Hey, it's Jennifer Jones Lee. You're listening to KFI, a m six
forty wake up call on demand on the iHeartRadio app. That's Monday, man,
it's time to rise and shine. Here's Jennifer Jones Lee with your morning
wake up call. Good morning. Wow, you talk about a gorgeous weekend.
You know it was great too. Is It's the first time that I've
heard people say it's too hot to do whatever this weekend, and I thought,
I'm so okay with it being too hot. It just felt great.
So Betty and Daisy got blessed this weekend by First Christian Church Pastor Karen Davis
that we had on at the Earth Day Festival in Glendora, which was amazing
they had and I didn't get a picture of it, and I should have.
But here's what's interesting. Your life changes when you're trying to wrangle two
dogs. So two leashes, two dogs, Betty, who's a lunatic.
Although here's what happened. So she gets blessed right, which was very sweet,
and it was Pastor Davis just sort of leans down and pets them and
talks to them and blesses them. And then we went to Huntington Dog Beach.
I'm not saying, I'm just saying. Betty was like the perfect dog
at the dog beach. In fact, my old neighbor met us there,
so he's seen Betty since, you know, she was a baby, and
he kept saying, this isn't the same dog, and I was like,
she just got blessed. I'm not saying, I'm just saying. And she's
been really good at home. She wasn't nuts in the backyard like she normally
is. Again just staying. But it was awesome. It was a great
weekend. If you haven't been a Huntington dog Beach, definitely go. But
the lines to get into the dog beach, they are long to get into
the parking lots, so everybody sort of pulls to the shoulder and you line
up and you're waiting for a parking space or whatever. I bet they were
fifteen deep to get into each of the lots, and there are three.
So anyway, if you're gonna go to the dog beach, just prepare to
wait in line to get a spot because that probably took us an extra twenty
five minutes or so sitting there waiting. I mean, you'll get a space
but man, it's tough out there, just because everybody wants to be there.
I get it. Some of those stories we're watching in the KFI twenty
four hour newsroom, we have the CEO of NBC Universal who has been let
go mutually. How are you let go mutually? Disney says it's temporarily suspending
fire effects that it shows at Disneyland and parks around the world because of a
fire. I'll tell you what happened. Also, we're waiting for jurors in
la who are said to hear opening statements in the rape retrial of actor Danny
Masterson. So let's get into these stories now. It's the CEO of NBC
Universal mutually let go. That's because he chose to have an inappropriate relationship with
a woman who also worked at the company. Comcast, parent company for NBC
Universal, says that it was mutually agreed upon that their chief executive officer,
Jeff Shell, would leave immediately. Shell ran NBC Universal for just three years.
The now x CEO released a statement over the weekend that admitted to the
inappropriate conduct. The departure appears to be sudden, as Shell was involved in
his regular duties all last week, Andrew Caravella KFI News, Well, that'll
do it definitely. La County's new chief fire chief is about to be sworn
in. Anthony Moroney has served as an interim chief since July of twenty twenty
two. In February, the county Board of Supervisor Visors voted five to nothing
to make the appointment permanent. Supervisors were criticized for allegedly failing to hold a
thorough, transparent and fair search for a new chief. This wearing in is
set for one this afternoon. Disney says it's temporarily suspending fire effects and it
shows that Disneyland imparks around the world because of a fire during the Fantastic Show
at Disneyland in Anaheim. The fire on the Tom Sawyer Island Saturday night started
during a part of the show that features a dragon prop. First the head
caught fire and then the body whoa that fire put up huge plumes of dark
smoke. The area was evacuated as firefighters put out the fire. Injurors in
La are set to hear opening statements in the rape retrial of actor Danny Masterson.
He's charged with assaulting three women at his home in the Hollywood Hills.
A mistrial was declared in Masterson's first trial last year because jurors were split on
the verdict, but most favored acquittal. Karen Travers, good morning to you,
boy. You had a lot of Democrats this weekend on the different talk
shows talking about the president and a possible reelection and saying basically that don't worry
about his age. She's fine. Yeah, yeah, you know, the
allies of the president were out in full force over the weekend talking about the
potential reelection announcement that could be coming as soon as tomorrow. And you know,
no surprise, the Democrats that were out there were all on the same
page on this, saying that the president is up to the job and he's
doing it well. As Dick Durban, the Senator from Illinois said on NBC.
