Annie Reiner and Richard Weekley will be the featured poets at Moonday at 7:30 p.m. on January 10 at Village Books, 1049 Swarthmore. Open reading sign-ups begin at 7 p.m.’ Reiner is a multifaceted artist’poet, painter, singer, playwright and writer’as well as a’psychoanalyst in private practice in Beverly Hills. She has written four books of poems, a book of short stories, and is the author/illustrator of four children’s books. She has won awards for her poetry and short stories, and one of her children’s stories won the Parent’s Choice Award for Best Audio of 1996. Weekley, an accomplished schoolteacher, was named a Los Angeles County Teacher of the Year in 1999 for the William S. Hart Union High School District.’He retired in June 2007 and is the co-publisher of Los Angeles Poets’ Press and host of the annual Fall Poetry Festival in Newhall.’ In June, the New York City publisher, World Audience, released his book ‘Already There’ (under his pen name Zen Nam). Moonday is hosted by Alice Pero and co-produced by Lois P. Jones. Contact: Alice Pero at 818-209-1051.””
Marymount Wins Soccer Tourney
The Marymount varsity soccer team won the South Torrance Holiday Tournament by defeating Peninsula High School, 3-0, on a wet turf field at South High on Monday night, December 20. ’The conditions throughout the tournament were horrendous,’ said Marymount coach Tony Green. ‘It never stopped raining the whole time we played.’ The score after regulation play was 0-0, which led to penalty kicks and, ultimately, a victory for the Sailors. Ironically, Marymount reached the finals on penalty kicks, first against Beverly Hills (winning 4-3 after a scoreless regulation tie), then Simi Valley. That semifinal game ended 0-0, with the Sailors winning 4-2 on penalty kicks. ’Last year we lost we lost in the semifinals of CIF on penalty kicks against South Torrance,’ Green mused. ‘I guess practice makes perfect.’ The Sailors, with help from Palisadians Katie Hathaway, Natasha Wachtel, Adelaide Seaman, Izzy DeSantis, Natalie Gigg and keeper Lauren Hart, reached the championship bracket by defeating Bishop Montgomery, 2-1, and Pacifica High School, 1-0, which are both in higher divisions, on December 11. Marymount’s defense, led by Seaman, Mia Towle, Frannie Watne, Lauren Hall and keeper Hart, allowed only one goal during regulation play. Seaman, a junior, was named tournament MVP and Hart, a senior, was named all-first team. Green, who has coached at Marymount for 20 years, said that Hart has allowed only five goals in 11 games and is being heavily recruited by different colleges. Marymount, which won the Sunshine League last year, has the best record in CIF Division 4 with a 9-2-0 record. The team played Brentwood, an undefeated non-league rival, on Tuesday this week. League play begins today against Immaculate Heart. Although Green graduated seven seniors last year, he feels his defense will make the Sailors a difficult team to beat in the playoffs, with their greatest challenge likely coming from Notre Dame, the defending CIF champs.
YMCA Starts 2011 with New Equipment
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
The Palisades-Malibu YMCA closed from December 24 through January 1 in order to replace existing strength equipment with new CYBEX machines. ’I am very excited about the machines,’ says Palisadian Kym Begel, director of healthy lifestyles at the local YMCA, 821 Via de la Paz.”I have had the opportunity to upgrade some of the basic pieces that we have had in the past and there are a few pieces that will be brand new to our members.’ Begel, who was ranked first in the United States and ninth in the world in the heptathlon in 1993 and placed 11th in the 1992 Summer Olympics at Barcelona, urges members to try different machines. ’Something as simple as working out on unfamiliar equipment can recharge the system and reinvigorate a routine that might have otherwise become stale,’ she says. ‘Trying new things is great for any workout routine.’ Additionally, the Y is hosting Fun Workout Fridays from 9:35 to 10:30 a.m. during the month of January. Each class, which welcomes non-members, consists of 20 minutes of cardiovascular work, 20 minutes of strength training and 20 minutes of plyometrics. Non-members must stop by the front desk and fill out a waiver prior to the start of class, so Begel suggests coming 10 minutes earlier.
