Center survives, thrives

Jim Stringer wasn’t expecting any miracles when he opened the doors of Calvary Assembly of God Church to local day workers in 2002 on a meager budget and with even less community support. The Mountain View pastor simply chalked up the church’s offer to provide a temporary place for workers to arrange day jobs with employers as a good deed to people who didn’t have many advocates.

Most of the 100 or so workers had been displaced when the only nearby center of its kind closed in neighboring Los Altos a year earlier. Workers had few alternatives other than to stand along city streets to find employment - something local laws prohibited.

MV property owner’s lawsuit could jeopardize El Camino rebuilding plans

A Saratoga man’s lawsuit against the El Camino Hospital District over its $148 million bond election could jeopardize plans to rebuild the hospital.

Superior Court Judge Kevin McKenney last week delayed a hearing by at least a week involving Saratoga resident Aaron Katz, who is suing the hospital district for denying his right to vote on Measure D in the November 2003 election, which provided taxpayer funds toward the $339 million rebuilding project. Katz is an attorney who owns condominiums in Mountain View.

Charter school issue on agenda for joint LA-LAH council meeting

Los Altos Hills won’t take no for an answer in its effort to bring Los Altos officials on board in support of opening a charter school at the former Bullis-Purissima campus.

The Hills council requested last week that a discussion of public schools be added to the May 3 agenda of a joint meeting between the two bodies. Last month, the Los Altos council voted not to issue a proclamation of support for the Bullis Charter School on Fremont Road that Hills Mayor Mike O’Malley asked for on behalf of his council.

Greener pastures on the horizon for one neighborhood

Hanson Quarry and the Committee for Green Foothills may disagree about what precipitated the quarry’s agreement to stop dumping waste rock and revegetate the hillside scar visible from Los Altos and Los Altos Hills. But that doesn’t mean the two groups don’t share any common ground.

The quarry recently rearranged its dumping process to speed up revegetating the site upon a suggestion from the committee, said John Giovanola, community affairs manager for Hanson Permanente.

Police turn fatal accident case over to district attorney

Los Altos police officers handed over their investigation of the 20-year-old driver who struck and killed a pedestrian on San Antonio Road April 2 to the Santa Clara County District Attorney last week for further review. The district attorney had not yet responded to police Monday afternoon, a police spokeswoman said.

The investigation is routine procedure in collisions involving a death. The district attorney will determine whether the action of the driver should result in manslaughter charges based on the police report.

Los Altos adds historic house to city’s inventory

A historic cottage built by the man whom many consider to be the world’s most influential modern architect secured a permanent Los Altos address last week after months of an uncertain fate.

The Los Altos City Council agreed to provide land next to the historic DeMartini House, now called the Community House, at civic center for the cottage if sponsors pay the relocation fees and fund ongoing maintenance. They have until May 15 to raise $100,000 for the moving costs.

LAH tries to keep deer from getting ‘out-fenced’

Good fences don’t make good neighbors if your friends are deer and other wildlife.

In a city where high property values are leading to more subdivisions and fewer parcels of undeveloped land, tall, imposing fences put up by residents to protect their seclusion and valuable properties are replacing the open, split-rail fences that used to be found in the fields and meadows of Los Altos Hills.

Letters to the editor

Thinking about what really matters
S. Nelson

Regarding the Rev. Michael Clark’s input in the “Spiritual” section of the Town Crier (April 20), I was very moved and would like to echo those same inputs about listening to God. In a fast-paced, in-your-face society like ours, it’s nice to take a moment […]

Terri Schiavo, poster child for dialogue

Terri Schiavo is not the poster child for the rights of the disabled or the “culture of life.” If anything, she is the poster child for people suffering from eating disorders, for people who have yet to draw up a living will and for legislative bodies that write laws that apply exclusively to a single family. I just read about a living will that was actually amended to read, “I really, really, really, really mean this,” and another one that stipulated, “Even if Congress passes a new law to keep me alive, I still refuse additional treatment.” No kidding, it’s really, really, really, really come to that.

