Postscripts to Stories That Touched You

Today is Election Day. But enough about that.

There’s plenty of political news and commentary out there, so I’d like to offer a change of pace.

Every so often readers will ask me, “So what’s new with Bob Horn?” Or they may ask about somebody else whose story has been described here. And so every so often it seems appropriate to catch up with people and provide postscripts to their tales.

There is some good news and not-so-good news to report. And before we get around to the latest news from Bob Horn’s family, which is very good indeed, let’s drop in on the 11-year-old author from Northridge. . .

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Only a month has passed since Mathew Rudes shared his own true story and that of the fantastically fictional adventure of Josh Font.

Mathew, you might recall, is a gifted student who has struggled with a rare and severe form of Marfan syndrome, an often-fatal malady of the connective tissue that has required numerous surgical procedures, including two on his heart. Josh is his alter ego, the protagonist of his unpublished 155-page manuscript, “Monstress Mayhem,” about a boy who finds himself in a world of dragons both evil and good.

Mathew’s story, it seems, touched more than a few hearts.

A reader volunteered to place Mathew’s manuscript on the Internet. The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, which has its headquarters in West Hills, promptly gave Mathew an honorary membership. And a Hollywood production company solicited a copy for consideration for TV or cinematic treatment. (That’s one reason “Monstress Mayhem” isn’t yet on the ‘net.)

Copies of the article have been framed and placed in Porter Middle School, hospitals and doctors’ offices. Mathew, his mother, Carol says, doesn’t mind a bit of celebrity treatment.

Carol Rudes herself was scheduled to be a special guest Monday night at a celebrity sports auction at the House of Blues to benefit the Starlight Children’s Foundation. The nonprofit group, which is known for creating game stations and entire arcade rooms to improve the morale of sick children, granted Mathew’s wish for the laptop computer he used to write “Monstress Mayhem.”

Mathew’s health, constantly precarious, worsened in recent weeks and required him to be hospitalized for several days, dueling the real-life dragons of Marfan syndrome. He is now back in school, Carol says, eagerly rehearsing for his role as the master of ceremonies for a school play based on the TV game show “Family Feud” . . .

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It would be nice to report that another creative soul, Glenn R. Towery, has met with success since our last encounter.

Towery is the 45-year-old budding filmmaker who had overcome a crack cocaine habit to graduate as valedictorian from Columbia College-Hollywood, a Tarzana-based trade school that trains students for an array of film industry occupations.

A Vietnam veteran and actor, Towery seemed very much a work in progress when I met him, and he talked about his dream of becoming “one of the world’s greatest film directors.” He was then laboring to finish a 28-minute student project titled “Frequency,” a tale of spiritual quest.

Not long ago, I received a letter from Towery, figuratively with hat in hand. Alas, he is still trying to finish that film, having run out of money. Towery was hoping that somewhere out there a financial angel with a few thousand to spare might want to make a kind gesture to an ex-crack-addict turned filmmaker.

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I was unable to be in two places at once last Saturday. The event I missed occurred on a beautiful afternoon in Franklin Canyon, not far from the geographical heart of the City of Angels.

A California live oak was planted there and dedicated to the memory of Allen Edwards, a longtime volunteer at the canyon’s William O. Douglass Outdoor Classroom and the Valley’s Japanese Garden. Allen, a psychologist turned amateur historian, was known to many people for his brief “microhistories” on the San Fernando Valley. Allen died a few months ago after suffering a massive stroke. More than 40 friends gathered and shared memories on this bittersweet occasion.

No plaque was erected, because of National Park Service rules. But then, Allen Edwards had already put his own name on a plaque in a guerrilla operation he and his wife, Beth, engaged in some years ago. By cutting out the large map of Los Angeles city limits in foam core board and balancing the weird shape on the head of a pin, Allen had years ago determined Franklin Canyon to be the city’s center. And that, he figured, deserved a discreet plaque.

Beth Edwards says a hawk circled the sky throughout the ceremony, and while she isn’t particularly mystical, she said more than one friend suggested it was Allen’s spirit.

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So finally we come to the question, “So what’s new with Bob Horn?”

Now, if by chance you don’t remember Bob, he is the former Cal State Northridge professor who 10 years ago was diagnosed as having amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and has now lived seven years virtually paralyzed, each breath taken by mechanical lung. Despite his condition, he has written a book and many scholarly articles, inspiring everyone who knows him.

On Saturday, Bob and his wife, Judy, witnessed the wedding of son Christopher Horn to Kristina Bassler.

Chris took Kris as his bride, and Kris took Chris as her husband, before more than 200 family and friends at Northridge United Methodist Church. It was an honor and pleasure to be there. The Horns’ son married a young woman who had been a family friend for many years, ever since she played with Chris’ sister on a youth soccer team coached by Bob. (Kris, in fact, is now the women’s soccer coach at UC Santa Barbara.)

Ten years ago, nobody believed Bob Horn would live to experience the joy of this day.

There is much more to say about that, but this social note will have to do for now. I filled a couple of notebooks and am saving the story for Los Angeles Times Magazine. Exactly when it will appear, I don’t yet know. I’ll tell you when it does.

And to think: Some people say the media never cover good news.

Scott Harris’ column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Readers may write to him at The Times’ Valley Edition, 20000 Prairie St., Chatsworth 91311, or via e-mail at scott.harris@latimes.com. Please include a phone number.