Redwood City Educator Honored On Senior Citizen's Day

SAN MATEO, CA — Four San Mateo residents were honored on Friday for National Senior Citizen’s Day, in appreciation of their contributions to the city of San Mateo and Bay Area communities.

The residents, all living in the Peninsula Regent, a retirement community in San Mateo, were recognized in a ceremony by San Mateo Councilmember Amourence Lee, Police Chief Ed Barberini and Fire Marshal Robert Marshall.

The honorees were:

• Dr. Jean Kohn, 95, a local pediatrician who worked with HOPE (Health Opportunities for People Everywhere) and a founding member of The Peninsula Regent.
• Dr. Norma Bozzini, 79, a doctor who founded the nonprofit Tiba Foundation, establishing a 52-bed hospital and lab in the village of Ukwala, Kenya to provide medical care to the people of rural Kenya.
• Rosemary Behrens, 86, a local educator who cofounded the Redeemer School in Redwood City in 1957 with her husband. She was also Vice Principal of Selby Lane School in Atherton. During her time in education, she advanced the use of computer technology in local schools and led the movement to have library media centers in 16 Redwood City schools.
• Kristian Nergaard, 74, is a pioneer in the world of gay and lesbian sports. He founded the first-known gay and lesbian triathlon and golf teams and has has competed around the world, representing San Francisco, in swimming, golf and triathlon events. Nergaard has competed in the Gay Games every four years since 1990 and served as chair of Team San Francisco and its delegate to the worldwide Federation of Gay Games. At the 2018 Gay Games in Paris, he earned six age-group medals in Triathlon and Swimming.