vol. 73 no. 28 • 50 cents losaltosonline.com community ... · 1 day ago · the los altos town...

WEDNESDAY • July 8, 2020Vol. 73 No. 28 • 50 cents losaltosonline.comCommunity news for Los Altos, Los Altos Hills and Mountain View since 1947

Business & Real Estate . . 26Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42Comment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Community . . . . . . . . . . . 11Datebook . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Letters to the Editor . . . . . 8Food & Wine . . . . . . . . . . 25Obituaries . . . . . . . . . . . . 41Peek into the Past . . . . . . . 8Public Notices . . . . . . . . . 43

Puzzles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Stepping Out . . . . . . . . . . 18Transactions . . . . . . . . . . 29

ALSO INSIDE – July 8, 2020

Business & Real EstateMountain View High grad’s startup takes aim at campus food waste.

Page 26

By Eric HeStaff Writer/[email protected]

The Los Altos Arts & Wine Festival has been can-celed this year due to the

COVID-19 pandemic, according to the event’s organizing commit-tee . In a statement issued July 1, the Los Altos Village Association said it was “heartbroken” to have to call off the event, the organiza-tion’s largest annual fundraiser . “Our committee did not make this decision lightly,” said LAVA Executive Director Scott Hunter . “But current government-issued public health guidelines contin-ue to prohibit large gatherings, and we don’t anticipate that will change in the near future . Our decision was made in the best interest of our sponsors, vendors, volunteers and patrons .” Instead, the association plans to host a virtual event for attend-ees to interact with local artists, wineries and businesses . The committee voted unanimously June 30 to cancel the festival . The festival, in its 41st year, had already been rescheduled to Sept .

26 and 27 from its original dates, July 11 and 12 . The Arts & Wine Festival is the fifth – and the biggest – LAVA event to be canceled in 2020, leav-ing the organization in “financial peril,” according to the statement .

State rejects latest county health order

By Eric HeStaff Writer/[email protected]

The state rejected Santa Clara County’s latest health order, which

would have allowed business-es such as gyms and hair and nail salons to reopen begin-ning Monday . The order also would have allowed for larger gatherings – groups of 20 peo-ple indoors and 60 people out-doors – with masks and proper social distancing . David Campos, a public information officer for the county, said during a briefing July 6 that the state had issued an “initial rejection” of the county’s application . “We are still in conversa-tions and discussions with the state about that application,” Campos said . At the briefing, officials also confirmed that the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control unit had been conducting en-forcement activity in parts of south Santa Clara County . Some restaurants in Morgan Hill were ordered to stop out-door dining over the weekend by ABC officials, creating confusion in the county, where outdoor dining had resumed for several weeks . The county was not in-formed of any of those op-erations in advance,” Campos said . “We cannot speak for the state .”

See ORDER, Page 6

District poised to use combo of remote, in-person classes

By Zoe MorganStaff Writer/[email protected]

The Los Altos School Dis-trict is planning to start next school year with

a mix of both online and in-person learning, according to

a plan presented at the June 29 board of trustees meeting . Administrators are recom-mending that students start the year on campus two days a week and work from home the re-maining three . There also would be an option for families who don’t feel comfortable returning to school to have their students remain 100% online . The board was set to review the proposal again at a Mon-

day evening meeting, after the Town Crier’s print deadline . The district’s plan lays out various scenarios, ranging from entirely online to fully in-person instruc-tion . Superintendent Jeff Baier recommended the board vote to start in the fall with a blended

model of both on-campus and remote learning . Over the course of the year, Baier said he expects the district will shift between approaches based on the pan-demic’s course . “The goal here is to get kids back in school – that is the overarching goal,” Baier said . “That’s where we want to get, we just need to make sure we do it in a medically safe way .”

See REOPENING, Page 21

TOWN CRIER FILE PHOTO

Patrons walk through the Los Altos Arts & Wine Festival. This year’s event has been canceled.

LASD proposes blended fall reopening

Arts & Wine Festival canceled over pandemic concerns

‘Fine Art in the Park’ also canceled for 2020

The Rotary Club of Los Altos announced Monday the cancel-lation of its annual two-day Fine Art in the Park event at

Lincoln Park . This year’s event, usually scheduled in May, had been postponed until Aug . 29 and 30 . For more information, visit losaltosonline .com .

For more on the county’s overall school reopening

plan, see page 19.

See FESTIVAL, Page 7

CommunityLos Altos resident’s cryptic crosswords layer puzzle within puzzle.

0

Food & WineTwo distinctive seasonings let you travel, via taste, while stuck at home.

Page 25

/ Los Altos Town Crier / July 8, 2020

July 8, 2020 / Los Altos Town Crier /

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Latest Happenings

Correction: An article in the July 1 edition incorrectly described Jan Davis’ role in the 4-H program at Westwind Community Barn. She is a horse leader. Davis also notes that the Silicon Valley Open Studios event planned for August has been canceled due to the increase in local COVID-19 cases.

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PHOTO BY SHELLY BOWERS/SPECIAL TO THE TOWN CRIER

Los Altos resident Kenan Moos, orga-nizer of the June 5 Black Lives Matter march in downtown Los Altos, hosted a “Black Is Beautiful” event July 3 at Lincoln Park, in which participants cre-ated street art to display along Foothill Expressway. Political literature shared at the event addressed local police and racial targeting at Los Altos High School – Moos’ alma mater. Attendees also got

a reminder of abolitionist Frederick Douglass’ 1852 speech, in which he called Independence Day a “sham” given the enduring system of slavery in the U.S.


News

City discusses objective zoning standardsBy Eric HeStaff Writer/[email protected]

The Los Altos City Council heard an up-date on the city’s ef-

forts to develop objective zon-ing standards during a joint study session with the Plan-ning Commission June 30, and members expressed some concern over the direction of the project. The undertaking is intend-ed to align Los Altos’ devel-opment code with Senate Bill 330, a state law signed last year that prevents municipali-ties from establishing design standards that are “non-ob-jective standards” – in other words, subjective language de-scribing architecture as “high quality” or “generous and in-viting” would not be allowed as standards for development. In March, the city approved a $300,000 budget for a con-sulting firm to primarily help translate the existing subjec-tive standards in the city’s code to objective standards, with a timeline to complete the project by the end of Oc-tober. During the meeting, the firm presented findings based on Los Altos’ neighborhood

patterns and zoning and stake-holder interviews that related to developing objective stan-dards. The Packard Founda-tion building on Second Street was brought up as a “good example of built form” after which the city might develop objective standards. However, the council wasn’t satisfied with the findings pre-sented last week, asking for more clarity on how the city could amend existing subjective design code into objective lan-

guage that would meet the new requirements set by SB 330. According to the projected timeline, the firm will return to the council at the end of July with a framework of the objective design standards. An online community work-shop was slated for early Au-gust, but that will be pushed back to the end of the month so the council and Planning Commission can hold another study session before bringing findings to the public.

MARIE GODDERIS/TOWN CRIER

The Packard Foundation building on Second Street was discussed as a structure that was universally admired by stakeholders in the community, as the city council looks to develop objective standards.

Hills garbage gripes may prompttemporary reduction in ratesBy Megan V. WinslowStaff Writer/[email protected]

Los Altos Hills City Coun-cil members could hear next week from town staff

tasked with evaluating a proposal to lower garbage collection rates for residents. A year into a 15-year contract between the town and San Jose-based GreenWaste Recovery, Emily Hanson, the company’s director of business develop-ment and communications, pub-licly introduced the idea during the council’s June 18 meeting. It would involve lowering rate in-creases for base services to 2.45% rather than 9% during the con-tract’s second year, which started July 1. In a telephone interview with the Town Crier last week, City Manager Carl Cahill said he sug-gested the contract amendment to GreenWaste due to current economic conditions under CO-VID-19. “I have to imagine people are impacted right now – even in a town like Los Altos Hills,” Cahill said Thursday. “I have to imagine some may be furloughed or laid off.” A staff report on the matter is

expected at the July 16 city coun-cil meeting. Hills residents use three differ-ent carts for waste: a gray cart for trash and organic material, a blue cart for recycling and up to two green carts for yard trimmings. Their monthly payment is based on the size of the gray cart, and additional services like drive-on or walk-on collection for residents with physical limitations cost ex-tra. In 2018, GreenWaste represen-tatives contacted town officials about executing a new contract, as the one in effect at the time expired in June 2019. They stated that rising expenses stemming in part from increasing labor costs and new legislation implement-ing stricter recycling standards necessitated a steep increase to rates, and the city council elected to introduce the hikes gradually, forgoing a franchise fee from GreenWaste until July 1, 2023, to subsidize increases. They approved a 9% increase to base collection rates for the first five years of the contract, through the 2023-2024 rate year. Effective July 1, 2019, the

See GARBAGE, Page 7

PHOTOS BY S.M. LIEU/SPECIAL TO THE TOWN CRIER

Although COVID-19 safety precautions kept Los Altos Hills from hosting its annual Fourth of July Parade, the town made do Saturday with a socially distanced vehicle caravan through town, far right, instead. A young parade participant, top left, waves from a 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air. Town Mayor Michelle Wu, bottom left, displays an American flag on her ride. A spectator, center, watches the procession with a cuddly stuffed friend.

Los Altos Hills hosts socially distant July 4 caravan


News

By Megan V. WinslowStaff Writer/[email protected]

A man responsible for a Los Altos carjacking June 30 could be the same

suspect who led Santa Cruz law enforcement officials on a high-speed chase later the same day before ultimately plummeting off a cliff into the Pacific Ocean, ac-cording to the Los Altos Police Department. John Kenyanjui, the suspect in the Santa Cruz case, sur-vived the fall without sustain-ing injuries and managed to climb out of the vehicle, out of the water and up the cliff, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Of-fice reported. Deputies arrested the 56-year-old Portland, Ore., resident and charged him with carjacking, evading arrest, hit-and-run and unlawful possession of a weapon. He is being held in the Santa Cruz County Jail on $100,000 bail. The Los Altos carjacking took place at approximately 1:30 p.m. June 30 on San Antonio Road at the Foothill Expressway traffic light, said Sgt. Cameron Shearer of the Los Altos Police Department. A Black man ap-proximately 50 years old alleg-edly pointed a gun at the driver of a Mercedes idling at the light and demanded the driver give up the vehicle. The suspect was un-able to operate the car, however, and he pointed his weapon at the driver of an SUV behind the

Mercedes, stealing that vehicle instead and continuing east-bound on Foothill Expressway. Witnesses said the suspect wore a white shirt, black shorts and red shoes. “It’s a possibility it’s the same guy from Santa Cruz, but we can’t say for sure,” Shearer said. The suspect committed the Los Altos carjacking because the stolen vehicle he drove from San Francisco had become dis-abled, a Los Altos Police Depart-ment watch commander told the Town Crier June 30. The watch commander said the man was ultimately apprehended in Santa Cruz. At approximately 3:30 p.m. June 30, witnesses called 911 to report a man shooting a handgun in the air near Scott Creek in Davenport, according to a Santa

Cruz County Sheriff’s Office press release. That same man is suspected of then carjacking someone in the area and lead-ing deputies on a chase involving speeds of more than 100 mph toward the city of Santa Cruz. The deputies lost the suspect, but Santa Cruz Police Department officers picked up the chase on West Cliff Drive, where the sus-pect crashed in a single-vehicle accident, driving off the cliff and into the ocean. The Sheriff’s Office identified the Davenport carjacking suspect as Kenyanjui July 1. “We are working with other law enforcement agencies to de-termine if he had any connection to separate similar crimes in the Bay Area,” according to a second press release from the law en-forcement agency.

COURTESY OF SANTA CRUZ POLICE DEPARTMENT

Law enforcement officials and rescue personnel assist with the rescue of John Kenyanjui, a Portland, Ore., resident suspected of a carjacking in Santa Cruz – and possibly one in Los Altos.

Reach codes proposal postponed until fall

Los Altos carjacking suspect arrested

By Bruce BartonStaff Writer/[email protected]

The controversial reach codes proposal, which had been scheduled for

review at Tuesday’s Los Altos City Council meeting, has been postponed to a meeting some-time in the fall, City Manager Chris Jordan said Monday. No date had yet been finalized. “That was a decision made by the mayor (Jan Pepper) and me,” he said. “We have the accessory dwelling unit ordinance on the July 14 agenda, and that could be time-consuming. We also have two appeals to be heard at the next meeting (Aug. 25).” If adopted, the codes would require all-electric power sup-ply and eliminate natural gas in new housing and commercial construction – part of an effort to reduce carbon emissions in

the fight against climate change. The codes – which “reach” be-yond normal energy-efficiency guidelines – also would provide infrastructure to accommodate electric vehicles. Proponents and opponents alike point to online surveys to validate their views. Oppo-nents cite an early-spring sur-vey the city conducted. It posed the question, “Are you in favor of mandating all-electric for all new construction?” Results showed nearly three-quarters of the 300 registered respondents were “somewhat unsupportive” or “very unsupportive.” Proponents, however, point to a subsequent survey follow-ing an April 29 webinar with the city’s Environmental Com-mission, which posed different questions and options, and drew different results. This time, the question was, “Which of the

following reach codes would you support?” Among the 266 respondents answering, 26.7% chose “a total ban on natural gas (including outdoor use)”; 46.1% said “all new construction and major remodels”; 29.6% favored “all electric for new construc-tion only”; 20.4% selected “all electric for new construction with exceptions for cooking”; 29.6% advocated “mixed-fuel (gas and electric) with addi-tional efficiency measure for new construction”; and 27.2% backed no reach codes. Both polls were informal and nonscientific, however, and represent a small fraction of the Los Altos population. Still, the city has been flooded with cor-respondence over reach codes. “My observation is that the council has received dozens and dozens of emails on both sides of the issue,” Jordan said.


News

’An inflection point’ Despite attempting to ease certain restrictions, county health officials urged caution as corona-virus cases continue to rise across the state. “We’re at an inflection point,” said Dr. Sara Cody, the county’s public health officer. “It’s crystal clear that COVID-19 will be with us for a long time, so we need to adapt to a new way of being, a new way of living that keeps us all safe and that lets us do some of the things that we miss, cherish and find most meaningful.” A press release indicated that Santa Clara County had fewer cases of COVID-19 per 100,000 residents than any other Bay Area county. But it warned of an increase in both case counts and hospitalized patients. As the July 4 holiday week-end approached, county officials urged residents to celebrate at home, calling gatherings with people outside of the household “potentially risky.” Santa Clara County reported 141 new coro-

navirus cases Monday for a total case count of 5,408 – and three additional deaths. The new guidelines aligned with California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s announcement July 1 ordering indoor closures for Santa Clara County and 18 other counties. The state’s orders af-fect indoor businesses including restaurants, bars, wineries, movie theaters and museums. Such busi-nesses, which health officials said pose a “high risk” of COVID-19 transmission, will remain closed indefinitely.

