Peninsula People Nov 2017

November 2017 • Peninsula 3

6 Peninsula • November 2017

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Saturday

November 4 th

at 10:00 am

R e s e r v e Yo u r S e a t s

61st Annual

Neighborhood Church

Yule Parlor

Tea by the Sea

The 61st Annual Neighborhood Church Yule Parlor Tea

by the Sea will once again open the holiday

season on:

Friday, December 1 and Saturday December 2,

10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Neighborhood Church is located on the bluffs of Malaga

Cove at 415 Paseo del Mar, Palos Verdes Estates. We will

begin the celebration by viewing the original treasured hand

painted ceilings and walls of the Mediterranean architectural

estate and art work of the historic Haggerty home built in

1927. The home was purchased and converted to the Neighborhood

Church in 1952.

High Tea will be served with live holiday music.

Event is enhanced with three delightful shops. Vintage

with antiques and memorabilia for sale, Bake Shop with

homemade pastries and candies wrapped for gift giving

through the holidays, and the Yule Shop with homemade

arts and crafts made by loving hands.

Checks are to be made out to Women's Fellowship for $25.

Mail to: Neighborhood Church, 415 Paseo Del Mar, Palos

Verdes Estates, C.A. 90274. $30 day of event.

Your ticket will be held for pick up at the door. Proceeds

distributed to local charities.

PENINSULA

Volume XXII, Issue 4

November 2017

P A L O S V E R D E S P E N I N S U L A M O N T H L Y

ON THE COVER

Photo by David Fairchild

Pianist, composer and

conductor David Benoit will

conduct his “Journey of the

Endeavour” at the California

Science Center, where the space

shuttle Endeavour resides.

PROFILES

22 Ed Foundation foundation

by David Mendez Two-term Ed Foundation President Roma

Mistry helped restructure the organization to serve future

generations..

28 Benoit looks up

by Bondo Wyszpolski Over the past five decades, David

Benoit has cast a wide net in the musical world as a performer,

composer, conductor and KJazz DJ. Now he’s focusing on work

that is less ephemeral and more enduring.

38 A life of passing passions

by Maneesha Prakash For most of his 22 years, Marco

Vignale has suffered from a progressively debilitating gene

mutation, a condition so rare that it is known to be shared by

just one other person in the United States. It hasn’t stopped

him from living a full life.

48 Schoeben’s students

by Robb Fulcher By the end of the school year one fifth of

the Palos Verdes School District’s 11,500 students will visit

campus therapists through a new program created by therapist

and entrepreneur Liz Schoeben.

58 Born to serve

by Robb Fulcher Faith driven volunteer Jackie Crowley has

been helping the less fortunate for nearly five decades. Now

she will be the focus of attention when the Palos Verdes Peninsula

Chamber of Commerce recognizes her as the 2017 Citizen

of the Year.

76 Sea Change at Chez Melange

by Richard Foss Chez Melange chef Robert Bell and partner

Michael Franks abandon their restaurant’s name and menu in

order to continue their tradition of culinary adventures.

HIGHLIGHTS

10 60th Annual Portuguese Bend Horse Show

14 Act II Shop ‘til you drop

18 Torrance Police Foundation on the Hill

34 PTN Halloween Ball at The Depot

44 Friends of the Library at Villa Narcissa

52 Palos Verdes Concours takes to the air

DEPARTMENTS

60 Peninsula calendar

74 Around and about

78 South Bay Dining Guide

85 Home services

STAFF

EDITOR

Mark McDermott

PUBLISHER

Stephanie Cartozian

PUBLISHER EMERITUS

Mary Jane Schoenheider

ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER

Richard Budman

DISPLAY SALES

Tamar Gillotti,

Amy Berg

CLASSIFIEDS

Teri Marin

ADVERTISING

DIRECTOR

Richard Budman

ADVERTISING

COORDINATOR

Teri Marin

GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Tim Teebken

FRONT DESK

Judy Rae

DIRECTOR OF

DIGITAL MEDIA

Daniel Sofer (Hermosawave.net)

CONTACT

MAILING ADDRESS

P.O. Box 745

Hermosa Beach, CA

90254-0745

PHONE

(310) 372-4611

FAX

(424) 212-6780

WEBSITE

www.easyreadernews.com

EDITORIAL

PenPeople@

easyreadernews.com

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displayads@

easyreadernews.com

Please see the Classified Ad

Section for info.

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can be filed at the

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business hours.

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publication of Easy Reader, 2200

Pacific Cst. Hwy. #101, PO Box 427,

Hermosa Beach, CA. 90254-0427.

SUBSCRIPTIONS

Yearly domestic mail subscriptions

to Peninsula are $80, foreign $100

payable in advance. The entire

contents of Peninsula are copyrighted

2017 by Peninsula People,

Inc.

8 Peninsula • November 2017

S P O T L I G H T O N T H E H I L L

Portuguese Bend Horse Show

Raises funds for Children

Peninsula Committee Children’s Hospital held their main fundraiser

on September 8 -- 10 at Ernie Howlett Park in Rolling Hills Estates.

This was the 60th year of the Portuguese Bend National Horse Show

benefiting Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA). This year’s proceeds

will provide support for the CHLA Associates Endowed Chair for

the Chief of the Children’s Orthopaedic Center, as well as The Associates

Endowment for Liver and Intestinal Research. The theme for this

year’s horse show was “Stirrup Hope – the Story of our Lives.” In addition

to the three day horse show, the weekend featured a children’s carnival,

food booths, a boutique, a Saturday Night BBQ dinner and special

events, varying from miniature therapy horses to the Long Beach

Mounted Police.

1. Joe Leimbach, Jeff MacLean, Darren

Del Conte and Scott Stuckman.

2. Megan Moore, Diane Moore, Lisa

Noski and Andrea Sala.

3. Doug and Gwynne Shaw.

4. Kathy and Kirk Johnson, Marnie

and Dan Gruen, Holly and Jeff Gardner.

5. Jay and Valerie Crawford.

6. Doug Van Riper, Steve Mitchell,

Jan Van Riper and Karen Mitchell.

7. Larry Clark, Noelle Giuliano and

PHOTOS BY FLORA FAIRCHILD

Anne Clark.

8. Michael, Diana and Lizzy Grannis.

9. Long Beach Mounted Police

10. Dave Rowe, Dave Farrell, Carole

Rowe and Anne Farrell.

11. Lisa Van Nortwick, Shari Moore

and Jenny Litchfield.

12. Jim Witte, John Whitcombe,

Craig Knickerbocker, Flora Fairchild

and David Wendorff.

13. Charlie Stuckman.

2 3

4 5 6

11 12 13

10 Peninsula • November 2017

S P O T L I G H T O N T H E H I L L

ACT II Supports Theatre

Holiday Fundraising Boutique

ACT II was founded in September of 1984 as a support organization

for the Palos Verdes Performing Arts. This year their “Shop till you

Drop” lunch included gourmet food stations and a boutique featuring

clothing, purses and jewelry. The women of ACT II have raised over

$450,000 through their annual Variety Show and Spring Fashion Show.

The members meet monthly from September through June to plan the

shows and to enjoy numerous theatre-related programs. “It used to be

us knocking on all these production and musical artists’ doors asking

them to come perform here. Now they are calling us,” Julie Moe-

Reynolds said. This year the boutique was in the Harlyne J. Norris Pavilion

and presented dozens of purveyors, including The Pottery Barn, to

help ring in the holidays.

