Helpers on the decline?

Service groups on decline as volunteer base drops - but hope remains

Walk past Starbucks on any given day and you’ll see them: folks in their 20s, 30s and 40s gathered leisurely around their lattés. What longtime Los Altos activist Vicki Reeder wonders as she passes by is why more of these residents aren’t giving back to the community they clearly enjoy.

Police chief optimistic about turnaround

Carlton confident department’s 9 vacant positions will be filled

The Los Altos Police Department has remained in the headlines over the past year after suffering a record number of staff vacancies and months of tumultuous labor negotiations with Los Altos city officials. Nearly three months after settling negotiations, The Town Crier last week talked one-on-one with Los Altos Police Chief Lucy Carlton about the current status of the police department.

Los Altos goes ahead with Covington pool plans, but land-lease strings remain with school district

The Los Altos City Council last week gave architects the go-ahead to begin conceptual drawings for the community pool complex planned for a portion of Covington mini-park. The Los Altos School District had promised to lease the land to the city in summer 1999, though a land lease remained unsigned last week.

Under current plans for the Covington Aquatic Complex, Spencer Associates will draw the conceptual designs for $63,867. The non-profit SPLASH committee will fund the complex’s design and construction through a fund-raising campaign, and the city will exchange a 29,730-square-foot portion of land at its Municipal Service Center for an equal portion of land at the Los Altos School District’s Covington mini park to house the complex. A SPLASH spokeswoman said members anticipate the opening of the pool by summer 2002.

News Briefs

The Los Altos City Council Nov.14 approved the construction of a three-story, 12-unit condominium project for 116-124 Second St. in downtown Los Altos.

The 20,000-square-foot project will cover 54.9 percent of the lot, or nearly 20 percent more than what the city code normally allows, but will provide two low-income housing units in exchange: one, one-bedroom unit and one, two-bedroom unit. SST Investment will build the project.

Cheng apparent victor in see-saw vote for third seat on Los Altos Hills council

The Los Altos Hills City Council elections may finally have come to rest, with the pendulum swinging back to incumbent candidate Emily Cheng. Cheng has apparently won a close battle for the third seat over candidate Sandy Humphries by 67 votes. Bob Fenwick and Michael O’Malley captured the other two seats on the council.

The Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters completed and posted the near-final count of absentee ballots last Wednesday. Cheng had 2,018 votes (17.8 percent of all voters) compared to Humphries’ 1,951 votes (17.2 percent).

Lease runs out for LA cable station

City officials began talks to move Access Los Altos to Mountain View

Los Altos could move its public cable station’s operations to Mountain View’s KMVT studio at the end of this year. Los Altos city officials have begun discussions with KMVT for possible use of their facilities on an interim basis until the city is able to make long-term arrangements for its public, education and government channels.

LASD keeps teachers happy, quickly

We salute the Los Altos School District and Marge Gratiot, district superintendent, for the relatively quick agreement last week with the teachers’ union. It was only two weeks ago that district negotiators and union reps first started talking.

The two-year contract, which still must be ratified, calls for a 10 percent raise effective Jan. 1, plus a 6 percent raise and a cost-of-living increase in the 2001-2002 school year. New teachers who make $34,000 a year would make nearly $40,000 by the 2001-2002 school year, and teachers on the top end of the scale, making $65,920 now, would make $76,862 plus a cost-of-living increase.

Please, no recounts in Los Altos Hills

Amid the recounts and subsequent legal challenges that have scarred this photo-finish race for the White House, we have a candidate in Los Altos Hills considering her own recount in a hotly contested battle for the third seat on the city council.

Sandra L. Humphries was behind likely winner Emily Cheng by 67 votes last week after a flood of absentee ballots turned a 93-vote Humphries lead into a decisive margin in favor of Cheng. Humphries considered requesting a recount last week, discussing her options with supporters.

Negotiations in the MV school district

Blue Jeans & Jelly Beans

The Mountain View Teachers’ Association is negotiating now with the district’s school board for a new contract.

Letters to the editor

Your Nov. 8 article on the recent sale of Ligtelyn Travel really upset me.