PaliHi Basketball Braces for League Play
Boys Hope to Benefit from Tough Preseason
By JAYANT SUBRAHMANYAM Palisadian-Post Intern The Palisades High boys varsity basketball team has endured a rocky start against tough competition, emerging with an 8-9 record after a slate of tournaments around Southern California. The Dolphins, featuring five seniors and eight juniors, have missed the leadership from last year’s leading scorer, the graduated Garrett Nevels. But Coach James Paleno hopes his team can build confidence and experience during Western League play, starting January 14 at Venice. PaliHi has fallen in the first round of the City Section playoffs three consecutive years. After opening the season with a 52-51 victory over Jordan in the Pacific Shores tournament, the Dolphins lost their next three games, yet by only a combined 11 points. Next, in a tournament at Santa Monica High, PaliHi won two and lost two. The team continued its holiday tournament schedule with the Hosea Hall Christmas Invitational, where they opened big with an 81-41 rout of Golden High from Colorado. Unfortunately, they could not build on this momentum, losing 57-52 to Inglewood and finishing 2-2 in the tournament. Finally, sandwiched between Christmas and New Year’s, the Dolphins played in the Oaks Christian Holiday Hardwood Invitational. They reached the consolation finals, where they lost 69-62 to Upland, the state’s 39th ranked team. Thus far, guards Adam Griffin and Donovan Johnson have paced the Dolphins in scoring, averaging 15.2 and 15.1 points a game respectively. Center Ilya Ilyayev, who cooled off after a hot start, is third with 9.7 points per game; he also leads the team in rebounding with 8.2 per game. Other contributors have included Nathan Nazarian, who leads the team in assists, as well as Khalil Johnson, Everett Osborne and transfer Josh Burton. As the team looks ahead to Western League action, the familiar twin towers of Westchester and Fairfax are looming. Neither foe appears to be as strong as a year ago, when Westchester won the State title and Fairfax fell in the second round of the City playoffs. Yet both remain powerhouses, with Westchester ranked second in the Los Angeles City Section and Fairfax ranked fourth. After Venice, PaliHi returns home for a showdown against Fairfax on January 19. Following a home game against Hamilton on January 21, the Dolphins travel to Westchester on January 24.
Lila Lachman, 89; Husband’s Family Built Marquez Knolls
Lila Lee Lachman, a 57-year Pacific Palisades resident, passed away on New Year’s Eve. She was 89 years old. Born in Memphis, Tennessee on August 8, 1921, Lila Staib met her soon to-be husband, Gene (Benjamin) Lachman, at a wartime dance at a ballroom in Leimert Park, South L.A. She was devoted to Gene and her family for the rest of her life. Lila’s husband along with his brothers Mel, Henry, Lou and Earl, developed the Marquez Knolls neighborhood in the 1950s and ’60s. The family moved into the first two-story home on Lachman Lane, and Lila continued to live there for 57 years.’ Her strong sense of aesthetics, flair for the elegant and the whimsical, as well as her gift of culinary exuberance lent itself to many fond memories of joyous occasions spent with family and friends. She gave in full measure to everyone. Widowed in 1999, Lila is survived by daughters Denise Lachman of Paso Robles and Crystal Pritchard of Pacific Palisades. She has two surviving sisters, Sally Goertzen of Ahwahnee, and Nancy Pufahl of Kula, Hawaii. A loving grandmother, she leaves behind beautiful memories for Elissa Ashwood, Matthew Pritchard and great-grandchildren Katherine and Christopher Ashwood. She will be missed by her entire family and her inspiration will last a lifetime. Funeral services will be held today, January 6, at 11 a.m. at the Lachman family gravesite located in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles. Donations in Lila’s name can be made to the American Cancer Society or the Arthritis Foundation.
Elma H. Ferguson, 89; Vibrant, Adventurous
Elma H. Ferguson, a longtime resident of Pacific Palisades, passed away quietly and unexpectedly on December 23 while sitting in her favorite chair and finishing her morning coffee, surrounded by her loving caregiver of 16 years, Elena, her devoted cat Lily, and Christmas cards from friends. She was 89. During a life well lived, full of adventure, travel and hometown involvement, Elma began her world odyssey in the 1970s, and visited many parts of our vast planet. Two of her most treasured journeys were Egypt with her husband Grant, and an African safari on her own. However, it was at home, and in the Palisades, shared with her loving partner Grant, her Westies and her cat, that Elma really smiled. Friends and the frequent correspondence and contact made life meaningful for her. Never one to turn down a challenge, Elma loved the bridge group at the Woman’s Club. The weekly fellowship and intellectual demands helped keep her young at heart. In California, the automobile often describes the person, so seeing an 80-plus woman moving around town in a PT Cruiser with the license UENJOY provided a life lesson rarely lost on the observer. Vibrant to the end, elegant and humble, Elma loved opera, golf, the theater, collecting and, most especially, being a friend. She will be missed by her condominium neighbors, animal lovers and their caregivers, bridge partners, lay Eucharistic ministers, and countless others. One friend said it best: ‘She was my best friend, and if you knew her she was probably yours too.’ A memorial service with be held for Elma on Saturday, January 8, at 10 a.m. at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, 1031 Bienveneda. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made payable to St. Matthew’s Church/Attn. Ferguson Fund.