The Schiavo debacle was, according to House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, a case of a willful judiciary gone amok. Activist judges (those who allow gay marriages or the withdrawal of feeding tubes, not those who park the Ten Commandments affixed to a boulder in the middle of a government rotunda) beware, because DeLay wants you punished; he wants you out. Sen. John Cornyn even argues that judiciary activism has led to recent episodes of courtroom violence, ignoring the patently obvious fact that courtroom violence occurs when deranged people are reluctant to serve prison time for their crimes.

A fond farewell to our fun-loving man on the street

Those of you who read the Town Crier closely have no doubt observed in recent issues the absence of a name that filled the paper continuously for more than a dozen years. I’m talking about Clyde Noel.

Just a few weeks ago, Clyde officially retired from his numerous Town Crier duties. He will be missed greatly. Here’s why.

Obituary Notices

LYMAN LEONARD CLARK
Lyman L. Clark, born on December 10, 1915 in Virginia City, Nevada, passed away peacefully Friday morning, April 15 at his home for some 50 years in Los Altos. Lyman leaves his beloved wife Mary Margaret, his 2 children, Sally Clark Michel of McLean, Virginia and Steve […]

People

Semona Ho and Forrest Christien Lundgren
Semona Ho and Forrest Christien Lundgren have announced their engagement to be married this spring.
The bride-to-be is the daughter of Tse Yuen Fang, of Shenzhen, China. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Tourism Management from the Overseas Chinese University in China. She owns and is managing […]

Noteworthies

Drew Rathjen, a senior at Los Altos High School, recently visited Bendigo, Australia, for a two-week student exchange, Los Altos Sister Cities has announced.

Drew, son of Tom and Christy Rathjen, stayed with Wendy and Peter Millar. The Millar’s son, Ben, introduced Drew to Bendigo Senior Secondary School. Coincidently, Peter Millar is a teacher as is Drew’s mother Cristy Dawson, who is vice principal at Los Altos High.

Morning Forum speaker: Fiscal crisis turning California dream into nightmare

David Davenport, a professor of public policy and the former president of Pepperdine University, came to speak to the Los Altos Morning Forum April 21, on the topic “A Reform Agenda for the Golden State - Can Even the Terminator Reform California?”

The former attorney was concerned that the California dream was slowly developing into a full-time nightmare.

Water district celebrates 50 years

The Purissima Hills Water District, which serves two-thirds of Los Altos Hills, was poised to discuss Tuesday plans for celebrating its 50th year of operation.

The district was formed in 1955 and is governed by a five-member board of directors.

‘Kids say the darndest things’ at Hidden Villa

In the Bay Area, where many of us are disconnected from the source of our food and the joy of being in nature, folks at Hidden Villa have been making a difference through the Los Altos Hills preserve’s Environmental Education Program.

“The goal of the program is to reconnect children to their natural world and their food,” said Chris Overington, director of the program.

Choraliers to raise voices in salute of their legendary, retiring professor

San Jose State University Choral Alumni and friends plan to celebrate the 47-year legacy of Charlene Archibeque, a Los Altos Hills resident and 35-year music professor at SJSU, with a special weekend of two concerts and activities in downtown San Jose.

Former SJSU Concert Choir and Choraliers members, now singing professionally, will present “Artist Showcase” 5:30 p.m., Friday, in the SJSU Concert Hall. Singers include Opera San Jose leads Lori Decter, soprano, Joseph Wright, bass-baritone, Sandra Rubalcava, mezzo, and David Cox, director/baritone. Other world-renowned singers will return from Europe and New York City to perform solos and duets.

CSMA lecture series takes on Elvis and the impact of rock ‘n’roll

“Is Elvis Really the King?” That’s the question posed in the latest installment of the Community School of Music and Arts’ Classes w/o Quizzes Arts Lecture Series, set for 7:30 p.m., May 6, at the Mountain View arts center.

