Photo Ellie Van Houtte/Town Crier

A young reader visits the Little Free Library in the front yard of Alexa Morris’ Mountain View home.

Move over gardens and chicken coops, front-yard libraries are writing the next chapter in creative yard use.

Bucking the trend toward eReaders, Alexa Morris of Mountain View installed a miniature book exchange in her yard in March. She joins a growing network of people nationwide who are stewards of the Little Free Library movement.

Photo Bruce Barton/Town Crier

“Champions for Youth” organizer Gay Krause, from left, 49ers quarterback Scott Tolzien and Youth Champion of the Year honoree Roy Lave contribute to an inspiring Challenge Team event.

For San Francisco 49ers backup quarterback Scott Tolzien, “paying the rent” means something altogether different from a writing a check for the landlord. Tolzien, speaking at the annual “Champions for Youth” breakfast May 8, said it was his life’s motto.

Quoting his high school basketball coach, Tolzien said, “Success isn’t owned, it’s rented – and the rent is due every day.”

The apricot is more than just a fruit to Los Altos native Robin Chapman – it is at the center of her fondest childhood memories.

During a golden age in the 1940s and 1950s, Los Altos proved the ideal place for cultivating apricot orchards.

Photo Town Crier File Photo

Visitors can expect a crowd in downtown Los Altos Saturday as children and their pets march in the annual Kiwanis Pet Parade.

The Los Altos Kiwanis Pet Parade is scheduled 10 a.m. Saturday in downtown Los Altos.

The annual event showcases pets of a variety of species parading down Main and State streets, accompanied by their owners. Dave Roos, founding veterinarian of Los Altos-based Adobe Animal Hospital, will serve as this year’s Grand Marshal.

The Los Altos Historical Commission and the Los Altos History Museum announced the winners of the 29th annual Margaret Thompson Historical Essay Contest.

The theme of this year’s contest, “Bear in Mind: The Story of the California Grizzly,” complemented a recent History Museum exhibition.