The tone of it made it seem that Margot, Priscilla, Sonia and Shona bought a “dead-end” travel agency on a whim. Nothing could be further from the truth.

The benevolent dictator speaks

Kallshian’s Korner

The other day a “friend” asked me why I don’t run for Congress. He thought I would fit right in. I’m still recovering. He then asked: If you could be a benevolent dictator for no more than two years, what would you do to stop the slide of our great nation?

Lots for Los Altos residents to be thankful for, both past and present

Pages of the Past

When Thanksgiving arrives, we know that the next few weeks will be a flurry of activity and celebration - some of it confined to the home and family, some of it out in the community. In regard to the former, I hope everyone in Los Altos spends some time giving thanks in whatever method is comfortable. In regard to the latter, I hope everyone takes some time to participate in the many events that make this town and this season, a particularly enjoyable combination.

Police Report

Nov. 13, 1:25 p.m., 351 Main St.: Petty theft reported in progress from the back of the store.

Malicious mischief

Local historians describe Depression-era Los Altos: hoboes rode the railroad in search of a hot meal

Los Altos during the Depression years was the theme for the Los Altos History Museum’s Saturday presentation of “Music and Memories.”

Accompanied on the keyboard by Jim Thurber Jr., John Reed sang songs from 1932, while Don McDonald, Steve Welch and Thurber provided the narration.

Downtown Los Altos holidays shine on with tree lighting, Festival of Lights parade

The annual tree-lighting ceremony, kicking off the holiday season in downtown Los Altos, will take place 6 p.m., Friday, in the Community Plaza, at Main and State streets.

The event, sponsored by the Los Altos Village Association, usually features the new Los Altos mayor throwing the switch that lights the plaza tree. Councilman King Lear was in line to be appointed mayor at a special Monday meeting.

Morning Forum hears about teaching compassion

Growing up as the only Jewish child in a blue-collar neighborhood near Boston, Morning Forum of Los Altos speaker Elliot Aronson said he struggled to understand why he was the target of taunts and beatings from other children.

He found his answer a few years later when, as an economics major at Brandeis University, he sat in on a psychology class taught by famed Professor Abraham Maslow. Aronson, who attended because he was interested in a young woman in the class, changed his major to psychology that day.

Los Altos Hills chateau, Old Adobe Creek Lodge open for St. Francis holiday tour

This year’s “Christmas at Our House,” the annual home tour sponsored by the St. Francis High School Women’s Club, offers an unprecedented glimpse of old and new Los Altos Hills properties.

From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Dec. 1 and 2, the public is invited to step back in time and stroll the former grounds of the fabled Adobe Creek Lodge on Moody Road, where there were once 26 tennis courts, four swimming pools, and a private casino, all tucked against the green hillside. Now rebuilt and redesigned for family living, the Lodge and Tally Ho House retain much of the original stonework and other detailing from the old lodge and display mementos of bygone Big Band concerts, festive old menus and photos of frolicking party-goers.

Fullertons’ Truck of Love a driving force in helping the needy year-round

Town Crier Staff Report

The Town Crier this season launched the first Town Crier Holiday Fund to provide support for desperate families, particularly those with children. All grants from the fund will be made to family support agencies in the county that do not have extensive traditional funding and certain functions of the Community Services Agency in Mountain View.

Local Realtor seeks volunteers for Thanksgiving food drive

Since 1987, Art Scott has been giving back to the community through his “Build-A-Box” project. Inside the box is everything necessary to provide local needy families with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner.

Scott started his program with the help of his assistant Rachel Beauregard when they were both at Century 21 Real Estate in Cupertino.

Seniors Briefs

Following is a list of special events for the month:

Nov. 29: 12:30 to 2 p.m., flu shots will be offered. Shots are free to current Los Altos Senior Center members, but a donation is appreciated. A $5 donation is requested from non-members. Preference will be given to those over age 55.

California Historical Society members impressed after stroll through downtown Los Altos

The California Historical Society (CHS) announces “History Walkabouts” on its Web page. This past weekend, society members walked downtown Los Altos five times to explore what they’ve come to discover is a quaint destination.

