Stroke

Young Chang Mervin Goldstein says "good" and "nice" like they're the two best words in the English language. Denzel Washington is nice. Vacationing with family is good. Friends are nice, the view from his hilltop home is nice, painting is good. The aphasic Newport Coast artist never says something is "bad." Ethan Goldstein guesses that his 58-year-old father may be happier now than when he was a fully-mobile plastic surgeon who loved to speed in his little black Porsche -- a luxury from his childhood dreams -- before suffering a stroke four years ago. Carol Goldstein says she can barely get her husband to sit still nowadays, with all the dinners, movies, shows and basketball games that book most their nights.

FOR THE RECORD A story Tuesday, "City sued for negligence by stroke victim," contained incorrect information in a subheadline. The man seeking damages for being denied medical treatment was arrested on suspicion of public drunkenness, not driving under the influence. . . . . . A man arrested by Costa Mesa police on suspicion of being under the influence of alcohol is now suing the city for negligence, saying he was instead having a stroke and police denied him medical treatment.

Local surfers will take to the waves this month to raise money for a friend who lost the ability to speak after suffering a massive stroke earlier this year. At least 35 surfers have signed up so far for a surf-a-thon to benefit longtime Balboa Peninsula resident Alan Halderman. The surfers will gather pledges for the number of waves they catch to help pay for Halderman’s living expenses. The event is slated for 9 to 11 a.m. Nov. 21 at Blackie’s Beach near Newport Pier.

Local surfers took to the waves on Saturday to raise money for a friend who lost the ability to speak after suffering a massive stroke earlier this year. Proceeds from the event will go to help Newport Beach Native Alan Halderman, 53, pay for physical therapy and living expenses. In May, Halderman collapsed on a dock after suffering a stroke while vacationing in Catalina. The stroke damaged the part of Halderman’s brain that governs communication, leaving him with a disorder known as aphasia.

For weeks, nobody knew exactly what happened in the minutes before Newport Beach resident Alan Halderman collapsed on a dock in Catalina, where he was vacationing, after suffering a massive stroke. Halderman, 53, was wearing swim trunks when he collapsed and had left his wallet back on his boat, anchored just off shore. The stroke damaged the part of Halderman’s brain that governs communication, leaving him with a disorder known as aphasia. Halderman couldn’t tell anyone who he was or what had happened, because he couldn’t talk.

Raymond Beach Smith, 67, died recently due to complications from a stroke. Ray was born August 23, 1945, the child of Genevieve Wood and William (Bill) Smith. He was proud to continue the family tradition of being a pilot and waterman. His grandfather, Col. Andy Smith, was a pilot in World War I and one of the first flight surgeons in World War II, leading a major rescue mission in the Philippines. Ray's father was a B-17 pilot, flying over one hundred missions, including the Battle of Midway and was killed in a flight test accident in 1946.

Barry Faulkner One hundred yards of froth and fury, splashing and surging suds. For most spectators, swim sprinters can simply disappear beneath the residue of their talent as they propel themselves through the pool. Sometimes, their talent can even get lost in the exertion needed to pull and kick their way between the buoys that separate them from their competitors, all done to the staccato ticking of the stopwatch against which they are constantly measured.

UC Irvine biologists say they have found a human-produced protein that could help people recover their motor function after suffering a stroke, school officials said. The separate studies, published in the journal Neuroscience and the Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Diseases, respectively, claim mice who had strokes repair nearly all of their motor function a month after receiving the protein. The protein, transforming growth factor alpha, plays a critical role in development and tissue formation from conception to old age. When the protein was injected into the stroke-suffering mice’s brains, they recovered 99% of their motor skills, one study showed.

AURORA, Colo. — John Chin, who will be a junior at UC Irvine in the fall, has advanced to match play beginning today in the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship at Murphy Creek Golf Course in Aurora, Colo. Chin shot a four-over-par 75 in Tuesday’s second round of stroke play to record a 36-hole total of 146 in tying for 55th place after he opened with a 71 Monday. Aaron Goldberg carded the best stroke-play total of 10-under 132 following his 67 Tuesday. The top 64 players following stroke play advanced to match play.

Raymond Beach Smith, 67, died recently due to complications from a stroke. Ray was born August 23, 1945, the child of Genevieve Wood and William (Bill) Smith. He was proud to continue the family tradition of being a pilot and waterman. His grandfather, Col. Andy Smith, was a pilot in World War I and one of the first flight surgeons in World War II, leading a major rescue mission in the Philippines. Ray's father was a B-17 pilot, flying over one hundred missions, including the Battle of Midway and was killed in a flight test accident in 1946.

