By LILY TINOCO | Assistant Editor

The work of one Palisadian artist will be on display in the future in Washington, D.C. alongside pieces by children from each state.

Portraits of Hope—co-founded by El Medio Bluffs resident and artist Ed Massey—is partnering with National Park Service, National Mall and Memorial Parks for an artwork exhibition commemorating the 250th anniversary of American Independence in 2026.

The anticipated collaboration is said to feature a signature artwork exhibit at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C.

“We appreciate the expertise and vision demonstrated by POH in curating and organizing captivating public art exhibitions,” the U.S. Department of the Interior wrote in a letter to founders Bernie and Ed Massey. “We anticipate close alignment between the NPS goals for the 250th Independence Day celebrations, and POH’s work on public art and civic collaborations to highlight artwork from children from each of the 50 states.”

Founded in 1995, Portraits of Hope is a nonprofit program aimed at conceiving and developing “one-of-a-kind motivational art projects that merge the production of dynamic public art works with creative therapy for hospitalized children and civic education for students of all ages.”

Portraits of Hope projects have involved tens of thousands of youth and adults in high-profile civic collaborations—from airplanes, buildings, NASCAR racecars and more.

Ed said to the Palisadian-Post that many Pacific Palisades students and former students have worked on different Portraits of Hope projects, and the team anticipates many more will work with them on the latest project.

The team is currently laying the groundwork for what they believe will be a “wondrous and absolutely terrific project.”

“This is an extremely exciting project, and we’re thrilled to begin,” Ed said.

Because of the setting and year in which the project will culminate, the team anticipates a significant civic education component for students in grades three through 12, as part of the all-inclusive Portraits of Hope initiative, which will involve all 50 states, as well as tribal and U.S. territories.

“We anticipate 20,000 youth will directly participate in the project, and the initiative will involve and serve children in schools, hospitals, social service and civic programs,” Portraits of Hope shared with the Post. “Additionally, the public art work itself will imaginatively showcase the beauty of renewable energy.

“The exhibition will be in 2026, and we anticipate that millions of viewers will see the finished public work directly and/or through traditional and social media.”

Portraits of Hope has had a number of local installations, including Shaping LA in 2019, which adorned the top of the Los Angeles Convention Center, as well as The Spheres at MacArthur Park, a project that featured thousands of floating, hand-painted spheres in the park’s lake.

In a 2022 PBS’ “For The Arts” segment, Ed said that he was born and raised in Los Angeles, and hoped to make an impact by “adding some vibrancy and color to this incredible city.”

“We have so many potential areas that can be brightened up, and in my field, where public art is taken front seat really, I just see opportunities there,” Ed said in the episode. “With Portraits of Hope, the beauty is that the community does the artwork, we can all transform something that becomes very tangible, and can be seen and appreciated by so many.”

For more information, visit portraitsofhope.org.

Ahead of Thanksgiving Day, the American Legion Auxiliary Ronald Reagan Palisades Unit 283 gave Ralphs and Vons gift cards to Los Angeles Fire Department Stations 69 and 23, respectively, in “gratitude for all that the firefighters do for our community.”

“Many people don’t realize that the firefighters must buy their own food and cook when they are on shift,” Palisades Auxiliary Unit President Ruth Kahn said. “The gift cards are our way of giving back to those who give so much of themselves for the benefit our community.”

Fire Captain Jeff Brown accepted the gift card on behalf of Station 69 and Fire Captain Dave Sander on behalf of Station 23.

Pacific Palisades Friends and Newcomers Group partnered with BOCA on Monument Street to host a drop-off location to collect more than 600 coats, jackets, hoodies and sweaters for the Bodega Racks for Santa Monica College’s annual Giving Thanks(GIVING) drive.

“The community’s generosity has provided much-needed clothing for deserving students this holiday season and throughout the year,” the group said. “Thank you for making a difference in these students’ lives.”

Marquez Charter Elementary School hosted its annual Movie Night Under the Stars, sponsored by Paramount+, with a screening of “IF” on November 15.

“We’re incredibly grateful to our corporate sponsor for … making a memorable event for our students and families,” Friends of Marquez President Sarah Gottlieb said. “It was beautiful to watch the sun set over the ocean as the movie began.”

Palisadian Paige Thompson Launches Clean Protein Bars

By SOPHIA MASSERAT | Intern

For those looking for a new way to fuel up, Paige Thompson has launched Above Bar—a line of organic, plant-based protein bars—on November 16.

Though now working full-time in New York City, Thompson lived in Pacific Palisades her whole life, where her family has resided for more than 30 years. The El Medio Bluffs resident was an athlete growing up while attending Carlthorp, Marlborough and Harvard-Westlake schools, and went on to play varsity water polo for Princeton University.

However, as a vegetarian since age 10, Thompson realized early on the difficulties that can come with being an athlete on a plant-based diet. She said she struggled to find quick, protein-rich snacks that didn’t compromise on taste or health, turning to bars whose nutrition label held a long list of unfamiliar additives—and lacking the amount of protein that met her needs.