He said he's an active president and he's meeting the challenges of America every
day. Emy Klobuschar of Minnesota said the president has an incredibly strong record run
on and that he has been a steady hand and people don't want a return
to chaos. That Bey Dingle, a Congressman from Michigan, to of course,
a very critical battleground state says she's out there talking to people and that
in the Midwest, people think that president understands their challenges and that's very important.
Right now, she says she is not worried at all about his approval
numbers or any lack of enthusiasm. But you know, people are watching the
polls. People do see the numbers where he is right now, and it's
been pretty consistent. It's not high. But this is a White House that
says that they don't look at the daily ins announce the poles, and we
are anticipating that tomorrow. As soon as tomorrow, we could see this video
announcement from the President's team announcing that he is, as expected, running for
reelection. Over the weekend, there was an APE NORC poll that came out
that basically said that Democrats were split, but most would back him at this
point, though, could there be another Democrat that comes out, or is
there anybody waiting in the wings who could be a viable option for Democrats as
a challenger or if you weren't going to do it, I guess as a
challenger. No, nobody has indicated or given any hints as a viable challenger
from the establishment part of the Democratic Party. And I think it's because all
indications have been that the President was going to run for reelection. Now,
if there were any hints coming that he wasn't going to do it, that's
when the scramble would begin. And that's where there has been a lot of
you know, rumblings of like, look, if he wasn't going to run
again, you got to say it sooner rather than later, because people have
to start planning, People have to start fundraising, you have to go to
start figuring out campaign camp teams for people to mount, you know, the
necessary things to run a full campaign. But that's not happening. And as
the President has been saying his intention is to run. He said three weeks
ago I planned to run, and now it's all just waiting for that video
announcement to come. Tomorrow is symbolic. We might have mentioned this last week.
Tomorrow's the four year anniversary of when he announced he was running in the
twenty twenty election. The presidents it's very sentimental. He's very superstitious to some
extent, so it's not surprising that tomorrow would be the day that he decided
to say I'm doing it again. I didn't know he was superstitious. Really,
yeah, he likes dates. He likes the anniversaries. You know,
you have that like Irish luck thing that he likes to talk about. So
and you know, it's interesting, we went back and loved President in Obama
announced that he was running for reelection in April and a video message, so
you know, this wouldn't be out of the ordinary to do it this way
and to not do it in a big, splashy rally or a battleground tour
or anything. It's low key, but there's a design to that too.
Announced it in the video message. And he's got a busy week. He's
got a state visit by the president of South Korea. It's like, here
we go. I'm back in the waste, but I'm also president and I've
got a lot of things going on this week. All right, Karen,
thanks so much. I have a great day you too, See you later.
ABC's Karen Travers, I didn't know you was superstitious like that. Do
you see what you learn on wake Up Call? I don't know, maybe
a Jeopardy question, maybe, Hey, we're going to talk more about this
coming up in just a few minutes with Shannon Crawford. Of ABC News.
US Special Operations forces have evacuated the American embassy in Sudan, where the fighting
continues for control of the country. Chinook helicopters flew American government personnel and their
families to safety. US forces, including the Navy Seal Team six, flying
eight hundred miles from Djibouti to Khartoum to make the daring rescue. ABC's faith
A Boo Bay says helicopters were on the ground for less than an hour yesterday.
No shots were fired. The US mission has been shut down indefinitely,
even as thousands of private American citizens are still in Khartoum. That's at the
East African country kind of in the I guess, in that portion of the
country. US officials say it would be too dangerous to carry out a broader
evacuation mission. A person's been hurt during an attempted robbery in Studio City.
It happened yesterday on Lancashire Boulevard near Universal Studios. Police say a man tried
to rob a person, and a witness who tried to stop him was hurt.
Schools in la and Glendale are closed for the day to commemorate Armenian Genocide
Remembrance Day. A rally will be held in Little Armenia this morning to mark
the one hundred eighth anniversary of what many scholars consider the first genocide of the
twentieth century. A man in his sixties has been arrested for the fatal stabbing
of a man in Azusa. Police were called yesterday morning about a domestic dispute
at a home on Saying Gabriel Avenue. They say one person was stabbed and
another was hit with a baseball bat. A former mail carrier who admitted debit
cards while she was on her route in South la is said to be sentenced.