Local bar shifts to food Los Altos’ downtown streets were closed off through the Fourth of July weekend as part of the Open Streets program, allow-ing restaurants to set up tables and serve patrons outdoors. “We’re all in this together,” said Jean Luc Kayigire, owner of Amandine Project – a restaurant and bar on First Street – after the county’s announcement Thurs-day. “So we just have to survive. For how long, I’m not sure.” Kayigire launched Amandine Project last summer as primarily

a cocktail bar and lounge, with a limited food menu. But with county-wide bar closures and his bar space closed off indefinitely to the public, Kayigire has had to shift to a more food-based opera-tion and serving customers only outside. Gone are the days when people could mingle at the bar. He’s ex-panding his kitchen by hiring a new full-time chef. Still, Kayigire said last week that Amandine Project’s regular income dropped approximately 75%. He is considering partner-ing with neighboring restaurants to do cocktail programs for them, an idea that would help a little, but not enough – perhaps adding 10% to his sales. “It’s still bad,” Kayigire said. “Nothing will ever make us go back to what we used to have be-fore.” Kayigire is taking a personal financial hit to ensure that his em-ployees are still being paid, but he is concerned for their health and safety. He checks on them every day and knows the social circle they interact with. But cus-tomers are a different story. He

doesn’t know where they’ve been. Most follow guidelines and wear a mask, but he has had to deny service to a few people who tried to enter without face coverings. Some don’t understand why food might take longer to serve, be-cause Kayigire is only allowed to have four employees working at a time. Kayigire said that if corona-virus cases rise in the county, he will consider closing for a couple of weeks, out of a measure of

protection for his employees. He claimed he didn’t open Amandine Project to turn a profit. Safety is first, even if it means Kayigire will have to pay employees to stay home. Despite a surge in COVID-19 cases and stringent social-distancing rules, patrons are eager to hang out downtown. “If it is open, people will show up,” he said. “I’m shocked to see how many people come out. They want to drink, eat, come to restau-rants in downtown Los Altos.”

ORDERFrom Page 1

MARIE GODDERIS/TOWN CRIER INTERN

Amandine Project has had to close its bar service due to the pandemic, but the owner still plans to offer outdoor dining.


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In 2018, the festival accounted for more than 80% of LAVA’s total gross income for fundrais-ing events, bringing in more than $186,000, per the nonprofit orga-nization’s latest available Form 990 filing. “While LAVA continues to work tirelessly supporting Los Altos businesses and promoting our beautiful downtown, we need the community’s help now, more than ever,” Hunter said.

Missed exposure Local wineries that were slat-ed to participate in the festival understood the decision to cancel. “We’re getting used to this

COVID environment, used to the inherent disappointment of it,” said Amy Madsen of Bying-ton Vineyard & Winery in Los Gatos. “It wasn’t a surprise it was canceled.” For Fernwood Cellars, a Gil-roy-based winery that has been participating for nearly a decade, the festival accounts for three-quarters of its July revenue. Own-er Matt Oetinger said the festival attracts an “educated and interest-ed” crowd. He makes only 2,000 cases of wine a year, so he can’t afford to give out a lot of samples at festivals. But the patrons he in-teracts with at the festival are usu-ally educated and interested, with some turning into future clientele. A.T. Howe of San Francisco-based Bass Note Sangria said the

festival “helps expose our brand to lots of folks in the South Bay Area, from Palo Alto to Menlo Park to San Jose.” Howe, who has manned a booth for the past three years, added that he’ll miss the numer-ous chances for either direct sales or other marketing opportunities that result from interaction at the festival. Oetinger also praised LAVA for how it runs the event smoothly year after year. “Makes it a no-brainer for us when the time rolls around every year to commit to the festival,” he said. But as is the case with so many large-scale events, 2020 has wreaked havoc on any sort of plan.

FESTIVALFrom Page 1

News

monthly cost of a 20-gallon gray cart, the smallest receptacle size, rose to $34.33. Annual increases thereafter were set to follow the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The new proposal Hanson introduced last month would lower the rate increase to 2.45% in 2020-2021, pushing the final 9% increase to the 2024-2025 rate year, after which increases would follow the CPI, estimated at 3%.

Comparative analysis In addition to residents up-set about skyrocketing rates, GreenWaste also faces pressure to appease Los Altos Hills leaders after the terms of the company’s new contracts with Portola Val-ley and Woodside became pub-lic knowledge. In those two San Mateo County communities, resi-dents pay $26.65 per month for a 20-gallon gray cart, and they also get two blue carts and up to three green carts included in the price. “Right now, I do feel like we do have concerned residents who feel like the rates have gone up and the service has gone down,” Mayor Michelle Wu said at the June 18 meeting. The discrepancy, Hanson ex-plained, is because Woodside and Portola Valley, unlike Los Altos Hills, feature commercial sectors and unincorporated areas that “lighten the load” on the residen-tial sectors; GreenWaste makes up its needed revenue elsewhere. The San Mateo County cities also don’t benefit from street sweep-ing or compost giveaways, and their town-wide collections of bulky trash items are three-hour

events compared to the six-hour events that take place in Los Altos Hills three times a year. Lately, however, no one has ben-efited from town-wide clean-ups. The Foothill College parking lot that normally hosts the events is under construction, and both the April and June clean-ups were canceled. Foothill-De Anza Commu-nity College District Chancellor Judy Miner recently indicated the Hills could possibly use the school’s Sunnyvale campus for future events, Vice Mayor Kavita Tankha said last week. “Now what they’re trying to do is nail down a date when it can happen at the Sunnyvale cam-pus, which is quite close to us,” Tankha said. Cahill has proposed July 25, but he is waiting for confirmation. In the meantime, he’s working to form a subcommittee of residents that will complete a comparative analysis of Los Altos Hills’ gar-

bage contract with those of other nearby towns and investigate complaints about GreenWaste customer service. Some residents, for example, are upset because GreenWaste drivers left their gar-bage behind. The pandemic has heralded a boom in package de-liveries, meaning more cardboard to recycle, and some residents are not bundling it correctly or it doesn’t tumble into the collection trucks like it should. GreenWaste drivers don’t want to touch these left-behind articles for fear of contracting COVID-19, Cahill said. “I think folks are just con-cerned, and we’re concerned, too, because if there is a significant in-fection, that disrupts service,” he said. “But I want to be respectful of their desire to follow certain protocols.” The subcommittee will likely present a report to council mem-bers at their August meeting, Ca-hill added.

GARBAGEFrom Page 4


A GreenWaste Recovery employee empties a garbage dumpster outside Los Altos Hills Town Hall. Economic pressures from COVID-19 have influenced a rate-increase cut.

Find more articles at losaltosonline.com


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The Los Altos Town Crier, ISSN 87504585, is published weekly every Wednesday by LATC Media Inc., 138 Main St., Los Altos 94022. Periodicals Postage Paid at Los Altos, CA. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the Los Altos Town Crier, 138 Main St., Los Altos, CA 94022. The Los Altos Town Crier is an adjudicated newspaper of general circulation for Santa Clara County: Decree No. 328150. Yearly subscription rates in advance: within county, $40; seniors, $30; out of county, $50.

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Letters to the Editor Peek into the Past

COURTESY OF LOS ALTOS HISTORY MUSEUM

Taken by William B. Blankenburg, the above photograph captures two boys drying apricots circa 1959.

By Connie Miller

Our local journalists failed to fact-check data, result-ing in publishing mis-

leading information about an im-portant topic – reach codes. The Los Altos Town Crier and Daily Post relied solely on information promoted by Los Altos Residents (LAR), an organization that claims to represent the voice of the people but is anything but. The July 1 Town Crier article was perhaps the most egregious, describing overwhelming public opposition to reach codes, which is blatantly false. This article further implies an existing cloud over Mayor Jan Pepper’s credibil-ity to weigh in on the upcoming reach code vote, which is person-ally damaging to our mayor. Time and again, LAR pulls its influence and the Town Crier falls for it. The fact is, buildings comply-ing with reach codes are better for one’s health, offer better air quality and are less expensive to build, less expensive to maintain, faster to build and less catastro-phe prone. I’m not sure why this no-brainer of a choice is being opposed by a select few leaders of LAR. But LAR’s leadership certainly does not speak for the population of Los Altos they claim to represent, nor are all their stats published accurate and

unbiased. Just take a few of the recently published claims. LAR claims strong commu-nity opposition to reach codes and urges the city council to be a “representative democracy” and vote against reach codes. The city took an initial survey and got people’s perception of the issue, which trended negative. Then, the city conducted a webinar about what reach codes were and posted more information and a Q&A to further educate the public. The post-outreach survey shows a clear preference for some sort of reach code. Only 27.3% of responses call for “No Reach Codes,” not the 73% that LAR is pushing from old data that the Town Crier published in a June 3 letter to the editor and July 1 ar-ticle. In fact, a significant number of responses favor implementing all-electric reach codes in new construction and major remodels. Members of LAR have targeted Mayor Pepper to urge her to recuse herself from the reach-code vote by citing a con-flict of interest. After twice being cleared, once by the city attorney and a second time by the state of California Fair Political Practices Commission, LAR leaders con-

tinue to discredit Mayor Pepper about her alleged conflict. Finally, LAR claims there has not been enough public outreach on the subject compared to neighboring cities and asks for a delay of the vote until commen-surate outreach is done. Diane Bailey, with the Campaign for Fossil Free Buildings in Silicon Valley, follows the reach-code ef-forts in every city in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. Ac-cording to Bailey, “Los Altos has had much more outreach than most cities, by a lot!” Los Altos started its public outreach last November or earli-er. Many residents from Novem-ber through June have spoken. Outreach to our community from both sides of the issue has in-cluded multiple articles in online forums, newsletters, a webinar followed by YouTube posting and multiple e-blasts. This subject has been covered and outreach has occurred, period. Representatives of LAR will continue to try to delay a decision on reach codes while dozens of communities, 15 or so in the Bay Area, have adopted them. This stalling of progress in our city by spreading misinformation under the guise of a representative organization is immoral at best. Connie Miller is a Los Altos resident.

See LETTERS, Page 9

BCS can’t pick & choose charter laws to follow In the Town Crier article “BCS gets over $2M PPP loan” (June 24), Bullis Charter School board chairman Francis La Poll justifies taking federal Paycheck Protection Program funds by saying that “BCS receives signif-icantly less funding per student in state and local tax revenue compared to LASD schools.” It’s important to be clear that the state of California (and not the Los Altos School District) specifies the per-student funding that BCS is entitled to receive, and that BCS receives the full amount required under Califor-nia charter law. California charter law also grants BCS substantial opera-tional freedom through exemp-tion from many of the state re-quirements and resulting costs that apply to school districts. BCS can use this freedom from compliance requirements and costs to design the program it wants, and is free to raise its own funds to supplement state-mandated funds. Because the BCS board is unelected, it is unaccountable to voters for its choices. Accepting the state-mandat-ed per-student funding in ex-change for operational freedom is the fundamental charter deal that BCS founders (including

Mr. La Poll) chose when they created BCS, and it’s the same deal that the BCS board contin-ues to choose by maintaining BCS operations. Nothing obli-gates BCS to continue to accept California’s charter deal. Alternatively, BCS could become a private school and charge the tuition it wants for its operations, or it could even cease operations and have its students depart to their home-district schools, other charters or private schools. BCS has complete power to choose whether to accept the charter deal, but it can’t choose only the elements it likes most.

Danielle JamesLos Altos

BCS PPP loan ‘morally bankrupt’ Francis La Poll’s response to Bullis Charter School and other charter schools accepting forgivable Paycheck Protection Program loans was an attempt to pivot away from the main point of this news. Of course BCS receives Lo-cal Control Funding Formula allocations, just like all other charter schools in the state. It’s part of the deal established by the state. Charters do not have

Group, media mislead on preference for reach codes

Other Voices


Letters to the editor

The Town Crier welcomes let-ters to the editor on current

events pertinent to Los Altos, Los Altos Hills and Mountain View. Email letters to [email protected]. Please limit letters to no more than 200 words. Anon-ymous letters will not be pub-lished.

Other Voices

CommentRacism in our neighborhood

By R Lisa Bernard

Recently, a woman who happens to live at the end of my block in Los Altos made a horrific request on

Nextdoor. The post was addressed to an African-American friend of mine. The author states that according to the cen-sus, there were “150 black people in Los Altos.” She then continues: “But (e)very white person I know says I have never see (sic) anyone black in Los Altos.” She then makes a request of my friend to bring her “whole family, mixed or what-ever, to make being black in downtown Los Altos normal.” Apparently, the wom-an thought this was an “awesome” idea: have the Black family wander the streets downtown, so people can gawk. I grew up in a suburban town in north-ern New Jersey, not too dissimilar to Los Altos, where I have lived for almost 30 years. There was a single Black family

in my hometown; ironically, they hap-pened to live at the end of my block. In third grade, I received my first kisses in a “kissing contest,” which consisted of a chaste peck on the cheek. One of the three boys vying for my attention was my neighbor. It was completely unre-markable to me that I was white and he was not. It turns out that it actually was a big deal at the time to have an African-American family in our town. They moved away after a few years, but a lot of people moved around. There was anti-Semitism as well as racism. I had rocks thrown at me, and my brother was shoved into a locker and punched in the mouth because “Hitler missed a few” and we were “Christ-

killers.” I think it is reasonable to assume my neighbors relocated, as they felt they were not welcome in the community. Fast forward 50 years. I would have thought it would be different by now, but nothing has changed. Ignorance and rac-ism are still rampant in this country. The shootings of unarmed men of color by the police have been happening for de-cades, more likely centuries; it is just the ubiquity of cellphones that has provided visual evidence and that, belatedly, is starting to hold the police accountable for their actions. The charges brought against Derek Chauvin and his fellow officers in Minneapolis, along with those an-nounced recently against Garrett Rolfe, the officer who shot and killed Ray-shard Brooks as he ran away, are a start. Footage revealed that not only did Rolfe fail to administer medical assistance to Brooks, which he is under oath to do, he

actually kicked Brooks’ lifeless body. As a pediatrician in Santa Clara County, I see many, in my neighbor’s words, “mixed or whatever” families. As a white woman, I can’t imagine having to fear for my children’s safety when they go for a jog, or a drive, or on a fast-food run. I have not been indifferent to the struggles of families of color in our com-munity, but I sure as hell haven’t been as much of an advocate as I should have. And for that, I apologize to my patients, and friends, and the community at large. So, to my neighborhood “Karen” (as white women of privilege have come to be known) and all of her ilk, I say: Being Black in Los Altos, or anywhere else in this country, is and should be “normal.” People of color are welcome in our com-munity; you, however, are not. R Lisa Bernard is a Los Altos resi-dent.

LETTERSFrom Page 8

to follow a significant portion of the Education Code, and their teachers are not protected by a union. This was the case when La Poll and his fellow charter leaders founded the school, and it is still true today. Also, just like school dis-tricts and other charter schools, BCS has received extra funding through the CARES Act. The problem with BCS’ use of PPP funds is obvious in the program name – Paycheck Protection Program. This money was intended to keep small businesses and non-profits alive and paying staff. BCS has a $1.1 million reserve, over 7%, and the Bullis Founda-tion has at least $7 million, per recent tax filings. BCS is not at risk of laying off staff, going into bankruptcy or not paying rent. Taking tax-payer money when Bullis Char-ter School has not lost fund-ing and has already received CARES Act funds is a morally bankrupt decision.

Tamara LoganLos Altos

Automated cameras discourage speeding A year ago I drove in many small towns in France, and there were automated camera speed traps in every small village. I had been warned and paid a lot of attention to the speed limits; I did not receive any speeding tickets in the mail.

