Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, December 4, 2021

Mountain Views-News Saturday, December 4, 2021 

Volunteer 
for 2022 
Pasadena 
Homeless 
Count

 Volunteers are 
required to attend anorientation on either 
Jan. 18 or 19. 

 
City organizers announced 
Tuesday that they are 
asking for the public’s help 
in volunteering for next 
year’s Pasadena Homeless 
Count.

 “Volunteers are the 
backbone of ensuring 
the Homeless Count is 
a success and is carried 
out effectively and 
comprehensively,” they 
said.

 The Pasadena Homeless 
Count will take place the 
evening of Tuesday, Jan. 
25, and the morning of 
Wednesday, Jan. 26, 2022. 
The Pasadena Homeless 
Count sets in motion a 
year full of education, 
engagement and action for 
the Pasadena Partnership 
to End Homelessness.

 Each year, volunteers help 
count and survey people 
experiencing homelessness 
who are living on the 
streets of Pasadena during 
a single night the last week 
in January. The Homeless 
Count provides meaningful 
data to further the City’s 

understanding of our 
local homeless population 
and to inform resource 
allocation for services and 
programs.

 Volunteer teams of 3-4 
people will disperse to 
assigned zones on the night 
of Tuesday, Jan. 25 (8-10 
p.m.), and the morning 
of Wednesday, Jan. 26 
(6-8 a.m.), to count andadminister a survey to ourneighbors experiencinghomelessness. Volunteers 
will also distribute hygienekits while conducting the 
survey.

 All volunteers are 
required to participate in 
both shifts, and the same 
teams will go out together 
in the evening and the 
morning. Volunteers must 
be at least 18 years of age 
and must show proof of 
COVID vaccination or 
of a negative COVID test 
taken within 72 hours of 
the Homeless Count.

 All local COVID-19 safety 
guidelines will be followed 
for the safety of our 
unhoused neighbors and 
volunteers. All volunteers 
will be required to attend 
an online orientation to 
prepare for the count on 
either Jan. 18 or 19 from 
6:30-8:30 p.m.

 To sign up with your 
friends and neighbors, 
the volunteer registration 
is open through Jan. 7 at: 
pasadenapartnership.org. 

 With the flick of a switch, The event was co-emceed by 
Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo the dynamic duo: retired police 
lit the huge Holiday Tree in lieutenant Rodney “Rodney D” 
the rotunda at City Hall Friday Wallace and retired sergeant 
evening, during his Annual Glen Thompson. 
Tree Lighting Ceremony. Before lighting the tree Gordo, 

 The ceremony also featured along with a number of city 
a performance by 10-year-old council members, Wallace and 
Anderson Mathis of Polytechnic Thompson, took a selfie with 
School and Elements Dance the crowd of over 100 people in 
Space performed dance the background. 
routines. The Pasadena Fire Department 

Sycamores to ProvideEmotional Wellness 
Support for Royal Court 

(Photo caption of 2022 Royal Court; from left to right: Jeannine 

Briggs, Abigail Griffith, Nadia Chung, Jaeda Walden, SwethaSomasundaram, Ava Feldman and McKenzie Street)

 
The Pasadena Tournament 
of Roses announced 
Tuesday a partnership 
with Sycamores, a leading 
behavioral health and 
child welfare agency based 
in Pasadena. With a long 
history of helping children, 
young adults, and families 
in Los Angeles County and 
beyond, they will provide 
emotional wellness support 
to members of the 2022 
Royal Court. To enhance 
their self-confidence, Royal 
Court members have been 
coached in public speaking 
and etiquette skills, media 
and speech training, and 
guidance in leadership, 
to prepare for their duties 
as Ambassadors for the 
Tournament of Roses.

