While Some Were Counting Their Presents, Others Were Changing the Future
While many Americans were making their lists and checking them twice, Helen Woodward Animal Center began a quest to change the future of Puerto Rico. During a visit to Puerto Rico’s Canita Animal Sanctuary the HWAC team from Rancho Santa Fe learned about problems facing pets in Latin America. At the largest Humane Society facility on the island only three of the 120 dogs arriving daily will survive. The other 96 percent will die in overcrowded shelters.
“This may be one of the saddest things I’ve ever witnessed,” HWAC President Mike Arms said. “We’re blessed to have this opportunity to help change the way animals are treated in Puerto Rico, but we’ll definitely pay an emotional price. There’s so far to go.”
In other Helen Woodward Animal Center news, for some reason HWAC officials have begun a tradition of ringing the final bell on the Chirstmas Eve New York Stock Exchange trading day.
This from an anonymous source:
" The opening bell at the NYSE was rung this morning by folks from the Helen Woodward Animal Center in Rancho Santa Fe. It has become a tradition at the exchange to have people from the center on hand Christmas Eve in support of the Iams Home 4 the Holidays pet adoption program, which operates nearly 3,900 shelters and rescue groups in 18 countries. One of the people on the podium this morning was Nedra Abramson, who is the sponsorship manager at the Woodward Center. I understand that she was really out of her element back in New York, far from her usual environment, surfing the beaches of San Diego County."
Librarian is not the occupation you think of first when meeting Laurie Knodle. High-end realtor, event coordinator or aerobics instructor perhaps, but librarian? Her lively personality, stylish outfits and megawatt smile don’t fit the mold of the quiet, dowdy book maven. Yet Laurie has been at the Rancho Santa Fe Library in North County San Diego for the past 12 years. A popular children’s librarian, Laurie has been known to sport a balloon animal hat, wrangle a very frisky visiting sled dog, and probably sneaks turns at Dance Dance Revolution during teen time. “We don’t shush here, we get shushed,” she joked. She is all about fun, but also has a serious passion for turning kids on to books.
A mother of three children ages 23, 21 and 19, she first volunteered at their school library, starting the Everyone A Reader program at OPE Elementary. Eventually her kids outgrew the school library, “But I didn’t,” she said, which led to volunteering at Rancho Santa Fe. “I started out shelving books, doing crafts, walking the dog—I loved it,” she said. (Many libraries use therapy dogs that children read aloud to.) Six years ago she became a part-time children’s librarian, funded through the Rancho Santa Fe Library Guild.
What impressed me about Laurie when I started taking my daughter to the Rancho Santa Fe Library was that she remembered the books my daughter had read and always made a point to tell us when new horse books came in or American Girl books or whatever her current interest was. And she talks directly to the kids, asking their opinion of the books they read and joking around with them. It’s all part of her secret strategy to get them hooked on books.
“So many kids that are shy, they would never presume to ask you a question. They don’t think they should go over to you, so when I tease or joke with them, it puts them at ease, lets them know that they can ask questions. If you can get kids to love books, especially as kindergardeners or 1st-graders and get them their own library card, that’s wonderful.”
Keeping up with the ever-changing selection is a challenge. “I read a lot of kid's books,” she said, “and I try to read all the award winners. The YA (young adult) books are the hardest to keep up with—I’ll read the first in a series and I also read reviews on Amazon.” While making sure that books are age appropriate, her philosophy is, “Whatever they will pick up and read—let ‘em.” This applies to the current craze of vampire related books and anything else kids request. “We want them to get so they make a point to come here and feel like it is their library.”
Laurie loves being a children’s librarian and couldn’t imagine being anywhere else. “Being around little kids keeps you young mentally. I’m just about their maturity—and they know it!” she laughed. [When I interviewed Laurie for this post she made me promise to link to the San Diego County Library web site and let you know that you can access all 30 libraries in the system, get homework help, download audiobooks ... this woman is on a mission!]
