WHO’S IN TOWN?
All of those slices of tomato and onion on your fast food burgers had to come from somewhere, and this week, more than 1,800 people in the produce and foodservice businesses are in town to talk about the latest trends in produce and foodservice. The Produce Marketing Association’s annual foodservice conference and expo includes 600 buyers. Presenters include Bravo’s Top Chef All-Stars winner Chef Richard Blais who speaks on the country’s top menu trends, and best-selling author and marketing expert Jonah Berger on strategies for sales growth.
Friday July 29-Sunday July 31. Hyatt Regency, 1 Old Golf Course Road, Monterey. $1,055/PMA member; $1,625/non-member; for foodservice operators, $295/member, $395/non-member. (302) 738-7100, pma.com.
WHAT’S UP WITH THAT
A reader wonders why Dr. Mary Brewster, an obstetrician/gynecologist, is allowed to practice medicine at her Monterey office after a felony conviction last year. The California Medical Board re-evaluates the status of all licensed docs after a criminal conviction, and on March 4, filed paperwork calling for Brewster’s license to be suspended or revoked. A hearing is scheduled for November; until then her license remains in effect, according to Medical Board spokesperson Cassandra Hockenson. Brewster is no longer practicing at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula.
OVERHEARD
“I can’t stand all these kids playing Pokémon Go. They sure are Pokémon Slow.” – A man speaking to a woman while walking along Cannery Row, behind a group playing Pokémon Go
GOOD WEEK / BAD WEEK
GOOD:
It was a good week for veterans, with the news that the California Arts Council made 33 grants totaling more than $300,000 to projects designed to improve the lives of veterans through the arts. SpectorDance in Marina received $9,100 to launch dance classes for clients at the Veterans Transition Center. The grant will help fund a multimedia project, titled Portrait, about deployment. SpectorDance members will interview veterans on film as one component of the project, designed to improve the public’s understanding of veterans’ experiences. “Through dance, we will explore the creative power of self-expression and affirm the stories of veterans,” Artistic Director Fran Spector Atkins said. It’s bold subject matter for a dance company, but SpectorDance has successfully tackled tough concepts in the past, like gang violence and climate change.BAD:
Salinas Dr. Steven Mangar voluntarily surrendered his right to prescribe pain medication in the course of his ongoing felony case, in which he is accused of defrauding insurance companies of about $500,000, as well as writing prescriptions to addicts and patients who did not need strong opiates and failing to provide thorough examinations before prescribing the drugs. The California Medical Board has tied Mangar to five fatal overdoses. While cracking down on shady doctors is a good thing for the public, hundreds of Mangar’s patients have legitimate pain conditions, making it a bad week – and probably a rough few months to come – for patients who are left without their regular doctor. Mangar is one of just a handful of pain management specialists in Monterey County, and many of his patients have defended his practice.
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