“Is Elvis Really the King?” features Foothill College music professor Robert Hartwell, author, pianist, historian and educator, tracing the emergence of rock in the 1950s, discussing some of its most colorful figures, including Elvis, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis and other icons of American music.

Child Advocates holds 3rd ‘Birdhouse Bash’ in Los Altos

Child Advocates is hosting its annual spring fund-raiser, the 2005 Birdhouse Bash, 2-5 p.m., May 21, in the gardens of a Los Altos home featured in the second annual Los Altos History Museum Spring Home & Garden Tour.

More than 100 handcrafted birdhouses created by local artists, designers and foster children will be displayed throughout the garden and sold to the highest bidders.

CHAC’s MacDonald named 2005 CSA winner

Joan MacDonald has been named the 2005 Community Service Award winner by the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors Los Altos-Mountain View District.

The Mountain View resident, who taught English at Foothill and De Anza colleges for 36 years, is one of the founders of the Community Health Awareness Council and has been on the board of the counseling organization since its beginning in 1973.

Former Foothill student making mark as accomplished artist, Paralympic athlete

It started as a three-week vacation but became a 16-month odyssey that took Gregory Burns through the heart of the Asian continent. He was an anomaly - a foreigner on crutches traveling much of the way alone, stopping to paint what caught his eye. As he painted, the crowds that gathered often grew so large that all he could see were arms and elbows.

The Asian sojourn of his youth left a deep and lasting impact.

Pixar scientist to serve up ‘A Taste of Technology’

The Los Altos/Mountain View Branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) introduces “A Taste of Technology!” at a tea scheduled 2-4 p.m., May 7, at the Los Altos Youth Center, 1 N. San Antonio Road.

Danielle Feinberg of Pixar Studios, an AAUW Tech Trek Science Camp leader, will discuss state-of-the-art technology with the audience of Tech Trek and Tech Time Science Club girls and parents. For more information, call 967-7898.

World War II vet awash with memories after 60th-anniversary visit to Iwo Jima

Longtime Los Altos Hills residents Doris and John Fondahl have just returned from an emotional trip to Iwo Jima, where they attended a national ceremony marking the 60th anniversary of the epic World War II battle. They also toured and took part in ceremonies on Saipan, Tinian, Guam and Oahu.

A couple of years ago the couple had lunch with Joe Rosenthal, the photographer of the famous flag-raising shot. At 93, he is in retirement in Novato. It turned out that he also graduated from their high school, 12 years before they did. When they heard of the proposed 60th-anniversary trip leaving March 5, they decided to go.

Rancho pancake breakfast returns to benefit American Cancer Society

The annual Rancho Shopping Center Pancake Breakfast is scheduled 8-11 a.m., May 7, after having been canceled last year. The event is sponsored by Covington School and Focused Individual Training (FIT). Proceeds will benefit the Los Altos/Los Altos Hills Relay For Life.

The breakfast will follow the tradition of pancakes, sausage and orange juice for the low cost of $5 for adults and $3 for children.

Packard Art Studio exhibit through May 11

Seventeen local artists, all members of the Packard Art Studio of Los Altos, are displaying their contemporary artworks at Exhibit 2005.

The event is being held at Mountain View City Hall through May 11. The works on display are varied in content, color tones and texture. “We are delighted with the work,” said Jean Packard, director of the art studio.

Collection of quilts defined LAH resident’s strong bond with Native American artists

Los Altos Hills is home to a spectacular collection of Native American quilts. The late Florence Pulford spent the last 22 years of her life facilitating and preserving the art of quilting among her Native American friends.

Although many of Pulford’s quilts have been sold to museums or private collectors, more than 100 remain.

Winners of ‘Arts Alive’juried show on exhibit at Main Street Cafe & Books

Approximately 60 works have been selected among 128 pieces entered for this year’s juried art competition as part of Arts Alive month in downtown Los Altos. These works are currently on display at Main Street Cafe & Books, 134 Main St., through May 15.

