Though gifted young women will arrive from places far and wide this season to play for the Pali Blues Soccer Club, there is one thing they will all have in common: zero dollar amateur contracts and the need for a place to stay. A summer with the Blues means finding a host family to stay with for the duration of the season. Prior to the team’s inaugural season last year, many local families welcomed Blues players into their homes, basements and guest houses, helping to support them on their way to the W-League championship. In return, these families, many with young players of their own, often enjoyed a strong personal connection to both their player and the franchise. This year, the Blues hope to continue to their relationships with the 2008 host families while reaching out to new ones. “One thing we take pride in as an organization is bringing not only great soccer players, but great personalities and great role models,” Blues General Manager Jason Lemire said. “We are also proud and grateful that we play for such a supportive community, willing to host our players during this formative time in their careers.” With a world-class product on the field it is easy to forget that the Pali Blues remain a non-profit organization. Competing in the USL W-League, the Blues maintain amateur status, allowing them to continue to develop and showcase many of the top collegians in the country without jeopardizing players’ NCAA eligibility. In return, future stars of the game committed to finishing their college education can compete and train with the Blues in a professional environment while learning how to act like a pro and contribute to a community on and off the field. Palisades families are encouraged to consider becoming hosts this season. “Housing players from the Blues was a wonderful experience,” 2008 host Nancy Belinsky agreed. “It allowed us to get to know many players and feel connected to the team. We have made some life long friends.” If interested, call Lemire at (310) 264-4649. The Blues open their second season May 9 against the L.A. Legends at Palisades High’s Stadium by the Sea.
Junior Women Hand Out $77,200
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
The Junior Women’s Club, one of the most philanthropic organizations in Pacific Palisades, continued its tradition Tuesday evening by handing out $77,200 in grants to 32 local schools and organizations. ‘We’re so excited to be able to give back to the community,’ said JWC’s president Kim Kedeshian. ‘In the last 10 years we have given more than $500,000.’   She acknowledged that it was harder to raise money in 2008, given that the group’s major fundraiser, the November home tour, came as the economy was heading downhill. ‘We had to make tough decisions because we couldn’t fund everyone who applied.’   The recipients were divided into four categories.   A total of $17,600 was given to nine groups in the arts and recreation category, including Palisades Art Association to continue its mission, Camp Josepho for construction of three fire prevention areas, Cub Scout Pack 223 for financial subsidies to needy families, Calvary Christian School for a canopy over a snack table near the athletic field, the Historical Society for archiving tapes to gold CD’s, Chamber Music Palisades and Palisades Symphony to continue their programs and Palisades-Malibu YMCA for a new water line on their Sunset and Temescal property. Movies in the Park received funds for upgrading equipment. ‘If it weren’t for the Junior Women, we wouldn’t have been in the park last year,’ Brad Lusk said.   Ten charitable organizations received a total of $20,600, including the Palisades Americanism Parade Association, which organizes the Fourth of July parade and fireworks show. ‘We’ll make this the best event ever,’ promised PAPA President Rob Weber.   Palisades Cares received money for mailing recycling pamphlets, and the Chamber of Commerce received grants for holiday decorations and Chrysalis/Street Works. Fire Station 23 (equipment) and Station 69 (Smokey’s care) received money, along with ITN Greater LA (transportation for the elderly), World Church Palisades Hunger Walk, The Kris Kelly Foundation for medical care of needy animals, the Palisades Woman’s Club for clubhouse renovations and Meals on Wheels.   Junior Women gave $33,000 to seven education-related groups, including the El Dustberry Foundation in Rustic Canyon for a fly-spray system for the rescued horses and the Palisades Charter Schools Foundation, which provides student scholarships. The Palisades High Booster Club will use its money for the college center for computers and additional college visits. ‘This grant will help us develop relationships with more colleges,’ said counselor Ruth Grubb.   Paul Revere’s booster club (PRIDE) asked for money to help build its outdoor classroom. ‘It’s so wonderful, all the support you give public schools,’ said Ellen Pfahler, who accepted for Revere. Three elementary schools received funds: Canyon, Marquez (funding enrichment teachers) and Palisades Elementary (purchasing a portable sound system).   In the beautification category, $6,000 was divided between Palisades PRIDE (the median at Sunset and Monument), Palisades Beautiful (purchasing new trees), Palisades Village Green (tree trimming) and the new Sunset Beach Association for beautifying an area at Sunset Boulevard and PCH.
