January 2013 Journal Plus

BARBAR A GEORGE | JOYCE PIK E | SY MPHONY HONORS JIM AND BE VERLY SMITH

Journal JANUARY 2013

PLUS

MAGAZINE OF THE CENTRAL COAST

LOUIE ORTEGA

805-543-2172 San Luis Obispo

www.farrellsmyth.com

www.zinvineyard.com

805-904-6616 Arroyo Grande

www.NipomoGreenRealEstate.com

Larry D. Smyth

Jennifer Hamilton Relocation Director

Owner/Broker

Gentleman’s Ranch 3.76 acres with vineyard and fully insulated 4900+ square foot steel shop with living quarters.

Dry farming Zinfandel grapes. Electric gate + alarm system Linda Aiello-Madison with cameras. Great opportunity for a car collector, or Broker-Associate nicely located for potential tasting room. $1,275,000 www.461KerwinStreet.com

One of a kind ranch style 4bd/2ba home situated on 1 acre in Nipomo. Plus 15 x 35 greenhouse with gas heater, water heater, misting system & evap cooler. Large kitchen with skylight. Vaulted ceilings with skylights throughout house. Office w/built-in desk and cabinets.

Triple car garage. This is a rare find and priced to sell. $545,000 www.1052Peach.com

Annette Mullen

Ken Arritt

REALTOR®

Broker-Associate

Twila Arritt

Broker-Associate

Panoramic Ocean and Marine Terrace Views! Outstanding opportunity for Highly Sought after Marine Terrace in Cambria! Great bones and in relatively good condition. Clean & Move-in ready. 3 Br’s (one without closet), 3 Bath. Den with Fireplace, Sunroom. Wrap around deck.

Windows all across the front - Expansive Ocean View! $539,900

Fantastic location and income with this delightful 1 bedroom 1 bath 1926 home, single car garage/ storage. Also a separate rental 2 bedroom, 1 bath unit in the back. Close to the government center and easy access to highway. Mixed zoning with lots of potential. $459,500

www.157Clarence.com

Great SLO Location!

REALTOR®

Patricia Garrison REALTOR®

Mary Rosenthal REALTOR®

Janet Shaner

Pamela Bliss

REALTOR®

Broker-Associate

Theresa Carroll

Vicky Hall

REALTOR®

Near the Village of AG, Gleaming remodeled home in rural setting. 3 car garage + bonus rooms, RV parking, completely fenced oversized lot. $459,000

Fantastic location! Sunny, energy efficient, quiet upstairs flat.

Gorgeous views of Bishop’s Peak from the SW deck. Close to Cal Poly, shopping, & hiking. Bright, open floor plan with attached one car garage. All units must be owner occupied. This complex was designed to provide quality housing at substantially lower prices for Cal Poly’s faculty and staff but is also available to the general public with certain resale/rental restrictions. $275,000

Conveniently located in the heart of SLO & the Village of Arroyo Grande 21 Santa Rosa Street, Suite 100, San Luis Obispo, CA 93405 110 E. Branch Street, Arroyo Grande, CA 93420

Chris Stanley REALTOR®

Christine Williams REALTOR®

CONTENTS

Journal PLUS 10 MAGAZINE OF THE CENTRAL COAST

The People, Community, and Business of Our Beautiful Central Coast ADDRESS

654 Osos Street San Luis Obispo California 93401

JIM AND BEVERLY SMITH

PHONE 805.546.0609 E-MAIL slojournal@fix.net WEBSITE www.slojournal.com

EDITOR & PUBLISHER Steve Owens ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Erin Mott GRAPHIC DESIGNER Dora Mountain COPY EDITOR Susan Stewart PHOTOGRAPHER Tom Meinhold DISTRIBUTION Keith Malcomson

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BARBARA GEORGE

RENE OLIVER

ADVERTISING Jan Owens CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Susan Stewart, Natasha Dalton, Joseph Carotenuti, Dr. Julian Crocker, Sarah Hedger, Maggie Cox, Deborah Cash, Ruth Starr, Muara Johnston, Will Jones, Roxanne Carr , Gordon Fuglie, John Summer, John Ashbaugh, and Ray Cauwet.

Mail subscriptions are available at $20 per year. Back issues are $2 each. Inquires concerning advertising or other information made by writing to Steve Owens, JOURNAL PLUS MAGAZINE, 654 Osos Street, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401. You can call us at 546-0609, our fax line is 546-8827, and our e-mail is slojournal@fix.net. View the entire magazine on our website at www.slojournal.com JOURNAL PLUS MAGAZINE is a free monthly distributed to over 600 locations throughout the Central Coast and is also available online at slojournal.com Editorial submissions are welcome but are published at the discretion of the publisher. Submissions will be returned if accompanied by a stamped self addressed envelope. No material published in the magazine can be reproduced without written permission.

Opinions expressed in the byline articles are those of the writers and not necessarily those of the JOURNAL PLUS MAGAZINE. Cover photo provided by Louie Ortega

PEOPLE 8 10 12 14 16 18

BARBARA GEORGE SYMPHONY HONORS THE SMITHS RENE OLIVER JOYCE PIKE CATHARINA TYMAN VINK LOUIE ORTEGA

HOME & OUTDOOR 20 21 22 23 24 26 28

HISTORY: Buffalo Soldiers JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL FINANCIAL GOALS FOR 2013

COMMUNITY 29 30 32 34 36 41

TODAY’S YOUTH SLO MISSION GETS AN UPGRADE HISTORY: Chester James Teass—part 1 HOSPICE CORNER / CROSSWORD PUZZLE PALM STREET–SLO Councilman, Ashbaugh REMEMBER WHEN

BUSINESS

37 DOWNTOWN SLO What’s Happening 42 THE BULLETIN BOARD 46 EYE ON BUSINESS

MORTGAGE FACTS AND FICTION FOOD / AT THE MARKET SLO ART SCENE OUR SCHOOLS–Dr. Julian Crocker J A N U A R Y

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A proud tradition of serving our community for over 26 years

SAN LUIS OBISPO – Single level home in nice

condition, newer kitchen, updated bathrooms, newer roof, garage door, carpet, and flooring.

Free-standing gas stove in family room.

Wonderful views of Bishop’s Peak and San Luis Mountain. $579,000 #3073

SAN LUIS OBISPO – Exceptional quality 3

bedroom 2 bath home. Chumash Village is one of the most secure and desirable 55+ parks in San Luis Obispo! Enjoy the pool, workout center, spa and clubhouse. Have morning coffee by the kitchen breakfast area and enjoy mountain views. This well maintained home is immaculate and features cathedral windows, custom double pane windows, ceiling fans, indoor laundry room and lots of storage.

Additional storage shed outside. $290,000 #3064

Prestigious Cabrillo Estates

LOS OSOS – One of the most magnificent properties Los Osos has to offer. This home is complemented by breathtaking coastal views that can be seen throughout the home, including the third-story observatory. The elegant Maine Coastal architectural style has exterior accents and detail only rivaled by the interior. The open dining room, living room and gourmet kitchen look out across the horizon, and the master suite opens to a private balcony with sweeping views of the coastline. The home is situated on over a half acre featuring a large back deck, expansive landscaped yard and spa. $1,950,000 #3074

SAN LUIS OBISPO – Wow! Clean singlelevel with new paint, wood floors, carpet and appliances. 3 bedroom, 2 baths, 2 car garage. Approximately 1325 square feet.

Nice open floor plan with lots of light. $509,000 #3070

ARROYO GRANDE – Live in one, rent 2 out!

This property is unbelievable. 3 Homes on just over an acre. Main home is 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, granite, marble, travertine and wood throughout, and an indoor pool. Detached 2 bedroom 1 bath apartment with large oceanview deck above oversized 2 car shop. And a 1 bedroom 1 bath house, attached storage unit and its own parking and RV hook-ups. Plus, there is a detached office with a bathroom and sauna. Many possibilities with this one-of-kind property. $895,000 #3065

Indian Hills Neighborhood ARROYO GRANDE – Enjoy beautiful views of SAN LUIS OBISPO – Warm and inviting home situated on a corner lot across the street from Sinsheimer Elementary School. This home has five bedrooms with an updated kitchen and bathrooms in its expansive 3200 sq. ft. French doors from the family room lead to a large deck and backyard, and the front yard is nicely landscaped. This is a well cared for, charming home. $799,000 #3071

the surrounding hills from this fabulous singlelevel custom home on approximately 5 acres.

The 4,203 sq ft home features 4 bedrooms and 3 baths plus an office, built around a courtyard and an extraordinary pool with a stunning stone waterfall. The interior of the home is finished with the finest materials, from the gourmet kitchen and the living/dining areas to the spacious master suite. The exterior living area is perfect for entertaining with the pool and waterfall, spa, fireplace and outdoor kitchen. $1,495,000 #3069

SAN LUIS OBISPO – Cute, Cute, Cute!! Very well done one-bedroom unit with a loft. Great use of space. This was the model unit and upgraded substantially. Granite counters, stainless steel appliances and hardwood floors throughout. The master has a walk-in closet and private patio. You must see this....

Conveniently located near schools, parks and walk paths. $262,000 #3076

For more information on these and other Real Estate Group of SLO listings call us at

805.541.2888

962 Mill Street • San Luis Obispo, California 93401 • www.RealEstateGroup.com

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MAGAZINE OF THE CENTRAL COAST

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A NEW TRAIL IN OUR FUTURE AVILA TO MONTANA DE ORO

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Around

The Magazine of Downtown San Luis Obispo

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From the publisher

O

ver the last several years we have made efforts to be more environmentally sensitive when producing our magazine, including changing paper stock and keeping a close eye on returns. Five years ago we put the entire magazine on our website giving our readers and advertisers more exposure and a more convenient way to read it. Our online readership continues to grow rapidly and we feel it’s time to take the next step and stop the free mailing service in the City of San Luis. This move should eliminate some of the duplication. It will also help us to keep our expenses in line. The cost of printing and mailing continues to rise and this will allow us to keep our advertising rates from going up. You can continue to read the magazine online or pick it up at more than 600 locations throughout the Central Coast. If any of you still feel the need to receive it by mail, we will continue to offer it at a modest subscription rate. Just fill out the form next to this column and send it in.

We start out the new year with some new features. Roxanne Carr has begun to write a mortgage column quarterly. This one is different from the ones you see in the other publications. Her first column clarifies the reverse mortgage dilemma. First-time Journal Plus writer, John Summer writes about the SLO Mission upgrade that he helped coordinate, and two locals reflect on years gone by on page 41.

No matter how long you have lived on the Central Coast, chances are you have had the opportunity to listen to the great music of Louie Ortega. Jan and I are big fans. We have listened to him play in plenty of venues. He has been helping out several non-profits with his talents recently and we thought it was a good time to do a profile. You’ll enjoy his story inside.

Each January we also announce the Symphony Honors Recipient. This person or couple go above and beyond the call to support music on the Central Coast. This year’s recipients are Jim and Beverly Smith. We know the Smiths personally and have watched them for decades donate time and money to the arts. The Symphony couldn’t have picked a more deserving couple to honor at their Symphony Ball on February 23rd. Susan Stewart sat down with them recently and tells us their story.

Plenty of good reading again this month.

All the best in 2013.

Steve Owens

COMING UP AT THE

PERFORMING ARTS CENTER MET Live in HD: Les Troyens 1/5 • 9 a.m.

MET Live in HD: Maria Stuarda 1/19 • 9:55 a.m.

Christopher Cohan Center

Christopher Cohan Center

HAIR 1/10 • 7:30 p.m.

Shatner's World: We Just Live In It 1/19 • 8 p.m.

Christopher Cohan Center

Christopher Cohan Center

CP Faculty Recital: W. Terrence Spiller 1/11 • 8 p.m.

Herndon Spillman: Forbes Pipe Organ Recital 1/25 • 8 p.m.

Alex & Faye Spanos Theatre

Christopher Cohan Center

Presented by Opera SLO & Cal Poly Arts

Presented by Opera SLO & Cal Poly Arts

Presented by Cal Poly Arts

Presented by Cal Poly Arts

Presented by CP Music Dept.

Presented by Cal Poly Arts

The American String Quartet 1/12 • 8 p.m.

CP Early Music Ensemble: Bach in the Mission III 1/26 • 8 p.m.

Alex & Faye Spanos Theatre Presented by Cal Poly Arts

Old Mission Church Presented by CP Music Dept.

Brady Barr: National Geographic Live 1/18 • 8 p.m.

MET Live in HD: La Clemenza di Tito 1/27 • 2 p.m.

Alex & Faye Spanos Theatre

Christopher Cohan Center

Presented by Opera SLO & Cal Poly Arts

Presented by Cal Poly Arts

S an

Lui s

O bi s po

WWW.PACSLO.ORG | 805-756-4TIX (4849)

PEOPLE Barbara George 8

slo voters place their trust in cuesta’s newest trustee

By Susan Stewart “We were from one of those families where going to college was not the question—it was which one,” said Barbara George, recently elected to the only contested seat on Cuesta College’s Board of Trustees. The election win caps a long career of community service, devotion to education, and leadership achievements; and it is testimony to the faith this community has placed in her. Yet she remains a reluctant subject of this article, suggesting other “more interesting” people to take the limelight.

Barbara was one of four children born and raised in Oceanside, California, by highly accomplished parents, Calvin and Ruth Gabriel.

The Gabriels came of age during the Great Depression, which left its indelible stamp on them both. Calvin’s parents ran a horse-drawn moving and storage business, while Ruth was raised by farming grandparents in Ohio. Despite (or perhaps because of) these humble roots, they each earned college degrees at Oklahoma State, where they met and married. Calvin was a music major and Ruth was a history and English major, “… the latter being our nemesis around the dinner table growing up,” said Barbara. “My mother is now a robust 98,” she added, “and continues as a wonderful role model.”

Frank Martinez Award for distinguished volunteer service in 2012.

She is also recognized every year when the Barbara George “Women in Philanthropy” award is given out.

Like Barbara, both her parents spent their careers in education—her father as a financial administrator for the school district; her mother as a teacher and reading specialist. The Gabriels were also lifelong community volunteers whose efforts created new libraries and helped the arts to thrive. In fact, it was Calvin who was instrumental in the early success of Cuesta’s nonprofit fundraising arm, The Cuesta Foundation.

The Gabriels moved to Los Osos in 1981, and Calvin volunteered sometimes six days a week to set up the Foundation’s accounting system.

From whence does this long list of accolades spring? Perhaps it starts with a sweet story about her father. “In order to date my mother in college,” said Barbara, “he bought (or more likely borrowed or made) the Arthur Murray paper foot cutouts, placed them on the floor, followed the directions, and taught himself to dance. For the rest of his days, he was always a beautiful dancer.” As much a story about tenacity and ingenuity as it is about love, it’s a great example of working hard for a desired result—a lesson Barbara George learned well.

