♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ Cyan Magenta Yellow Black Cyan Magenta Yellow Black Page XXX Health | Family Editor: Sally Scherer, (859) 231-3303. E-mail: [email protected] INDEX CONTACT HEALTH FAMILY SECTION D RELATIONSHIPS | KIDS | PARENTING TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 2006 | WWW.KENTUCKY.COM | LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER Comics . . . . . . D4-5 Crossword . . . . . .D5 Dear Abby . . . . . . D5 Diet Detective . . . D6 Horoscope. . . . . . D4 John Rosemond . D3 HOW OLD?!?! TODAY: Actress Florence Henderson is 72. Access Hollywood host Pat O’Brien is 58. Magician Teller of Penn and Teller is 58. Opera singer Renée Fleming is 47. Singer Rob Thomas is 34. WEDNESDAY: Actress Jane Seymour and singer Melissa Manchester are 55. The Simpsons creator Matt Groening is 52. Actress Sarah Wynter is 33. Singer Brandon Boyd of Incubus is 30. A daily look at entertainment news Gonzo journalist can be downloaded Hunter S. Thompson’s widow said she would let fans download a rarely seen photo of the gonzo journalist, to be posted his Web site to mark the anniversary of his death. The Louisville native was 67 when he shot himself to death Feb. 20, 2005, in his home in Woody Creek, Colo., apparently despondent over health prob- lems. Anita Thompson said she decided to offer the photo on http://gonzostore.com in response to fans who have written her asking about the anniversary. She said she took the photo at the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, when her husband had friends over as he was writing one of his columns. “He has a special look in his eye that he had once in while when he was up to something but was totally at peace,” she said. “I’ve taken thousands of pictures of him, but this one is my favorite. And nobody has seen it.” Under the photo will be one of her hus- band’s favorite quotes. She wouldn’t reveal the quote but gave a hint: It’s about Bob Dylan. Ralph Steadman, who illustrated many of Thompson’s works, has the only copy of the photo ever issued, she said. Deneuve gets her due French screen idol Catherine Deneuve will come to a Bangkok film festival, where she’ll be honored for her contributions to cinema, organizers say. The fourth Bangkok International Film Festival will award Deneuve the 2006 Golden Kinnaree Career Achievement Award at a gala event Feb. 24, according to a statement from festival organizers. Deneuve became one of the world’s most beloved actresses after starring in Jacques Demy’s 1964 film, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, which will be screened at the festival. She also was in the 1967 film Belle de Jour, and more recently, Dancer in the Dark, in 2000. Prairie Home politics Director Robert Altman says his big screen adaptation of A Prairie Home Companion wasn’t intentionally political but “reflects the truth of what’s going on in ourselves.” The film, a fictionalized account of the last broadcast of the 30-year-old radio show, tells the story of what happens when host Garrison Keillor finds out he’s been taken over by a conglomerate. Meryl Streep, Woody Harrelson and Kevin Kline star alongside Keillor in the film, which was shot at Fitzgerald Theater in St. Paul, Minn, where the radio show is based. HERALD-LEADER WIRE SERVICES PEOPLE NEW RELEASES In stores today: On CD: Bullet for My Valentine, Poison; Bela Fleck & the Flecktones, The Hidden Land; Matchbook Romance, Voices; Mountain Heart, Wide Open; Jaheim, Ghetto Classics; Sergio Mendes, Timeless; Shawn Mullins, 9th Ward Pickin’ Harbor; various artists, Totally Country Vol. 5 On DVD: Tori Amos: Fade to Red: Video Collection, Proof, Saw II, Shut Up and Kiss Me, The Thing About My Folks. Henderson Deneuve P P ! Articles by Mary Meehan | Photos by David Stephenson | Herald-Leader Staff Ahhh, Valentine’s Day. The time when lovers scramble to come up with the perfect way to show that special person in their lives how much they care. But some folks give love year-round, not in the form of chocolates or flowers but through time and attention and giving of themselves. These four Central Kentuckians — Jerry Belton, Regi Goffinet, Elise Holcomb and Joe Karius — represent the thousands of people who share their passions with others through volunteering. Here’s our valentine to them and others who make our community a better place through their actions. VALENTINES TO VOLUNTEERS “How ya doin’, buddy?” Joe Karius coos, as he gently gathers tiny Isabella Potter in his arms. With 5 1 ⁄ 