The exhibited works include the top winners in the competition, including two “Best of Show” winners, “Spring Poppies,” by Los Altos resident Jerry Humpal, and “Rocky Shore” by Rosemarie Gorman of Mountain View.

Arts Alive 2005 gets rave reviews from many downtown patrons

April 16 was a fine day to meander through Los Altos, following the balloons, to see all the artists exhibiting in shops throughout the Village as well as admire the street banners painted by local schoolchildren. Local plein air artists turned out to paint the town again - held this month and this year focusing on downtown historic sites.

For this second annual Arts Alive - enthusiastically organized by the Los Altos Village Association - there were much larger crowds strolling through the shops as well as a lot more artists participating. Thirty-seven artists worked with local merchants to intermingle artwork and merchandise in store windows and above display shelves.

Hospital gala launches campaign for new campus

The El Camino Hospital Foundation has scheduled a gala celebration, “Above and Beyond,” May 7, at the Los Altos Golf & Country Club. The evening will commence with a cocktail reception at 6 p.m., followed by dinner and the program at 7 p.m.

The celebration anticipates the October groundbreaking for the hospital’s new campus and provides an opportunity to recognize the lead donors, whose early contributions helped finance construction.

Los Altos viewed flaming sky on night of 1906 earthquake

Silent films were first shown in Los Altos to the public in September 1925. The venue was the Los Altos Grammar School Assembly Hall. Films were shown on one Saturday night a month, and the admission charged was 25 cents for adults and 15 cents for children. Their six-month schedule began with “Charlie’s Aunt” and ended with “A Girl of the Limberlost.” A short comedy accompanied feature films.

• Several of our oral histories tell of seeing the flaming red northern night sky caused by the San Francisco fire in 1906. Except for in Los Altos Hills, comparable glimpses of our night skies now would be rare because of the subsequent growth of large residential trees.

CSMA benefit features Pete Escovedo on May 14

The Community School of Music and Arts (CSMA) presents “Gala Fantástica, A Celebration of Art and Music” 6-11 p.m., May 14, at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View. All proceeds will benefit CSMA’s education programs, including arts-in-the-schools, and its financial aid program for low-income students and families.

The festive evening will also include an elegant dinner, dancing, museum tours, and silent and live auctions, featuring unique art, wine and travel opportunities (including a six-day Jamaican getaway). CSMA faculty members and talented Merit Scholar students will provide musical entertainment. Headlining the evening will be Latin jazz by Pete Escovedo and his nine-piece orchestra.

Calendar

Ongoing
Los Altos Senior Center, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Hillview Community Center, 97 Hillview Ave.
Today
Los Altos Hills Planning Commission, 7:30 p.m., 25890 Fremont Ave.
Monday
Los Altos School District Board of Trustees, 7 p.m., 201 Covington Road.
Foothill-De Anza Community College District Board of Trustees, 7 p.m., […]

Pet of the Week

Diana is a 5-year-old female cat available for adoption at Palo Alto Animal Services. Diana came to the shelter in early February with a severely injured back leg. Her injuries were either caused by the attack of another animal or being hit by a vehicle. Her leg couldn’t be saved and was amputated by the veterinarian. Diana has made a significant recovery and being on three legs instead of four hasn’t slowed her down any, workers say. Diana is a gentle cat who is looking for a quiet, indoor home where she can be the only feline. To adopt Diana, contact Palo Alto Animal Services, 3281 E. Bayshore Road, by calling 496-5971.

Banana Slugs celebrate Mother’s Day at Hidden Villa preserve in Los Altos Hills

Hidden Villa in Los Altos Hills has scheduled a Mother’s Day concert featuring the renowned Banana Slug String Band, 5-7:30 p.m., May 8, on the outdoor stage at the Visitors Welcome Center.

Billed as the “Best Ecological Musicians on the Planet,” the Banana Slugs blend music, theater, puppetry and audience participation in their performances. Based in Santa Cruz, members include Steve Van Zandt, Mark Nolan, Larry Graff and Doug Greenfield.

