Mountain Views News          Saturday, December 21, 2013

SECTION B

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2013

THANK YOU JACKI RAYMOND

NOMINATE A CITIZEN!

The Sierra Madre Chamber of Commerce is seeking 
nominations for the 2013 Citizen of the Year. To be 
eligible, a person must be a resident of Sierra Madre. 
The accomplishment(s) or project(s) for which they are 
being nominated must have been of benefit to the community 
of Sierra Madre and its citizens during 2013. 
They must have served without remuneration on the 
project for which they are being nominated, and members 
of the Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors are not eligible.

Completed forms should be mailed to Sierra Madre Chamber of Commerce, 19 
Suffolk Ave, Unit A, Sierra Madre, 91024 by Jan. 6th. The winner will be selected 
by members of the Chamber Board of Directors, and will be honored at the 
annual Citizen of the Year/Board of Directors Installation Dinner to be held in 
January 31, 2014. Nomination forms are available either online at www.sierramadrechamber.
com or by calling the Chamber Office at 626-355-5111.


Sometimes, it is difficult to express one’s 
appreciation to those who go above and beyond 
the call of duty. That is with the Creative Arts 
Group and many residents of Sierra Madre when 
faced with the awesome task of thanking Jacki 
Raymond for 34 years of service to Creative Arts 
and our community.

 Last year when Jacki announced to the Board that 
she would be retiring, it was hard to comprehend 
CAG without her and the next twelve months 
came too quickly.

 Over the last month, there have been lunches, 
and parties and commendations to thank her for 
her tireless service, but the ultimate honor was 
bestowed upon her last Saturday. And, it was a 
total surprise.

 The honor was in the form of the dedication of a fountain in the front entrance of Creative Arts. The fountain was a gift 
from well known former Sierra Madre resident, Lew Watanabe. 

 Kristin Naran, who is the new Executive Director of Creative Arts, and who worked with Jacki for the last ten years, 
presided over the dedication. She introduced Lew as “both a landscaper and an artist known for creating beautiful and 
tranquil spaces.”

 In 1996 he was Sierra Madre Citizen of the Year and In 1999 he donated a granite sculpture to the City of Sierra Madre. 
This sculpture called “the weeping wall” is located in Memorial park.

 And now Creative Arts Group is the fortunate recipient of this magnificent fountain. The name of the fountain is “Antiquity”. 
Lew has donated it in honor of Jacki in honor of her 34 years at the art center. In addition to Lew’s contribution, Norman’s 
Nursery donated the plants Simons rentals donated the equipment that was necessary to transport and place the fountain. 

 Bob Eriksson helped to coordinate the various parties who contributed to the installation. Robert McAlister who did 
his eagle scout project here in the Spring. He raised more money than was needed for his project and that money went 
into a building improvements reserve that we were able to use to help with the installation costs, and Arturo Garcia did 
a “masterful job” of installing the fountain and planting the area around it. 

 In the presence of a crowd of artists and community members, a farewell toast was made to Jacki. The placque honors 
Jacki for serving as Executive Director of Creative Arts Group from 1979 through 2013. Jacki Raymond thank you. We 
miss you already. 


SANTA ARRIVES EARLY


Above left: (l to r) Kristin Naran, Jacki 
Raymond and Lew Watanabe. “Antiquity” 
(right) and the placque honoring Jacki. 

Photos courtesy of Creative Arts

 Earlier this week, Santa delivered a present to the Sierra Madre Senior 
Community Commission. Mayor Nancy Walsh (above left) help deliver 
the gift to Commission Chair Nina Bartolai (above right). The gift? A 
check for over $28,000 raised by the seniors through their recycling program. 
The Senior Commission, which has accumulated a substantial 
fund over the years, uses the money for the betterment of the entire 
community. Photo by Clem Bartolai

WINE AND CUISINE TASTING TICKETS 
ON SALE NOW 

Tickets are on sale now for the 44th annual Friends of the Sierra Madre Library 
Wine and Cuisine Tasting. The event will be held on Friday evening, February 
21, 2014, at Alverno Villa, 675 West Highland Avenue, Sierra Madre, CA, and 
will be an elegant affair featuring more than two dozen vintners providing superb 
wines and local restaurants offering delectable hors d’oeuvres and desserts. 