Armed with a love of healthy baking developed over the years, Thompson set out with these concerns in mind to pioneer a solution. She began testing recipes in November 2023, about a year before the launch.

“I really created Above Bar to bridge the gap in the market between those high-protein bars made with artificial ingredients and then the low-protein bars made with simple ingredients,” Thompson explained.

Made with only clean, plant-based ingredients, Above Bar caters to health-conscious individuals seeking to increase their protein intake.

“[The Above Bar] has simple, whole-food, real ingredients that you can find in your kitchen,” Thompson said.

According to Above Bar’s website, the bars are made with pea and rice protein, as opposed to whey, the source of protein used in many alternatives. Each Above Bar contains 20 grams of protein, whereas others on the market may only provide 10 to 12 grams.

Additionally, all ingredients used are organic, including peanut butter, honey, coconut oil and vanilla extract. It is also clean and minimally processed, with no seed oils, artificial or refined sugars, sugar alcohols, or artificial or natural flavors, to name a few examples.

Although her ambitions to start her business were ultimately successful in launching just around a year after she began working on Above Bar, Thompson reported that she faced various challenges throughout the process. When she started testing out recipes at the beginning of her product’s development, she said that it was difficult to incorporate the high amount of protein that fit her needs, making the bar’s composition too dry in its early stages.

“It was really hard to find the right balance of still having enough protein ingredients in the bar, but not compromising on having too much sugar or having too many calories, or having the bar be too big,” Thompson said.

Furthermore, she experienced troubles as a first-time business owner, including navigating legal concerns in the consumer packaged goods world, such as packaging and nutrition label rules.

As Above Bar’s launch was recent, their primary sales channel as of now is direct-to-consumer online through their website. In the future, Thompson hopes to expand to selling at local country clubs and retail shops once time allows for the business to grow.

Currently residing in New York City, Thompson also plans to open Above Bar pop-ups at fitness studios in the city, as well as sending out product samples to college sports teams.

But before all of that, Thompson wanted to promote the Above Bar to her hometown, which she did during the 10th annual Pacific Palisades Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day morning. Each merch bag given to runners featured Above Bars, and Thompson hosted a pop-up during the race, with opportunities to learn about and sample the product.

Ultimately, Thompson’s foremost goal in this venture is to help others fulfill their health and fitness goals, a cause she said she has been passionate about for years.

“When I upped my protein intake and started eating more protein, I saw a serious change in my body composition in the way that I was able to build muscles,” she said. “There are a lot of artificial ingredients out there that really aren’t good for people, and I really want to help bring more transparency to the CPG market, and make a cleaner, better product for people to enjoy and put in their bodies.”

For additional information, visit above-bar.com.

By KAMRAN YASHOUAFAR | Junior Reporter

Summer of 2025 was an adventurous year for me. I spent three weeks traveling along the East Coast, visiting the New England states: New York, Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

My travels started in the Big Apple, New York City. I took a ferry to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. I got to try amazing pizza from Prince Street Pizza, and even took the underground train to the Broadway industry to tour Shubert Theater.

I rented a boat in Central Park, visited the zoo and had a famous hot dog from one of the carts. I finished my trip in the state by climbing the Empire State Building, where I enjoyed the stunning view of the city line.

Next, I drove to Rhode Island. My hotel was centrally located in the main city of Providence, walking distance from Brown University. I took a day trip to the chic island of Newport.

I visited the Newport’s Gilded Age mansions, which offered a unique trip through 250 years of American history, architecture, art and landscape design. It was also nice to bike along the old railroads and grab an ice cream to cool off from the hot, humid day.

I visited Brown University and the surrounding college town as well. It was unusual being on a college campus during summer, but it was still nice to get a glimpse of college life on such a prestigious campus. Although Rhode Island was nice, it wasn’t my favorite place.

My journey continued to Nantucket Island in Massachusetts, where I celebrated Fourth of July in a small town atmosphere. As the morning went on, the entire town poured into the center square where the firemen sprayed us with their fire hoses and the whole town participated in a water fight.

I also rented a bike and toured the entire island on a 15-mile journey riding from one beach to another, stopping to jump in the ocean each time.

My last stop was in the famous city of Boston. This was the highlight of my trip. I arrived at the hotel in the morning and then began to explore the city before stopping at a famous Kosher restaurant for lunch.

I visited a museum that featured a reenactment of the Tea Party and took a walking tour through the city’s historic highlights, such as the Boston Common and Paul Revere’s smith shop. My favorite spot was the Cheers Pub, a famous bar based off the TV sitcom “Cheers.”

I ended my visit to this amazing town by visiting Boston College, one of my top university choices. Boston was filled with so much history, and yet so alive with culture and young people.

Although most of my friends spent their summer in Europe, I spent my summer exploring the different parts of our own home country and learning about the history that has impacted our lives today.