The US Attorney's Office says Toya Hunter pleaded guilty in December to one federal
account of bank fraud. The FED says she would steal the cards with unemployment
insurance benefits, then give them to someone else in exchange for cash. That
woman has also pleaded guilty, and this one made us all sad this morning.
Dancing with the Stars. Judge Len Goodman has died. His agent says
Goodman passed away peacefully Saturday in the UK. He had recently been admitted to
hospice following a battle with bone cancer. Goodman was a former dancer, a
British champion and owned a dance academy in southern England. He also danced or
He also judged the British competition So Show Strictly Come Dancing, which like Dancing
with the Stars, pair celebrities with professional dance partners. Shut up, close
a door and call me Mary based. Goodman was seventy eight. Tyler and
I were talking about him. He was he was like the nice judge on
the show. He was the Paula Abdul of Dancing with the very good That
is a wonderful way to I don't know think about him. It's just kind
of the kinder, gentler Dancing with the Stars judge anyway. Sad Disney says
it's temporarily suspending fire effects and it shows at Disneyland and parks around the world.
After there was a fire at the Phantasmic show at Disneyland. It was
on Tom Sawyer Island. It was a dragon where I guess the head first
caught fire and then the rest of the body. This is what it sounded
like. Oh, I think that's the body that caught fire in that part
put up huge plumes of dark smoke. The area was evacuated and firefighters put
out that fire. So jurors in LA are set to hear opening statements in
the rape retrial of actor Danny Masterson. He's charged with assaulting three women at
his home in Hollywood Hills. A mistrial was declared in Masterson's first trial last
year because jurors were split on that verdict. Hey, you know, there
are many reasons that AM radio should not be taken out of our cars,
and there is talk about AM radio being removed from new cars and trucks.
We have AM radio music, No we don't, but that's okay because you
can hear the music on the AM radio or you can hear it the news
on it. I was trying there anyway. THEEMA and first responders across the
country rely heavily on AM radio to deliver things like public warnings and emergencies.
Due to AM's unmatched reach, resiliency and because it's free now, emergency responders
and everyday listeners call into stations just like ours to provide vitals, sometimes life
saving information. Plus, don't forget, radio delivers the information to the community
on a real time basis, and in the worst situations, Listeners can call
into their local stations in times of direct help and radio is there to assist
them and tell them where to go or either safety or even shelter. And
this hits home. Do you think it's right for you to lose access to
K five when you're on the road. M No. So you need to
make your voice heard on this issue. Here's how you can do. It's
super easy. Text the letters AM to five two eight eight six. This
is how you can tell Congress to keep AM radio in all cars in trucks.
Text the letters AM to five two eight eight six, and you can
tell Congress to keep AM radio in all cars and trucks. Let's say good
morning now to ABC is Shannon Crawford. Shannon, good morning. It was
quite an almost covert operation, you could say, as there were the US
embassy staff was evacuated from the embassy in Sudan, fast and clean operation.
They're calling this all while fightings going on. Although were there any shots fired?
Good morning, Jennifer, No, there were no shots fired, No
reports of casualties given me in this with an intensely coordinated, precisely executed but
still a very dangerous mission with US helicopters flying fast and low over hundreds of
miles to the heart of that war torn country through Dan They were able to
successfully evacuate about one hundred individuals, including all seventy embassy staffers. US service
members spend under an hour on the ground, and that includes the Elite Feel
Team six, and they were ultimately able to save the day there. Okay,
how did they get word to everybody at the embassy, here's the time
we're going to be there. Be sure that you're ready, because I would
assume then any of the people who were thinking about attacking the embassy or something
would know, Hey, weird stuff is happening inside of there. So I'm
just wondering how they got the US embassy a staff to successfully get their stuff
together to get ready to get out without anybody knowing. Well, really,
what we've seen over the past week is as conditions have just so rapidly deteriorated
in Sudan, embassy officials who were spread out through the city consolidated together,
as well as a couple other diplomats from other countries, so we're able to
get to a central location. Now, the combat going on in Sudan,
it's actually two warring sides, two different commanders who are going out each other
over control of the country. So really it's not believe right now, even
though they're bens and attacks on American convoys, do not believe that Americans are
particularly a target here. That we do know that American officials were in contact
actually with both generals as this mission was taking place, trying to ensure it's
safety. But yes, there was always a possibility that something could go wrong
at obviously, you know in war, it's messy, there are miss signals,
so that was definitely a or and part of the reasons because the airport
is shut down, because these situations are so volatile, the security situation part
of the reason they couldn't just send in a charter flight. They had to
take this very intense, very sophisticated military operation. What about now, the
other Americans who are left in Sudan, who are still working there. That's
right, there are sixteen thousand, estimated sixteen thousand American citizens and dual citizens
who are still in the country. You know, this morning we heard from
One House spokesper, Saint John Kirby. He said the administration is still advising
Americans left in the country to shelter in place. That's the safest option,
but we know people are fleeing. There are several dozen Americans right now who
are making their way of trying to make their way to towards Sudan and a
United Nations led convoy. The US does have some intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance
assets going on there. They're trying to ensure their safety to watch over the
convoy. But it's still a very perilous situation and a very and over five
hundred mile journey, so it's really touch and go for those Americans. All
Right, thank you so much, Shannon, I appreciate it. Thanks,
Jennifer, all right, see you later. That's ABC. Is Shannon Crawford.
