Bonnie Towne’s love of animals started when her dad brought home a stray springer spaniel when she was 7.
Many years later, Towne was asked by a friend if she would help Seattle Humane Society’s fund-raising for a new facility. From her first official tour of the old building, Towne felt an instant connection to the organization— as well as to a dog named Odin.
“I wanted that dog so bad,” she said. “I took my husband out to dinner and said, ‘Can I please take Odin home?’” Eventually, Odin became a permanent member of the Towne family.
The year she became involved with Seattle Humane, she helped with the capital campaign and also agreed to chair the organization’s annual Tuxes and Tails Gala. The latter raised $5.5 million in one night, the most ever raised at the event. She headed this year’s event, too. Held in May, it highlighted ”
Bonnie Towne with Sinder, one of the 29 dogs she and her husband have owned.
the number of animals we have saved and how many more out there we can do the same thing for. I think it’s really important to get that message out,” she said.
When asked about what makes Seattle Humane (which this year is marking its 125th anniversary) a cause she feels so connected to, Towne noted “the number of years it has served the community and the number of animals we have saved and continue to save, I just think that’s incredibly important and special.”
Born and raised in Portland, Ore., Bonnie and her husband Jim have known each other since they were 15 and have been married 51 years. Throughout that time, they’ve had 29 dogs, including three Seattle Humane alums–Odin, Sinder, and her current 8-month-old puppy, Mandi.
Outside of her work with Seattle Humane, Towne was also the 5th Avenue Theater’s board chairwoman for three years, spanning the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic. And she’s a passionate supporter of the Seattle Police Department’s K9 Unit. “Those dogs are very special and deserve everything we can give them,” she said.
She feels the same way about Seattle Humane’s advocacy for pets.
“There’s so much more to animal welfare than just adoptions,” she said. “I would like to see more laws passed about the treatment of pets, so that all animals receive humane treatment. They can’t speak for themselves and they need somebody to speak for them. If we don’t do it, who will?”
Ticks are back, and with them the risk of Lyme disease.
In Washington and most of the U.S., the peak tick season is spring and summer—roughly May through July or August. Ticks that attach themselves to bodies can infect people with a bacteria that causes Lyme disease. The illness is characterized initially by a rash, headache, fever, and chills, and in the worst cases by arthritis, facial palsy, and impaired memory.
The national Centers for Disease Control estimates that 476,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with the disease each year. There is no vaccine against it.
Pets (though rarely cats) can also get the disease. If left untreated, dogs can experience heart complications, joint inflammation, and permanent nervous system damage. But most dogs are able to fight off the infection themselves without serious illness, according to Blue Pearl Pet Hospital, whose Washington locations include Lakewood, Renton and Seattle.
In Washington, ticks carrying the bacteria that causes Lyme disease are most common west of the Cascade Mountains. People and pets can avoid them by avoiding grassy patches and high-growth vegetation when hiking or in wooded areas.
Remember the old public service announcement, “It’s 10 o’clock. Do you know where your children are?” We’re in our 70s now and need to reframe that to fit our age: “It’s oil change time for your car.
Sunny Lucia took this picture of a cabin air filter in their car. She and her husband blame it for his serious illness.
Our parents didn’t assume that neighbors were looking out for us. That was their implicit responsibility, at least in my neighborhood. Think of your car maintenance people as the neighbor. That will make perfect sense in a moment.
I’d like to take you through the health crisis of my husband and I. Here is the laundry list of what we thought were single-issue symptoms that had been present for years, and involved many primary-care clinic visits:
Chronic insomnia for years. A result of his high-conflict profession? We upgraded our mattress.
Chronic oversleeping and extreme tiredness.
Knee pain requiring a second total knee replacement when the first one failed; the surgery was six weeks before our world started falling apart. Leading up to the second knee replacement, pain was so consuming John got a bleeding ulcer from NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs).
Chronic cough for over six months. Tested negative for COVID. Strangely, I had the same cough.
Perhaps time for a sleep study? Morning headache. From too little sleep?
Sluggishness and sometimes difficulty breathing.
Brain fog. He’s a numbers wizard and couldn’t read his own Excel spreadsheet formulas.
Two months after the second knee surgery, John’s health started to collapse. He fell face-first on our dining room floor at 11 p.m. one night. He was unconscious.
Why did he fall? No significant findings from multiple emergency-room tests–no stroke, no embolism in lungs or neck, no cranial bleeding. Didn’t appear to be a heart attack. Good news all, except his lungs were compromised with an unknown cause.