1. Halloween Boutique.

PHOTOS BY STEPHANIE CARTOZIAN

2. Julie Moe-Reynolds, Pam Barrett-

Hill, Jim Hill and Abby Douglass.

3. De De Hicks, Deena Gribben and

Meredith Grenier.

4. Judy Dinh and Georgia Ellingson.

5. Arline Grotz, Nancy Budde, Donna

Day, Adrienne Ang, Pam Barrett-Hill,

Joyce Kochanowski and Mary Graff.

6. Maryann Ayres, Donna Day and

Carolyn Harrington.

7. Pam Barrett-Hill and Lorraine

Kasse.

8. Melinda Grotz.

2 3

4 5

14 Peninsula • November 2017

S P O T L I G H T O N T H E H I L L

Palos Verdes Community

Supports Torrance Police Foundation

Ann and David Buxton opened up their Palos Verdes Tuscan style estate

to host a fundraiser for the Torrance Police Foundation. The

organization’s mission statement is to “stand behind those who wear

the badge” by appealing to the community to support public safety projects.

The grants issued by the Torrance Police Foundation (TPF) to the

police department fund projects that typically are not covered by the

police department budget. Among the guests were Torrance Mayor Pat

Furey and members of the police department. A drone demonstration

was presented by Torrance Police Office Matthew Slawson. To learn

more visit www.TorrancePoliceFoundation.org.

1. Hosts Ann and David Buxton.

2. Marylyn and Chuck Klaus.

3. Officer Matthew Slawson, Jerry

and Gabriela Rocha.

4. Board member and founder Jack

Messerlian and Mayor Pat Furey.

5. Donna and Councilmember Geoff

Rizzo.

6. Councilmember Mike Griffiths and

Cecilia Geronimo.

7. Board chair Hank Parker and

Captain Jon Megeff.

PHOTOS BY STEPHANIE CARTOZIAN

8. Elisabeth Swardstrom and Emmett

Miller.

9. Officer Matthew Slawson demonstrates

the drone donated by the

Torrance Police Foundation.

10. Diamond Level Sponsor Tim

Rogers and Mayor Pat Furey.

11. Diamond Level Sponsor Tim

Rogers with Kristen Matsuda and

former Police Chief Mark Matsuda.

12. Captain Jon Megeff and Board

Member and Platinum Level Sponsor

David Buxton.

2 3

1 4

5 6

11 12

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22 Peninsula • November 2017

foundation

Roma Mistry put the

Peninsula Education Foundation

on a solid footing

during her two term

presidency

by David Mendez

Despite her two-term presidency of the Peninsula Education Foundation’s

Board of Trustees, Roma Mistry doesn’t think what she’s

done merits much consideration, compared to the community of

volunteers that she lives among

“I’ve lived on the hill for 22 years…people seem to be involved in so

many wonderful organizations, giving back to the community,” Mistry said.

“I don’t think what I’ve done is anything unique beyond what other people

have given back.”

But during her two years as PEF’s President, Mistry saw two consecutive

executive directors move on in quick succession, and helped stabilize the

foundation to continue its mission of supporting the Palos Verdes Peninsula

Unified School District.

“We have a great community, principals and teachers who care, and volunteers

who come together to keep our schools successful,” Mistry said.

“We’re ensuring our kids have the tools they need to be successful.”

The former child welfare attorney for Los Angeles County has lived on

the hill with her husband Sameer since 1995. The two met when they were

working on their postgraduate studies; Roma was at Pepperdine Law

School, while Sameer was studying medicine at USC.

They first moved to the South Bay after they were married, when he accepted

a residency at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, and lived in Redondo

Beach.

“We would drive around, and I had never heard of PV before,” Mistry

said. “I remember thinking it would be awesome if we could live there,

and as a young couple, the timing was right — we saved and bought a

house before we had kids.”

The two, she recalls, were the youngest on their block when they moved

in. Roma was 27, Sameer was 30. They fell in love with their new neighborhood.

“We were young, no kids, working hard, and we knew we wanted to live

there, where the schools were great,” Mistry said.

Former two-term Education Foundation president Roma Mistry.

Photo by David Fairchild

November 2017 • Peninsula 23

Their son Dilan was born four years later; their daughter Shefali three

years after him.

When their children were ready to go to school, their parents decided to

send them to public school, rather than take advantage of any nearby private

options.

“It’s about being part of your local community; I went to LA Unified

schools,” Mistry said. “I think public schools have a lot to offer, especially

in the community we’re in. It’s a no brainer.”

Mistry started her support for the Peninsula Education Foundation as a

donor. She was still practicing law at the time, while volunteering at her

child’s school.

“Eventually, I became aware of the funding issues, and how our schools

are funded,” Mistry said.

In terms of per-pupil funding, the Palos Verdes Peninsula School District

is among the lowest-funded school districts in the state. The bulk of its

budget comes from the state’s Local Control Funding Formula. As of the

2015-16 school year, PVPUSD receives $7,579 per student. By comparison,

the statewide average for all unified school districts is $8,954 per student.

“When we started donating, my kids were really young; I don’t think I

fully grasped the scope of disproportionality in funding for schools,” Mistry

said. “From that point, I started paying more attention to what PEF was

funding, and it grew from there.”

Music programs nationwide have become expendable in many situations

as belts have tightened for schools. However, PEF has named funding music

programs among its top priorities.

“That caught my eye; my son participated in music in elementary school

and got his first taste of playing an instrument,” Mistry said. “It was a selfesteem

boost for him and it spurred an interest going forward and continuing

his musical education. That was a big selling point for me.”

As she continued looking into PEF, Mistry appreciated that its board of

trustees was a cross-section of the community. Its members ranged from

volunteers to professionals, and parents at each level of schooling and across

the peninsula community.

“It offered a vantage point from being an elementary school parent to

what lies ahead, and what we have to look forward to; plus, it gave a look

at what the Ed Foundation does beyond elementary school,” Mistry said.

Mistry joined the PEF Board of Trustees in 2011, shortly after she stepped

away from her legal career. In 2014, she was elected board president.

Mistry is reticent about giving herself much credit, instead deferring to

the Board of Trustees, as well as PEF Executive Director Christine Byrne,

and the organization’s staff and volunteers.

“[Byrne] goes in and is there every day…the PEF office staff is the hardest

working group I’ve worked with. They’re a well-oiled machine, making

sure things run smoothly, contacting companies and seeking partnerships,”

Mistry said. “The buck stops with them.”

Mistry’s challenge, she said, was beyond strictly fundraising. Under her

leadership, PEF underwent a review of its bylaws, wrote a strategic plan,

and put in place a new employee handbook.

“Those things don’t sound sexy or important, but they’re important for

governance,” Mistry said. “For an organization to be successful, it has to be

guided.”

Of course, PEF continued its fundraising endeavors. In 2015 and 2016,

the organization donated $6.76 million to PVPUSD, with the bulk of contributions

coming from PV families. Donors will be thanked and honored

at the organization’s upcoming Food and Wine Fest on Nov. 16. That night,

winners of the Chuck Miller Teacher Grant will be honored. Teacher

awardees will receive up to $1,500 to bolster their classroom budgets.

Last year Mistry left the board in the hands of co-presidents Matthew

Rener and Michelle Fullerton, though she’s still volunteering. Her son recently

graduated from Palos Verdes High School, and is on to Chapman

University, while her daughter is in her second year at Peninsula High.

