Mountain Views News, Pasadena Edition [Sierra Madre] Saturday, June 16, 2018

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SOUTH PASADENA - SAN MARINO

Mountain Views-News Saturday, June 16, 2018 

Crowell Public Library Events

Ron Koertge Appointed 
the First Poet Laureate 
of South Pasadena

Library to Host 710 Digital 
Storytelling Workshop

Coloring Relaxation Hour for 
Adults

Saturdays, 1 pm: Jun 9, Jul 7, 
Aug 4

Come join us for an hour of 
relaxation, meditation, and 
coloring! Often seen as an 
activity just for kids, Adult 
Coloring is now a favorite 
among many adults to help 
destress, focus, and contemplate 
their busy days. Spend an hour 
with us revisiting your favorite 
childhood activity along 
with treats and tea. Supplies 
will be provided but feel free 
to bring your own coloring 
books and pencils as well. No 
pre-registration required, but 
please only adults 18 and over. 

Creative Writing Workshop

Sunday, 2 pm: Jun 10

Are you a writer looking to 
sharpen your skills or gain 
inspiration for your current 
project? Or are you someone 
who loves to write creatively as 
a hobby? Spark your creativity 
with creative writing prompts 
and activities. Feel free to share 
your work with others in a 
non-judgmental environment. 
No registration is required, but 
must be 18 years or older to 
participate.

Journey into Pu-erh Tea

Sunday, 2 pm: Jun 17

If you are interested in 
learning about Puerh tea, 
Jeffrey McIntosh, Tea Master-
intraining, will present a 
program covering its historic 
and geographic origins, 
ecological cultivation, health 
benefits, cultural evolution, and 
relevance from past to present 
time. The program consists 
of an informative lecture 
followed by an interactive 
traditional Chinese tea 
ceremony. Attendees will leave 
with a deeper appreciation 
of simplicity, subtlety, and 
pure enjoyment of the present 
moment. 

Braille Institute: Coping Skills 
for Sight Loss

Mondays, 10:30 am: Jun 18 
& 25 Sight loss can be caused 
by macular degeneration, 
glaucoma, cataracts or diabetic 
retinopathy. On Monday, June 
18 and 25, the Braille Institute 
will offer the latest information 
on adapting to visual changes 
and which assistive devices 
might be appropriate for

individuals. Practical day-
to-day applications will be 
presented such as organizing 
and identifying money 
and marking and labeling 
household items. Attendees 
will learn about resources 
for getting around town and 
assistance with orientation and 
mobility.

Get Your Blood Pressure 
and Glucose Checked By a 
Huntington Hospital Outreach 
Nurse

Wednesday, 10 am: Jun 
20 Huntington Hospital 
Community Outreach nurses 
want to empower all members 
of the community to enjoy the 
healthiest lifestyle possible. 
They offer free blood pressure 
and glucose screenings. Be sure 
to fast two hours before having 
your glucose checked.

 Mindfulness with Ron Serven

Saturday, 2 pm: Jun 23 This 
exciting workshop will teach 
you how to

be present in your life and not 
just a spectator from afar. All 
participants will learn how to 
become more self-aware, how 
to be more aware of how you 
live your life and connect

to others, and how to integrate 
mindfulness into your life as 
well as learn the basics and 
benefits of meditation. 

Independence Day Blood Drive

Monday, 10 am–4 pm: Jul 
2 Celebrate our country’s 
independence by putting the 
red in red, white and blue! 
Giving blood at the library is 
safe and easy. Donors often 
feel a fulfilling sense of pride 
in knowing they are part of a 
lifesaving team. To schedule 
an appointment, log onto 
redcrossblood.org and enter 
the sponsor code: CROWELL. 
To make an appointment by 
phone, text the Red Cross Rep 
at (626) 437-7893.

 Many great stories exist 
regarding the 710 Extension 
Freeway Fight and the Library 
wants to hear them, preserve 
them, and celebrate them. 
The South Pasadena Library 
is seeking stories that reflect 
the full spectrum of public or 
behind-the-scenes activities 
that opposed the 71 Freeway 
extension. The Library hopes 
to gather stories about the 710 
Extension fight and the shining 
legacy of community activism 
and engagement that grew out 
of that struggle. The Library 
wants to hear from long-time 
residents and their families, 
newcomers, artists, community 
activists, nonprofit organization 
members, and civic leaders. 
Only 15 community members 
can sign up to participate.