The two-hour walk, led by member Gary Holloway, started at the Chamber of Commerce, continued down Main Street, included a stop at the Los Altos History Museum and a stroll up State Street.

Library News

Everyone is welcome. For more information, call Miriam Marr at 948-7683, ext. 3519.

Calendar

Los Altos Senior Center, 9-3 p.m., Monday through Friday, 97 Hillview Ave.

Wednesday

Community Briefs

The Los Altos Hills Historical Society will present “Tales from the Internment of World War II,” by Megumi at 3 p.m., Dec. 3, at the Los Altos Hills Town Hall, 26379 Fremont Road.

Megumi has lived in both Japan and the United States. Her “Internment Tales” are based on personal interviews of American men and women of Japanese ancestry, incarcerated during World War II. The public is invited to come and enjoy this short program.

Upcoming Events

Tree-lighting celebration, 6 p.m., Los Altos Community Plaza, State and Main streets.

Sunday

Partners for New Generations offering menu of mentoring opportunities

Bob Lundquist enjoyed tutoring at Santa Rita School. When he died earlier this year, one of his bequests was a memorial fund to support his Los Altos Rotary Club’s involvement in Partners for New Generations through the year 2001.

“Bob loved to teach, especially younger students who didn’t have any visible support at home,” said Ruth Lundquist. “He set up a memorial fund with the Rotary to carry on the New Generations program.”

Holiday Briefs

A wonderland of floats will light up downtown Los Altos at 7 p.m., Sunday for the 23rd annual Festival of Lights Parade. The popular event features numerous floats, along with performers representing a range of area schools.

Hanukkah event canceled

Springer firstgraders serve stone soup for Thanksgiving

Students in Michele Kibble’s first-grade class made stone soup (with assistance from several mothers) for their fourth-grade buddies from Judi Hultberg’s class. Following a Springer tradition, each new first-grader received a fourth-grade buddy at the beginning of the school year.

The two classes write and read stories for each other and do math-play together as well as celebrate. Visiting each other’s classrooms “is an opportunity for the first-graders to see what they will be learning in fourth-grade and the fourth-graders to enjoy memories and see how far they have come,” Hultberg said.

LASD construction group hits wall on facilities plan

Los Altos School District’s Construction Oversight Committee members, primed to make recommendations, found themselves thwarted on every issue as they tried to deal with an already scaled-back facilities renovation plan.

It was only two years ago that district officials had high hopes after voters approved a $94.7 million construction bond. But soaring construction costs put original plans 40 percent overbudget, forcing changes in plans. Unexpected obstacles, convoluted timelines and high bids are still thwarting progress.

LASD teachers to vote on tentative settlement

The Los Altos School District negotiating team and the Los Altos Teachers’ Association Executive Board have agreed on a tentative settlement that offers teachers significant raises over the next two years.

Representatives from both parties are working on the contract language and expect to have the document ready to distribute to the teachers this month.

Schools Briefs

Oak School has scheduled a Literacy Festival Nov. 28 through Dec. 1. Scholastic books for all ages and computer software will be available for purchase. The proceeds will allow the school library to add videos and books to its Science and Social Studies collection for all grade levels.

Oak School is located at 1501 Oak Ave. in Los Altos. Festival hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Nov. 28; 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Nov. 29; 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Nov. 30, and 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Dec. 1.

College board gives preliminary OK for facilities plan, child development center

The Foothill-De Anza Community College District Board of Trustees gave preliminary approval to a facilities master plan funded by a $248 million bond initiative passed in 1998.

The board directed district staff to prepare an environmental impact report. Completed plans will be submitted to the board for a final approval at a later date.

On Deck: the local sports lineup for Nov. 22-28

Boys Basketball

Today

Sports On The Side

The playoffs are over, but the Los Altos High boys water polo team still has one game left. The annual alumni game is set for noon, Friday, at the school’s new pool. Players and families from all years, especially before 1997, are invited. A barbecue follows. To RSVP or for more information, call Jon Wiener at 949-3461.

Signing on

Owls football team headed back to Kiwanis Silicon Valley Bowl

Foothill Roundup

Maybe they should just call it the Foothill Bowl.