I just saw a new story that came out. It's an NBC news
pool. Remember how we were just talking to Karen Travers about President Biden running
and whether or not his age played a factor. This is what this pole
talks about. However, it also brings in former President Trump. Oh,
you guys, a majority of Americans apparently don't want either President Biden or former
President Trump to run for the White House in twenty twenty four. Now,
let's sit and think about this. Who are there two front runners for both
the Democratic Party and the Republican Party, the two guys that we apparently don't
want to run in twenty twenty four. Here's something I have always that has
always bugged me is that as a country, we love to bitch and moan
about whoever's in charge, right, we love to say, especially if they're
not the guy we voted for. I didn't vote for him, but here's
a problem. Everybody else did. And what we end up doing is we
want change, but we keep voting the same people in over and over again.
Now I also will kind of blame the parties. It's not like they're
grooming anybody new to come up and to take those top spots away. But
it just feels like, doesn't it feel like we just sort of rest on
our laurels sometimes? Like Wow, Wow, he's the best thing we have?
Is he the best thing we have? Either President Biden or former President
Trump? Are they the best that we have in this country? There's an
NBC News poll that I'm talking about here. Seventy percent of people surveyed,
including just over half of all Democrats, believe that Joe Biden should not run
for a second term. Half of them say his age is a major factor.
But then, as for Trump, sixty percent of those polled, including
a third of Republicans, think former President Trump should not run in twenty twenty
four. And this poll, I guess, was taken just a few days
before, so I'm guessing maybe Friday ish before President Biden is expected to announce
his run for reelection tomorrow. I don't know. It just it's frustrating to
me as a voter that we don't have more people, that these races aren't
tighter, that we don't see every time there's a presidential race happening, a
couple of people who are up there that make it a good race, that
are two really viable options for each party. When's the last time that you
sat down with somebody who you were like minded with and you guys really sat
down and hammered out. This is why I think we should be voting for
X or this is why we should be voting for Why that hasn't happened in
a really long time, And it just makes me sad. All right,
I'm off my soapbox. Man, did you hear about what happened in Glendale?
Thieves broke into at least ten restaurants in just a couple of hours.
Most of the businesses are on Colorado Street and a few just kind of in
the surrounding streets. Police say the burglaries happened between two and four in the
morning on Saturday. Rock Bird on Colorado says it's been hit twice in the
last four months. Trial is said to start in Pennsylvania for the man accused
of shooting up a synagogue in Pittsburgh. The Tree of Life Synagogue was attacked
in twenty eighteen. ABC's Mark Remillard says Robert Hours is accused of killing eleven
people and injuring seven others. Prositor say Bowers opened fire inside the synagogue because
of his quote deep murderous animosity toward all Jewish people. Bowers is facing sixty
three federal charges, including eleven counts of obstruction of the free exercise of religion
resulting in death and eleven counts of hate crime resulting in death. His lawyer
says Bowers has schizophrenia and other brain impairments. Our INTRIM chief is now La
County's new fire chief. Anthony Moroney has served as intrim's chief since July of
twenty twenty two, but in February the county Border Supervisors voted to make the
appointment permanent. Supervisors have been criticized for allegedly failing to hold a thorough,
transparent and fair search for a new chief. The swearing inset ceremony happens later
this afternoon. I think it's at one o'clock. Dancing with the stars.