Rosendahl Reelected, Stryer Defeated
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
‘I am most humbled and thrilled,’ City Councilman Bill Rosendahl told the Palisadian-Post after seeing his 75-percent lead in the election an hour after the polls closed Tuesday night. ‘I’m most grateful to all those who had confidence in me, and I look forward to serving another four years,’ Rosendahl continued. With nearly 100 percent of the polls reporting by Wednesday morning, Rosendahl had received 16,728 votes (74 percent) compared to his challenger Harry ‘Craig’ Wilson, a hydrographer for the L.A. Department of Water and Power, who had 5,781 votes (26 percent).   Rosendahl, 63, said he believes he will be more effective in his second term because he understands the job better.   Now that he has won, he hopes to move forward with plans to complete the long-stalled creation of Potrero Canyon Park. This past year, he helped to ensure that proceeds from the sale of two city-owned properties on Alma Real will be dedicated to the park and not the city’s general fund.   Without the help of his staff, Rosendahl said he couldn’t have won the election. ‘My whole staff matches my philosophy that we are here to serve the people.’   This next term will be a challenging one, Rosendahl admits, as the city grapples with a projected $400-million budget deficit.   Rosendahl’s goal is to secure funding to hire more police officers, especially for the West Los Angeles Community Police Station.   ’We’re the most vulnerable to losing officers because we have lower crime,’ the councilman said.   Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (who won reelection with 56 percent of the vote) will release his proposed budget on April 20 and the City Council has until mid-June to pass the budget. Rosendahl said that the Council will look for places within departments to make cuts and explore ways to generate revenue. ‘It will be a difficult process.’   In the race for the Los Angeles School Board District 4 seat, Marshall High School teacher and counselor Steve Zimmer narrowly won with 26,023 votes (56 percent). Mike Stryer, a Fairfax High School social studies teacher and Pacific Palisades resident, received 20,339 votes (44 percent).   ’I want to congratulate my opponent, Steve Zimmer, on a hard-fought, substantive campaign that focused on key issues facing our educational system,’ Stryer said in a statement to the Post. ‘I am pleased to say that both Steve and I avoided any personal or nasty attacks during the campaign and debated issues in a serious, informed way.’   Zimmer, 38, replaces Marlene Canter, who served two terms on the seven-member school board and who had endorsed Stryer.   Stryer, 47, said he looks forward to continuing his work at Fairfax, where he has taught for five years. He thanked all of those who supported him during the campaign.   ’In particular, I want to acknowledge the tremendous support that I received in Pacific Palisades,’ said Stryer, who lives in Marquez with his wife, Barri, and their children, Adam, 14 and Leah, 11.   ’I cannot properly describe the incredible outpouring of effort and passion put into this campaign by Palisadians. It’s yet another testament to the great community in which we live.’
