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Volume 49, Number 35, Published on 08/19/1996

News

A new life after death

Town Crier Staff Writer

Flash! City signs agreement for St. William site

A special city council meeting is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Sept. 3 to consider the purchase which requires city council approval. The public is invited to participate.

Los Altos remained aglow during power outage

People in Los Altos didn't have to run around and reset their clocks or worry about opening their electric operated garage door openers Aug. 10, because electrical power didn't shut off in Los Altos like it did for millions across the western states.

Parents fear council will turn Wally's World upside down

The parents of the children who attend Wally's World family day care on Springer Road, "the best day care we have found," have mobilized.

Accused child harasser remains in custody, hearing continued

James Stiritz, the 62-year-old Los Altos man facing charges of attempted kidnapping and annoying or molesting a child, did not enter a plea in court last Friday.

Los Altos City Council wants second look at fire service proposal

The Los Altos City Council isn't ready to focus on one agency for providing fire service in Los Altos.

Freeway grass fire scorches LAH properties

When Joe Wilczak checked the view out his window Aug. 12 toward San Jose and saw smoke, he just thought the pollution was bad that day.

Physicians group announces split from El Camino Hospital

The 150-physician Camino Medical Group (CMG) last Friday announced a tentative agreement enabling CMG to break away from El Camino Hospital and "re-establish itself as an independent business entity. "

A close call for Los Altos rafter

When David Pessah headed to Lake Tahoe with his parents for a recent family reunion, a river raft rescue was not part of the plan.

Comment

Dog laws appropriate, in wake of recent attack

The savage Aug. 5 attack by two Rottweilers that left two cats dead is yet another example of why Los Altos is justified having a leash law.

Color me orange

Snow piled up outside my Chicago window and I dreamed of escaping, of buying an orange grove in a lush California valley. Once arrived, I took steps to make my dream come true. Starting small, I established near my bedroom's south-facing window my first grove: a single, dwarf orange tree.

Quiet moments that heal

It's always hard to leave easy vacation days behind, especially since our vacation carried us up the lovely Oregon coast. I find, though, that I can return to those peaceful moments in my mind when stress disturbs my equilibrium.

Letters to the Editor

Another twist to the takeover of the First Interstate Bank by Wells Fargo and Home Savings (Town Crier, July 31).

Community

Los Altos Weather

Coloring contest inspires kids about recycling

Competition for first place was keen in Los Altos Garbage Company's (LAGCo) Kid's Coloring Contest held recently for Los Altos residents, but in the end judges named three as winners and gave honorable mention to four.

Pages of the Past

The August 25, 1971, issue of the Town Crier reported that the California Youth Symphony (CYS) was enthusiastically received during a three-week whirlwind tour of Europe in the summer of 1971. The successful concert tour included a first for a Western youth orchestra playing behind the former Iron Curtain. The CYS found itself on the front pages of newspapers throughout the world when one of the buses carrying the young musicians overturned in a meadow while en route to a concert in Switzerland. Fortunately, no one was seriously injured.

Senior Briefs

Sunday: Noon, Western barbecue lunch in Shoup Park. Ye Olde Town Band will perform at 1:30 p.m. Cost is $3 with senior center activity card, $6 without.

Community Briefs

American Legion Fremont Post 52 is changing its weekly meeting time from 11 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. beginning Sept. 6. The post meets every Friday at the Elk's Lodge in Palo Alto.

Eagle Scouts soar to local reunion, raise funds for troop scholarship

Boy Scout Troop 466, whose members come from Los Altos, Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Cupertino and Santa Clara, recently held its first-ever Bald(ing) Eagles banquet and reunion in Sunnyvale.

State schools chief upbeat about future of education

Delaine Eastin, state superintendent of schools, said she notices a turn around in the long educational decline that has plagued California.

Almanac

Los Altos Parks and Recreation Commission, 7:30 p.m., City Hall, 1 N. San Antonio Road.

Library Notes

Schools

Foothill-De Anza announces new Foundation Board

Nine local community and business leaders have been appointed to the newly formed Foothill-De Anza Community College Foundation Board. In addition to announcing the founding members of the board, Leo Chavez, district chancellor, said the district will hire a full-time executive director to oversee the operations of the foundation and create fund-raisers.

'The Keepers of Alexandria' brings Latin touch to Children's International School

Los Altos students are learning Latin in a pilot multicultural and multidisciplinary program called "The Keepers of Alexandria" at the Children's International School (CIS) in Palo Alto.

MV-LA district board approves revised budget for upcoming school renovations

Classroom renovations will begin in late November or early December at Los Altos and Mountain View high school campuses after a revised budget passed at a special meeting of the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District board on Aug. 14.