Earning her BS from her parents’ alma mater, Oklahoma State, and her doctorate from USC, it would be Barbara who would later serve as Cuesta College’s executive director of institutional advancement, as director of the college’s community services, and as director of the Cuesta Foundation. She also led the capital campaign to establish Cuesta’s North County campus, built Cuesta’s endowment program, and served on numerous accreditation teams.

“My father was a man of pure integrity,” she remarked. “I will work all my life to be like him.”

For these efforts, Barbara has been recognized with numerous awards: Most Outstanding Professional in California; Cuesta’s Manager of the Year; SLO Chamber’s Citizen of the Year for 2006; and the

Barbara with Cuesta College students J A N U A R Y

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Indeed, as she steps into her new role as Trustee, Barbara said, “There is more work ahead. … The College has been tested in the past several years,” she explained, “facing and surmounting challenges. It has tackled serious accreditation issues and endured $10 million in budget cuts in just four years. … But its bones are the best. I want to encourage a future of imagination and innovation. The best minds are in place.”

That latter statement includes her own, of course, though Barbara George would be the last person on earth to say so.

Barbara and her mom, Ruth

Sunday February 3, 2013

Noon to 3 pm

$10 DONATION Tickets are available at the door.

Donations accepted.

All proceeds go to the Scholarship Fund which has given over 300 scholarships to needy students since 1968.

Arrangements assisted by: Founders’ Bank Elks Lodge Springfield Baptist Church St. Luke’s Baptist Church San Luis Sourdough SLO Journal

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jim and beverly smith

Symphony honors recipients for 2012

By Susan Stewart

I

t was a cold and rainy night at Cuesta College—back when classrooms were Quonset huts, parking lots were muddy and badly lit, and students shared their campus with cows and what cows are famous for leaving behind. But the San Luis Obispo Symphony was playing its opening season concert and Jim and Beverly Smith were there. Enthralled by the music coming from the stage in the old campus gym, Beverly barely noticed the mouse that brazenly skittered over her high-heeled foot. It was an unforgettable musical evening some 40 years ago, and despite the distraction of an unexpected rodent or two, the Smiths have not missed an opening night since.

“When I think of long-time, steady supporters and donors to the Symphony, I think of the Smiths,” said two-time Symphony Board President, Liz Summer.

“But more than their financial support, they have always been front and center to cheer on the orchestra, Maestro Michael Nowak, and the staff.”

On Saturday February 23rd, Jim and Beverly Smith will be announced as this year’s Symphony Honors recipients at the glittering annual Symphony Ball & Auc-

tion. They’ll join a growing list of previous recipients, including Gene Shidler, the late Clifford Chapman, Pam Dassenko, Jim and Lyn Baker, Sandy Dunn, and Clifton Swanson.

Born and raised in Klamath Falls, Oregon, Beverly Smith has loved classical music all her life. “My sister, Patricia, was blessed with a lovely singing voice,” she explained, “and I began playing piano when I was ten.”

Beverly grew into an accomplished pianist and became a passionate music lover, favoring the music of the Romantic composers as well as Sibelius and Grieg.

Beverly met local attorney Jim Smith when she went to work in his law office as a paralegal in 1968. They celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary this last November.

Before Beverly, Jim admits he didn’t know much about classical music, preferring Sina-

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tra and his more modern contemporaries for his musical entertainment.

Born and raised in Peoria, Illinois, Jim earned his law degree at the University of Wisconsin in 1964. He began his career in northern California where he says he was “ … a small fish in a big sea,” and moved to the Central Coast in 1968. He would practice law here for 38 years, retiring in 2006. Jim was also a former chairman of First Bank of San Luis Obispo. After marrying Beverly, Jim’s musical education expanded and he would soon meet Maestro Michael Nowak on the golf course.

“That clinched it,” Jim said, referring to his long friendship with Nowak, and the Smith’s many decades of staunch and enthusiastic Symphony support.

The Smiths support the Foundation for the Performing Arts, the Mozart Festival, The Civic Ballet, and SLO Museum of Art, and they have supported the Symphony’s Music Education program since its inception.

“They recognize the importance of the arts,” said Liz Summer, “and what it brings to the cultural fabric of San Luis Obispo.”

Jim and Beverly have two children, Kevin and Kelly, both of whom became lawyers.

Their children, the Smiths’ grandchildren, have each shown an interest in, and a talent for, music. Grace, 13, takes piano lessons; Logan, 12, is a singer; and Griffin, 10, plays guitar.

At one of their favorite Symphony events, Pops by the Sea, Beverly won the coveted baton in a spirited auction. All of the mon-

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Bev with Maestro Michael Nowak at the SLO Pops Concert, 2005

ey given in her name for that honor went to Music Education. In 2005, the Smiths became members of the Virtuoso Society, ensuring a solid financial future for their beloved Symphony.

“The Smiths are good for the community,” said longtime friend and fellow traveler, Ben McAdams. “Jim has broad interests, and takes a world view of things. He’s a very good lawyer, and a very good friend to a lot of people.”

M a i n ta i n i n g ExcEllEncE Building trusted relationships for 36 years.

Among their favorite Symphony events are the annual Pops concerts, Mission concerts, the more intimate concerts held in private homes and featuring world-class musical guests such as premiere cellist Zuill Bailey.

They even travelled with the orchestra in 2001, when it played Carnegie Hall! As they prepare for this year’s Symphony Ball— which will take place in a Roaring ‘20s Speakeasy this year—Jim and Beverly will be front and center as always. Only this year, the Symphony will be cheering them, and not the other way around.

“I guess I better buy a new dress!” said the astonished Beverly when she heard the news.

“It’s a real tribute to our community to have a symphony this good,” said Jim. “It’s rare not to have a packed house. I feel privileged just to be on the fringe!”

It’s been more than four decades since a mouse disrupted the first Symphony concert they attended. Today, the Smiths attend concerts at the sparkling Performing Arts Center, a hall befitting the world-class orchestra our SLO Symphony has become.

And in February, they’ll receive its highest honor for their generous support, enthusiastic applause, and unwavering belief in the power of music. Because as Beverly said, “If you give music a chance, it can transform your life!”

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rene oliver: Daily systems

By Natasha Dalton

T

he quip that smartphones are good at many things, except for making calls, is still true. Especially the ‘goodat-many-things’ part, which only keeps getting better with time (the making calls part—not so much). Today, phones wake us up in the morning, update us on the news, entertain us with games and serve as portable GPS. And when it comes to shopping, they’re becoming virtually indispensable: they remember our shopping lists, download coupons, apprise us on the best deals and stores to shop at, and the best time to buy.

There’re apps which allow merchants’ access to gift cards sent by phone and tailored to specific areas. And if you doubt your ability to keep track of those virtual gift cards—there is now an app for that, too.

Whether in the theatre or in a taxi cab, Google Wallets uses RFID technology to let its customers make payments by tapping their phones on a terminal.

And our own Rene Oliver of Daily Systems, based in Paso Robles, expands on this idea through a gadget, called iAps, which combines functions of the three traditional devices used for accepting payments: a scanner, a card reader and a printer—in one sleek unit. The device functions like a self-check register, only this particular register is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand.

Point-of-Sale devices are all the rage in the business technology of today and Rene’s invention responds to the retail industry’s interminable desire to make shopping more convenient.

“Cash is not going away for some time, and credit cards are just as viable a source of paying for merchandise,” Rene says. But with the introduction of the QR code technology, phones are becoming our new money. “People have their smartphones with them wherever they go,” Rene reasons. “Using them as a form of payment is a natural progression, and I think we’ll move that way very quickly,” he insists.

He views the new technology—and his device, which makes full use of it—as a real game-changer where the phone is all you’ll ever need to go shopping.

“Companies like Starbucks, Home Depot and Apple already use this type of alternative payment,” Rene says, hoping that iAps will soon become the next staple of the world’s retail industry.

“I am thinking globally,” he says. ”Everywhere we go, people are simply amazed at what our systems can do.” So he is trying to capitalize on that by increasing his brand awareness and forging partnerships with national and international software companies, so that they would start marketing iAps as a part of their broader packages.

Rene is confident that Daily Systems’ hardware is that one piece of the puzzle, which will enable Apple and various other software developers around the world “to imagine possibilities that they couldn’t imagine before.”

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“I always wanted to achieve great things in life,” he says. “In spite of all the hardships in my childhood, I had a dream that one day I’d have a company with 500 employees in it and that I’d attract people who had different struggles in life or were a little bit different. And it’s interesting to have a company now that has a lot of diversity in it, with people coming from different walks of life—and we’re hoping to employ more people in the future.”

The hardships that Rene experienced in his childhood were mostly economic. He, the youngest of nine kids, was only eight when his father left the family, which forced his mom to work three jobs to make ends meet. Still, he remembers his childhood in Laguna Beach as a good time in his life. “You know how they say: it takes a village to raise a child?” Rene asks. “It’s very true. There was a lot of participation on the part of the community. Even though we didn’t have very much, we had everything,” he says.

In this coastal family-oriented community, kids spent a lot of time outdoors: surfing, boogie boarding, playing volleyball. Rene’s favorite sport has always been football, and he began dreaming of joining the NFL. And it was football—in the form of a scholarship— that brought him to Cal Poly.

Rene’s dream seemed within reach until—at the last game!—he broke his humerus. The crushed bones also crushed his carefully constructed plan for the future. “It was a double break, really bad—both on the upper and lower parts and it completely took me out of commission,” Rene remembers. It couldn’t have happened at a worse time: the Rams had just invited him to camp in Los Angeles for try-outs. Rene tried frantically to speed up his recovery through physical therapy, and was able to attend the camp—but wasn’t selected.

What looked so inevitable for so long didn’t happen. After many years of hard work, Rene had to rethink his career choice.

But with the door to NFL shutting, Rene found the world of business (which until now was his unlikely Plan B) to be both exciting and challenging enough to give it a try.

“I always felt that there was something for me, that I’d reach a higher level,” Rene says. And even though he’d never been a high

achiever at school, at work, he quickly began to excel.

“I really believe that everything that happens to us, good and bad, helps to form us,” Rene says. “I never aspired for riches or fame. I wanted to be in the NFL for the love of the game—money has never been my thing,” he says. “What drives me is ideas.

And when I get my mind on something, I want to see it done.

Wherever I worked after leaving Cal Poly, I was always the top salesperson,” Rene says.

“I always felt like I worked for myself even when I worked for others. I’ve always been very passionate, and strove to be the best.”

And when he wanted to move on, he had no trouble finding new jobs—he got them through referrals from his old bosses. “My bosses were always sorry to see me go,” he says. “But when you work hard, good things tend to happen.” And new opportunities tend to present themselves.

Rene’s career for over twenty years has been in technology. His work for five different

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companies gave him both the experience and the confidence needed to run his own successful business.

create a win-win situation, typically only one side wins. But in our case, iAps is truly a system where everyone benefits,” he promises.

In business, as in sports, success tends to come though collaboration and teamwork.

“These things are essential to life in general,” Rene insists. “Life is a combination of many different things, and I don’t think you can make it on your own per se: everyone needs a supporting cast.”

His employees seem to be just as enthusiastic about Daily Systems as Rene is. Kimo Yoshida, Daily Systems’ product manager, who previously worked as a producer in the videogame industry, calls Rene ‘a visionary.’

“He is like Steve Jobs,” Kimo says. “His way of thinking is very innovative and creative.

Just to hear him talk is motivating!” he adds.

“What Rene envisioned and created already is just awesome.”

For a young company, Daily Systems is pretty ambitious. It took almost a year to complete the development and certification process, but in the two years that followed, iAps entered the markets in Europe and Asia, and it’s now ready to be launched in Africa.

“I feel very proud of what we’ve done so far,” Rene says. “Building a company takes a tremendous amount of work and a tremendous amount of energy. And now comes the time where we’re beginning to see the fruits of that labor.”

“Most of the time—and I am sorry to say this—even when companies say that they

Clearly, this is the time of big expectations for everyone at Daily Systems—a company that is only three years old. “There’s nothing like the excitement of creating something that people are going to use to change the way they do business around the world,” Rene says. “I enjoy this chapter of my life: I have a great job and a great family. My wife and my three beautiful boys are everything to me. I feel very blessed.”

For more, go to: www.dailysystems.com

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JOYCE PIKE MASTER ARTIST

By Ruth Starr

L

iving near Blacklake Golf Resort, artist Joyce Pike, 83, plays golf once a week. It is a respite from her painting which she does everyday except Tuesday morning.

Most of her paintings are done from still life set-ups she puts together in her studio and sometimes she goes to a site and paints directly from what she sees. On Saturdays she is out treasure seeking at garage sales for interesting items to use in her art work.

Joyce was a mere six years old when she showed a tremendous talent doing work that most good artists could only do when they were much older.

Her parents did everything they could do to stop her from painting. They wanted her to take up cosmetology instead of painting. It was the Great Depression and they felt she needed to learn how to take care of herself.

At age 14 her boyfriend Bob bought her a set of oil paints. Her parents couldn’t say anything since it was a gift. That gift was the beginning of a lifetime as an artist. Joyce is basically self taught along with a few fine painters as her instructors. There was no money available for her to go to an art school at that time.

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Joyce feels that if someone is driven in any direction they will even hide to get what they want. When she was 14 and Bob was 15 they got engaged. She graduated from high school on a Thursday and got married the next day Friday. They have been together 65 years.

She loves him in a different way now than she did then. He is like a fine wine to her as he gets better with age. He has always encouraged and helped her even though his job was working as a heavy equipment operator for the Department of Water and Power in Los Angeles. He retired thirty years ago. He, too, played golf and had a handicap of nine most of the years.

When her mother passed away, Joyce was 24 years old. She was cleaning out the bedroom and she found a little blue bank book with $250 in it plus a note that said she had been saving it for Joyce to someday take some art lessons. She was extremely touched that her mother worked so hard to save that little bit of money and give it to her.

At the time, Joyce lived in San Fernando. She had a friend who encouraged her to use some of the $250 to go to a teacher in Los Angeles named Sergei Bongart who was a noted Russian artist. Sergei taught her how to paint, how to think, and how to paint the right way and how to use her talents to their best advantage. Armed with this knowledge it was the beginning of the sales of her work. That gave her money enough to continue her studies for at least two years.

She met a man named Hal Reed who began the Art League of Los Angeles, hiring Joyce as his first choice teacher. He told her that if she

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didn’t teach, he would not start that school. From there she taught at several Art Institutes and then began traveling all over the world teaching workshops.

Every day she feels she has a job to do and does it. She loves what she does and wants people to learn to the very best of their ability. Today her primary medias are oil painting and porcelain painting. Working for OPA, Oil Painters of America, Joyce directs the advisory committee where she is a master signature painter. There are only about 30 people in the world who have this title. An artist has to be selected by a group of people to be given this very prestigious rating. Earning the honor of being in that select group, those people have to be very well trained in the arts.

