Baby Basket Program to aid young mothers

www.StudioCitySun.com
VOL. 5 NO. 15
Mother’s Day Art Show
The Studio City/Sherman Oaks Rotary Club is holding
its 30th Annual Mother’s Day Arts & Crafts Show. May
12-13, 10am-5pm. Moorpark Park, at the corner of
Moorpark and Laurel Canyon, Studio City. (818) 7753877 or www.rotaryartshow.org.
Complimentary Mother’s Day Gift Wrap
WeSpark Cancer Support Center will provide Mother’s
Day gift-wrap services at the Westfi eld Fashion Square
for all gifts purchased at the mall, May 11-13, noon5pm. Receipt needed, 2 packages per person. Giftwrap station will be near the Disney Store. 14006 Riverside Drive, Sherman Oaks.
North Hollywood Library Events
Pet adoption fair from the East Valley Animal Care Center, May 12, 11am-4pm. Screening of “The Bothersome Man,” May 12, 2pm. Used book and audio sale,
May 19, 10am-2pm. Free. 5211 Tujunga Avenue. (818)
766-7185.
Great LA River Clean Up
The largest urban river cleanup in the country, taking
place at 15 different sites through the city. May 12,
9am-noon. Sepulveda Basin on Balboa Blvd. between
Burbank and Victory. www.folar.org/cleanup2007.
Studio City Neighborhood Council General Meeting
Meets the third Wed. of every month at 7pm. Next
meeting, May 16. CBS Studio Center, Annex 1 Meeting
Room, 4024 Radford Ave., Studio City. Enter at Gate A
to be directed to the meeting location. (818) 655-5400.
www.scnc.info.
Benefit for Our Bravest Street Festival
Live music and entertainment, silent auction, food
cooked by local firemen, kid’s zone with rides, fire engines the kids ride on, bake sale, arts and crafts booth,
beer and wine garden, letter writing for both children
and adults. All profits will benefit Operation Gratitude.
May 19, noon-6pm. In front of the Valley Inn Restaurant,
4557 Sherman Oaks Ave. Parking available at Sherman
Oaks Galleria for early arrivals. (818) 222-6693.
Children’s Choir Concert
The Children’s Choir of First Christian Church of North
Hollywood presents “A Song in My Heart,” May 19,
4pm in the church’s sanctuary. 4390 Colfax Ave. www.
fccnh.org.
Orchid Society
The Orchid Society of Southern California presents
“Rascaksm Rogues, Rowdies, Rulers and Other R’s,”
continued on page 24
INSIDE
News ..................................................... 5
Habitats ................................................ 6
Police Blotter........................................ 6
Assembly Talk ...................................... 6
Spotlight ............................................... 8
Community Compass ......................... 9
School Notes ...................................... 10
Technology Triumphs ....................... 12
Back to the Kitchen........................... 18
Restaurant .......................................... 19
Theater ............................................... 20
Short Cuts ........................................... 22
Scoops ................................................ 23
Home Services Directory ................. 23
Destiny Quest..................................... 25
Sudoku ............................................... 26
Sun Classifieds................................... 26
BY AMY LYONS
Kathy Perez celebrated
Mother’s Day early this year.
Surrounded by stacks of toys,
books, bottles and clothes, Perez led a party April 18 in Mission Hills kicking off the El Nido
Family Centers’ new Baby Basket Program providing supplies
for young mothers in need.
Perez’s joyful party was a
contrast to the scene of another
memorable Mother’s Day from
her past: Perez’s mother died
on that holiday when she was
just 13 years old. Soon thereafter, El Nido Family Centers became her surrogate mother of
sorts, and last month Perez returned the favor by founding
the new program to help others like herself.
Though raised for most of
her life without a mother, Perez’s warmth, compassion and
giving spirit evidence her inherent maternal instincts. She
came to El Nido all those years
ago because her father could
not cope with the loss of his
wife and Perez needed to find
a place where she could flourish and grow. Back then, in the
1970s, El Nido had a residential facility at which Perez lived
from age 16 to 18.
“El Nido put me on a path
to counseling, to discipline, to
structure. It allowed me to make
the choices that I have made in
my life,” Perez said. “Today I
have come full circle by starting
a program for an agency that
has given so much to me.”
Kathy Perez with son Jackson.
