Volunteer! Health Insurance Counselor training on May 14th
Public Blog
LAS is benefiting from one of Gene’s favorite events! Find out how by clicking on the image.
Birthdate: August 20, 1950
Birthplace: Saint Albans, NY
Although Gene was born in St. Albans, on New York’s Long Island, she was raised very much a child of the world. Her father, who rose as high as Colonel in the Army Corps of Engineers, found it necessary to move as Army life dictated, and the family – including Gene’s sister and two brothers – followed him to homes spread throughout and beyond America’s shores. After New York came New Jersey, and locales as exotic as Panama and Brazil. She remembers going to the beach “every day” in her family’s two years in the Rio de Janeiro area, where it seems a love of seafaring life was permanently instilled.
Name: Gwen Briant
Birthdate: A hot summer day in the late 1930s
Birthplace: Monroe, Louisiana
The doctor told mother to keep her under the cover at all times because she was two months premature. But mother, with it being over 100 degrees outside, decided that Gwen could enjoy the fresh air even if was only for a few minutes.
I am a Chinese American born in Saigon, Vietnam in 1977 after the fall
of Saigon (what a dumb war, any new dumb wars). At 2 years old, my
family fled by boat to Malaysia where we stayed at a refugee camp for 9
months (damn mosquitoes). In 1980, we immigrated to the U.S. and
settled in the San Francisco Tenderloin. Boy, this could take a while.
At 10 years old, I was already exposed to the courtroom as a material witness to 2 criminal prosecutions.
My older brother, David, immigrated with me. My younger sister, Mamie, was born in San Francisco. Initially, I attended public schools but quickly transferred to parochial schools (because I got pounded by 13 year old 5th graders). My grade school was Notre Dame des Victoires (Our Lady of Victories), a French Catholic school located downtown SF (Damn, I hated the French). My high school was Saint Ignatius College Preparatory (basically, 90210), which led to U.C. Berkeley for college (booze and parties). After college, I entered the downswing of the dot com boom/bust (big mistake) and worked for a software company for one year before entering law school. I used to have a Siberian Husky named Toby for a pet. Toby was shipped happily to Alaska by his new owners, the Society of Siberian Husky Breeders Whatever.
Christina Griffin
Staff Title: Staff Guardianship Attorney
Birthdate: August 4, 1970
Birthplace: Redding, CA
She could be described as the quintessential “I love my dogs,” “let’s help grandparents”, “I hate advertising,” “I’ve never lived outside of California”, left-handed California girl. But if you ask Christina Griffin what she thinks about Christina Griffin, she just says two words, “responsible and loyal.” Born on 8/4/1970 in beautiful Redding, CA, she was the third of three children.
A life-changing event over the past year was being recently married last August to her husband Harry.
When I asked her about her past, Christina was very candid. And whether it’s serving volatile parents in a guardianship case, or talking about her two dogs, she approaches things in life with a calm, unhesitating demeanor. Just call her Christina Mary Cool-headed Kathleen Griffin – dig on that.
Legal Assistance for Seniors recovered $15,000 for Austin.
Austin* was referred by Adult Protective Services (APS). His caregiver stole his checkbook and forged about $57,000 in personal checks drawn on two different banks. Austin fired his caregiver, filed a police report, and made claims to both banks. One bank returned the stolen funds and the other did not.
After calling Adult Protective Services, Austin was referred to Legal Assistance for Seniors. An LAS staff attorney negotiated the recovery of an additional $15,000. Austin has a new caregiver whom he trusts and is very thankful that LAS helped recover his nest egg.
* Name changed to protect client confidentiality