Los Altos Kiwanis Club announces scholarships

The Los Altos Kiwanis Club has announced that applications are being accepted for four $2,000 scholarships for students planning on attending local community colleges in the fall.

The students must be enrolled in the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District, and planning on attending Foothill or De Anza colleges in the fall.

Community Briefs

CSA hosts mystery dinner theater benefit
Community Services Agency of Mountain View and Los Altos has scheduled its second annual murder mystery theater fund-raiser 6:30-10:30 p.m., May 6, at the Crowne Plaza Cabana Hotel in Palo Alto.
Chaired by CSA board member Melody Schmickrath, the dinner theater event will feature a cocktail reception, […]

Junior Olympics expected to draw 1,300 young athletes to Los Altos High School

On Saturday, some 1,300 fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders in the Los Altos School District will take to the field to participate in the 45th Junior Olympics.

This year’s event is set to begin at 8:15 a.m. with a 1,320-yard run on the fields at Los Altos High School.

MV-LA to tighten expulsion policy with likely addition of review board

In the wake of the recent successful appeal of an expulsion, trustees and administrators in the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District are rethinking their process for punishing students, but trustees said the district is determined to keep its hard-line approach.

Following a case in which four Mountain View High School seniors who vandalized facilities had their expulsions overturned, trustees are expected to move forward on Superintendent Rich Fischer’s recommendation to create an administrative panel to conduct expulsion hearings. Up until now, board members conducted such hearings themselves. The board is expected to approve a recommendation at its May 9 meeting.

Tech Challenge students solve real-world problems

Students from Los Altos are scheduled to participate in The Tech Museum of Innovation’s 18th annual Tech Challenge student design competition Saturday.

Tech Challenge is based on The Tech’s “Design in Mind” learning model that asks students to solve a real-world problem and supports them as they work through a solution. This year, students are engineering a solution to extinguish a simulated forest fire in “Battle the Blaze.”

Homestead High students place first in recent regional math competition

The math whizzes of Homestead High School scored big at the 2004-2005 Mu Alpha Theta “Log 1″ Contest, ranking first for the western region. The contest was sponsored by the Mu Alpha Theta national math honor society.

Homestead High boasts 19 members of Mu Alpha Theta. Members of the honor society from around the world competed in four geographic divisions at either Mu, Alpha and Theta levels. Students in algebra II, geometry, or lower competed in the Theta division; students in pre-calculus competed in Alpha; and students who have taken calculus courses competed in Mu.

Bullis Charter School officials proud of $360,000 state grant

Bullis Charter School officials are excited about being one of two schools in Santa Clara County to recently receive a $360,000 Charter School Implementation Grant by the state Board of Education.

“It is quite an endorsement by the state and we are very proud,” said Principal Wanny Hersey. “There were three types of grants: start-up, implementation, and dissemination. We were only eligible to apply for the implementation grant as the former is for schools that have not opened its doors and the latter is for those who are in the position to mentor others.”

Schools Briefs

Locals can host Muslim students
Foreign exchange high school students from primarily Muslim countries are seeking host families for next school year.
Academic Year in America, one of the largest and most respected programs in the United States, has been awarded grants for the Future Leaders Exchange Program (FLEX) and the […]

Home, sweet home

What seemed like the never-ending road trip has come to an end for the St. Francis High baseball team.

After playing the first 20 games of the season away due to the renovation of their athletic fields, the Lancers last week finally played at home.

Major indexes end the week up despite Friday’s slide

The stock market was down Friday, but it ended the week on a positive note. Oil was volatile, moving to the mid-$50 range, while North Korean saber rattling added to the jitters in Friday’s session. The New York Stock Exchange composite, which is a broad index of the overall market, notched a meager gain of 0.8 percent for the week. The S&P SmallCap 600 ended the week up 1.6 percent after a slide of more than 10 percent since Jan. 1. Friday’s volume was light, which is generally interpreted as a positive indicator. The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones industrial average both finished in positive territory for the week, up 0.8 percent and 0.7 percent respectively.

