Valued volunteers

They’re there to greet you at the entrance and wheel you to your car when you go home. If you’re confused and have questions, they’ll find the answers. When you need a ride to a doctor’s appointment, they’re the drivers behind the wheel. If you’re lost, they’ll help you find your way.

These are the ladies in pink pinafores and gentlemen in red vests at El Camino Hospital who provide the extra services that keep a bustling medical-care center organized, for patients and for staff. They are Auxiliary volunteers, and though they’re not paid for the work they do, they reap the benefits of personal satisfaction that only community service from the heart can offer.

LASD advisers predict deficit for next five years

The Los Altos School District Board of Trustees heard a financial earful April 7, including a report from the Citizen’s Advisory Committee for Finance and a budget update from Randy Kenyon, assistant superintendent for business services.

Both reports shed light on the fact that the district may be facing up to five years of deficit, beginning next year. Kenyon has already reported the district may have an $800,000 deficit for the 2008-2009 school year.

Grant Park sand subject to passionate defense

Parents who frequent Grant Park on Holt Avenue in Los Altos reacted with dismay to the city council’s decision to renovate the park with wood-fiber chips in place of its signature sand. The Grant and Montclaire playgrounds are scheduled for facelifts this spring, with $276,950 in new play equipment.

In the case of Grant Park, the all-sand play area is set for replacement with Fibar-brand engineered woodchips (also called tanbark) under play structures and a smaller sand area.

LAH weighs Bullis-Purissima School name change

As the Los Altos School District continues discussions about renaming Bullis-Purissima School when it reopens, the Los Altos Hills City Council upheld a neutral stance on the issue and is grateful just to have education returning to town in August, said Mayor Craig Jones.

“While a name can be important, the most important thing is the quality of education that is going to be taught there,” Jones said.

City honors LA pioneer at site of former residence

The new 5,000-square-foot, two-story office building at First Street and Edith Avenue provided the backdrop last week for a dedication ceremony to George Ramsey, a notable figure from Los Altos’ early days.

Los Altos Mayor Val Carpenter proclaimed April 9 “George Bare Ramsey Day” in honor of the late pioneer who established a popular business, Los Altos Garage, and whose Spanish-style home the new office building has replaced.

Dispatchers keep city safe at the end of the line

Call 911 on your cell phone in different parts of Los Altos and the call can go anywhere – highway patrol headquarters in Vallejo, emergency operators in nearby cities or into the headset of Los Altos dispatchers such as Tracie De Lira. The Los Altos Police Department named De Lira Dispatcher of the Year and this week she and other 911 operators are being recognized for their quiet contributions.

Although they are less visible than the beat officers writing tickets around town, the dispatchers interact with residents nonstop during the day, fielding requests for advice, calls for an officer and help for dire emergencies. De Lira answered when a hoaxer called to say he had shot multiple people near Los Altos High School earlier this year. In her eight years answering emergency calls, she has learned to exercise her judgment on the fly, and she said that even in a quiet city, dispatchers are kept on their toes by the constant stream of calls.

Police Blotter

Bank robbery

April 14, 2:50 p.m., 227 S. San Antonio Road: A white man in a wig and baseball cap entered Bank of America, handed the teller a note demanding money, took money and fled the scene on a bike, according to Detective Paul Epley. As of press deadline, police were still interviewing bank employees on the scene and released no further details.

News Brief

MVLA agrees to televise joint meeting

The Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District board has agreed to allow its June 9 joint meeting with the Los Altos City Council to be televised. The city council’s meetings customarily air on cable Channel 26.

Editorials

The 1910-era home at 500 University Ave., otherwise known as the Paul Shoup house, is currently the center of a city controversy over whether a proposed remodel would compromise its historical integrity.

The proposed changes, extensive throughout the interior but relatively minimal outside, have the blessing of the Los Altos Historical Commission and city staff. However, two of three members on the city’s Architecture and Site Review Committee, a subcommittee of the Planning Commission, do take issue with the designs, frustrating homeowners William and Patricia Jennings. The impasse has resulted in an appeal to the Los Altos City Council, which fumbled the item around at the March 25 meeting before punting it back to the same committee that had rejected the plans.

Letters to the Editor

Native plants statement didn’t make sense

In recent years, I’ve worked on my Los Altos yard to provide habitat value for birds, butterflies and beneficial insects. I’ve read up on plants that are native to Los Altos to learn which would look pretty in my yard and help the birds.

