ALTADENA - SOUTH PASADENA - SAN MARINO

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Mountain View News SATURDAY, MARCH 23, 2024 

Student-Built Robots Clash 
at NASA-JPL Competition

Assemblymember Holden’s 
Bill AB 2273 Career Technical 
Education Passes Assembly

San Marino Upcoming 
Events & Programming


Coffee, Tea, and Chat

Friday, March 29 from 9:30 – 11:30 AM, Thornton Conference 
Room

 Connect with your neighbors to learn more about the community 
and its traditions. This program is presented in Mandarin by 
the United Charity Foundation for ages 18+. Registration is not 
required.

The Great San Marino Egg Hunt and Firefighters Association 
Pancake Breakfast

Saturday, March 30 from 9 AM – 12 PM, Lacy Park

Egg Hunt Pre-sale wristbands: R: $5 / NR: $10

Egg Hunt Gate Price wristbands: R / NR: $15

Pancake Breakfast: $5

 Bring your baskets, bunny ears, and appetite! This fun filled 
event includes crafts, games, pictures with the bunny, and giant 
egg hunts. Children will be grouped in age appropriate divisions 
and the first Egg Hunt will begin at 10 AM. The San Marino 
Firefighters Association who will also be serving their famous 
pancake breakfast beginning at 9 AM. This is a ticketed event; 
purchase Egg Hunt wristbands and Pancake Breakfast tickets 
online now through March 28!

Earth Day Kite Making

Friday, April 5 from 4 – 6 PM, Lacy Park

Cost per kit: R: $12 / NR: $14

 At this event, families will learn how to make kites from 
recyclable materials, decorate their kites as they see fit, and then 
immediately launch them in the Lacy Park field. Materials for one 
kite will be provided. Supplies are limited; registration is required. 
No refunds.

Spring Break Camp

Monday-Friday, April 8-12 from 9 AM – 4 PM, Stoneman Building

 Looking for an exciting and fun week-long camp for your 
child age 5-10? Look no further! This camp provides an array of 
activities such as outdoor games, arts & crafts, sports, and much 
more! Participants will need to bring snacks, lunch, and water. 
Registration is required.

Senior Trip: Dodger Game

Wednesday, April 17 from 10:30 AM – 4:30 PM

Cost: R: $71 / NR: $85

 Get your popcorn ready and your cheering voice warmed up! 
Experience the thrill of a Dodger game at Dodger Stadium. Active 
adults ages 55+ are invited to join us to show some love to our 
home team as they play against the Washington Nationals. This is 
an opportunity to create unforgettable memories and have a great 
time! Food will be on your own at the concession stands. Please 
be aware that all purchases at Dodger Stadium are now cashless. 
Registration is required.

Local Hazard Mitigation Plan Survey

 Help shape a safer tomorrow for San Marino! As we update 
the 2019 Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (LHMP), community 
involvement is vital. San Marino, like any city, faces the threat of 
natural disasters. Your input will be crucial in identifying hazards, 
assessing current measures, and devising strategies to reduce risks. 
Participate in our survey to share your insights for the LHMP 
update. Your cooperation is essential in protecting our community. 
Access the survey in English or Chinese and learn more about the 
LHMP at SanMarinoCA.gov/HazardMitigationUpdate.

Surveys are due by 11 p.m. on April 24. 

You can find free tax forms and booklets at the Crowell Public 
Library!

 We have a limited supply of printed federal and state tax forms 
and instruction books, available in our photocopy room. If we 
don’t have the form you need, we can help you print out a copy 
from the IRS website. 

Planning Commission Meeting

Wednesday, March 27 at 6:00 PM; City Hall Council Chambers 
and Zoom

City Council Meeting

Friday, March 29 at 8:30 AM; Council Chambers and Zoom

Design Review Committee Meeting

Wednesday, April 3 at 6:00 PM; Barth Room and Zoom

 This week, Assemblymember 
Chris Holden’s bill, AB 
2273, Paid Career Technical 
Education Internships, 
which would authorize the 
California Department of 
Education to allocate grant 
funds to local educational 
agencies for the purpose 
of supporting paid career 
technical education 
internship opportunities, 
passed the Assembly 
Education Committee.

 Career and Technical 
Education (CTE) is a 
program of study that 
involves a multiyear sequence 
of courses, integrating core 
academic knowledge with 
technical and occupational 
expertise. It allows students 
to personalize their education 
based on their career 
interests and unique learning 
needs. CTE significantly 
increases not only high 
school graduation rates 
but also results in a higher 
percentage of students going 
to college and persisting 
through graduation. In the 
academic year 2021-2022, 
California had 647,608 CTE 
participants.