Joyce has written three books, all published by North Light Publications, plus numerous articles all on painting, some on drawing, some on porcelain, some on mixed media. Being involved with writing, she also loves writing poetry. Three galleries in different parts of this country carry her paintings. They are Wellerhouse Fine Art in Ft. Worth, TX, Wee Gallery in Scottsdale, AZ, and the Artison Jewelry Store in Nipomo, CA. Joyce has been given numerous prestigious awards, such as Oil Painters of America, The American Artists Professional League, and the Council of Traditional Artist Societies, to name a few.

One of the happiest days in Bob and Joyce’s lives was the day they adopted their dog, Harley, a Schnoodle. They also have another dog who is deaf and blind. Harley had been mistreated and was left on the doorstep of the SPCA. He was so scared of people that they were going to put him down. There is a place in Orcutt, CA, called The Polished Pet where they take in dogs to be adopted. Harley was there waiting for Joyce and Bob to bring him home. Now his life is one of constant love and affection.

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catharina tyman vink ...a mother’s story

By Susan Stewart

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he little girl, no older than 7, saw the Japanese soldiers approach the small teakwood house where she’d been living with her family—mother, father, and little brother—for the past year: on orders from the government of Japan. She heard them tell her father he’d have to go with them. She did not know if she’d ever see him again. For the next five years, the Tyman family would live as prisoners in separate concentration camps; the father in one, his wife and children in another. Without their father, the little girl and her family subsisted on rice and insects, her mother’s magical way with herbs, and love. The year was 1941, the place was Java, Indonesia, the little girl was Catharina Tyman Vink, and this is her story.

Catharina was born in 1933, to Martha and Cornelius Tyman. He was Dutch; her mother Indonesian. Their second child was a son, also named Cornelius. Today, Catharina laughs when she admits that most of the men in her family are named Cornelius: father, grandfather, brother, husband, even cousins.

Her father worked for Shell Oil, which sent him into the untamed jungles of Borneo to build oil wells and derricks. As a Shell family, the Tymans lived in a sort of compound where a whole community was built to serve its workers. For the first seven years of her life, Catharina remembers smiling servants, teams of white horses, cream-colored linens, and fine crystal. “My mother didn’t have to do anything but make the menu and say ‘yes, everything is fine,’” said Catharina.

Outside, there were mango trees to climb in and enough animals to fill a zoo. Her favorite was an orangutan named Tarzan. “Tarzan grew to be a big ape,” said Catharina. “Whenever our mother or father was mad at us, he would put his long arms around us and rock us back and forth, and he would wipe off our tears.”

But the days of pretty white horses, butlers with shiny copper buttons, and pet orangutans named Tarzan would soon end. On the day the Japanese soldiers came to take her father away, Catharina’s mother did not become hysterical. She merely cried quietly and prayed that night, perhaps as she’d

Daughters Louella and Amanda J A N U A R Y

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Catharina and Casey today

never prayed before. They stayed in the little teakwood house for another year, until the soldiers came again and forced them to move to Plausan, where they were housed in what used to be a Chinese vacation spot. Only now there was cruel barbed wire surrounding the compound, and 150 people were crowded into a place made for only a few. Here, they would stay, with others like them— Dutch, Indonesian, old and young—for four more years—years that were both violent and routine.

Martha was forced to work for their captors. Every day, little Catharina and her brother would watch the hill above their garage and strain their eyes to see the silhouette of their mother cresting the hilltop and heading for home. “Home” had a dirt floor and little privacy. Martha caught and cooked anything that crawled—crickets, termites, bugs, even weeds— in a little oil.

When she was 9 years old, malaria swept the camp, and Catharina became deathly ill. “I was so cold; I could not stop shivering,” she says.

The Tyman family: Catharina, Cornelius, Cornelius Jr, and Martha, circa 1940

PEOPLE Catharina took Casey home to meet her family. Soon, the two were inseparable, walking to school together, sharing lessons, and meals. The year before her father’s death, Catharina and Casey were engaged. They were married on March 21st, 1956, in Amsterdam—one year after she graduated from high school. The couple lived in Holland for 11 years while Casey went to sea. He had joined the merchant marine and was often away for weeks at a time.

Catharina and Casey in 1953

“They put me to bed and got some of the boys to sleep next to me to keep me warm.

My mother risked her life to find the quinine that would save my life.”

When brother Cornelius turned 12 years old, Martha made him 12 little cakes from potato flour. That same year, in 1945, they were saved by Swiss and American soldiers soon after Japan surrendered. Martha and Catharina were sent to Djakarta by train where they were miraculously reunited with her father. Cornelius had returned to work for Shell Oil, and it was through the efforts of the Red Cross that he found his family.

Catharina barely recognized her father. He was thin and badly scarred. Five years in captivity had taken its toll. “Let’s go back home,” said her father, referring to his native Holland. Now the Tyman family got down to the business of living again, not merely surviving. The children were enrolled in a Dutch public school, where they were the only brown-skinned kids for miles around.

By the time she was 16, her mother started sending Catharina to the market after school on her bike. On the way, she kept noticing a handsome boy walking alone along the road.

She wondered what made him look so sad. She did not know that when he was 12 years old and the war was still in full swing, the Germans lined up 17 people and shot them all with a machine gun. Though many were wounded, only one was killed. Cornelius, or Casey as we know him today, was holding his mother’s hand when she was shot, and he watched as she fell and died on the spot. Then it was up to his grieving father to raise the little boy alone.

During his time at sea, Casey visited New York City and began to long for a life outside his native Holland. Suddenly Holland seemed much too small, and he was tired of leaving his wife alone so much. And so the young couple crossed the big ocean and began a new life in Boston. Though he had earned an engineering degree from his native Holland, the degree was not honored here, so Casey’s first job was digging holes for a company that made plastic bags for potatoes.

He was paid $2.00 an hour. Eventually, Casey got a job with Polaroid where he would one day help to invent the now-famous film packs for the world’s first instant camera.

Little by little, Tina (the shortened version of Catharina) adjusted to life in America. But there was something missing. The young couple wanted to start a family of their own.

But tests revealed that Tina could not bear children of her own. Knowing they would make wonderful parents, the Methodist minister at their church in Boston suggested they look into an organization called the Home for Little Wanderers. In 1965, Casey and Tina adopted their first daughter, Louella Maria.

Two years later, they adopted Amanda Manuella. “I think God sent me to America so I can be their mother,” said Tina, who still carries her heavy Dutch accent. “He gave my mother the strength to cure my malaria in the camps, and I think God knows what He is doing.”

When they were old enough to understand, Tina explained to her daughters how they came to be adopted. “I didn’t carry you in my stomach,” she would tell them. “I carried you in my heart.”

Casey and Tina lived in the home they bought in suburban Boston for 18 years, cultivating their neighbors even as they cultivated their garden. As other families moved into their new houses, gradually filling up the new neighborhood, Tina decided to hold a meeting. She wanted to be sure that the children would never suffer because of adult disagreements. “There’s always one kid who does something bad,” she explained to them. “But let’s stay above that.

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how to punish the kids. Let’s keep it so that the kids can always play together.”

During the summers, the Vinks rented a small cabin in Maine, on the beach. “When the kids were sick or upset,” said Catharina, “I took them there and we talked about things of the heart. I spoiled them, made them soup (usually chicken soup with vermicelli and mace), and they got better.”

Today Tina is fond of saying, “God didn’t give me kids to bear, but He gave me the brains to raise them.” To which Casey always adds, “And the heart.”

Louella would eventually enroll at Bentley, an exclusive private college in Waltham, Mass. where she earned an advanced degree in business and accounting. She would marry Charles Greeman in a big beach wedding in 2003.

Amanda married Mark Testa, who is a branch president of a well-known insurance company.

They were married in 1993 in a big June wedding in Marlboro, Mass. Before both weddings, Catharina told her sons-in-law: “Now listen, I know I’m the mother-in-law from hell, but you’d better make sure my girls stay close to each other or I’ll come out of my grave and get you!”

Years after the girls were grown and gone, Tina began experiencing shortness of breath at night. “Have you ever thought of moving to a warmer climate?” her doctor asked. And so Louella bought her parents plane tickets to Southern California. The year was 1988.

“We drove up to Los Osos,” Tina explained.

“And I remember climbing up a hill here and thinking it looks just like Indonesia. We stayed for eleven days and we looked at 45 houses!” They picked the last one they looked at, a modest house they painted white and decorated in the brilliant blues, reds, and yellows of their native Holland. Passers-by often stop the car to stare at the windmills and wooden shoes that make their home such an eye-popping original.

In 2006, Tina and Casey celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. Tina still has the grinding stones her mother used in the camps to grind coffee. Today, she uses them to grind her spices. Her grandchildren—there are five— tease that she’s living in the stone age. “Be happy with what you have,” she advises them.

And happy they are. Catharina and Cornelius Vink live each day with noticeable joy and genuine gratitude. Her memories of the camps are dark and vivid. “But you know what?” she says, with her typical cheerfulness. “We made it! Even if we had a bad time, we made it!”

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louie ortega

By Will Jones

I

f we’d had that one big hit, it might all have been different, but I love what my life is now. I’m right where I’m supposed to be. I’ve stayed true to the music—Louie Ortega, November 13, 2012.

Longtime San Luis Obispo resident and Grammy Award winner, Louie Ortega, was still attending North Salinas High School in the late sixties when bass player Steve Vargas, one of the members of Louie’s garage band, Country Fresh, introduced him to Doug Sahm, leader of The Sir Douglas Quintet. Sahm was living down the street from Steve in Prunedale at the time, and Sahm’s kids used to come down to Steve’s living room when Country Fresh rehearsed.

“We had a demo cassette of my songs. Steve took it over to Doug’s.

His wife Violet listened to it and then made Doug sit down and listen. Doug said ‘I’m gonna take this down to Columbia Records.’ At Columbia they asked Doug the name of the band and he said ‘Louie and the Lovers.’ They loved it.” The Columbia/Epic label signed Louie and the Lovers, a successful career followed, and over forty years later, Louie still makes his living writing and playing music, is still excited about every opportunity to record and perform.

Louie was born in Santa Maria in 1951. His grandmother moved there from New Mexico with her four daughters in the late ’40s. “My father died before I was born. My mother remarried when I was four and we moved to Salinas where my stepfather lived. We made the trek back and forth from Salinas to Santa Maria many times so I knew the area really well.”

He became a Beatles fan in high school, but listened to all the popular music of the time, as well as the performers his mother loved, like Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Faron Young, Pedro Louie and his daughter, Talia

Infante, Jorge Negrete and Javier Solis. After listening to some local garage bands, he thought “I can do that,” and started playing guitar.

“It was easy for me. My real father played guitar and sang, so I guess it was genetic. I learned a couple of chords and just went for it, started writing songs right away. In high school I loved short stories and poetry, and I thought, I can write three-and-a-half minute musical stories.” Louie was invited to join his first garage band when he played the opening lick to the Rolling Stones’ “The Last Time” better than the guitarist they already had.

Louie and the Lovers recorded a second album for Atlantic, working this time with legendary producers Tom Dowd and Jerry Wexler, backed by Dr. John, the Memphis Horns, jazz great David Fathead Newman, and Tex-Mex giant Flaco Jimenez, among others.

In 1972, on a return trip to Salinas from a southwest tour with a new band, Hot Sauce (later Salsa Brava), and a visit to see Doug Sahm, who was now living in Austin, Louie and band mates Randy Pybas and Frank Paredes stopped at the Cigar Factory in San Luis Obispo, where Randy had played previously.

“We’d been driving all night, pulling a small U-Haul behind a Volkswagen. It was 11:30 in the morning. The manager, Ian McPhee, offered us a beer and said his happy hour band had cancelled. If we played the happy hour, he’d feed us lunch, let us clean up at his place, pay us for the happy hour, and feed us dinner. The short story is we stopped in San Luis for a beer and never left.”

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Rio Salinas

Louie continued writing and playing locally until he joined the Sir Douglas Quintet in 1983. “The group got its name when the manager, a guy from Louisiana, said ‘All those British groups are getting all the money. If we have a British name maybe we can get some of that money.’ That was in the ’60s and soon the group had its biggest hit, She’s About a Mover.”

It was at a Tex-Mex Christmas gig in 1988 at Boz Skagg’s club, Slims, in San Francisco, that the Texas Tornados were born. “Flaco Jimenez opened, Freddy Fender was the second act, and Sir Douglas Quintet closed the night. It was a great show. At the end Doug invited Flaco and Freddy onstage and the energy just went higher and higher. It was electric. We hit the first note and the crowd went wild. We were only supposed to play a couple of songs, but they had to pull the plug a half hour later.”

Louie smiled and laughed as he recounted this story: “Doug called a couple of weeks later and said he was putting a super Mex group together with Flaco and Freddy. ‘Gonna call it The Texas Tornados.

I’ve got a guitar chair open, you want to sit in it?’ I said, ‘Let me think about it…yeah.’” Louie has played regularly with the Tornados and Sir Douglas Quintet II ever since, including a recent trip to Sweden and Switzerland.

“Doug used to go on walkabouts in his Cadillac. He showed up at my house one day, his car filled with cassettes. One of the cassettes included a song written in Spanish by Flaco’s father. They wanted

to record it but couldn’t get the translation right. Doug asked me if I wanted to take a shot at it. I listened and immediately understood what the song was about. By the time we got to The Jetty, a restaurant in Avila Doug really liked, and then on the way back, I translated it from Spanish to English. Back at the house we called Flaco, played it on speaker phone, and he said we hit it on the head.” The song, San Luis Potosi, about a Mexican man who moves to Texas and falls in love, only to realize he is in over his head, won the Grammy for best Mexican-American song of 1990.

Louie has enjoyed playing with and learning from great musicians throughout his career. He considers Doug Sahm, now deceased, his musical father. “I think about him every day. I enjoyed all the players I met and played with over the years. They made me the player and writer I am today.”

In addition to performing around the central coast, Louie is recording with the members of the original Salsa Brava band, now called Rio Salinas. Don Kirkpatrick, guitarist from Rod Stewart’s band, guitarist Rob Espinoza, from It’s a Beautiful Day, and Dean Giles, on drums, also appear on the five country, rock, and Latin tracks they’ve recorded. For the first time since the ’70s, Louie and the Lovers (Steve Vargas, Albert Parra, Frank Paredes) are rehearsing. In 2010 Bear Family Records released the complete Louie and the Lovers recordings which received recognition in Rolling Stone Magazine.

Louie’s daughter, Talia, a Cuesta College student, is a vocalist and multi-instrumentalist who sometimes performs with her dad, as do many other local musicians, young and old. On a recent solo gig at the Cambria Pines Lodge, eight players ended up on stage. Like Doug Sahm was to him, Louie is to many others. He also performs numerous local benefits for veterans, the County Symphony and the Cancer Society.

