By Michael Durand

I had a lot to be thankful for this past Thanksgiving. Not the least of which was surviving a massive heart attack on Oct. 18!

I wrote all about my ordeal in an online-only version of “From the Editor.” If you’d like to know the details, go to RichmondSunsetNews.com to read about my near-death experience.

The bottom line is, the amazing medical professionals at Kaiser Permanente saved my life. They told me if I hadn’t gone to the emergency room that afternoon, I would not have been alive the next morning.

I will be forever grateful to the impressively skillful doctors, nurses and medical staff. Thanks to them, I’m feeling much better and I’m back at my desk creating new editions of our beloved neighborhood newspapers.

It’s time to make a special mention of thanks to Paul Kozakiewicz, the previous editor and publisher – and the founder – of the Richmond Review and Sunset Beacon newspapers. While I was confined to a bed with tubes and wires and oxygen and all manner of medical devices, Paul stepped up and took over for me. He is responsible for meeting the deadlines for the November issues. He really went above and beyond to keep the presses rolling and I am grateful beyond words.

The papers are Paul’s “babies.” He started them three decades ago and pushed out every issue for 30 years until I took over about five years ago. He still helps proofread and copy edit the issues every month and I consider myself to be very fortunate to “co-parent” the papers with him.

Gabriela, a.k.a. GabJo

My messages of gratitude continue with thanks to Gabi Perez (gabjoart on Instagram), one of our Patreon supporters (along with her partner Kayce Basques).

The three of us met up for a drink on Clement Street a while back. Gabi is a talented graphic artist. She offered her services to help us get the word out about our Patreon account. Patreon is like GoFundMe, except it is an ongoing funding tool that accepts donations monthly.

I encourage our faithful readers to help support the paper with a small donation each month. Gabi’s cartoon (right) imagines two Richmond Review fans wondering where the paper went (in some distopian future without the community newspaper). “They didn’t have enough Patrons.”

Thank you so much, Gabi!

Police Blotter

This is the second issue of the Richmond Review without the Police Blotter column. We know it’s one of our readers’ favorite features and we received many emails and phone calls asking about its sudden departure.

We usually get the information from the Richmond Station. I contacted Capt. Chris Canning and asked about the status of the breakdown of police activity every month. Here is his reply:

“I understand the frustration,” Canning said. “I’m sure you’re aware of our SFPD staffing challenges. All available resources have been placed on patrol/uniformed assignments, including a significant number of my administrative staff that previously handled these tasks. Remaining staff have absorbed the responsibility, but capacity limitations have had a direct impact. Please continue to expect to receive updates. They will be distributed at an interval we can support with our current resources.”

We hope to see the Police Blotter back in action again soon. Thank you to the hard-working officers who serve to protects us!

Even More Sincere Thanks

On Thanksgiving I posted on our Facebook page (SF Richmond Review) how much I appreciate everyone in this newspaper’s orbit: “Happy Thanksgiving! We warmly appreciate our advertisers, Patreon supporters, donors, writers, photographers, columnists, contributors, cartoonists, editors, printers, delivery crew, the businesses and organizations that help distribute the papers and, of course, our loyal readers. We love our community and are very thankful to live and work on San Francisco’s west side. Love and good health to all.”

All true and sincere.

I also want to thank the many friends who kindly sent words of concern and care regarding my medical adventures. I even heard from people I’ve never met wishing me good health and a full recovery. Please know that every one of your messages were like little bandaids on my damaged heart. I am very grateful to our community for all the good people out there who truly love and care for one another.

You may notice that we tend toward publising stories about the good parts of our lives out here near the Pacific. We are proud of our neighborhood and work to support our community as much as we can. I am happy to play a small role in spreading the love.

Warm wishes for a happy, healthy holiday season!

Michael Durand is the editor and publisher of the Richmond Review and Sunset Beacon newspapers and the RichmondSunsetNews.com website. He can be reached at Editor@RichmondSunsetNews.com.