Meeting Notes 5/12/07 - Gluten Free in SD

San Diego Chapter of CSA
Meeting Notes for 5/12/07

There were over 35 people in attendance, with several newly diagnosed. Jan Pruitt opened the meeting and the following were some of the topics covered:

Danna Korn will be featured in an upcoming People Magazine issue, discussing her work with ROCK.
Susan Algert, the dietician for the Warren Celiac Research Center, will be starting a study and will be looking for 8 volunteers. She is also conducting a workshop June 4 titled "Living Healthy Gluten-Free".
Barbara reported on the Health Fair at Cal State San Marcos. She said it was very well attended (over a thousand). It is put on once or twice a year for the students and the community. There were many vendors there. There was a CSA booth, but most students passed by not knowing what it is. Barbara feels that we really need to keep up our mission about getting the word out about celiac disease. She like to see us have a booth at each Health Fair they have.
Michele reported on the "Celiacs Laugh Dining Out" group's dinner at Claim Jumper. Our group was given their own room. Claim Jumper has a very limited menu for gluten-free compared to the regular menu, but the portions are still large.
Margaret reported on the "Celiacs Laugh Dining Out" group's dinner at the Russian restaurant in El Cajon. It was a wonderful experience with many unusual dishes and a great atmosphere.
Jan reminded everyone that the support group's bi-monthly newsletter may be sent to members via email rather than by mail.
There will be a R.O.C.K. event June 10.
There will be a board meeting for our group June 9. Please share anything you think should be discussed with anyone on the board.
It was voted for the group to pay for Jan's registration at the CSA national meeting in September. There will probably be others from our group that will also go to this meeting in Tucson.
Helen and Bill Foreman were honored for their many, many years of service to our group. Helen was one of the founding members and both Helen and Bill have volunteered steadfastly ever since. A gift certificate for a local restaurant and a heart-shaped pan with goodies were presented to them from the group.
We are still looking for a volunteer that will bring the coffee maker and supplies to the meetings to relieve the Foreman's of doing that. Please contact the Foreman's or Jan if you are willing.
One of our members (Kim ?) is going to be selling fresh GF crabcakes in the San Diego area (and brought some for us to enjoy!). She will let us know when they become available for sale.
Barbara brought some materials and items from Arbonne (make-up and other beauty products) which the group was able to look at. She is a local rep for this company that has many GF items.
Jan reported on a membership contest from the national CSA group. The chapter that has the most national memberships will receive a prize of a dinner at a local restaurant. Jan related the many benefits we receive from them, including a very informative newsletter. Everyone is encouraged to join the national CSA support group.
Our next support group meeting will be a picnic in Encinitas July 14 at noon. It will be a potluck, with the group providing GF hotdogs and hamburgers.
Roxie reported on several things from this website (read "What's New" on the Home Page).

The Warren Celiac Centers at UCSD: Roxie reported that Dr. Greg Harmon is still seeing adult patients at the Warren Center. If you have a positive tTg or blood screening panel, he would be a good one to go to for the upper intestine biopsy. The pediatric CD specialist has still not been replaced at Children's Hospital, although Dr. Sherry Wong would like to see celiac patients, so she might be a good one to ask for. There will be a Community Lecture next fall that we will be invited to. The Warren Foundation would like to get a national registry coordinated throughout the country for celiacs, and will be meeting with several of the major research centers to try to get it started.
Instead of watching the video that had been planned, there was a brief question and answer period.
As always, great GF snacks and beverages were enjoyed by all.