Mountain Views News          Saturday, June 2, 2012

7

 
Mountain Views News Saturday June 2, 2012 

DUARTE KIWANIS CLUB GETS FIELD TRIP TO VISIT 
MOOSE PROGRAM AT MT. OLIVE

 

When the Duarte Kiwanis Club 
made their first donation to the 
M.O.O.S.E. program at Mt. Olive 
High School, they really didn’t 
know the extent of the vision and 
creativity of the students in the 
program. The club took a “field trip” 
to see first hand what was happening 
in the program. Principal, Kevin 
Morris, shared a great informational 
overview of the program. It turns out 
that the M.O.O.S.E. program (Mt. 
Olive Outside Science Experience) 
was really born out of necessity. 
Since there wasn’t enough classroom 
space for a science lab, they created 
a hands-on experiential program 
through M.O.O.S.E. The program 
really focuses on environmental 
opportunities and concerns, and 
provides a true career path for those 
interested in “green jobs”. Their 
current projects include Aquaponics 
– tilapia breeding, Composting, 
Rain gauge studies, Vermiculture 
(worm farming), Production of 
worm tea as a pesticide, herbicide & 
fungicide, Vegetable beds, fruit trees 
and flower beds, Pond biome – fish 
and turtles studies, and Elementary school field trips. One of their future programs will be 
Garden to Lunch Table – providing fresh vegetables to go right into school lunches in the 
cafeteria!

 Most Recently, the M.O.O.S.E. program has been recognized as the second place 
winning school for the Huntington Gardens Fairchild Challenge. The Challenge is a free 
contest for high school students that fosters interest in the environment by encouraging 
students to appreciate the beauty and value of nature, develop critical thinking skills, 
understand the need for biodiversity and conservation, tap community resources, become 
actively engaged citizens, and recognize that individuals do indeed make a difference. In 
addition to taking second place for Mt. Olive, four of the M.O.O.S.E students won 1st place 
awards in their categories - Xavier Delgado – Beautiful Science, Lionel Silva – Editorial 
Cartoon, Blanca Garcia – Play with Your Food, Nick Perez – Short Story.

The Duarte Kiwanis Club has lunch meetings the first, third and fifth Tuesdays of the month 
at Westminster Gardens. For further information on speaking or joining the club, contact 
Dr. Diane Hernandez at drdiane@drhernandezoptometry.com. 

Hello Monrovia,

Coming up this weekend, Monrovia Public Library is sponsoring a fund raising event for 
literacy programming. “Tea in the Garden” will be on Sunday, June 3 from 1:00 to 3:00 at 
the Monrovia Public Library. Tickets at the event are $35 per person. Literacy programs 
in many communities across the state have been shuttered because of funding cuts, and 
while the program in Monrovia is still serving many citizens, some funding sources have 
become less reliable or have simply evaporated. Literacy is critical for our residents to compete 
successfully in the workplace and to negotiate the complexities of modern society. So, 
for residents that receive the benefits of the program, new opportunities for economic and 
social prosperity open up in ways that were previously unimaginable. The success of our 
literacy program is due in great part to the staff and volunteers that administer the program 
and devote their time and talent to the participants. However, they can’t do it without our 
support. The “Tea in the Garden” fund raiser is a way that you can show your support of 
literacy programming in our community while enjoying an afternoon of fun at the library.

Thursday afternoon, I had the privilege of visiting Roncelli Plastics, one of Monrovia’s long-
time successful businesses. Roncelli Plastics, located on Duarte Road, has been in business 
over 40 years and manufactures highly specialized components for a variety of high-tech 
industries, including a number of high profile Southern California aerospace companies. 
While their clients are frequently characterized as “high-tech,” let me assure you that Roncelli 
Plastics is equally as technologically forward. Their processes and equipment are state 
of the art and they are a shining example of Monrovia’s high-tech future. Luckily, we are 
blessed with a great number of innovative, industry-leading businesses, providing excellent 
jobs for our residents. In fact, several of the Roncelli employees I spoke with are Monrovia 
residents, who live, shop and work here. It’s our goal to not only keep all employers like 
Roncelli Plastics, but to see them grow and continue to flourish here. 