Automation is used to lower the labor component to achieve some result. In my experience, speed-trap cameras are effective and result in slowing traffic as needed. Meanwhile, in Los Altos I find speeders on Foothill Ex-pressway, and much worse on Highway 85 and Interstate 280. I suspect these automatic systems can generate revenue with mini-mum labor, add to government funding and improve social con-ditions. Local police can spend their time on more pressing is-sues.

Stan MazorLos Altos

Town Crier ‘blew it’ with council coverage I have lived in Los Altos for 39 years and I used to think the Town Crier was a reputable newspaper. Now I am not so sure. The problem with a small-town newspaper is that the “movers and shakers” all know each other. The people who own and run the paper do not want to make any of their friends and colleagues angry or uncomfort-able by reporting on negative things that happen to one of their own, especially during this time of Black Lives Matter. Unfortunately, this is the time to stand for truth and integrity in reporting, and Melissa Hart-man tried to do her job in just that manner. It’s a shame that the Town Crier decision makers are cowardly and were willing to lose an excellent reporter be-cause they fear upsetting anyone

who they think is important. They had a choice to report the event that happened in council chambers in a timely fashion and they blew it. They played it safe. The Town Crier, as a voice for all the residents in Los Al-tos, is now called into question. I think a public apology is due to the readership and especially to Melissa.

Debbie BakerLos Altos

Editor’s note: Los Altos City Councilwoman Jeannie Bru-ins used a phrase with racist origins – “out of your cotton-picking mind” – at a May 20 council meeting, and the Town Crier first reported on it June 4. We hear the community’s criticism. The event, and re-action to it, deserved decisive, straightforward and timely coverage, and our newspaper’s response didn’t meet that mark in several respects. As an orga-nization, we have the responsi-bility and capacity to do better. The first step for us internally has been to analyze where our process failed, and how we can consistently and insightfully

meet the standards our readers rightly expect.

Article on reach codes poorly researched I am writing as a resident of Los Altos and not in my role as chair of the Los Altos Environ-mental Commission. I am upset by the low-quality standard for reporting demon-strated in the July 1 Town Crier article “Los Altos council set to vote on reach codes.” The writer obviously did not research and report on the topic. Instead, the article seems based on informa-tion obtained from the opposing Los Altos Residents group. I believe, and am fairly cer-tain, that no members of city staff or the Environmental Com-mission were contacted to check the accuracy of (a) the data pre-sented, (b) the mostly noncred-ited con statements made by the Los Altos Residents group and (c) the noncredited pro state-ments. Publicly available informa-tion shows that two public sur-veys were conducted by the En-vironmental Commission with quite different results (the article references only the first survey; see June 8, 2020, Environmental Commission Meeting Agenda, Item 3 attachment). Concerning the claim of “muted” opposition during the Environmental Commis-sion’s April 29 outreach webi-nar, the panelists responded to public questions submitted via the webinar chat feature, then distributed to registered webi-

nar attendees responses to 90-plus questions and comments received. Also, 16 frequently asked questions are presented on the Environmental Commis-sion’s Reach Codes web page.

Don WeidenLos Altos

Residents appreciate Town Crier We want to share our appre-ciation of the Town Crier for the many contributions it makes to our local community. We are so lucky to have a source that provides us with in-depth local news, locally re-ported. It benefits us by provid-ing the latest news on our city government, budgets, leadership and upcoming election informa-tion. We read about our schools with their sports and academic achievements, local events and what our local clubs and non-profits are doing. Local busi-nesses are able to advertise to the people who live in the com-munity. It allows us to share with neighbors and friends our life’s important milestones; births, deaths, weddings and celebra-tions. Thank you, Town Crier, for being here! Even during the COVID-19 crisis, you kept pub-lishing while some other local papers didn’t. We appreciate your support of community programs, nonprof-its and fundraisers. You keep us informed and entertained. You keep us a community.

Mike and Nancy SchneiderLos Altos


Community

Read our reviews on Yelp to see how we can make a di�erence

Los Altos-based Home Care Agency for Elderly and Disabled

By Eliza RidgewayStaff Writer/[email protected]

Los Altos resident Viresh Ratnakar’s pursuit of clues began with doing cross-

word puzzles, then making them,

then building the infrastructure hosting the puzzle itself. You can use his free open-source software, Exolve, to cre-ate online interactively solvable crosswords – find it on GitHub. He’s a regular crossword setter

for The Hindu, one of India’s major English-language news-papers, and follows the British convention of using a playful pseudonym – Gussalufz – to sign his work. It’s a punning translit-eration of “crossword” to Hindi. Ratnakar deals in cryptic crosswords, which encode the answer in multiple ways, using wordplay to hint at a solution hidden within the clue. “Each clue is a mystery in itself – you have the surface reading,” he explained, “that’s all a decep-tion, because the clue allows it-self to be parsed in a completely different way, where the word becomes a sequence of letters, or instructions to jumble them up, or

take the first part of one and the second part of another.” For a first-timer, the puzzles can be outrageously challeng-ing. Here’s a spoiler from the puzzle Ratnakar set for Town Crier readers this month: Given the clue “What you might get by boiling meats badly,” you tease apart an anagram for meats to find your way to “steam.” This

style of crosswords relies on subtle conventions of guidance that players have to learn over time – hints that puzzle setters use to point you in the right di-rection, if you only know how to read them. If a clue requires jumbled-up letters, it will in-clude reference to being broken or shuffled around. If a hidden

Across8 Any drinks? No?? Bother! (5)9 Figure out what goes into izzy, zany ale (7)10 An intricate art, or one form of magic, almost (7)11 The way to approach a wedding is through strong beer (5)12 What you might get by boiling meats badly (5)14 After crossing western bor- ders, she sights mountains (7)16 Let hip-hop make a com- back, mate (7)18 Cut connecting knot, child (5)20 Even in the qualifiers!? (5)22 Cars I’ve totalled to show guts (7)24 A state in America is in utter revolution (7)25 A group of musicians starts to organize concerts to entertain townspeople (5)Down1 Signals from excited dogs cir- cling around on vehicles (6)2 Entrepreneur at the top in green

reforms? Woz, for one (8)3 Ascendant planetary lumino- ity reveals a constellation of stars (including Vega) (4)4 Ill-mannered shark, perhaps, hounding SoCal regularly (6)5 Calling you, essentially, to go for a holiday (8)6 Inspects the foundations of some Berry Ave. houses (4)7 Reportedly imposes a tax for flood protection measures (6)13 A famous painting Tate oddly left behind in a Main St. lot, somehow (4,4)15 He is there too, but no conclu- sions so far (8)16 A part of backup restored quickly (6)17 Republican First Lady left after a show (6)19 Husband gets perplexed stare for a suit (6)21 Vases from empty, unpopular nurseries (4)23 See Shoup Park’s outstanding trail, for starters (4)

See CRYPTIC, Page 14

Stay-at-home special: Los Altos crossword setter creates local puzzle

Last SoloBy Gussalufz

If you are a newcomer to cryptic crosswords, you can reveal puzzle explanations for each clue using the interactive version at losaltosonline.com. Answers, and a few explanations, are on page 14.


Community

El Camino Hospital nurse fosters kittens with special needsBy Kate ArmaniniTown Crier Editorial Intern

Most days, Diane Foxen works 12-hour shifts as a nurse caring for sick infants in the neonatal

intensive-care unit at either El Camino Hospital or Santa Clara Valley Medical Center. When she returns home, her day is far from over – Foxen has kittens to care for. Not just any kittens, either. As a vol-unteer for Humane Society Silicon Valley, Foxen specializes in fostering kittens with ringworm. “I know that if I were alone after work, it would be really hard,” the Sunnyvale resident said. “Having my kittens gives me somebody to hold and touch and love – and to give back to society.” Since 2009, Foxen said she has fos-tered nearly 200 kittens, caring for as many as 13 at a time. “Having a foster parent of Diane’s cal-iber taking on some of the most challeng-ing cases has been critical to our mis-sion,” said Cristie Kamiya, HSSV chief

of shelter medicine. “Diane has literally saved the lives of the many kittens she has taken in. Without her, and our many dedicated foster parents, we would not be able to have the lifesaving impact that we do today.” The first cat Foxen fostered, Smudge, had cancer was given only six months to live. Under Foxen’s care, Smudge lived three years longer. “After that, I started getting phone calls from the Humane Society, saying, ‘Hey, Diane, we’ve got this really sick kitten – it’s just like NICU nursing – can you take care of it?’” Foxen said. “And so now my specialty is fostering very sick ringworm kittens.” Ringworm is a treatable skin fungus, but it is highly contagious among kittens. Because it spreads, many cats with ring-worm are put down despite being oth-erwise healthy, according to Foxen. To care for them, she isolates the kittens in a room and gives them medicated baths and oral medication each week.

Facilitating adoption After such extensive care, Foxen said it can be difficult to let the kittens go. To cope, she creates what she calls “kitten adoption bags” for their new families.

The bags contain each kitten’s favorite toys, pictures, Foxen’s homemade cat collar and a letter introducing herself en-couraging the new owners to reach out. “You have to be in the mindset that

you can’t keep them all, and if you do, then you’re not saving any more,” Foxen said. “Every kitten you can let go of to be adopted out, you can save another by bringing it into your home and foster-ing.” After a long shift in the NICU, the kit-tens always make her laugh and smile, she added. “They help on those really bad days when we’ve lost a baby or had a heart-ache,” Foxen said. “People say, ‘You’re a neonatal nurse. I could never do that. You’re a hero.’ But to me, my kittens are my heroes sometimes.” Foxen strongly encourages people to consider fostering animals as way to give back to the community; they might just develop the same kind of strong connec-tion she has with her kittens. “Having this transition from a kitten that may not make it to this healthy kit-ten that is now running around and play-ing, that is just reward in itself,” she said. “Having a foster – whatever animal – I highly suggest it; it can really help people make it through tough times.”

For more information on fostering with Humane Society Silicon Valley, visit hssv.org.

COURTESY OF DIANE FOXEN

Diane Foxen takes care of sick infants as a nurse, as well as kittens, above, with special needs.

Foxen


CommunityNeighbors shelter, garden in place to beautify entranceTown Crier Report

Woodstock Lane resi-dent William Dolan and his neighbors

grew tired of what they saw as neglected city-owned property at the entrance to their 12-home neighborhood. “I have been living on the street for 43 years,” Dolan said. “Despite several attempts, we never could get anyone inter-ested in making the … property look better.” Dolan said the redwood trees on the land “(had) been left to die a slow death, and ivy and nu-merous scrub oak trees and high weeds have been taking over the place. Several trees have died.” So Dolan and his neighbors, sheltering at home during the COVID-19 pandemic, decided to do something about it. “We started talking amongst each other, and we all agreed that we should do it ourselves and that we would all share in the cost,” he said. Dolan said one of his sons

last month spent “many evenings removing all the weeds and 4-inch-thick roots of jasmine … and then hauled eight pickup loads of mulch” to the site. His son also reactivated a sprinkler system for the existing trees, according to Dolan, and “brought them back to life.” They came up with their own landscaping plan, featuring con-trasting colors and drought-toler-ant plants. Neighbors purchased a couple of crepe myrtle trees as their “centerpieces,” Dolan

reported. Also part of the plan: reddish-pink bougainvillea, fire-red loropetalum and some ever-green bushes. Neighbors all met last month, adhering to social distancing, to tame the rock-hard soil and plant their selections. A block party ensued to cel-ebrate the landscaping achieve-ment. “Through this experience and others, we have gotten to know each other and found out what a great bunch of generous, fun and helpful people we have been

sheltering in place with,” Dolan said. “Now we have to find someone who works for the city to approve our work and prop-erly hook us up to a sprinkler system.” Manny Hernandez, Los Altos public works director, said his department is working on it. “They worked with our parks supervisor to plan the land-scaping that they were going to plant,” he said of the Woodstock Lane neighbors. “We are taking care of the irrigation setup.”

COURTESY OF WILLIAM DOLAN

Neighbors on Woodstock Lane beautify the entrance to their Los Altos street last month.

Videos capture spectacle

of local wildlifeTown Crier Report

Visitors to the usually peaceful Redwood

Grove, located off University Avenue in Los Altos, might have been aware of increased activity in recent months. It turns out that the source of the strange – and loud – chat-tering and squawking, high in the canopy, was a colony of nesting great blue herons. Los Altos resident Ron Marks captured the evolution of the event – everything from a male selecting suitable nest-building sticks to present to his mate to feeding and first flights – and posted it on YouTube. Marks’ YouTube chan-nel also includes videos of many other local species of the Adobe Creek watershed, including jackrabbits, wild turkeys and deer. To view Marks’ videos, visit his YouTube channel at tinyurl.com/RMarksWild-life.


MentorTutorConnection.org

Mentor Tutor Connection, a local non-profit that recruits, trains and places volunteer tutors and mentors in MV and LA schools, is seeking a Mentor Program Manager for Mountain View High School. This person will:

• Recruit, interview, screen and enroll students to be mentored

• Interview and train MTC-approved volunteer mentors• Make and support matches between mentors and mentees• Work as a team with the other Mentor Program Managers

This is a part-time paid position. The candidate should be comfortable in building relationships remotely and feel strongly about our mission which is to “help students achieve their potential and thrive.” If you are interested in joining our team, please email [email protected] and we will send you a full job description.

SEEKING A MENTOR PROGRAM MANAGER FOR MVHS

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650-960-6988 • SUNNYVALEFOREIGNCAR.COMMatt the MechanicColumnist for the

Los Altos Town Crier’s “On the Road” section

CommunityGenealogy experts share tips, motivations for researching family rootsBy Megan V. WinslowStaff Writer/[email protected]

From arts and crafts to Ma-rie Kondo-grade reorgs, the COVID-19 pandemic

has afforded the sheltered in place plenty of opportunity to complete any number of long-delayed personal projects. Count among them the family tree chart. While the Santa Clara Coun-ty Library District is temporar-ily closed, free access to An-cestry.com records previously available only in person at li-brary branches is now possible remotely. Another promising resource (for women, at least) is a free genealogy workshop of-fered July 18 by the Los Altos chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution, or DAR. “At the workshop, basically we give an introduction to DAR, because we want people to join and become members,” said Donna M. Santistevan, chapter regent. “But we also help them start out with their family tree … starting out with your parents and your grandparents, knowing as much as you can.” The Daughters of the Ameri-can Revolution began in 1890 in response to a refusal by the Sons of the American Revolu-tion, formed just a year before, to allow women to join their organization. Members of both groups must be able to prove a blood lineage tie to a patriot of the American Revolution. DAR and SAR activities promote three tenets: patriotism, historic preservation and education. There are currently 185,000 DAR members worldwide, but the organization reached the 1 millionth-member mark, cu-

mulative throughout its his-tory, when Amy Dickinson, the newspaper writer behind the syndicated “Ask Amy” advice column, joined this year. Cali-fornia boasts 115 DAR chapters. The Los Altos one has 57 mem-bers. In addition to Ancestry.com, members of the Los Altos DAR chapter recommend exploring FamilySearch.org and FindA-Grave.com for genealogical re-search. Some of these resources, like FindAGrave.com’s database of community-submitted tomb-stone photographs, are free to use. Others, like the version of

Ancestry.com offered through the library, are free but provide only limited access to informa-tion such as census records, wills and birth and death certifi-cates; delving deeper requires a paid subscription. Newspapers.com, powered by Ancestry.com, is a source for obituaries – a po-tential treasure trove of family history – but a paid subscription is required after a free seven-day trial.