Lady Lancers capture first CCS crown

CCS Water Polo Finals

Los Altos boys beat St. Francis in semis, then fall to Menlo in final

SCVAL coaches vote for realigning its football divisions for the 2001 season

Prep Sports Summary

Cross Country

Sybase Open starts tennis court resurfacing program

The Sybase Open, a professional tennis tournament held annually at San Jose Arena, has announced a program that could provide court resurfacing to public tennis courts throughout Northern California.

In cooperation with the Northern California Section of the United States Tennis Association, Vintage Contractors and Plexipave, Sybase Open organizers hope to expand tennis participation at the local level.

Eagles put up a fight against mighty Mitty

Lancers claim 7th consecutive CCS title

CCS Volleyball Championships

Lancers can’t find the net in CCS semifinal match

CCS Field Hockey Playoffs

Prior to last week’s Central Coast Section semifinals, St. Francis High field hockey coach Kathy Lincoln jokingly said she hoped her team didn’t use up all its goals in an 8-0 quarterfinal rout of Live Oak.

When you retire from that prestigious company, watch out for status funk

Jean on the Job

Being CFO of a company like IBM or Cisco, or being CTO from Raychem or Applied Materials or AMD is a pretty heady title. When you retire, or leave prematurely because your financial portfolio permits it, you are giving up the status of your own title but also the prestige of that internationally known company. Even your second cousin in Missouri has heard of Apple Computers or Intel.

Investors tire of election indecision; malaise settles over Wall Street

Stock Report

The market wants to see the election over. Investors are tired of indecision and searching for a reason to believe the worst is behind us. Once we get the presidential election problem out of the way, the market will be off and running again.

Transactions

Cupertino

10220 Dubon Avenue - C. & A. Patel to S. Chilukuri for $2,175,000.00

A new era for Bank of Los Altos

New boss promises no name change as result of merger

n its own, the Bank of Los Altos boasted of “the best banking service in town, period.” Employees expect to continue that standard under the leadership of Heritage Commerce Corp, which merged with the bank last month.

Weddings

Shari Bauman and Vinnie Grande were married Sept. 10 at the Mark Hopkins Hotel, San Francisco.

The bride is the daughter of Ina and Steve Bauman of Los Altos. She earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree from the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, and is employed at Astra Zeneca Pharmaceuticals.

Obituaries

Arthur A. Hislop, a long-time Los Altos resident, died Oct. 26 following a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. A native of Portsmouth, NH, he was 85.

Mr. Hislop graduated from Dartmouth College in 1937. He later joined the U.S. Army as a private in 1941, serving in New Jersey and North Carolina before graduating from Officer Candidate School, and assuming the leadership of an ordinance company, embarked for England.

Noteworthies

George Antypas of Los Altos was cited for “his extensive volunteer service to his community and WSU, and for bringing recognition to his alma mater through his profession.” The award was presented last May in Mountain View, at a gathering of friends.

Antypas has been the sole president and CEO of Crystacomm, a company he founded in 1980 in Mountain View.

‘Love’ coming to Mtn. View

TheatreWorks continues its 31st season with the Bay Area premiere of the musical romp “Triumph Of Love.”

“Triumph” previews Nov. 29 through Dec. 1 and opens Dec. 2 at Lucie Stern Theater in Palo Alto. The production runs through Dec. 31.

Schola’s Messiah Sing set for Sunday night

Schola Cantorum presents its 34th annual Messiah Sing at 8 p.m., Sunday, at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro St. Music director Gregory Wait will lead the audience in Handel’s “Messiah.”

Tickets are $15 adults, $10 children/students. Scores will be available. Tickets: 903-6000.

As movies go, here’s one ‘You Can Count On’

Film Vitals: Movie Review

If you managed to stay away from the movie theaters so far this year, you haven’t missed much.

Dolls on display at P.A. museum

A new exhibit exploring the history and evolution of mechanical dolls runs through Jan. 14 at The Museum of American Heritage, 351 Homer Ave., Palo Alto.

The exhibit includes a variety of dolls, from the earliest ones that could walk, talk and open and close their eyes, to today’s multi-talented toys. The exhibit does what many children have done or wished to do: explore the toy’s innards to see what makes them move and talk.