 “CTE is not only beneficial 
for preparing our students 
to enter the workforce with 
confidence, it also provides 
an avenue to success for 
marginalized students who 
otherwise may not have 
considered specific careers 
due to financial hardship, 
disability, and other barriers 
that stand in the way of 
their ability to excel,” said 
Assemblymember Chris 
Holden.

 California’s robust economy 
is widening the gap between 
the skills and educational 
resources residents need to 
thrive in this diverse state. 
Creating pathways between 
high school Career Technical 
Education (CTE) courses 
and community college 
programs, as well as between 
short and long-term college 
programs, is crucial for 
meeting workforce needs 
in high-demand fields and 
improving career outcomes.

 “With our unhoused 
community growing, we have 
to start thinking of how to 
support the next generation 
and make sure that they feel 
secure in starting their lives, 
securing housing, growing 
their careers, and supporting 
their families. The children 
are our future and the way 
we invest in them now will 
determine the condition of 
our incredible state going 
forward,” said Holden.

 
Student-made contraptions of 
a metal and a little magic battled 
each other in front of cheering 
and dancing high schoolers 
at the annual Los Angeles 
regional FIRST Robotics 
Competition over the weekend, 
an event supported by NASA’s 
Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Of 
the 44 participating teams, 
five triumphed, earning the 
chance to compete this April 
at the FIRST international 
championship tournament in 
Houston.

 The raucous event at the Da 
Vinci Schools campus in El 
Segundo saw six 125-pound 
robots racing around the playing 
field during each 2 ½-minute 
match as pounding music filled 
the room and a live announcer 
narrated the action. Working 
in alliances of three teams on 
each side, the robots jockeyed 
for position and banged into 
each other, using a variety of 
mechanical devices to retrieve 
large, foam rings from the floor 
and launch them into two target 
chutes. In the final seconds 
of each round, the bots could 
earn extra points by hoisting 
themselves off the ground to 
dangle from a metal chain.

 “The energy in the room 
was amazing this year,” said 
Kim Lievense, the manager 
of JPL’s Public Services Office, 
who coordinates some 100 
volunteers for the event every 
year. “These teams and their 
bots really left it all on the field, 
and it was so great to be there to 
see it yet again.”

 The 24th year for this L.A.-area 
competition, the event is one 
of many under the umbrella 
of the nonprofit FIRST (For 
Inspiration and Recognition of 
Science and Technology), which 
pairs students with STEM 
professionals. The competitions 
give students hands-on 
experience with engineering 
and problem-solving, team-
building, fundraising, and other 
business skills.

 Teams receive the rules of the 
game – titled “Crescendo” this 
year and themed around arts 
and entertainment – in January. 
Using FIRST’s technical 
specifications, students have 
just weeks to design, build, and 
test their robots, devoting hours 
after school and on weekends to 
the project.

 “There were a lot of really 
impressive robots, and students, 
this year. The engineering, 
the manufacturing, the 
programming in the software 
these kids are writing – it’s quite 
complex,” said Julie Townsend, 
one of three event judges from 
JPL. She has been volunteering 
with FIRST for nearly 20 years 
as a judge and coach and is JPL’s 
point of contact for the NASA 
Robotics Alliance Project, 
which supports NASA “house” 
youth robotics teams across the 
country.

 “Without these programs like 
FIRST, high school students 
don’t have the opportunity to 
do this kind of engineering,” 
Townsend added. “It’s hard, but 
they eventually get to experience 
the joy of a functioning system 
that you designed. You failed 16 
times and then you get to see it 
work flawlessly.”

 In the end, the winning 
alliance joined together a 
team from Hawaii with two 
Southern California teams: 
Team 368 (“Team Kika Mana”) 
of McKinley High School 
in Honolulu, Team 9408 
(“Warbots”) of Warren High 
in Downey, and Team 980 
(“ThunderBots”) of Burbank 
and Burroughs high schools 
in Burbank, which is a NASA 
house team supported by JPL.

 For more information about 
the FIRST Los Angeles regional, 
visit: cafirst.org/frc/losangeles.