Montclaire School receives a helping hand from parents

Even though the state budget is allotting funds to the school districts to reduce class size in the first, second and third grades, the Montclaire Educational Foundation is not backing down from its primary goal - to improve the student to staff ratio at Montclaire School.

Children learn manners at local etiquette class

Town Crier Staff Writer

School Noteworthies

Keetje Kuipers, 16, of Los Altos attended the Interlochen Arts Camp in Michigan. Kuipers, daughter of Mark and Kathy Kuipers, studied voice at the camp. This was the first time she had attended the camp. The Interlochen Arts Camp is the nation's oldest and most successful arts program. The camp offers intensive training in dance, theater arts, music, visual art and creative writing.

New science classroom at Blach on hold

A remodel of the library-science building at Blach Intermediate School is on hold pending project approval from the Office of the State Architect in San Francisco.

Sports

Mountain View blanked, 1-0, in final

Town Crier Staff Report

Sports Shorts

HITS AND HOOPS: The Mountain View Recreation Division holds meetings on Sept. 3 for those interested in playing adult volleyball and basketball this fall. Coed volleyball meets at 7 p.m. and hoops at 8 p.m. at the Mountain View Community Center, 201 S. Rengstorff. Registration begins Sept. 9, and league play tips off the week of Oct. 21 and concludes in March. For volleyball, entry fee is $235 per team for the Thursday night games at the Mountain View Sports Pavilion; basketball fee is $450 per team for the Wednesday ("C" League) and Thursday ("D" League) contests at the sports pavilion and Whisman Sports Center. For more information, call Eric Schill at 903-6404.

Garry Hill sounds off at Olympics

Town Crier Sports Editor

Ex-Cowboy takes reins at Menlo

Town Crier Sports Editor

Local gymnasts keeping in step with the best

All they have to do is step onto the Mountain View company's new floor-exercise mat - the actual one from the 1996 Olympic Games. The approximately 40 foot-by-40 foot mat was scheduled to arrive last weekend from Atlanta.

Water Buffaloes make impact at Junior Olympics

The National Junior Olympic Championships of water polo splashed into San Jose two weeks ago, and the Mountain View Water Buffaloes had four girls teams in on the action.

Business & Real Estate

Business Briefs

The Los Altos Chamber of Commerce will hold a "Sizzling Summer Success Seminar" Thursday from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Marc Joseph Hair Salon in the Rancho Shopping Center in Los Altos.

Americans are bullish about home ownership

More than 61 percent of Americans believe now is a good time to buy a home, and are more willing to achieve home ownership than they were in 1992, according to Fannie Mae's 1996 National Housing Survey.

Noteworthies

Lee Nelson has been another long-standing real estate professional in Los Altos with more than 15 years experience.

Coldwell Banker ranked No. 1 in nation by REAL Trends

Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage was ranked No. 1 among residential real estate companies in the United States in 1995, according to the REAL Trends annual Big Brokers Report.

Market brings new Realtors to work

Special to the Town Crier

Transactions

Cupertino

New chef, manager get cooking at 'Bar and Grill'

There are more than 50 restaurants in Los Altos where a person can meet a friend or business associate for lunch, but not all of them provide service with a white table cloth.

Weekly Special

Obituaries

Ronald Court Caspers, a 15-year Los Altos resident, died July 5 in Durham, Calif. He was 79.

Weddings & Engagements

Caroline Kerba and Neil Stratz were married May 25 at the Church of the Nativity in Menlo Park, with a reception following at the Peninsula Golf and Country Club in San Mateo.

Spiritual Life Briefs

Foothill Covenant Church in Los Altos invites the public to hear Jack Pearson, Mr. Song-strummin' Storyman, perform at 6 p.m. this Sunday. Pearson is known for his blend of songs, stories and comic wit. He includes lots of picking, fiddling and toy box dancing and invites audience involvement.

LAH youth completes Venezuela mission

Arms opened wide for Dagen Merrill when he returned Aug. 10 from his two-year mission in Valencia, Venezuela.

The cheapest way to go: low-cost funerals

Luella McFarland doesn't want her money being spent on a fancy funeral.

Going for her goal

Town Crier Staff Writer

Back-to-school immunizations: A parent's guide to a child's health

Special to the Town Crier

Health Briefs

Clinical psychologist Mary Pipher, author of "Reviving Ophelia: Saving the Self of Adolescent girls," will speak from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Santa Clara Convention Center Theater. This all day event is sponsored by the Palo Alto Medical Foundation and the UC Santa Cruz Extension program. For more information, call 1-(800)-660-8639.

MedicAlert ID bracelet spreads the word about your health - just in case

Deciding on whether or not to have a Medic Alert bracelet boils down to differences in philosophy. Some place themselves at the mercy of the fates. Others believe in being prepared - just in case.

To break from the pack, hypnotherapy may help

Business profile