Judge Len Goodman has died, as agent says he passed away peacefully Saturday in
the UK. He had recently been admitted to hospice after a battle with bone
cancer. Let's say good morning now to ABC's Jim Ryan. Jim, we
recently started hearing about Trenck, this zombie drug, and apparently it's not just
California now that's having to deal with it. No, so to our forty
seven other states, nearly the whole country, probably all fifty. Within just
the next few weeks, maybe the next month or so, the Drug Enforcement
Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have issued this alert about Trenk,
this animal tranquilizer zylazine that's finding its way into opioid and into fentanyl and
into the bodies of people who are taking this stuff, purchasing it and taking
it and in a lot of cases dying from overdose. The tricky part about
this janet is that trank or zylazine is not affected by n narcan. Is
that this life saving drug that's given to fentanyl and to opioid overdose victims and
that almost immediately weights them up. Well, that's not the case with trank,
and that's part of the danger of this stuff. And when it comes
to how people are getting their hands on it, um, I get is
it? I don't know. Is it something that you can easily buy?
Where? Where are these drug dealers getting it? Well, it's to be
used only by veterinarians right on, you know, with large animals, farm
animals and in zoos, So it's not that easy to get a hold of
it. But people are getting hold of it, finding it online and ordering
the stuff and then then cutting it into other drugs. Drug cartels in Mexico
and elsewhere are using this stuff to reduce the cost of their product, reduce
and increase the profit margin. So that's kind of the point behind this.
Others are taking this because it intensifies the effect of opioids that's why you get
this name zombie drug, the nickname for it. If you've seen videos of
people who have taken this stuff, Jen, it's just terrifying to see the
way that they act. They're very much like zombies, and it's something that
I guess. The problem with this is sort of like fentanyl, is that
it doesn't kill you every time. You're just in this as this case is
zombie state, and so some people probably think they're gonna take it just to
you know, accelerate or accentuate the high, but they don't know. It's
just crazy to me that you think I could take this, hopefully to feel
more high, but at the same time you have just as big of a
chance of killing yourself, maybe greater. Yeah, the chance that you might
die from this, partly because if paramedics are called, you're lying there unconscious
on the floor, close to a coma, and they administer narcan thinking that's
going to wake you up, and it probably won't. There have been cases
of the people of the paramedics have administered five or six doses of narcan.
It may overcome the effect of the fentanel or the opioid that someone has taken,
but not necessarily the xylozine that could be in that same product. So
it's a it's a real issue, and it's how the pharmaceutical world is trying
to find an antidote to xylazine. Man, all right, Jim, thank
you so much. I appreciate it. Thanks, Jim, all right,
see you later. ABC is Jim Ryan. It's just so scary and I
you know, hey, I'm no stranger to addiction, so I get this,
but when you do it to me, is so scary to think that,
Ay, you don't You probably don't know. If you're doing drugs and
you're at that point from where your drugs are coming in, you probably don't
care, right if your addiction is to that stage, you just want more.
You just want to keep feeding that addiction. So you're not thinking clearly,
Ay, this could be the pill or the snort or whatever it is
that kills me. But every like, every time you do take something,
or you inject something, or you snort something, knowing that that could kill
you, that's a Russian roulette that I can't wrap my head around. One
of only two remaining survivors of this thinking of the USS Arizona on December seventh,
nineteen forty one is gone. The National Park Service says Howard Ken Potts
died Friday in Provo you taught at the age of one hundred and two.
According to Stars and Stripes, his death leaves one hundred and one year old
Luke Conter as the last remaining survivor of the battleship that sank to the bottom
of Pearl Harbor after the surprise attack, which killed one thousand, one hundred
and seventy seven officers and crew. Flags over the USS Arizona Memorial have been
lowered to half staff to honor Pots. Mark Ronner CAFI News, all right,
did you hear about this fight? This? I guess, well,
it's kind of road rage and kind of not. I'm going to tell you
about it in a few seconds or in a few minutes, I should say
that happened in the drive through of an in and out. So how do
you think there could be road rage in the drive through of an in and
out? Apparently some ladies, I don't know, do you call them ladies
after this? I'm not sure? Anyway, some people thought that you could
do that, and it's a sad story about our society and it's funny all
at the same time because there's not a happy ending, but nothing goes terribly
awry either, So that's coming up. We'll do this at about five fifty
five. Arnold Schwarzenegger over the weekend says he's totally open to filling more potholes
for Los Angeles. So he went viral, of course last week when we
saw him outside his house in Brentwood filling up a pothole, and he was
frustrated that he as he says, it was screwing up cars and bicycles for
weeks. But then you have the controversy with the City of Los Angeles,
who said, wait, wait, wait, Arnold, that wasn't a pothole.
