Theater review Chemistry works for Bus Barn

Although it plays a little footsie with the facts, “Pierre and Marie” - a Bus Barn Stage Company production now playing in Los Altos - is a successful blend of scientfic history, fact and humor.

Originally, a French play by Jean-Noel Fenwick called “Les Palmes de M. Schutz,” “Marie and Pierre” is a successful English-language adaptation by Ron Clark.

Open house, open hand

The David and Lucile Packard Foundation based in Los Altos plans to celebrate 40 years of public service June 16 in a typically unpretentious, neighborly way - with an open house at its offices on Second Street. On hand to welcome visitors will be new President and CEO Carol S. Larson, only the third president in foundation history.

“The open house is really a celebration of this community,” Larson said. “We want to turn the spotlight on the non-profits that do the work, all the hard-working volunteers, the dedicated staff and the donors who make their work possible.

American Legion requesting honor for MV soldier killed in Iraq

Lt. Ken Ballard, the American soldier from Mountain View killed in Iraq over the Memorial Day weekend, was the youngest member of the Los Altos’ American Legion post.

Now members of Post 558 seek to honor Ballard with his own day. Ken Girdley, finance officer for the Legion, wrote Los Altos City council members last week requesting them to declare the Los Altos 4th of July celebration, “Lt. Ken Ballard Day.”

LA council considers expanded street dining

One Los Altos business owner’s unusual idea to draw more evening customers to his restaurant may just be the answer to breathing life into a downtown that has struggled to keep residents on the sidewalks after 5 p.m.

The owners of Ragusa Restaurant asked the Los Altos City Council last month to allow them to build a portable wooden patio with wrought iron railings that would expand into the parking spaces in front of their business at 325 Main St. for additional outdoor dining during the evenings. The owners would set up the portable patio for their dinner menu and remove it during the day when parking is at a premium. This is the first time a restaurant has made such a request.

Challenge to coastside protection program fails

The Midpeninsula Open Space District overcame one obstacle, June 2, that could have hampered plans to move forward with its Coastside Protection Program. Before the existence of the Coastside Protection Program can be guaranteed, however, the district must hurdle several more obstacles that could slow down, if not stop, the program in its tracks.

The open space district overcame its latest obstacle when the San Mateo County Local Agency Formation Commission held a public hearing, June 2, as part of its process to respond to requests for reconsideration of its April 7 decision to approve the Coastside Protection Program.

Editorials

Rosita EIR clarifies pools impacts
Slowing down for deer life
Jennifer Couperus
Palo Alto

There is a 25 mph speed limit on the stretch of Page Mill Road between Fawn Creek Court and Country Way (the 25 mph speed limit stretches much further, but I am writing about an incident that took place along […]

Obituaries

DR. H. POTTER KERFOOT
Dr. H. Potter Kerfoot, a Los Altos resident since 1961, died on April 27, 2004 at the age of 81. He was born August 15, 1922 in Shawnee, Oklahoma to H. Potter and Laura Etta Taylor Kerfoot of Pasadena, California. He married Helen (Skip) Bendall in 1949. Children: Roberta […]

Weddings & Engagements

Georgia Humphris and Daniel Hedrick
Georgia Humphris and Daniel Hedrick have announced their engagement to be married Nov. 22 in Kauai.
The bride-to-be is the daughter of Peta McRae of Brisbane, Australia, and Peter Humphris of Melbourne, Australia. She graduated from Brisbane Girls School in Queensland and Monash University in Melbourne. She is […]

Morning Forum speaker: War in Iraq not about oil, but U.S. obsessed with it

Professor Michael Watts, Director of International Studies and Professor of Geography at the University of California at Berkeley, came to the Morning Forum of Los Altos, June 1, to discuss “The Relationship of Oil to Imperialism and the Making of the Modern World.”

He said he didn’t believe that the present war in Iraq is about oil. The problem has never been about scarcity, he said, but about acquisition. He said the first Gulf War was an effort to preserve American power.

Grand opening of Los Altos art collection set for June 15

This past April, Los Altos-area artists accepted a challenge to “Paint The Town Lifestyle,” showing their version of life in Los Altos on canvas. Now, 40 of their fresh oil and watercolor works are on display for the first time at Main Street Cafe & Books in downtown Los Altos.

A reception for the artists, open to the public, is slated as the official grand opening of the exhibition 5-6:30 p.m., Tuesday, at the cafe.

Local moms enlist eatery in fight against breast cancer

On July 10 and 11, Kathleen Bonte of Mountain View and Toni Thornton of Los Altos plan to spend their weekend walking as part of a fund-raiser to help eradicate breast cancer.

They will be among thousands expected to participate in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in San Francisco.

21st Assembly candidates to define themselves in Los Altos debate

Town Crier Staff Report

The Peninsula Democratic Coalition and the South Peninsula Area Republican Coalition are teaming to present a debate between 21st Assembly District candidates Steve Poizner and Ira Ruskin. The debate is scheduled for 7-9 p.m., June 22, at the Los Altos High School theater.

125 FHDA students win scholarships

The Foothill-De Anza Community Colleges Foundation Scholarships, totaling $77,000, were awarded last Wednesday to 125 district students at the annual Scholarship and Awards Ceremony held at Foothill College.

Foothill College President Bernadine Chuck Fong credited the vision and generosity of the donors for the increase in the number and amounts of the scholarships this year.

Los Altos High’s Miller high jumps to state title

Los Altos High senior Allie Miller became the 2004 California state champion in the girls’ high jump after receiving a first-place medal in the event at the California Interscholastic Federation State Track and Field Championships at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento on Saturday.

Miller’s winning jump cleared 5-9 1/4 in her first attempt after the bar was raised from 5-8. None of the other jumpers cleared the bar at 5-9.

Bolstered by big numbers, Blach finishes season strong

It was a season of great feet and feats for the Blach Intermediate School track and field team of Los Altos.

The Falcons had more pairs of feet running and jumping than ever before - the team exceeded 150 members for the first time in school history - and their feats included six first-place finishes at last month’s league finals.

Plaza Cork’N Bottle on First Street opens with new owners

Plaza Cork’N Bottle has recently assumed new ownership with new merchandise, new hours and new employees.

The store concept is called convenience retailing with numerous items stocked on the shelves for quick in-and-out sales that may lead to dashboard dining.

Grilling: Middle Eastern Style

The sweet, hickory smell of meat grilling over hot coals drifts through the air as customers eagerly await their orders. It’s another lunch-time rush for the Rose International Market in Mountain View providing customers with hard-to-find Middle Eastern produce and meats since 1988. The hungry patrons dig into kabobs and other Middle Eastern favorites before heading back to work or school. For customers like Dean Liu, the market’s charbroiled kabobs are an appetizing choice for lunch or dinner.

“It’s like fast-food, but probably much healthier than normal fast-food,” said Liu, who estimated he eats lunch at the market about twice a week. “You can get this food elsewhere, but the way that they’ve set it up, where it’s kind of like a fast-food environment … it’s really unique.”

Carville fights back; U.S. mounts attack

By inspiring such a plethora of books about his term, President George W. Bush may have an unforeseen impact on illiteracy after all. Here are two very different books that ask the same question about a president’s personal agenda versus his job description in the Constitution.

Carville’s had enough

London’s hidden villages remain historic gems

Over the centuries, small villages that once lay on the outskirts of London became engulfed as the city expanded in a tide of bricks and mortar. Although these quiet villages have melded with London, they have managed to retain their character.

Steeped in history, these villages remain hidden gems within the city’s boundaries. Their charms should not be overlooked.