(Editor’s note: Harold Waterhouse, a co-Citizen of the Year in 1993, died on December 27 at the age of 94. Born in Pasadena, Harold was a carpenter when he built his own house on Wildomar in 1947, but he spent most of his working years as a film technician for Consolidated Film Industries in Hollywood. He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Edith; his son, Ted of San Luis Obispo; and his brother, Paul of Pasadena. A celebration of Harold’s life will be held in Temescal Canyon later this winter, with details to be announced in the Palisadian-Post.) By LISA SAXON Special to the Palisadian-Post Harold Waterhouse knew he was dying. Still, he never lost his passion for living. A week before he died, he asked his son, Ted, to look into hiring a typist, because Harold wanted to finish an important manuscript but couldn’t get his fingers and that blasted computer keyboard to work in unison. The topic of this manuscript, like hundreds of others Harold wrote over the years, surely was peace’the kind of peace that can be found in a world free of the threat of nuclear warfare, the kind of peace of mind that comes with knowing there is life after death. Harold achieved the latter by embracing the philosophy of the late paleontologist Teilhard de Chardin, who believed that humans have evolved to a point at which their minds will never die and instead go on to become part of a universal Omega. (Please don’t ask me to explain. My husband and I never fully comprehended the complex theory even though Harold never tired of trying to explain it to us in layman’s terms.) Harold never gave up his pursuit of the former, writing letters to Congressmen, presidents, presidential candidates, movie producers, newspaper editors, and neighbors. He had worked hard on California’s nuclear freeze movement during the ’80s and approached the project with renewed enthusiasm’and focus’the last 10 years. He believed that one man could make a difference and that every man had to try to do so. His booming voice, his passion, and his resourcefulness made him a force impossible to ignore’ and a person we count ourselves lucky to have known. One of the defining moments in Harold’s life came during World War II when, during a trans-Atlantic voyage aboard a troopship, he vowed that if he survived the war he would spend the rest of his life working for world peace. An Army grunt, Harold was among troops that landed in Normandy a week or so after D-Day and worked to build airstrips there and throughout Europe. He survived the war and returned to Southern California, where he built his own house in Pacific Palisades and made good on his promise. He joined the United World Federalists, marched against the Vietnam War with his young son, and then campaigned the rest of his life against nuclear weapons. Angrily opposed to the invasion of Iraq, he helped to organize Palisadians for Peace and spent several Sundays manning an information stand at the Swarthmore farmers market. He hand-painted signs, spent hundreds of dollars on photocopies of articles, envelopes and postage stamps, and talked to anyone who would listen. And he made people listen, finding ways to steer conversations about dinner or vacation plans to discussions about peace. Harold’s voice resonated with commitment’and decibels. He could not be ignored. ‘There he goes again,’ Harold’s wife, Edie, often said, punctuating the comment with a gentle laugh. Harold and Edith Waterhouse, our dear neighbors for more than 17 years, had a profound influence on our lives. They helped shape the way we view some political issues’and sunsets. Whenever the sky was putting on a spectacular show, Harold would call and urge us to take a few minutes to look beyond the treetops. We shared more than 1,000 sunsets together, toasting most with a glass of wine while sitting inside the Waterhouse home. We raised our glasses for a final time in late November, a few days before Harold fell and broke his hip. After that ‘wine party,’ Harold asked his caregiver to deliver a copy of a manuscript to our house. We found the 15-page article left in Harold’s usual drop-off spot, the clothes dryer on our service porch. Clipped to the manuscript was a handwritten note from Harold that read: ‘I’m sending this to the Atlantic Monthly in the hope that they’ll publish it as an article. If you have time to read it, you might find some things I should change. Love, Harold’ No revisions are necessary, Harold. The manuscript has a few problems, but the real story’the story of Harold T. Waterhouse’is wonderful. We’re proud to have known the author. (Editor’s note: Lisa and Reed Saxon lived next door to Harold Waterhouse for more than 17 years. He and Edith lovingly referred to their neighbors as ‘their adopted kids.’)

