News from the Council of University of California Retiree Associations (CUCRA)
Luncheon Speaker- Pat Wheeler, et al.
Briefing Title- What Dogs Can Do and Technology Can’t
Cattlemens Restaurant Tuesday Cost
2882 Kitty Hawk Rd April 9th $ 40/person
Livermore, CA 94551 11:00 AM
Don't miss the opportunity to hear these amazing and heartwarming stories, and to meet these dogs!
We will have four speakers and two dogs for this presentation. All four speakers have been therapy dog handlers for many years. They will share with you some of the amazing things they have seen their dogs do while visiting people at a variety of places and while going to events. They will also tell you about things they have seen their dogs do when now working as therapy dogs or as aroma alert dogs in Liz’s case, as well as when they were puppies.
Our speakers will be Mark and Sharon Bowers, with their dog, Liz Johnston with a working dog from Early Alerts Canines, and Pat Wheeler.
Mark retired from the Lab in 2022 after 35 years at the Lab as an Engineer/Physicist at NIF, NAI, and underground testing. He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Rochester in Nonlinear Optics and his Bachelors and Masters in Electrical Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Sharon earned a BS in Liberal Studies with a minor in Developmental Disabilities. She spends time with several community service groups with their activities. They live in Brentwood. They have an English Cream Golden Retriever named Libbey Belle.
Liz is the Head Trainer and Educator for Early Alert Canines, an agency in Concord that trains dogs to alert people to medical issues, including COVID and diabetes. She has over three decades of experience as a dog trainer and has started and run various programs around the country associated with owner-trained service dogs. She and her dogs, Boo and Rocky, both Longhaired Chihuahua live in Martinez.
Pat Wheeler has two dogs now, Maddie, a Black Lab, and Wylie, a Chow Chow mix. She had two dogs before that, Lawrence, a Black Lab, and Albert, a mix. Pat did her undergraduate degree in Psychology and her EdM in Counseling at the University of Rochester, her MBA in Management at Armstrong College in Berkeley, and her PhD at UC Berkeley in Education/Policy Analysis. Her husband Paul was a physicist in A Division from 1968 to 2001. He did his PhD Princeton University which is where Paul and Pat met while she was working at Educational Testing Service (ETS). Pat and her dogs live in Livermore.
About LLRA
The Livermore Lab Retirees Association (LLRA) is an organization for retired employees and spouses of retirees of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. LLRA is open to retirees from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, whether they are members of CalPERS, UCRS or the private retirement system of the LLC.
We generally have monthly luncheon meetings January through November where invited speakers cover topics from science at the Lab to community topics.
LLRA is a member of the The Council of University of California Retiree Associations (CUCRA), a consortium of the Retiree Associations of nine University of California campuses: Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, and Santa Cruz; the three UC-managed National Laboratories: Lawrence Berkeley, Lawrence Livermore, and Los Alamos; and the Office of the President/Regents.
Livermore Laboratory Retiree Association
P.O. Box 2170, Livermore, CA 94551
info@livermorelabretirees.org | Tel: 925-443-9092
LLNL Links
Retiree Health Benefits
If you have any questions or problems with your LLNL retiree health benefits, first contact Empyrean (non-Medicare) or Via Benefits (Medicare). If Empyrean or Via Benefits cannot help you, you may contact the LLNL Benefits Office at 925-422-9955.
Empyrean – 844-750-5567
Via Benefits – 866-682-4841
2024 Retiree Open Enrollment Information
2024 Retiree Open Enrollment Guide (pdf format)
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LLRA Board Members
Name Email
Julio C. Diaz Chair
Bill Bish Vice Chair
Board position open Membership Secretary
Nancy Mulligan Treasurer
Jeff Garberson CUCRA Reps
Julio Diaz Webmaster
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