Burn Bulletin

On December 18th, CRMC joined the Fresno Fire Department who opened their doors at the Headquarters building in Downtown Fresno for a unique shopping day for three Central Valley burn survivor families. Youth burn survivors were invited to “shop” from toys donated from the Traffic Controllers Supervisors Association (TCSA). AARBF’s Katrina Arthur accepted the toys at a TCSA luncheon earlier in the month. This is the second year TCSA has conducted a toy drive for this purpose. The generosity of the TSCA also included a little something for the parents with the donation of gift cards to local retailers. Thank you, TCSA, your partnership helps make the holidays a little brighter and easier for these families.

Stanley is recalling 2.6 million mugs sold in the U.S. after the company received dozens of consumer complaints, including some users who reported getting burned and requiring medical attention. 

The recall covers all Stanley Switchback and Trigger Action stainless steel travel mugs, which are double-walled mugs sold in a number of colors and sizes that came with a polypropylene lid, according to the recall notice posted Thursday by the Consumer Safety Product Commission. The Stanley logo, a winged bear with a crown, appears on the front and bottom of the mug. 

The company has received 91 reports worldwide about the lids coming loose while in use, leading to 38 burn injuries. The CSPC said 16 of the complaints stemmed from U.S. consumers, including 2 burn injuries.

Read the full story: https://tinyurl.com/585ppma4

Applications are now open for Champ Camp Counselors and CITs. This year’s camp will be held June 7th-14th (Counselors arrive Thursday, June 5th). 

Apply today: http://app.campdoc.com/register/aarbf

Applications close on February 28, 2025. 

If you have any questions, please reach out to Erika “Kika” Mendoza at emendoza@aarbf.org.

Each year, the Kiwanis Club of Clovis provides the cash bar for our annual Dinner & Dance and then donates the proceeds to us in support of our programs and services, such as Champ Camp. On Thursday, November 14th, Katrina Arthur was up bright and early to attend the morning Kiwanis meeting and was honored to be presented with a check for $2,000. This donation will sponsor two children to attend our 40th Champ Camp in June 2025.

November 13-15, Daniel Chacon attended the bi-annual conference for the International Association of Burn Camps (IABC) hosted by the Georgia Firefighters Burn Foundation at their Twin Lakes Camp. At the conference, Daniel was honored to accept two awards. The first was in honor of his work with the IABC Board of Directors. The second, the Camp Spirit Award which was awarded posthumously to James Bosch for his many years of work within the burn community and his contribution towards burn camp programming. This award was accepted on behalf of James’ family. Daniel enjoyed his time networking with and learning from other camp professionals from all across North America.

During the month of November, we had wonderful community partners hosting toy drives in the Central Valley, greater Los Angeles area, and San Jose/San Francisco Bay area to benefit AARBF’s holiday parties.

In the Central Valley, we partnered with the Central Valley Firefighters Credit Union, Sierra High CSF, Coalinga Fire Department, and the Leon S Peters Burn Unit at CRMC. For the Los Angeles party, we were excited to partner for the first time with F&A Federal Credit Union. In the Bay area, we partnered once again with the Bank of Montreal (BMO Bank) at fourteen of their locations from Gilroy to Redwood City. The toy drive within BMO Bank will continue until the end of December and the toys collected will be provided to the burn units to use for their young patients all year round.

We greatly appreciate our toy drive partners and all they do to make the holidays brighter for burn survivors and their families.

During November, Daniel Chacon visited with the representatives of the Northern California Fire Prevention Officers Association and was presented with a check for $2,500 which was proceeds from their annual Golf Tournament. Daniel also met up with our friends at Sunnyvale Public Safety Officer’s Association where he received a check for $7,625 from their annual Pancake Breakfast. These partnerships ensure we can continue providing much needed prevention programming throughout California as well as emotional support services to our burn survivors.

We have entered the holiday season and for some it can be a source of stress. Organizing the gatherings and meals can become a storm of misunderstandings and disagreements, especially for some of our burn survivors and their families. But how to improve the situation?

1. It’s okay to say no to events that can bring a lot of stress.
2. Practice gratitude, focusing on the good that the event can bring, such as seeing family and friends you haven’t seen in a long time.
3. Limit yourself and agree to stay for a few hours or minutes at the event if you feel uncomfortable.
4. Be kind to yourself and give yourself permission to feel all the emotions if you’re struggling with some of them.
5. Consider virtual meetings.

By acknowledging your needs and allowing yourself to navigate the holiday season in a way that feels right to you and your loved ones, the holiday season can become a time of healing and connection, rather than just a source of stress.Our Care Managers are here to help. If you need group or peer support, please reach out to Martha Banks at mbanks@aarbf.org (Southern CA) or Michael Knopf at mknopf@aarbf.org (Northern CA).