“It’s nice to be in a position where my family and I have been able to

benefit from the groundwork that’s been laid for us,” Mistry said. “I love

when people’s kids have graduated, and that we’re ensuring the success

and longevity of the schools and local community...PEF supports students

from the moment they start in kindergarten, and it’s there at every level.

We’ve been able to make sure that continues so that future generations can

benefit, too.” PEN

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Rising above his

musical horizon

David Benoit takes a poolside break at his Palos Verdes Estates home. Photo by David Fairchild.

On the launching pad with David Benoit

by Bondo Wyszpolski

Jazz artist David Benoit and the California Science Center are rarely mentioned

in the same sentence, but that’s beginning to happen more often

these days thanks to the space shuttle Endeavour. So far, so strange, so

let’s explain.

On Sunday, November 5, the Manhattan Beach native and Palos Verdes

Estate resident will conduct the Asia America Youth Symphony in the

Samuel Oschin Pavilion, at the Science Center in Exposition Park, where

the Endeavour is on view. The orchestra will tantalize the audience with

the theme from “Star Wars” and soon thereafter fill the hall with Benoit’s

spirited “Journey of the Endeavour.”

The composition is largely ebullient and celebratory and just over fiveand-a-half

minutes in length. Benoit premiered in 2013 at the James Armstrong

Theatre in Torrance. At that concert, footage of the shuttle was

projected behind the orchestra, a former astronaut was one hand to lend

gravity to the occasion, and among the people sitting in the audience was

an executive from the California Science Center.

“She said we must do this at the Endeavour,” Benoit says from the kitchen

table at his home in Palos Verdes Estates. “So we talked about it for a couple

of years and finally they pulled the trigger and said, ‘We’re going to do it,’

so here it is.”

After the piece is performed, the audience will turn their heads and marvel

at the long-distance voyager itself, imposing and radiant.

Benoit explains how the “Journey of the Endeavour” came about.

“I try once a year to do an artist residency in Villa Montalvo (in Saratoga,

near San Jose), where I can take a couple of weeks and write something

fresh. The idea is not to write anything commercial. I was looking for some

inspiration and I saw this video of the Endeavour when it went through the

streets of L.A.” Because of its size, its route from LAX to Exposition Park

had to be carefully choreographed, reminiscent of LACMA’s plan for “Levitated

Mass.”

The 184-foot long Endeavour was named after Captain Cook’s HMS Endeavour.

“I saw it almost like a ballet,” Benoit continues. “I saw it as an orchestral

piece.

“I edited the video so that you see it take off and then you see it land.”

The mood shifts as it wends its way across Manchester Avenue, north along

Crenshaw Boulevard, and east again on Martin Luther King Boulevard.

“And then finally, when it finds its home in the garage I kind of slowed the

music down. It was a little sad in a way, a little remorseful, but it was like,

well, that journey’s over, here’s the new one, and now he’s in the museum.”

Known for now, known for later

In 1982, the late Timothy Purpus wrote a cover feature for Easy Reader

about David Benoit as he was first achieving success as a professional jazz

musician. In the 35 years since, Benoit has released over two dozen albums,

including four this year. Foremost, perhaps, is his “Music of Montalvo” CD,

a crowd-funded effort recorded with the West European Symphony Orchestra

that highlights “Bikeride” (with the All-American Boys Choir) and “Napa

Crossroads Overture,” a catchy number co-written with David Pack, (formerly

of Ambrosia). The centerpiece of the CD belongs to the Endeavour.

The other new releases include the commercially-tilted “So Nice,” with

Marc Antoine; an all-solo piano CD called “The Steinway Sessions,” and a

holiday record with Dave Koz (“That’s more his CD, but I did the orchestral

arrangements and conducted, and played piano on it, too.”).

That would be a bumper crop year for any artist, on top of which Benoit

is a morning DJ for radio station 88.1 KJazz. It’s a weekday show, 8 a.m. to

12 noon, but because of traveling and other commitments Benoit is often

able to record several upcoming programs at a time. He’s also hosting a Saturday

show from 10 to noon, this one focused on piano players. He has a

free hand with Saturday’s selections, but not so much with those aired dur-

28 Peninsula • November 2017

ing the week.

Perhaps you’re thinking, hey,

that’s great, Benoit’s really on a roll

and he must be a happy camper.

Well, yes and no.

In some circles, Benoit is regarded

as a purveyor of smooth jazz

(or “easy listening”), a label he abhors.

“You get typecast,” he admits.

“Okay, everybody knows me for

writing the pretty melodies.” And,

yes, they are pretty, and often

charming.

Clearly, there’s an audience for it;

Benoit might be living under the

freeway if there weren’t. But

“smooth jazz” isn’t the only thing he

hopes to be remembered for, and

that’s one reason why “Journey of

the Endeavour” is a vital piece. He

would like to find other projects

that take him out of his comfort

zone and, like the shuttle itself, into

new frontiers.

“I’m always looking for new

things to write about,” he says. “Part

of the problem, well, the good and

the bad news, is it’s been an unusually

busy year for me commercially,

which is good. The ‘bad’ thing is

that when you have a year like that

there’s so little time to do the other,”

meaning of course the non-commercial.

“I need to get back to that

creative space.

“That’s what’s important as an

artist. We have our stuff to do to

earn money and keep the bills paid,

but the ‘Journey of the Endeavour’

is an example of something that has

no connections with making

money, it’s just, hey, here’s some

art; art’s important.” He points to

“Kobe,” written years ago in response

to the earthquake that damaged

the city of the same name, and

to the fairly recent “Bikeride,” as

more complex works that needed

time to be thought out and developed.

Benoit was 29 when Timothy

Purpus interviewed him, and he’s

64 now. That’s still young, or young

enough, for a strong second-half

showing. Sure, Schubert and

Mozart died when they were just

kids, but Verdi, Sibelius, and

Richard Strauss all lived productively

deep into their 80s. As Saul

Bellow once told Herbert Gold,

“Don’t count any writer out while

he’s still alive.” Sometimes one’s

greatest adversary isn’t old age so

much as it’s the unwillingness to

risk failure.

At the moment, Benoit’s legacy is

in his jazz compositions, the soundtrack

to “The Peanuts Movie,” and

so on, but will this work endure?

With the exception of a few tunes

(“Kei’s Song,” “Freedom at Midnight,”

“Drive Time,” etc.) will he

be remembered and played a generation

or two hence? Nobody

knows for sure, and one can’t even

guess whether his earlier classical

pieces will survive, but chances

could be greater that posterity

awaits him in the field of classical

or rather orchestral music. If he

persists in this genre...

He may not have cut his teeth at

a prestigious music academy, but

Benoit has the tools and the knowhow.

He’s been the music director

and chief conductor of the Asia

America Youth Symphony for a

dozen years, and has played or conducted

in numerous venues, including

Disney Hall where he led a

performance of Beethoven’s “Ninth

Symphony.”

In short, Benoit says, referring

back to “Kobe” and “Journey of the

Endeavour,” “Something I want to

do more and more [are works] like

these, expressing myself in a way

where I’m not encumbered by commercial

restrictions.”

Pushing at old boundaries

And thus the question, can he

transcend that by which he’s been

primarily known? Danny Elfman,

who tumbled into the new wave

music scene with Oingo Boingo,

has become a world-class composer

of soundtracks. Others, from Paul

McCartney to Joe Jackson, have

made the leap into writing symphonic

music, and Benoit himself

mentions Frank Zappa, whose

records like “Hot Rats” and

“Weasels Ripped My Flesh” belie

the fact that he was an accomplished

composer on a much

grander scale.