Though the residential facility no longer exists, El Nido
still serves teenagers in need
of structure, direction and support. “I think the common denominator is still the service to
teens. The form is just different
now,” Perez said.
The organization’s mission
is to empower disadvantaged
or at-risk children, youths and
families through educational and social services offered
throughout Los Angeles Coun-
ty. Programs like YAP (Youth
Advocacy Program), a counseling program for juvenile offenders apprehended by police, and Teen Parent & Infant
Development, a program to
keep expecting teen parents
on track, are geared toward
the creation of a responsible
youth population.
With a presence in South
Central Los Angeles, Mission
Hills, Inglewood and six other
neighborhood centers through-
out the county, El Nido’s programs served over 15,000 clients last year.
Perez’s Baby Basket Program
is a simple addition to the El
Nido infrastructure, but one
that will be of great service. All
one has to do to participate is
contact the center and donate
any baby items necessary for
brand new parents.
“When my son’s first birthday approached, I remember
thinking we had to put all the
baby gear he got to good use…
and here we are today,” Perez
said.
But Perez did not get to where
she is today without hard work
and motivation. While living at El
Nido, she attended Fairfax High
School and became involved in
the Los Angeles Unified School
District’s Television Production
class, where she flourished.
She was hired directly out of
high school by KLCS-TV, where
she first worked with props and
sets, eventually moved into
makeup and later learned how
to stage manage.
“It was non-union, so I was
able to do sets, makeup, cue
cards, whatever they needed,”
Perez said.
Next, Perez landed a job at
KMEX-TV Channel 34, where
she worked her way up to director. She directed newscasts
and Olympic coverage in 1984
before moving on to Univision,
the KMEX parent network,
where she directed the Spancontinued on page 12
Brewer lays out LAUSD plans at First Friday Club meeting
BY JEREMY OBERSTEIN
Los Angeles Unified School
District (LAUSD) Superintendent David Brewer addressed
the Studio City Chamber of
Commerce’s First Friday Club
on May 4 at a breakfast meeting at the Daily Grill.
To an audience of educators, parents, and members
of the chamber, the retired
Navy vice-admiral detailed
his plan for reforming LAUSD,
discussing specific ways in
which he would attempt to
reform a school district with
712,000 students and a $7.5
million budget.
The first of what he called
his five “guiding principles”
addressed statistics. “We
have to be data and research
driven,” he said. “You have to
divorce politics and emotion
and find an objective way to
deal with the situation.”
His second principle centered on responsible man-
agement. “We have to make
sure that the people who
are working for you have the
knowledge, skills and ability to execute the plan,” he
stated, stressing the need for
leadership and management
training.
Brewer took the opportunity to address the controversial Evergreen report.
Commissioned by the
superintendent to take
continued on page 9
LAUSD Superintendent
David Brewer.
Prison Moms x405 Expansion Battles xLAUSD Debate xTommyRays
JIM KAPLAN
Community
Largest Mother’s Day Celebration in the World
The Los Angeles Jewish Home for the Aging will bring
together 100-year-old mothers for an awards ceremony
with brunch, music, clowns, face painting, and nearly
1,000 participants. May 13, 10:30am. $20 adults; $8
children 5-11; children under 5, free. Alec Borden Plaza
in Bagno Park on the Eisenberg Village campus, 18855
Victory Blvd. Reseda. Call (818) 774-3324, email marilyn.bloom@ jha.org, or register at www.jha.org.
Baby Basket Program to aid young mothers
RO B ERTEVANS.C OM
SUNDIAL
Community CALENDAR
MAY 11-17, 2007
PAGE 12
STUDIO CITY SUN
MAY 11-17, 2007
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ish speaking daytime talk show, Christina. Today, she directs Fox 11 News at 10.
She has won three Emmy Awards for directing, a Columbia Dupont Award, a Peabody Award, an Associated Press Award
and three Golden Mikes.
Though all of these accomplishments
are significant to Perez, her founding of
the Baby Basket Program is a particularly
meaningful feather in her cap.
“When girls would go into El Nido, a lot
of times they had a lot of issues; they were
angry, they were frustrated, they felt abandoned. There were a lot of problems and
they took a hard line when they needed to
take a hard line,” Perez said. “I had some
issues when I got there and I was moved
to another house and I was like, okay, it’s
time to get my act together now. They
helped all of us who were disillusioned or
angry or just in a really tough spot.”