New Men’s Store Celebrated
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
Although Elyse Walker Men opened on Antioch Street in September, the owner postponed her official opening party until last Friday evening, when invited guests, residents and local business people celebrated in the new store from 6 to 9 p.m.   ’Originally our party was supposed to be in October and then the market crashed,’ said Elyse Walker, who owns three other clothing stores and a shoe store on Antioch Avenue. ‘Although the market continues to crash, we decided to have a party anyway.’   While guests enjoyed beverages, appetizers and sweets, Walker acknowledged that the current business climate is hardly optimal. ‘It is hard; nothing is easy right now,’ she said. ‘Guys are not huge shoppers in a recession. It’s all a matter of how hard do you want to work.’   Jeweler Peter Norman, who opened his new store on the corner of Antioch and Sunset last October, said that business has been decent: ‘I’m not unhappy, because it’s such a great area.’ As a party favor, guests were given a cashmere blanket from B. Chyll, designed by Palisades resident Leslie Gifford, who started the popular sweater line in the fall of 2007. ‘It’s locals helping locals,’ said publist/event director Tori Springer, who was happy with the large turnout. ‘We all need something to celebrate in these times.’   ’I was working here earlier,’ said Ramis Sadrieh, owner of Technology for You, who does computer-related support for the stores. ‘I stopped by to congratulate Elyse and [her husband David].’   Daniel Sapozhnikov, owner of Ogden Cleaners on Sunset, who does the tailoring for the new store, also stopped by and praised Walker.   Walker’s employees all wore chic black dresses and the latest fashion from her shoe store, five-inch heels. ‘We like to dress up,’ said men’s store manager Cameron Cohen, ‘but it’s hard to run around in five-inche heels all day.’   One of the celebrity guests was Palisadian Giada De Laurentiis, host of three Food Network shows (‘Everyday Italian,’ ‘Weekend Getaways,’ and ‘Giada at Home,’ a contributing correspondent on NBC’s ‘Today Show’ and author of the best-selling book ‘Everyday Italian.’ She said she met Walker through The Pink Party, an annual event that Walker started in 2004 to raise money for the Women’s Cancer Research Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.   ’My brother died of cancer and I’ve worked on the Party with Elyse,’ De Laurentiis said. ‘It’s been rewarding working with her.’   Chayim Frenkel, the Cantor at Kehillat Israel, offered his explanation for the continued popularity of Walker’s five stores, the first of which opened in 1999.   ’Elyse and her husband are so philanthropic and giving. That’s why the store gives off the aura it does,’ Frenkel said. ‘It’s not just about the bottom line, it’s ‘What can I do to give back to the community?”
Temescal Water Project Draws Fire
Everyone agreed last Wednesday about the quest to protect Santa Monica Bay from polluted stormwater, but residents challenged the City’s preparations for the proposed $15.9- million Temescal Stormwater Diversion Project. Appearing at a public meeting in the Palisades Branch Library community room, Heal the Bay President Mark Gold and Palisadian Fran Diamond, chairperson of the Los Angeles Regional Water Control Board strongly supported the project, arguing that it was an important use of Proposition O funds. Built by the City of Los Angeles, the new underground system along Temescal Canyon Road, just north of Pacific Coast Highway, would trap rainstorm runoff from October through April and would consist of three separate structures. During a storm, water would first drain into a diversion tank, and then into a hydro-separator (which separates pollutants such as trash and debris from the rainwater). The water would then flow into a 1.25-million-gallon, cement-reinforced holding tank at the bottom of Temescal Canyon Park, where it could stay for up to three days before traveling to the Hyperion Treatment Center in El Segundo.   Questions by residents in the audience focused on the adequacy of studies conducted by the City, the choice of location, leaking sewer pipes, the effectiveness of the system and who would pay for maintenance. ‘ Environmental, geotechnical and traffic reports. Residents questioned why an environmental impact report (EIR) hadn’t been done. According to Public Works information officer Michelle Vargas, this project qualifies for a CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) categorical exemption, thus avoiding an EIR. Residents then questioned the completeness of the geotechnical report done in 2008, which stated: ‘Our evaluation did not include a detailed evaluation of the landslide susceptibility or stability of the slopes adjacent to the project.’ ‘We want you to do the work that you require us to do when we build our homes,’ said Bernard Kinsey, who lives on the slopes above Temescal Canyon. ‘We’re not trying to stop you, but you haven’t done your work.’ Residents wanted to access the (Continued on Page 3) traffic plan, which has not been available to the public. They are concerned that the heavy traffic when Palisades Charter High School dismisses was not adequately investigated, nor was the loss of parking along Temescal Canyon Road. ‘We’ll come back next month with the traffic plans,’ promised Kendrick Okuda, Proposition O program manager for the Bureau of Engineering. ‘ Choice of Temescal Canyon. Since a large portion of the watershed that drains into the diversion tank is uninhabited land, resident Todd Thompson said: ‘I feel like you’re spending money in Temescal not because the need is the greatest here, but only because you have property there.’ He estimated that about 60 percent of the 1,600 acre watershed was uninhabited. Gold corrected him, ’80 percent of the watershed is uninhabited, but under the Clean Water Act, the law says every single beach needs to be clean.’ Bureau of Sanitation’s Watershed Protection Division Manager Shahram Kharaghani acknowledged, ‘We selected the park because it is city government land and we did not have to acquire other land.’ ‘ Leaking Sewer Pipes. Current plans are to drain the 1.25-million gallon tank into a newly-constructed pipe that will connect to an existing 3,000-ft. force main that runs into the Coastal Interceptor Sewer below PCH. Leaks have been found in the existing force main, which drains sewage from Via de las Olas. Residents want assurance that those leaks will be fixed before the project starts. Michelle Vargas, a spokesperson for Public Works, said that a closed-circuit television camera is inside the pipe and will soon determine the total damage. Okuda said $600,000 has been set aside to pay for a new lining in the existing force main and the new pipe to the force main. As reported in the Palisadian-Post (‘Aging Sewer, Slow Response Meant Beach Hazard,’ January 31, 2007), Kharaghani attributed much of the beach pollution to the city’s aging sewer lines.   A resident wanted to know how the city knew that polluted water at Will Rogers Beach is coming from stormwater runoff and not broken sewer pipes.   Gold told the group that source tracking can be done to find the origin of the pollution, which would allow the City to know if the pollution was from broken sewer pipes. He acknowledged that it had not been done in Temescal. ‘ Effectiveness of the system. Another resident said it was his understanding that the system didn’t work with all storms. Vargas said that the diversion system will activate anytime there is a storm of at least 2.65 cubic feet of rain per second (a little less than .2 inches over a 24-hour period). According to Okuda, the device will capture the first runoff, which is considered the most polluted. Everything in excess of 1.25-million gallons will divert back into the existing storm drain and run into the ocean. Another resident questioned whether this project was indeed the best use for the money or whether it could be better spent replacing aging sewer lines across Pacific Palisades, as well as leaking septic tanks in Rivas, upper Rustic Canyon and Mandeville Canyon. ‘ The cost of maintenance and who would pay for it. Resident Chris Spitz wanted assurance that before construction begins, adequate funding will be in place to clean and maintain the proposed hydro-separator.   In an e-mail to the Post, Spitz wrote: ‘We have learned from credible residents that the hydro-separator at the Sun Valley stormwater diversion project is rarely if ever maintained or cleaned, leading to the malfunctioning of that facility.’ The $500 million in Proposition O money is not targeted towards maintenance and there have been no provisions yet for the Temescal project. Given the numerous unanswered questions, City officials promised to hold a second informational meeting in March. Residents were also assured that the proposed October start of the project could be delayed. (A tour of a stormwater diversion project in Sun Valley is scheduled for tomorrow, in order for residents to view the operations. To attend, call Vikki Zale at (310) 822-2010.)
