Intelligent discourse
I want to thank Mr. Bill Thomas for his kind “apology” letter in last week’s Sun. He is clearly a man of great integrity and courage. It is so rare to see someone acknowledge an honest error (which we all make) in a public venue.
I am stunned by his humility and open mind. I only wish he was running for public office! We need that kind of honesty, openness and ability to have reasonable, intelligent discourse. I hope I can follow his example as I know I will make my fair share of mistakes.
Cathy Goldberg
Seal Beach
Pier space curiosity
(Re “Seal Beach fields offers for pier space,” www.sunnews.org, Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2014.) Wow, give the operation to a third party group that will then sub-lease the space and the city gets cut out … how strange! Especially when we have the largest restaurant in the area (The Original Fish Company) that made a proposal for the lease and the owner is even a vested Seal Beach resident!
Mark Loopesko
Seal Beach
Casino Night succeeds at St Isidore Plaza
Thanks to Candace Drukker, Casino Night at the Plaza was a fantastically successful event.
Everyone had such a fun time.
Decorations were outstanding and table settings made you smile. Who should appear but our trusted and true council members dealing Black Jack; Troy Edgar, Richard Murphy and Dean Grose. But above and beyond that was Los Alamitos’ lovely Mayor Jerry Mejia—yes, that’s right, dealing Black Jack. The food and music kept spirits high. St. Isidore’s Silent Auctions and Opportunity Drawings was an event not to be missed. It was a fundraiser for the Plaza going toward the purchase of the community’s beloved St. Isidore Historical Plaza. The Plaza sincerely appreciates the valued support and interest from the local businesses that contributed so much to make the event successful. The Plaza is located at 10961 Reagan St., in Los Alamitos. Anyone interested in becoming a member and joining those who are in the process of purchasing the Plaza, please call 596-9918.
Anita Schommer
Los Alamitos
Great Night Among the Stars for Youth Center
On Feb. 8, the Youth Center hosted the 2nd annual A Night Among the Stars community volunteer recognition event to award local youth for their philanthropy.
The Youth Center strongly believes that making a difference in the lives of children can only be described as a worthwhile and fulfilling experience.
Therefore, the Youth Center hosted this event to honor 20 nominees who all received certificates and letters of recommendation for their selfless efforts.
At the award ceremony, two of the 20 outstanding volunteers were the recipients of scholarships in the amount of $500 each. Two Cypress residents, Laura Munley, nominated by the Youth Center, and Janine Kim, nominated by the Los Alamitos Unified School District were both awarded a $500 scholarship for their outstanding volunteer efforts.
The Better Lives Foundation generously provided one of the scholarships for Children.
This is an international foundation that believes in strengthening and improving the lives of children and families around the world.
Laura Munley selflessly gave over 200 hours of her time to the children at the Youth Center. She tutors the After School Program participants in English and science. Laura has also contributed her time to the Youth Center’s annual Christmas Tree Lot fundraiser. This annual community tradition helps support Youth Center programs and services all year. At this event, Laura, along with 300 other volunteers helped raise over $70,000. Laura also used her talents this year with make-up and design at the Youth Center’s Haunted House fundraiser.
Her contributions helped bring a true Halloween experience to over 2,000 families in October.”
Janine Kim volunteered over 200 hours of her time to the Los Alamitos Unified School District.
Janine reliably gave her talents and services at an orphanage in Guatemala. She worked with 25 children and was the only high school student in the entire group.
Once Janine returned, she organized a group on campus to collect and ship needed items to the orphanage,” wrote Gregg Stone in his letter of nomination for Janine.
The Youth Center would like to congratulate all outstanding volunteers: Laura Munely, Janine Kim, Kiki Ruiz, Sam Passanisi, Cameron Moore, Carl Aaker, Olivia Wakamoto, Harout Manukian, Jessica Bailey, Nicholas Marco, Maxine Pak, Basia Whitely-Habash, Adrian Maass, Tania Bridges, Aaron Lopez, Brooke Whitely-Habash, Emily Rogers, Michael McGlothlin, Samantha Newlin, and Zechariah Kragenbrink.
This impressive list of selfless youth were nominated by the following organizations: Los Alamitos Unified School District, the Youth Center, the Boys & Girls Club of Cypress, Seal Beach Lions Club, Precious Life Shelter, and Grateful Hearts. The nominees are residents of the cities of Los Alamitos, Cypress, Seal Beach, Long Beach, Lakewood, Buena Park, Rossmoor, and Huntington Beach.A special thank you goes to the following sponsors who helped with this event: SirSpeedy, Sun Newspapers, News-Enterprise Newspapers, Event News, Ganahl Lumber Co., Enchanted Florist, Precious Life Shelter, Los Alamitos City Council, and the Youth Center Board of Directors. A most sincere thank you goes to all of the supporters of this honorable event who sponsored or attended. A Night Among the Stars was the final step of Elaine Wissuchek’s Gold Award Project.
Judy Nunez
Youth Center Office Manager
Los Alamitos
The opinions expressed in Letters to the Editor are not necessarily those of the Sun. The Sun welcomes Letters to the Editor. Letters should be 300 words maximum. Letters should be e-mailed, signed by the author and include the author’s address and phone number (the latter two are for verification, not publication). The Sun reserves the right to accept, edit, or reject letters for any reason. Unless otherwise indicated, all letters sent to the Sun are understood to be intended for publication. E-mail letters to: dennis@sunnews.org.