Barger Issues Statement on 
FCC’s Proposed 9-8-8 Plan

 Los Angeles County Supervisor 
Kathryn Barger issued the 
following statement Tuesday in 
response to an announcement 
by FCC Chairwoman Jessica 
Rosenworcel of a proposal to 
change how calls to the 9-8-8 
Suicide and Crisis Lifeline are 
routed:

 “Expanding our crisis response 
network has been one of my 
top priorities for Los Angeles 
County. 9-8-8 has certainly 
been one of the critical tools 
that helps ensure we have a care 
first response to individuals 
experiencing mental health 
crises.

 In my role as Chair of the NACo 
Commission on Mental Health 
and Well-Being, I prioritized 
9-8-8 support, and led advocacy 
for this at the White House and 
on Capitol Hill.

 However, local government 
leaders truly needed federal 
intervention to ensure those 
calling 9-8-8 are able to connect 
with a responsive crisis system 
that is anchored where they live.

 I appreciate Congressman 
Cardenas Senator Padilla, 
Secretary Becerra and Federal 
Communications Commission 
(FCC) Chairwoman Jessica 
Rosenworcel for their leadership 
and dedication to continue 
evolving 9-8-8. As a result, lives 
are being saved.”


Women’s 
History Month 
at Pasadena 
Senior Center

 
Ada Gates, the first woman 
in the United States to 
be licensed as a certified 
journeyman farrier, will 
present her fascinating 
history at the Pasadena Senior 
Center Cultural Thursdays, 
to celebrate Women’s History 
Month Thursday, March 28, at 
2 p.m.

 With a family tree that features 
Fricks and Vanderbilts, Gates’s 
grew up riding horses at her 
family’s estate in New York and 
attending prestigious boarding 
schools. During her teenaged 
and young adult years she 
was a debutante, model and 
actress who enjoyed the finest 
things in life. By the 1980s, 
she was recognized as one of 
the top racehorse farriers — 
a craftsmen who trims and 
shoes horses’ hooves — in 
the U.S. and Canada, shoeing 
every legendary horse that 
ever entered the paddock at 
Santa Anita.

 She has also been a long-
time farrier to the Pasadena 
Tournament of Roses parade, 
responsible for ensuring that 
all horses are shod correctly 
— with traction on their shoes 
— to prevent slippage on the 
pavement. In addition, she 
served as the farrier liaison for 
the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic 
Games.

 The Pasadena Senior Center’s 
mission is to improve the lives 
of older adults through caring 
service with opportunities 
for social interaction, fitness 
programs, basic support and 
needs services, education, 
volunteerism and community 
activism.

 Hours of operation are 
Monday through Friday 
from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 
and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 
noon. To learn more, visit 
pasadenaseniorcenter.org or 
call 626-795-4331. The Center 
is located at 85 E. Holly Street 
in Pasadena.

 The presentation, a Cultural 
Thursday event, is free for 
PSC members and $5 for 
nonmembers. To register visit: 
pasadenaseniorcenter.org then 
click on Activities & Events or 
call 626-795-4331.

Pasadena Small Businesses 
Grant & Support Information 

Backing Small Businesses Grant

Main Street America, in collaboration with American Express, 
has launched the Backing Small Businesses grant program. 
This initiative offers $10,000 grants to support economically 
vulnerable and under-resourced small business owners. 
These grants are intended for projects that enhance business 
growth or improvement, fostering community building, 
economic viability, or significant change. Applications open 
from March 14 to April 7, or after 5,000 applications are 
received. Apply today.

Route 66 Micro Grants

The Route 66 Extraordinary Women Micro Grant Program 
is giving $2,000 micro-grants to support woman-owned 
businesses who operate along Route 66. To qualify, businesses 
must be majority women-owned or operated (at least 51%), 
be physically located on Route 66, and have fewer than 20 
full-time employees. Applications open February 5 and are 
due March 25.

Small Business Micro Loans

LISC LA’s Asset Building for Communities of Color (ABC) 
program was created to help small businesses owned by 
people of color in Los Angeles County grow their companies, 
build wealth, and create or maintain jobs. In partnership with 
LISC LA, Inclusive Action for the City is offering eligible 
business owners loan capital from $5,000 to $30,000 to 
support with the acquisition of machinery, equipment, and/
or inventory.

Free Small Business Support

The Pasadena City College Small Business Development 
Center (SBDC) provides high quality, no-cost business 
assistance to small businesses & entrepreneurs. Small 
businesses of all stages and industries are welcome. Learn 
more and register for free webinars and workshops.

Need a Permit? Need to Check status of a Permit?

Register in the Pasadena Citizen Self Service Portal to check 
the status of a permit, search public records, and request 
building, fire and public works inspections.

@persnickity.antiquity

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