It was actually a utility trench that was dug for work by so Cow
Gas. But Arnold was like, hey, I don't care if it was
a pothole or a trench. It's been there since January. Nobody filled it,
so I did. So. The former governor did an interview with Fox
News Digital and he basically brushed off the controversy and says, I was very
happy that I could help fix some of those dangerous potholes. He goes on
to say and I was very happy that the city was appreciative and that they
came out to inspect my work and agreed it was great work. And he
was there. Video of that was there, video of the city and Arnold
standing over a pothole grading his work, and he says, he goes on
to say, and you know, I told them, if they need more
help, I'll get a crew together and go around the city and fix these
potholes because they're dangerous. It's all kind of like, let's help each other.
It was a fun thing to do. I love doing things like that.
It took me back to the seventies when I was doing construction work and
I was on the top of my bodybuilding career and still didn't make any money.
I was a bricklayer and cement work. So it took me back to
those days. I will pay money to see a crew put together by the
former governor that goes around and fills potholes in places that he doesn't feel the
city is doing its job. Can you imagine only only in Hollywood does something
like that happen. This is why we're lucky. Just found out Lift plans
to lay off at least twelve hundred employees in a new round of job cuts.
This is going to be thirty percent of the company's workforce. Now remember
Lift doesn't consider drivers as employees, so this is the people who actually work
at corporate Lift. Also, the Twitter accounts of dead celebrities are getting verified
blue check marks. So now Kobe Bryant, Chadwick Boseman, Anthony Bourdaine,
and other deceased celebrities have had the blue check mark added to their accounts since
the social media platform started its purge last week. Let's say good morning now
to a woman who actually used to work here, and Ellie hill Reese.
I'm sorry I never got the chance to know you, but she used to
work No. I know, I wish we had our paths had crossed.
I know, I know, I hear how wonderful you are. And I
am a listener you know, of course, I just love listening to you
to meet you over the air. Well, thank you you as well.
And I did not know some of the statistics that you sent about kids with
Down syndrome that only the US has ten thousand babies born daily and only sixteen
had Down syndrome. And I think that it's statistics like that that a lot
of us don't know about how rare this disease is, and how how probably
much help you guys don't get, and how you're having to band together as
a community to help one another. And in doing that you're coming up with
something called Gg's Playhouse, which sounds amazing. Yeah, and I first of
all, Halton, thanks, say it, go go go, h say
it. Say good morning, golah, good morning. Oh my gosh,
that just makes me. I can't tell you how happy I am to hear
that. You see, Jennifer, Ella, what's six? What do you
say? Oh? Now, it's going to tell you about baseball. And
we do a lot of gesturing in the down syndrome community because speech, expressive
speech tends to be one of the delays. So Halton is now hacking out
playing baseball because Halton is a baseball player for Little League and does an amazing
job. Halton just asked her about the team. Oh gosh, now it's
going to break down a whole thing for Halston trying to show you his face.
But what we're want to talk about is a hall Stine is my seven
year old boy. And I am one of many moms who has gotten together
to follow the lead of a woman named Nancy Giohannny. Nancy Gioannny is Gigi's
mom, and she twenty years ago had a child with Down syndrome, and,
like many of us would have an apt birth diagnosis, our worlds are
just I mean, I'll be honest, completely shaken. What the heck?
