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Volume 51, Number 4, Published on 01/26/1998

News

A '2020' vision for Los Altos

Town Crier Staff Writer

Those among '50 Who Made a Difference' offer their '2020' visions

At a party last Thursday honoring those named by the Town Crier as "50 Who Made a Difference" in Los Altos from 1947 to 1997, the honorees were invited to consider the city in the year 2020. What did they see?

Rash of burglaries hits Portola Avenue neighborhood

Burglars have hit five homes in the north Los Altos area since Dec. 26 and the Los Altos police want to give residents a "heads up" to be on the alert.

Council OKs - but scales back - Indian restaurant for State Street

The Los Altos City Council gave the nod to an Indian restaurant, but, responding to citizen concerns about parking, scaled back the requested 70 seats to 50.

Face lift for Loyola Corners property

Town Crier Staff Writer

Traffic advisory task force revs up, will address speeding, short cuts

Traffic frustrations drive conversations heard all over town. And Los Altos City Council members are listening.

Comment

It's a puzzlement

A View from the Hills

Letters to the Editor

Jan. 29 was the 78th anniversary of the day the 18th Amendment to the Constitution - prohibition of alcohol - went into effect. That dismal legislative failure was ultimately repealed, but the legacy of misguided prohibition policy remains.

Editorial

Last October, the Town Crier sponsored a "mock council" meeting in which Los Altos City Council candidates discussed simulated issues typical of those they might face at a real meeting. One of the items was a neighborhood nightmare - a poorly designed house with clashing colors and yet met all city building codes.

Want some french fries with that?

A Side of Clyde

Community

'Harlem renaissance' at the library

From the music of Duke Ellington and Bessie Smith to the paintings of Jacob Lawrence to the writings of Langston Hughes and the performances of Paul Robeson - Harlem in the 1920s was the scene of a cultural revolution.

Community support attracts librarian

Town Crier Staff Writer

Gallery Roundup

Sunbird Gallery in Los Altos presents "Women In Art," the works of five leading women artists, including Ingrid Jackson-MacDonald, owner of Sunbird Gallery. Works include original oils, watercolors, pastels and sculpture. The show opens Feb. 11 and runs through March 5, with a reception for the artists 5:30-8 p.m. Feb. 12.

Community Briefs

Jean Hollands, motivational speaker and founder of the Growth and Leadership Center, will talk about the "Steel Magnolia Syndrome" at a Feb. 11 "friendship breakfast" meeting of the American Association of University Women, Los Altos-Mountain View chapter.

Police Report

Jan. 26, 8:35 a.m., 100 block of First Street: A business was broken into over the weekend.

Entries welcome for Kids' Art of Open Space exhibit

Elementary school-aged children from San Carlos to Los Gatos are being invited to draw, sketch or paint their visions of nature and the open space environment in the award-winning, fourth annual Kids' Art of Open Space exhibition. The event is sponsored by the Los Altos-based Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District and the Community School of Music and Arts of Mountain View.

Almanac

Los Altos Architectural and Site Control Committee, 4 p.m., City Hall, 1 N. San Antonio Road, Los Altos.

Los Altos benefit for Chiapas residents raises more than $4,000

A Jan. 18 benefit for humanitarian efforts in Chiapas, Mexico by the manager of Estrellita Restaurant in Los Altos netted more than $4,000.

History House looking for old home videos, photos of Los Altos

The Los Altos History House Museum is seeking still photos, home movies, maps, yearbooks and phone books from the Los Altos and Los Altos Hills area.

'Heart of the Community' Valentine dance Feb. 14

The second annual "Heart of the Community Valentine Gala" will be held Feb. 14 at the Fremont Hills Country Club in Los Altos Hills. The fundraising event is sponsored by the Los Altos Community Foundation, which supports community leadership training, neighborhood mediation, and the Bus Barn Community Theater.

Mark Your Calendar

Annual Los Altos Community Prayer Breakfast at Hyatt Rickeys at Palo Alto. Adobe Systems CEO Chuck Geschke and his wife Nan will be the speakers. For more information, call 948-5518

'Great Decisions' discussion series under way

The Los Altos Main Library, League of Women Voters, and the Los Altos-Mountain View American Association of University Women are co-sponsoring the "Great Decisions" discussion series, which is scheduled for Mondays at the Community Room of the main library, 13 S. San Antonio Road. Admission is free.

Music For Minors planning children's music festival

The first Circus of the World Children's Music Festival, featuring an afternoon of children's performers, is scheduled for noon to 5 p.m. June 20 at Egan Intermediate School in Los Altos.

Committee awards good neighbors with meals

Residents who take a couple of steps to show that they are good neighbors can enter a drawing for a free dinner.

Pages of the Past

According to the Feb. 7, 1973, issue of the Town Crier, a new organization, with the provocative name of "O'Hara's Beggars," was in a formative stage in Los Altos. It was the brainchild of Los Altan George O'Hara, who was seeking volunteers to help with the paperwork involved in collecting funds and medical supplies for the children of South Vietnam.

History House wants your memories

History House is undertaking compilation of recorded spoken histories from long-term local residents.

Kiwanians award CHAC counseling program $5,000 grant

Community Health Awareness Council (CHAC) was recently awarded a $5,000 grant for its in-house counseling program from the Los Altos Kiwanis Club, according to Kiwanis Community Services chairperson Judy Steele.

Los Altos fund-raising base for Smithsonian Museum

Town Crier Staff Writer

Seniors Briefs

Feb. 11: Trip to the Hershey chocolate factory in Oakdale scheduled to begin 9 a.m. Cost is $32 per person. Trip also includes lunch and a stop at Knightsferry in the Gold Country.