Daughter of the Dragon, Sister Of the Crow
Shannon Lee Guards the Legacies of Her Iconic Father and Her Famous Brother
When Bruce Lee died on July 20, 1973 of an accidental overdose at the age of 32, the collective heartbeat of millions of fans worldwide paused. The martial-arts legend and influential movie icon had fashioned a unique career, and he was single-handedly responsible for introducing Chinese cinema to an international (and Western) audience. Thirty-six years after his death, his sole living legacy lives in Pacific Palisades, and she’s spearheading a Bruce Lee revival. Shannon Lee is currently planning an October event in honor of her father that will include a banquet, screenings, exhibits and seminars. In 2008, she served as executive producer of a 50-episode Chinese-television series, ‘The Legend of Bruce Lee.’ The first effort of her production company, Leeway Media, debuts on April 20, when the History Channel airs ‘How Bruce Lee Changed The World.’ As president of the nonprofit Bruce Lee Foundation, Lee awards $1,000 scholarships to students who have written essays on Bruce’s various philosophies. As CEO of the newly minted Bruce Lee Enterprises, Lee will oversee licensing her father’s name and likeness. Universal Studios recently relinquished all rights to the Lee family, so she plans to market Bruce Lee as a ‘lifestyle brand.’ ‘We’re doing everything ourselves,’ Lee, 39, tells the Palisadian-Post; the ‘we’ referring to her and her mother, Linda Lee Cadwell. They staged a multi-tiered Seattle Art Museum celebration of Bruce’s life last year, and they plan to establish the Bruce Lee Action Museum in Seattle, a destination featuring movie and personal memorabilia, a theater, meditation and outdoor training areas, and a research library. ‘The idea is to look at the notion of taking action as the catalyst for change and growth, using Bruce Lee and his legacy as the model,’ Lee says. ‘My father had an influence on a style of fitness, conditioning and body-building.’ Soft-spoken and down to earth, Shannon Lee is adept at articulating her ideas as she shares tea at a Swarthmore Avenue caf’ and discusses the History Channel special, which will feature celebrities relating how Bruce Lee’s movies, martial arts and philosophies inspired them. From rappers LL Cool J and RZA of the martial arts-obsessed Wu-Tang Clan, to comedian Eddie Griffin, athlete Shaquille O’Neal, ‘Rush Hour’ director Brett Ratner and martial-arts cinema heir Jackie Chan, he inspired many on various levels. Take DreamWorks’ 2008 animated hit ‘Kung-Fu Panda,’ about the quest for an esoteric big book containing the key to life inside: a mirror. ‘There’s an example right there of where my father influenced the pop culture,’ Lee says, noting that ‘Panda”s plot point was already embedded in Bruce Lee’s ‘Circle of Iron’ (released posthumously in 1978). Steve McQueen and ‘Circle’ star James Coburn were two of Bruce’s Hollywood friends and martial arts students. They became pallbearers at his funeral. The fact that Lee bit into the Hollywood apple is worth underscoring, his daughter notes, as the United States was very different in the pre-multicultural landscape of the 1960s, when America grappled with Civil Rights and engaged in a controversial war in Asia. ‘He worked very hard to be a success,’ Lee says of her San Francisco-born, Hong Kong-raised father. ‘He had to overcome prejudice and he did. He broke barriers.’ In fact, Bruce Lee had created and was set to star in the hit television series, ‘Kung-Fu’ (1972-75) until its producers hired non-Asian actor David Carradine instead. Shannon Lee had ‘mixed feelings’ about 1993’s ‘Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story’ biopic. ‘The spirit of the film was nice but they switched around details,’ she says, sans malice. ‘For example, my father didn’t hurt his back seriously during a fight but while working out at home.’ Lee has vague memories of her father, as she was 4 when he died: ‘I remember him being very playful, energetic.’ More painfully acute was the death of her brother, actor Brandon Lee, at age 28 in March 1993. ‘I was in New Orleans, attending college, when I got the call,’ Lee says. The burial services took place at Lakeview Cemetery in Seattle, where Brandon is buried next to Bruce. As the anniversary of Brandon’s death approaches, Lee misses him terribly. ‘He would have been the best uncle,’ she says, alluding to her daughter, Wren, 6. ‘He was so full of life.’ Ironically, Brandon had appeared in ‘Kung-Fu: The Next Generation’ with Carradine. He was transcending martial arts-accented roles when a prop gun accident killed him on the set of ‘The Crow.’ Filming on the adaptation of James O’Barr’s comics was complete enough to be released in 1994, when ‘The Crow’ grossed a solid $94 million worldwide, inspiring two sequels. ‘My brother wanted to be an actor from the time he was a kid,’ Lee says. ”The Crow’ would have been the springboard for him.’ College scholarships in Brandon’s name have been established. ‘I do want to keep his spirit alive as well.’ After her father died, Shannon Lee moved with her family in 1974 from Hong Kong to affluent Rolling Hills, where Shannon and Brandon attended high school. While a student at Tulane University, Lee met lawyer Ian Keasler. They married and moved to the Palisades in 1994. Lee pursued acting, only to be typecast in straight-to-video action films. In 1996, she appeared in the first ‘Blade,’ but Lee ultimately abandoned acting. ‘I don’t know if my heart was ever in it,’ she admits. Recently separated, she now lives in the Alphabet streets. Today, Lee writes songs, such as tunes she co-wrote for the U.K. group Medicine. She covered ‘I’m in The Mood for Love’ on the soundtrack of the 2000 movie ‘China Strike Force,’ and performed ‘Desperado’ in Cantonese (Bruce’s native tongue) in Hong Kong. ‘My father was quite a writer,’ she says. ‘He was always jotting down ideas for film, TV series. Now that Wren is older and my life is moving in a new direction, I plan to focus more on writing.’ Lee has heard it all regarding the so-called family curse. Ditto the conspiracy theories hatched in the wake of Bruce’s death. ‘I shrug that stuff off,’ Lee says. ‘I don’t believe in it and find it to be good fodder for folks looking to gossip or ruminate on creepy stories. If I really felt cursed, I would probably be afraid to live my life, and life is meant to be lived.’ In other words, even as she looks back, she is moving forward. ‘I’m excited about the prospects of what lies ahead,’ she says with a soft smile. Visit www.BruceLeeFoundation.org.
Her Gang of Anti-Gang Activists
Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
It’s an issue that’s easy to flip past in the daily newspaper because it appears far removed from our own children, our daily routine. Gang violence. Not a topic typically found in the Palisadian-Post. But Billie Weiss, a Palisades Highlands resident since 1986, has made changing the conditions that make gangs a way of life in many L.A. neighborhoods her life’s work. Weiss’ home office has a wall adorned with citations and awards, and she recently received a $25,000 Peace Prize grant from the California Wellness Foundation in recognition of her pioneering research. Atop a bookshelf sits an award (crafted from the metal of melted-down handguns) she created for those working against youth violence. Advocating for the passage of municipal legislation in 2003 banning .50-caliber sniper rifles is one of the many ways Weiss has sought to mitigate the impact of street gangs. This may seem an odd mission for an epidemiologist. In fact, when Weiss finished her master’s degree in public health at UCLA in the 1980s, the focus for graduates was on infectious diseases such as AIDS. But Weiss, whose first job in public health was with Los Angeles County, learned that it wasn’t disease or traffic accidents killing 15-to 24-year-olds. It was homicides, and kids were the victims and perpetrators of violence. So began her odyssey as academic, advocate and activist. Much of her work consists of identifying the causes of youth violence and correcting the problem. Weiss is an associate director of the Southern California Injury Prevention Research Center at UCLA, which studies damaging phenomena as varied as earthquakes, traumatic brain injuries and pediatric sudden death. But Weiss doesn’t sit in an ivory tower. A petite woman with the body of a former dancer and pixie-ish face, she spends half her time in the field with gang interventionists and gang members. Weiss founded the Violence Prevention Coalition of Greater Los Angeles in 1991 to bring together anti-violence advocators, school representatives, police departments, anti-gun groups, private foundations and civil rights agencies. ’Things are not changing fast enough,’ Weiss tell the Post. ‘We need everybody we can muster.’ Gang activity is an epidemic. Numbers vary, but law enforcement officials cite 400 individual gangs with nearly 40,000 members in Los Angeles. Although a ‘war on gangs’ was declared 25 years ago, gang membership has doubled. ’Violence is the leading epidemic of our time and it impacts every segment of a healthy community,’ Weiss says. ‘Gun violence kills more young people in L.A. County under the age of 35 than anything else. It costs more public health dollars than any other epidemic, particularly in Los Angeles County.’ Key to an effective response to gang violence, Weiss believes, is a multi-disciplinary coordination of the efforts of public health, law enforcement and education with community needs. Of course, many do not intuitively view gangs as a public health issue. The focus is on arrests and suppression of existing gang-bangers rather than prevention. ‘But, it’s like measles,’ Weiss says, ‘if we don’t immunize, there will be another outbreak. If we don’t keep focusing on primary prevention, we can lock up all the gang members we want and in seven years, they’ll get out and it will happen all over again because we haven’t done the groundwork to change the conditions that breed these problems.’ She wants people to understand that young children in gang-infested neighborhoods are surrounded by violence, often suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, and eventually join gangs for protection or for surrogate families. People tend to see the toughened ‘gang banger,’ but they forget that he was once an engaging 8-year-old who could have taken a better path. The solution, Weiss believes, is obvious: communities with resources and services for children do not have a gang problem; communities without these resources do. ‘We’ve loaded them [public officials] with data,’ she says, citing detailed research by the Advancement Project, an ‘action tank’ focused on social justice: Weiss believes that the way to eliminate gangs is to get resources into communities in need. Even an easy-to-implement program like last summer’s ‘Summer Night Lights,’ when selected Los Angeles parks offered activities for the local youth, reduced violence in those neighborhoods. ‘It was successful, but they stopped the program before kids went back to school,’ says Weiss, noting a pattern of officials declaring victory, then eliminating the very programs that succeed. Even if the solution is straightforward, it requires not only funding but the will of communities that have resources to assist those that don’t. Weiss stresses that gangs are everyone’s problem, not just the concern of those communities ‘without,’ the ones that Weiss calls ‘hot zones.’ Sophisticated gangs participate in criminal activity like identity theft that can directly impact Angelinos far from gang centers. And, in this challenging economy, the cost of law enforcement, incarceration and medical treatment related to L.A. gangs eats up more than $1 billion a year in tax dollars. A recent FBI report notes a migration of gang membership into communities nationwide. And so, Weiss keeps fighting the good fight. Maybe she’ll retire someday and spend more time with her grown children and seven grandchildren, who range in age from two months to 29 years old. For now, she won’t stop’not until the war on gangs is won.
Cardinal Honors Aikenhead
Pacific Palisades resident Kathleen H. Aikenhead was honored by Cardinal Roger Mahony of the Los Angeles Diocese with the 2009 Cardinal’s Award at a benefit dinner in early February. She was joined by the other honored members of the Los Angeles Catholic community’Christopher Alders, Dr. Leo Lagasse, Virginia Schneider and Vin Scully. In the 20 years of the award, 99 men and women have been honored. Aikenhead is president of the William Hannon Foundation (founded in 1983 by her late uncle, a 1994 honoree), which provides tuition assistance for disadvantaged children attending Catholic schools, preschool through college. When he introduced Aikenheard, Mahony noted that she is among ‘the active people in the archdiocese, whose faith is an integral part of her life.’ Hannon, who has lived in the Palisades for 30 years, is one of the foundation’s original board members. She has been president for the last 15 years. ’We give about 300 grants a year to schools, churches and social service agencies in the Los Angeles area,’ Aikenhead told the Palisadian-Post. ‘While most of the recipients are Catholic organizations, about 25 are not.’ In addition, the foundation has funded several large buildings, including the new William H. Hannon Library at Loyola Marymount University and the new science hall at Loyola High School. Grant amounts have ranged from $5,000 and $10,000 to $10 million, in the case of Loyola University. ‘We also run several programs to help organizations raise money,’ Aikenhead said. ‘For example, we have purchased Hawaiian trips that we then give to organizations to use as raffle prizes, with all the proceeds going to that organization.’ In addition to her work with the Hannon Foundation, Aikenhead serves on the board of the Catholic Education Foundation, which gives millions of dollars every year for tuition assistance for Catholic school students, from elementary through high school. Aikenhead grew up in Brentwood and attended St. Martin of Tours and Marymount High School. She graduated from Bucknell University in Pennsylvania, where she met her husband David, now an estate-planning attorney. The couple has three children, all of whom attended Corpus Christi School. Emily, 35, is a pediatrician and expecting her first child. Gigi is a trained Cordon Bleu chef with two children, and Brian, 30, is a Loyola Law School student.