“Recently, someone asked me, ‘Louie, have you been playing music all your life?’ ‘Not yet,’ I said.” He smiled a very Louie smile when he told that story. You’ll have to go see him perform live to enjoy his great music and experience that great smile. There’s only one Louie Ortega, and he’s right here in San Luis Obispo. Lucky us.

To learn more about Louie’s career, music and upcoming engagements, go to www.louieortega.com or become a follower on his Facebook page.

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buffalo soldiers

The plaque on the Colonel Young Tree describing the efforts of the Buffalo Soldiers

We owe them a great deal

By Ray Cauwet

D

uring the years 1899, 1903 and 1904, a unique group of 400 men patrolled the dusty trails of Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks. Their mission was to protect and preserve those pristine areas from exploitation and destruction.

These guardians of nature were called Buffalo Soldiers.

The term, Buffalo Soldiers, is largely misunderstood. Many people think it refers to Native American Indians who hunted and killed buffalo. Instead, the Buffalo Soldiers were African-American soldiers.

During the Civil War, several African-American regiments fought alongside the Union Army. When Congress reorganized the Army in 1866, it formed the first all-black regiments in the regular Army.

These soldiers saw considerable action during the Indian Wars from 1866 to 1890 and picked up their name, courtesy of the Cheyenne Indians.

It was around 1867 that the nickname came into being. The Indians reportedly started calling the black cavalry troops Buffalo Soldiers because of their dark curly hair, resembling a buffalo’s coat. The soldiers also gained the name out of respect for their fierce fighting ability. It was said, “They fought like a cornered buffalo.”

According to National Park Service sources, the Buffalo Soldiers in the two parks were assigned to the Army’s 24th Regiment of Infantry and the 9th Regiment of Cavalry. Their duties included patrol, mapmaking, trail and road construction, fighting forest fires, monitoring tourists and enforcement of rules regarding illegal grazing, poaching and timber theft. The troops worked only June to November in the parks.

Administration of the parks took the form of a military officer sent to the park for the summer. This individual also served as the acting superintendent. All the officers were white, except Capt.

Charles Young.

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Capt. Young clearly stands out in history. When he took over at Sequoia in 1903 as commander of two troops of the 9th Regiment, he had already achieved a great deal. He was the

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first black to graduate from an all-white high school in Ripley, Ohio and was the third African American to graduate from the West Point Military Academy. He later retired as a colonel and the highest-ranking African-American in the U.S. Military. When he began at Sequoia Park, he also became the first black superintendent of a national park.

Young was an excellent leader. Upon his arrival at Sequoia, he found his first task was to build a wagon road into the Giant Forest. He hoped to break the sluggish patterns of previous military units in building this road. Young poured himself into the project. With dirt and rock flying, his troops completed the road by mid-August. Still not content, he had his men build a road to Moro Rock and the first trail to the top of Mount Whitney.

During the summer of 1903, Capt. Young and his men built as much road as the combined efforts of the three previous summers. His roads, though much improved in later years, are still in use today and have served millions of park visitors.

Young also advocated for the government to acquire privately owned lands within Sequoia Park and negotiated with owners to obtain rights to purchase 4,000 acres, including 6,500 giant sequoias. For his work, he received considerable praise from citizen groups and governmental officials.

In 1904, a different troop of Buffalo Soldiers built an arboretum near the south fork of the Merced River in Yosemite National Park. This was the first museum in the park system.

There are a few other unknown facts about the Buffalo Soldiers. Since the National Park Service wasn’t established until 1916, the soldiers served as the first park rangers. They also pioneered wearing the ranger hat, known popularly as the Smokey Bear Hat. Although they only served briefly in Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks, we owe them a great deal. They endured long days in the saddle, slim rations, racism and separation from family and friends. As military stewards, they protected the parks under the most difficult of circumstances. In the process, they performed an invaluable service to their nation and future generations. They left a strong imprint on history and are deserving of our lasting gratitude.

Further information and a video about the Buffalo Soldiers can be found at the National Park Service website, www.nps.gov/seki/ historyculture. Visitors to the Giant Forest also can examine a Giant Sequoia named in Colonel Young’s honor. It is located adjacent to the Moro Rock road, built by the Buffalo Soldiers. A plaque near the tree reads, “Colonel Young accomplished so much. He was instrumental in shaping the park. This is a champion tree for a champion of the park.”

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3rd annual

jewish film festival

By Lauren Bandari

Award, there will be a screening of Keeping Up with the Steins, a lighthearted romp about a teenage boy’s experience preparing for his Bar Mitzvah featuring Mr. Benjamin.

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Richard Benjamin

he Jewish Community Center of San Luis Obispo is hosting the third annual Jewish Film Festival celebrating the diversity of the Jewish experience with short films, features, and documentaries from around the world. The weekend festival held at the Palm Theater, 817 Palm Street in downtown SLO will take place Saturday and Sunday, January 12/13, 2013. The Festival showcases six diverse films about Jewish culture and intimate conversations with the filmmakers. This year’s festival is delighted to announce it will be honoring Actor/Director Richard Benjamin as the Lifetime Achievement Award Honoree. The award is presented to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the film industry within the purview of Jewish culture.

Mr. Benjamin has starred in more than 40 films including Goodbye, Columbus (1969), Westworld (1973), Portnoy’s Complaint (1972), Catch-22 (1970) and The Sunshine Boys (1975) for which he won the Golden Globe. He has directed 21 movies debuting with the acclaimed My Favorite Year (1982), going on to direct City Heat (1984) with Clint Eastwood, The Money Pit (1986) with Tom Hanks, Mermaids (1990) with Cher, among many other memorable movies. After the Lifetime Achievement

Saturday evening, filmmakers and attendees are invited to gather for the Food and Filmmaker’s Reception, held at San Luis Obispo Museum of Art. This year’s welcome event will feature locally crafted Jewish cuisine made by Central Coast Hadassah and delicious local wines and a performance of film scores from Jewish themed movies by students from the Atascadero Arts Academy.

This festive event will set the mood for the weekend of Jewish culture. Tickets are available at JCCSLO.com.

Sunday, the slate of films presented will traverse the globe beginning with Sara of Rhodes, a short documentary by San Francisco filmmaker Oscar Abeliuk about the cultural traditions of Rhodeslis being preserved by US immigrants. The director and his mother, Sara, will be on hand to discuss making the film after the screening followed by the feature documentary Re-Emerging: The Jews of Nigeria. It is a moving film depicting a tribe in Nigeria striving to overcome pressure from neighbors and rejection from the Jewish community, After the screening, we will host a discussion with Nigerian-born Abbey Onikoyi, owner and artist of SLO’s Spirit of Africa Gallery.

The afternoon screening is the feature film Broken Promise. It’s the true story of a young professional soccer player in Slovakia, whose sheer luck and special skills enable him to survive the Holocaust. A very special talk with Holocaust survivor and subject of the film, Martin Friedmann-Petrasek will take place following the film.

Later in the afternoon, guests will have an additional chance to mingle and meet the filmmakers at the Kibitz Hour and Sponsor’s Dinner, held at Luna Red. The restaurant is preparing a creative menu of fine wines, dinner, and local fruits, vegetables, and desserts especially for festival attendees.

Keeping up with the Steins

The evening screenings will include Music Man Murray, an award winning short film

Broken Promise

about an unforgettable business owner in Los Angeles struggling to sell his tens of thousands of records. Director Richard Parks will be on tap for Q&A. The final film, Hava Nagila, is a lively and fun historical exploration of the great Jewish musical standard.

Director Roberta Grossman will close out the festival with her stories and insights about making the celebrated motion picture.

Co-Directors Lauren Bandari and Muara C. Johnston share, “The festival is about making personal connections with the films and the filmmakers. The Palm Theatre is the perfect intimate environment for this delightful festival of Jewish culture. We invite the whole community to join us. This is not only for Jewish members of the community, it is for everyone.”

Additional information can be found at www. jccslo.com or at the JFF Facebook page (www. facebook.com/slojff). The JCC offers several sponsorship packages; for more information write to info@jccslo.com or contact Lauren Bandari at lbandari@jccslo.com. Tickets may be purchased from the website JCCSLO.com.

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money

Resolve to meet your financial goals in the new year

By Statepoint Media

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chieving your financial goals can sound like a daunting New Year’s resolution if you aren’t organized when it comes to your money. But by planning ahead, you can more easily improve your financial situation.

If you’re new to money management—don’t stress—new tools are making it simple to stay on top of your finances, allowing you to pay down debt and save for the future.

Here are some foolproof ways to achieve your financial goals this year:

Short and Long-Term Goals Whether you dream of owning the latest iPhone, a home, or you’re planning for retirement, identifying your goals is the first step to making them happen. Without goals, it’s easy to spend too much money on the here and now without thinking about the future. Figure out what portion of each paycheck you’re willing to divert to a goaldesignated savings account. This will give you a realistic idea of how long your goals will take to achieve.

Talk to your employer’s Human Resources department about how to set up a 401(k) or 403(b). Not only are your contributions to your account tax-free, but many employers will even match your contribution, which is an offer that should be impossible to refuse.

Tracking Finances Tracking your finances can help you make smart financial decisions that won’t put you in debt. But before you clear off your desk and buy file folders, consider this: electronic money management can save you the mountain of paperwork. Free online resources can help you manage all your financial accounts in one place. For example, personal finance website Mint.com, allows you to categorize your spending, create budgets and savings goals, and set up bill reminders and alerts.

Available for Android and iPhone phones and tablets, you can manage your spending on the go and in real time.

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Cremation Care

Or try Quicken 2013 from Intuit, which gives you access to checking, savings and credit card account information, automatically syncing your information across your mobile devices so you can keep your accounts up-to-date by entering transactions as they are made. The bill reminders tool, budgeting features and debt reduction tool make it easier to eliminate debt in the New Year and plan for the future. You can learn more by visiting www.quicken.intuit.com.

New Avenues Not all your goals will be achievable with assets you have today.

Luckily, there are new, lower-cost ways to pay off debt. For example, borrowers using Lending Club can qualify instantly with a simple online application. Unlike a traditional bank loan, Lending Club enables dozens or even hundreds of people to seamlessly invest in the loan, resulting in lower costs for borrowers and consistent returns for investors.

For more financial advice to carry you through a new year, visit www. mint.com/blog/.

Without help, New Year’s resolutions can be tough, if not impossible to achieve. Innovative tools can give you a leg up toward your goals.

mortgage facts and fiction

unraveling the myths of the mortgage maze

By Roxanne Carr

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n this first column for the Journal Plus for the New Year, I want to approach and discuss Reverse Mortgages.

They are becoming more and more of a planning tool for families, and there is often much misinformation published. Reverse Mortgages are confusing even without misinformation. Let’s take a moment and go through the basics.

• A Reverse Mortgage allows owners to tap the equity in their home, equity they may have built up over many years (equity being the difference between value and any outstanding loans).

• To qualify, prospective borrowers must be 62 years of age or older and expect to remain in the house as their principal residence.

• The borrower retains title and ownership of the house.

• There are no required monthly mortgage payments.

• Any outstanding mortgage debt or liens against the property must be paid off with the new Reverse Mortgage.

• There are no “upfront” fees to be paid other than a Counseling fee and an Appraisal fee, which is reimbursed in the loan amount when the loan closes. Nearly all costs of the Reverse are financed in the loan proceeds.

• Family members and financial advisors are strongly encouraged to join in meetings with the property owners and have any questions answered before proceeding.

• An unbiased, third-party, certified Reverse Counselor must spend time with the proposed borrower before a loan application can be processed by a lender.

Any and all interested parties can join in the conversations.

• There is no credit qualifying, other than a search to be sure there are no legal items outstanding against the borrower (judgments, etc. that may be against the property).

• What is drawn out of the equity by the use of a Reverse Mortgage is non-taxable.

• The maximum mortgage amount is derived by a combination of things: the appraised value, the borrower’s age, and the maximum lending limit for the area at the time.

• The borrowers have the ability to obtain their equity in a number of ways: cash withdrawal at closing, funds to remain in an equity line that is always available and earns income as it sits, monthly payments or a combination of all three.

• The borrower agrees to maintain their property in good repair and pay the property taxes and fire insurance as required.

• The cost is often referred to as being high, but the benefits may be worth it ... and consider a lender is waiting 10 to 20 to 30 years for repayment.

Well, I said the basics, and this is quite a lot of information to absorb, but you can see that Reverse Mortgages are complicated.

Property owners who might want to consider a Reverse Mortgage should carefully choose their lender; I would think based on experience and referrals from others who have been through the process. There has been abuse in the industry, as there is in most industries unfortunately. Discussing the matter with a financial advisor is also highly recommended.

Remember that a Reverse Mortgage is just the opposite of what we now call a Forward Mortgage—no payments are made; quite the reverse, payments (in the various forms mentioned) are received. The Reverse Mortgage may come at a time when cash is needed but the senior owners are unable to qualify for a new loan, or just do not want another loan payment.

Although Fannie Mae, the largest purchaser of closed mortgages in the nation, offers a Reverse Mortgage program, the most popular is the one endorsed by FHA, commonly referred to as a HECM (Home Equity Conversion Mortgage). This is because the maximum loans offered, based on value, age, etc., are

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much lower with the Fannie Mae program, yet costs are similar. There is a Fixed Rate Reverse and an Adjustable, and the Adjustable is usually selected because with a Fixed Rate HECM, all of the cash available to the borrower must be fully withdrawn at closing. Most owners prefer to have a combination of ways to receive their equity over time.

Social Security income and Medicare benefits are not affected by a Reverse Mortgage, but of course this should be verified with the government agencies. Now, some more very important facts: • No repayment of the debt is made until the home is sold, the owner permanently moves out or passes away.

• A borrower will never owe more than the current market value of the home at the time the loan comes due (regardless of how much you owe on the Reverse, you never owe more than it is worth).

• Interest on the loan is not paid back until the loan is repaid.

• If the borrower passes away, heirs have choices—they can repay the loan and keep the house or sell the home and repay the loan.

If you are between 62 and 70, think about putting off your Social Security withdrawal until age 70 when it is much larger. Collect on your Reverse in the meantime.

To me, one of the most outstanding reasons for a Reverse Mortgage is that it can pay off an existing mortgage, and the borrowers can become debt-free at a time that might be most critical to their living style. The first of the Baby Boomer generation reached 62 years old in 2008, and now it is said that 6,500 people turn 62 every day. They and others 62 and older should now look at the Reverse Mortgage as a financial tool, a tool that can maximize their ability to lower overall monthly expenses and/or increase their income.