Rancho Santa Fe School District trustee Richard Burdge and Friends of Rancho Santa Fe Schools, a political committee for which he was treasurer, are set to pay a proposed $19,000 fine to the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission under an agreement scheduled for consideration later this month. The penalty is for alleged campaign finance violations in the campaign for 2006’s failed Prop H. The hotly contested $44.5 million measure would have built an elementary school at Aliso Canyon Road and Via del Charro. “Proposition H failed to pass with the required 55% of the vote in the June 6, 2006 election, but did receive 51.49% of the vote,” says an exhibit prepared for the commission’s next board meeting, when the matter is on the agenda. The commission alleges multiple violations of state campaign finance law, including failure to file disclosure statements for multiple contributions totaling $30,000. “During the campaign, Respondents received contributions totaling $140,550 and made expenditures totaling $128,112. However, Respondents failed to timely report a significant amount of this campaign activity. On June 12, 2008, Respondents filed a semi-annual campaign statement for the reporting period July 1, 2007 through November 23, 2007, and a statement of termination, thereby ending their filing responsibilities.”
Donations not reported by the group included $15,000 from the Rancho Santa Fe Association; $5000 from Telacu Construction Management, a Los Angeles corporation that specializes in new school construction; and $2000 from Keenan and Associates, an insurance brokerage that provides workers’ compensation policies to school districts. Burdge is a retired venture capitalist and investment banker whose son, James, is in third grade.
Hello. Welcome to the official blog of www.perryspreviews.com. My name is Perry Chen, a 9-year-old boy, a 3rd grader from San Diego's Torrey Hills Elementary School. This is where you can read my latest movie reviews. I rate movies on a scale of 1 to 5 Starfish, 5 being the best. The movies I review are rated G or PG, suitable for children, adults and the entire family. I enjoy watching these movies with my parents. They are great for parents who want to watch movies and spend quality time with their kids. I hope a lot of parents will watch many wonderful movies with their children and talk to them about the movies after reading my reviews. I would love to talk to you about movies. Thank you for visiting and hope you enjoyed my reviews! Send your comments by posting on my blog, and/or email me: perryspreviews@gmail.com
Rating: PG, opening on Friday, March 27, 2009 Have you ever experienced feeling lonely and misunderstood? A girl from Modesto, California, named Susan Murphy, has felt it when she was accidentally hit on her wedding date by a meteor containing quantanium, the most powerful substance in the universe. The effect makes her grow to a monstrous size and turn her hair from brown to ash blonde. Susan is captured by the U.S. military and is thrown into a “Monster Jail”, where her name is changed to “Ginormica”. There she meets other colorful monsters: Dr. Cockroach, the world’s greatest mad scientist with a pair of disproportionally large eyes of an insect, B.O.B. (Bicarbonate Ostylezene Benzoate), an indestructible, gelatinous mass made of tomato combined with Ranch-flavored dessert topping, The Missing Link, a 4,000 year old Fisherman found encased in an ice cube, and lastly, Insectosaurus, a tiny grub grown to 350 ft caused by radiation. A four-eyed, hollow-voiced alien with writhing tentacles, named Gallaxhar, sees earth and decides to take over it. An enormous robot probe is sent there. The over-confident President with funky hair and attitude tries to make contact with the robot, and ends up being chased into a chopper. Susan and her new friends combine forces and defeats the aliens with their unique capabilities, strategies, and teamwork. Gallaxhar is furious and sends his UFO zooming to earth. He captures Susan and temporarily zaps Insectosaurus with an electric cannon. Susan’s new friends must daringly venture into the UFO to save her from certain death. My favorite character is Susan because she has courage, strategy, and determination. My next favorite character is Dr. Cockroach, smart yet cannot control his mad scientist’s urge to conduct nutty experiments on Susan! The movie has a great sense of humor. Here is one of my favorite funny dialogs as The Missing Link talk to Susan about the impossibility to escape from the “Monsters’ Jail”: The Missing Link: “Nobody gets out of here, ever…” US army commander shouting from the outside as he gets the President’s approval to enlist the help of the monsters to combat the aliens: “Great news, Monsters! You’re getting OUT!” The Missing Link (thinking): wait, that can’t be right! The Missing Link to Susan: ever… until today. I attended a press/promotional screening on March 24 at UltraStar Mission Valley. The room was overflowing with young children and their parents, erupting in roars of laughter. Apparently, the movie is a hit with this crowd! The 3-D effects are awesome, I felt like I can touch the characters, such as when Susan is falling from the UFO. Filled with humor and adventures, “Monsters vs. Aliens” is a delightful experience for the whole family. Friendship is contagious and beyond species. The spirit of collaboration is indestructible.
