By John Flood

JOHN FLOOD/TOWN CRIER Dos Palos neighborhood children enjoy snow cones to cool off on a hot day during the Sept. 17 block party.

In an expression of neighborhood solidarity and family fun, nearly 150 residents of the Dos Palos area turned out for their second annual neighborhood party Sept. 17.

Organized around the theme “Neighbors Helping Neighbors,” Dos Palos neighborhood leaders organized the party to encourage more resident interaction and to foster neighborhood support, especially about disaster preparedness. A team of about 30 Dos Palos volunteers organized the event. Residents of all ages attended: The youngest was 13 days old, the oldest, 91 years.

“This year we focused on disaster preparedness,” said Jane Truscott, one of the party organizers. “We encouraged elderly people to provide a neighbor with contact information of a relative in case we need to help them in an emergency.”

Chairs and tables were set up under the oak trees along San Domingo Way. Men took charge of barbecue grills and cooked hamburgers, while the women set out plates of appetizers and kept an eye on the children. A man strummed a guitar nearby. Some of the grandparents and retired residents sat in the shade chatting with friends. Children had fun with face painting and jumped in a bounce house. About 40 children rode in the bike parade. A fitting conclusion to the party was the children’s pie-eating contest, a fine way to end a near-perfect day.

Not unlike many Los Altos neighborhoods, Dos Palos comprises quiet meandering streets where young families and retired couples live side-by-side in well-kept homes among neatly cut gardens and lawns.

“This is truly a neighborhood, and the streets are safe like the way they were where I grew up,” said Alan Truscott, who lives on San Domingo Way with his wife, Jane, and their two children.

“We play catch in the street,” said Truscott, who moved to Dos Palos five years ago from Sunnyvale.

Rick Gould and his wife, Nicole, have lived on Pine Lane for four years, where they are raising twin girls.

“This is a nice community and it’s safe,” Gould said. “Some of the kids who grew up here moved away and came back to settle as adults. It’s a good community.”

The demographics here are a snapshot of other Los Altos neighborhoods. Retired couples are moving out and new families are moving in.

Marilyn Stratz, who lives on Torwood Court, moved to Los Altos from Chicago with her husband, Al, in 1975.

“My children went to Egan, Santa Rita and Los Altos High schools. One of them still lives in Los Altos,” Stratz said. “It’s nice to see these young families here.”

Duane Stauffer, a retired Proctor & Gamble executive, moved from Cincinnati 40 years ago to Hacienda Way, where he and his wife, Carol, have raised two children.

“My children attended Egan, Santa Rita and Los Altos High schools,” Stauffer said.

These days, Stauffer enjoys morning walks with other retired residents of Dos Palos.

Randy Kester and his wife, Valley, moved into their renovated home on San Domingo Way a year ago with their daughter, Jamie, who is in grade school.

“Dos Palos has a special feeling. Look at those beautiful oak trees,” Kester said. “It’s like an island, and it’s near the village, where I can walk or ride a bike.”

Send suggestions for neighborhood profiles to editor Bruce Barton at bruceb@latc.com or by calling 948-9000, ext. 301.