You can tell I am a great advocate of Reverse Mortgages. I have a deep history with them and was very excited when State legislation first allowed them in the mid1980s. In fact, I made the very first Reverse Mortgages in California through an insurance company out of Kentucky (long story there), and was part of the FHA Task Force that helped set up the now-popular FHA program. I have seen these mortgages positively change many people’s lives, often at their most critical time of need.

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at the market

Carrot Crunch salad with fresh mint and super seeds

By Sarah Hedger

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appy New Year! With the holiday eating season behind us, and the New Year here, the produce at our local markets starts looking better and better. Sometimes I hear people say how the markets look rather “grim” this time of year, and while I agree some of the Winter produce isn’t as photogenic as the berries that greet us in Spring, we still have it pretty darn good in the selection department! Many farmers markets around the world close during Winter months so I always feel grateful that, combined with our temperate weather and the resourcefulness of our local farmers, our markets continue year round. January brings to us a continuation of apple varieties, as well as avocados, beets, broccoli (and most of the cruciferous family), fennel, lovely dark greens including spinach, kale, and chards, as well as citrus to keep our taste buds awake. And, this doesn’t include the fresh herbs that are available nearly year round for us. So, next time the weather is looking grim on your favorite market day, put on an extra layer and go support your farmers, they will be even happier to see you!

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This month I wanted to give a shout out to the amazing inspiration of fresh herbs. Regardless of your gardening status, herbs are a great way to integrate some inspiration into your cooking, with relatively little effort. They take little room to grow, and a good selection can be grown in pots or small containers, even if you

are limited on space. I have found that if I have some good herbs conveniently growing nearby, they can inspire a simple, fresh meal because they contribute so much bang, bringing a meal to life.

January is as good a time as any to start planning your garden and I highly suggest finding a way to incorporate a variety of your favorite herbs. Options are endless and some of my favorites include an abundance of flat leaf parsley, mint, dill, oregano, basil, thyme, sage chives, tarragon, lavender, cilantro, and even going into the Asian-themed options of lemongrass, Vietnamese mint, Thai basil, Kaffir Lime…and, a good Bay Laurel tree is great to have around. Have you ever tried fresh Bay leaves in your soups? It will shed some embarrassing light on the quality of dried bay leaves sold in stores!

This month’s recipe, Carrot Crunch Salad with Fresh Mint and Super Seeds, came about when my taste buds were at a low and got kicked into gear from some fresh herbs. Perhaps it was a Winter low, or eating too many cooked (and baked) items, but my taste buds just kind of went flat. All it took was a good, fresh salad to reboot my system. This recipe was inspired by a random collection of items in the refrigerator (fortunately this reflects recent market purchases that need to be used up), and some fresh herbs my good friend Belinda offered up. She grows many wondrous things, however her parsley and mint needed a haircut so I had a bunch to use. I hope you enjoy this salad as much as I just have. I wanted more. Seconds might be in order. And thirds? Stranger things have happened.

Fortunately, it also happens to be ridiculously good for you—perfect for the New Year.

carrot crunch salad with fresh mint and super seeds FOR THE SALAD: Makes enough for 3-4 good size salad servings *Use organic, local ingredients as much as possible 2 large carrots, cleaned 2 nice crisp apples 1/3 cup raisins ½ cup organic raw almonds, roughly chopped 1/2 cup sunflower seeds 1/4 cup sesame seeds 1 large bunch flat leaf parsley, minced (about 1 loosely packed cup) 1 good handful fresh mint, minced (about ¾ loosely packed cup) 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar 1/4 cup olive oil or other good, neutral oil 1 T toasted sesame oil 1/4 cup hulled hemp seeds Sea salt and fresh ground pepper (to taste but 1/2 tsp of salt is a good start) Grate carrots into large salad bowl. Follow with grating apples into same bowl. At the same time, place a large skillet (preferably cast iron) over high heat and toast sunflower and sesame seeds for a few minutes, or until golden and slightly aromatic (in a good way).

Remove from heat and toss into bowl with carrots and apples. Add parsley and mint, rice wine vinegar, olive oil, sesame oil, hemp seeds, salt and pepper. Give a good toss and place in your favorite bowl and find a bit of sun to sit in and declare your day a mighty fine one. (Your tastebuds will too)! *Feel free to email me at sarah@seasonalalchemist.com if you have any food-related questions and find this recipe (as well as other versions) at www.seasonalalchemist.com

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slo county art scene dynamic new adult art classes at the museum of art

By Muara C. Johnston

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he San Luis Obispo Museum of Art has announced teen and adult classes for 2013 and it is a year of exceptional talent and art. The San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA) maintains a special commitment to meaningful, memorable art education. From basic techniques to hands-on activities in contemporary and multicultural art forms, the Museum strives to open students’ minds, stimulate creative thinking and encourage integration of the arts into every aspect of daily life. The Museum’s foremost educational objective is to ensure that students have a variety of enlightening, inspiring, and rewarding opportunities to put their own individual creativity into practice. Workshops and classes at the Museum are taught by talented, respected professional artists who have earned the appreciation and affection of their students. Many of these teaching artists have become favorites, and return to educate and inspire students year after year.

Roger Lee teaches iPad sketching, painting and collage.

In 2013, the Museum continues with its very successful Saturday Drop-In classes. Offered four Saturdays in a row, every other month, the classes give budding artists an opportunity to experience a new artistic medium, and returning artists a chance to refresh their skills.

Local teaching artists provide instruction in Sketching, Watercolor, Water-based Oil and Plein Air painting. Materials are provided and pre-registration is not required.

Mobile technology is creating a new world of artistic expression, and this year the Museum of Art is the first in the area to offer iPad art classes. Taught by former Hewlett Packard marketing guru, Roger Lee, the dynamic, state-of-the-art Saturday afternoon classes will provide instruction in iPad sketching, painting and collage.

This year, a wide variety of inspiring workshops for students of all levels are being offered. Some of the instructors are established local artists while others are notable artists from around the country who

offer a new perspective on art making. This exciting year of instruction includes several Abstract Painting classes with perennial favorite Robert Burridge, traditional Atelier Method sketching with New York artist Marcos Dorado, and Palette Knife painting with nationally recognized artist Daryl Urig. Workshops are held on weekends or in some cases meet weekly to challenge students to heighten their skill level and delve more intensely into learning new techniques.

Among the non-traditional environmentally friendly classes are Designing Eco-Clothing and Making Handmade Books with the local artist team of Melinda Forbes and Julie Frankel. A dynamic new assemblage workshop with Santa Barbara artist Susan Hazard will create Shrines and Reliquaries, and San Francisco native Helena Keeffe will present a workshop on Screen Printing using natural plant dyes.

Rounding out the year of inventive classes is a Tapestry Weaving class using organic fibers with Bay Area textile master Tricia Goldberg.

Julie Frankel and Melinda Forbes teach designing Eco-Clothing and Making Handmade Books J A N U A R Y

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One of the most innovative classes of the year is titled Seasons of Creativity with motivational teacher Michael Ackerman. The year-long workshop meets four times and takes aspiring artists on a journey from conceptualizing a cohesive body of work through the delivery and exhibit of the finished product. Artists will learn how to professionalize their career through marketing and outreach. The

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prospect moving m ited though to less thanthe 16 students so as toof focus on student artists helping them to better under- Even individual stand his/her weaknesses and strengths. future, youdevelopment. owe it toConveniently yourself taught to learn h in the Museum of Art’s classroom at 1010 carefree living in your own home for man And finally, no Museum educational Broad Street, in downtown San Luis Obispo, program would be complete without Life students can enjoy breaks at charming local Drawing. Open on Wednesday mornings coffee shops or alongside the beautiful creek. and evenings, each session incorporates A printed catalogue is available at the Musemultiple poses from one-minute gestures It’s along. factAllofmedia life that asumwe get orolder, Pristine is fully of Art, it can be downloaded from the to poses twenty-minutes is Museum’s website SLOMA.ORG. Members acceptable and no instruction is offered.

Presome day-to-day tasks become too licensed and insu of the Museum of Art enjoy discounted rates registration is not required. much to handle on our own. That All of our worke on all workshops or classes. A list of local All the classes at the Museummean of Art are lim-have doesn’t you to move away carefully scre hotels is available for visiting are students.

You Don’t Have to Move

Feel Safe and

from the comfort of your home. and pass a crimin • Pristine Home Services is aHousekeeping local background chec Personal Care that helps San Luis Obispo and drug test, giv • Yard company • Handyman Maintenance County residents avoid the high cost when someone fr Servingof moving All oftoSan Luis Obispo County a retirement facility. in your home.

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“She helps me w Enjoy Affordable Living personal care. S Home Services Specialist

Atelier Method Sketching

year ends with a celebration of their achievement at their own exhibit opening and reception in a local business.

New this year, the Museum is offering Master Critique workshops. Master Artists Bob Burridge, Robert Reynolds, David Settino Scott, Robert Chapman and David Limrite will offer intimate afternoon sessions with one-on-one expert advice, insight and direction to a limited number of more advanced

All of our services can be provided She should be cl daily, weekly, or on an as-needed basis. very reasonable From housekeeping You to handyman services and plumbing to preparingyou meals.need There is no task too large or pay for only the services dows!” R. Watso too small for Pristineand Homewe Services.

All of ourthose services can be providedatdaily, weekly, or on an as-needed provide services a price basis. You pay for only the services you need and we provide those services at a price you can“They afford. took the t you can afford. what I wanted.

Pristine Home Services made it possible exactlyforwhat I a Convenient One-call us to stayService comfortable and independent reasonable. I wo in our home.

When Mary was diagnosed Our personal care services include a friend. with cancer, is no longer ato threat, the ” C. shopping, daily errands, mealwhich preparapeople at Pristine became a very important tion, transportation part andofnon-medical Before you mak our team. They were trustworthy, care. Our housekeeping services keep reliable and always stood by ourcould side. Weaffect yo our relationship their staff.

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-Don and Mary Smith spotless. We even do windows and to read these tw laundry.

Our yard maintenance crews Before you make any decisions that could affect your future happiness and standard of living, take every s “What know how to take care of your favorite the time to read these two FREE reports: about living in rose bushes and keep the grass neatly “What every senior needs to know about living in a retirement facility.” mowed. Our handyman services are “Four critical “Four critical questions to ask a service provider...before you let anyone work in or near your home.” provided by specialists in plumbing, service provid We invite you to call Pristine right now so that we can send you these two FREE reports by mail. electrical work, painting, repairs and anyone work i safety rail installation.

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We Bring Assisted Living Home You Whatever you need...give us atocall 805-543-4663 www.pristinehomeservices.net 710 FIERO LANE, UNIT 16 SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA 93401 Susan Hazard teaches Shrines and Reliquaries

H O U S E K E E P I N G · YA R D M A I N T E N A N C E · H A N D Y M A N S E R V I C E S · P E R S O N A L C A R E J A N U A R Y

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COMMUNITY Our Schools

ally planned in advance with discussion about the teacher’s plan and expectation for the lesson. The observation is primarily a data gathering exercise by the observer(s). The real value is in the targeted professional discussion that occurs afterward based on the observation. An excellent example of what this looks like is happening in the Lucia Mar Unified School District in their TAP schools. An essential part of effective classroom observations is an agreed upon rubric or description for effective instruction and student learning that forms the basis for the observation and subsequent discussion.

Evaluating Teachers

By Dr. Julian Crocker, County Superintendent of Schools

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he evaluation of teachers is receiving a lot of attention. The Los Angeles Unified School District, the nation’s second largest school district, has announced that it is implementing a new evaluation system that now includes the use of student test scores as part of the measure of a teacher’s effectiveness. Most of the funding grants from the federal government also include the requirement to have a robust teacher evaluation system that includes measures of student academic performance.

Much of the current discussion seems to be motivated by a feeling that current evaluations protect “bad” teachers and if we only could rid ourselves of these teachers then all would be right with schools.

The dismissal of incompetent or unprofessional teachers, principals or superintendents is important, but should not be the purpose of an evaluation system and is not the subject of this article.

The purpose of evaluating the job performance of any person should be to assist them and provide clear feedback about their performance. This honest feedback should provide the basis for a professional discussion about how to increase the effectiveness of the teacher’s practice. This discussion includes building on strengths as well as changing what is not working. Yes, the evaluation system should provide the red flag from the referee when needed, but its primary use is part of the coaching system to improve performance.

We will get substantially greater returns in improved student achievement by assisting our staff to grow and continually improve their practice rather than only focusing on firing teachers. A quote attributed to Edwards Deming: “You can’t inspect quality into a system; you have to design it in.” This article is about what an effective teacher evaluation system should generally look like to achieve this purpose.

CLASSROOM OBSERVATION

STUDENT ACADEMIC PROGRESS This is what is driving the current controversy about teacher evaluations. The current buzz word is “value added” evaluations. The idea is to measure how much “value” is added to a student’s learning by the teacher as measured by standardized tests. Teachers rightly point to the many factors not under their control that can impact student test scores. The relatively unsophisticated nature of our current testing is also a limiting factor with this approach.

However, taking all of these valid considerations into account, some reference has to be made to student academic progress as part of the judgment about teacher effectiveness. The whole purpose of teaching is for students to learn. If this is not happening, then we need to know it and make corrections. I would note that the requirement to include student academic progress in teacher and principal evaluations has been the law in California since 1971, so this is not a new concept.

STUDENT FEEDBACK This component is getting more attention recently, although it has been in use in colleges and universities for a long time. Students are the group that sees a teacher in action more than anyone, and there are at least 25 sets of eyes on each teacher all day. Why not ask these participants about their viewpoint? They observe the teacher in action far more than any outside observer. Recent research has pointed to some key questions such as: “Our class stays busy and doesn’t waste time”; “Students in this class treat the teacher with respect”; and “My teacher explains difficult things clearly” also to be correlated with effective instruction and student achievement in that class.

We often say that we need to use “multiple measures” to judge the academic progress of students in a fair manner. Test scores are only part of the picture for a student, as any parent knows. We should take this same approach with teacher evaluation.

These observations should be made by the principal as well as colleagues. These classroom visits need to be frequent and usu-

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templeton ffa champions

By Vanessa Soto, Templeton FFA Chapter Reporter

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aking up on May 5th, 2012 four Templeton FFA members had the determination to accomplish something they had dreamed of for the last three years. It was not to have perfect hair for prom later that night, but to be the California FFA State Champion Livestock Judging Team. Kayla Hildebrand, Vanessa Soto, Kayla Welcher, and Amy Hanks knew all they had to do that day was take a test and evaluate classes of livestock to achieve that goal.

The four team members have been raising livestock all their lives and have a passion for it. Success has come to them in the showing because of their hard work and determination, which has also overlapped into their dedication to competitive livestock evaluation. In 2010, sophomores Kayla Welcher and Amy Hanks and freshmen Kayla Hildebrand began their career in livestock judging by practicing during the week and going to multiple contests on the weekends. The next year, freshmen Vanessa Soto also joined the livestock judging team along with new coach and agriculture teacher, Erin Thompson.