Tickets to the premier event are $80 and allow you early admission at 6:00PM 
and a souvenir wine charm. A sommelier will give a special wine tasting for 
those at the premier event, a chocolatier will provide chocolates to be paired 
with the red wines, and a local restaurant will offer hors d’oeuvres to be paired 
with the white wines. Tickets to the main event are $60 and provide admission 
at 7:00PM. All are on sale at the Sierra Madre Library, the Bottle Shop, Savor 
the Flavor, and Arnold’s Frontier Hardware. 

Throughout the evening you will enjoy live music and Magic Castle magicians 
as you stroll about the lovely grounds of Alverno sampling the wonderful wines 
and appetizers. A silent auction will again be offering lovely artwork, services, 
tickets to special events, restaurant vouchers, and many other tempting items. 

For a delightful evening of enjoying fine wines, tasty food, and lively entertainment 
amidst the company of friends, joins us at Alverno on February 21, 2014. 

The Friends of the Sierra Madre Library is a non-profit organization and all proceeds 
benefit the Sierra Madre Library. For more information visit our website 
at www.sierramadrelibraryfriends.org, or call the library at 626 355-7186.


SIERRA MADRE ONE BOOK ONE CITY IN FEBRUARY

Maisie Dobbs has been chosen as the Sierra 
Madre Public Library 2014 One Book One 
City choice and an appearance by the 
author Jacqueline Winspear will highlight 
a month of exciting free programs at the 
Library. 

Winspear will speak on Saturday, February 
22 at 2:00 p.m. in the Gooden School multi-
purpose room.and will talk about her 
mystery novel featuring an extraordinary 
young woman living through epic times 
in World War I era England and France. 
A reception will follow the talk and copies 
of all the books in the Maisie Dobbs series 
will be available for purchase and signing 
by the author. 

014 marks the 100th anniversary of the 
start of World War I and Winspear’s talk 
caps a month of programs with a World 
War I theme. 

Kickoff Event - Saturday, February 1, 2:00 
p.m. at the Library

• Children’s Airplane Flying Contest 
• Display of artifacts from World 
War I
• Display of World War I award-
winning poetry by Christopher “Kit” Adde
• Teen Docents will feature virtual 
tours of Sierra Madre in the World War I 
period 
• Music from the era 


Events throughout the month

• Tuesday, 2/4, 7 p.m. Library 
Travel in Time and Space. Immerse 
yourself in Maisie’s world with an 
armchair traveler’s tour of World War I 
life. Catherine Adde will take us away to 
Cambridge, London, an historic house in 
the English countryside and the battlefields 
of France where the story takes place
• Monday, 2/10 7 p.m. Sierra Madre 
Playhouse
Wings, the only silent film to win the Best 
Picture Oscar. Wings is an epic World War 
I action drama that features spectacular 
aerial sequences of vintage dog fighting and 
a romantic angle featuring its top-billed star 
Clara Bow. 
• Wednesday 2/ 12 at 7 p.m. Library 
Featured Book Discussion - Everyone is 
welcome to attend a special discussion of 
Winspear’s book. 
• Thursday, 2/ 20 11 a.m., Library 
Third Thursday Book discussion 
• Wednesdays, February, 4:00 – 5:00 
p.m. 
Teen Book Club will read Leviathan, a 
steam-punk novel with a World War I 
setting. Library basement
• Friday 2/21, 7:00 p.m. Library 
Friends of the Library Wine Tasting. Actors 
dressed in the World War I period of Maisie 
Dobbs will mingle with the crowd. A signed 
copy of Maisie Dobbs will be featured as a 
silent auction item. Alverno Villa
• Saturday, February 22 at 2:00 p.m. 
in the Gooden School multi-purpose room 
Appearance and book signing by author 
Jacqueline Winspear.



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