 Community members can sign 
up for the Library’s two-day 
workshop to digitally record 
their stories. Participants will 
learn the elements of great 
digital storytelling. They will 
also learn how to prepare a 
narration script, record their 
voiceovers, and digitize images. 
The two-day workshop for 
signed-up participants only 
will be conducted by California 
Listens, a project sponsored 
by the California State Library 
and led by Berkeley-based 
StoryCenter. It will take place 
in the South Pasadena Library 
Community Room on Friday, 
June 29 and Saturday June 30 
from 9 am to 5 p.m. on both 
days.

 During the two-day workshop 
in the Library Community 
Room, each participant will 
create their own 2 to 4 minute 
video using their own personal 
and family images, videos, and 
archival materials. The videos 
created will become part of 
a statewide archive of stories 
about various aspects of life 
in the Golden State. They 
will also, of course, be made 
available to the South Pasadena 
community.

 It is necessary for participants 
to sign up and commit to 
attending on both days. 
Lunch and refreshments 
will be provided. Spaces are 
very limited so interested 
individuals are asked to sign 
up as soon as they can by going 
to https://www.storycenter.
org/southpasadena/. For 
more information contact 
Steve Fjeldsted, sfjeldsted@
southpasadenaca.gov or Joe 
Lambert, joe@storycenter.org.

 “In the 21st Century, the 
library is becoming a place 
where the public expects to 
be able to not only check out 
stories, but to also check them 
in. Oral history, community 
journalism, digital storytelling, 
and other participatory media 
efforts have become a critical 
part of the engagement process 
for many libraries,” shared 
Joe Lambert, StoryCenter’s 
Founder and Executive 
Director and director of the 
California Listens project. “In 
working with local libraries, 
we have seen how hungry 
community members are for 
the opportunity to share the 
stories of their experiences, 
their causes, their struggles and 
triumphs.”

 South Pasadena Library 
Director Steve Fjeldsted 
added. “South Pasadena 
has a wonderful history of 
community involvement, and 
a great collection of citizens, 
each with a unique story to 
share. This digital storytelling 
project is a chance for local 
folks to create a brief, lasting 
narrative for their family, their 
neighbors, and for their legacy 
as important parts of South 
Pasadena history.”

 The City Council appointed 
Ronald Koertge as South 
Pasadena’s Poet Laureate at 
their June 6 meeting. California 
State Poet Laurate Dana Gioia, 
another South Pasadena 
resident, recently nominated 
Ron Koertge as South Pasadena 
Poet Laureate in a letter to the 
City Council. Gioia stated that 
while the position is chiefly 
honorific, it “will pay the 
reward that ours is a city that 
prizes language and culture.” 
The City of South Pasadena 
had never had its own Poet 
Laureate before. Other cities 
in California, including Los 
Angeles and West Hollywood, 
previously appointed an 
accomplished writer to serve as 
their own official ambassador 
for the literary arts. According 
to Koertge, he will serve 
“as an official ambassador 
of South Pasadena’s vibrant 
literary culture, promoting 
poetry in the city, stimulating 
the transformative impact of 
poetry in the local community, 
and creating excitement about 
the written word.”

 Nationally-honored poet and 
novelist Ron Koertge, a South 
Pasadena resident for more 
than 35 years, is the author of 
10 acclaimed poetry collections 
including “Dairy Cows,” “Life 
on the Edge of the Continent,” 
“Selected Poems,” “Making 
Love to Roget’s Wife,” “Indigo,” 
and “Fever.” Koertge has also 
penned 10 popular novels for 
young people including “Stoner 
and Spaz,” “The Brimstone 
Journals,” “Shakespeare Bats 
Cleanup” and has been accorded 
a multitude of prestigious 
honors and awards for them, 
including an American Library 
Association Best Book, Friends 
of American Library Service’s 
Best of the Best, Friends of 
American Writers’ Young 
People’s Literature Award, a 
Booklist Book of the Decade, 
a Children’s Literature Council 
of Southern California’s Award 
for an Outstanding Work of 
Fiction for Young Adults, and 
twice a PEN (West) Choice for 
Children’s Writing;

 In addition, Mr. Koertge has 
taught writing at a number 
of American universities, 
including Hamline University 
in St. Paul, Minnesota and at 
Pasadena City College for more 
than 37 years. Koertge has 
been a prominent fixture on 
the Los Angeles poetry scene 
for decades and former Poet 
Laureate of the United States 
Billy Collins has called him 
“the wisest, most entertaining 
wise guy in American poetry.”

 Ron’s poem ‘Negative Space” 
inspired an animated film of the 
same name that was nominated 
for a 2017 Academy Award 
in the Short Film category. 
Koertge has been awarded an 
National Endowment for the 
Arts fellowship, a California 
Arts Council grant, and had 
his work featured in the Best 
American Poetry series, “Poetry 
180,” and “American Life in 
Poetry.” At the City’s Memorial 
Day commemoration event on 
May 28, Ron Koertge read the 
classic poem “In Flanders Field” 
by John McCrae. Planning is 
already underway for the next 
Library event featuring Ron 
Koertge and other poets.