Before the judging season began the four girls worked hard every week to learn and practice, spending countless hours visiting local

breeders and studying for the written test component of the contest. Feeling prepared, they stepped onto the Cal Poly Beef Unit early in the morning on May 5th. The team thought they had what it took to take the title of State Champions, and later that evening in the Cal Poly gymnasium, they knew it as they were named the 2012 California State FFA Livestock Judging Team Champions.

Kayla Hildebrand was also named the high individual overall. The team now had the opportunity to compete at the National FFA Career Development event in Indianapolis, Indiana in October.

senting the community of Templeton and the Central Coast proudly.

For more information or to make a contribution contact; Erin Thompson at ethompson@ templetonusd.org

Representing California, the team worked diligently not only to prepare themselves for the contest, but also to raise funds to attend the national event. Thanks to the support of several community members and local businesses, the team was able to fund the trip. The ten-day trip to Indianapolis, Indiana included workouts at Purdue University, hotel study sessions, and intense mental preparation. The ladies’ hard work paid off and, in the end, they were named the second place team in the nation.

With this honor has come the prestigious opportunity to attend an exhibition contest at the Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh Scotland and an agricultural tour of London, Wales, and Ireland during the summer of 2013. The team is extremely proud to be representing the United States overseas and is currently working hard to raise monies to fund the educational trip. What started as a childhood interest in animal agriculture has led the girls to receiving honors and recognition at the national level, repreJ A N U A R Y

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mission accomplished Slo mission parish hall gets an upgrade

By John Summer

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ld Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa had already weathered over 150 years by the time its parishioners felt it needed some “modernization.” So in the 1930s the community of San Luis Obispo began a period of Mission Revival that saw substantial restoration. A new bell tower. Columns and a portico that helped bring the mission back to its visual roots.

The old mission was experiencing the respect and appreciation that it deserved… as the true soul of the city.

Then in 1948, the small parish hall along the Monterey Street side (now Mission Plaza) was expanded to accommodate an increasing number of community needs. The resulting handiwork was modern for its times. Hardy linoleum tile. Acoustic paneled drop ceilings.

Fluorescent lights. Bathrooms and a kitchen. It was, for the times, “state of the art.” But since then, over a period of 60 plus years, the state of the art came and went leaving an impression of a tired and gloomy space lacking any sense of “welcome” to its guests. Now, that too has passed.

Doing something to the Parish Hall was always on the list for Father Russ Brown. But since coming to the mission six years ago, there were too many other more pressing matters to attend to. Chief among them: completing a full earthquake retrofit to the mission as a whole. Years of wear and a shaking earth made the old adobe and stick structure a candidate for crumbling … something that simply could not be put off much longer. Its sister mission to the north in San Miguel proved that. The earthquake in December of 2003 wrought serious injuries to the structure. Mission San Luis could ill afford to risk the same. So without any government assistance (that church and state thing) the community pitched in and gave new bones to the old mission—under time, and under budget. And then it was time to move on.

Parish Hall before J A N U A R Y

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Father Russ Kinphoto Photography

“Following our seismic retrofit of the mission, it was clear that the greatest unmet need was the mission’s aging Parish Hall,” says Father Russ. “It’s an important site for hospitality, both internally and externally for the community and our guests.” But Father Russ was not immediately prepared to conduct a fundraising campaign so close to the huge one required for the retrofit.

Parish Hall during construction

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floors were chosen to grace the dining area, while mission style tiles were selected to accent the kitchen and bathrooms. In the main community room, heavy duty carpeting befitting the mission period was designed to create warmth, only to be exceeded by an adobe style fireplace in one corner. The goal was to create a space of quality that would last for at least another century, as well as attract community groups seeking a special place to meet who in the past wouldn’t consider the old parish hall. After all, part of the mission’s “mission” is to reach out to the community. A better calling card would be hard to imagine than this welcoming gathering place.

Parish Hall’s new look. Design by Studio2G, rendering by Bianca Clayton

Then one evening, parishioners Chris and Rosemarie Will asked Father Russ for his guidance on a personal matter. The Wills had just lost their son Matthew to cancer, and were seeking a means to memorialize him. It didn’t take long for the discussion to center on a perfect way to keep Matt’s memory alive—a living, breathing renewed Parish Hall. From that moment on, things began to move very fast.

Chris Will approached local builder Charlie Main of The Main Company with the project concept. Main immediately brought in architect Laura Gough of Studio 2G. The plan was to create an environment that blended modern convenience with old world craftsmanship befitting the historic mission period.

Walls and ceilings were stripped to the bones. Main was surprised to find the substructure in amazingly good condition.

This made it all the more easy to build it back up to current standards and beyond.

The new kitchen and bathrooms required new plumbing and electrical, as did the audio/visual requirements of a fully functioning community space. Handicapped access was addressed in every element.

And throughout the restoration “quality” and “historic integrity” were paramount.

Beams and corbels were worked by hand.

Iron hanging chandeliers were custom made to mirror those in the main mission, but at a scale appropriate for the smaller parish hall space. Wide plank wooden

As you read this, the Parish Hall restoration is now complete, just in time to receive the homeless that the mission hosts during Christmas time, as well as other groups who have traditionally utilized the hall. New ones will no doubt come once they see what awaits them. “We hope to find new ways to bring the larger community onto the Mission grounds.” says Father Russ. And he’s already looking beyond the Parish Hall. The Mission gardens are beginning to evolve to complement the courtyard entrance and barbeque area. Along the plaza side, the long portico will likely be next in line. After all, you can’t end one project without seeing something next to it that requires attention.

It’s kind of like life within the church itself.

There is always room for improvement.

God’s work is never done.

“We were excited to actually be a part of history,” says Main. “Hundreds of years from now, people will still enjoy our work.”

Plans were drafted and modified until a virtual rendering of the vision for the new space was completed for public view. The results formed the catalyst for a donor campaign directed at both the parish and community at large, and across a broad spectrum of potential donors. Father Russ was determined to offer donor opportunities to all levels of income, and he succeeded. More than 125 individual donations large and small combined to meet the budget requirements within only a few short months, and continue coming in. The success of the fundraising campaign allowed work to begin in August after all the proper permits and site reviews were complete.

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history—part 1

the house that chester built

By Joseph A. Carotenuti

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erene, aloof, graceful in her simplicity yet enchanting with her accessories, the Teass House is more than an elegant structure. Perched on a busy—and historically rich—intersection, the grande dame watches silently as the generations of citizenry pursue their lives unaware of her heritage and her remarkable owner.

With her corner-companions at the intersection of Palm and Osos Streets: the County Courthouse, the library and City Hall, the Teass (rhymes with pace) House presents the most personal history of the four structures.

Here’s the story.

There are some lives that seem to wander aimlessly from beginning to end, unconnected to most of life’s passions or distractions, simply vacuous. Others are best described as ablaze with purpose, dedication, a quest for meaning, journeying through the passageways of life, banging on its walls, raising dust with little time to look back. Imaginary soapboxes may occupy the life but accomplishments—not words—are the measurement of success. Such was the life of a man who today is remembered simply because his home has survived the demands of “progress” in a notable location.

This combination of medical office and integral residential use was built in 1929 for Dr. Chester James Teass, physician and surgeon, by local contractor Theo Maino. However, by the time of its completion, Teass had gained a notable reputation in the evolution of medicine in the Golden State.

By age 23, Teass had graduated from Cooper Medical College in San Francisco. Born in Missouri in 1874, one of seven children, the young Dr. Teass then spent a year and a half traveling to the east and abroad to observe medical practices elsewhere in the rapidly evolving world of medicine. His interest in progressive medicine was undoubtedly fostered while learning at Cooper as its founder, Elias Samuel Cooper and his nephew, Levi Cooper Lane, were leaders in seeking innovative surgeries and curatives for patients.

Chester James Teass

to medical journals and professional symposia. Most all the area is now submerged under Lake Shasta.

In his personal life, in 1901, he married 17-year-old Helen McKeag. A widow, her adoptive mother, Cora, consented to the marriage as she lay dying and insisted the wedding occur at her bedside. An heiress to an extensive fortune of her father, Dr. James O. Smith, Cora left her entire estate to Helen with Chester appointed as administrator. Their first child, Robert, died in infancy the next year and is buried next to Cora.

Besides multiple and varied professional duties, Teass was also very active in the medical society and in 1908 was president of Shasta

It is well to note here, national attention was being more and more drawn to the licensing of physicians and the wide educational variations and facilities among the states. A seminal study in 1910 by Abraham Flexner presents a stunning review of various institutions and recommendations as to needed reforms. Eventually, many “medical” facilities were simply closed while others became associated with colleges and universities. Cooper in 1908 became the first medical facility for the now-renowned Stanford University Medical Center.

At the turn of the century, Teass was the resident physician in the copper rich Kennett area at the Mammoth Mine Hospital in Shasta County. While a sparsely populated county (reported at slightly more than 17,000 in the 1900 Census), Teass became a regular contributor J A N U A R Y

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The Teass House—Downtown SLO

COMMUNITY County Medical Association. One of his most remarkable cases was first reported to his peers that year and involved a gunshot wound to the heart of Constable Timothy Foley. After reviewing the pertinent cases from the literature, Teass presented his patient to his associates. Foley had been shot four months previous through the right ventricle and left lung. In a lengthy article best reviewed by a medical professional, Teass reported performing surgery for “seropyopericardium.” Overnight, complications required further surgery including sutures to the wounded heart. Commented the editor of the medical journal: “This case will take first rank as a unique phenomenon in the medical world.”

Among other contributions to medical literature were papers on the treatment of

burns, urology, appendix, and uterine cancer. By 1916, he was listed as a post-graduate lecturer at a San Francisco medical school in gynecology. While merely of historical interest today, Teass’ wide variety of surgical procedures was accompanied by a message to other surgeons to pursue their skills if for no other reason than on “humanitarian” grounds … to relieve patient suffering. In one presentation, he noted “It has taken some of us a long time to find out that everything that happens to a patient is not solely due to that which is done for him, but also as to the way in which it is done.”

For at least two years during World War I, he was enlisted in the Army Medical Corps with the rank of captain. Records indicate he served at Fort Kearney in California and Fort Travis in Texas. By the time he was

2013-15 Goal-Setting and Budget Process

What are the most important issues facing the City of San Luis Obispo?

The City Council invites your participation in setting goals for 2013-15 financial plan as part of the budget process (including use of revenues from Measure Y - our ½-cent City sales tax). The Council wants your input.

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mustered out of the service, he had begun teaching at his former alma mater and was well-noted in San Francisco. Even his young wife was a member of the Clionian Club—“the only club in San Francisco devoted solely to history.” Reflecting on a European vacation, she instructed the ladies on France from an “aeroplane.”

Listed among the city’s Who’s Who, Teass faced a comfortable middle age as both a doctor and resident. Possibly, his reportedly being the personal physician to William Randolph Hearst is from these years. While no evidence has yet been found to confirm this, Teass’ reputation certainly would not bar the association.

As so often happens, tragedy opened new opportunities as well as personal grief.

In 1921 Helen, his wife of 20 years, died of myocarditis. Possibly with few or any symptoms, her death left Teass as a single parent for their teenage daughter, Melba Howell. There is no documentation specifying his reasoning, but the doctor and father would leave his home and practice in San Francisco, remarry a woman considerably his junior, and build a career (and home) in San Luis Obispo.

Contact: jacarotenuti@gmail.com

We are here for you.

Community Forum January 8, 2013 6:00 to 9:00 PM Ludwick Community Center 864 Santa Rosa Street Participants will have an opportunity to share with the Council (and each other) what they believe are the most important priorities for the City over the next two years. The Council will continue the process in a goalsetting workshop on January 26, 2013.

This will be followed by community workshops and hearings before Council adoption of a balanced budget in June 2013.

Want more information? Please call us at 781-7112 or visit the City’s web site at www.slocity.org for more information about the Community Forum or the City’s goal-setting and budget process The City of San Luis Obispo is committed to including community members with disabilities in all of its services, programs, and activities. Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (805) 7817410. Please speak to the City Clerk prior to the meeting if you require a hearing amplification device or other assistance.

Nicole Pazdan, CSA “Placing a loved one is full of complicated choices.

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COMMUNITY

Hospice corner a new year: a new hope for those missing a loved one

By Ingrid Pires, Bereavement Counselor

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s a new year opens, so does the possibility of easing the pain of grief. Having made it through the holidays with their poignant reminders and nostalgic reminiscences, our focus naturally turns toward the future. If you are embarked on a grief journey, that can also include more opportunities for hope and healing.

Psychologist and grief educator William Worden, writes that four tasks are particularly helpful to us in healing from the death of someone we love: 1) accepting the reality of the loss, 2) processing the pain of grief, 3) adjusting to a world without the deceased, and 4) finding an enduring connection with the deceased in the midst of embarking on a new life. Through resolving to embrace these tasks this year, we can move through grief more readily and realize the hope and healing available to us.

Accepting the reality of the loss involves understanding both that the person has died, and also that the death has meaning to us and requires our attention rather than being ignored. As in the case of an injured limb, where acute care may be needed to address the initial damage while rehabilitation work returns the limb to optimum functioning, accepting that we have been impacted by a loss allows us to get beyond surviving and return to a fuller, more enjoyable life as well.

Processing the pain of grief is an active process that requires more than just the passage of time. Well-meaning friends and family sometimes sabotage this by suggesting we “put the death behind us� and essentially avoid feeling our feelings in the hope that they will simply go away.

Many who have followed that advice and sought to avoid this task have become depressed or ended up dealing with their pain in less healthy ways, such as using alcohol, gaming, over-eating, or acting impulsively in other ways. We can ease the concerns of family and friends, and still accomplish this task by learning how to lean toward and away from the pain. In this way, we develop some control over when we experience these feelings. By setting aside time regularly to continue the now internal relationship with the person who has died, we can do most of our grief work at that time and are less likely to find ourselves getting emotional in line at the grocery store or over coffee with a friend. Rather than squelching our feelings to avoid pain, our feelings are deepened and enriched over time and ultimately enhance our healing.

Adjusting to the new environment takes time and patience. Adjusting to change takes time as we figure out how to assume, delegate or simply get used to missing the person who has died and the roles s/he played in our life. This task also involves trying to make some sense of the loss and regaining some control over life. Depending on the variety and depth of connections we’ve shared, it is easy to see why this task requires some time and self-care as we tackle roles previously handled by someone else.

Finding an enduring connection with the deceased in the midst of embarking on a new life involves balancing between what was and

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what will be. The deceased are not forgotten or replaced—but remain an enduring part of us and our challenge is to find a way to “carry them with us” comfortably in our lives.