2-month-old Isabella cradled in one arm and the infant’s I.V. pole grasped in the opposite hand, Karius slowly makes his way around a floor at Kentucky Children’s Hospital. Seven years ago, the retired IBM employee found his calling in cuddling, rocking and walk- ing sick infants. Most days you can find him, baby in arm, talking soothingly to an infant. Once back from their walk, he and his charge settle into a rocker in the room where Isabella and her mother, Heather, have lived since she was born with her intestines outside of her body. As the chair starts to sway, Isabella tugs at his graying beard — intention- ally left long enough for little fingers to grasp. His eyes fill with tears as he talks. He’s recently had some health problems himself. His heart isn’t what it once was. He has been in the hospital twice during the last few weeks. But, he said, he’ll keep rocking as long as he can. “This is my place,” he said, his hand absently rubbing Isabella’s pink pajamas. “This is what I do.” Joe Karius: baby rocker Patience is the key to trying to teach little kids how to play basket- ball and soccer, said Elise Holcomb, Or, to be more precise, patience, patience, patience. That, and a loud voice. Holcomb, 23, a University of Kentucky senior, has learned both lessons during the past year while volunteering to coach children younger than 5. Holcomb has “done all sorts of volunteer work forever,” but coach- ing wasn’t a natural fit. When she played soccer when she was little, she was the kind of kid who kicked the ball into the wrong goal. She loves those kinds of kids — the ones who pick dandelions wait- ing for the ball or dance to their own personal music under the goal. “It’s just beautiful how their minds work.” She gets more out of it than her kids do, she said. “I could have the worst day, and come in and coach, and it makes my whole week.” Elise Holcomb: kids’ coach Regi Goffinet’s house is filled with the yapping and howling of her two dogs, but Duffy, a mixed- bred she’s caring for as a foster parent, lets his tail do the talking. With his head nestled near Goffinet’s feet, the steady thump, thump, thump telegraphs his contentment. He’s the 57th animal Goffinet and her family have fostered. When he came to the Goffinets’ Lexington home a few months ago, Duffy — who was found by the side of a road and taken to the Woodford Humane Society — was so timid he could barely cope with human contact. Now, willing to snuggle with strangers, he’s ready for a new home. When animals leave, it’s always bittersweet, Goffinet said. A few of the new families keep in touch, with postcards or notes at Christmas. But most animals simply scamper out of her life. It breaks her heart a little to see them go. Her daughters Michael, 11, Amee, 14, and Kendall, 15, feel the loss, too. But, she said, she can help more this way. If she kept all the dogs she fell in love with, she’d soon reach a limit. “There are just so many animals out there” who need love, she said. Regi Goffinet: pet foster parent The drums rumble, echoing off the concrete walls, as Jerry Belton closes his eyes and sees the waves of sound in his head. “Yeah,” he croons in his deep bass voice, head bobbing. “That’s it. I can hear that sweet harmony.” Harmony for drums. The voices of the instruments communicating with one another. That’s what Belton wants and why, when he formed the group four years ago, he named it the Lexington Children’s Drum Choir. More recently, he formed a dance group called the Something Special Dancers. As the head of the non-profit groups, Belton, 59, a San Francisco native, is the group’s musical direc- tor, head bus driver, primary fund- raiser and motivator-in-chief. When it comes to drums, Mr. B, as the kids call him, doesn’t play around. Grades have to be maintained. Goofing around isn’t tolerated. “My whole program, my whole objective, is focus,” he said. If you can focus on the drums, he said, “you can apply that to education, employment and other aspects of life.” Hear the love See more pictures and hear the volunteers talk about their work in a slide show linked to this package at www.kentucky.com. No Davis column Merlene Davis’ column will return Thursday. Duffy is Regi Goffinet’s latest foster dog. “This is my place. This is what I do,” says baby rocker Joe Karius, spending time with Isabella Potter. Elise Holcomb offered a tip to Alex Totty, 4, at the High Street YMCA. From left: JaRae West, 11, Evan Cummins, 11, Jerry Belton and Justin Rudd, 19. ♥ Jerry Belton: drum master