Some guidelines for talking to teachers

Question: I am having a terrible time talking to my son’s teacher. She doesn’t seem to understand what I want to hear from her; and, she doesn’t appear to like or respect my son. Can you give me some guidelines for talking to teachers?

Answer: Parents talking to teachers and, conversely, teachers talking to parents can be one of the most frustrating, demoralizing, embarrassing and maddening encounters there is. It is only in retrospect that I can see what needs to be done. My suggested guidelines are as follows:

Tips to curb holiday eating and avoid bulging like Santa

With the holidays just around the corner, you better watch out, you better not cry, you better watch your waistline, and Jodie Bjurman, a registered dietitian at El Camino Hospital, is telling you why.

According to Bjurman, “the average person gains between six to eight pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day.” Given that it takes an extra 500 calories per day to gain a pound a week, that means that the average person eats an extra 680 calories per day during the holiday season.

Health care for the needy

With new quarters, RotaCare Clinic gets boost by local foundations

or people like Mario Gonzalez, free, or even reduced price medical care, was hard to come by. Gonzalez has asthma; because it is a chronic condition, uninsured and underinsured patients are left without ongoing treatment.

Award-winning film changed attitudes about AIDS

In recognition of World AIDS Day, Dec. 1, and to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the premier of “The Los Altos Story,” the 30-minute film about how AIDS affected three members of a Rotary Club will air on cable TV stations throughout the Bay Area during November and December.

The film received national media attention and won a variety of awards when it was originally shown in 1990, including the George F. Peabody Award for broadcast excellence and cable TV’s Ace award for best public affairs special.

A new weapon reported in the fight against lung cancer

While breast, prostate and colon cancers continue to be major public health concerns, the number-one cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States is lung cancer. Attributed mainly to smoking, lung cancer claims more lives each year (an estimated 160,000 Americans) than the other three cancers combined and has now surpassed even breast cancer as the number-one cancer killer of women.

Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the most common type of lung cancer, accounts for 75 percent of all cases. It occurs mainly in people between the ages of 50 and 60 who have a long history of smoking. Persons with previous or pre-existing lung diseases or conditions, former smokers and those exposed to second-hand smoke or radon also are at risk for developing this disease.

Take the excess out of holiday stress

The holiday season is supposed to be filled with happiness and excitement. Ideally, the family and religious traditions during this time of year generate warm feelings and bring loved ones closer together.

While this seasonal depiction is accurate for some people, others will find the holidays stressful and depressing. High expectations are sometimes shattered when memories of a deceased loved one grow vivid or family members argue.

Diabetics advised to check their feet

With November declared National Diabetes Month, the California Podiatric Medical Association is advising everyone with diabetes to check their feet daily and to have an annual foot examination.

Medical experts said foot screenings are important for diabetics who have loss of feeling in their feet, changes in the shape of their feet, or foot ulcers or sores that do not heal.

Health briefs

The number of foot problems in children is on the rise as more young people, especially young girls, actively participate in sports.

Running, twisting, quick turns and pounding in the confines of a hot, sweaty shoe can be hard on a child’s still-developing foot.

Insomniacs, take heart: Check out a book online for help, even at 3 a.m.

Insomnia, whether it’s the kind that prevents you from falling asleep when you’re really tired, or the kind that doesn’t allow you to stay asleep through the entire night, can be a debilitating disorder that wreaks havoc on your daytime life.

While there are plenty of useful Web sites that contain information about the disorder, we at The Health Library often recommend that people who want to get a full in-depth look at the subject check out a book or two. Now we can send our patrons to a Web site where they can literally do just that - check out a book. The Health Library’s newest collection, its eBooks Collection, has four good books on the subject of sleep disorders.

Red Cross offering kids ‘power’ over emergency situations

Your 9-year-old twins are having a sleepover at their grandparents’ home when the smoke alarm starts to buzz. Will they stay calm and remember what to do?

If you’re unsure about how your children will react and respond to a disaster or emergency situation, it might be a good idea to sign them up for the American Red Cross program, Kid Power.