Downtown Los Altos clean-up event linked with state's Random Acts of Kindness Week

The downtown Los Altos clean-up campaign , which continues this Saturday, will have the support of Random Acts of Kindness Week volunteers, thanks to the efforts of the national organization's local representative Mary Cunneen-Lion.

'Salute to mayors' banquet includes honoring of a longtime 'visionary'

Special to the Town Crier

Los Altos Weather

Schools

Schools Briefs

Pre-registration for fall 1998-99 kindergarten classes in the Los Altos School District will begin on Feb. 5. Doors will be open for pre-registration at 7 a.m. at Almond, Bullis, Loyola, Oak, Santa Rita and Springer schools.

Oak students learn to solve playground disputes together

There used to be a time when excluding a classmate from a playground game meant going to the principal's office and being benched for a week. But students at Oak Elementary School have taken playground disputes into their own hands through a conflict resolution program where kids decide on the penalty.

Gunn graduate named state Teacher of the Year

Alumni Profile

Noteworthies

Top music students from Los Altos, Mountain View and Hometead high schools participated in the Santa Clara County Honor Band at San Jose State University last month. Among the 100 selected band members were Los Altos students Karen Dungan (clarinet), Michael Chen (flute) and Chris Lin (bassoon); Mountain View students Carolyn Noheji (flute), Stella Zubeck (clarinet), Anthony Darrouzet-Nardi (trumpet), Dane Clum and Philip Katz (trombone); and Homestead students Nicole Wee (flute), Joe Masinter (oboe), Rachel Braun (bassoon), Alice Fang (clairnet), Catherine Allen (bass clarinet), Tim Stout (baritone saxophone), Heidi Littman and Sophie Archambeault (French horn), Heather Stout (euphonium), Thomas Armenta (tuba), Charlin Wang (percussion), Kevin Skaife (piano).

Santa Rita program teaches positive behavior

Town Crier Staff Writer

Sports

High School Athletes Of The Month

allie Withers may not be unstoppable, but at times, the Gunn High soccer star plays that way.

Sports On The Side

KICK START: The Stanford Firebirds, a new girls under-14 CYSA soccer team, is seeking dedicated players for the fall season. Players must be born after July 31, 1984, to participate. This Class A team will be professionally coached by Ruedi Graf, girls varsity soccer coach at Los Altos High. Tryouts will be held Feb. 22 and March 1 at Greer Park in Palo Alto. For tryout times and more information, call Graf at 592-0757.

This Week in High School Sports

Today

Girls hoop scoop

Town Crier Staff Writer

Los Altos High wrestling team pins its division title hopes on beating Milpitas tomorrow

Los Altos High wrestling coach Nick Testa has been pointing toward tomorrow's home match with Milpitas for some time now.

Surprising Stalder leads Foothill women to victory

Foothill men rally

Castilleja shows Pinewood who's boss

Prep soccer roundup

Business & Real Estate

Business Briefs

Hewlett-Packard Company on Jan. 23 announced the consolidation of its three major business units into two organizations.

Local architectural firm high on high-tech

Town Crier Staff Writer

Weigh your IRA options this year, experts say

If you are wondering whether to convert your traditional IRA to the new Roth IRA, created under the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, this is the critical year.

Local author rolls into new market niche

Los Altos resident John Morgan has put his talents to many uses in a communications career that began in World War II. He's well into a new chapter in his writing career creating murder mysteries for Books in Motion, a publisher of audio books aimed at truck drivers and libraries.

Transactions

Los Altos Hills

Men: Vulnerable oak trees who need light and water, too

Jean on the Job

Weekly Special

'Crimes of the Heart' filled with emotion

Special to the Town Crier

Carfax expands California database

Carfax Vehicle History Service of Fairfax, Va., has announced the addition of 40 million new California emission records to its 500-million-strong database.

S.J. auto show breaks attendance record

Last month's San Jose International Auto Show was the best ever, according to organizers.

The Volkswagen Beetle of the '60s - the second time around

Special to the Town Crier

Arthritis Foundation asking for vehicle donations

The Arthritis Foundation asks people to donate cars, trucks or recreational vehicles to its Auto Round-Up program.

Obituaries

Linda R. Dulleck, a longtime Los Altos resident, died Jan. 21 in Sunnyvale. A native of Lodi, she was 83.

Noteworthies

Anderson has more than 20 years experience in forensic materials and metallurgical consulting in accident analysis, industrial materials applications and design failures. He testifies frequently in court cases as an expert witness and also applies his expertise to authentication and age dating of archaeological materials.

Howard Denton, Los Altos postmaster, enjoyed making friends

Working for the U.S. Postal Service in Los Altos for 23 years, Howard Denton came to know the name of every gas station attendant, busboy, shopkeeper and resident in town - even after the post office grew from 12 employees and 1,488 delivery points in 1948 to 113 employees and 12,652 routes at the time of his retirement in 1971.

Real-life 'Amistad' story proves more powerful than movie

The movie "Amistad" tells the true story of Mendi slaves captured in Sierra Leone in 1828 who manage to overwhelm the Amistad crew while at sea, slaughtering all but two of them. Attempting to regain their freedom and return to their homeland, they make the sailors turn the ship around and head for Africa.

CYS performing free concert this Sunday at Foothill College

The California Youth Symphony Association Orchestra, representing the intermediate level, will perform a free concert at 2:30 p.m. Sunday in Smithwick Theater at Foothill College.

PACO trainees perform this Friday in Palo Alto

The training orchestra of the Palo Alto Chamber Orchestra, under the direction of William Whitson, will give its second concert of the 1997-1998 season at 7:30 p.m. this Friday at the Palo Alto Cultural Center.