“People in the symphony world

and classical world are discovering

Frank Zappa,” Benoit says. “He was

a serious composer. But he’s been

dead now, how many years (almost

25), and people are just starting to

figure it out.”

Benoit wonders aloud if he’s running

out of time, and in a sense we

all are, and especially those of us

who harbor unrealized artistic ambitions.

“One of my dreams would be to

take a year off,” Benoit says, “which

I’ve never done, and it’s been pretty

much just doing gigs since I was 18.

And all of a sudden I’m 64 years

old, and still doing gigs.” It isn’t that

he doesn’t enjoy performing, it’s

just that a lengthy retreat, a sabbatical,

or what have you, would be a

rejuvenating balm and, need it be

said, could possibly give him the

November 2017 • Peninsula 29

eathing room required for a

larger-scaled work, one on which,

who knows, he might even stake

his reputation.

Looking ahead to potential opportunities

is important, he says,

“and continuing to be really creative,

because I feel like I’m doing

some of my best work now as I’ve

gotten older and a little smarter

about things. When you’re young

you think you know it all, then you

realize the adage ‘the more you

know the more you realize you

don’t know.’ Yup, that’s true,” and

he laughs.

In the meantime, Benoit has his

work cut out for him locally. This

includes a dinner concert on Sunday,

Nov. 12, at the Palos Verdes

Golf Club. Proceeds from the

event, with tickets at $125, benefit

the Asia America Symphony Association.

“I’ll do a few of my signature

tunes,” he says. “We’ll probably do

a couple things that people know

me for. I want it to be a fun, loose

event where maybe we’ll jam on

an Eddie Harris tune and then Herbie

Hancock, and maybe (throw in)

a few cover tunes. Everyone’s

gonna get a chance to stretch out

and jam a little bit.” In addition to

David Benoit introduces Manhattan Beach resident and Space Shuttle Endeavour

Astronaut Dr. Garrett Reisman at the premiere of "Journey of the Endeavour"

at the James Armstrong Theatre in Torrance in 2013. Benoit conducted the Asia

American Youth Orchestra wearing an Endeavour flight suit. Photo by Kevin Cody

Benoit on piano, the lineup is likely

to consist of guitarist Pat Kelley,

drummers Clayton Cameron and

Brad Harner, bassist Ken Wild, and

saxophonist Michael Paulo. “Plus

I’ll have a couple of my young

members from the orchestra performing

so they’ll have a chance to

be featured as well,” the latter musicians

being 14-year-old Vinnie

Aguas on drums and 17-year-old

Colton Russell on bass.

As for the Asia America Youth

Symphony, the 2018 season has yet

to be announced, but one of the

highlights (if not the highlight, for

those involved) takes place in June

when 30 members of the orchestra

will travel to Seoul, South Korea, to

perform. This is actually a reciprocal

concert: in February of this year

some 30 South Korean musicians

came to the States and were guests

of the Asia America Symphony.

On this side of the Pacific, however,

the AAYS will host its alumni

concert, on April 20: “We’ve had

the orchestra for 15 years now,”

Benoit says. “In those years we’ve

had a lot of students who have

gone on to be very successful in

music, so we’re asking them to

come back.” In other words, if you

or someone you know performed

with the group during those years,

dust off your oboe or viola and get

ready for the big reunion.

For the moment, though, all eyes

are glued to the space shuttle and

David Benoit’s “Journey of the Endeavour”

concert, which is also the

fall fundraiser of the Los Angeles

Philharmonic’s Peninsula Committee

(our local LA Phil Affiliates).

The performance takes place from

7 to 10 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 5, in

the Samuel Oschin Pavilion at the

California Science Center, 700 Exposition

Park Drive, Los Angeles.

Tickets, $150. Hors d’oeuvres,

desserts, fine wine and coffee to be

served. For information and tickets,

go to pclaphil.org. PEN

30 Peninsula • November 2017

Seeing the Space Shuttle Endeavour transported from Los Angeles International Airport to the California Science Center in 2012 inspired David Benoit to write

“Journey of the Endeavour.” Photo by John Post

November 2017 • Peninsula 31

550 Silver Spur Rd. Suite 240, Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90275

S P O T L I G H T O N T H E H I L L

Eat, drink and be scary!

PTN Halloween Ball

The Pediatric Therapy Network hosted their 22nd Spooktacular Halloween Ball

to benefit the children with developmental and medical issues. Junior ambassador

Daniel Lowe, 12, told attendees about the challenges he’s learned to overcome

through PTN. One of the highlights he says of being involved with PTN was

meeting Lakers coach Luke Walton, and learning to address large crowds. The

RamFunkshus rocked the huge, tented event next to Chef Michael Shafer’s Depot

restaurant. One of the auction highlights was a dinner prepared by Chef Shafer

at the raffle winner’s home. Other auction items included a luxury suite for 12

people at the Staples Center to watch the Clippers or Kings and 2 VIP Forum

passes to see Jay-Z along with a limousine ride to and from the Forum. According

to PTN, one in six children born in the U.S. has a developmental disability. For

more information visit pediatrictherapynetwork.org

1. Chef Michael Shafer.

2. Charlene Nishimura and Sylvia

Luna.

3. Daniel, Tom and Melody Lowe

and Stacey and Ryan Harris.

4. Cher and Bret Carroll.

PHOTOS BY STEPHANIE CARTOZIAN

5. Paul and Lydia Ho, Jan and

David Lim.

6. Craig and Mary Rose Kalem,

Lynn and Vincent Macnguyen.

7. Armando and Isabel

Fernandez.

8. Wayne and Nori Dempsey.

9. Amanda Wynn and Andy

Stockton.

10. Tim and Andrea Thompson

and Paige Asawa.

2 3 4

5 6

8 9

34 Peninsula • November 2017

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family room with fireplace and a conveniently laid out kitchen with newer appliances. The interior is accented in wood paneling,

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Marco’s

music

Marco Vignale and Emily Jordan on their way to the Peninsula High prom in 2013. Photos courtesy of the family

A rare gene mutation takes away a young man’s physical abilities, but not his passions

by Maneesha Prakash

On October 27, 2016, my son Marco was admitted to Torrance Memorial

Intensive Care Unit, complaining of shortness of breath, and

extreme stomach pain. We assumed this was another inflammatory

episode of his chronic condition that would be resolved with bed rest and

proper nutrition in a few days, at most. Marco did not return home, or see

the world beyond the walls of a hospital, for over three months.

Marco suffers from a very rare, rapidly progressing, life-threatening type

of Muscular Dystrophy known as BAG3 MFM6 myopathy. This condition

is caused by a spontaneous mutation in a single gene – parents and family

do not carry it. No treatment exists. All known subjects with the disease

have died in their teens or twenties.

Marco, now 22, is confined to a wheelchair and needs a breathing machine.

Alexander Zah, a 14-year old Massachusetts boy, is the only other

person in the U.S. known to have the same unlucky strike mutation. Both

boys have lived with no treatment, no hope, and the knowledge that their

condition is so rare that there is little incentive for medical research to be

conducted on their behalf.

We moved to Rancho Palos Verdes in 2003 when Marco was 8 years old,

with his two older sisters. He attended Soleado Elementary School and was

your average All-American Boy, with an average dislike of math, and an

above average love of soccer. He spent most of his free time kicking a soccer

ball against the garage door of his Longhill Drive home. As soon as he was

old enough he began playing AYSO soccer.