After 10 years of operating as a charter school and 18 months of fiscal independence, Palisades Charter High School is in the process of applying for a renewal of its charter, which must be approved by the LAUSD board this spring. The school is holding a meeting for Palisades parents, future student parents and community members who would like to know more about how the school functions as an independent charter and the renewal process on Thursday, January 13, at 6:30 p.m. in Mercer Hall, 15777 Bowdoin. The impetus behind applying for charter status 11 years ago, followed by securing fiscal independence in 2003, was prompted by the school’s former principal Merle Price, teachers and parents desire to chart their own course. At next Thursday’s meeting, school officials will outline the advantages of maintaining fiscal independence, explain the provisions of the charter and detail the manner in which the school is operated as a nonprofit corporation. ‘You just have to look at the progress the school has made since we became a charter to be 100 percent behind charter renewal,’ said 34-year PaliHi teacher and board member Bud Kling. ‘Test scores have improved, expenditure of money is four times what LAUSD spends for programs and textbooks, and we’ll probably end up with a surplus’ in June. While an independent school certainly has an operating advantage over the district itself, PaliHi still faces challenges related to taking over the administrative and business responsibilities formerly provided by the district; improving the performance gap on standardized tests between ethnic groups; working towards reducing class sizes; negotiating with the teachers union (United Teachers of Los Angeles) which represents some 90 percent of the 107 teachers at the school; and adjusting to the new governance model under the recently adopted nonprofit status. Because of its new responsibilities won with fiscal independence, the school created a new structure and hired an executive director (Jack Sutton) and chief business officer (Greg Wood) to work with principal Gloria Martinez and the administrative staff. The 11-member board of directors (three teachers, three parents, one classified staff member, the executive director and an ex officio student member) is responsible for setting policy for the teachers and 2,630 students. But according to Sutton, the backbone of the school’s goverance is represented by the seven standing committees’each comprised of 50 percent faculty members, plus parents and students. Each committee is responsible for developing recommendations for the board within its range of responsibility. The committees cover assessment and accountability, budget and finance, communications, educational programming, human resources, operations and facilities and policy. Because one of the charter renewal requirements is that 50 percent of the faculty must sign to support the charter petition, the Pali board is making efforts to encourage faculty feedback and communication. ‘The last charter renewal process to gain financial independence was contentious between LAUSD and Pali,’ Sutton said. ‘The teachers felt that they hadn’t had the opportunity to approve the final version and blamed the negotiating team rather than the district. ‘We have provided every teacher with the first draft, and planned for period-by-period conference times so that any teachers who wanted could come and talk about the charter.’ The teachers are sensitive to their representation as stakeholders in governing the school and many were disgruntled by their loss of power on the board of governors when the school switched to a nonprofit status. ‘The former board consisted of 20 members, half of whom were faculty,’ Sutton said. ‘But because they had no liability coverage, half quit. Under our nonprofit status, there is corporate liability protection, but there are only three teachers on the board. The teachers lost their perceived control, despite the fact that each standing committee has 50 percent teacher representation.’ According to board member Kling, the board is smaller and more efficient now. ‘When we were a profit-making organization, meetings took forever, nothing could get done. And the board has said that they want the school to be committee driven, and that they’re there to define, tweak and adjust. Everything is supposed to funnel through the committees.’ The school’s final challenge, said Sutton, is to encourage the teachers to take advantage and participate in the governing structure. If the faculty does not support the charter petition, the school will be forced to revert back to being a regular part of LAUSD when the charter expires June 30.

(Editor’s note: The search is still on for the First Baby of 2005. As of press time on Wednesday morning, the Palisadian-Post had yet to hear of any babies born this year to Palisades parents. To report a birth, call 454-1321, ext. 26 or e-mail features@palipost.com with the parents’ names, baby’s name, date and time of birth and contact information, so we can determine this year’s winner.) Cody Michaels, the 2004 First Baby of the Year, is a baby on the move’in more ways than one. At six and a half months he learned to crawl, and began walking at 11 months. ‘He’s almost running now,’ said his mother Pam. After traveling to Hawaii in April, Cody spent 22 hours in flight to visit his grandparents and extended family in South Africa this summer. ‘He was quite a little trouper considering how long the flight was,’ said Pam, who is originally from Durban, South Africa. While there, Cody even went on safari, and was infatuated with the animals he saw, including elephants, lions, leopards and rhinos, and fascinated by the variety of birds. Born January 1, 2004 at 1:50 a.m., Cody won the Palisadian-Post’s annual contest, and he and his parents received a variety of prizes from over 60 area merchants. Cody, his mother, father Robert, and 7-1/2-year-old brother, Brandon, celebrated his birthday at a small family party at their Highlands home last Saturday. The night before they had a get-together with neighborhood friends to celebrate both New Year’s Eve and Cody’s birthday. Cody, who says Dada, Mama and bye-bye (acompanied by a wave goodbye), received some musical toys for his birthday, which are his favorite kind. ‘He could dance all day long wherever there is music on’in stores, at home or in the car,’ Pam said. He also received his own broom and brush set, since he often stole the broom and brush away from the housekeeper to play with. ‘It’s been a wonderful year,’ Pam said. ‘We absolutely enjoy him thoroughly.’ Cody enjoys copying everything his brother, a second grader at Corpus Christi, does. ‘Even soccer,’ Pam said. ‘He kicks a little ball.’ Brandon is a big help with his little brother. ‘He is very playful and cautious with him,’ Pam said. Cody has a good palate for different tastes, according to his mother. ‘He likes tofu and yogurt and he loves to eat off my plate.’ As for sleep, Pam said, ‘We made it through the first year. He wakes up all night long. Since he’s reached age one, he’s starting to do a little better with the sleep.’ ‘Other than his sleeping, he’s been great. It’s been a really lovely year.’ Cody, who was ‘the spitting image’ of his brother as a newborn, now looks just like his father, Robert, the president and CEO of Odesus, Inc., a technology consulting company.