More Perry's Previews? Of course, follow this link to the mother lode...
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Linda Lang Appointed to
CSU Board of Trustees
The SDSU alumnae is the first San Diego-area representative on the board since 2007.
More about Linda Lang
Earned MBA from SDSU in 1991
Chairman and CEO, Jack in the Box Inc.
Founding member of Jack in the Box Foundation
Linda Lang, chairman & CEO, Jack in the Box Inc.
Gov.Arnold Schwarzenegger has appointed Linda Lang, of Rancho Santa Fe, to the California State University Board of Trustees. Lang, 50, is chairman and CEO of Jack in the Box Inc.
Lang has been influential in Jack in the Box's growth and philanthropic interests. One of San Diego's most prominent business leaders, she is a founding member of The Jack in the Box Foundation, also serving on the boards of directors of SDSU's College of Business Administration and the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corp. Lang earned an MBA in finance from the college in 1991.
I was 14 when I first found blood in the toilet. I was 14 when I decided not to say anything, not to get help, not to look for an explanation. It was a silent suffering, and I took it very slow. Thinking nothing about my insides, or the wretched environment that was slowly developing in my bowels, I continued living as if nothing were happening. But every day my fear of the bathroom grew. I wasn’t getting better. The pain of a bowel movement would make my body shake, my arm veins would expose themselves like slugs under my stretched skin, and my eyes would close into a state of imagination, an escape.
I was 14, and the topic was embarrassing. Nothing in my rational mind gravitated toward telling them about my problem, my daily struggle. The act of going to the bathroom had become so ritualized and the pain so commonplace that my body had normalized the facts. It was simply a given that at least once a day I would have to endure an excruciating episode that ended with the clear water of the porcelain bowl turning a shade of crimson that I came to associate with my cowardice and insecurity.
At my sister’s graduation I broke down. I told my parents what was happening to me. Soon I was face to face with my doctor, who was baffled. No hemorrhoids, no nothing. “Stop weightlifting until it gets better,” he suggested.
“Serendipity,” I told my parents. “Everything got better.” I lied.
I was 16 when I began going to the bathroom more frequently every day than most do in a week. Going to the gym became a battle between my desire to train and the rumbling of bowels begging for acknowledgment. Running on a treadmill became an internal dialogue. Just two more minutes. I can do this. My body would respond with a low growl, a thud like the tapping of knuckles on wood. This sound would quickly escalate, accompanied by pressure, as if someone were standing on my abdomen. Then I was competing in a race, a 50-yard dash to the men’s room, as an audience of fortysomethings looked on in awe at the boy with diarrhea. Over the course of a workout I would go four or five times, and people next to me would inevitably ask what kind of training regiment I was doing where I spent more time in the bathroom than on the gym floor.
I never considered myself handicapped and never wanted to admit I was sick. When I was having difficulty sleeping because of the problem, I thought long and hard about bringing the topic up again. My parents had no idea what was going on, partially because I had lied, and partially because I simply could not articulate what was happening to me. I did not know how to craft a simile to describe this experience to my mother. No one had ever designated a time of day for these sorts of discussions. I knew it was not dinnertime conversation.
I finally broached the topic and was sent to a gastroenterologist. We talked. “Evan, I’d like to examine you, if you don’t mind.” Well, I do mind, actually. I’m 16, and I’d rather you not touch me. I’d rather you not discover my stigma, the one source where all my guilt and anxiety and imperfection manifests itself in crevices and scars. My parents left the room, and I was alone with only cartoon wallpaper to distract me. I closed my eyes and imagined I was home locked in my room. Eventually he finished, and what he described made me think of a small San Andreas fault. “We’re going to do a colonoscopy and an endoscopy to see what is really going on.”
