December 24, 2004  

A Life of Service, Acts of Kindness
At Harbor View House since 1968, Luanne Wolfrum’s mark on the world of mental health is found in the hearts of many
By Terelle Jerricks, Editor  

     Some measure success in terms of things  built  or  the  number of buildings with  their names on it. But how do you measure the value of intangibles, such as giving love and comfort to San Pedro’s least or greeting a stranger as you would an old friend.
     When Luanne Wolfrum walked through the lobby doors of San Pedro’s largest mental health facility for an interview on December 16, she was immediately given warm greetings and hugs by the residents. After 36 years as Activities Director at Harbor View House (HVH), dispensing hugs and kisses to its residents, this was her turn to be on the receiving end. Adjacent to the main San Pedro Post Office, HVH is located in the renovated landmark YMCA building on Beacon Street.
     Wearing a light blue top, matching the blue petals on her flowered patterned black skirt, calm colors contrasting and harmonizing with her fiery red hair and ocean blue eyes, it’s understandable how so many of her close friends and colleagues could describe Luanne’s fashion sense as “classy” and “elegant,” yet “flamboyant.” But her sense of fashion—inherited from her mother, nicknamed “Sunny,” due to her positive attitude and outlook on life—is really a reflection of her approach to life and interactions with people.
     Jennifer Marquez, a former Development Director at HVH, worked with Luanne for ten years. “She is a rare find in the workforce, staying out of the politics, just focusing on making the lives of others better,” Marquez remarked.
     Luanne envelopes the people who enter her life, offering the love and security a functional family provides. One longtime resident of HVH, when Luanne left the room for the photo-shoot remarked, “You’re doing a story on one helluva lady. When my father died she was there for me with a handkerchief dabbing the tears from eyes.”
     Luanne was born in Des Moines, Iowa, but was raised in California. In 1950, she and her husband moved to San Pedro to be close to her parents in Portuguese Bend. Her union with HVH was a result of happenstance. Luanne was seeking out a nearby hospital for her mother, Lucille Bullock, who was stricken with schizophrenia. HVH  had only been open for about a year when she saw an article in the News Pilot about the facility. Luanne volunteered at HVH to check out the quality of the group home.
     “I took the job so I could be like a spy and see if they were good to their patients,” Luanne related.
     Miss Lucille, however, wasn’t at all impressed. “My mother hated it,” Luanne shared. “First of all, she didn’t like the fact that men were there and second she didn’t like all the smoking.”
     Miss Lucille ultimately ended up at a hospital in Long Beach, but HVH quickly recognized the treasure they had in their hands and offered Luanne a job as Activities Director for $250 a month.
     “I’m sure they just saw a person, they needed a body, and they said hey,” Luanne joked. “I had no degree or been to college, but I had life experience and a lot of patience.”
     Luanne had never had a job outside of taking care of home and her five children. She never thought her volunteer position would turn into a career. “I grew up in an age when you had a husband and children, you didn’t have a job,” she said.
     Luanne organizes and initiates activities for HVH residents. From hosting bingo games and organizing field trips to plays and operas to producing stage production with HVH residents as the actors. Luanne often involved her kids in the activities, especially in her stage productions.
     The night before she spoke with Random Lengths, Luanne directed her final play, a retrospective of all the plays she wrote and produced over the years. It is no small wonder that they’ve renamed the theatre after Luanne.
     Perhaps the key to Luanne’s success lies in her determination to treat the person rather than treating the diagnosis chart.
     “I approach them as I would you,” Luanne explained. “I didn’t want to look at their charts with their diagnoses. I didn’t feel that was my job at all. The most import thing I did was smile and hug a lot.”
     Many who walk through the doors of HVH doors are afflicted with a myriad of issues and to feel normal, connected, and loved can go a long way in making a broken person whole. Luanne approached her job with an apparent reverence, largely because she recognized that aside from her love of work and service to others, she actually receives a great deal in intangible things.
     “I’m not a religious person,” Luanne explained. “But I believe in myself and my family. I guess that could be a religion.” Luanne says, “Coming here is almost like going to church. People will touch you in a certain way at a certain time, and you can get an epiphany multiplied many times over.”
     Perhaps intangible things such as giving love and comfort to the town’s least, or greeting a stranger as you would an old friend can be measured. Measured by the number of people who smile when your name is mentioned and the number of stories people have to tell of the good you brought into their lives. By that measure, it appears that Luanne has left a lasting imprint that will only expand with time.