Appreciation of Lehrman’s gifts to community

EDITOR: Thanks for the good news story so well written by Chris Daley about the many ways Dr. Jon Lehrman has given to our community.

It is people like him that make this this community a truly special place to live and raise a family. The article mentioned that Jon has been New Morning’s medical director for many years.

Thirty-five years years ago I came to Placerville to serve as New Morning’s executive director. When it came time to find a doctor for my family I asked around and was told that Dr. Lehrman would be a great choice. When I called his office to set up an appointment I was disappointed but not surprised to hear that his practice was full and that he could not take any new patients. Not long after that New Morning needed a medical director to oversee our services to young people who were medicated, or should have been, for depression and other clients who were being treated for alcohol and drug abuse.

I called Dr. Lehrman and spoke to him personally this time. I told him I understood he was not taking new patients that could pay for services but I asked if he had any interest in helping New Morning’s clients as a volunteer. We met and discussed the major problems New Morning clients were facing and what a gift it would be to be able to offer them the best medical care available regardless of their inability to pay for it. Since that time Dr. Lehrman has personally met with hundreds of young people and their parents about the serious physiological damage they were doing to their bodies by abusing alcohol and other drugs. For all these years he has been working behind the scenes to benefit the people in our community by providing staff with invaluable training and reviewed client files to make sure any medication they were taking was consistent with the client needs and the therapy that New Morning staff was providing.

All of us involved with the work of New Morning are so grateful for all Jon Lehrman has done to help us better serve our clients and for being such a positive force in our community.

STEPHEN M. HEALY, MSW
Emergency Youth Shelter Social Worker
New Morning Youth and Family Services