Then I was staring up at the ceiling, a patchwork pattern of porous stucco paneling, and an anesthesiologist handed me a mask.
“So what’d they find, Dad?” My dad didn’t say anything, just handed me a picture. No artist, no anatomist, no believer in the beauty of the human form could have found anything positive to say about my intestinal tract. The picture was grainy with ulcers and burning with inflammation. My intestines were a visual representation of a napalm blast, totally unfit for absorbing nutrients. “The doctors said you have Crohn’s disease.”
Crohn’s is an autoimmune disorder characterized by inflammation and bleeding in the digestive tract. When the intestines become inflamed, their ability to absorb nutrients and water is drastically compromised.
In many ways I never truly reached adolescence because my intestines decided to rebel. I had always felt like a kid – just a kid doing calculus, just a child driving a car, just a boy drifting through life defining himself through grades and relationships. And then I saw the picture of my spotted stomach, my ruby intestines, and I knew that perfection was a misnomer, a paradox even.
Unfortunately, this part of my life had to happen at a very inopportune time. Like any young man, I wanted to spend my time with friends, and I wanted attention from girls. I distanced myself and tried to disconnect. In many ways it was the only thing I felt I could do. My classes were demanding, my drive never waned, and I did not feel comfortable discussing the personal aspects of the issue. I had other things to worry about. So I endured unnecessary suffering as a casualty in the search for youthful perfection, an ideal that I felt I had to live up to, only to find it doesn’t exist.
As Yahia Lababidi said, “We all have handicaps. The difference is that some of us must reveal ours, while others must conceal theirs, to be treated with mercy.” I always felt that I had to conceal my problem to be treated with mercy, not to be chastised for having to handle this and have doctors touch my body in ways that most people would find revolting. When I was diagnosed I finally told my friends. The outpouring of support from them as well as teachers was enlightening.
I don’t hide my pill bottles or lie to my friends anymore. Crohn’s is simply another part of me. On my wall above my bed, next to the prom and winter formal pictures, I hung the picture of my colon, all swollen and crimson. To me, it is more than red hues. It is a symbol of my rite of passage, my own personal struggle to grow up.
Bringing Unconditional Love Through Human-Animal Interaction
Helen Woodward Animal Center's Pet Encounter Therapy (P.E.T.) Program brings the unconditional love and tactile benefits of animals to people in facilities such as abused children’s shelters, hospitals, psychiatric facilities, and senior centers, officials say. Groups also have the option to visit the Center for on-site programs. Staff and volunteers take dogs, rabbits, birds, or guinea pigs to visit more than 45 facilities a month, with many organizations on our waiting list. Studies document that holding and caressing an animal provides benefits such as relaxation, lower blood pressure, improved long- and short-term memory and sensory stimuli.
Animals often bring out the best in people. They can calm hyperactive children or stimulate movement and interaction in those with physical disabilities. During our PET visits, officials say, we’ve seen movement from unresponsive patients or heard words spoken for the first time-all to the amazement of fellow residents and staff members.
The program provides opportunities for special-needs people to experience the benefits of human-animal interaction. Along with being enjoyable for the people, the interactions also provide stress reduction, relaxation, lowered blood pressure, increased attention span, increased memory recall, and improved self-esteem. Benefits for the P.E.T. animals include a work schedule of one hour each day with the next day off, the love of hundreds of people, and the best care and housing available. Benefits for the staff and volunteers are the satisfaction of truly touching the lives of the people we visit.
Want to be a P.E.T. volunteer? Call the P.E.T. program at 858-756-411 ext 322.
To find out additional information about this program, call 858-756-4117 ext 322 or visit Helen Woodward Animal Center at 6461 El Apajo Road, Rancho Santa Fe, CA 92067
HELEN WOODWARD ANIMAL CENTER BEGINS $50 MILLION MAKEOVER NEXT WEEK. FIRST PHASE WILL BE $6 MILLION SMALL ANIMAL VETERINARY HOSPITAL. A $16 MILLION PHASE TWO WILL RECONFIGURE THE ENTRANCE CIRCLE COURTYARD AND PROVIDE ANIMAL CENTER RENOVATIONS. OTHER PROJECTS INCLUDE DOUBLING THE SIZE OF THE MAIN CENTER BUILDING TO 115,000-SQUARE FEET.