Mining records Online collaborative fam-ily trees, available on websites like FamilySearch.org, can be

both a blessing and a curse, warns Donna Kargo Santiste-van, mother of Donna M. and an associate member of the DAR’s Los Altos chapter. “One thing I would really caution you about is do not be-lieve what anybody says when it comes to their own family tree,” Donna Kargo Santistevan said. “You’ll see lots of family trees out there, especially on Ances-try.com – or FamilySearch – and they might provide good clues, but there are just so many mis-

takes, and people tend to take things for granted.” She suggests mining land re-cords, probate records and wills for familial connections. As the Los Altos DAR’s reg-istrar, Liane Jensen helps pro-spective members prepare their paperwork and documentation to send to the national organiza-tion for approval. But research of her own family revealed an exciting personal discovery: William Brewster, a Mayflow-er passenger, is her ancestor. By writing an essay on what it means to be descended from a Pilgrim, Jensen’s 10-year-old daughter Grace earned a spot for the two of them aboard the Mayflower float in the 2020 Pas-adena Rose Parade. They wore period-appropriate costumes made from linen and wool. Jensen recently read an arti-cle describing how children who understand how their ancestors overcame obstacles become more resilient themselves. She said it helps prove the worth of investing time in genealogical projects. “It’s just interesting to know that there’s kind of a more tan-gible (result) than, well, it’s fun, but there’s a definite benefit to doing that, to understanding our place in history.” Due to COVID-19 restric-tions, the July 18 DAR geneal-ogy workshop will take place by Zoom teleconference. Reservations are required. For more information, call Donna M. Santistevan at (303) 881-8474 or email [email protected].

ABOVE IMAGE COURTESY OF LIANE JENSEN; LEFT IMAGE COURTESY OF DONNA M.

SANTISTEVAN

Liane Jensen, above, far right, and her family, Mike, from left, Anne, Sarah and Grace, sit in the May-flower float after the 2020 Rose Pa-rade. A Daughters of the American Revolution document, left, details the patriotic service of Donna M. Santistevan’s Revolutionary War ancestor, Antonio Jose Ortiz.


Community

word must be surfaced, the clue might reference “provides,” “displays” or “features.” Trying to figure out what kind of solu-tion can unlock each clue is a discipline in and of itself. The puzzles don’t stop there – the grid itself has hidden words and secret messages (“ninas”), all often adding up to a uniting theme. A tribute to a German mathematician, for instance, might have a message’s letters hidden in the Sophie Germain primes.

Matching wits “When I was in college, most Indian newspapers would carry a cryptic crossword, typically just a syndicated copy of some-thing from a British newspaper, so I grew up doing those,” Rat-nakar explained. When he came to the U.S. for graduate school, his puzzle playing fell by the wayside until a few years ago, when he stum-bled across online groups do-ing cryptic puzzles. He said the discipline attracts people who love to match wits, hailing from English-speaking communities around the world. “You can be up at 2 a.m. and want to engage, and you just make up a clue, post it, and peo-

ple will be awake in India and respond,” he said. “People who do cryptic crosswords, by and large, tend to have a fondness for humor and wit, so the commu-nity has a lot of bantering and lighthearted fun.” Although Ratnakar sets puz-zles only in English, he added support to Exolve for those who want to create crosswords in other languages such as Hin-di. He said that a puzzle setter grows the seed of an idea, notic-

ing more and more connections, as he or she builds an interlock-ing whole – and, ultimately, a “deep sense of satisfaction.” “You are looking at current events, whatever is going on in your life, whatever you ate to-day, and then something clicks,” he said. To find an interactive ver-sion of this puzzle, others Rat-nakar has developed and more information about Exolve, visit this story at losaltosonline.com.

CRYPTICFrom Page 10

Across 8: Any drinks? No?? Bother! (5) ANNOY. Definition: Bother. ANY around NO, indicated by “... drinks ...” 9: Figure out what goes into fizzy, zany ale (7) ANALYZE. Definition: Figure out what goes into. Anagram of ZANY ALE, indicated by “fizzy ...” 10: An intricate art, or one form of magic, almost (7) ORI-GAMI. Definition: an intricate art. OR + I (“one”) + anagram of

MAGI(c): the anagram is indicat-ed by “form of ...,” and the exclu-sion of the last letter is indicated by “... almost.” 11: The way to approach a wedding is through strong beer (5) AISLE. Definition: The way to approach a wedding. IS inside (indicated by “... through ...”) ALE (“strong beer”). 12: What you might get by boiling meats badly (5) STEAM. Definition: What you might get by boiling. Anagram of MEATS.

The theme of the puzzle is “My Hometown: Los Al-

tos, California.” The title of the puzzle, “Last Solo,” is an anagram of “Los Altos.” The following clue surfaces or solutions are thematic. • The solution to 14-across is “heights” (“Los Altos” in Spanish means “the heights”). • The surface reading of 2-down refers to Steve Woz-niak, who did some of the early work for Apple in Los Altos, with Steve Jobs.

• The surface reading of 6- down refers to Berry Avenue. • The surface reading of 13- down refers to Main Street. • The surface reading of 23- down refers to Shoup Park. • There is also a thematic “nina” in the grid (that is, a hid-den message revealed by look-ing at some formation of letters from the grid). If you read the letters in the squares in the top row and the bottom row in se-quence, they spell out the words “We Love Los Altos”

Extended ‘Last Solo’ solutions – a short teaser: (Find the rest by visiting this story at losaltosonline.com)

COURTESY OF VIRESH RATNAKAR

Viresh Ratnakar, pictured with dog Oona, has a framed copy of Gussalufz’s first crossword in The Hindu on display at home. ‘Last Solo’ solution notes from Gussalufz

Read both print and online editions of the Town Crier

Did you know that some features on losal-tosonline.com do not appear in the print

edition and some items in print do not appear online? That’s why you need to read both. Don’t miss out on all the news about your community.

Library offers curbside pickup

Physical books are making a shelter-in-place comeback for lo-cal readers. Los Altos’ main and Woodland Branch libraries have begun offering curbside pickup, as well as allowing return of checked out library items. To acquire new material, li-brary patrons will need to place a hold via their online account and then visit the library to do a curbside hold pickup Mondays through Saturdays. The libraries have developed a returns system to quarantine items for 72 hours before han-dling them or recirculating them to new borrowers. The due dates for all currently issued materials have been ex-tended through at least July, and though returns will be accepted when curbside service begins, the library’s current policy is that

“there is no rush to return your materials,” a district official said. Library buildings will re-main closed to the public, except rooms that are being intermit-tently operated as cooling cen-ters during heat waves. For more information, visit sccld.org.

LAH committee taps residents for art proj-ect Los Altos Hills’ Public Art Committee encourages resi-dents to submit iconography ideas for inclusion in a yet-to-be sculpted artwork meant to represent facets of life in town. Examples include images of an apricot orchard, deer graz-ing or Silicon Valley technol-ogy at work. The Los Altos Hills City Council approved the request to commission “Hills Helix” by Roger White Stoller, a San Jose artist who specializes in large works integrating stainless steel, bronze and granite. Purchase of the sculpture

was made possible through a $100,000 donation from Hills resident and artist Karen Druker. It will stand between 10 and 12 feet tall and consist of stainless steel formed in a conic shape, showcasing the iconography. Submissions may include photos or sketches. Email up to three JPEG images to the Pub-lic Art Committee at [email protected] by 5 p.m. July 26. Include the participant’s full name, a description of the im-age, the location of the scene depicted and an explanation of what the image says about Los Altos Hills.

Museum archive ‘peeks’ into past The Los Altos History Mu-seum is creating a digital ar-chive of “Peek into the Past” photos that have been regularly featured in the Town Crier. To access the photo archive, visit the museum’s Collections page at losaltoshistory.org/col-lections.

Community Briefs


Community

Blooming bigLocal residents are cultivating plants that are growing so large, one might easily mistake them for trees. Longtime Los Altos Hills residents Richard, Judy and Sandi Fimmel showed off a century plant, top right, in the backyard of their Hilltop Drive home, with its “amazing spire that continues to grow daily,” the Fimmels wrote. “It must be near-ing 30 feet. It’s blossoming and awe inspiring. We had some fire-men here recently. They were in total amazement.” Meanwhile, Marcia Adams of Los Altos offered a photo of her family’s towering, flower-ing agave plant, bottom right, on the street in front of their yard on Gordon Way. “It is attracting a lot of attention with people stopping to take photos,” Adams said.

City of Los Altos launches virtual summer programsSpecial to the Town Crier

The city of Los Altos is expanding its Virtual Recreation Center by of-

fering online programs. Since the COVID-19 pan-demic prompted cancellation of in-person recreation summer offerings, city staff launched the Virtual Summer Clubhouse, featuring recreation programs and classes taught by various external organizations and in-structors. “Over the last month, the recreation staff have been hard at work to create safe, virtual options for the entire communi-ty,” said Donna Legge, director of Recreation and Community Services. “Understanding the unpredictability of the coro-

navirus pandemic, we strive to offer creative programs and classes for residents to stay ac-tive mentally and physically.” City recreation leaders will host the Virtual Summer Club-house, designed for children ages 3-11 years. Offerings in-clude themed activities in a small-group setting. There are also various sports, music and arts-related programs and class-es for children and adults. Registration is open. Club-house sessions run through Aug. 28.

To view a full list of summer activities, visit losaltosrecre-ation.org. For more information, call 947-2790 or email [email protected].

TOP PHOTO COURTESY OF THE FIMMELS; BOTTOM PHOTO COURTESY OF MARCIA ADAMS

Free COVID-19 testing funded by the El Camino Healthcare District is now available for those who live, work or go to school within the District.*

Call 650-940-7022 and select Option #4 to schedule your free test. For more information on testing and locations, go to elcaminohealth.org/covid19testing

FREECOVID-19TESTING


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Connecting our diverse community to God...

www.ConnectBCC.org 650.948.5698 - 625 Magdalena Ave, Los Altos 94024

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Religious Directory

St. Simon Catholic

Church & School

Mass Schedule: Weekday: 6:30 a.m. & 8:30 a.m. Saturday: 8:30 a.m. & 5:00 p.m. Sunday: 7:30, 9:00, 11:15, 5:00 p.m.

Rev. Warwick James, Pastor1860 Grant Rd, Los Altos

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UNION CHURCHA Community of Christ Followers

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IMMANUEL LUTHERANCHURCH IN LOS ALTOS

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Come Share the Spirit9:00 Contemporary Serviceand Sunday School






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Stepping OutTown Crier Report

Following “Hershey Felder as Irving Berlin: Live from Florence,” which streamed world-wide in May, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley is

teaming with Felder again. A livestreamed performance of “Hershey Felder: Beethoven,” based on the original stage direction by Joel Zwick, is set for 5 p.m. Sunday. Streamed from Italy, Felder will bring Ludwig van Beethoven to life through the eyes of a Viennese doctor who spent his boyhood by Beethoven’s side. Those who buy tickets can watch “Beethoven” live online or view a recorded performance in the

72 hours that follow. Felder is a performer, playwright and director who has starred in solo shows as Claude Debussy, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Fryderyk Chopin and Leonard Bernstein. In this show, he embodies Beethoven and Dr. Gerhard von Breuning, who as a boy spent time by the com-poser’s side and cared for him in the last years of his life. The performance features some of Beethoven’s greatest works, including “Moonlight Sonata,” “Ninth Symphony” and the “Emperor Concerto.” Tickets are $55 per household. For tickets and more information, call 463-1960 or visit theatreworks.org.

TheatreWorks to livestream ‘Hershey Felder: Beethoven’

By Kaley KwanTown Crier Editorial Intern

Western Ballet dancer Natalie Young, a rising

senior at Los Altos High School, recently partnered with the Mountain View-based ballet school to pro-duce mask-making kits for residents of the Brookdale senior living community in Redwood City. Young – whose grand-parents live at Brookdale – said the idea originated from her concern about seniors, who are at especially high risk if they contract COVID-19. “This really is a lot about bringing my community together, es-pecially my ballet community. No one expected this pandemic, and it has hit a lot of people hard,” said Young, who joined Western Ballet at age 6. “I just wanted to keep my community in touch. (By) making masks, you can bond with your family and work together.” Assisted by her family, Young added that her goal is to provide 260 mask kits to Brookdale residents. Each kit consists of precut fabric with lines drawn for sewing. The kits also come with filter material and, if necessary, sewing needles and thread. When she and her family began to run out of fabric, Young said she turned to Western Ballet, which had extra fabric to donate. Young reached out to the families of the Western Ballet com-munity to help her make the mask kits. Volunteers sign up using a Google form. For more information on Western Ballet, visit westernballet.org.

COURTESY OF NATALIE YOUNG

Local ballet dancer Natalie Young displays the mask kits she made for residents of a senior community.

Western Ballet dancer makes mask kits for seniors


SchoolsBy Zoe MorganStaff Writer/[email protected]

With the new school year set to begin next month, Santa Clara

County has now released de-tailed guidance on what must occur before campuses reopen. The county’s Public Health Department released a 23-page guide June 30 that included both requirements that must be in place before in-person classes can resume and recom-mendations the county urges districts to follow. Among the requirements, el-ementary school students must remain within a stable class-room cohort for the entire school day, while junior high and high school students must wear face coverings in the classroom. The guidance applies to all K-12 schools in the county, both public and private. Re-suming in-person instruction, with safety protocols in place, should be the priority, the guid-ance states. “School closures magnify so-cioeconomic, racial, and other inequities among students,” the guidance states. “Disruption of normal childhood social inter-actions also have a profound ad-verse impact on students’ social and emotional well-being.” According to Los Altos School District Superintendent Jeff Baier, the county’s guide-lines are generally in line with what his district had been pre-paring for. However, accelerat-ing case counts could present challenges to reopening. “It’s a bit of a balancing act here, trying to accomplish the

reopening of schools in the throes of spiking numbers,” Bai-er said. Whether schools are actu-ally able to move forward with reopening will depend on the virus’ containment in the com-ing weeks, according to a county press release. Gov. Gavin New-

som announced tightened re-strictions July 1, closing restau-rants, bars and movie theaters in 19 counties, including Santa Clara County.

Planning to reopen The county’s guidance to schools varies by age group.