While we are not the same person we were before the death, and won’t be exactly the same again, with time and working through our grief, the pain will lessen and we will be able to redefine and be comfortably ourselves again … a new self. This does not mean that the relationship with our deceased friend or family member is gone from our lives. They are with us in new ways, yet much of the energy that was invested in the relationship previously is slowly freed up for others.

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JANUARY CROSSWORD SOLUTIONS ON PAGE 43

Those we love and who have loved us want us to be happy, to re-invest in the world and live meaningful lives. This New Year offers an opportunity for us to embrace the tasks of grief and move forward on the grief journey with its goal of living a fulfilling life. May our lives be filled this year with the people who love us today and be rich with the memories of those who have loved us before, and have left behind a legacy of love, one that lives on … in us.

This monthly Hospice Corner is sponsored by Hospice Partners. Ingrid Pires is a Bereavement Counselor at the Center for Grief, Education and Healing at Hospice Partners. For more information, call (805) 269-0141.

STATEPOINT CROSSWORD THEME: 2012 IN REVIEW ACROSS 1. Come from an egg 6. Bad-mouth 9. Cargo 13. Gem state 14. Make a choice 15. Move sideways 16. Chocolate substitute 17. Wade’s opponent 18. *”The _____” moved to Chicago from NYC 19. *GOP’s 2012 choice 21. *Deceased singing legend 23. Pock mark disease 24. Boris Godunov, e.g.

25. Chicken order 28. Vegetative prickle 30. Speed of play, pl.

35. Like decorated cake 37. Luau souvenirs

39. Third rock from the sun 40. Laughing on the inside, in a chatroom 41. Small drum 43. Memorization method 44. Full of pep 46. Russian parliament 47. Farmer’s purchase 48. Auteur’s art 50. Peacock’s pride 52. *Ann to Mitt 53. “Anything ___?”

55. Excessively 57. *PSY’s style 61. Bronx Bomber 64. Whippet or Basset, e.g.

65. Bard’s before 67. Lifeboat support 69. Elephant trainer’s goad 70. Summer mo.

71. “Lohengrin,” e.g.

72. In a golfer’s pocket 73. Registration, for short

74. One born to Japanese immigrants DOWN 1. Wino’s sound?

2. Month of Purim 3. Tropical tuber 4. Bite 5. Rub elbows 6. Nemo’s forgetful friend 7. *Facebook’s big move 8. Seethes 9. Dryer fire hazard 10. Scandinavian war god 11. Burn soother 12. Refuse to accept 15. Evening party 20. Jump for joy 22. Pillbox or tricorne, e.g.

24. Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, e.g.

25. Whitman’s dooryard bloomer 26. A threat to food safety 27. “___ __ on the ground floor” 29. Part of ROM

31. *”Curiosity” landing site 32. Preface 33. Weasel’s aquatic cousin 34. Outbuildings 36. *Felix Baumgartner’s space ____ 38. “Brave New World” drug 42. Indian side dish of yogurt and cucumbers 45. Corrects or edits 49. Chicken _ __ king 51. *Where many struck gold 54. _____ campaign 56. Giraffe-like African animal 57. Steps to the river 58. First rate 59. Heat in a microwave 60. African migrators 61. Safecracker 62. December 24 and 31, e.g.

63. Michael Collins’s country 66. Parisian way 68. Chi precursor

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palm street perspective

santa claus or the grinch? you decide

By SLO City Councilman, John Ashbaugh

Dear Friends and Neighbors, First—“Thanks” to the voters of San Luis Obispo who have returned me to another 4-year term as your Councilman. It’s a big responsibility, and I take it very seriously.

Still, I’m grateful for the moments when I can be a little less serious in my role and have some fun! On December 1, I volunteered for the City Parks and Recreation Second Annual 5K Reindeer Run at Mitchell Park. When I arrived on that drizzly Saturday at 6:30 a.m., I noticed their Santa Claus costume hanging in the corner.

Apparently, the regular Santa Claus had called in sick, so I offered to fill the job. After tying my raincoat and sweatshirt around my waist, I cut a reasonable facsimile of Jolly Ol’ Saint Nick.

It seems that even an elected official can gain instant popularity by putting on a Santa suit!

I was greeted by cheerful runners of all ages throughout the morning. I handed out the medallions for the best times, most family members in the run, and best costumes—and of course, I hosted a few tiny tots on my lap, before Mrs. Claus needed me back at my North Pole workshop.

Santa Claus is Listening: It’s Goal-Setting Time!

On January 8, in place of our regular Council

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meeting, we’ll host our biennial launch of Goal-Setting for the 2013-15 Financial Plan.

This is an event where the City Council gets to play Santa Claus: We invite all the citizens of our community, young and old alike, to come tell us what you want as our community priorities—and where you want us to spend money. We entertain all kinds of ideas and “wish lists”—including yours! The Council then meets on January 26 to hammer out our collective “Major City Goals,” to be adopted with the City’s Financial Plan in June. You may also visit the City’s web site at www.slocity.org to participate in an online survey about your goals for the City.

We can be a little more “jolly” about the state of our City’s finances for the near future: The City is seeing higher revenues from our recovering economy, reduced unemployment, higher retail sales, and strong growth in our hotel tax receipts. At the same time, we’ve stabilized our costs for staffing through a series of carefully-negotiated contracts with our hard-working City’s employees. Santa Claus might have something extra for the City’s “stocking” over the next two years.

The Grinch is Watching: Measure “Y” Expires in 2015 There is a “Grinch,” however, keeping his watch on Who-Ville: We have only two more

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years of revenue from Measure “Y,” the City’s extra ½-cent sales tax that annually generates $6.5 million for our general fund. This localoption sales tax expires on March 31, 2015 unless renewed by the voters. We have only one opportunity to do so before then, in the General Election November, 2014.

So while the Council enjoys playing “Santa Claus” and delivering all the things that bring joy and happiness to our City, we’ll soon see the budget “Grinch” coming down our chimney unless we work together to renew Measure “Y” in 2014. That may seem like a long time from now, but renewing Measure “Y” will require a well-organized campaign and a lot of good will. (City staff cannot, of course, officially endorse this campaign; however they will provide accurate information to all sides of this issue).

If you have suggestions for the City as we consider our priorities for the upcoming 2013-2015 Financial Plan, please attend the meeting on Tuesday, January 8 at 6:30 p.m. at the Ludwick Community Center.

It’s time once again for the Council to put on our Santa Claus hat, or our “Grinch” hat— you tell us which hat you want to see!

Downtown

Around

The Magazine of Downtown San Luis Obispo

Inside:

January 2013

W hat ’s U p Downtown B usiness Spo tlights

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forever, Sunday parking is proving a little tricky to t the Holiday Parade last month—which, embed in the public psyche. by the way was one of the BEST ever: great entries, beautiful weather, tons of people t the Downtown Association, our job is Downtown—one of the announcers had a little to create an environment that is business fun with the theme “Dreaming of a Downtown friendly; believe me when I say that the main Holiday” proclaiming via loudspeaker, “I’m reason for charging for parking on the first (or dreaming of a Downtown parking place!” Which last, depending) day of the week is to provide of course got some hoots n’ hollers from the MORE parking for customers and guests. That’s crowd. right. The myth that on Sundays, you use’ta come Cash, CMSM, Downtown and find plenty of parking right in the ream no more! In 2013 (Happy New Year, by Deborah Executive Director heart of town prevails. Ask any municipality that the way), you can definitely find a parking doesn’t charge for parking and they’ll complain place if you awaken to the possibilities. And, that employees park in the customers’ spots! I know of probably of greater importance, avoid getting a ticket. towns where the merchants have come to fisticuffs over ot that this year is any different from last, but if you’ve each others’ employees parking in front of “their” store. been frustrated in the past with parking Downtown, The reason you have to pay to park is so you have a place a fresh approach might be just the tick—oops—solution. to park. Once that sinks in, you’re ready to move past This method is about attitude adjustment and guess what, “parking as an issue” in life. Here’s how: it works! Anyone who wants to park and enjoy Downtown Get a map can do so and never fear getting a turquoise envelope The Parking Services Office and the City’s website offer again. a well-designed, easy-to-read map of parking availability. he main reason for focusing on this subject for the Need to run in and out? Park in the core. Need to stay a new year is that the Sunday parking program needs an few hours? Use the structures. Make frequent visits? awareness boost. Having been “free” (as in subsidized) On the Cover: With the advent of Sunday pay-to-park in Downtown, meters in the core area have been upgraded to accept credit/debit cards; many say it's a blessing since they don't have to go fishing for coins or be restricted time-wise by the amount of change they're carrying. The Downtown Association and City of SLO's goal this coming year is to increase awareness that Sunday parking is no longer free and reduce the amount of tickets issued on that day. Try the parking structures--guaranteed no tickets! Photo by Deborah Cash

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Thursday Night Promotions Farmers’ Market

Every Thursday All Year ‘Round — Still the Best Deal in Town! w w w. D o w n t o w nS L O . c o m

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A monthly pass allows unlimited time in any 10-hour metered spot. Once you familiarize yourself with where the parking “types” are, you’ll feel more comfortable when you arrive.

Plan your trip If you know where you’re going and how long you’ll be there, that will assist you with deciding where to park, as mentioned above. If you’re not sure, the structures are your best choice. Knowing which destinations you have in mind will help determine which structure.

Be determined If you’re hoping for a spot in a certain area, head there first. Start looking before you arrive at the actual desired spot and perhaps chant your preferred parking mantra. I’m good for once around the block before I give up and go to the next block or the parking structure. But, usually, you’ll find a spot within proximity if you hang in there. If you went to Cal Poly (and drove and parked), you have already mastered this step.

Mind the meter Parking meters get a bad rap. Probably the cover of this month’s Around Downtown made a few people uncomfortable. But, they’re just poles in the ground with a clock showing how much time you have. They don’t alert the authorities when they expire, they don’t reset when you drive away, they don’t cheat you on your time. They just sit there; it’s the user’s responsibility to get back in

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time. And observe the time limits: Maximum Stay 2-hours means after two hours you must move your car, not feed the meter.

The good news: the new “core” meters accept credit cards which has been well-received; many find that by “filling the meter up” they have allowed themselves extra time and avoided a ticket.

Use the structures Did I mention this? You will not get a ticket in the structure. You will get one hour free. And if the business you visit offers tokens, you can get another hour free.

There are three structures, all conveniently located and easily accessible. If you park on the top, check out the view.

There’re no meter holidays None.

Ask for help Have a heavy purchase? Ask the store owner if someone can meet you out front with it.

Tell your friends When you have a good experience, share it. Spread the word that you’ve figured it out and they can too.

Sunday’s just another day Amen.

Hope to see you all parking happily in 2013…around Downtown.

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Bliss Café

David Fintel (left) and Palaka Sauer, co-owners 778 Higuera Street, Suite D 805-547-0108 BlissCafeSlo.com “Bliss is defined as the ultimate experience and state of happiness,” David Fintel, co-owner of Bliss Café, said. Dedicated to offering delicious and empowering “yogi style, karma free” cuisine, co-owners Fintel and Palaka Sauer, take pride in their diverse whole food menu. They strive to incorporate local and nutritional ingredients, the majority of which are organic. “We’re here to serve the Downtown community knowing that community and culture are based on food,” Fintel said. Although a vegetarian and vegan restaurant, menu items are not limited. Burritos, wraps, sandwiches, curry vegetables, smoothies, muffins, baked goods and more provide healthy options for those seeking a

A Muse Gallery

Greg Wilkins, owner 845 Higuera Street 805-439-3000 Search on Facebook: A Muse Gallery It is rare to see the terms “fine art and whimsical” used together, however, A Muse Gallery on Higuera Street fits the description. “We’re here to ‘amuse’ the public and be ‘a muse’ for artists,” owner Greg Wilkins said. Primarily featuring the artwork of Theodor Seuss Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, Wilkins takes pride in knowing no one leaves his gallery without at least a smile. The gallery’s collection of Dr. Seuss ranges from his earlier works in the ‘30s to his later sculptures and paintings of classic images from his beloved children’s stories such as “Horton Hears a Who and The Cat in The Hat.” The gallery also currently features the artwork of Tom Everhart, an artist who uses vibrant colors to recreate Charles

S p o t l i g h t s conscious and compassionate life style.

Bliss Café is officially open at its new location, 778 Higuera Street in The Network, right around the corner from their old location at 1035 Chorro Street.

“We were attracted to the bigger beautiful space and the venue on the creekside patio,” Fintel said. The larger location also allows for a small market that offers drinks and snacks such as coconut waters, teas, kombucha, coconut bliss ice cream, chips, bars, trail mixes, etc. Fintel’s goal is to have live music on the patio and to fill up Bliss Café’s calendar with events from the local community, Cal Poly and non-profit organizations.

Cooking classes will be hosted in the new venue for those who want to learn how to cook international cuisine. Bliss Café also caters for special events such as birthdays and weddings and is open every day of the week from 11:00 am – 9:00 pm.

By: Amanda Margozzi M. Schulz’s “Peanuts” characters. The paintings of Stephen Holland, an artist from Santa Barbara who is well-known for his depictions of sports greats, musicians and famous actors, are displayed on the walls as well. About every three months, or depending on popularity, the featured artists on the walls change.

Wilkins decided to move A Muse Gallery from its first location in Sedona, Arizona to Downtown San Luis Obispo knowing that his gallery would benefit from such a vibrant and happy small town. “For the Beatle fans we have pottery that has hand written lyrics from Beatles’ songs inscribed on them and as people start turning the pottery to read on, they always start to sing,” Wilkins said. In addition to glass and ceramics, the gallery also features contemporary jewelry and even fine art chairs. A Muse Gallery is open every day from 10:00 am – 6:00 pm in Downtown SLO. By: Amanda Margozzi

Goodwin graduated from Cal Poly with a degree in Architectural Design and Andrew Goodwin and ConsciousBuild utilizes a strong connection Matthew Linden, co-owners to the university. The company offers 1239 Garden Street co-op and internship opportunities for 805-548-8155 undergraduate and graduate students ConsciousBuild.com throughout the year. During the summer, ConsciousBuild offers a 12-week course ConsciousBuild is a design-build called the RED (research, education and development firm dedicated to “thinking design) Summer studio program. Their before building.” The company, which goal is to heighten the students’ awareness focuses on architecture, construction and RED Studio~Summer 2012 (left to right): of public interest and teach them how marketing, was founded on the desire to Michelle Loeb, Mathieu Anfosso, Andrew their work can benefit the world. bring about change for those who need Goodwin, Serhino Espinosa & JB Berteloot help with their built environment, such During Art After Dark, ConsciousBuild as at-risk populations. “We are environmentally, socially and hosts a quarterly “Arch. After Dark”, which celebrates economically conscious when we are collaborating on how architectural research and design at ConsciousBuild’s new we should build a project,” Andrew Goodwin, co-owner said. Downtown studio headquarters. “Having the studio in Downtown is a good fit because the community of SLO is likeConsciousBuild currently is working on projects all over the minded in working towards sustainability and environmental world in countries such as Haiti and Mauritania as well as in consciousness,” Goodwin said. Other ConsciousBuild offices the United States in New York and Washington. Working for are located in New York as well as Long Beach, CA. the Housing Authority of San Luis Obispo, ConsciousBuild provides sustainable and environmental design construction By: Amanda Margozzi services and management for their new HO:ME Project.