One week later he was coughing up bloody mucous. Legitimately scary, right? Another ER visit and this time hospital admission. Luckily, our medical group at UW Medicine wouldn’t give up until they found some answers, some cause, something for a firm diagnosis and appropriate treatment. On the third admission day, a specialized pulmonary transplant physician asked about our environment. “You’re both coughing, and that makes me suspect something in your environment.” We didn’t have any of the usual allergy elements in our lives. Yet it obviously needed investigation.
I tore our condo apart while John was in the hospital. Nothing. Then I connected a few things. We were both coughing incessantly in the morning and using an abundance of remedies over six to nine months, but nothing really helped.
We’d gone on a vacation for a week, returning just days before his fall. On vacation, neither of us coughed – at all. We got into his car at the airport on our return home, and I was coughing within three minutes.
The car was the infectious environmental source. I pulled out the cabin air filter, which was saturated with black and brown mold. It hadn’t been changed in the nine years my husband owned the car. The filter had an almost impossible access that took a special hex-head screwdriver tool and monumental tenacity. I’ve told our friends and family. Only one of 45 people knew there was an air filter in their car cabin
After 11 x-rays and 5 CT scans, 47 blood tests, a bronchopathy procedure, and a three-day hospitalization during which at least 15 medical specialists asked numerous questions, it looks like we’re turning a corner. The working diagnosis is lung infection and enlargement of the right heart ventricle due to breathing in microscopic mold particles over a long period of time. He has a treatment plan. My symptoms aren’t on the same scale, but I’m headed toward multiple tests to determine my own treatment options.
Your car maintenance folks are the neighbor. They may or may not be completing a long checklist of items. You’re the parent. It’s your responsibility to ensure you own safety and health, as well as anyone who rides in your car.
Do you know where your cabin air filter is in your car, and if it’s dirty or clean? It may be a good idea to explore that before possible health issues arise.
Sunny Lucia, who wrote this article, lives in Seattle and is retired after working as a healthcare and corporate training professional.
ABOUT CABIN AIR FILTERS
Most automobiles have a cabin air filter installed to help prevent harmful pollutants, including pollen and dust, from being pumped into the interior air when fans in the vehicle’s airflow system are running. The filters, which often are located behind the glovebox, can get clogged, inhibiting the flow of air, adding wear and tear on the car’s air system and engine, and creating potential health risks such as respiratory problems. Signs the filter might need to be replaced include:
The vehicle’s heating or cooling makes excessive noise, or a whistling sound comes from the air intake ducts.
Airflow is weak, even when the heat or air conditioner is on high.
A musty odor in the vehicle.
Experts recommend checking the air filter every 15,000 to 30,000 miles. The owner’s manual for the vehicle can be consulted for a more precise service schedule.
Sources: Car and Driver magazine, CARFAX.com, Auto Zone
Sure, most people know what a healthy diet looks like. But truth be told, they don’t all follow it, leading to a myriad of health problems. Junk food, fast food, and highly processed items may be convenient and taste good, but they aren’t good for the body.
According to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the percentage of the adult population considered obese continues to rise. The latest figures show that 42 percent are obese, and obesity increases the risks of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancer—all of which, the CDC points out, are largely preventable through diet and lifestyle.
Here are some expert tips a healthier diet:
Eat five or six small meals per day and aim for half your plate to be fruits and vegetables.
Consume no more than 2,000 mg per day of sodium. Purchase canned goods with no salt added, and cook without adding salt. Salt can be added at the table, but it can’t be removed once it’s an ingredient in the cooking.
Don’t drink your calories. Eliminate empty calories in sugar-sweetened beverages, coffee, and fruit juices.
Focus on fiber. Try for at least 25 grams per day for women and 38 grams for men. Great sources of fiber include oatmeal, beans, lentils, popcorn, and whole-grain bread.
Power up with protein by getting 0.8 grams per kilogram body weight. Consuming adequate protein is good for bone health, retaining muscle mass, and reducing cravings by keeping you full. Great protein sources include lean meat, poultry, eggs, seafood, beans, tofu, peas, lentils, nuts, and seeds.
Increase daily fruit and vegetable intake. They should be a staple because they contain fiber, antioxidants, and phytonutrients. The CDC reports only 9 percent and 12 percent of adults, respectively, eat the recommended daily supply of vegetables and fruit.
Limit your eating of highly processed food. Most of them have unhealthy ingredients. The National Institutes of Health reports people who eat the stuff consume more calories and gain more weight. Make snacks at home, so there’s more control over what goes into them.
In general, to get in the habit of eating healthier, make a list of planned meals and shop only for the ingredients needed to make them. And avoid grocery shopping while hungry.
Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (cdc.gov) and National Institutes of Health (nih.gov).
Food like this might taste good, but it isn’t good for the body.
