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The Bakersfield Voice Sunday, March 7, 2010
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YOURSCHOOLS
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Ballerina’s feet firmly planted in excellence!
Symphonic wind band inspires with concert!
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o what does excellence in a high school student look like? Butler University in Indiana thinks it looks like Bakersfield’s ballerina, Toni Lynch. The performing arts school knows the senior puts in a dozen hours a week in the ballet studio (that’s on a light week without a show going); is nestled at the top of her class at Liberty High School; has served on student council all four years; is president of the school’s Link Crew with 200 leaders she is responsible for; is conditioning for diving now, and ALWAYS does her Problem of the Week for Mr. Castro’s advanced placement calculus I and II classes! Toni has been in ballet since she was four years old and has the blisters, bunions, and toe bruises to prove it. Long hours in the studio have been rewarded with adventures to dance programs at Boston Ballet, The Rock School for Dance Education in Philadelphia (two times!), State Street in Santa Barbara, and Westside Dance Academy in Santa Monica. She spends her weekends now auditioning for colleges includ- Education columnist ing trips to Southern Methodist in Dallas, auditions in Los Angeles, and video auditions for a couple out-of-state schools. “I’d love to join a professional company some day,” Toni says, but like so many of Kern’s seniors, Toni is waiting for college application approvals.
PEGGY DEWANE-POPE
COURTESY PHOTO
The Bakersfield Winds Bands, directed by John Biller, is celebrating its sixth season with a concert at Olive Drive Church on April 12. BY RHONDA MARTIN Community contributor
PHOTO BY CAROL FEIL
Toni Lynch, a senior at Liberty High School, hopes to attend college to double major in dance and math.
As Dr. Suess wrote in “Oh the Places You’ll Go:” “The Waiting Place … for people just waiting. Waiting for a train to go or a bus to come, or a plane to go or the mail to come, or the rain to go …” Beyond Butler University, she won’t know until some time in March whether her half dozen schools accept her
but, she’s hoping to attend a school to double major in dance and math. Judging from her past experience, Toni will bloom wherever she’s planted — that’s excellence! Peggy Dewane-Pope teaches in the Panama-Buena Vista Union School District.
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he Bakersfield Winds, directed by John Biller, will be presenting a Spring Concert on April 12 at 7:30 p.m. at the Olive Drive Church located at 5500 Olive Drive. This Symphonic Wind Band is comprised of some of Kern County’s finest musicians, including many Kern County Music Educators and local professionals. Now in the band’s sixth season, the evening will feature outstanding works of the symphonic band literature. Come and join us for a night of inspiring and beautiful music! Cost is $5 at the door.
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‘Feel good, do good’ during MS Awareness Week
Library offers computer classes
BY CHRISTINE GRONTKOWSKI Community contributor
BY KATHERINE ROSS
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ultiple Sclerosis Awareness Week is being celebrated around the nation March 8-14. Here in Kern County, many events are taking place to give you an opportunity to MOVE IT to end MS. “You can make a difference in the lives of the 2,400 people who live with MS in the San Joaquin Valley,” said Kim Kotrla, director of the Southern California Chapter’s San Joaquin Valley Region. “There are fun and easy activities throughout MS Awareness Week that will make you feel ‘good’ while you do good,” Kotrla continued. • Monday, March 8 at noon: MS Awareness Week kicks off with a balloon release. Mayor Harvey Hall will be attending to make a formal proclamation declaring MS Awareness Week in the city of Bakersfield. • Tuesday, March 9 from 11a.m. to 11 p.m.: BJ’s will donate 15 percent of a party’s bill (excluding happy hour specials and alcoholic beverages) with a redemption flyer. Call 321-9512 or email christine.grontkowski@nmss.org to receive the flyer. • Saturday, March 13 all day: A team of local boy scouts and their fathers lead MS Service Day, traveling around Bakersfield, completing home improvement projects both inside and outside homes of people living with multiple sclerosis. This includes planting trees and pouring concrete so one man can have access to his garden area. In addition to these public events, the National MS Society will also be honoring its top Walk MS fundraisers at Frugatti’s Italian Eatery on Monday, March 8. On Thursday, March 11, the Association of Petroleum Wives will host a charity Bunco night benefiting the Society at Christine’s at the Stock-
Community contributor
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noon. How to find information on the World Wide Web, including: history of the Internet & its structure; typing an Internet address (URL) into the Address Bar; clicking on & following links; using a search engine for basic searches; evaluating information found on the Internet; warning about how technology can be misused to distort information. Finding Jobs Online — Thursday, March 18, 3 to 5 p.m. Using the Internet, learn about: • Kern County Library home page • Career research • Online classifieds and databases, as well as other
YOURLETTERS
It’s time for the Northwest to enjoy a skatepark COURTESY PHOTO
Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week, March 8-14, is the perfect time to join and help build the MS Movement.