The focus for younger kids is on maintaining stable cohorts, while for older students the pri-ority is physical distancing and face coverings. The county recommends that all classes are “as small as practicable,” though a specific number isn’t given. Elemen-

tary schoolers are required to be within one stable classroom cohort for the entire school day. For upper grades, maintaining a stable cohort is recommended, if feasible. At all grade levels, teacher desks must be 6 feet away from students, and students must be in stable seating arrangements. For junior high and high school students, space is required to be maximized between desks and 6 feet is recommended. If the appropriate distance is not pos-sible, the county recommends placing barriers between stu-dents. All students will have to wear face coverings at certain times, including when outside the classroom, unless eating, drinking or engaging in physi-cal activity. Elementary school-ers are encouraged to wear face coverings in class, while it is re-quired of older students. Adults must wear face coverings at all times, except if eating or drink-ing. There are exceptions to the face covering rules, including for students with special needs who can’t tolerate wearing one. The county also advises against excluding students from class who occasionally don’t wear a face covering or if a few students are consistently unable to. “The small increase in risk of disease transmission does not justify classroom exclusion, but students without face coverings should maintain physical dis-tance to the extent feasible,” the guidance states. Outside of the classroom, the county recommends that at

County establishes guidelines for reopening schools

By Zoe MorganStaff Writer/[email protected]

The Mountain View Los Altos Union High School District has created a

new position overseeing dis-tance learning, in an attempt to improve the district’s remote offerings as next school year ap-proaches. The district’s board of trust-ees voted unanimously at a meeting Monday to appoint Teri Faught to the newly created role

of distance e d u c a t i o n administra-tor. Faught has served as an assistant principal at M o u n t a i n View High School since 2017. Superintendent Nellie Meyer recommended Faught for the new role, and all five trustees spoke positively about her. Trustee Phil

Faillace said he thought she was an “outstanding selection” based on her years of positive contribu-tions to the district. “I feel very humbled by all those comments and I feel very honored at this opportunity,” Faught said. Educational technology has always been a passion for Faught, who said she sees the potential technology has to make learning more individualized. School clo-sures have necessitated a rapid switch from in-person learning

to online offerings. The district has not yet an-nounced how school will be reopening in the fall. Adminis-trators are planning for various scenarios, ranging from fully online to a complete return to in-person instruction, with safe-ty measures in place. District officials are plan-ning to bring a recommenda-tion for a fall reopening plan to the board sometime this month, Meyer said in an interview last week.

“The sooner the better. We have most of the pieces togeth-er,” Meyer said. “We’re still determining what a schedule would look like and then we’re also making sure that we have clear guidelines as far as stu-dent and teacher expectations.” The proposal the board ap-proves could change as the pandemic shifts, Meyer added, and the district will continue to monitor the situation and adjust plans throughout the course of the school year.

MVLA hires distance-learning admin as fall plans take shape

Faught

TOWN CRIER FILE PHOTOS

Since school closed in mid-March, campuses have sat largely empty. Santa Clara County has now released guidance laying out what must occur before students can return to the classroom.

See COUNTY, Page 20


Schools

recess, children are separated into different areas by class and/or that recesses are staggered throughout the day. Physical education classes should be held outside whenever possible, the county recommends. Extracurricular activities aren’t allowed unless 6 feet of distance and face coverings are possible at all times. In particu-lar, the county bans “aerosol generating activities,” including in-person choir, band and “vo-cal cheerleading,” according to the guidance. School sports are going to be addressed in future guidance. Once campuses reopen, fre-quently touched hard surfaces

will have to be disinfected at least daily. That includes desks, chairs, door handles, playground equipment and toilets. The county also lays out pro-cedures for screening students and staff for COVID-19, as well as what to do if someone tests positive. Daily symptom screen-ings are required for all students and staff, though they can be conducted at home. If done on campus, schools can use self-reporting, visual inspection or a questionnaire. Temperature screening is explicitly not required, because of its limited effectiveness and potential harms, the guid-ance states. People can spread COVID-19 before developing a fever, and some people never de-velop any symptoms but still in-

fect others. Temperature screen-ings have drawbacks, the county states, including the risk to those measuring temperatures and the time it would take to screen each student. Any student or staff with identified COVID-19 symp-toms, or a temperature above 100 degrees, must be sent home immediately. Monthly testing is encouraged for all staff. If a staff member or student tests positive, it must be im-mediately reported to school administrators, as well as if a household member or close con-tact tests positive. Schools are required to notify all staff and families in the school commu-nity of confirmed cases, while maintaining legally required confidentiality.

By Jenna WebsterTown Crier Editorial Intern

A Los Altos teen has cre-ated an organization dedicated to teach-

ing preschool and elementary students more about STEM through workshops with hands-on activities and discussion. Jessica Young, a rising senior at Los Altos High School, came up with the idea for STEMpow-er during her sophomore year and began leading workshops in February at Almond School through a joint initiative with the YMCA of Silicon Valley. “I decided to combine them together (so) I could teach stu-dents about some of the passions that I enjoy, such as computer

science or other STEM-related topics,” said Young, who also tutors elementary students in math, is involved with the WiSTEM (Women in STEM) club and takes AP Computer Science at Los Altos High. Prior to the pandemic, Young led hourlong workshops at Al-mond, joined by Los Altos High classmates May Jiang and Al-lison Hong. They put together a Google slides lecture and guid-ed the students through two to three activities. At the end, the students talked through discus-sion questions with each other. Topics included evolution of animals, Python computer pro-gramming, the environment, space and chemistry. “I really like the smile in

their eyes, like when they widen in surprise, or when they’re re-ally into something and they’re, like, ‘Whoa, I didn’t know this was a thing,’” Young said. Young added that her favor-ite activity occurred during the density lesson when students ex-perimented with layering drinks depending on how much sugar was in each drink. They filled water bottles with mango juice, fruit punch and lemonade, with mango juice at the bottom be-cause it had the most sugar, and lemonade at the top. Since the shelter-in-place be-gan in March, Young has found a new way to continue STEM-power. After reaching out to Daniel Koba, the YMCA’s ex-ecutive director of youth devel-opment, she found a solution. STEMpower began leading workshops virtually, but this time to a new group of kids: the children of El Camino Hospital doctors. “Since a lot of families or parents are working, they don’t have a lot of time to spend with their children, so through these videos we’ve created and posted online, they can entertain them-selves while also learning some educational info,” Young said.

Online workshops At first it was difficult to ad-just to the virtual workshops on top of adjusting to life and school at home, Young explained. She said one of the hardest parts has been creating content for such a wide age range, 3-12. But in

transitioning to online work-shops, Young has also realized how she can work to expand STEMpower. “I want to possibly expand it to other places in the U.S., not just in the Bay Area,” she said. “Hopefully when the shelter-in-place is lifted and we’re all safe and able to go back to school, I want to reach out to different schools and host more work-shops.” Young hopes the STEMpow-er students are learning about the wide range of possibilities and careers in STEM. “They’re not stuck to one path or a few certain paths that they only know – there’s so much out there that they can do in the fu-ture,” she said. Young noted that in the year it took to launch STEMpower,

she has learned how important making connections is. “I’m a person who’s kind of shy, so I don’t necessarily enjoy or I’m not used to reaching out to strangers or people I don’t know that well,” she said. “After this experience, I’m more com-fortable reaching out to others and asking for help.” Young also has come to real-ize what she’s capable of. “If I set my mind to it and I’m really passionate about some-thing that I want to complete or do, I can get it done,” she said. Young, Jiang, Hong and new teammate Margaret Capetz are now working with the YMCA to put together a summer sched-ule and figuring out next steps to keep the virtual workshops going. For more information, visit stempowerus.org.

Los Altos High School student promotes power of STEM

COURTESY OF JESSICA YOUNG

Jessica Young, a rising senior at Los Altos High School, works on STEMpower, an organization she created.

COUNTYFrom Page 19


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Schools

The county’s guidelines do offer latitude for bringing more students back on campus, espe-cially at the younger grades, Bai-er said. The county’s focus for elementary schoolers is on main-taining stable cohorts, while for older students it is on physical distancing and face coverings. Baier said he intends to talk with the board about the potential to bring more elementary school students back on campus. However, starting with a blended approach that involves fewer students on campus at any given time will make it easier to roll out new safety protocols, Baier said. “We are going to be charged with enforcing and teaching our adults and children dozens of new procedures,” he said.

Community weighs in When the plan for blended learning was presented at the June 29 board meeting over Zoom, approximately 20 par-ents and teachers tuned in to offer comments, questions and concerns. They ranged from specific queries about the details of the plan to broader concerns about the overall direction for the fall. Parent Amy Madsen said she appreciated the work ad-ministrators have put in but was concerned about the blended ap-proach. “If it’s three days per week where the kids are at home, with only two hours of live interac-tion, I still see a lot of loneliness,

I still see a high dependency on a self-service learning model, and I still see a tremendous bur-den or expectation of parent in-volvement,” Madsen said. Teachers also raised concerns about the workload required to roll out both online and in-per-son instruction, as well as po-tential health risks for teachers interacting with many students each week. Teacher Laurel McNeil said that a lot is being expected of teachers in a short amount of time, as they change the nature of education in a matter of months. “I also appreciate the work that’s gone into this (plan), but I will say that it looks very op-timistic and I echo the other teachers’ concerns,” McNeil said. “All of those learning plans are yet to be created and they do take tremendous amounts of time to put those together.”

Hybrid approach The district’s recommended approach for reopening schools is based on a model of A and B rotations. Group A will be on campus Mondays and Tuesdays, while group B will come to school Thursdays and Fridays. All students will work from home on Wednesdays, as well as the two days the other group is on campus. At the elementary school level, the two days on campus will focus on English and math, plus social-emotional learning. Classes also may work on cer-tain hands-on science and social studies activities. However, the bulk of social studies, science, PE and special activities will be

completed at home. Junior high school students will have four periods during the days they are on campus. Sev-enth-graders will have English, math, a rotation of either science or social studies, and an elective. Eighth-graders will have English, math, science and social studies. Electives for eighth-graders, as well as PE for both grades, will be online. There also will be the option to take language classes or music virtually. Parents will have the option to keep their children home, learn-ing entirely online. If families change their minds, every six weeks there will be the chance to transition kids between online learning and the blended ap-proach. For those choosing the

blended option, siblings will be kept on the same Monday/Tues-day or Thursday/Friday rotation. For the days they are online, students should expect roughly two hours of live instruction each day, with the rest of their time spent working more in-dependently. Each student will have a self-paced learning plan to guide their studies. Some of the work to create remote lessons will be complet-ed at the district level, in an ef-fort to free up teachers to spend more time focusing on in-person learning. On Wednesdays, when all students are remote, teachers will be given time to prep les-sons. “We’re asking teachers to re-create the great work that they

do in classrooms in a completely different format,” Associate Su-perintendent of Curriculum and Instruction Sandra McGonagle said. “It just requires more time than they’ve needed, I would say, to do their job in the past.” At last week’s board meet-ing, trustees asked questions about the plan and provided feedback. Trustee Vladimir Iva-novic said the district’s plan is a great framework, but there are still many smaller details being worked out which have the po-tential to make a big impact. “It’s clear that a huge amount of tolerance is going to be need-ed for us to be able to be suc-cessful,” Ivanovic said. “All I ask is for everybody to dial up the tolerance that they have.”

By Marie GodderisTown Crier Editorial Intern

Gardner Bullis School’s BookQuest, a cel-ebration honoring the

school’s young writers, had a different look this year. The fourth annual event was held virtually June 8 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. BookQuest, inspired by Al-mond School’s BookWave pro-gram, gives students in grades K-6 the opportunity to create their own books. During the spring of each school year, student authors, parents and other Gardner Bul-

lis community members gather at the school to display the pub-lished works in the multipurpose room. A guest author is invited to speak. This year’s BookQuest, origi-nally scheduled April 2 – Inter-national Children’s Book Day – was postponed until June, and the students displayed their books over Zoom. Devik Schreiner, a Gardner Bullis teacher and author, served as guest speaker. His presenta-tion featured stories of his expe-riences as a writer, followed by a live Q&A session. For every book published, $5 was donated to the Gardner

Bullis Student Council’s cause of choice – Lucile Packard Chil-dren’s Hospital. In total, the event raised $450. This year, 56 published authors were honored, including an entire kindergarten class. The kindergartners cre-ated a book called “Cookbook of Kindness,” with each child contributing one page. “The children really enjoy the program,” co-chairwoman Anna Kermani said. “You can see the pride in their eyes when they get their book and open their own book and illustrate it. We have a really nice variety of stories that come out of this program.”

Gardner Bullis moves BookQuest online

For more stories, check out losaltosonline.com.


Gardner Bullis School, above, sits largely empty, but the Los Altos School District is planning for students to return in the fall.

REOPENINGFrom Page 1


SFHS grad Johnson returns to NBA St. Francis High graduate Tyler Johnson has signed with the Brooklyn Nets for the planned restart of the NBA season July 30 in Or-lando, Fla. The 6-foot-3 combo guard is in his sixth NBA season. Undrafted out of Fresno State, the Moun-tain View native previously played for the Miami Heat and Phoenix Suns.

Local high schools seek coaches Los Altos High seeks head coaches for varsity girls bas-ketball and wrestling, both winter sports, and cheer/rally, which runs fall through winter. To apply and for more information, contact athletic director Michelle Noeth at 960-8811, ext. 2023, or [email protected]. Mountain View High seeks a head coach for girls golf, a fall sport. To apply and for more information, con-tact athletic director Shel-ley Smith at 940-4600, ext. 1421, or [email protected].

CIF offers newsletter for athletes’ parents The California Interscho-lastic Federation, the govern-ing body for the state’s high school sports, issues a free monthly newsletter via email for parents/guardians of stu-dent-athletes in California. The newsletter aims to keep parents informed of issues like health and safety, eli-gibility and upcoming state championship events. To sub-scribe and for more informa-tion, visit cifstate.org.

TC invites readers to submit story ideas If you have an idea for a local sports story or would like to comment on the sec-tion, contact sports editor Pete Borello. He can be reached four ways: by email at [email protected]; by phone at 948-9000, ext. 315; by fax at 948-9213; or by regular mail at 138 Main St., Los Al-tos, CA 94022.

By Pete BorelloStaff Writer/[email protected]

The installation of cameras to livestream sporting events at Los Altos and

Mountain View highs couldn’t have come at a better time. The automated cameras slated to be installed in the stadiums and gyms at both schools this summer might be the only way fans will be able to watch home football games and volleyball matches during the fall season because of the coronavirus pandemic. “With so much uncertainty

about how COVID-19 will in-fluence sports and how we view them this fall, the cameras could provide an unplanned benefit should games be forced to be played without spectators,” said Los Altos High School Athletic Boosters member Sam Player, who is spearheading the installa-tion effort at that school. The camera project has been in the works for more than a year at Los Altos, according to Player, whose wife Angela is co-president of the booster club. Mountain View got the ball rolling in De-

cember, boosters president Brett Schiller said, encouraged by then-principal and new Central Coast Section commissioner Dave Gris-som. Schiller added that it wasn’t hard to get the district to approve the project once both schools were on board and their respec-tive booster clubs agreed to fund the $2,000 installation costs. “The timing is very good,” he said. “We started working on it with the district before COVID kicked in because we saw it as a nice addition to athletics and the


For many students, graduation is a time when classmates embark on new jour-neys. Two newly graduated seniors

from Los Altos High School who share the same first name and a passion for running will be taking a similar path in the fall. Adam Cohan and Adam Sage plan to run cross-country and track at Harvey Mudd Col-lege in Claremont. Although they attended different elementa-ry schools, Cohan and Sage have known each other since they were kids. “We met one day at the JCC pool and hung out,” Sage said. “Then afterwards, we kept bumping into each other in weird places. So Adam would have a trumpet lesson right af-ter my piano lesson with the same teacher, or we would go to Tin Pot in Los Altos and just like, ‘Oh, it’s that Adam again.’ We went to the same taekwondo place for a while, and it was just a bunch of spots where we met over and over again.”