The par-three, 185-yard 17th is known as the signature hole at Newport Beach Country Club. It also became David Frost's as he sank a sensational 50-foot putt on his way to victory Sunday. The birdie was the highlight of his wire-to-wire win at the 19th Toshiba Classic. Frost shot a 65 to tie the tournament record at 19-under-par 194 and hold off Fred Couples, who trailed by one shot entering the final round but finished five shots behind. Peter Senior and Jay Haas, who shot 194 in 2007, finished tied for third place, eight shots behind Frost.

Monday at the OC Fair & Event Center, 11 lucky people will get to find out how a dropping ball feels. The New Year's Eve celebration at the fairgrounds won't feature a ball drop like the one in Times Square, but there will be a plummeting object of a different kind: the fairgrounds' Mega Drop ride, which will descend with 11 attendees who won an on-site raffle. When people enter the OC Fair New Year's Eve Block Party, those with the Foursquare social-media application on their phones can check in at a table up front.

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO – The Sage Hill School girls' golf team found itself in unexpected territory in more than one way heading into its Academy League showdown with host St. Margaret's on Monday. Some of the Sage Hill girls had never played San Juan Hills Golf Club. The Lightning were also riding a two-match unbeaten streak in league and were 5-2 overall, arguably the best start in Coach Nicole Middaugh's three seasons. Middaugh said the Lightning received a reality check as the Tartans emerged with a 235-264 victory on the front nine.

COSTA MESA - Lyon Lazare says he has taken a break from performing as a pianist and musical composer. But he still seems to be making sweet music with his golf game. His talents on the course were on display Sunday at Costa Mesa Country Club, where he won the 40th Will Jordan Classic, better known as the Costa Mesa City Championship. Lazare, playing in front of a gallery of about 80 people, shot four-under-par 68 on the Los Lagos course and won the two-day tournament with an 11-under 131, four shots lower than runner-up Ryan Knapp of UC Irvine.

BOYS' GOLF Academy League finals LAGUNA NIGUEL - Ahmed Eltamami of Sage Hill shot a two-under-par 70 on Tuesday, winning the league championship at El Niguel Country Club. Eltamami finished with a two-round total of 142, six shots ahead of Anthony Cecere of St. Margaret's. Eltamami had shot an even-par 72 in the first round Friday at San Clemente Municipal Golf Course. Sage Hill's Matt Marlin and Darren Chen (totals of 174) finished tied for seventh, and Paul Chang (176)

NEWPORT BEACH - Stewart Hagestad was certain of one thing after he played 36 holes of golf on Monday. "I'm going to sleep really well," Hagestad said with a smile. Hagestad deserved a good night's rest. He started the U.S. Amateur Sectional Qualifier at Big Canyon Country Club with a bang and he closed it out with a round of applause. The 6-foot-5 golfer from Newport Beach nailed an 18-foot birdie putt on the final hole. Hagestad was on his way to Big Canyon's second qualifying spot and his third trip to the U.S. Amateur Championship.

BOYS' GOLF Orange Coast League finals LONG BEACH — Estancia High junior Jake Knapp won the individual championship after shooting par-72 at El Dorado Park Golf Course on Wednesday, giving him a two-day total of 136, 17 strokes better than the nearest golfer. Knapp was the Eagles' lone golfer qualifying for the CIF Southern Section individual championship at Skylinks Golf Course in Long Beach on May 16. The top five in league advanced to the tournament. Estancia's Jake Stone finished with an 87 on the second day after recording a 78 on the first day at Costa Mesa Golf and Country Club's Los Lagos Course.

There will be many people competing in Sunday's OC Marathon, hundreds from the running community coming together to take part in the marathon, half-marathon and 5K race. Within all the groups and individuals, there will be a family that has united to run for Julius Viana, a longtime Newport Beach resident affectionately known as, "Uncle Jay," in the family. In July of 2005, Uncle Jay suffered a stroke and has not been the same since, as he's confined to a wheelchair and cannot speak.

Jeff Coburn felt a bit nervous entering the final round of the Costa Mesa City Championship Sunday at Costa Mesa Country Club. The UC Irvine alumnus was determined to find his comfort zone. Fortunately for him, that came a little easier than most, as he's a member of the club. In addition to getting comfortable, Coburn also wanted to represent CMCC well. He did just that. One of the club's own won the top prize. Coburn shot four-under-par 68 on the Los Lagos course to win the championship flight by four strokes to runner-up Will Tipton, a Newport Beach resident.