dale Fashion Plaza. Many other local businesses including Fitness 19 on Hageman and Calloway, RJ’s Bar and Grill, Starbucks on Coffee and Hageman, Watson-Touchstone ERA, Russo’s at the Marketplace, and HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital will do their part to raise awareness by either allowing staff to wear orange awareness ribbons or hanging up posters on windows. “Remember, Move it … Move it, during MS Awareness Week. It is the perfect time to join and help build the MS Movement,” said Kotrla.
To find out more ways to be a part of MS Awareness Week, and encourage others to “move it” too, visit http://nationalMSsociety.org/cal. Multiple sclerosis interrupts the flow of information between the brain and the body and it stops people from moving. Every hour in the United States, someone is newly diagnosed with MS, an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system. MS affects more than 400,000 people in the U.S., and 2.1 million worldwide.
Memorial fun run at Valley Baptist Church March 20 BY RAY CLANTON Community contributor
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he Beale Memorial Library is offering computer classes in March. The following classes require a basic knowledge of computer mouse and keyboard skills: Internet — Saturday, March 13, 10 a.m. to
sites that provide information on career assess ment & resume development • Using job search websites • Registering online • Resumes Powerpoint — Saturday, March 20, 10 a.m. to noon. Topics include: • Parts of a typical Powerpoint window • Creating preformatted slide shows using the AUTO CONTENT wizard • How to use the design & slide layout options • Formatting slides • Adding pictures & sound • Creating & printing handouts & speaker’s notes • Run slides in presentation mode, and other viewing options • Opening & saving a PowerPoint presentation All classes are free. For more information, call 868-0770.
ome join us at Valley Baptist, 4800 Fruitvale Ave., Saturday, March 20, for the Seventh annual Karen Watson 5K Fun Run/Walk. Registration is at 8 a.m. and the walk starts at 9.a.m. All donations go to the Karen Watson fund at Valley Baptist Church. Cost is $15.
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y name is Joe Mangisi. I live in the Northwest area. I have a lovely wife and four delightful kids. On some Saturdays our kids (two boys/two girls), ages 11, 9, 8 and 4, go across town to the skateboard area of Beech Park. I took up longboarding last summer. I am now hooked. I believe that I am one of the few (lucky) fathers that have girls that skateboard. However, I believe that our area is long overdue for a skatepark of our own. The reason I am writing this article is that I have noticed the new park at the intersection of Old Farm and Noriega. I contacted the city and found out that NOR is in charge of its development. I emailed an inquiry regarding a possible skatepark area. I also expressed that some of the reasons that we should have a skatepark in this area are: 1. We have enough playgrounds, swings, slides, etcetera; 2. Any fool can tell by the outstanding number of kids skating in our area that there is a definite interest;
3. Not all kids want to participate in all team sports, if at all, and; 4. Many kids that frequent the parks are too big — they are teenagers which suggests that they want a park that is more geared to their interests. A helpful Mr. Colon Bywater responded with a seven paragraph correspondence outlining the reasons why grantors, and the powers that be, have hindered their longtime attempts to build a skatepark. He told me that the grantors are very specific as to what can or cannot be built. Furthermore, only two people showed support for a skatepark in our new park. I know that there’s way more people than that in the Northwest area that want this to happen! The grantors will not let their money be spent on a skatepark unless it’s a low income area. Oildale may get one before the Northwest area. It is still possible to have one built in the new park at Old Farm/Noriega. It will cost about $500,000. He commended my inquiry and suggested that I start mobilizing an effort to show support and build support. I
thought: “How am I going to do that?” I am now researching how to start a petition. So, if you see me and my supporters skating around to get signatures you will now know why — we want a skatepark. Our kids deserve one. If the parks are going to continue to be built then it is time that we let our voices be heard as to what kind of parks we want in our neighborhood. We live here, our kids live here and may have families here in the very near future. You, the reader, may take up skate boarding in the future, like me, when you’re 40. The teenagers and other skaters need a place to go that caters to their needs. It is our tax money. It is our neighborhood. We like to skate. There is no skatepark here. Let’s let the powers that be know that a skatepark is not just for low income areas. It is time — time for our families and citizens to enjoy a nice skatepark. Joe Mangisi Bakersfield