Woodward "Pet of the Week" Ballerina awaiting a good home. To find out more follow this link...
BE LOOKING FOR THAT FANCY BOOK LEARNIN' AT DA RANCHO SANTA FE LIBARY AGIN. LIBRARY RE-OPENED ON MONDAY, FEB. 2 AFTER A THOROUGH PAINTING AND RE-SHELVING HIATUS.
Taking agricultural education to a whole 'nother level
By Dan Weisman
SAN PASQUAL VALLEY -- Organic farming pioneer and consultant, resource conservation leader, and now agricultural educator, Scott Murray hopes his back-to-the-future efforts will keep farming viable in California and the nation.
Murray is doing it, in part, at a groundbreaking venue, the San Pasqual Academy. Located in the San Diego Agricultural Preserve about 35 miles northeast of downtown San Diego, it's a first-in-the-nation residential education campus designed specifically for foster teens. The program began in 2001 with a bed capacity of 135 teens and will house 250 once an expansion is competed next year.
With grants, donations, volunteers, and students contributing, Murray has created a seven-acre virtual experimental farm and real-world, hands-on agricultural education program to serve as a template for future community farming efforts.
"The opportunity is to show a fully integrated farm of the future, which looks like going to the past in many ways," said the indefatigable Murray, as he got soil ready for winter vegetable plantings. When harvested early next year, the produce will go directly to the school cafeteria a few hundred yards away for healthy student lunches. Surplus is sold to world class restaurants in La Jolla and Rancho Santa Fe.
"We're at a turning point where agriculture must become diversified, and localized," Murray continued. "The average produce must ship 1,200 miles from where it is produced. We must re-localize our food."
This is not mere theory, but growing fact at Murray's San Pasqual Academy farm. His two agricultural classes have 25 students each. Students work for pay at the farm, giving them vocational and job experience.
Other students in the school's culinary program cook up the school-produced crop, while students working in the cafeteria serve the food. Lessons from the farm are taken into the classroom for nutritional education.
Straddling Santa Ysabel Creek and Highway 78 between Escondido and Ramona, spanning a ridge line in the historic valley, immediate plans are to expand to 20 acres of production with an eventual goal of 80 acres under school production.
"We're planting a third section under a three-year, $299,000 grant from USDA's commodity food program," Murray said. "I'm looking for a grant to make this farm sustainable and a demonstration. We are building a packing shed with a 22-by-33-foot walk-in cooler."
The academy has been a cause celebre' in San Diego's County's substantial social world. The school farm program also has been gifted through local farming and business interests.
Burnquist Organics for whom Murray is developing a new line of organic foods, donated $20,000 in equipment. Rotary International clubs from Coronado, La Jolla, and Rancho Santa Fe donated $40,000. As well, 186 Rotary members spent a recent Saturday at the school picking orchards.
The Witch Creek Fire in October 2007 destroyed citrus, avocado, and olive trees on campus. A freak flash flood in February destroyed field crops.
All have come back. Murray's crew is growing seven types of tangerines to see which type grows best in Southern California, as well as limes and lemons. They grow Valencia oranges next to the Whitman Family's farm, legendary citrus growers in San Diego North County.
In the crop rows, students this week were picking the last of the tomatoes, red bell peppers, string beans, beans, cucumbers, and zucchini. They were starting a winter crop of radishes, lettuce, and experimental strawberries and berries.
All good, but what's food without purpose? Murray, and company's agricultural education doesn't end in the fields.
"The first objective was to feed our students," Murray said. "But this year we have been regularly shipping to four other foster facilities and selling the rest. The Marine Room at La Jolla, the Lodge at Torrey Pines, the New Stone Bistro in Escondido all buy from us."
Those are some of the finest four-star restaurants in the world, but the demonstration of value continues in other ways.
"We're a township," Murray said. "We have our own water system. We have a biological sewage system. We would like to do experimental biodiesel algae. Wouldn't it be great down the road if we could produce diesel fuel on campus for our delivery trucks."