At the start of their sophomore year track season, they bumped into each other again. Since then, Cohan and Sage have run together for the Eagles, sharing many memorable expe-riences along the way. Cohan has been on the varsity boys cross-country and track team for three years, and Sage for four. In their final cross-country season, the var-sity boys team won league. Cohan and Sage advanced to the state cross-country champi-

onships in Clovis, where they both set per-sonal records and Sage set the school record for the course. Sage was voted team MVP and Cohan was named Most Improved. One day they won’t forget is Dec. 13. The two Adams were getting ready to hang out that night when they both received an unexpected notice that their admission results were avail-able – two days earlier than expected. “Adam was coming over in half an hour,” Sage said. “I got my response and I texted him and he immediately responded back, like, ‘Yes, I’m in as well!’ And then we both got to celebrate because he was coming over soon. It was really great.” Cohan and Sage were accepted through the early-decision program. Although students apply undeclared to Harvey Mudd, the boys have an idea of what they want to study: Sage is interested in computer science; Cohan plans to major in math. They toured Harvey Mudd together several times, both drawn to the school’s balance of academics and athletics.

Los Altos High distance runners Cohan and Sage commit to Harvey Mudd


If students at Los Altos and Mountain View highs aren’t allowed to attend games this fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they will be able to stream them on cameras being installed at both schools.

From live screaming to livestreamingLocal high schools installing cameras to allow fans to watch sports online

COURTESY OF ADAM COHAN

Adam Cohan, left, and Adam Sage will run cross-country and track at Harvey Mudd.

See RUNNERS, Page 23

By Joe PerrinoTown Crier Editorial Intern

Limited workouts for fall sports are underway at Mountain View and Los

Altos highs, and that’s welcome news for Mountain View athletic director Shelley Smith. “It’s long overdue,” said Smith, who also serves as football coach. “It’s great for the kids, getting them out of the house and staying active. I’m glad we were able to get it through.” The Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District has allowed practice-related activities since June 22 – with restrictions – as the Town Crier reported last month. No more than 12 athletes per coach are permitted on cam-pus at a time to participate in the workouts. Athletes are only al-lowed to take part in one sport; playing on a club team simultane-ously is prohibited. This is the first time since the schools closed March 13 that sanctioned athletic activities are taking place on MVLA campus-es. That’s why Smith said having a fall season is so important. “It happened so fast that we didn’t have time to adapt,” he said of the abrupt ending to the spring sports season. “I feel for our se-niors – we saw what happened

Prep athletes begin offseason workouts at LA & MV highs

SportsSports on the Side

See WORKOUTS, Page 23See CAMERAS, Page 23


Sports

last year – so I want them to get their senior season in.” The schools should soon get an idea of how the fall sports may look. The California Interscho-lastic Federation July 20 is set to come out with protocols for the 2020-21 school year. Game and full practice scenarios remain up in the air, Smith said. Once the CIF releases that in-formation, Smith said he expects more sports will be allowed to be-gin their summer workouts. Usu-ally around this time, basketball teams are playing summer league to prepare for their seasons, which begin in November, but a combination of COVID-19 and construction-related issues have

kept them off the court. “Our gyms and weight rooms aren’t in use, and both our schools lost their outdoor basketball courts due to construction,” Smith said. Despite the reduced amount of practice space, Smith said it hasn’t stopped fall sports from re-turning to training. He noted that Mountain View has begun imple-menting safety measures such as frequent cleaning of the facilities and keeping workouts to small groups. Smith said the school has also been in contact with Riddell, Mountain View’s football equip-ment provider, about new hel-mets to help protect players from COVID-19. “Riddell is looking to add a face-mask type of thing,” he said. “They have face shields on

the eyes and they’re looking at extending it down to the whole mask.” Such precautions have made Smith hopeful that the fall season will happen. “Everybody that is involved in the decisions – from the state lev-el to the CCS level to the district level – sees the value of athletics, and they’re going to work to get in a season of some sort,” he said. “I just don’t know what it’s going to look like.” At Los Altos, athletic director Michelle Noeth said the Eagles will continue their district-sanc-tioned training schedule and as-sume the fall season will go on as planned until they receive more information from the CIF. Athletes need to submit proof-of-physical forms by Aug. 7.

“When I visited, I found something quite similar that I found with the team at Los Altos, where every-one there is pretty fast and cares about running and is competitive,” Cohan said. “But it’s also (NCAA) Division III, so everyone there is still a student first.” Cohan and Sage both said they are excited to spend the next four years running together and shar-ing new experiences in college. “Obviously, one of the biggest worries about go-ing into college is finding a group of people you feel connected with, and it’s really great going in already knowing that you’ve got part of that group set up,” Sage said.

WORKOUTSFrom Page 22

RUNNERSFrom Page 22

COURTESY OF ADAM COHAN

Adam Sage, left, and Adam Cohan commemorate their success at a cross-country meet last fall.

school overall. Once COVID kicked in, it created a whole other possibility. If games aren’t played with crowds, it will al-low everyone to watch them at home.” Everyone with a subscrip-tion, that is. The games will be streamed online via the NFHS Network (nfhsnetwork.com), a partner of the National Federa-tion of State High School Asso-ciations. Subscriptions range from $10.99 (monthly) to $69.99 (annually). Subscribers not only get to watch their teams – live or on demand – but also the games of any participating school. “NFHS already has several schools in the SCVAL and other CCS leagues as part of the pro-gram, so subscribers can view the Eagles at many road games as well,” Player said. “Once a school recruits enough subscrib-ers to the network to hit a certain threshold, NFHS will donate back some of the incremen-tal subscription revenue to the school athletic program.”

Schiller said that his club is considering a promotion that would include a three-month subscription for those who join the boosters. The NFHS Network doesn’t just broadcast varsity games; Schiller noted that all levels of every sport played in the stadium or gym during the school year will be streamed. In the near fu-ture, he said the boosters hope to install cameras on the pool deck for water polo and swimming, along with at the baseball and softball fields. “After we get this running, we’re going to look into that,” Schiller said. “We’re calling this the first tier of it.” Two cameras will be installed at each school. They come with desktop computers for produc-tion integration and video pro-cessing, according to the NFHS Network website, and scoring devices that plug into the score-boards. The high-definition cam-eras – made by Pixellot – are weatherproof and capable of dis-playing the game score and the time remaining in an inset on the screen.

“The cameras are permanent-ly installed inside the gym and above the football press box,” Player said, “and will follow the action without need for a human operator, panning and zooming as appropriate from a sideline perspective.” The streams won’t just benefit fans who can’t make it to a game but on-site coaches as well. “The footage also automati-cally integrates with the coach-ing software (Hudl) many of the teams already use,” Player said, “so games are instantly available for analysis at the conclusion of each event.” Mountain View athletic direc-tor and football coach Shelley Smith is excited to get the system – and not just from a coaching perspective. “(It’s) great for people out of the area or not allowed to come (to games) due to COVID proto-col,” he said. Smith doesn’t know the exact date the cameras will be installed at Mountain View but expects them to be in place before school starts. Los Altos’ cameras will be installed Aug. 5, Player said.

CAMERASFrom Page 22

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INSIDEJuly 8, 2020

Food & WineFood & Wine is published once a month. For advertising information, email [email protected]. For editorial information and to offer story ideas, email [email protected].

SECTION

Silicon SipsBy Christine Moore

Variety is the spice of life, so the saying goes. With the rinse-and-repeat

nature of our stay-at-home days, variety can be in short supply. Let’s flip the old adage a bit and use spice to bring variety. A pantry stocked with globe-hopping flavors will help your dinner table become an escape. Pairing these far-flung seasonings with locally pro-duced wines makes for the perfect combination of inviting in the new while celebrating the bounty and talent found in Northern California. The wines listed below are all available for online purchase. What’s more, purchasing from these small businesses means more than ever at this time.

Spicy twist My easy seafood tostadas rely on harissa, a North Afri-can spicy paste. Once you have harissa in your refrigerator, I suspect you’ll actively look for ways to incorporate it into your cooking. In the winter, I use ha-rissa like tomato paste, adding a new and spicy twist to stews and braised meats. In the spring

and summer, I keep the ingre-dients for a harissa cream sauce (shared below) on hand at all times. It is a versatile dip. Try it with fried calamari, baked sweet potato fries or grilled chicken skewers. A beautiful pairing for the spicy harissa and fresh seafood would be 2019 Okapi Rosé of Cabernet Sauvignon ($32, okapi-wines.com). This refreshing, crisp and minerally wine will become an outdoor dining favorite.

Cajun style We had ambitions to visit New Orleans this summer. Instead, we got there around the dinner table, thanks to Cajun seasoning and file powder. Made from the leaves of sas-safras, file powder is used to flavor and thicken foods in the traditional cooking of Native Americans and was adopted by Acadian settlers in Louisiana. For those who didn’t grow up eating within those cuisines, gumbo is a meal that can be equal parts familiar comfort

and mind-expanding flavors. The perfect wine to pair with this gumbo is the vibrant and enticing 2017 Brown Estate Zinfandel – available at Drae-ger’s Market in Los Altos and online (brownestate.com). The light tannins and complex spice of this wine are ideal for enjoy-ing beside gumbo, but would be stellar with hamburgers, grilled sausages or lamb tagine.

Virtual wine escapes I’ve been having a lot of fun virtually visiting new-to-me vintners in Napa and Sonoma counties. One online wine destina-tion that will surely take you away while remaining at home is McBride Sisters Collection (mcbridesisters.com). A force for diversity, female empowerment and great wine, the real-life sis-ters, Robin and Andrea McBride, have created a web destination with loads of educational infor-mation, recipes, style and joy. The Domaine Curry label provides another happy rab-bit hole of discovery as you explore online. Food celebrity, restaurateur and social activist Ayesha Curry is one half of the

Globe-hopping tastes for at-home escapes

• 1 cup Greek yogurt (or sour cream) • 1/2 cup Vegenaise (or regular mayonnaise) • 2 tablespoons prepared red harissa • 1 pound cooked seafood (I have used a combination of lump crab and shrimp-meat) • 1 avocado, diced • 2 tomatoes, diced • 3 spring onions, diced • 2 tablespoons cilantro, chopped • 1 lime • 1 lemon (1/2 of lemon sliced and ready for dinner squeezing) • Salt and pepper to taste • 8 tostada shells • Chopped lettuce for serving • 1/2 cup shredded Cojita cheese for serving

Heat oven to 375 F. Prepare spicy cream by combining yogurt, Vegenaise, harissa and juice of 1/2 lime (for nonspicy version, omit harissa). In medium bowl, combine avocado, toma-

toes, spring onions and cilantro. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix and set aside. Place crab and shrimp into medium serv-ing bowl and squeeze juice of 1/2 lime and 1/2 lemon over top. Mix and set aside. Heat tostadas in oven 3-5 minutes.

• 1/4 cup grapeseed oil • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour • 1 red onion, diced • 4 celery stalks, diced • 1 red bell pepper, diced • 1 yellow bell pepper, diced • Large handful Italian parsley, chopped (approxi-mately 1/2 cup) • 4 Andouille sausage, sliced • 1/2 pound bay scallops • 1/2 pound shrimp • 4 cups broth • 2 teaspoons Cajun sea-soning • 2 teaspoons gumbo file

Add oil to Dutch oven and heat over medium-high. Once oil is heated, add flour and stir approximately 20 seconds to avoid clumps. Allow flour to cook in oil until it becomes very brown, which will take roughly 10 minutes. Add vegetables and Cajun seasoning and sauté 5-7 minutes. Add broth. Bring to boil and then add sausage and simmer on low 30 minutes. Add scallops and gumbo file and cook an additional 10 minutes. Serve over white rice with hot sauce on the side.

Seafood Tostadas with Harissa Cream

Simple Summertime Gumbo

force behind Domaine Curry. Its critically acclaimed Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc are both available for purchase at domainecurrywine.com. After you’ve picked a bottle or two, find Curry online (@

ayeshacurry) to watch cooking videos and learn more about her latest cookbook. Christine Moore is a Mountain View resident. Visit sheepishsommelier.blogspot.com to read more of her work.


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Business & Real Estate


The city of Los Altos has shut down Alkalign’s outdoor fitness classes on

the Bumble Green because they violate Santa Clara County’s shelter-in-place order, according to the owner of the downtown studio. Alkalign founder and CEO Erin Paruszewski told the Town Crier last week that the city in-formed her June 23 that her out-door classes violated the order, which restricts outdoor recre-ation activities to a maximum

of two families. It states that “private classes and training sessions are allowed, limited to one instructor with members of one household, so long as they take place entirely outdoors, do not involve shared equipment (other than a ball, frisbee or other similar item), and are non-contact activities. Instructors must maintain six feet of social distance at all times from train-ees.” Paruszewski, who held the classes for two weeks, said she did not expect the sessions to be canceled, because local high

City shuts outdoor fitness classes; cites county order

See ALKALIGN, Page 27

By Renée RemsbergTown Crier Editorial Intern

When Paran Sonthalia arrived at UC Berke-ley as a freshman in

the fall of 2018, one of the first things he noticed was the preva-lence of food waste in the dining halls. The Mountain View High School graduate said he was “shocked” to find people throw-ing away entire plates of food. Realizing this was a problem beyond Berkeley’s campus, Son-thalia began thinking of ways to address it. Now he is the CEO and co-founder of DeWaste, a startup that uses machine learning to reduce food waste in college and corporate dining halls. Along with his co-founders – fellow Cal junior Pranshu Bansal and UCLA junior and Mountain View High grad Daniel Ciao – Sonthalia built a system that au-tomatically takes photos to track food waste and then analyzes the data to determine which items are being thrown out most often. DeWaste shares its findings with companies, colleges and restau-rants. The programming for the system was born out of a proj-ect Sonthalia and Bansal created at CalHacks in November 2018. After the event, they continued to improve the software, even-tually launching a pilot at one of UC Berkeley’s dining halls in December 2018. The group

organized two more test runs – at UC Riverside and UC Davis last August – and Sonthalia said since then, approximately 2,000 other universities have requested access to the program. Both UC Riverside and UC Davis have delayed full implementation due to COVID-19 related closures.

Overcoming challenges The process has not always been straightforward – or with-out difficulties, according to Sonthalia. “At the start, a big challenge was that we were approaching the problem from the wrong angle,” he said. “We kind of got obsessed with the solution and not the actual problem. We had to refocus on the problem and what we could do to solve it.” Having close friends as his business partners made chal-lenges easier to overcome, Son-thalia added, and Ciao said working together was already “pretty natural.” “I think that’s honestly been one of the best parts of it,” Son-thalia said. “One thing that’s just really important is that you want to pick co-founders who are your friends or people you know well. All of us really lucked out because we’re also really close.” Ciao noted that he joined the team for the same reasons Son-thalia started DeWaste. “I try to clean my plate ev-ery time, but when I went to the return-tray area, I saw so much

food being wasted,” he said. “It was kind of disheartening.” In addition to focusing on food waste in the dining hall, the company created DeWaste Kitchen, which uses the same technology to reduce food waste in restaurant and college kitch-ens. The algorithm tracks what part of a food is wasted and rec-ommends recipes that use that item. Due to the COVID-19 pan-demic, however, the launch of the product has been delayed.