Although the City’s Redevelopment Agency was eliminated by the State, our Economic Development 
efforts are as strong as ever, and we are as focused on retaining our existing businesses 
as we are on bringing new businesses into the City. We are showcasing various local 
businesses on the City’s Business Blog, so be sure to look there to learn what new businesses 
are coming to our fair city, and more about the wonderful businesses we currently have. 

Regards, Laurie

From Monrovia’s City Manager


Monrovia Police Blotter

During the last seven-day period, the Police Department handled 487 service events, resulting in 109 
investigations. To see a complete listing of crimes reported, go to crime mapping. For Police Department 
news and information, visit our website at www.monroviapd.org and follow us on twitter for police 
notifications.

Domestic Battery

May 28 at 9:21 a.m., a caller reported a male subject assaulting a female subject in the area of Madison 
and Colorado. Officers arrived and spoke to both subjects. Through investigation it was learned that 
the male subject is the ex-boyfriend of the female and he was forcefully pushing her to walk with him 
to the store. She was resisting him, so he clamped his hand on the back of her neck and pulled her 
hair, trying to force her to walk with him. The victim was not injured, but does desire prosecution. 
An Emergency Protective Order was issued and served. 

Residential Burglary

May 28 at 1:20 p.m., police responded to the report of a residential burglary in the 100 block of Spanner 
Street. A female Hispanic suspect, approximately 50 years old, approached the front door of the 
residence, which is occupied by two elderly women and one of the women's daughters. Only one of 
the women was home at the time and her daughter was sleeping in her room. The suspect spoke to 
the resident and told her she had purchased the property behind the victim's house and there was a 
tree problem that she wanted to show her. The suspect and the victim walked to the rear of the property. 
As they did so, the suspect was on the phone the entire time. Once the suspect left, the victim 
went back inside her home and found it ransacked and her wallet, cash and jewelry were taken. The 
victim observed a dark colored, 4-door vehicle in front of the house during this incident. Investigation 
continuing.

Commercial Burglary

May 28 at 3:13 p.m., a burglary was reported at a business in the 100 block of East Lemon. The 
suspect(s) forced a gate and used a pry tool to enter a side door to a conference room. The alarm 
sounded and the suspect(s) forcefully tore a flat screen television from its mount and fled the scene. 
Investigation continuing.

Grand Theft Auto

May 28 at 7:55 p.m., a vehicle was reported stolen from the 400 block of West Foothill. The victim 
parked and locked her vehicle in front of the business where she works and left it there over the weekend, 
as she went out of town. When she returned on Monday evening, the vehicle was gone. The 
vehicle is a white, 2009, 4-door BMW with paper plates. Investigation continuing.

Grand Theft Auto

May 29 at 7:59 a.m., a grand theft auto was reported in the 300 block of East Lemon. The victim parked 
his ATV, a green, 2008 Honda Foreman, in the bed of his pickup truck in his driveway. Suspect(s) 
removed the ATV from the bed of the truck sometime overnight. Investigation continuing.

Daytime Residential Burglaries

Three daytime residential burglaries occurred in the morning and afternoon hours on May 29. Two 
occurred in the 100 block of North Alta Vista and one in the 600 block of Terrado. The victim of the 
first home on Alta Vista is in the process of moving out and had most of her belongings out of the 
home. She was not able to respond, so a family member secured the house. A list of stolen items 
will be provided upon her return. Suspect(s) entered the home by prying open a bathroom window.

 Suspect(s) entered the second home burglarized on North Alta Vista by removing three glass louvers 
from the window and then opening it. The victim's house was very full of personal items and it was 
hard to determine what was taken from the property. The victim reported cash taken.

 The third home burglarized is in the 600 block of Terrado. The victim is an elderly female. She left 
the location at 7:45 a.m. and returned at approximately 1:25 p.m. The suspect(s) went into her garage 
and obtained a screwdriver and ladder. They made entry through a front window. The house was 
ransacked and the loss was cash and jewelry. It is unknown if these three burglaries are related. The 
investigations are continuing.