Murray added: "It's so important what we are doing with the kids, teaching them about food literacy. Part of what we're doing is improving the quality of our students diet."
Murray started at San Pasqual as a volunteer. He signed up for 20 hours a week, but often spent up to 60 hours. Previously, he began the Ivy School organic farm in Fallbrook. It is handicap accessible as well as organic.
Murray's resume is long and deep. He has been active in public life, currently serving as secretary of the California Association of Resource Conservation Development Councils and the South Coast Resource Conservation and Development Council. He is former president of the Mission Conservation District in Fallbrook.
A Cal-Berkeley graduate, Murray heads his Murray Sustainable Development Group and Murray Farms in Vista. An organic grower and consultant for 30 years, he is considered expert in sustainable farming and agro-eco-industrial planning, as he converts chemically dependent farms to organic and sustainable practices. He also is an early advocate of the Slow Food movement, president of Slow Food San Diego, advocating land stewardship through sound food production.
And the non-stop father of three has some other ideas for the immediate agricultural advocacy future.
"How come we have homeless people going hungry in America?" Murray said. "We need to start asking people to grow food again. Why not ask every church in America to sponsor a garden? Imagine if they had an acre for every 100 members.
"We have a new president. Why not 'Farmer-in-Chief'. The first family has to buy its own food. Why not a White House garden?
Athletes for Hope is a 501 (c)(3) charitable organization created by a few very successful athletes of exemplary character who have a deep commitment to charitable and community causes. Andre Agassi, Muhammad Ali, Lance Armstrong, Warrick Dunn, Jeff Gordon, Mia Hamm, Tony Hawk, Andrea Jaeger, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Mario Lemieux, Alonzo Mourning, and Cal Ripken, Jr. founded Athletes for Hope to Pass their Passion for philanthropy to others.
Rancho Santa Fe Firefighters Hand Out Goodwill to Fire's Youngest Victims (December 8, 2008)
RANCHO SANTA FE(December 8, 2008)- Children who survived the Witch Creek fire came together Saturday at the Village Church to share in some much needed holiday joy. Hailing from Escondido, Rancho Bernardo and Poway, their smiles were brighter than the breaking sun outside. The brainchild of Rancho Santa Fe firefighter Chris Danner, Saturday's event provided almost 150 children with new bicycles, skateboards, toys and T-shirts. Danner said he phoned a childhood hero and soon afterward an avalanche of merchandise was on its way from the Tony Hawk Foundation. "Growing up, I always looked up to him," Danner said of Hawk, a professional skateboarder. When the October fires were extinguished, Danner said, he felt the need to follow up the effort spent fighting the blazes by helping those who survived them. "We were still at work and the fires were out," he said. "We felt pretty helpless, what can we do now? I was sitting around, so I started making phone calls. Christmas is coming - there are going to be a lot of kids without homes, without bikes." Jack Baca, senior pastor for Village Community Presbyterian Church in Rancho Santa Fe, answered the call when Danner needed a conduit for his charity. Because the firefighters are not a charity, they could not directly accept the donations from the Tony Hawk Foundation and the skateboarding legend's sponsors. "They needed an agency to receive and distribute everything," Baca said. "They called us and asked if we could help, and we said 'absolutely.' " The church and the Rancho Santa Fe firefighters held bike-building parties all week to ensure the children could leave on two wheels. "All these bikes had to be put together," Baca said, pointing to a sea of bicycles. "Each kid has their gifts custom-aged for them," he said. "There are five different sizes of bicycles. Each kid and each family had to be matched up. There has been a huge organizational effort." C.C. Flashman, a development associate with Hawk's foundation, said the he leapt at the opportunity to aide his hometown's recovery. "We work with these sponsors every day," she said. "They all were so welcoming and sent as much as they could. Tony has a big name behind him, so he makes it all happen quickly." Across the church's auditorium were Dynacraft Bikes, TechDeck mini-skatepark toys, Hawk's own Birdhouse Skateboards and T-shirts, Bravo Skateboards, and extreme sport