NATIONAL GAMBLING IMPACT STUDY COMMISSIONMS. LOLA MCDANIELCHAIRPERSON JAMES: Lola McDaniel? (Applause.) CHAIRPERSON JAMES: Lola McDaniel? MS. McDANIEL: Madame Chairman, Commissioners. My name is Lola McDaniel. I am employed at Hollywood Park Race Track. I've been at Hollywood Park for 18-1/2 years. I am with H.E.R.E. Local Eleven -- (Applause.) MS. McDANIEL: And I am also a relative caregiver/foster parent. One of the reasons why I could become a foster parent is because I'm gainfully employed. The state of California does not provide full benefits for relative caregivers, only for foster parents, so with me having a job I can take the children, I have full medical coverage with Local II, collective bargaining. Because I can take care of the children on my own with a little help, of course. I'm very glad to be here today because with being a relative caregiver I'm very, I've had two children. One from child abuse, one from substance abuse, and now I'm here today before you because of another abuse. And I have to worry about whether I'll still have my job. As a citizen I'm very concerned about that. I would hope that Congress, this commission, along with everybody in this room that we're all here to solve whatever problems we have. I'm sitting at table right now, if the leg broke everyone in this room would say, let's fix it. Why can't we all collectively fix it, do what we do at H.E.R.E. Local Eleven especially well I might add, collectively bargain. In closing I'd like to tell, sorry. I was raised in Los Angeles. I knew gambling shacks all over the place. We called them gambling shacks where people gambled illegally. There would be times you'd find dead bodies in an alley. Now that we have legalized gambling, we still have murders, we still have problems but not due to gambling. In closing I'd like to tell you a short story of what happened to me one night when I got off from Hollywood Park. That particular Sunday, I work all holidays and weekends. This particular Sunday I said I am going to church and I'm going as is. I leave Hollywood Park, I walk in and, of course, everybody is in their Sunday best, it's 7:00 p.m. service. Ladies smell good, look good, and I walk in smelling of popcorn, nachos, and stale beer. So that's okay, I'm coming to church. Low and behold the minister's sermon that night was the evils of gambling. Not only the people that gamble but the people that work at a gambling establishment. Well I have a few choice words for the minister but then I remembered where I was so I had to be cool. So I decided to pray. And it was at that moment that I knew I truly had faith, I was a good person, I just left from work taking of my family. I then knew that that minister was only the messenger, he wasn't the one who told me to come as I am. Thank you. CHAIRPERSON JAMES: Thank you. (Applause.) CHAIRPERSON JAMES: I truly want to hear from everyone that signed up and I think it's important that we do that, but we do have to stop at a certain time. And so as a result of that, if we take up time with demonstrations of support or disscent we're not going to be able to get through the whole list. So in deference to all of you who are here who want to have an opportunity to speak, please, I implore, let's just hold out. We'll have one big round of applause and shout for everybody at the end. Okay? Is that agree? All right.
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