He was the slowest player on the field, which was not a surprise. When

Marco was a toddler he had a difficult time sitting on the floor or crossing

his legs. He would fall off playground swingsets because he didn’t grip the

ropes tightly enough. Neurological tests showed that Marco was missing

some key nerve reflexes, but doctors were at a loss as to why. Nevertheless,

Marco enjoyed playing AYSO, which is open to all kids, regardless of ability.

In 2006, his team, the Strikers, won the championship cup, which sent him

to a heaven of happiness.

Marco continued playing soccer at Ridgecrest Middle School, but with

more and more difficulty. P.E. required running around the field, which

was excruciatingly difficult. The UCLA Pediatric Neurology Clinic conducted

multiple tests, but could not diagnose the problem. He attended

summer soccer camps, and though he could not run much, he was praised

by his coaches for his technique. He hoped to try out for the Peninsula High

soccer team. But by the end of the summer of 2008, he was forced to accept

the reality that he could not keep up with the physical requirements of the

game. Instead, he became a living encyclopedia of FIFA and soccer World

Cups, dating back to 1930. He hoped to become a game commentator, until

he discovered those jobs go exclusively to former players.

He looked for another passion and found music. After trying drums and

guitars, he settled on bass guitar. He joined a jazz band through the Harbor

College outreach partnership. The group played at El Camino over the holiday

season. He immersed himself in music theory and composition. Music

filled his head and his home.

But, as with soccer, Marco’s body could not keep up with the physical

demands of his new passion. As his disease progressed he began to lose coordination

in his extremities. His fingers, once deft at pressing chords, lost

their strength, making it difficult to learn new and challenging pieces. After

advancing within just a few years from novice to accomplished bassist, he

had to move on, once again.

Marco transferred to Rancho del Mar in 2011, which offers individualized

instruction to Peninsula students. A shorter work day and a different approach

to learning helped him tremendously. He became an A student

(though still not in math). He drove a car with hand controls. But a diagnosis

still eluded the UCLA neurologists.

In 2012, Marco transferred back to Peninsula High and began dating a

beautiful young woman named Emily. By then, his health had declined to

the point that he could no longer walk, and was confined to a wheelchair.

Marco cont. on page 40

38 Peninsula • November 2017

Marco’s first passion was soccer.

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November 2017 • Peninsula 39

Marco cont. from page 38

He went with Emily to the 2013 prom in his wheelchair.

Finally, in early 2012, the UCLA team reached a diagnosis. Marco tested positive

for the recently discovered and usually fatal mutation known as BAG3 MFM6

myopathy. Our family was on the verge of despair.

Then, out of the blue, I received calls from two individuals who gave us hope.

The first was from Dr. Monte Willis, of the University of North Carolina. He

was doing basic research on a heart condition known as cardiomyopathy, which

results from a gene mutation similar to the mutation responsible for Marco’s condition.

The second call was from Laura Zah, of Massachusetts, mother of 14-year-old

Alexander. She had seen a slide presentation about Marco that I had posted on

YouTube.

Our families began talking to medical researchers, among them, an expert in

gene therapy from Harvard University who is studying genetic mutations. We are

now in negotiations to help commence a research project on their mutation.

There are no government funds for research on such a rare disease, and no

pharmaceutical company will invest in the necessary research for a disease with

so few sufferers.

To raise money to fund research, our families have established the non profit

Alexander’s Way Research Fund at Alexandersway.org and a GoFundMe campaign

at GoFundMe.com/genecure.

Last month marks one year since Marco’s urgent admittance to Torrance Memorial

Hospital. Since then, his condition has stabilized and he is living his life to

the fullest. Soccer matches are on the sports channels and he has begun to compose

digital music, which does not require the muscular dexterity required of conventional

composing. Emily, has been by his side throughout his ordeal.

Since the beginning of the human race, rare and deadly genetic diseases have

left children like Marco and Alexander without hope. Now, for the first time in

human history, we are developing the technical tools that in a not too distant future

may eradicate these diseases from the face of the Earth. It is our duty to do

all we can to save Marco, Alexander, and future generations of children. PEN

Marco Vignale and friends on his 22nd birthday. Photos courtesy of the

family

40 Peninsula • November 2017

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S P O T L I G H T O N T H E H I L L

Roaring ‘20s Elegance

Friends of the Library

Intermittent lightning lit up the fall sky on September 10, but there was

no raining on this fete hosted by the Villa Narcissa and Friends of the

Library. This was an enchanted evening with costumed Roaring Twenties

attire amidst a backdrop of Palos Verdes glamour and steeped in rich history.

The Vanderlip family was present including Narcissa and her sister,

Katrina Vanderlip who flew in from New York and auctioned off one of

her original watercolors of the Villa Narcissa to benefit the Friends of

the Library. More than 200 guests donated close to $50,000 to support library

programs and services. Notable sponsors included Continental Development

Corporation, the Jacqueline Glass Family, Malaga Bank and

Premier Bank of Palos Verdes.

PHOTOS BY STEPHANIE CARTOZIAN

1. Loretta Patterson and Brian Cole.

2. Bob and Sharron Parke, Pam

Barrett-Hill and Jim Hill and Cathie

DeFrees.

3. J.D. Dickinson and Pamela

Marton-Dickinson.

4. Russell and Viola Iungerich.

5. The venue at Villa Narcissa.

6. Patricia Tierney, Evalyn Prather and

Cindy Miller.

7. Special Thank You for the

Sponsors.

8. Brij and Donna Punj and Mike

Randall.

9. The Kaleidoscope Trio serenaded.

10. Mark Johnson, Donald Pooler

and Jim Munroe.

11. David and Judy Adishian.

12. Lee and Bob Boyles.

13. Kay Magee, Sondra Behrens,

Dana Graham and Lianne LaReine.

14. De De Hicks.

15. Virginia Butler and Les Fishman.

16. Narcissa Vanderlip.

17. Katrina Vanderlip auctioning off

her original watercolor of the Villa

Narcissa.

3 4

44 Peninsula • November 2017

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Student safety valve

Linsey Gotanda Ed.D, Emiko Chapman M.Ed., Liz Schoeben MFTi, Nancy De La Rosa MFT. Photos by Brad Jacobson (CivicCouch.com)

Liz Schoeben’s therapists help school students deal with increasing pressures

by Robb Fulcher

Liz Schoeben is using a rare combination of

therapeutic and entrepreneurial acumen to

help students on the Peninsula avoid, or

overcome, the increasing pressures of school life.

Through her nonprofit organization CASSY

(Counseling and Support Services for Youth)

Southern California, Schoeben is making trained

therapists available to Palos Verdes Peninsula

school students. She established a similar program

in Northern California.

Through the year, one in five of the district’s

11,500 students will visit a CASSY therapist, and

the bulk of the student body will receive classroom

presentations from CASSY.

Schoeben said the school partnership is a welcome

reality in a nation where 80 percent of

young people with mental health concerns are

not getting help.

Business beginnings

Schoeben began her professional career with

Wells Fargo, selling services to small businesses,

when she discovered that she “loved hearing people’s

stories.” She began tutoring kids in difficult

straits – kids who might have a father behind

bars and an overworked mother.

In her late 20s, she left Wells Fargo and returned

to school for a master’s degree in marriage,

family and child therapy. Then, for the next

dozen years she worked as a school-based therapist

in Northern California.

A systematized approach

Along the way, she realized that she could

make a greater difference for a greater number

of kids by forming an agency to direct counseling

efforts in the schools.

She and colleague Liz Llamas co-founded

CASSY Bay Area in 2009. They hired trained

therapists, marking an immediate upgrade from

school-based systems that use graduate students

who are unpaid and less trained.