 The South Pasadena Public 
Library has a storied history 
of presenting distinguished 
poets (and other writers) in its 
popular Author Night series. 
The impressive list includes 
the last three California State 
Poet Laureates: Juan Felipe 
Herrera (later appointed the 
Poet Laureate of the United 
States), Al Young (who twice 
performed with Suezenne 
Grant’s Chamber Jazz), and 
Dana Gioia, who teamed up 
with Ron Koertge for the 
‘Poetic Doubleheader’ before a 
large, enthusiastic audience on 
May 12.

 Discussions are underway 
regarding Poet Laureate Ron 
Koertge’s inaugural literary 
event at the Library and will be 
announced as soon as they are 
finalized.


Magical Music 
at the Mill

 The Old Mill Foundation 
announced that Magical

Music at the Mill, chamber 
music under the stars, will return 
to The Old Mill in summer. 
Each evening will feature 
a different music ensemble 
performing on the Pomegranate 
Patio surrounded by the Mill’s 
beautiful pomegranate trees 
and lush gardens. In addition 
to enjoying the fine music, 
concertgoers are invited to 
view the building, learn about 
its history, and view the latest 
California Art Club exhibition 
in the Mill’s gallery.

Saturday, June 30*

Saturday, July 14*

Saturday, August 25*

*The grounds of the Old Mill 
open at 7 pm, and the concerts

begin at 8 pm.

Ticket Information:

Tickets $24/ea., OMF Members 
$20/ea., or $50 for the series.

For more information and to 
make reservations contact the 
Old Mill by phone (626)449-
5458, Tuesdays–Fridays, 12–4 
pm or visit old-mill.org. The Old 
Mill is located at 1120 Old Mill 
Road, San Marino, 91108.

Summer Reading Program 
marches in Festival of Balloons 

 Families interested in marching as part of the Summer 
Reading Program group in the South Pasadena Festival 
of Balloons Parade on July 4th should meed at 10:30 am 
on the Diamond Avenue side of the Library. Children are 
encouraged to walk for the Library to help motivate others to 
read. Marchers may bring water bottles, sunscreen, wagons, 
and strollers. Other wheeled vehicles are not permitted. 
Each child must be accompanied by an adult.

San Marino Fourth of July 
Event Pre-sale Wristbands

 

 The community of San 
Marino is invited to attend the 
City’s annual Fourth of July 
event on Wednesday, July 4 
at Lacy Park. The celebration 
will include food booths, a fun 
zone, a community parade, 
entertainment, and a fireworks 
display at 9 p.m. All guests will 
need a wristband to enter the 
park.

 The Virginia Road entrance 
to Lacy Park will open at 7 a.m. 
No one will be allowed to enter 
via St. Albans Road until 3 p.m. 
Guests may reserve areas using 
blankets and chairs; no stakes or 
ropes will be permitted.

 Pre-sale wristbands will be 
available to San Marino residents 
for $5 each. Proof of residency 
is required and residents must 
present an identification card 
with their address or a utility 
bill. Pre-sale wristbands will be 
available for non-residents for 
$15 each. Children ages 2 years 
and under are free.

 Wristbands can be purchased 
through Tuesday, July 3 at 
the Recreation Department, 
Monday through Thursday 
from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and at 
City Hall, Monday through 
Thursday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. 
and Friday from 7 to 11 a.m. 
Wristband sales begin at Crowell 
Public Library on Monday, June 
18, Monday through Thursday 
from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday 
and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 
5 p.m. and Sunday from 1 to 
5 p.m. Wristbands purchased 
on Wednesday, July 4 are $20 
each, regardless of residency. 
Children 2 years and under are 
free. For more information, call 
(626) 943-2627.

 The Rotary Club of San Marino 
will present its Annual Fourth 
of July Parade. Children on 
decorated bikes accompanied 
by an adult are invited to 
participate. Bikes parade in a 
special section at the front and 
no registration is needed. Bands 
are also welcome. If you would 
like to drive a vehicle in the 
parade, registration is required. 
For more information, call 
(626) 440-1959.

Movies in 
the Park

 The South Pasadena 
Community Services 
Department is screening two 
movies at Garfield Park this 
summer:

June 22 - Despicable Me 3

August 10 - Coco

Attendees are encouraged to 
bring blankets and low seat lawn 
chairs.

 Movies begin 8:15pm (dusk)

Garfield Park

625 1/2 Stratford Avenue

For more information, please 
contact the Recreation Office - 
626-403-7380


Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com