Occupation: Lorna is a retired Registered Nurse. “I was the nurse executive at the V.A. hospital. Now I try to fill my time with volunteer work. I volunteer at the Hinds Hospice Home, Fresno Filmworks and the Central California Women’s Conference that’s held every September.”
When you’re not volunteering, what do you like to do? “I’m a voracious reader and I would consider myself a world traveler. I lost my husband about five years ago, but we traveled extensively and I continue to do that.”
What are your favorite places that you’ve traveled to? “Well, the last three years I’ve been to Bali and Indonesia twice. I really enjoyed that. One of my favorite vacations was a trip I took with my husband, a driving trip along The Garden Route off the Southern Coast of South Africa. My goal is to go back to Bali next spring and I’m planning a trip to Israel and Jordan possibly the year after that.”
What else do you do in your free time? “I try to stay fit, because you can’t really travel if you’re not in good condition. I try to take care of my health. So I go to the gym about five times a week and I work with a personal trainer. And I spend a lot of time with my friends.”
How long have you been volunteering for Filmworks and how did you get involved? “I got involved through my friend Nené Casares. She sort of recruited me, but I am a big film buff. I see a lot of movies, so it was a really good fit. I’ve been volunteering for about three years.”
What do you like most about volunteering with Filmworks? “Getting out of myself and giving back to the community. I like to try to live each day to the fullest. I see so many retirees who become couch potatoes and they get really depressed because they’re just by themselves all the time. So I really try hard to get out, whether it’s volunteering or going to the gym or meeting my friends, to get out with other people.”
What has been your favorite Filmworks event? “I didn’t get to go the to Fresno Film Festival this year, but I like to go when they have the festival and several movies in a day. It’s exciting to be around a lot of people and enjoy a lot of good films. The reason I like Filmworks is that they work really hard to pick a group of films that address diversity and the human condition. That’s why I love to travel – I love the diversity. I love learning about other cultures. I think that the more information we have in that direction helps us understand each other better and hopefully promote goodwill.”
What is your favorite movie of all time and why? “I love mysteries, I read a lot of psychological thrillers and that kind of thing. I like to try to figure them out as I watch and see if I can come up with whodunit. I really enjoy Alfred Hitchcock movies. I love vintage type movies like “Casablanca” and I really enjoy Ingrid Bergman movies. I [also] like family sagas, stories about families.”
Are there any types of films or genres that you would like Filmworks to show more of? “I like a lot of these diverse, independent films about other cultures – even if they’re subtitled. It’s just very interesting to me to see how other people live their day-to-day lives.”
Filmworks thanks all of our June 2014 volunteers: Jackie Aldern, Rita Bell, Lorna Bonyhadi, Grayson Brown, Nené Casares, Jennifer Crow (discussant), Celeste DeMonte, Fae Giffen, Rebecca Horwitz (intern), Neal Howard, Peter McDonald, Sarah Nixon, Kristy Page, Gene Richards, Katrina Riggs, Susan Rogers.
Past volunteers in the spotlight: May 2014: Celeste DeMonte and Neal Howard • April 2014: Andrew Ranta • March 2014: Loraine Tomerlin • February 2014: Antonio Garcia • January 2014: Fae Giffen • December 2013: Cleo Bauer and Dominic Papagni • November 2013: Kathryn and Carl Johnsen • October 2013: Linda Hernandez • September 2013: Susan Rogers • August 2013: Joan and Brijesh Sharma • July 2013: Jon Veinberg • June 2013: Richard Stone • May 2013: Sarah Nixon • April 2013: Alyssa Rendon • March 2013: Nené Casares
Contact our volunteer director, Gloria Burrola, to volunteer at a future screening.