 To enrich the Royal Court 
experience even more, 
Sycamores staff members 
will be available to discuss 
behavioral health wellness 
in groups, and individually, 
to help them develop 
coping skills throughout 
the upcoming Rose 
Parade season. The two 
highly esteemed Pasadena 
organizations have shared 
deep roots in the community, 
dating back to the creation 
of Sycamores as Pasadena’s 
first orphanage in 1902. 
The Pasadena Children’s 
Training Society, later named 
Sycamores, was established 
by Fannie Rowland, the wife 
of Dr. Francis F. Rowland, a 
founder of the Tournament 
of Roses and the first Grand 
Marshal of the Rose Parade® 

in 1890. Today the agency 
provides innovative and 
effective programs and 
services through a network 
of locations throughout 
Los Angeles County. This 
is the first time Sycamores 
has provided support to the 
Tournament of Roses’ Royal 
Court members.

 According to Sycamores 
President and CEO Debra 
Manners, “The Rose Parade is 
such an important tradition 
in the Pasadena community, 
and we are honored to be 
able to offer wellness support 
to the members of this year’s 
Royal Court.” Manners 
continued, “It is an exciting 
time for this impressive 
group of young women, but 
we recognize serving on the 
Royal Court can also be a 
stressful time.”

 Between now and their 
appearance in the Rose 
Parade on New Year’s Day, 
the group is scheduled to 
attend numerous community 
and media events as 
representatives of the 
Tournament of Roses. 

“We are thankful for the 
opportunity to partner 
with Sycamores, their 
personalized approach 
with the Royal Court has 
already been an asset,” said 
Steve Perry, Chair of the 
Tournament of Roses’ Queen 
& Court Committee. “We are 
encouraged that the parents 
of the court are supportive of 
the program, together we’re 
helping to create the best 
experience possible.” 

Pasadena Mayor Lights up the Holidays 


was also collecting new 
unwrapped toys, sports 
equipment and gift cards for the 
annual Spark of Love Toy Drive. 

 For more information visit: 
cityofpasadena.net; 
Photo by D. Lee/MVNews 

Boost with 
Facebook 
Partners 
with the 
Chamber

 Boost with Facebook and 

the Pasadena Chamber of 

Commerce are hosting a free 

virtual training event for small 

businesses of Pasadena on 

December 7, 2021, at 10:00am 

PST. Register today to learn 

more about how you can use 

Facebook’s tools and resources 

to grow your business. 

 For more information and 

how to register:

1. Visit http://
boostwithfacebook.com/
Pasadena 
2. Register for FREE
3. Get ready to grow yourbusiness! You don’t want to 
miss this! 
“I am very grateful that 

Facebook reached out to 

the Pasadena Chamber of 

Commerce offering this 

workshop on effective use of 

social media for small business 

here,” said Pasadena Chamber 

President and Chief Executive 

Officer Paul Little. “A robust 

social media presence, 

especially on Facebook and 

Instagram, is crucial to the 

success of any business. Boost 

with Facebook is helping local 

small businesses maximize 

their social media presence 

as we head into the holiday 

season.”

 The training begins at 10am 

on Tuesday, December 7,

2021. The English language 

presentation is followed 

immediately by a Spanish 

language version of the 

training.

 The training is open to any 

business. Pasadena Chamber 

membership is not required to 

attend the training.

 Registration is open at http://

boostwithfacebook.com/

Pasadena.

 The Pasadena Chamber 
of Commerce and Civic 
Association is a professional 
business organization. 
Since the earliest days of 
Pasadena, the Chamber 
has played a major role in 
the development of this 
internationally renowned 
city. Since 1888, when the 
organization was founded 
as the Board of Trade, the 
Chamber’s primary purpose 
has been the enhancement of 
both the business climate and 
the quality of life in Pasadena. 
The Pasadena Chamber of 
Commerce currently serves 
more than 1450 members. 

Pasadena Bids Farewell 
to Retiring City Manager 

 
After serving the city of 
Pasadena for over 30 years, 
Pasadena City Manager 
Steve Mermell was honored 
Thursday, his last day on the 
job, by colleagues and local 
leaders.

