In This Together

As it is Independence Day, I would like to acknowledge the patriots who fought hard to establish this great country. We need to remember their dedication to working together for the greater good, their forethought in crafting our guiding documents and the sacrifices they made for our freedoms. For today let’s put aside our differences and honor their efforts.

It’s easy to get caught up in national politics when everything around us seems out of whack. It’s been quite a ride over the last four years and surely there are more bumps to come. Sometimes, I need to pull myself away from all the chaos and do something fun. Last weekend, I did just that by attending the Hometown Country Fair at Crescenta Valley Park. The CV Chamber of Commerce does a great job every year bringing the best of the community together, the old-fashioned way. There are always competitions like the pie-eating contest, a water balloon toss and my favorite, dogs on parade. There was so much going on that I didn’t have much time to check out the Early Rodders, the first responders, and all the great vendors on-site. But I did buy a few things and chit-chatted along the way.

The best part of the fair for me was to talk to the local organizations that contribute so much to our community – many of which I have worked alongside. I was happy to see the folks from the Historical Society of the Crescenta Valley who love to share their old photos or tell stories from days gone by.

The CV Town Council was there, representing the unincorporated LA County portion of La Crescenta. They will be hosting a town hall meeting on July 17 at 6:30 p.m. at the La Crescenta Library, 2809 Foothill Blvd. The meeting will focus on the changing landscape of the CV as a result of new zoning laws and recently proposed health facilities in residential neighborhoods.

The Friends of Rockhaven also had a booth and was pleased to share the history of Rockhaven, the last existing sanitarium in the CV. Established in 1923 by Agnes Richards, a female entrepreneur, Rockhaven found success in treating residents with mental health issues in a home-like setting. In 2008, the City of Glendale purchased the property after Rockhaven’s closure and planned to reopen the facility as a community park and museum space to tell the story of the ladies who lived there. To date, the property still hasn’t been rehabilitated and the community is increasingly fearful that it will be lost to demolition by neglect, especially following severe rainstorms. In 2021, Senator Anthony Portantino was able to secure state grant funds to begin the process of protecting the historic buildings and to open the museum. Three years later, the Friends of Rockhaven is still waiting for these projects to move forward. On July 10 at 6 p.m., the City of Glendale will host a community meeting at the Montrose Library, 2465 Honolulu Ave., regarding Rockhaven. New plans will be presented for the museum and landscaping concepts but may also include affordable housing on-site, an element not generally welcomed by the community but certainly embraced by Glendale staff, commissions and council. I will have a lot of questions about the housing, the funds spent to date and the ever-expanding timeline to 2026.

In addition to the Fair activities, I was proud to staff the booth of the Chace Taylor Malone Impact Foundation LA that, this year, brought together a coalition of people to create CV Cares. In short order, CV Cares has been able to participate in school assemblies and get involved with the “WellNEST” center at CV High School, and also create a new ambassador program and speaker series. At the Fair, representatives demonstrated how to use Narcan® for opioid overdose and collected surveys on drug use in the foothill communities. I joined the parent sector of the coalition as someone directly affected by drug and alcohol misuse. CV Cares has resources to help those who are struggling. Feel free to reach out to me for more information.

Susan Bolan
susanbolan710@gmail.com