DVDs provided by 900 Films. "It's heartbreaking and heartwarming," Flashman said. The faces of the children struck a chord with parents, who got emotional over the joyful reactions. Dean Barad knelt by his daughter, Krisztina, putting two toy skateparks in a backpack as she gripped her new Shrek skateboard. The Rancho Bernardo resident said he still marvels at the rescuer who saved his family, banging on his door minutes after 4 a.m. "We only got out with our lives," he said. "I still want to find that firefighter and thank him. In the rubble we found my wife's watch frozen at 4:22." Barad now had several more reasons to thank rescue personnel - Krisztina was beaming with delight over her new wheels. "I can't wait to try it," she said. For a family that barely escaped the firestorm, the community outpouring has given much-needed assistance on many levels. "It has been unbelievable how people have come together," Barad said. "The goodwill from this community is unreal. This is just fantastic." The Village Church had promotional posters across the room for its evening live performance of "It's A Wonderful Life," and the show's theme of hope amid despair was not lost on the congregation's minister. "That show captures it exactly right," Baca said. "This is what the church and a community does, they take care of each other." Saturday in Rancho Santa Fe found fire survivors relishing holiday blessings surrounded by a community in the warmest of embraces. "These people's lives seem unreal because they lost their homes," Baca said. "There's the gratitude they feel towards the firefighters. "That feels unreal because it's not how the world works a lot of the time. But that is how the world should work all the time."
RED ROBIN, RED ROBIN, CAN DANIELLE LAMPITT'S "OH SO GOUDA BURGER" COME OVER?
Sponsored by Red Robin restaurants, kids this summer ages 6-12 submitted their own original gourmet burger recipes and brief statements on why their burgers deserved to be America's next gourmet burger. Winning burgers may be sold at participating Red Robins, featured in a cokbook to benefit the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and possibly a vacation package tour to Universal Orlando Resort.
"I was a judge, along with Amanda Faison of 5280 and chef Tyler Wiard of Elway’s," said Kristen Browning-Blas in her blog.
"Seven-year-old Charlie Beckett of Rathdrum, Idaho, won this year’s Red Robin “Gourmet Burger Kids’ Recipe Contest” today, with his “Holy-Peño Burger.” The second-grader has been eating spicy foods since he was a toddler, says his dad, Jeremiah Beckett. “When he was 2, we would get meatball subs and I would put peppers on them and he liked it.”
Other faves:
Most gourmet: “The Oh So Gouda Burger” Danielle Lampitt, 12, Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. The oldest contestant wins points for washing her hands before making her sample burger, and for highlighting her “vine-ripe” tomatoes with a balsamic marinade. And her family wins the fashion award for their “Danielle’s Oh So Gouda” hoodies.
More than 14,000 burger recipe entries were submitted online and at Red Robin® restaurants throughout the U.S. over the summer. The top 10 finalist recipes for the Championship event were chosen based on their inventive combination of ingredients, fun flavors and compelling 100-word statement on why their burger deserved to be selected as America’s Next Gourmet Burger. Three runners up included 12-year-old Danielle Lampitt from Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., who created "The Oh So Gouda Burger;” 11-year-old Brendan Schott from Muskegon, Mich., who created the "Cheesy Pizza Paradise Burger;” and 10-year-old Adley Piccolo from Chesapeake, Va., who created the "Fireside Burger.” Rathdrum, Idaho resident, 7-year-old Charlie Beckett's "Holy-Peño Burger” was named America’s next gourmet burger.
The 10 finalists’ gourmet burger recipes, along with 40 other kid-invented burger recipes submitted through the contest, will be included in a cookbook available for FREE to download online at www.redrobin.com next summer.
LIBRARY FRIENDS ANNOUNCE ESSAY CONTEST WINNERS: RSF TEEN WINS
The Library Friends of San Diego County (LFSDC) announced the winners of its annual essay contest, with this year's theme, "Libraries, Loud or Quiet?" First, second and third place winners in the youth, teen and adult categories will be honored by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 18 at the Supe's kitchen (i.e. chamber).
The LFSDC is the umbrella group of all County Library Friends of the Library organizations.