The Nasdaq rose 1.3 percent for the five-day session, accelerated by a surge in the share price of Google, which reported earnings that beat the analysts’ expected results. Not all Nasdaq leaders participated in the gains. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, which includes many of the Town Crier index stocks, continued its year-to-date slide, finishing down 1.4 percent on Friday.

Loyola Corners bounces back

Loyola Corners has seen its share of ups and downs over the last few years. The district has a history as a vibrant commercial center that reaches back more than a

century, but when the dot-com bubble burst and the economy went sour, motorists on Foothill Expressway zoomed past without stopping, and Loyola Corners began losing its businesses and eateries.

Emotional quotient, not IQ, can help you succeed in business

You may have a high intelligence quotient, but if your emotional quotient is low, you will have difficulty negotiating, influencing others or winning the rewards you deserve.

We measure your emotional intelligence by five categories: the ability to read others, the ability to soothe yourself, the ability to manage anger, the ability to know your impact on others and the ability to delay satisfaction.

‘Prep’ an undemanding novel about Midwesterner’s experience in posh Eastern school

Growing up in two places - a suburb of Vienna, Austria, and a suburb in Ohio’s rust belt - didn’t expose me to gaping disparities in wealth. In Ohio, the richest children were the pharmacists’ and doctors’ children. They owned sturdy houses in Austin Estates; the rest of us rented. A few had in-ground pools; the rest of us had above-ground pools from Kmart that blew away during tornadoes. But that was about it. In Austria, huge wealth deltas would be considered shameful. People owned homes and cobbled together a good life as vintners, seamstresses, snow removers; they lived next door to lawyers and businessmen.

Then at Mount Holyoke College, I met Sally, whose dad owned a mattress factory and seven Rolls-Royces - a beer-and-pretzels millionaire compared to the champagne-and-caviar millionaires running Wall Street and corporations, but still. Sally threw herself a birthday party fall of freshman year. It didn’t occur to her to serve refreshments; the guests’ pleasure was to consist of watching Sally open her presents - dozens of presents, each carefully wrapped so the paper overlapped without a seam. I left after the alpaca sweater - to study. (To Sally’s chagrin, I beat her four years running for first in class. It upset the natural order of things.)

Inventor offers advice on converting ideas to royalties

“I believe that anyone can train his/her mind to have the mindset of an inventor,” the longtime Los Altos Hills resident Alvin H. Sacks, writes in “The Joy of Inventing” (AuthorHouse, 2005).

Sacks believes anyone with some interest in putting things together and making them work can become an inventor.

Town Crier Train Tours heads to Mexico’s most beautiful rail route

To see the Grand Canyon, one takes a boat. To see Mexico’s Copper Canyon, one takes the train. Local residents have the opportunity to visit Copper Canyon, North America’s deepest canyon, Nov. 1-7, on board a vintage American Orient Express train. The trip is sponsored by Town Crier Train Tours.

“Copper Canyon is far larger than Arizona’s Grand Canyon,” said Paul Nyberg, an admitted train buff who founded Town Crier Train Tours to satisfy his longing to travel by train in the company of friends. “The rail route passes through 87 tunnels and crosses 39 bridges - the sort of things that give train enthusiasts goose bumps.”

Home Preservation Services there to provide maintenance when busy homeowners cannot

Working professionals have busy schedules as it is. Add children and there’s barely enough time to take out the trash, much less clean gutters, fix a leaky roof or repair a broken furnace.

What is a busy Los Altos homeowner to do when the routine chores of house maintenance eat away at what little free time is left?

Datebook

Datebook items are run on a space-available basis for entertainment, non-profit events, low-cost classes and groups of wide interest in our circulation area. The deadline is noon, Tuesday, for the next week’s paper. Notices must be typed and include a contact name and phone number. Items may be submitted via e-mail (peteb@latc.com); fax (948-6647) or post (138 Main St., Los Altos, CA 94022).

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