Moreover, the company has been looking to reduce food waste during the COVID crisis by creating the DeWaste Net-work, an online forum that di-rectly connects sellers and buy-ers in the same area to reduce the amount of waste farmers are creating during times of low de-mand. This summer, the company has taken on interns like Dylan Pham, a 2020 Mountain View High graduate. Pham said the

experience has been rewarding and he’s been able to creatively apply what he’s learned in class in real life – something Ciao and Sonthalia also cite as one of their favorite parts of their work. “I think there’s a lot of poten-tial for technology,” Ciao said. “The technology is all out there, it just needs to be put into a form where it can be used by a lot of people.” For more information on DeWaste, visit de-waste.com.

MVHS alums launch startup to reduce food waste

COURTESY OF PARAN SONTHALIA

Mountain View High School graduate Paran Sonthalia, from left, co-founded DeWaste with Daniel Ciao and Pranshu Bansal.


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school sports teams are allowed to practice in groups of 12 and the county has loosened some of its restrictions on businesses. “I was very surprised,” she said. “Neither Alkalign nor our landlords who suggested we use the Bumble space were aware of the two-household rule. Given that doesn’t apply to any other business, I think it’s very un-fair. Los Altos has closed the streets to allow other businesses to bring their services outdoors. Why can’t fitness do the same?” Paruszewski added that Alk- align was following social-dis-tancing protocol. “We were 6 feet apart, wore masks to and from our stations, didn’t share equipment and were respectful of the space and the neighbors,” she said. Paruszewski, who has not been allowed to hold in-person classes at her First Street studio for nearly four months, is frus-trated with how fitness studios like hers have been treated dur-ing the COVID-19 pandemic. “Moreover, exercise is good for physical and mental health.

If you want to argue what is ‘es-sential,’ I’d say it is much more es-sential than some other business that has arbitrarily been deemed essential,” she said. “It’s not the rule that bothers me – it’s the lack of consistency from business to business. It makes no sense.” Paruszewski added that she expressed her concerns in a vir-tual town hall meeting and that many of her clients have reached out to city council members and

have started a petition asking the city to allow the outdoor classes. Alkalign’s Los Altos studio continues to offer virtual ses-sions due to the recent restric-tions. Meanwhile, its Menlo Park location remains open, capped at nine participants per class, with masks and social dis-tancing required. For more information, visit alkalignstudios.com.

ALKALIGNFrom Page 26


The city of Los Altos has shut down Alkalign’s outdoor fitness classes on the Bumble Green.

Special to the Town Crier

Tax Day this year was delayed from April 15 to July 15 due to the

COVID-19 pandemic, giving individuals and businesses ad-ditional time to file their taxes without penalty. Having to finish up filings during a global pandemic can exacerbate the stress, so ahead of the deadline, the state’s Fran-chise Tax Board offered the fol-lowing reminders. • The state is providing tax relief and assistance to those affected by the pandemic, or anyone who has an income tax return filing or payment due between March 12 and July 15. Taxpayers who need assistance can make an appointment at a field office, with the nearest Bay Area location in Oakland. • While most Volunteer In-come Tax Assistance locations are closed, taxpayers can use online tools – the IRS Federal File Free program for federal tax returns and the CalFile program for state tax returns. More than 6.4 million taxpayers are eligible

for the state’s program, which does not require registration to use. “During this public health emergency, we are doing ev-erything we can to make Cali-fornia taxpayers aware of free tax preparation assistance and other available resources ahead of the July 15 deadline,” said State Controller Betty T. Yee in a March press release. • Those unable to uphold an existing payment plan can request to skip payments. However, state officials encouraged on-time pay-ments if possible because interest will still accumulate. • California is allowing an automatic extension to file state tax returns until Oct. 15, though taxes owed should still be paid or postmarked by July 15. “The COVID-19 pandemic is disrupting life for people and businesses statewide,” Yee said. “Hopefully, this small measure of relief will help allow people to focus on their health and safety during these challenging times.” For more information, call the FTB’s e-file Help Desk at (916) 845-0353.

Tax deadline approaches


The staff and management at the Los Altos Town Crier thank all of you who have stepped up to help us during this time of sheltering at home. You may have noticed that a number of our advertisers have stopped appearing in the paper because they have been forced to close. That means your support now is vital to keep us alive. Our reporters will continue to work hard bringing you the up-to-date information crucial during these ever-changing times. We have been in print since 1947, and we hope to continue publishing throughout the duration of this unprecedented crisis. And we will, with the help of this wonderful community. Again, THANK YOU!

If you have not had a chance to support our independent local journalism, go to:

losaltosonline.com/subscribe


Special to the Town Crier

Even during an economic boom, it’s not easy being an entrepreneur. Now flip that upside down and

add a global health pandemic on top of usual stressors of launching a new busi-ness adventure. The COVID-19 pandemic has many entrepreneurs facing incredible finan-cial pressures and uncertainty. But with struggle comes strength, according to Better Business Bureau officials. Change brings new opportunities, and young leaders must embrace the hardship to build a stronger, more in-novative company with the resilience to thrive at whatever obstacles come their way. BBB officials offered the following tips and financial advice for entrepre-neurs to stay ahead during the pandemic. • Act fast and stay informed. Time is of the essence. Small-business own-ers should confront the situation and take immediate action to stay afloat. Be sure to routinely check updates to leg-islation and policies because they are continually evolving and changing, such

as the CARES Act, recently expanding Small Business Administration Disaster Loans and the Families First Coronavi-rus Response Act. • Build cash available. Talk to a fi-nancial adviser or find financial services for help. • Increase customer satisfaction. Identify unique opportunities to grow your customer base. Discover innova-tive ways to fulfill consumer needs that competitors ignored. Entrepreneurs can capitalize on building their patron base from those who might have neglected or didn’t make customer retention a main priority during the crisis. Leveraging your skills and assets to provide poten-tial customers with a product or service they need can help build your business. • Adapt and pivot. Tap into your entrepreneurial spirit of creativity and shift your mindset from surviving to thriving. Identify new challenges that can be solved by a fresh idea, method or technology. Discover pain points busi-nesses or consumers are facing during the pandemic. Pivot your current busi-ness model to provide a solution or

Tips for entrepreneurs fighting to survive amid the pandemic

See ENTREPRENEURS, Page 30


Compass is the brand name used for services provided by one or more of the Compass group of subsidiary companies. Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. License Number 01079009. All material presented herein is intended for informational purposes only and is compiled from sources deemed reliable but has not been verified. Changes in price, condition, sale or withdrawal may be made without notice. No statement is made as to accuracy of any description. All measurements and square footage are approximate.

2099 Fallen Leaf Lane, Los Altos4 Bed 2 Bath 1,961 Sq Ft $2,350,000

Enjoy the serene beauty of the natural gardens, starting with the front yard approach to the welcoming porch. The front door opens into a formal foyer offering hardwood floors extending into an expansive living and dining room with large window spaces. The natural setting and quiet ambiance of the rear yard is mesmerizing. The living room also has a wood-burning fireplace. The updated kitchen is equipped with double ovens, cooktop, dishwasher, and refrigerator, set off by painted kitchen cabinets and white counters. Pass thru the breakfast dinette, past the 2-car garage w/laundry, into a private family room allowing for a multitude of purposes. Its sliding glass doors lead to the peaceful setting of a large yard with its plum, plum-apri-cot, apple, and orange trees. A fruit lover’s delight. The newer patio area offers time for quiet enjoyment, and entertainment.

Barbara [email protected] 01033672

A Nature Lover’s Paradise.

OPEN BY APPOINTMENT ONLY

Please call me for all your real estate needs.

Soli [email protected]

Your greatest asset deserves the greatest expertise

and service.

Dedicated to excellence

Compass is the brand name used for services provided by one or more of the Compass group of subsidiary companies. Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. License Number 01079009.


Los Altos961 Andover Way, M. Huh to A. & K. Chao for $2,904,0001942 Churton Avenue, Yao-Shen Fam-ily Trust to Adelman Family Trust for $4,100,0001646 Dallas Court, Eckmann Trust to Iron Family Holdings LLC for $3,700,000648 Distel Drive, Lane Bypass Trust to Y. & Y. Cui for $3,350,000226 W. Edith Avenue No. 34, Yu Trust to Brennan Trust for $1,410,0001405 Miravalle Avenue, Shing Trust to P. & V. Pullur for $3,800,00073 Third Street No. 27, I. Ahn to Heidari Family Trust for $1,001,000

Los Altos Hills12900 Atherton Court, Choi Trust to K. & D. Haehnel for $5,350,00010600 Chardonnay Lane, E. & B. Young to D. Yuan for $3,600,00011600 Summit Wood Road, Alexander Family Trust to Rose Field Properties Ltd for $3,000,000

Mountain View433 Bedford Loop, Lu-Chen Trust to Y. & T. Hao for $1,380,000

2025 California Street No. 13, Liao Trust to E. Dickman for $777,00094 Flynn Avenue Unit A, E. & E. Hager to Nudd Family Trust for $695,00098 Flynn Avenue Unit A, A. Flisram to H. & M. Baker for $1,050,000776 Glenborough Drive, Rinaldi 2015 Trust to Y. & Z. Gao for $2,500,0001572 Meadow Lane, Lai Trust to X. & J. Chen for $2,550,0001090 Mercy Street, Galli Trust to SF20G LLC for $1,950,0001125 Phyllis Avenue, P. Wang to K. Bigler for $1,238,0002112 Wyandotte Street Unit D, P. Yung-Shie to D. Rosen for $1,120,0001365 Todd Street, Zamon LLC to Solid State Holdings LLC for $2,098,000

Cupertino853 Alderbrook Lane, Young Family Trust to S. & S. Yang for $1,850,00021835 Almaden Avenue, Dyer Family Trust to X. & C. Lin for $2,300,000888 Blazingwood Avenue, J. Wang to Y. & W. Song for $2,503,00010742 Carver Drive, Campo Trust to SF20G LLC for $1,610,00020632 Cheryl Drive, Nair Family Trust to X. & F. Chen for $2,265,0007466 De Foe Drive, A. Peluso to H. & Z. Yang for $2,048,000

Transactions

See TRANSACTIONS, Page 30


DRE #01003487 & DRE #00325241 (650) 949-1909 GREGGANN (415) 203-3007 - ABBY (650) 303-6773

Spacious Open Floor Plan in a Private Park Like Setting

Extraordinary at $7,448,800

Brand new

Showings By appointment

ENTERTAIN ON THE COVERED PATIO

Refrigerator - ice maker

Fire pit - skylights - heaters

Bbq kitchen for the grilling perfectionist

Auto Rotisserie - warming & wok burners

Striking clean lines with stunning drama

Clerestory windows - hi ceilings– living with fireplace

Expandable dining - mini office study– white oak floors

Opening window wall

Culinary center

Marble island - quartz counters - 48 “ sub zero

Steam oven - Wolfe prof 8 burner w 2 ovens

Mud room - walk-in pantry

lower level

Home theater - bar

300 bottle wine room

pool & game table space

Outdoor patio

5th bedroom suite & bath

SOLD

Compass is the brand name used for services provided by one or more of the Compass group of subsidiary companies. Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. License Number 01079009.

REALTOR®[email protected]

No one knows your neighborhood like a native.

Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Menlo Park, Mountain View, Palo Alto, and beyond...


20711 Dunbar Drive, P. & D. Ketcham to X. & L. Zhao for $2,560,00010097 Lamplighter Square, Gray-son Trust to Nemade Family Trust for $1,675,0007449 Tiptoe Lane, Sorich Family Trust to W. & Y. Li for $2,300,000

Overall

Los Altos

Lowest sale: $1,001,000Highest sale: $4,100,000Average sale: $2,895,000

Los Altos HillsLowest sale: $3,000,000Highest sale: $5,350,000Average sale: $3,983,300

Mountain ViewLowest sale: $695,000Highest sale: $2,550,000Average sale: $1,535,800

CupertinoLowest sale: $1,610,000Highest sale: $2,560,000Average sale: $2,123,400

– Cal REsource

TRANSACTIONSFrom Page 29

service. When one door closes, make a key to unlock a new revenue stream. • Embrace your local community. A new consumer is emerging from the COVID-19 health crisis. Based on Ernst & Young’s Future Consumer Index Re-port, consumers will show a greater preference for shops, restaurants and brands that feel local. Consumers are more interested in value for money rath-er than price. Rally those within your community to support your business. Give back to your local area and they

will return the favor. • Be prepared to bounce back. Eventually, the world will return to some semblance of normalcy. Make sure your business takes steps now to be ready to recover. Evaluate your staffing and de-termine which team members you’ll need first, analyze your costs, consider increasing margins and prepare for a staged reopen, which includes a market-ing plan. • Invest in your people. Businesses retaining employees that have a skilled workforce will be ready to take advan-tage of the recovery. Those that fired a large portion of their workforce will re-alize how expensive – and time-consum-ing – it is to rebuild. People may be the only competitive advantage many small businesses have left now. Move forward by hiring for fit first, eliminating non-performers, abandoning your annual reviews, building a virtual team of top potential candidates and creating a work culture anchored in trust and account-ability. • Believe in yourself. Confident en-trepreneurs are better poised to start and succeed in new business, especially dur-ing a time of crisis. They are more op-portunistic, persistent, resilient and ac-cepted. For more business tips, visit BBB.org/smallbusiness.

ENTREPRENEURSFrom Page 28


SILICON VALLE Y HOMES

Other O� ces

BELVEDERE-TIBURON · BERKELEY · DANVILLE · L AFAYET TE · MILL VALLEY · MONTCL AIRNAPA · NOVATO · OAKL AND · ROSS VALLEY · SAN RAFAEL · SAUSALITO · STINSON BEACH

Each O� ce is Independently Owned and Operated

24925 Oneonta Dr, Los Altos HillsO� ered at $10,800,000

The Campi Group · 650.917.2433Lic #00600311

186 Covington Rd, Los Altos HillsO� ered at $6,995,000


13010 E. Sunset Dr, Los Altos HillsO� ered at $4,998,000

Omar Kinaan · 650.776.2828Lic. #01723115

Los Altos Office195 S. San Antonio Rd

650.941.4300

Woodside Office2989 Woodside Rd

650.851.6600

Redwood City Office555 Middlefield Rd

650.577.3700

San Carlos Office1250 San Carlos Ave 101

650.597.1800

Burlingame Office401 Primrose Rd, Suite J

650.865.3000

Menlo Park Office640 Oak Grove Ave

650.847.1141

Palo Alto Office728 Emerson St650.644.3474

Los Gatos Office663 Blossom Hill Rd

408.358.2800

26600 Elena Dr, Los Altos HillsO� ered at $3,848,000

Todd Zebb · 650.823.3292Lic. #01324423

507 Magdalena Ave, Los AltosO� ered at $4,699,000

Tom Martin · 408.314.2830Lic. #01272381

292 Quinnhill Rd, Los AltosO� ered at $3,100,000

Sue Kockos · 650.430.5524Lic. #01928141

Je� rey Kockos · 650.430.8587Lic. #01822441

11824 Hilltop Dr, Los AltosO� ered at $3,880,000


11564 Arroyo Oaks, Los Altos HillsO� ered at $4,849,000

Chris Iverson · 650.450.0450Lic. #01708130

Virtual Home ToursSee some of our premier listings

from the comfort of your own home through 3D virtual reality

and high de� nition video.goldengatesir.com/HD goldengatesir.com/VR

715 Bean Hollow Rd, PescaderoO� ered at $3,750,000

Jakki Harlan · 650.465.2180Lic. #01407129

286 Willowbrook Dr, Portola ValleyO� ered at $4,295,000

Omar Kinaan · 650.776.2828Lic. #01723115

174 Vista Verde Way, Portola Valley

O� ered at $3,285,000Mary Jo McCarthy

650.400.6364Lic. #01354295

183 Ocean Blvd, El GranadaO� ered at $2,300,000

Marian Bennett · 650.678.1108Lic. #01463986


Puzzles Page

Answers to puzzles

on Page 23

Town Crier Crossword

Find A Word

Across1. Croupier’s tool5. Something to shoot for8. Lobster eggs11. Pavarotti solo12. Not much14. Octopus’s defense15. Flying formations16. List for the day17. One-thousand bucks (sl.)18. Listen in (on)20. Tally up21. Without delay23. 2020 candidate for the Los Altos council27. Central points30. When many do lunch31. Scores in a ball game33. Jacob’s twin34. Sacramental immersion35. Malign38. Great Lakes’ __ Canals40. Study furnishings

45. Under consideration ...46. Lord of the Rings singer47. Attentive male companion48. Printemps month49. Antlered animal50. Miscalculates51. Evil soldier in “The Lord of the Rings”52. TV announcer Hall53. Laddie’s love

Down1. Teen happening2. Word after rest or residential3. Ukraine capital4. Simplicity5. Frisk6. Cancels7. Get ___ (toss)8. Trattoria offering9. Flat10. Only just survived13. “___ the mornin’!”19. “Get out of here!”22. “What ___?”