CASSY became a thriving concern, thanks to

Schoeben’s gifts as a counselor, coupled with her

flair as an entrepreneur who can conceive, develop

and administer a nonprofit organization.

“People usually have one brain or the other,”

she said. “It’s hard to find a therapist who wants

to run an agency.”

Schoeben worked to build CASSY from the

ground up, reading a “For Dummies” book about

starting a nonprofit.

She said her husband Rob Schoeben, then a

marketing vice president at Apple, provided expertise

and connections that helped CASSY start

its life with a professional website and logo design,

pro bono legal help, and a “polished look”

right out of the gate.

In six years CASSY grew into a $3 million-ayear

operation, serving more than 40 schools. Its

success with students was confirmed with stateof-the-industry

metrics. Last year, Schoeben left

to seek a new horizon.

“I’m an entrepreneur,” she said. “At that point

it was a really well run agency.”

To the Hill

Schoeben was speaking on a panel at a mental

health symposium in Sacramento when she met

officials from the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified

School District.

“They wanted me to do CASSY down here,”

she said.

Her experience up north spared her some

growing pains with the new CASSY. In the Bay

Area, she juggled the administrative and clinical

functions, and worked in the schools.

“That was way too much. I learned I can’t do

everything.”

This time, Schoeben hired a part-time clinical

48 Peninsula • November 2017

director to manage the counselors, and partnered with The Giving Back

Fund, a nationwide organization that takes care of accounting, payroll taxes

and other similar functions for nonprofits. And once again, Schoeben’s

husband helped out.

“All this allowed us to start up the agency in less than a month,” she said.

Student issues

In the high schools, a CASSY counselor occupies an office in the administration

building, and is seen as “just another support” for the students.

“What we’ve found over the years is that [other students] have no problem

with it. It’s like, ‘Oh, you’re seeing her too, cool!’ They’re referring

their friends,” Schoeben said.

“There’s a lot of social work kind of stuff,” she said. “It’s not a long, yearafter-year,

lie-on-the-couch-and-talk kind of thing. We help them function

happily in school.”

Crisis intervention and treatment is also an important part of the work.

“A crisis is in the eye of the student,” said Schoeben. For instance, a student

might say, “I broke up with my boyfriend, and he’s in my second period

class,” prompting the counselor to talk the student through the

situation, sort out her concerns, and return to functioning comfortably in

the classroom.

“This could also be a kid, or another student or staff member, saying he

plans to kill himself, and he has the means, and he has a plan, and he’s

getting ready to carry it out,” Schoeben said.

In such a case, an eminently suicidal student might be hospitalized for

evaluation, with the cooperation of parents, and stabilized before returning

home. Then CASSY counselors help the student transition back to school.

CASSY counselors also help students cope if death strikes a student or

teacher, and help with issues of drug and alcohol abuse, or inappropriate

sexual behavior. They refer students for more intensive therapy for issues

such as eating disorders or suicidal planning.

Nationally, one in eight young people is clinically depressed, 26 percent

of high school girls have been victimized by physical or sexual abuse, including

date rape. A host of other issues, less serious and less chronic, still

can interfere with a student’s happy adjustment to their environment.

Although crisis counseling is sometimes needed for younger children,

much of the work with them is done in classroom presentations on social

skills and friend-making.

“We’re exposing almost every student to some level of emotional learning,”

Schoeben said.

Universal forces

Data collected on the issues raised by students show a universality of

experience, from affluent school districts to economically disadvantaged

ones, such as the East Palo Alto schools served by CASSY Bay Area.

“Every high school has the same issues – anxiety and depression symptoms,

communication with parents, the stress and anxiety of wanting to

get everything done, wanting to please everyone.”

Schoeben said the pitfalls facing kids have not changed fundamentally

since she attended high school in the ‘80s, but some things have changed,

such as the ubiquity of texting and social media.

“We don’t turn off as well now,” she said. “We used to hang up the phone

and go to sleep, or if my sister was on the phone, I couldn’t talk to my

friend, and I’d just go to bed. Now they can text all night, and are exposed

to the drama, and it’s hard to get a break. It doesn’t go away.”

On social media kids – and adults – have difficulty interpreting the tone

of online comments, and can be tempted into too-impulsive online communication.

“Their brains are still growing, until they’re about 25, and so they’re

more impulsive, it’s harder to slow down and make good decisions.”

Money matters

The school district covers 80 percent of CASSY’s funding, and Schoeben,

the former business banking salesperson, must fundraise the rest, which

totals about $45,000.

CASSY’s effectiveness is measured through feedback from kids, parents

and school staff, and by the Children’s Global Assessment Scale, commonly

called C-GAS, which evaluates the level of functioning, and severity

of mental illness, in children and adolescents.

CASSY Southern California’s first round of evaluative data will be com-

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piled at the end of the school year.

“We assume it will parallel

[CASSY Bay Area], where 90 percent

of the students we see get better,

based on the C-GAS scale,”

Schoeben said.

The school district had been

seeking ways to better address students’

social and emotional needs

for a couple of years, said Kimberly

Fricker, assistant superintendent

for educational services.

Conversations with students and

parent groups had underscored the

need to help high school kids cope

with the pressures of complex academic

schedules and the increasingly

competitive effort to get into

desirable colleges and universities,

she said.

The district hopes that addressing

the social and emotional needs

of younger students will help give

them the resiliency they can call

upon later, to handle the greater

stresses that high school can bring.

“I’m very excited and enthusiastic

about this partnership with

CASSY,” Fricker said.

Looking ahead, Schoeben wants

to expand CASSY.

“It’s important to have the district

buy-in. We would like to grow

district by district.” Growing

Liz Schoeben MFT, founder and executive director of CASSY, Southern California.

would help costs low and allow for

better employee training, Schoeben

said.

Funding can be secured for counseling

in financially disadvantaged

school districts through grants, and

through Title IX of the federal civil

rights law.

“East Palo Alto is a very underserved

community. Ninety percent

of students get free and reducedcost

lunch. But sometimes these districts

are easier to fund. It’s hard to

write a grant for a community that

has a lot of wealth,” Schoeben said.

In her limited spare time,

Schoeben relaxes by kickboxing,

and she volunteers four hours a

week with crisistextline.org, a free,

24-hour crisis counseling text line.

Rob works as a consultant for startups

and fledgling businesses. The

Schoebens live in Manhattan Beach,

and have three sons, ages 19, 21 and

23, all born the same week in June.

For more information visit Cassysocal.org.

PEN

50 Peninsula People • November 2017

The historic D-Day Doll Douglas C-53 Skytrooper that dropped paratroopers into combat during WWII. Photos by Tony LaBruno

by Randy Angel

The 24th edition of the Palos Verdes Concours d’Elegance had a different

look this year. Instead of a Peninsula golf course, the venue

was Zamperini Airfield in Torrance, at the Robinson Helicopter Company’s

facility. The new venue enabled the concours to include historic

aircraft alongside the dozens of vintage automobiles. The theme was “Elegance

and Speed,” a reflection of this year’s marquee cars, Packard and

Porsche.

Other cars fitting the “speed” theme were South Bay icon Vic Edelbrock

Sr.’s 1932 Ford, his record-winning V8-60 Sprint Car, a 1964 Ford Fairlane

427 “Thunderbolt” drag racer, one of only 100 ever produced, and David

G. Adishian’s 1961 Chrysler 300, one of the first muscle cars. The car was

known as the “Banker’s Hotrod” because of its luxury interior and 396

horsepower cross ram Wedge V-8.

