Healing

BURBANK — Three years ago today Burbank Police Officer Matthew Pavelka was killed during a drug-related shooting and his partner, Officer Greg Campbell, still deals day-to-day with the injuries he sustained that day. The man charged with murdering Pavelka, and attempting to murder Campbell, 22-year-old David Garcia, remains in state custody awaiting trial. Pavelka was killed during a shootout in the parking lot of a Ramada Inn when he was called in as back-up on a vehicle stop.

It may have been in slow motion; it may have been just part of practice, but when Tammy Johnston first started taking kung fu in Burbank, she cringed at every feigned kick and slow-moving fist. "At first, you do sets," Johnston said. "No matter how slowly we did them, I would hold my breath and close my eyes." Eventually, however, Johnston began to keep her eyes open, and the classes began to help her recover from a past of domestic abuse. Now, Johnston is using her experience to give back to other abuse victims ?

Jackson Bell Jon Buratti began his career as a traditional naturopathic doctor about seven years ago -- as a patient. About 70 pounds overweight and riddled with health problems, Buratti met a naturopathic doctor though a psychiatrist friend. A short while later, the doctor relocated to the East Coast and for a short while moved in with Buratti, who was living in Baltimore at the time. "He got my weight down in six months and got me feeling better about myself," he said.

A fluffy white bichon frise-poodle mix hopped into Frank McCraven’s lap as he sat in a wheelchair just outside his room at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center. Beau gazed up appreciatively at McCraven, who scratched his back. It was obvious the two had immediately connected. McCraven had a visit from a golden retriever the day before, but this was the first time Beau and his owner, Maureen Walsh, of Glendale, had stopped by for a visit. They spend two Saturdays a month visiting patients as volunteers with the medical center’s Pets With Purpose program.

Gary Moskowitz MEDIA DISTRICT WEST -- A new class for women suffering from cancer will be offered in Burbank later this month. A free fitness class, Lying Down and Letting Go, will meet from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Mondays in the Lockheed Conference Room at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, 501 S. Buena Vista St. in Burbank. The first session will be Oct. 15, and classes will offer help through a gentle fitness program designed for women in any stage of recovery.

Money can't bring back lives lost. It can't bring back grandmothers, grandfathers, parents, children or ancestors never known. But it can be a step on the long road to healing, justice and a better community. Representatives from the Glendale-based Armenian Educational Foundation and Burbank-based Armenian Church of the North America Western Diocese received checks this week for more than $333,000. It was part of a settlement reached last year in which insurance company New York Life agreed to settle with descendants of victims of the 1915 Armenian Genocide.

Jacqui Brown Like everything else that got sliced and diced by budget cuts last year, Burbank Adult School took a hit, but that's about to change. Starting in January, the school will offer 14 new classes, after the Burbank Unified School District board voted Thursday to accept the expansion of these new, fee-based programs. Cherise Moore, director of adult education, said that after visiting several neighboring programs, she felt the need to expand their classes.

"Snow Cake" is a character-driven movie in which director Marc Evans and screenwriter Angela Pell succeed on many levels. Evans allows his talented actors to take their time with their character development and screenwriter Pell keeps her story flowing effortlessly forward. Alex (Alan Rickman) is traveling by car through Ontario, Canada, when he meets a peculiar young hitchhiker while sitting in a diner having a meal. At first, Alex refuses to give Vivienne (Emily Hampshire) a ride; but once in his car, he has second thoughts and decides to give the chatty young woman a lift.

Ben Godar A caravan of fire engines rolled through Burbank and Glendale on Thursday, but instead of fighting fires, those on board were on a mission to raise money for burn victims. The events were part of a weeklong fund-raiser by Firefighters Quest for Burn Survivors, a group founded in 1997 after Glendale Firefighter Bill Jensen and five other firefighters were injured fighting a blaze in Malibu. Glendale Fire Department Engineer Tom Propst and others began raising money to help their families, but Propst said the response was so successful they continued to raise money for other victims.

Thanksgiving comes late this year, which gives us an extra week to contemplate what we are truly thankful for. It is effortless to think of the obvious things — our spouse, our children, food, a home, medical insurance and the like. Then there are more specific items, perhaps a new job, a promotion or a new car. But do we take the time to be thankful for our trials? Those seasons of life that develop our character or change our outlook on life. Do we recognize that the painful times can actually heal us of wounds that we have harbored since childhood?