Marie Cluster, 89; Former Palisadian
Marie Whitmore Cluster, 89, a former resident of Pacific Palisades, passed away on December 27 in Lincoln, California. Born in Osceola, Iowa, Marie came to Los Angeles in 1921. She married Alvin Peyton Cluster in 1944 and moved with him and her three children to the Palisades in 1962. After the children left home she worked at Santa Monica College for over 20 years. She lived in the Palisades until 2004. Marie loved gardening and enjoyed visiting the Getty Museum and the Gamble House in Pasadena. She is survived by her three children, Tom (husband Randy), Lou (wife Minna) and Sarah. At her request there will be no memorial service.
Thursday, January 6 – Thursday, January 13
THURSDAY, JANUARY 6
Storytime for children ages 3 and up, 4 p.m. at the Palisades Branch Library community room, 861 Alma Real. The gathering features stories, fingerplays and rhymes as kids build reading skills while having fun. Joan Lachkar, a licensed marriage and family therapist who teaches psychoanalysis, discusses and signs ‘How to Talk to a Borderline,’ 7:30 p.m. at Village Books on Swarthmore. The author introduces Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) and outlines the challenges and difficulties it presents to clinicians. She expands current understanding of BPD by outlining eight kinds of borderline personality disorders and how each of these requires specific communication techniques and methods. Case examples are offered throughout the text and in some cases describe the kinds of partners ‘borderlines’ attract.
SUNDAY, JANUARY 9
Pacific Palisades historian Randy Young will lead the Temescal Canyon Association hikers from Will Rogers State Historic Park to Camp Josepho”a long hike with lots of gain,’ Randy says. The public is invited. Meet for carpooling at 9 a.m. in the entrance parking lot at Temescal Gateway Park. No dogs.
MONDAY, JANUARY 10
Sunrise Assisted Living hosts a free Alzheimer’s support group on the second Monday and fourth Wednesday of each month, 6:30 p.m. at 15441 Sunset. Please RSVP by calling the front desk at (310) 573-9545. Annie Reiner and Richard Weekley will be the featured poets at Moonday, a monthly poetry reading, 7:30 p.m. at Village Books, 1049 Swarthmore. Open reading sign-ups begin at 7 p.m.’
TUESDAY, JANUARY 11
Monthly meeting of the Santa Monica Canyon Civic Association, 7 p.m. at the Rustic Canyon Recreation Center. The public is invited.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12
Monthly meeting of the Pacific Palisades AARP chapter, 2 p.m. at the Woman’s Club, 901 Haverford. Refreshments are served and everyone is invited.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 13
Pacific Palisades Community Council meeting, 7 p.m. in the Palisades Branch Library community room, Villa Aurora welcomes its 2011 winter fellows, 8 p.m. at the historic Villa on Paseo Miramar. To RSVP, call (310) 573-3603. Shuttle service begins at 7 p.m. from Los Liones Drive. (See story, page 12.)
Remembering 2010
See the year in pictures in this week’s Palisadian-Post.
Palisadian-Post Seeks ‘First Baby’ Born to Palisades Parents in 2011
One of the most anticipated arrivals of the New Year is the first baby born to parents living in Pacific Palisades. Launched in 1954 by the Palisadian-Post, the First Baby of the Year contest was first won by Arnold Anchordoguy, and with the exception of 1955, when the contest was skipped, a new baby has been honored every year. Last year’s first baby was Natalia Capri Johnson, who was born on January 7. This year’s winning infant and his or her family will receive 20 gift certificates from merchants in Pacific Palisades including lunch or dinner at Kay ‘n’ Dave’s, a baby-care gift basket from Knolls Pharmacy and $25 gift certificates for Cox Paints, Palisades Hair & Beauty Supply and Michele International. (See page 6.) To be eligible, parents must own or rent a house in Pacific Palisades and will be required to submit their mailing address (zip code 90272) to receive the prizes. The attending physician must also specify time of birth and the baby’s weight in writing. Parents who know their early-January babies are eligible should call the Post’s editorial department, (310-454-1321), with the date, time and location of birth or e-mail Danielle Gillespie at danielle@palipost.com. Monday, January 3 at 5 p.m. is the deadline for notifying the Post. If a baby has not yet been born by that time, the deadline will be extended to January 10. Other recent winners include Jackson MacDonald Hubbard (2009), Devereaux Tae-Jin Dumas (2008), Caden Ezalow (2007), Spencer Rodman (2006), Melanie Papadopolous (2005), Cody Michaels (2004), Harry Haygood (2003), Skyler David Kaplan (2002), Timothy Ellis (2001) and Evan Albert (2000).