Reflections

Thank you to Ecclesiastes for giving me a thoughtful way to begin my spring column. There no longer can be any doubt that we have moved into the brightest and most colorful season of the year. I am reminded of going into a fine bakery to choose my favorite treat: the cheesecake? the bundt cake? the lemon meringue pie? When I visit a large nursery, I am overwhelmed by the colors, the fragrances, the sheer beauty of nature’s outpourings. Oh God, I want one of everything!

My garden continues to be a place for deep pleasure as it surprises me every day. The lilac bushes are bursting with their special shade of purple that would be fitting for a bridal bouquet. The fragrance alone sends a come hither message - and I do. I put up with prodigious sneezes, but it is worth the delight. Little tiny plants pop up to welcome spring. They know exactly where they belong. I only wish they would stay longer, but the short time they stay each year seems to reinforce the extraordinary power of nature. Our trees, too, have all joined the celebration with fresh, green leaves, while the majestic oak looks down at all the newcomers with gracious nods as the breezes stir the king of my garden.

Noteworthy

Peet’s Coffee & Tea officials announced last week they have awarded Lauren Glazebrook of Los Altos Hills a year’s supply of coffee after she won a national contest with an essay about why she loves Peet’s.

“Lauren shared a story about why she loves Peet’s coffee with five friends through the Peet’s Web site,” said spokeswoman Kristy Cory. “Based on the merits of her story, she and her five friends have won free coffee beans for a year: a comparative tasting of Peet’s coffee beans with two pounds of beans delivered each month for 12 months.”

Wedding: Michelle Smith and Joseph Conzonire Jr.

Michelle Smith and Joseph Conzonire Jr. were married July 28 in Menlo Park.

The bride is the daughter of Howard and Rhonda Smith of Los Altos. She graduated from Los Altos High School, earned a bachelor’s degree in general studies from the University of Southern California and a master’s degree in education from California State University at Northridge. She is a fifth-grade teacher.

Wedding: Maria Walker and Peter Wentworth

Maria Walker and Peter Wentworth were married Oct. 20 at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco.

The bride is the daughter of Stephen and Susannah Walker of Redmond, Wash. She graduated from Eastlake High School and earned a bachelor’s degree from Arizona State University and a postgraduate degree from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in San Francisco. She is employed as an associate buyer at Macy’s West.

Antiochian Church of the Redeemer completes restoration with traditional iconography

Iconographer Dmitry Shkolink looked over his images of Jesus Christ, Mary and the disciples last week as his crew of artisans began work crafting the 15th-century-era icons at the rebuilt Antiochian Orthodox Church of the Redeemer on Magdalena Avenue near Los Altos.

“Everything is traditional,” Shkolink said of the figures, their recent creation exuding newness despite their centuries-old references. Using acrylics, Shkolink had some images hand-painted directly on the fresh walls of the church, others created on canvas in his San Carlos studio were glued to the walls.

Campbell doesn’t mince numbers on state, federal debt

Former U.S. Congressman and state Senator Tom Campbell presented a serious look at the current economics of the federal and state budgets during a March 29 appearance at a meeting of the South Peninsula Area Republican Coalition (SPARC). The event took place at Michaels at Shoreline in Mountain View.

LA Library issues ‘Global Warming Challenge’

The Los Altos Library, Cool Los Altos, the League of Women Voters of Los Altos-Mountain View and Hidden Villa have scheduled the Los Altos Global Warming Challenge 7 p.m. April 23 in the main library program room, 13 S. San Antonio Road.

Chris Field, founding director of the Carnegie Institution’s Department of Global Ecology, professor of Biological Sciences at Stanford University and faculty director of Stanford’s Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve, will address the topic of global warming, its expected effects on climate change and local solutions, including how to reduce carbon footprints.

Community Briefs

Los Altos Library features author Kalish

As part of the seventh annual Speaking Volumes series, the Los Altos Library Endowment has scheduled Mildred Armstrong Kalish, author of a book deemed by the New York Times as among the “10 Best Books of 2007,” to speak 4 p.m. Friday in the program room of the main library, 13 S. San Antonio Road.

Community center feedback: Interest in improved facilities prevails

At the March 28 Los Altos Master Plan advisory meeting, Anderson Brule Architects (ABA) presented a summary of the findings from the Community Forum held in early March, as well as common themes expressed at focus group meetings, key interviews and the community survey.

ABA reported that the community is interested in maintaining existing city services within the civic center property, the library and programs for seniors and youth.

