Stroke Seminar Credited with Saving Two Lives
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Downey Distinguished Lady Bears crime report graduate have title hopes See Page 3 See Page 4 See Page 10 Thursday, Jan. 23, 2014 Vol. 12 No. 41 8301 E. Florence Ave., Suite 100, Downey, CA 90240 SHAT RED S ORIES: THE TIES THAT BIND STroKE semINAR CREDITED Dodi Soza Prisoner of War WITH SAVING TWO LIVES died Maria Zeeman was part of a large Dutch family living in Indonesia at the time of heart of the Japanese invasion in 1942. The following story reflects her memories as a • Hundreds receive no-cost six-year-old child when her life was turned upside down and she was a prisoner health screenings; more in a concentration camp. Her family was separated, but happily reunited in 1945 scheduled later this year. condition after the war. Shared Stories is a weekly column featuring articles by participants in a writing class at the Norwalk Senior Center. Bonnie Mansell is the instructor for this free class offered through the Cerritos College Adult Education Program. • Downey High football player Curated by Carol Kearns By Greg Waskul Contributor Dodi Soza died of heart failure, coroner rules. By Maria Zeeman I felt so big and was anxious about going into the first grade. We DOWNEY – Two lives were lived far from school and no one went to kindergarten at that time. saved and many other individuals By Christian Brown My brother John, who is thirteen months older than me, already did with life-threatening high blood Staff Writer go to school on the bus. He was so proud, telling BIG stories about it. were identified at the first local We were so happy then. My parents had eight children. I have Primary Stroke Prevention DOWNEY − Nearly three three older sisters and two younger ones, and two brothers. My father Seminar of the year, which drew months after the Downey was a Dutch harbor pilot and we lived in Indonesia, close to the ocean an overflow crowd of 300 people community rallied around 16-year- in a big white house. to the Rio Hondo Event Center Connected to our house were many small rooms in a row. There old Dodi Soza, the Downey High Wednesday. School football player who died two was a room for the kitchen, washing and ironing, bathroom, toilet The centerpiece of the seminar room, a room for bikes and toys, and a room for the “cleaning-up” days after collapsing on the football was a compelling, powerful field last October, the Los Angeles equipment. All of the floors were marble and cool. We had five PHOTO BY GREG WASKUL and yet easy-to-understand County Coroner has determined servants who were with us for many years, and each had their own 45-minute presentation by RTH A man undergoes a free carotid artery screening, courtesy of the RTH his death was caused by natural room. Stroke Foundation President and Stroke Foundation and other partners. cardiac failure. I shared a room with Letty, my younger sister. We liked to be noted stroke educator Deborah In an autopsy report released together. The temperature is very high in Indonesia, especially at Massaglia that was meant to by the coroner’s office this month, midday. We often played at home on the cool marble floors, wearing inspire the audience to strike out This Downey seminar series, Todd Hodges stroke clinic at Keck, medical examiners list Soza’s light summer clothes and in bare feet. We played with cards or dice, stroke in their lives. Following which leading stroke experts have named for the foundation’s caring primary causes of death as a Monopoly, jacks, or other games, and we were very competitive! We her presentation, attendees were called the most successful primary and compassionate founder who sudden cardiac event and anoxic played with our siblings mostly, since there were no other children provided with free carotid artery stroke prevention initiative ever herself was felled by a series of encephalopathy, a shortage of close by. and blood pressure screenings. undertaken in the United States, major strokes. oxygen to the brain. Letty, Trix, Jan and I were the four youngest in the family. My “We gave 290 carotid artery got off to a flying start for the new Deborah began her talk by Contrary to numerous reports older siblings usually did other things, but they often played with us screenings and more than 250 year with Deborah’s presentation, acknowledging how people found that Soza was injured during the too. Sometimes we also went to the waterfront and played there, but blood pressure screenings,” said which provided so much valuable out about the stroke seminar. Oct. 10 junior varsity game against always stayed together. RTH Stroke Foundation Executive information that it couldn’t be “Most of you are here today Lynwood High School, the report At night, dinner was always at 6 p.m. My parents sat at each end Director Guy Navarro. “Two contained in a single article. because of The Downey Patriot,” concludes that his cause of death of the table, and we children sat four on each side of the table. The individuals were detected with As a service to our readers, she said. “Whenever there’s a was natural. Kelsey Soza, Dodi’s older food was cooked and served by the baboe (servant). My mom told a significant narrowing of their and in recognition of the many story in the paper, our phones ring sister, says shortly before his death, her what to cook. Our baboe was a wonderful part of our family. carotid arteries, and dozens of lives that have already been off the hook. We’re grateful that her brother was diagnosed with While we were eating, we all got a turn to tell what was on our individuals with detected with saved and the hundreds of local these articles get you in here to mind, talk about school or things that happened. When we were residents who have learned they learn about how you can prevent hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, high blood pressure exceeding a cardiac disorder that impedes finished, the baboe set a small table for Ma and Pa and served them 140/90. We will follow up with have life-threatening high blood s t ro ke .” so they could talk together privately. Then we all did what we wanted pressure from these seminars, we She added that she was also blood flow out of the heart and can all these people to help them get sometimes cause sudden death in until bedtime. That was a fun and happy time. the treatment they need to help will cover Deborah’s information- grateful to Mark Shelton, who But even at six years old I felt that something had gone wrong. packed presentation with stories runs the Rio Hondo Event Center. young athletes. prevent a stroke.” News of the disorder came as a Everybody was so serious and talked softly. They didn’t want to upset this week and next week. We hope “Mark gives us the room, the In a doctor’s office, the shock to members of Dodi’s family, us four smaller kids. Sure enough, my father came home one day, our readers take these messages to refreshments and the audio-visual free screenings provided at Kelsey said Tuesday. nervous and upset, and told us all to get ready to go to the city to try heart because people can prevent for these seminars free of charge. Wednesday’s seminar would cost “If we would’ve known, he to escape. nearly $150,000. The event was most strokes simply by changing He sets up and breaks down wouldn’t have been able to play We drove a Ford and today I wonder how we all fit in that car, our sponsored by the RTH Stroke their lifestyle. everything for us. And we couldn’t sports,” Kelsey Soza said. “Dodi family of 10, our baboe and the pregnant cat! Foundation, Rio Hondo Event Deborah presented her do it without his generosity, his was born with an enlarged heart We never would guess that this was the end of our family’s happy, Center, The Downey Patriot, Keck message Wednesday clad in a Keck partnership and his extraordinary and walls that were thicker. When peaceful, and free life together. Medical Center of USC and the Medical Center of USC doctor’s sense of public service that is a he worked out, there wasn’t enough Road to Djakarta Rancho Research Institute. In lab coat, which in itself was a testimonial to the heart of this blood flowing through his body.” We were packed in the car and scared. It was eerily quiet on the addition, PIH Health provided powerful sign of the importance of great city. Soza said doctors told her family road. There were no other cars or any living soul around. My father assistance with the blood pressure what was to come. The RTH Stroke that hypertrophic cardiomyopathy drove and everybody was very still. Then our cat started to meow screenings at the event. Foundation funds the Roxanna See STROKES, page 8 often carries no symptoms and very loudly. My father had to stop on the side of the road. is hard to detect in patients, but Our poor cat was having her babies! We had to leave her on the the effects can turn fatal for active road and we all cried, including my rough and strong dad. He said we young men between the ages of 15- had to go and to pray that somebody would find her and take care of 22.