Community Interest - The Spectrum Magazine - Redwood City's ...

As I Was
Saying…
Publisher | Steve Penna
Since my heart surgery, I have been trying to
experience new things and take advantage of
opportunities that are presented to me — kind
of a “step out of the box” attitude, if you will.
Some experiences have been fun, enlightening,
even thrilling; some have not been so. It’s similar
to when I started The Spectrum and various
publishers and individuals said I would never
succeed at it (as you can tell, they were right). But
if I hadn’t succeeded, it would not have mattered
to me because I thought that if I tried and at least
put out the first issue, I would have succeeded.
If it did not work out, it would not mean I failed.
Candidates who run for political office can
identify with that, I am sure, as can most of you.
One such opportunity was presented to me recently
and I took it: being the master of ceremonies
(MC) for the Miss Redwood City, Miss San Mateo
County and Outstanding Teen scholarship pageants.
Usually when I am asked to be the MC at other
events, it is totally ad-libbed. I am told what is to
be accomplished for the event, who needs to be
introduced and the schedule for the event, and off
I go. The pageant was a bit different.
The night before the pageant, we had the final
rehearsal (my first) and I was given a very long
script to follow. Now, that in itself is a challenge,
but given the fact that I had to do introductions,
remember percents of categories (did you know
that the talent portion of the pageant is worth 40
percent or so of the contestant’s total score?) and
so on, it was more challenging than I had thought
it would be. But I was up for the challenge.
I went home that night after a dismal rehearsal
(people are so touchy when you mispronounce
their names) and studied and tried to memorize
as much of the script as I could take in. I was sent
an updated script in the morning, so the day was
filled with much of the same as the night before.
Special thanks to Bob Anderson, who was the
script writer and stage manager for the event —
he was great at embedding in my head the proper
pronunciation of the contestants’ names.
As the time of the big event approached, I
attended a pre-pageant gathering of friends and
family and got encouragement from all and
compliments on my tuxedo. Nice way to start
off the night. I arrived about an hour before the
starting time and before I knew it, the band was
playing and the pageant was off and rolling.
My good friend Jeff Filippi was in the band, so
seeing him on stage was comforting. In fact, as I
think of it, several of my friends were involved in
the pageant in one way or another.
As the night went on, everything seemed to
just fall into place. The contestants all did great
and were inspirations to watch. Some obviously
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were better in certain areas, and they were the
ones who stood out and were rewarded with
honors. In a local pageant like this, there really
(really) are no losers. No reason for anyone to feel
embarrassed, discouraged or beaten. Much like
an overweight media publisher who is willing to
“step out of the box” with all of them and know
that we all support each other.
All in all, I think I did well, and those
commenting seemed to enjoy my “candor” and
“enthusiasm.” I represented the organizers and the
organization well (I hope). The pageant itself was
a wonderful experience for me and one I would
do again if asked. Whether they want me back or
not is a different story. If they do, maybe I can
belt out a rendition of the song “Fever” for all to
enjoy? Maybe not. But maybe?
.…
All the races for the June primary election
have been decided, and here are the candidates
Redwood City voters will be evaluating.
First, County Sheriff Greg Munks, Controller
Tom Huening, Chief Deputy District Attorney
Steve Wagstaffe, county clerk–assessor–
recorder candidate Mark Church and county
superintendent of schools hopeful Anne
Campbell are all running unopposed and will be
doing back flips on election night. Yippie!
In the race for the 21st District Assembly seat
currently held by Ira Ruskin, the Democratic
candidates are County Supervisor Rich Gordon,
venture capitalist Josh Becker and former Palo
Alto Mayor Yoriko Kishimoto. Republican Greg
Conlon and Libertarian Ray M. Bell Jr. will wait
to see whom they will losing to in November after
the Democrat race is decided. Clearly it will be a
strong race between Gordon and Becker.
I wonder if the prospect of an additional jail
in the downtown area will become an issue,
considering that whichever candidate wins has to
do so with Redwood City votes.
The supervisor seat that will be left vacant by
Gordon has candidates San Carlos Councilman
Matt Grocott, former Sheriff and current
Sequoia Healthcare District board President Don
Horsley, coastside activist April Vargas, Sequoia
Healthcare District Trustee Jack Hickey and
Michael Stogner all vying to get 50 percent plus
one to avoid a November runoff. Horsley will win
this race, but will he be able to do so in June and
avoid a November runoff?
The race to take County Treasurer Lee
Buffington’s seat has four candidates. Former
Burlingame Mayor Joe Galligan, Deputy
Treasurer Sandie Arnott, investment advisor
Richard Guilbault and San Mateo County
Community College District Trustee Dave
Mandelkern are all running. Considering that
Galligan has positive name recognition and is the
only candidate who has a degree in accounting,
is a CPA and has a master’s degree in taxation, he
should be the candidate to beat.
The other county races are County Supervisor
Carole Groom squaring off against Daniel D.
Kaul of Belmont to retain her seat, and Coroner
Robert Foucrault, who is opposed by Stacie
Lynn Nevares, a former office assistant who
unsuccessfully challenged him once before.
Groom and Foucrault will be very hard to beat.
.…
One issue on the June ballot that I am having a
difficult time evaluating and deciding how I am
going to vote on is Measure G, the San Mateo
Community College District (SMCCD) parcel tax.
Here is my dilemma so far. We all want to support
our educational systems, and I am sympathetic
to elementary and high school taxes because
I believe that every child has the right to basic
education and supporting that system is important.
(Do you hear that, Redwood City voters who
seem not to be able to pass any funding streams
for the elementary school district?)
However, community colleges, although
supported by my tax dollars, are not in my
opinion basic education, and I don’t know if I
want to support them any further when there are
other districts that desperately need our support.
Is it vital that we support our community colleges
beyond tax dollars? Well, we already have —
twice. Because of that, all the campuses look
amazing, provide an excellent atmosphere for
students and have updated technology and the
opportunities that come with that.
Measure G is being touted to us as a way to
provide vital funding for San Mateo County’s
three community colleges — College of San
Mateo, Skyline College and Cañada College.
Measure G is a $34 per year parcel tax.
Here are some facts that concern me: Seventy
percent of the SMCCD’s total operating expenses
are used to pay for staff and faculty salaries and
benefits, and only 38 percent of expenses go
directly to “instructional activities.” In fact, the
SMCCD has over 160 employees who make
more than $100,000 a year and approximately
135 employees making $90,000 or more per year
(and remember, that is not a full 12 months due to
vacations and breaks).
(continued on page 28)