What do I do now? Right? So? Um, yeah, these
statistics sixteen babies a day in the United States are born with Down syndrome and
it's out of ten thousand kids. That's that's like nothing, right, That's
a small community. It is such a small community. And over the past
seven years, the learning I've had to go through, you know, I
had literally never met anybody with Down syndrome in my entire life. Can you
even imagine that I was a forty something year old woman, Like what do
I do now? Right? Right? So I kind of looked around for
our opportunities and you know, learning and how to get together and meet other
women, and it was really really challenging. So a group of women that
were in the same situation that I was in found Nancy Gianni and her story
and they wanted to follow her path. So Nancy opened up what she called
Gigi's Playhouse twenty years ago, and the idea was to bring women that were
and dads of course that we're having babies with Down syndrome together and just be
able to have a place to gather, a place to meet, a place
to provide free programming for a lifetime for these families and kids that have Down
syndrome. So that's what we're doing out in Semi Valley. It'll be the
first one to serve La and Ventura County. So it's a it's a really
really big deal. So we explain what kind of services are there and how
this is free for the life of the family. I know, right,
so um, it's free and it is one sponsored by donations. It is
nine volunteer runs. So what gigs Playhouse does is off for therapeutic and therapeutic
and vocational resources based on the help of volunteers. So if you know,
an sp speech language pathologist comes in and wants to help out with expressive speech,
like for Halston, I would have the opportunity to take him out to
the Gijus Playhouse in Simi Valley and get those services for free. Which if
you are in the special needs community or in the special needs world whatsoever you
understand is a huge help. It is. I'm a pretty tough chick,
but let me tell you, getting services for kids with disabilities is a nightmare.
And even in California, where we have so much help from the government,
it's shocking to me if you're not constantly on the phone, if you're
not advocating, advocating, advocating for your kid just to get basic, basic
therapies that you'll pay for it, by the way, you know, if
you want to pay for it privately, it's even hard. So this GIDUS
Playhouse is just such an important movement of global acceptance. And I mean I
could go on and on. No, you know, and I think though
you're bringing up some things that are really important, it's it's just because you're
an advocate, and just because you can get into the services if you can
that the government is offering, that still doesn't seem like it's nearly enough.
So you have to have something specialized like this to kind of come in and
fill the gap of where the government can't even help. I mean one,
and I mean if you if you get all the services that you you know,
aspire to get, then hats off to you. But most people don't
even get all the services that are available, right, so this is just
another opportunity where somebody could drive out to our location. It's in a like
a retail storefront. That's that's our goal. We're in top secret negotiations on
our final location. But it's very I love it big. It's a big
retail storefront, you know, so it's not a hidden association for those people,
you know. And the part of the issue too, you know,
just changing the stigma. I mean, Houston plays baseball with typical kids.
Hey, no special rules, the kid gets out, the kids out,
Halson goes to school with typical kids. Halson's getting his sacraments and like you
know, and in the Catholic Church, no special treatment. Just getting all
the inclusion benefits as well as getting the services. It's it's really it's a
fine line. It's a tight rope, and you know, we just want
to be able to offer as much as we can to people that have any
child or adult whip down syndrome. All right, let's talk about now how
people can help you have GG fit. The Acceptance Challenge happening Saturday morning,
April twenty ninth, where is this and how can people get involved in the
fun run and walk? So if anybody would like to get involved the fun
run, it's a five k fine run. It's not official official fun run.
I mean five k right, It's a one mile walk, a five
k and a twenty one yard dash for down syndrome. Registration is live on
our website, which is Gigi's Playhouse dot org Semi Valley forward slash Semi Valley.
If you google Gig's Playhouse, We're going to be the fifty eighth we're
hoping fifty eighth playhouse in the network and you'll you'll find out all about Ju's
Playhouse there. But the run specifically is going to be this Saturday at Rancho
Santa Susannah Park at Brighton Early gates open at seven. We have LA Dodgers
Training Academy coming out to help move for Global Acceptance. We have immersive arts
and crafts and games, food trucks, we have a senator appearing to do
the Global Acceptance Challenge with us, and all sorts of demonstrations. So we'll
have semi police, will have an ambulance company, will have bicycles that kids
could try out and it's a family event. It's not just for those kids
with Down syndrome, you know, it's it's for Halston's brothers. It's for
brothers and sisters and families and you know, the whole, the whole shipping
well. And I think that that's what's important to you, is that you
know when because there are so few people with Down syndrome in the US that
oftentimes I'm sure that people are like, gosh, I don't know enough about
Down syndrome to interact with that person. It's not maybe you know, even
that they're scared of them or something, but I'm sure that. I mean,
in some cases, maybe a child who's never seen another child with Down
syndrome doesn't know what to do, doesn't know how to interact. But that's
the time when you can tell, Yeah, we see it all the time,
Like we'll see people kind of side eye Halston and and they'll ask me
like, oh, does he talk? And I'm like, oh, Halstin's
got everything to say. You just have to slow down and listen, right
and when people take the time. Let me tell you, this kid is
playing roadblocks right now. He's he's like a typical seven year old. He
just happens to have an extra chromosome. And you know, I myself would
have had no idea that he's just a regular guy with an extra chromosome.