Palisadian McRoskey Named President of Las Madrinas
At the Las Madrinas annual meeting in February, outgoing president Cathy Pherson presented Michele D. Kipke, Ph.D., director of community, health outcomes and intervention research, with a major contribution to the auxiliary’s pledge of $5 million for the Las Madrinas Endowment for Autism Research, Interventions and Outcomes at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles on behalf of the membership. Las Madrinas (‘The Godmothers’) has supported Childrens Hospital Los Angeles since 1908. Pherson also announced three outstanding members whose dedication and generosity deserved special recognition: Cynthia Connolly, Caryll Mingst and Vicky Rogers. In addition, the new board of directors for 2009 was introduced, with Pacific Palisades resident Kathleen McRoskey serving as president. New members include two Palisadians, Kathryne Garland and Allison Planting. Founded in 1901, Childrens Hospital Los Angeles has been treating seriously ill and injured children for more than a century. The hospital, one of America’s premier teaching hospitals, is affiliated with the Keck School of Medicine at USC.
‘School House’ Rocks the Pierson
Theater Review
The spring Theatre Palisades Youth production of ‘School House Rock Live! Jr.’ brims with enthusiasm and zest. Twenty-four young actors and actresses dance and sing their way through grammar, science and U.S. history, turning the 50-minute show into an entertaining, educational evening for families at the Pierson Playhouse on Haverford Avenue. Having all of the young cast members on the stage and in every number is no easy feat, but director Dorothy Dillingham Blue has done it with style. In productions past, Blue directed ‘The Wizard of Oz’ and ‘How to Eat Like a Child.’ This year, her assistant director was seventh grader Melissa Schem, who has acted in previous youth productions. Another TPY alum, Megan Wheeler, played the backstage role of ‘Baby Captain,’ helping Blue care for her three-month-old. Based on the Emmy Award-winning 1970s Saturday morning cartoon spots that taught about topics such as conjunctions and interjections through clever songs, this version of ‘Schoolhouse Rock’ delights. Tom, played by Taylor Tabb, is a schoolteacher who is nervous about his first day of teaching and tries to relax by watching television. No sooner does he turn on the TV set than the cast appears (representing facets of his personality) and shows him a more imaginative way to teach. The quality of the soloist voices varies, but choreography, also done by Blue, keeps every number snappy. Brendan Terry sings ‘Three is a Magic Number’ and his stage presence and voice are equally assured. ‘Just a Bill’ sung in a lovely voice by Katherine Reinhold, using just the right amount of expression, is the perfect way to learn how a law starts with an idea, is drafted as a bill and is voted on by the Senate and House of Representatives, but still runs the risk of veto. ’The Preamble,’ sung by Veronica Ellis, wearing a bright yellow dress and a ‘sun’ headdress, had the audience nodding in time. Switching to the subject of science, ‘Interplanet Janet,’ sung beautifully by Zoe Chernov, had Piper Hays, as Janet, dancing and twirling around the planets. Marianne Verrone and Michael Kirshner, who have appeared in previous productions, also enjoyed solos and their voices were sweet to listen to, without the affected belting that too often finds its way into youth musicals. But the over-all best part of the show was the choruses, and the cast should be congratulated for the group effort. The female part of the cast is dressed colorfully in felt dresses. If there was one negative, it was the bright lipstick slathered on the girls, giving them a garish look. This is weekend will be the last for the show, produced by Bobbie Durazo, with musical director Michael Reilly. Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Reservations are recommended. Contact: 310-454-1970.
