The ’71 Quake – Through The Eyes of Children Recently a former teacher at St. James Catholic School gave the Historical Society a stack of essays written by her third grade class immediately after the Sylmar Quake in February of 1971. Those writings are priceless! Here are some samples. One boy reported an example of […]
Mastering PC Speech Back in September of 2005 during a briefing with reporters, Army Lt. General Russel Honore had reached his limit answering foolish questions about Hurricane Katrina evacuations. “Don’t get stuck on stupid,” he admonished the mouth-breathing media monkeys chattering at him. Well, I’m sorry to report that more of our fellow Americans are […]
A Wild American Graffiti on Foothill Boulevard I’ve written a lot about 1975’s short-lived Foothill Cruise Night. It was an amazing social anomaly for our normally quiet and conservative valley. In one last memory from Craig Baker, we get a glimpse of how out of control things got, and why Cruise Night just couldn’t last. […]
With a Grateful Heart “In every community there is work to be done, in every nation there are wounds to heal, in every heart there is the power to do it.” Last Saturday, April 27 at CVHS, it was a beautiful day on the high school track. CV CAN (Crescenta Valley Committed to Athletic Needs) […]
Let’s Ban Pressure Cookers The Associated Press reported this week that the two brothers who set off the deadly Boston Marathon bombs and later engaged in a full scale shoot-out with authorities (after killing an M.I.T. security guard execution style while he sat in his patrol car) did not have permits for their weapons. Color […]
“Cruise Foothill – It’s A Riot!” I received some emails from people that had some vivid memories of the so-called Foothill Riots. This is from Craig Baker, who now lives in Paradise, California: “For better or worse, I was one of the people rocking the RTD bus. As I recall, the intent was only […]
Encourages Community Service I am a seventh grader at St. Bede the Venerable School in La Cañada. I am writing this letter in the hopes that you will publish it in your newspaper. I would like to share with your readers my experience with completing service hours for my school. I would like to encourage […]
Mountain Lions and Whirlybirds Look, up in the sky, it’s a … slow news day! You know there aren’t a whole heckuva lot of newsworthy things happening when the skies above the Crescenta Valley suddenly fill with helicopters. Typically, it’s due to yet another traffic nightmare on the section of the 210 Freeway that bisects […]
Foothill Riot: A Parent’s Story On June 12, 1975, the Crescenta Valley Ledger printed an interesting story written by one of the “participants” in the Foothill Riots. The anonymous writer was actually the father of a teenager. He was 44 years old, a college professor, and a self-described “law abiding citizen, a champion of our […]
On the Passing of Shirley Hite Earlier this month, an obituary ran announcing the passing of Shirley Ann Hite. Not too much was mentioned of her impact or her contribution to this area, especially in the foodservice industry. You probably knew her if you were in Glendale during the era of Bengie’s operation. Professionalism and […]