 “Last night, we bid farewell 
to retiring City Manager Steve 
Mermell,” City staff said in a 
statement. “Steve started as an 
analyst for Pasadena Water and 
Power in 1989 and served in a 
variety of roles before becoming 
city manager in 2016. We’ll 
miss his immense knowledge, 
his steady hand, and—above 
all—his love for this city.”

 At a gathering in the City Hall 
courtyard, Mermell said he had 
a lot to be proud of including 
the city’s response to Covid-19, 
“our response to Covid stands 
out as a high point,” he said. 

 He told the small crowd that 
his greatest accomplishment 
was assembling the finest 
executive leadership team in 
the state.

 In their own statement, 
Pasadena Water and Power staff 
said, “Thank you, City Manager 
Mermell, for everything you 
have done for Pasadena Water 
and Power. We are proud to 
have been your first department 
in the City of Pasadena.”

 In October, Pasadena Mayor 
Victor Gordo announced that 
the Pasadena City Council had 
appointed former Pasadena 
City Manager Cynthia Kurtz 
to serve as the interim city 
manager. Beginning in 
November, Kurtz worked with 

Mermell to ensure a smooth 
transition, prior to her assuming 
as interim city manager. Kurtz 
began yesterday.

 “Pasadena has never been 
far from my mind and my 
heart, and I am humbled and 
honored to be asked to step in 
and serve the City of Pasadena,” 
said Kurtz. “I know Steve 
Mermell well, and he has done 
an incredible job in putting 
Pasadena on a strong trajectory 
while dealing with significant 
challenges, including the 
COVID-19 pandemic. I look 
forward to reengaging with 
the tremendously talented and 
dedicated civil servants in our 
local government and doing 
my small part to keep Pasadena 
moving forward.”

 Mermell had worked for the 
City of Pasadena for nearly 33 
years, after working in Water 
and Power he transitioned to 
a succession of appointments 
within the Department of 
Finance, rising to assistant 
city manager before his 
appointment as city manager. 
Mermell had been hired by the 
city council after City Manager 
Michael Beck left Pasadena 
in 2016 to take a job with 
UCLA. At the time city council 
members looked to Mermell 
for help with an embezzlement 
scandal after a former city 
employee stole more than 
$3.5 million from the city’s 
underground utility program. 

Photo: Mermell, courtesy of the 
city of Pasadena 


Carnegie ObservatoriesCosmic Cocktail Hour 

For the Carnegie Observatories monthly Cosmic Cocktail 
Hour hosted by the Pasadena Senior Center Wednesday, Dec. 
8, at 4 p.m. via Zoom, Dr. John Mulchaey, director of Carnegie 
Observatories, will share new clues to the early universe, black 
holes and more, plus an introduction to Carnegie Observatories’ 
VizLab. 

 At Carnegie Observatories, Mulchaey investigates groups and 
clusters of galaxies, black holes and dark matter, which is the 
invisible material that makes up most of the universe. He also is 
science deputy for the Carnegie Institution for Science. A scientific 
editor of The Astrophysical Journal, he is actively involved in 
public outreach and education about astronomy and astrophysics. 

 In the newly repurposed CarnegieAstro parking garage in 
Pasadena, a team of astrophysicists from the Carnegie Institution 
for Science has developed a workspace of the future – dubbed 
VizLab. 

 VizLab houses custom-designed technology that uses existing 
data to generate models of ancient galaxies that formed early on 
in our universe and enables astrophysicists to view them side by 
side with colorful simulations of galaxy formation. 

 The cost of Cosmic Cocktail Hour is only $7 for members of the 
Pasadena Senior Center and $10 for nonmembers 50 and older. 
To register, visit: pasadenaseniorcenter.org and click on Activities 
& Events, then Special Events or call 626-795-4331. Everyone 
who registers will receive an email link to access the Zoom event. 


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