Stranded Hiker Rescued

May 29 at 8:01 p.m., dispatch received a call from a 43-year-old female. She said she was hiking near 
the Trask Boy Scout Camp when she saw a bear on the road. She said she was hiding from the bear 
in some bushes. Her cell phone signal was breaking up and dispatch lost phone contact with her. Officers 
responded and began a search of the area. The Foothill Air Support helicopter also responded 
to assist. 

 After searching the area for approximately one hour, the woman was found 20 feet below the road at 
the bottom of a steep hill. She said that when she saw the bear, she panicked, backed up and fell down 
the hill. She was unable to get back to the road without assistance. The Fire Department responded 
and assisted her up the hill to safety. The woman was not injured.

Theft From a Vehicle

May 30 at 3:26 a.m., a resident in the 300 block of East Hillcrest saw a tall male suspect wearing dark 
clothes tampering with his unlocked car. The resident yelled at the suspect, who walked away, eastbound 
on Hillcrest. The loss was a small amount of change.

Grand Theft Auto

May 30 at 7:04 a.m., a green Honda Accord was reported stolen from the 200 block of West Pomona. 
The victim had parked and locked his vehicle in front of his house in the evening. The vehicle was 
taken sometime overnight. The El Monte Police Department called later in the day and advised they 
had recovered the vehicle. It had been stripped and abandoned in their city. Investigation continuing.

Burglary / Possession of Burglary Tools - Suspects Arrested

On May 24 at 4:12 p.m., a business in the 1600 block of South Mountain reported three suspicious 
subjects, two males and a female, inside the business that have stolen merchandise from several of 
their store locations. An officer responded and detained one male subject, who consented to a pat-
down search. The suspect had wire cutters and a magnetic decoder to remove security tabs on his 
person, along with items of store merchandise he had taken without paying. As the female suspect 
exited the business, she was detained and was also found to be in possession of a magnetic decoder. 
The third male suspect exited, but did not have any items on him. The first suspect admitted he had 
gone into the store to steal, but claimed the other two did not know. He and the female were arrested 
and taken into custody. The other male subject was identified and released.

Gang Injunction / Warrant Arrest - Suspects Arrested

On May 25 at 1:52 a.m., officers were conducting extra patrol behind a business in the 1100 block 
of South Magnolia when they saw an opening in the perimeter gate. While checking the area, three 
subjects were found sleeping in some abandoned apartments. One subject was arrested for the gang 
injunction, one subject was arrested for a warrant, and the third subject was identified and given a 
warning to stay out of the location.

Fight in Progress - Suspects Identified

On May 25 at 6:22 p.m., a caller reported four subjects fighting in the street at Myrtle and Pomona. 
As officers were responding, dispatch advised the suspect vehicle was attempting to flee, but the engine 
hood flew open. This caused enough delay for officers to locate the vehicle as it drove onto the 
westbound 210 Freeway. Officers conducted a traffic stop on Santa Anita, just north of the freeway, 
and detained three male subjects and one female. Officers attempted to locate the victim, but he was 
not found. The suspects were identified and released.

DUARTE HISTORICAL MUSEUM HAS NEW EXHIBIT

 The bronze statue of Andres Avelino Duarte has resided on Huntington Drive in 
Duarte across from City Hall for five years. The saga of its origin, the fundraising campaign, 
the creation of the statue and its debut are depicted in a new exhibit. 

 The statue exhibit is located in the Museum’s Citrus Room along with continuing 
exhibits on the famed bandleader Glenn Miller, the Citrus Industry, a display of citrus labels 
and citrus industry utensils from the collection of Pauline and Mark Montgomery and Duarte 
family heirlooms

 The museum is located at 777 Encanto Parkway in Duarte and is open on Saturdays 
from 1 to 4 p.m. and the first and third Wednesdays of each month from 1 to 3 p.m. It is 
closed on holiday weekend. Admission is free. For details call the museum at 626 357-9419. 
The Museum website is www.duartehistory.org.