And we're making, you know, huge strides in that area. There's an
actor I'm embarrassed that I don't know his name, but he's going to be
in the upcoming Peter Pan movie that's coming out this week. And guess what,
he's not cast as a guy with Down syndrome. He cast as a
guy. Yes, we just need to really move the needle on global acceptance.
Yes, and that's what I was going to say. The more and
more that actually people like him get out there and that we can see the
normal lives that someone with Down syndrome can live, the more expected. And
I mean in the beginning, I just wanted to point out you mentioned that
it was a disease. It's it's not really a disease, and that's something
I didn't know either. You're right, it's just a chromosome. It's literally
just an extra chromosome on the twenty first. The twenty first chromosome has three
instead of two. Now, mind you, I didn't know any of this.
What Austin was boring. I was using all sorts of the wrong vernacular.
But you know, it's a learning experience. And I mean, thank
you so much for even talking to us, because it makes much a big
difference to get this information out there. Ellie. I think that this is
important information to get out there because I didn't know about it. I mean
some of the statistics that you said, I was like, oh, you're
kidding. I did. I just didn't realize what a small community this was.
And the more information and that the more spotlight we can put on it,
hopefully the more normal it becomes every day and that you guys will get
the help that you need. But again, where can people go to be
a part of the fun run this weekend and walk so? So to register
for the fun Run, you can just show up. Just show up at
Rancho Santa Susannah Park. It's right off a Stearns Avenue in Seema Valley off
the one eighteen. Or you can register at Geg's Playhouse dot org forward slash
Seemi Valley and that's it. You'll see the banner right on the front page
and you can register and you can join us. We have cool shirts,
we have cool metals, we have lots of cool swag and it's going to
be a great event and you know, community event coming together to support the
down syndrome community and move for global acceptance. I love it. Thank you
so much, Ellie. I appreciate it. And best of luck this weekend.
And you tell Halston that I said, I hope I wish him well
in his career of baseball. I'm telling you first MLB picture here we come.
I wait. I love it, Ellie, thanks a million, Talk
to you soon. Thank you so much, but bye see you later,
all right, And I want to go from that to something that's going to
make you go. Wait. So, while Ellie brings us the best of
society, the worst of society was captured in the drive through of an in
and out Sunday in Valencia. So it doesn't really say what started the whole
thing, but two women get out of a car. There are everybody's in
line in the drive through, right, They get out of a car and
they go to the driver's side of the Subaru outback that was behind them.
They start hitting the car with bottles and something some liquid spills out on it.
I don't know. Then a nearby in and out employee can be seen
in the video sort of shaking his head. He's just watching. Is the
whole thing unfold? Like, what's that poor kid supposed to do? Right?
So the two women go back to their car. Now the driver of
the Subaru, also a woman, steps out of her car, as does
a guy who's in the back seat. Now you can hear everybody yelling at
each other. One of the women from the vehicle in front of the suparu.
So the original women then returns with something else, a liquid bottle,
and sprays it at the male passenger. So I assume it had to be
something that was carbonated where she could spray it at him. And then the
woman and the man who were in the Superu get back in to try and
not be doused. Oh but wait, there's more. Then two guys who
are in the super U get out and start throwing something some sort of water
or something at the vehicle in front of them. So then the cops get
called, and there's also an in and out employee who tries to separate everybody.
The cops get there, apparently talked to both parties. Nobody wants to
press charges. It's seen as just a verbal argument, but While we have
people like Ellie hill Reese trying to do the best of society and things for
to bring our community together, you have dinglings who are upset over whatever.
How quickly they're going to get their double double, and they do that in
the line of an in and out drive through KFI and KOSTHD to Los Angeles,
Orange County. This has been your wake up call. You've been listening
to your wake up call with me, Jennifer Jones Lee, and you can
always hear wake Up Call five to six am Monday through Friday at kf I
AM six forty and anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app.