Stacy Banks, Perez’s former case worker, still serves El Nido teens today.
“When I met Kathy, she was struggling
with the loss of her mother and the loss
of her life the way it was,” Banks said.
“But she was a very warm person even in
those days. She was giving and she was
most appreciative of whatever we did for
her. Words cannot describe the joy I feel
in seeing what she has done for her life
and what she is now contributing to others’ lives. It’s just wonderful.”
Lene McAdoo is just one of several
teens who will benefit from the Baby Basket Program. McAdoo connected with El
Nido in September of last year, when she
was still pregnant. Today, she is the proud
mother of a three-week-old child and is
newly enrolled at California State University Northridge.
“It’s like I’ve been with them for five
years. My case worker, Annette, is there
all the time, whenever I need her,” McAdoo said. “The hardest part for me was the
pregnancy; having someone to support
me through that was really beneficial.”
Liz Herrera, Executive Director of El
Nido, said the Baby Basket Program will
fill an important need among the teens the
center serves.
“So many of our teen parents are really
living in pretty dire situations, very impoverished, and we are working with them on
keeping them in school and making some
positive life choices and getting on a path
for self-sufficiency and being good role
models – but it’s hard for them to embrace
all that when they don’t have enough formula,” Herrera said.
“All of us who are parents know you
have all of this great stuff that you can’t use
anymore and how wonderful it is to know
that it will go to someone who can use it.”
Though Perez misses the presence of
her own mother, she proudly took on the
role of motherhood in her own life and has
created a strong support system of friends
and family to help out with her toddler
son, Jackson. Her husband has been part
of her life for more than two decades.
“Having a child has been an enormously healing event. I’ve been amazed at the
many levels of motherhood and what it’s
done for me,” Perez said. “The levels of
healing and the levels of motherhood far
exceed anything I ever expected.” <
To contribute to the Baby Basket Program,
call (818) 830 -3646.
technology triumphs
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Pay attention to
the messages
BY GEOFFREY NEIL
I answered my cell phone and
heard the unmistakable shakiness of panic in Scott’s voice. “Suppose I came
into the office and all our QuickBooks data was
missing from the computer,” he said.
“That would hurt me as much as it hurts you,” I
answered with a nervous laugh. I pulled my car
off the road and hoped Scott was joking. I talked
him through checking the contents of every folder
on his accounting computer in a hunt for his company’s precious financial data. Inside yellow folder after yellow folder, there was nothing.
“I’m on my way,” I said.
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When I walked into Scott’s office, he motioned for
me to step in further. He leaned close and whispered that his assistant, who sat within earshot of
his office, worked late last night. She mentioned
having done some computer “housekeeping.”
Scott suspected a terrible mistake. Her expression
told me that she had already been interrogated.
I clicked open his Recycle Bin – it echoed with
nothingness.
Scott scratched his head and said, “Aren’t there
warnings before you permanently delete files?”
“By default, yes,” I said. “But you have to heed
them.”
We were able to restore the files from the previous
day’s backup. Rather than enduring the devastating blow of losing all his accounting files, Scott
simply had the wind knocked out of him with a
one-day, data loss. Sure, we could have tried file
recovery software or sent the hard drive off to a
service, but the restored backup sufficed.
This article could as easily have been about backup, but instead I shared this story to illustrate
something that can keep your backups in the preferred state of “unused”: The “Are you sure?” nag
messages that clutter your path to file deletion.
Good software is designed to provide fair warning
before allowing you to delete data or make an irreversible change to a program. These pop up nags
can be a nuisance and I click through them all the
time –often fast.
In Windows, deleting a file is typically a three step
process. First, you must hit the delete button or
click “delete” on a menu. Next, you are asked
if you really want to move the file to the Recycle Bin. Finally, to permanently remove the file, it
must be deleted from the Recycle Bin. But these
three, conspicuous steps are still no match for a
reckless, impatient file killer. (Note: A potentially
deadly shortcut: If you hold the Shift key while
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Bin and vanish forever.) It’s easy to memorize key
strokes to permanently delete a file without paying attention to the nagging prompts, but it is also
dangerous.
Like street speed bumps, the nags of “Are you
sure?” are intended to slow you down for safety’s
sake. If you dread needing to restore from backup, or, worse, don’t have a backup, then let the
nags hinder you a moment. Nags are our friends.
Hear them out.
Contact Geoffrey at [email protected]