Another highlight of the show was the Italian-built Pagani, exhibited by

Christopher Pagani. The Pagani is the world’s most expensive production

car.

The historic aircraft included a Douglas C-53 Skytrooper and a North

American P-51 Mustang D. During the Normandy invasion, the Douglas

C-53 dropped members of the 101st Airborne, behind enemy lines before

the first wave of soldiers hit the beach.

The masters of ceremonies were Dave Kunz and Ed Justice, Jr. Kunz has

been the Eyewitness News Automotive Specialist at ABC7 since 2001. Justice

comes from a family of automobile enthusiasts and has been heard on

radio programs Road & Track, Car and Driver and Motor Trend, in addition

to appearing on MSNBC.

Concours Chairman Ray Johnson said the new venue proved to be pop-

Superformance President Lance Stander.

The Torrance Tiger Squadron.

52 Peninsula • November 2017

Al Cellier, of Palos Verdes, with his 1962 red Corvette. Ed and Mort Bauchman, of Rancho Palos Verdes, with their 1964 Porsche 356 C.

Stearman 1942 aircraft N2S3 owned by Frank Mauro of Torrance.

ular.

“We have received very positive feedback from the exhibitors, sponsors,

and attendees,” Johnson said. “Robinson Helicopter, the Airport Commission

and the City of Torrance were very supportive of the show and helped

make the new venue a success and we would like to hold the show there

again next year.”

Rolling Hills residents Tom and Carrie Lieb, who have participated in the

event for many years, were two-time winners for the second time. They

took first place in the Hot Rods, Golden Era (1930-1960) class with their

1929 Ford Roadster and in the Brass/Antiques through 1924 category with

a 1923 Wills St. Claire Roadster. The Wills St. Claire won the Vintage Class

at Pebble Beach in 2001.

“It feels great to get a double win,” Tom Lieb said. “The ‘29 roadster was

prepared by my grandson Connor. He spent about 20 hours detailing the

car. I bought the car in 1959 but sold the engine for college tuition in 1961.

Mark Guggenheim, of Palos Verdes, with his 1958 Porsche

Speedster.

I put it back together in late 2009 and took it and the Wills to the Grand

National Roadster show in 2010 and won best roadster. I drive both cars

regularly which is a lot of fun.”

Darren Moore, of Rancho Palos Verdes, took two second-places with his

1922 Stutz Bearcat (Brass/Antiques through 1924) and his 1932 Packard

Twin Six 905 Coupe Roadster (Open Classic Packard, 1925-1948). He was

also presented the Chairman’s Award for his P51D Mustang Airplane.

Moore has seven cars and six airplanes in his collection but it was the

first time he has exhibited his cars.

“I’m not a car show person, but since the Concours was presented at Torrance

Airport where my collection is, I couldn’t refuse” Moore said. “I have

displayed and flown my aircraft at airshows before, but I no longer participate

in those events. I haven’t acquired the vehicles as an investment, only

because I like them.”

Moore purchased the P51D Mustang in 2011 after completing a training

Robert Knee, of Los Angeles, with his 1928 Mercedes-Benz 630K Murphy

Town Car.

Lianne Graham, of Palos Verdes, with her 1932 Chrysler Imperial CH Convertible

Sedan.

November 2017 • Peninsula 53

The scene at The Louis Zamperini Airfield venue.

The $2.4 million Italian Pagani.

Darren Moore( left), is presented the

Chairman’s Award by Ray Johnson

for his P51D Mustang airplane.

Photo courtesy of PV Concours d’Elegance

Christopher Pagani whose father manufactures the Pagani automobile. Photo by

Stephanie Cartozian

course in the aircraft with Stallion 51, the only school in the country that

offers this course.

“Soon after I completed the course, a man down in Florida had just completed

a six year restoration of his Mustang and decided to sell it,” Moore

added. “I flew it home a few weeks later. I tell everyone that I’m just the

“Caretaker” of it. It’s American history and I’ll pass it on to someone who

loves it just as much as I do.”

Peninsula residents placed first and second in the Post-War European Elegance

through 1976 class. Jay and Bonnie McDonald, of Palos Verdes Estates,

took top honors with their 1956 Mercedes-Benz 300SL while Hiram

Bond and Paul Marcelino, of Rancho Palos Verdes, were runner-up with a

1963 Rolls-Royce CT100.

Tom and Shannon Hartman, of Rancho Palos Verdes, placed second in

the Open American Classics, 1925-1948 class with their 1932 Lincoln

Model 248 K LeBaron Convertible Roadster

Local third-place finishers included John Marian, of Rancho Palos Verdes,

with a 1965 Porsche 911 (Porsche 900, 1965-1990) and Palos Verdes Estates’

George Johnson with a 1929 Packard 626 5-Passenger Sedan (Closed Classic

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54 Peninsula • November 2017

Aaron and Valerie Weiss, of San Marino, won Best of Show with their 1936

Mercedes-Benz 290 Cabriolet A. Photo courtesy of PV Concours d’Elegance

David G. Adishian with his 1961 Chrysler 300, one of the first muscle cars.

Only 1,281 were made. The car was known as the “Banker’s Hotrod” because

of its luxury interior and 396 horsepower cross ram Wedge V-8. Photo by Jake

Caumeran

Packard, 1925-1948)

The Eric P. Allen Memorial award for Most Elegant was presented to

Earl Rubenstein, of El Segundo for his 1935 Packard 1204, Dual Cowl

Phaeton.

Best of Show honors went to Aaron and Valerie Weiss, of San Marino,

for their 1936 Mercedes-Benz 290 Cabriolet A.

Proceeds from the Palos Verdes Concours d’Elegance benefit the Boys

and Girls Clubs of the Los Angeles Harbor and a new charity, the Western

Museum of Flight. PEN

The award winning P51D Mustang was purchased in 2011 by Darren Moore

of Rancho Palos Verdes. Photo courtesy of PV Concours d’Elegance

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November 2017 • Peninsula 55

56 Peninsula • November 2017

Service first

Citizen of the Year

Jackie Crowley

finds happiness in

making others happy

by Robb Fulcher

Jackie Crowley has been giving of herself for more decades

than she will reveal, visiting kids recovering from surgery

in an orthopedic hospital, lugging supply-filled backpacks

to disadvantaged schools, and sitting on the boards of Palos

Verdes Performing Arts and the Peninsula Symphony Association.

If you ask her why, she might have to think for a moment.

Service has become second nature, to the extent that she sometimes

must remind herself to turn her attention to her other career,

real estate. Still, her answer is clear and simple: her work

is animated by faith and gratitude.

In recognition of her volunteer spirit, Crowley has been

named Citizen of the Year by the Palos Verdes Peninsula Chamber

of Commerce, which will officially bestow the honor at an

annual dinner Nov. 1.

Service in faith

In an interview, Crowley spoke of her church, Rolling Hills

Covenant, and its mission to “lead people to Christ.” She believes

that in addition to that Christian mission, people are

given individualized missions to be useful to each other.

“It probably sounds corny, but the good Lord has been very

good to me. Life has been very good to me,” she said.

Of course, she volunteers at the church too, taking care of

“leapers,” kids 18 to 24 months old, in the nursery, once a

month during the 9:30 service.

“We have peepers, creepers and leapers. I have the leapers,”

she said.