LASD teachers concerned about unresolved contracts

When Robin Sacks began teaching in the Los Altos School District in 1969, within three years she was able to buy her starter home – a three-bedroom house in Palo Alto.

Today, a teacher in the district has a starting salary of $44,388, and is lucky if he or she can afford a one-bedroom condominium in San Jose, Sacks said.

LASD parents demand better communication

Approximately 150 Almond School parents and students attended the April 7 Los Altos School District Board of Trustees meeting to voice their support for Almond School Principal Joe McCreary and state their discontent with the district’s communication throughout the hiring process for a permanent principal.

Last month, parents received a notice announcing that Terri Stromfeld, a principal in the Oak Grove School District, would be principal at Almond next year, not the current interim principal, McCreary.

MVHS graduate wins Pulitzer

Town Crier Staff Report

Mountain View High School graduate Jose Antonio Vargas was one of several reporters at The Washington Post recognized in the Breaking News Pulitzer Prize awarded last week.

Oak hosts Earth Week Fair

Oak School has scheduled its Earth Week Fair 2:30-5:30 p.m. April 23 at the school, 1501 Oak Ave., Los Altos. Refreshments will be offered.

The event should increase the awareness of human and environmental interactions that cause damage to ecosystems and offer simple, easy-to-achieve solutions for adults and children.

Schools Briefs

Covington School hosts new students

Students who will attend Covington School next year due to enrollment adjustments are invited to visit the campus 3:30-4:30 p.m. May 28.

Noteworthies

Santa Clara University student Yasameen Sharifi of Los Altos spent the fall semester studying in Washington, D.C., as part of American University’s Washington Semester Program in international law organizations.

The Washington semester in international law and organization focused on the expanding role of law in governing relations among nations while an interdependent world turns to multinational organizations in the making of global policy.

Eagles’ bats come alive

Los Altos High’s ace finally got some offensive support to back up a solid pitching performance.

Erik Johnson, who has been on the wrong end of several low-scoring losses this season, picked up the win Friday in Los Altos’ 9-0 baseball rout of Homestead. The UC Berkeley-bound senior improved to 3-4.

Filios among several local coaches who won’t return next season

Spring has sprung coaching changes at four local high schools. Here’s a rundown of who’s leaving, who’s replacing them and which jobs remain unfilled.

Filios steps down at St. Francis

Mtn. View’s depth leads to sweep of Gunn

The Gunn High girls won more events, but Mountain View High found strength in numbers – enough to win last week’s track and field meet. The visiting Spartans prevailed 75-52 to remain undefeated in the SCVAL De Anza Division.

“We were able to sneak by Gunn due to our superior depth,” said Mountain View coach Evan Smith, whose girls improved to 5-0. “Gunn (3-1) had the majority of the first-place victories with their great athletes like Sunny Margerum and their excellent distance runners, but we were able to pick up a lot of second and third places to keep the score close.”

Sports on the Side

MV softball takes 3rd

The Mountain View High softball team finished third in the Mission College Invitational last weekend. The Spartans went 5-1 in the tournament, rallying from a nine-run deficit to beat Leigh 10-9 in Saturday’s third-place game. Nicole Arevalo slugged two home runs in the win.

For 4th year in a row, MV unbeaten in golf

There isn’t a player on the Mountain View High golf team who can recall the Spartans’ last loss in league. That’s because all of them were in junior high or elementary school when it happened.

Mountain View hasn’t been defeated in league play since April 2004, according to longtime coach Steve Miyano. The next season, the Spartans started a winning streak that has reached 48 league matches in a row.

In print or on the spit

Abevy of books has come out over the last year that play with the connection among geeky food history, kitchen technology and the recipes we cook each night. They make good pleasure reading but can also nudge a cook to try new things in the kitchen. With each year that passes, local food stores are expanding the accessibility of specialty products that can make a medieval feast or Roman repast easy to revive at home.

Kate Colquhoun’s meaty, playful “Taste: The Story of Britain Through Its Cooking” (Bloomsbury, 2007) captures the evolution of Western European eating that crossed the Atlantic to inform many of the dishes and conventions of American cookery today. Some of the most fun in the book comes in the early chapters, which explore the fermented fish juice of the Roman occupation two millennia ago, invoked today in Thai fish sauce and American ketchup.

Winemakers have a great day at the Barn

Los Altos Hills wineries poured their wines at the Westwind Community Barn for the third time last month. For Westwind & Wineries III, event organizers treated more than 200 guests to the wines of the Hills and to a glimpse of the wonderful work at the Westwind Barn.

