Caregivers Support Group, which meets at the Highlands Park Senior Center.  Her current goal is to find enough funding to offer a few hours of respite care to SLV caregivers who usually have no time off at all. The group meets the 2nd and 4th Thursdays monthly, from 2pm until 3:30pm. Lisa Bennett of Meadow Wood Home Care is co-facilitator. Find SLV Caregivers Support Group on Facebook, and for more information, contact Barbara at 831-335-4949.

We will also be partnering with the Santa Cruz County Women’s Commission for Health Care Town Hall meetings this fall, to update the Status of Women and Girls in Santa Cruz Report that was published in 2011. The meetings will be held September 15th at the YWCA in Watsonville, and October 20 at the Louden Nelson Center in Santa Cruz. The September 15 meeting will focus on the impact of the Affordable Care Act on women’s health locally in terms of access, effectiveness, and gaps in coverage. The October 20 meeting will also emphasize the reasons and special challenges homeless women face in accessing health care. For more information, please call Sheila at 429-9641.