The morning of the interview, she had been on hand for the

“Shop ‘Til You Drop” fundraiser, with food and retail vendors,

to support Palos Verdes Performing Arts, which brings highly

regarded stage, musical and ballet performances to the Norris

Theatre, and oversees a student Conservatory and a multi-use

pavilion.

The next day would see her in San Diego where, in her role

as a state director for the California Association of Realtors, she

would help ride herd on one of the association’s three yearly

conferences.

Much of her current volunteer work involves structure and

organization. On the Performing Arts board, for instance, she

helps make decisions about which theater productions should

be brought in, with a bottom-line focus that they must be affordable.

The board also oversees a variety of uses of the Harlyne

J. Norris Pavilion, and keeps track of Performing Arts

support groups such as Bravo!, Chorusliners, and Act II, which

put on “Shop ‘Til You Drop.”

Jackie Crowley in front of a wall lined with local service awards. Photo by Tony LaBruno

Crowley also solicits advertising for a program book that sits on the laps of Norris

Theatre patrons.

Depression child

Crowley was born during the Great Depression, in a hospital along Lake Erie. She

used to call her birthplace Cleveland, until she found out that, technically, she was

born in the eastern suburb of Euclid.

“I was sort of surprised,” she said. “I had always said Cleveland, Ohio.”

In the rough and tumble of a desperate economy, her father worked for Ford Motor

58 Peninsula • November 2017

Co. until that job went away. He operated his own auto dealership for a

time. Then he caught on with the government, in a job that called for frequent

relocations. The family lived in West Virginia, North Carolina,

Louisiana, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania and Ohio, with mom timing the

moves to take place between the school years.

“My mother was smart enough to have us move in the summertime,”

Crowley said.

Crowley’s father had fond recollections of California, where he was located

while he was in the service, so the family came out west. Crowley

attended Inglewood High School, where she served as editor-in-chief of

the yearbook.

“In those days you were raised to grow up, get an education, get married

and raise a family,” she said. “That was expected of a young lady, so that’s

the way it went.”

Crowley has two children, Steven Lee Pinkney and Susan Leann Mc-

Crae.

“I’d have to say life has been very, very good to me,” Crowley said.

By the time she and her family moved to the Peninsula, she was selling

homes. In 1972 she opened Rancho Verdes Realty, at Palos Verdes Drive

North and Crenshaw Boulevard. She signed on with RE/MAX in 1982 and

has been with the agency ever since, as a real estate broker and vice president

for estate properties.

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Toothbrushes and teddy bears

Her extensive volunteer service began in the early 1970s, when she went

into the orthopedic hospital in Los Angeles, performing duties including

working in the gift shop and visiting children in the recovery room following

surgery.

“We could go into the recovery room and then see the parents. It gives

them a wonderful feeling, that communication, to know that somebody

saw their loved one. It was wonderful.”

Crowley did that recovery room work for about 20 years, “as long as they

had that job.”

Also among Crowley’s volunteering favorites is the Affinity Group,

which she has chaired for five years, for the Volunteer Center South Bay.

The centerpiece of the effort is Operation Teddy Bear, which prepares and

delivers backpacks stuffed with supplies like books, crayons and toothbrushes

– topped off with a teddy bear – to school kids in underprivileged

areas.

“We’re known as the teddy bear support group,” she said.

Several hundreds of the backpacks have been delivered to date.

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Service in work

Crowley sees her real estate career as another form of service, with the

benefit of a paycheck.

“I love selling real estate. You help people make one of the biggest decisions

they make in life…It’s a very important step,” she said.

“Some people I’ve sold houses to, they’re still in the same house 50 years

later,” Crowley said.

“I’ve been in real estate for over 50 years – I wouldn’t want to say how

many more,” she added with a laugh.

Crowley lives in Rancho Palos Verdes, and fills her limited spare time

with physical activity including bowling, golf, swimming and ballroom

dance classes.

“I love to dance,” she said. “When you’re dancing, you don’t know that

you’re exercising, but you’re exercising.”

To be happy, she must be of service.

“I belong to Rotary Club of Palos Verdes Sunset, and the Rotary motto is

also my life motto: ‘Service Above Self,’” Crowley said. “Happiness for me

is anything I can do that makes someone else happy.”

“I don’t want people to think I’m a Pollyanna, but I definitely see the

glass as half full. I can’t see it half empty.”

Jackie Crowley will be honored as the Palos Verdes Peninsula Chamber

of Commerce 2017 Citizen of the Year at the chamber’s annual gala 5:30

p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 1 at Terranea Resort. In addition, Walk With Sally

will be named Nonprofit Organization of the Year, and Vistas For Children

will be named Community Service Organization of the Year. Tickets are

$150. For information see palosverdeschamber.com or call 310-377-8111.

PEN

714 S. Weymouth Avenue

San Pedro, CA 90732

Not affiliated with Rolex USA

November 2017 • Peninsula People 59

60 Peninsula • November 2017

eventcalendar

CALENDAR OF COMMUNITY EVENTS

Compiled by Teri Marin

You can email your event to our address: penpeople@easyreadernews.com

All submissions must be sent by the 10th of each month prior to event taking place.

Ongoing

Native Plant Nursery Volunteer Days

n Nurture seedlings and help shrubs grow for habitat restoration projects.

RSVP 48 hours in advance. Fridays and Saturdays, 9 a.m. - noon. Sign up at

pvplc.volunteerhub.com

Rapid Response Team

n Work alongside Conservancy staff protecting wildlife habitat by closing

unauthorized trails. Task include trail maintenance, building fences and installing

signage. Work at various locations around the Preserve. Directions to

sites emailed upon sign up. No experience needed. 15 and up. Visit volunteerhub.com

Nature on the Big Screen

n Birders take note! The PVP Land Conservancy is compiling photos for

slideshow showcasing your bird photographs for November 19 to be shown

on the “big screen” at the Warner Grand Theatre. If you have bird photos

that you would like to be included, please email up to 3 images to:

photo@pvplc.org. Please make sure they are in large format, at least 240 dpi

and 1920 x 1200 pixels. Include your name, location of the photo and

species of bird, if known.

n Are you a student who loves filming videos? You too can be featured on

the big screen. Please send a 1- 2 minute video about what you love about

nature, how nature impacts your life or what nature taught you. Send your

.mov or .mp4 file tophoto@pvplc.org. Include your name and year in school.

Sunday, October 29

Water music

n Season opener of the Peninsula Symphony. Pre-concert lecture by Maestro

Berkson (members only) at 6:15 p.m., concert begins at 7 p.m. The doors

open at 6 p.m. Concert opens with Felix Mendelssohn’s Calm Sea and Prosperous

Voyage, Opus 27. Aleksandr Glazunov’s majestic Das Meer (The

Sea), Opus 28, follows. After intermission, the concert hall is transformed to

a fairy tale lake in Anatole Liadov’s The Enchanted Lake, Opus 62. The concert

ends with Leonard Bernstein’s haunting On the Waterfront. Concert and

parking are free. Redondo Union High School Auditorium, 631 Vincent Street

November 2017 • Peninsula 61

Together, let us …

Pray for all who carry burdens.

Worship the Christ whose love

overcomes the darkness.

Light candles of peace, courage, love,

hope, faith, remembrance and

thanksgiving.

The Service

of Reflection

and Thanksgiving

Wednesday

November 15, 2017

7:00 pm (new time)

The Sanctuary

St. Peter’s by the Sea

6410 Palos Verdes Drive South

Rancho Palos Verdes, CA 90275

StPetersPres.org

Peninsula People Nov 2017

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