The goal of committee chairwoman Elayne Dauber was to gather 30 wineries to help celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Barn. She came close, with 25 wineries pouring 34 wines. There may be more wineries in the Hills, but this was certainly a good representation.

Comings and goings: A cooking leader leaves, German bakers come to town

Los Altos High School is in the market for a new culinary leader, a German Bakery is opening its first retail outlet in town and local mail-order food entrepreneur Greg Miller is fielding a surge of business fueled by daytime TV.

LAHS chefs seek leader

‘Caroline’ challenges perceptions

Artistic director Robert Kelley’s revival of the Tony Kushner musical “Caroline, or Change,” playing at TheatreWorks in Mountain View, visits two families during the winter of 1963 in Louisiana.

Their conflicts occur against a backdrop of the growing civil rights movement. Jeanine Tesori’s music reflects this setting, adding dissonant jangles of Christmas and Hanukkah music to a mélange of blues, Motown and klezmer.

El Camino Youth Symphony’s benefit concert slated for Saturday at Cupertino’s Flint Center

The El Camino Youth Symphony’s annual benefit concert is scheduled 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Flint Center in Cupertino.

Camilla Kolchinsky, ECYS music director and conductor, will lead the symphony. Martin Chalifour, principal concertmaster for the Los Angeles Philharmonic, is slated to be the special guest artist.

MPPC invites community to lend a hand during ‘Compassion Weekend’ April 26, 27

Imagine 1,500 people coming together to assemble 6,640 “AIDS caregiver kits” that could help nearly 100,000 victims in sub-Saharan Africa. That’s what’s taking shape at a “Compassion Weekend” April 26 and 27 involving parishioners at Menlo Park Presbyterian and two satellite churches in Mountain View and San Mateo. The churches serve 881 parishioners from Los Altos and Los Altos Hills.

The AIDS kit assemblies are one of several ways people can contribute during the event. Instead of attending church services, parishioners can opt for helping others in the areas of health care, education or humanity. Choices range from beautifying grounds at Bayshore Christian Ministries to fixing up classrooms in the economically disadvantaged Ravenswood School District in East Palo Alto. The AIDS kit assembly falls under health care.

JANICE B. NEWMAN

Jan passed away suddenly at her home in San Jose on April 1, 2008. Born April 22, 1953 in Palo Alto, she was married for 32 years to her college sweetheart James. Devoted mother of Karen and Bradley, daughter of Jeane and the late Royce Bennington of Los Altos, she is also survived by her sister Paula Rini and her husband Mario and children Christopher and Alyssa, of Los Altos. Also surviving are her mother-in-law Anne Newman, of Las Vegas; and brother-in-law David Newman and his wife Patricia and children Laura, Emily, and Rachel, of San Diego.

Jan was very active, loved to spend time outdoors, and enjoyed traveling with her family. She dedicated many years to PTA and volunteer work at her children’s schools.

SOLVEIG “DODIE” EVELYN BUTLER February 25, 1948 - April 10, 2008

Beloved wife, mother, and grandmother. Solveig passed away April 10 after 4.5 years of a courageous battle with cancer. She is survived by her husband of 40 years, David Butler, daughter Amy Fischer, and two grandchildren Amanda and Zachary. Following a private family burial, a funeral service and celebration of Solveig’s life will be held Friday afternoon, April 18. Please call 408-505-2297 for further details.

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).

THEATER

The ins, not inns, of downtown

With the recent departures of long-standing Los Altos businesses Lin’s Toy Cupboard and Acacia C., and the not-so-recent departure of Dramatic Landscapes Photography Gallery, who’s moving in to fill the empty space? We’re keeping your nose in business.

Proposed projects could change face of downtown LA

Many projects are in store for Los Altos, all intended to improve and enhance the economic vitality of the city’s downtown, according to Planning Commissioner Randall Hull.

Hull shared plans with realtors and affiliates of the Silicon Valley Association of Realtors Los Altos/Mountain View District at their tour meeting two weeks ago so they could convey the message to their clients.

ECH board wary of revenues, debts

The El Camino Hospital Board of Directors cautiously embraced good news regarding the hospital’s financial health and consolidated income for February 2008 – where, exactly is the unanticipated windfall coming from and will it continue?

At the April 9 board meeting, El Camino’s Chief Financial Officer Marla Gularte reported total operating revenues of more than $40 million for the month, almost $7 million more than projected revenues. The positive gain brings the hospital a year-to-date total of more than $52 million in the eighth month of its fiscal year, Gularte said.