ConsciousBuild, Inc.

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yesterday and today SLO’s first antique car club

By Gerard L. Parsons

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n 1948 Gerard Parsons and three other antique automobile enthusiasts met for a luncheon in San Luis Obispo.

The conversation during the meeting was antique automobiles.

By the end of the meeting, all present had determined that the goal of the group would be to form an antique automobile club.

All members contacted other antique 1924 “fonty” Ford automobile enthusiasts in the area and called a meeting to discuss this matter. A meeting was held in one of the homes and all present were in favor of forming the San Luis Obispo Antique Car Club. This was a very active group and some of the activities of the new group were picnics, barbecues, tours, and a few over-night camp-outs. The San Luis Obispo Antique Car Club was one of the first clubs dedicated to antique cars in our area. Eventually, three new clubs were formed, all of which started from our group: Two Model A Clubs and a Model T Club which are all going strong today. At the first meeting of the original car club, all members favored naming our group the San Luis Obispo Antique Car Club. Howard Cacci and Gerard Parsons designed a pattern, which was used to pour brass into solid brass license plate emblems. All members gathered up their old brass, which was shipped to a foundry to cast these emblems.

Many years later our club determined it would be best to change the club’s name and join a national club.

We contacted the Antique Automobile Club of America and 1932 Chevy were welcomed by this national club. They gave us the name “Antique Automobile Club of America, San Luis Obispo Region.” Now being a member of a national automobile club has the following benefits: (1) gained insurance to protect our members and their cars; (2) all of our members received copies of a national monthly publication; (3) we were hosts to a western region national which was held in San Luis Obispo. Our club has grown to 30 families with approximately 36 driveable antique automobiles, including two Rolls Royce, owned by our President John Osborne.

1955 Cadillac

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his favorite was a 1955 Cadillac Coupe de Ville.

He enjoyed many of the club’s activities, principally the tours.

In the early days, trips in the car club included a tour to Yosemite and Monterey.

a navy ship commanding officer remembers

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orty years ago when the U.S. was involved in the unpopular Vietnam War, the people of Cypress, California wanted to find a way to support our military. They decided to Jim Talbot shows the Recognition Certificate adopt the new U.S. warship, the USS Cook in May of 1972.

SLO resident, James Talbot was Commanding Officer of the ship and presented a painting of the ship by the renowned maritime artist, R.G. Smith, to the City at that time. The City of Cypress continued to communicate with the Cook’s crew for several years. The Cook served for 20 years, manned by 16 officers and 226 enlisted men. The original group of officers kept in communication with each other and recently celebrated a 40th reunion in San Antonio, Texas. The City of Cypress issued a Certificate of Special Recognition to commemorate the event. Captain Talbot surprised the group in Texas with the certificate. Talbot remained in the Navy for his career, then made use of his skills and experience in support of the military in civilian roles in the Navy Department.

Gerard L. Parsons, 94, is now an honorary member of our club and held membership for 64 years and was also secretary for many years. Gerard has owned, restored, and driven the following antique automobiles: 3 Model T Fords, 3 Model A Fords, a 32 Chevrolet, and

USS Cook J A N U A R Y

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THE BULLETIN BOARD

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252 Higuera Street San Luis Obispo (805) 541-TIRE

QUALITY AUTO REPAIR

John Kimball

805-543-3180 www.wronas.com

109 South Street SLO, CA 93401

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pg&E gives $10,000 to Boys & Girls Club

The Boys & Girls Clubs of South San Luis Obispo County are the proud recipients of a $10,000 Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) Education Grant that enabled the Club to purchase sixteen new iPads.

The new “touch screen” computers are being used

by Club members at the Oceano Clubhouse and, eventually at the satellite facilities run by the Club.

mid-state fair wins best theme at 2012 IAFE

The California Mid-State Fair announced that the theme for the 2012 fair, “The Great American Road Trip,” featuring Paso Pete and crew on an adventure through the historic Route 66, was selected as the top theme in 2012 by the International Association of Fairs and Expositions (IAFE). Fair officials collaborated with Cal Poly’s Advanced Fair Management class on creating an innovative concept that would be successful in marketing, program and exhibition concepts. The California Mid-State Fair created Paso Pete in 2009 as the resident mascot. Keeping alive the country and western heritage of the area, Paso Pete’s adventures allow the fair to explore new frontiers every year, while maintaining the traditions of the past.

San Luis Obispo’s Best Kept Secret Power Carts Senior Discount (55) • 10 Play C ards • Tournaments Welcome • •

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J A N U A R Y

2013

New volunteers sworn in for casa

Volunteers were recruited from all areas of San Luis Obispo County and will work with children throughout the county. The new volunteers received 30 hours of training and will be assigned a child or sibling group under the juvenile court’s jurisdiction due to abuse, neglect or abandonment. Photo—Left to right: Front row: Carrie Burns, Lisa Howe, Karen Allison, Lori Kramer, Gloria Kahler. Back row: Jan Hansen, Loretta Axberg, Kara Woodruff Blakeslee, Judge Linda Hurst, Becky Silva, Elaine Wilcox. For more information contact Cathy Orton (805) 541-6542 or go to corton@slocasa.org Journal PLUS

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Sierra vista Medical Center helistop A National Guard UH 60 Blackhawk helicopter did a test landing on the Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center helistop recently. The purpose for the test landing is to be prepared in the event of a natural or other type of disaster. The Sierra Vista helistop was specifically designed to accommodate a Blackhawk in the event it is needed for a natural disaster that requires the military do emergency transport of people or supplies.

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NMLS License 98161 CA DRE Corporation License 01820779 Borrower must maintain property as primary residence and remain current on property taxes and insurance. Security One Lending, 3131 Camino Del Rio North, Suite 1400, San Diego, CA 92108.

free Senior healthcare screening Screening for adults and seniors is available throughout San Luis Obispo County. Free services include: screening for high blood pressure, weight and pulse. Finger prick screening tests for: high cholesterol, anemia and blood sugar. Counseling and referrals as needed. Please call 544-2484 ext.1 for dates, times and locations.

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J A N U A R Y

2013

Journal PLUS

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PG&E donates van for school music program For almost 30 years, the SLO Symphony Music Van has been racking up the miles across the Central Coast, bringing an entertaining and educational introduction to the instruments of the orchestra to thousands of third and fourth graders. When the old van, with over 200,000 miles on it, began to fail last summer, PG&E came to the rescue, donating a van from their fleet of vehicles to keep the program rolling. The Symphony dedicates fully one third of its budget to music education activities and offers numerous programs throughout the Central Coast, all of which address California Department of Education Music Content Standards. For more information about the Music Van and SLO Symphony Music Education programs, please visit the Music Education page at the SLO Symphony website at www. slosymphony.com or contact Patty Thayer, Communications Director, at (805) 543-3533, ext.15 or patty@slosymphony.com.

family history day D ressing Windows in San Luis Obispo for over 39 Years

Alan “Himself” J A N U A R Y

alan’s draperies 544-9405 alansdrapery@gmail.com 2013

Journal PLUS

The SLO County Genealogy Society will host an all-day meeting on Saturday February 2, at the IOOF Hall, 520 Dana Street, SLO, from 8:30 to 3:30. Accredited Genealogist, Apryl Cox,will conduct four sessions showing how to identify ancestors when no “smoking gun” or direct evidence records exist. Topics include “Thinking Creatively About Research Problems,” “Strategies for Finding Elusive Ancestors,” “Not All Evidence is Created Equal,” and “Building a Case When Direct Evidence is Missing.” The event is open to the public and includes refreshments, door prizes and more. There is no advanced registration. Cost $20. For more information see www.slocgs.org/ or phone 805-215-2404.

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sierra vista awarded “a” rating for safety

morro bay names new tourism director

Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center was honored recently with an “A” Hospital Safety Score by The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit run by employers and other large purchasers of health benefits. The A score was awarded in the latest update to the Hospital Safety ScoreSM, the A, B, C, D or F scores assigned to U.S. hospitals based on preventable medical errors, injuries, accidents, and infections. The Hospital Safety Score was compiled under the guidance of the nation’s leading experts on patient safety and is designed to give the public information they can use to protect themselves and their families. To see Sierra Vista’s scores as they compare nationally and locally, visit the Hospital Safety Score website at www.hospitalsafetyscore.org, which also provides information on how the public can protect themselves and loved ones during a hospital stay.

The Morro Bay Tourism Bureau Board announced the selection of Karin M. Moss, award-winning tourism marketing, public relations and economic development professional, as the organization’s first Director of Tourism. Moss is relocating from North Carolina where she was Executive Director of a regional tourism-marketing agency representing six counties in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

In this capacity, Moss created co-op marketing campaigns for a 500-member hospitality organization and served on the board of the Blue Ridge Parkway Association helping to promote the 75th anniversary of the iconic Parkway.

13-year-old donates $1300 to Jack’s helping hand Natalie Sada, 13, is not your average eighth grader. She held a series of bake sales and recently raised $600 for Jack’s Helping Hand then contributed some of her own money for a donation totaling $1,394. The struggle of one local family inspired her. Natalie and her family are members of Congregation Beth David, a synagogue in San Luis Obispo, and she felt compelled to help when she heard that a young member of her congregation had developed a serious medical illness that meant he and his family had to travel long distances for proper care.

music with a mission The San Luis Obispo Symphony (SLO Symphony) invites guests for a unique journey of symphony concerts set to be performed in all three historic Central Coast missions. This exclusive series, the California Missions Tour 2013, is set for one weekend only in January. California Missions Tour 2013 features acclaimed violinist Shunské Sato performing with the SLO Symphony Chamber Players, Maestro Michael Nowak conductor, on the weekend of Jan. 12 and 13. Guests can enjoy spectacular concerts at Mission San Miguel (Jan. 12 at 2:30 p.m.), Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa (Jan. 12 at 8 p.m.), and Mission Santa Barbara (Jan. 13 at 3 p.m.).

Tickets range from general to premium seating and cost between $15 and $35 for each concert. Shunské Sato, known as one of the most promising and versatile young musicians of his generation, will join the SLO Symphony on its California Missions Tour 2013 to perform Vivaldi’s beloved “The Four Seasons” and composer Dr. Craig Russell’s beautiful new work, drawn from re-discovered 200-year-old mission music, “Ecos armónicos.”

rotarian develops water well drill rig

In 2008, Rotarian Bob Hather of the Rotary Club of San Luis Obispo attended a conference addressed by Rotary International President D.K. Lee that would change his life. President Lee spoke of the lack of potable water throughout the developing world, affecting over 800 million people, and responsible for the deaths of 1.5 million children under the age of five each year.

Hather began looking for an innovative approach to address the problem.

“My goal was to create a water well rig that was affordable and small enough to ship to all parts of the world,” said Hather. Hather had no problem assembling a team of highly skilled experts including water well drillers, geologists with extensive experience in developing countries, mechanical engineering professors from Cal Poly University and production experts from a local manufacturer. Four years of research and development finally led to the creation of Lifewater Drilling Technology (LDT) and the LDT 360 Cable Well Drilling Rig. Priced at about $60,000, the LDT 360 is almost one-tenth the cost of a conventional rotary drill rig. Yet the LDT 360 can drill up to 10” diameter holes to a depth of over 300 feet. One person’s goal inspired by a speech is now a mission to place the LDT 360 water well drilling rig in every corner of the world, improving quality of life and saving millions of children’s lives. Lifewater Drilling Technologies is located in San Luis Obispo. For more information, visit www.lifewaterdrillingtechnology.com, email info@lifewaterdrillingtechnology.com J A N U A R Y

2013

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COMMUNITY

eye on Business new employment laws mix it up for 2013

By Maggie Cox, Barnett Cox & Associates

N

ew year. New energy. New enthusiasm. And new employment laws in California. Every January new regulations enacted by the State legislature go into effect. It’s a challenge for business owners and managers to stay on top of them all and avoid making costly errors. I find the entire situation pretty darn daunting, but I manage to make my way through it with the help of employment law experts like local attorney Kathy Eppright. I called Kathy before year-end to ask if there was anything interesting coming in to play in 2013, and she rattled off information on a few new laws that gave me pause.

Consider this month’s column a heads up— I’m not a lawyer and the information I share isn’t legal advice, but I do feel safe offering some non-legal, business smarts advice: don’t put your business at risk. Avoid innocent mistakes. Get the facts and get them from a pro.

For instance, new in 2013—there’s new rules about social media and how far an employer can go in requesting employee information about private Facebook and other social media sites. The answer is “pretty much nowhere.” New legislation imposes strict limits on how and when an employer may request access to an employee’s social media sites.

The new laws address everything from passwords to accessing private information on company-owned computers. Slippery slope.

Also new in 2013 is a law curtailing a practice many businesses adopted during the recession—that of entering into an “explicit mutual wage agreement” with employees expected to consistently work overtime each week. If I understand this law, it says that lump sum pay arrangements that were used in the past have no place in the present. In the past, employers and their employees may have agreed to an arrangement that covered regular time and overtime in a fixed dollar amount. It’s too complicated to explain here except to say you can agree ahead of time to the regular (aka “straight”) pay, but cannot do the same regarding overtime rates. You have wait and pay the overtime based on the overtime hours reflected on the person’s time cards each pay period.

And don’t think last year and the year before that’s conundrum over rest and meal breaks has been put to bed. Even though the rules were relaxed as a result of the California Supreme Court’s decision in Brinker, employers must nonetheless adopt a clear policy that states employees are allowed to take the required breaks. Here’s the kicker: you must assure nothing about your business

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2013

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Dave Juhnke

Kathy Eppright

makes that policy unrealistic or impossible to execute. Think about that one.

While all of this may read like a bit of crazy talk, the good news is there are local people who can explain the rules with skill and humor (and a few scary real life examples).

Two of the community’s most respected experts, the aforementioned Kathy Eppright of AMB, and Dave Juhnke of Sinsheimer Juhnke McIvor & Stroh, LLP are manning the dais January 10 for the SLO Chamber of Commerce Legislative Luncheon focused on 2013 Employment Law. They’ll review the rules, offer perspective and share ideas for how to make sense of it all. Additional information is available at www.slochamber.org.

Here’s hoping 2013 is a year of recovery and success in local business. You may want to kick it off by making sure you know the new playbook.

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