By Christian Mignot

Los Altos celebrates 50 years with a variety of activities

Los Altos continued celebration of its 50th anniversary last Sunday with a community picnic extravaganza featuring food, music, booths and games for residents of all ages at a Hillview Community Center bathed in purple and gold.

On a cloudless day that seemed crafted specifically for the occasion, more than 1,000 residents turned out for an afternoon of fun in the sun with their families. As frenzied children dragging parents ran from the giant inflated slide to the free cotton candy stand, grandparents gathered around tables for a chat under the large oaks on Hillview soccer field, where the Ye Olde Towne Band performed big band classics.

Santa Clara County firefighters exhibited their fire-tending skills cooking veggie burgers, hot dogs and chicken pieces on large barbecues. They were busy all afternoon, with approximately 1,000 lunches sold.

But aside from the food and drink, the best part of the picnic for many was the fact that it was free. This was made possible through the efforts of almost 90 volunteers, gathered from groups like the Rotary Club of Los Altos, the Los Altos Kiwanis Club, VEGA volunteers, and local Boy and Girl scout troops.

The cost of the day was estimated at about $10,000, portions of which were covered by the Bank of Los Altos and Patch’s Parties. It was the result of numerous planning meetings with city staff.

“The afternoon was a success, the whole community liked it,” said King Lear, chairman of the event committee organizing the picnic. “I think everyone was most pleased about the extent of the program put on for everyone, from youngsters up to older adults.”

Most popular, according to Lear, was a performance by the Los Altos History Museum Committee in the Bus Barn theater, “Music and Memories: To Be or Not To Be - The City of Los Altos.” The show traced the origins of the city, including the initial debate and battle over whether it should become incorporated into Santa Clara County.

The History Museum presented a special exhibit on the 50 years of Los Altos, which will remain on display until early January 2003. The collection of billboards and objects painted a portrait of the city at various stages of its history, from when it was incorporated as the 11th city of Santa Clara County on Dec. 1, 1952, to present-day issues such as the remodeling of local schools. A time capsule was buried on the grounds of the History Museum, with Police Chief Don Johnson participating in the burial ceremony.

While historical items like the first phone used at city hall and vintage film posters were on display inside the Museum, a large exposition of shiny-bodied automobiles from the 1950s graced the parking lot outside. Among them were all-time favorites like the 1959 Ford Thunderbird, and also some rarer examples, such as a pair of 1953 Buick Skylarks.

“Those are probably two of the rarest cars in America standing side by side,” said exhibition organizer Bob Mabe, who rallies vintage cars for occasions like the Los Altos High School Homecoming Parade and the Los Altos Pet Parade. “There were only about 1,690 made of them, so I’m very excited to have two here today.”

Past the sparkling windshields near the History Museum, a visitor walking towards the police station would come across “Safety Street,” a collection of booths dispensing safety information and crime prevention measures organized by the police department.

A child-fingerprinting booth was set up by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office. Along with distributing free gunlocks, representatives were swabbing children’s cheeks for DNA samples and taking prints to compile vital information booklets for parents.

“In the event of a kidnapping, the best chance police have of recovering the child hinges on having an immediate response,” said Deputy District Attorney JoAnn McCracken. “These booklets would be presented immediately to police to help track down children or in the worst case scenario, to identify the body of a child.”

The Los Altos Police Department and the Disaster Preparedness Committee sponsored a booth distributing information about safety procedures, current efforts by police to promote emergency preparedness and a Disaster Preparedness survey, intended to sample the community’s needs.

The questionnaire, taken by approximately 100 picnic-goers, revealed 70 percent of those who answered believe the police department should provide more education about disaster preparedness, yet also showed only 40 percent would be willing to take advantage of opportunities or classes made available.

“The hardest part of our job is not providing the education classes but trying to get people interested in actually taking the courses,” said Police Chief Don Johnson. “The good news is that many residents indicate they have emergency supplies, medication and communication plans in their homes and cars which they would use in case of a disaster.”

Police Department discussed a class scheduled to start Sept. 4 designed to train a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). The class will train individuals with skills to save lives and protect property. CERT would respond to emergencies, supplementing the limited resources of local police and firefighters.

The program will includeto students at Los Altos High School, with 11 students scheduled to undertake training in the upcoming academic year.

“After Columbine, we thought about how law enforcement agencies can provide greater safety for schools,” said Police Department representative Ronald Nelson, who works with local schools. “By giving students some emergency preparedness training, we are placing extra eyes and ears within schools to look out for students and to deal with small issues like fires or light rescue work.”

The Community Picnic had other fun activities and events for those who attended, such as line-dancing instruction, boccie ball instruction, treasure hunts and puppet shows, as well as a the Los Altos Youth Theater presenting excerpts from their latest show, “Godspell.”