Teen:
First: Ariana Huzery, Rancho Santa Fe Library
Second: Benet Landon, Ramona Library
Third: Emma Rudolph, Vista Library
Ariana's essay: "Loud Libraries: Disruptive or our Society's Saving Grace"
Eduardo Sanchez, head tennis pro at Rancho Valencia Resort and Spa, brought some kids to the resort to discusses tennis...and life...The kids are from his native Tecate where he has set up a free tennis foundation program for youth.
WE HAVE PARTNERED WITH JOHN KIM'S RSF CONNECTION TO BRING THE LATEST IN LOCAL EDUCATION COVERAGE, INCLUDING NEWS PRESENTED BY RSF ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS. HE HAS TAKEN A SLIGHT HIATUS, BUT FOLLOW THE LINK TO RSF CONNECTION LOCAL EDUCATION NEWS...
BEST RANCHO SANTA FE MOMS? CHECK OUT THE COVERAGE IN RSF CONNECTION
The 18th annual Spook-tacular People Pet Walk benefiting Helen Woodward Animal Center was a Howling success! It's not too late to turn in your pledges or make a donation. LOOKEE LOOKEE: Walk photos from Woodward Center on slideshow display
Creating a Humane World for Animals and People
Helen Woodward Animal Center is a unique, private, non-profit organization dedicated to saving the lives of animals and enriching the lives of people. For more than 30 years, our no-kill Center has provided humane care and adoption for orphaned animals, as well as animal-centered educational and therapeutic programs for people. The Center is a dynamic, evolving institution that is an agent of change for the animal welfare world. Not only are we operating innovative and beneficial programs for animals and people, but we are teaching others around the world how to successfully market and promote their programs and stop the senseless death of thousands of animals.
THE PRIMARY EXEMPT PURPOSE OF THE RANCHO SANTA FE COMMUNITY SCHOOL ENDOWMENT FUND IS TO SUPPORT AND ENRICH THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS PROVIDED TO STUDENTS IN THE RANCHO SANTA FE SCHOOL DISTRICT.
THE PRIMARY EXEMPT PURPOSE OF THE RANCHO SANTA FE COMMUNITY SCHOOL ENDOWMENT FUND IS TO SUPPORT AND ENRICH THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS PROVIDED TO STUDENTS IN THE RANCHO SANTA FE SCHOOL DISTRICT.
Programs
DONATIONS TO RANCHO SANTA FE SCHOOL DISTRICT FOR ENRICHMENT PROGRAMS
FINANCIAL DATA
Revenues and Expenses: Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 2007
REVENUE
Contributions
$536,888
Government Grants
$0
Program Services
$0
Investments
$117,400
Special Events
$15,300
Sales
$0
Other
$0
Total Revenue
$669,588
EXPENSES
Program Services
$644,000
Administration
$43,608
Other
$19,158
Total Expenses
$706,766
Net Gain/Loss
($37,178)
Balance Sheet: Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 2007
Note: The balance sheet gives a snapshot of the financial health of an organization at a particular point in time. An organization's total assets should generally exceed its total liabilities, or it cannot long survive, but the types of assets and liabilities also must be considered. For instance, an organization's current assets (cash, receivables, securities, etc.) should be sufficient to cover its current liabilities (payables, deferred revenue, current year loan and note payments). Otherwise, the organization may face solvency problems. On the other hand, an organization whose cash and equivalents greatly exceed its current liabilities might not be putting its money to best use.
Helen Woodward Animal Center's Pet Encounter Therapy (P.E.T.) Program brings the unconditional love and tactile benefits of animals to people in facilities such as abused children’s shelters, hospitals, psychiatric facilities, and senior centers, officials say. Groups also have the option to visit the Center for on-site programs. Staff and volunteers take dogs, rabbits, birds, or guinea pigs to visit more than 45 facilities a month, with many organizations on our waiting list. Studies document that holding and caressing an animal provides benefits such as relaxation, lower blood pressure, improved long- and short-term memory and sensory stimuli.
Woodward "Pet of the Week" Ballerina awaiting a good home. To find out more 
Straddling Santa Ysabel Creek and Highway 78 between Escondido and Ramona, spanning a ridge line in the historic valley, immediate plans are to expand to 20 acres of production with an eventual goal of 80 acres under school production.