23. “Scott Pilgrim” Actress, Whitman24. U.F.O. crew25. Body structure related26. Sullen28. Price abbr.29. Any doctrine31. Downtown foundation32. Oil grp., abbr.34. Encouraged36. Out for the night37. Beneficiary38. Bumbling sort39. Puerto Rican singing star41. Brother of Cain42. Blood supply43. Corn units44. Figure (out)– Los Altos related clues bolded

Fifteen words related to clothing are listed by this puzzle. They may go across, up and down or diagonally in the puzzle. Circle each one when you find it.

Sudoku

By Myles Mellor and Susan FlanaganEach Sudoku puzzle consists of a 9X9 grid that has been subdivided into nine smaller grids of 3X3 squares. To solve the puzzle each row, column and box must contain each of the numbers 1 to 9. Puzzles come in three grades: easy, medium and difficult. Level: Medium

By Myles Mellor

BeltsBlouseCoatCuffsDressHeels

LoafersPantsShirtSkirtSneakersStiletto

StockingsSuitTies


Obituary NoticesGLENDA GAVENMAN

Glenda Gavenman – In Palo Alto, CA; June 27, 2020. Loving mother of Jon Gavenman (Kim). Devoted grandmother of Samuel, Jenna and Maxwell Gavenman. Predeceased by her loving hus-band of 48 years, Eugene Gaven-man, and her parents, Charles and Esther Unger. Dear aunt of Howard Gavenman (Ilene), Scott Gavenman (Julie), Andi McCart-er (Tom), Cherie Gilmore (Jim), Jerry Rosenbaum (Joanie). Dear cousin of Paul, Aaron and Han-nah Feldstein. Also survived by numerous grandnieces and neph-ews. A 57 year resident of Los Altos, CA, native of San Francisco and Palo Alto, CA, age 84 years.

The family would like to thank the Moldaw Residences staff, Dr. Susan Hoffman, Ami-Care Services and Pathways Hospice for their care and support of Glenda. Funeral Services and interment have been held at Eternal Home Cemetery, Colma. Memorial contributions may be made to AmiCare Services LLC or the charity or other world-improving cause of your choice.

DON BOECKLING

Don Boeckling, a resident of Cupertino, passed away on June 19, 2020 at the age of 89.

Beloved father, husband, grand-father and friend, Don was born in

Peru Illinois in 1930. He lived in Peru until moving away to Grinnell College, graduating with degrees in Economics and Business in 1952. While at Grinnell he met and fell in love with Ann Joseph, and they married shortly after their gradua-tion. They enjoyed fifty-two years of marriage until Ann’s death in 2005.

Following college, Don enlisted in the Air Force, attended Offi-cer Training School and rose to the rank of 1st Lieutenant. He left the Air Force in 1956 to pursue a career in software development, and worked in the insurance, aero-space and defense, and computer hardware industries. In 1966 Don, Ann and their two children moved to the San Francisco Bay area where he managed software development projects for Control Data Corpora-tion until his retirement in 1987.

Don and Ann were world trav-elers exploring Europe, China, Australia, Africa and the Middle East, and they traveled extensively throughout the U.S. Don was an active member of Foothill Con-gregational Church, and served in many leadership roles there. He loved to sing with the church choir, the Sons in Retirement Trail Birds and the Forum retirement com-munity’s chorus. He was an avid fan of the SF Giants, SF 49er’s and Stanford football. He walked the golf course into his early 80’s, hiked the trails of the mid-penin-sula parks, and regularly attended the theater and symphony. Most of all he cherished spending time with his family. He loved that his grandchildren affectionately called him “Old Coot”, and would proud-ly explain to others that there were millions of grandpas in the world but there was only one Old Coot!

Don is survived by his sister Joanne Olsen (Jim) of Grass Val-ley, son Tom Boeckling (Annette) of Alameda, daughter Cathy Olson (Steve) of Oak Harbor WA, and granddaughters Erika Boeckling of San Francisco and Emma Boeck-ling of Alameda. A celebration of his life will be held at a future time when the Covid-19 risk sub-sides. In remembrance of Don, contributions can be made to the Peninsula Open Space Trust or the UCSF Memory and Aging Center.

WILLIAM (BILLL) SHANNON

Dec. 21, 1955 - Jun. 25, 2020Los Altos

Bill was born in Erie, Penn-sylvania, and later moved to the Cleveland area where he went to high school. He attended Case Western Reserve University where he received his Bachelors and Mas-ters in Computer Engineering.

After working at Digital Equip-ment Corporation in the Unix Engi-neering Group, he was recruited to work at Sun Microsystems in 1982 where he was proud employee num-ber 11. Bill was instrumental in the development of SunOS, Solaris, and Java EE. When Sun Micro-systems was acquired by Oracle, he remained on board to continue his work, and was employed there at the time of his death. Bill was devoted to his family, dedicated to his work, and determined and diligent in all aspects of his life.

Bill was diagnosed with ura-chal cancer in October 2018, and was determined to live his life to the fullest while undergoing treat-ment. He died at home surrounded by his family. He is survived by his wife Karen, daughters Kim-berly and Amy, brother Mark Wil-liams, sister Barbara King, beloved dog Angus, and many dear friends.

Memorial will be private due to COVID-19. In lieu of f low-ers, please consider a dona-tion to The Case Fund at CWRU or a char ity of your choice.

See DATEBOOK, Page 42

Datebook items are run on a space-available basis for entertainment, events, classes and groups run by nonprofits in our circulation area (primarily Los Altos, Los Altos Hills and Mountain View). The deadline is noon Tuesday for the next week’s paper. Submit notices via email to [email protected] and include a con-tact name, phone number and fee to participate (if applicable). Note that some items may be postponed or canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

PRESENTATIONS“Great Decisions 2020.” A discus-sion of the most critical global issues facing the U.S. today. 1:30-3 p.m. Mondays. Los Altos Library, 13 S. San Antonio Road., Los Altos. Free. 948-7683; sccld.org.

EXHIBITS“Distant Lands.” Photography ex-hibit featuring Jim Colton’s newest works. Los Altos Hills Town Hall, 26379 Fremont Road. 941-7222; jimcoltonphotography.com.

Moffett Field Historical Society Museum. Memorabilia, artifacts, photos and aircraft models connected

with the former Naval airbase. 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesdays through Satur-days. Building 126, Moffett Federal Airfield, Mountain View. $3-$8; free children under 12 and active military. Photo ID required for adults. 964-4024; moffettfieldmuseum.org.

AUDITIONSFoothill Symphonic Winds. Seeks percussionists for its performance season. [email protected].

Schola Cantorum. Choral group invites talented adult singers of all musical and cultural backgrounds to audition. Previous college cho-ral experience preferred. Rehears-

als 7:15-10 p.m. Mondays. Los Al-tos United Methodist Church, 655 Magdalena Ave. 254-1700; info@ scholacantorum.org.

CLASSES/WORKSHOPSA Senior Storybook: An Avenidas Wise Owl Zoom Drama and Per-formance Class. Learn to dramatize your voice and read a world folktale about the wisdom of elders in a vir-tual performance for the Avenidas community. Instructor Enid Davis teaches reading-aloud techniques and brainstorms with participants for a costume and a background. For ages 50 and over. 2-3:15 p.m. Tues-days, July 14 through Aug. 25. $85. 289-5436; [email protected].

Guided Meditation. Thirty-minute guided meditation session with in-structor Manisha Kumar to inspire regular meditation. 6-6:30 p.m. Mondays. Los Altos Library, 13 S. San Antonio Road. Free. 948-7683.

T’ai Chi for Arthritis. Developed by Dr. Paul Lam and endorsed by the Arthritis Foundation. 1:30-3:30 p.m. Mondays. Mountain View Se-nior Center, 266 Escuela Ave. Di-rected by Foothill College. All are welcome. Free. Register in person. 269-2589; [email protected].

Square Dance. Led by Bows & Beaus Square Dance Club. Open to adult singles and couples. 7-9 p.m. Mondays. Loyola School, 770 Berry Ave. (408) 219-4239; bowsandbeaus.org.

Gym Ventures. Parent-child class-es. Offerings include youth sports, swim lessons and more. El Camino YMCA, 2400 Grant Road, Moun-tain View. 969-9622.

Fitness Boot Camp. Sixty sessions of exercise. 6-7 a.m. weekdays or just Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. Shower facilities available. Foothill College, 12345 S. El Monte Road, Los Altos Hills. Less than $4 per class. Registration: foothill.augu-soft.net.

Session based on the book “When Your Heart Speaks, Take Good Notes: The Healing Power of Writ-ing.” Led by author Susan Borkin, Los Altos-based psychotherapist and writing/creativity coach. Free. (408) 973-7877.

Parent-Child Gym, Swimming, Drama, Sports, Art, etc. YMCA of the Mid-Peninsula El Camino Branch, 2400 Grant Road, Mountain View. 969-9622.

Morning Flow Yoga. Led by Duan-ni Hurd. 7-8 a.m. Saturdays. Yoga of Los Altos, 377 First St. $13.50-$18; Proceeds benefit the Alzheimer’s Association. 600-8108.

Wellness classes. Guest speakers with Gregory Dabb, DC, as host. 6:30-7 p.m. first and third Tuesdays of the month. Better Life Chiroprac-tic Center, Los Altos. Free. 949-0154; betterlifechirocenter.com.

CLUBS/GROUPSMeditation group. Meditations drawn from Buddhist teachers, in-cluding Thich Nhat Hanh and Jack Kornfield. Meeting online through June 16; contact Susan Murphy at [email protected] for Zoom login. Free.

Los Altos Library’s Monthly Writ-ing Group. Casual writing space of-fering motivation, such as optional prompts, for a community of writers. 7 p.m. second Wednesday of each month. Los Altos Library, 13 S. San Antonio Road. Free. 948-7683; sccl.org/losaltos.

Sons in Retirement (SIR) Los Altos Branch 35. Active mature men who meet for lunch to social-ize, enjoy good food, and listen to speakers. Third Wednesday of each month. Palo Alto Elks Lodge, 4249 El Camino Real. (408) 313-6852; [email protected]; sirinc2.org/branch35.

Los Altos & Los Altos Hills New-comers Club. Helps new resi-dents become better acquainted with their neighbors and new community. Activities include programs, luncheons, hiking, bridge and book clubs. 948-3421; losaltosnewcomers.com.

Duplicate Bridge Club. All levels of play. Classes and lectures available; lunch included. Bring a partner or be placed with one. 11:30 a.m. Monday, Tuesday and Thursday; 10:30 a.m. Wednesday and Friday; noon Sat-urday. 432 Stierlin Road, Mountain View. First time free; $15 afterward. 940-1824; paloaltobridge.org.

Garden Club of Los Altos. Gar-den or floral expert speaks at each meeting. 1:30 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of each month (except July, November and December). Los Altos Lutheran Church, 460 S. El Monte. Guests $5. 391-4654; thegardencluboflosaltos.org.

Retreats. Weekend of reflection, prayer and discernment. The Je-suit Retreat Center, 300 Manresa Way, Los Altos. $280/weekend. jrclosaltos.org.

Friendship Force of the San Fran-cisco Bay Area. Organization that promotes peace, friendship and understanding around the world through home-stays. Meets in vari-ous Bay Area locations. 961-3539; ffsfba.org.

Datebook


CLEANING

CALL US TODAY!(650) [email protected]

• Window Washing• Steam Carpet Cleaning• Pressure Washing• Gutter Cleaning

Service Directory Classified650-948-9000 ext. 300 • Classified FAX 650-948-9213 • email: [email protected]

HANDYMAN

GARDENING

Molina’s LandscapingLawns, plants, clean-up,

fences, irrigation systems, new lawns, lights.

650-279-3748

WALTER FINNERTYGeneral Contractor

Interior/Exterior Home Improvement

• Finish Carpentry • Doors & Trim • Crown Moulding • Decks & Arborswww.walterfinnerty-homeimprovement.com

650-265-8315Lic #897206

Online Advertising!

Link to your site &

GET NOTICED!

[email protected]

FLOORING

WOOD FLOORING EXPERTS

HARDWOODREFINISHWATER DAMAGEREPAIRSMAINTENANCERESTAINING

Lic. #898719Insured & Bonded

FREE ESTIMATES408-712-3532

Professional ServicesCONSTRUCTION N . S . CONSTRUCTION - ca r pen-try, decks, fences, remodels, handyman, e-quake ret rof its. Lic#759225 408-307-7184

HOUSECLEANING - by Diana. Prof. exp, low rates, family bus, reliable/depend. Great L.A. refs. Lic.# 447435. (408) 806-1415 or (408) 578-5489 Cristina

ROTOTILLING- Weed trimming, yard cleanup, dependable. FREE estimates (408)707-8470

FreebiesFREE- BOUND NEWSPAPERS 1923 A N D EA R LI ER. J I M (650) 949-1525

FIREWOOD & MULCH - FREE mulch, 6 cubic yard minimum. Will deliver. (650) 966-6537

MerchandiseOLD FISHING TACKLE - Los Altos senior cit izen l ikes to restore. Will buy old rods, reels, lures, creels, literature. Greg, Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer, blue, 2-1/2 qt., seldom used, $175; Sunbeam Food Processor, w/ sev-eral blades, $25; 40-cup coffee urn $25. 650-961-3539.

Merchandise WantedOLD FISHING TACKLE - Los Altos senior cit izen l ikes to restore. Will buy old rods, reels, lures, creels, literature. Greg, (650) 961-3581

OLD TUBE EQUIPMENT - radi-os, hi-fi tuners/amps, speakers, ham gear, tubes, parts, literature. (650) 279-9931

OLD WRISTWATCHES - Los Altos horologist likes to collect, trade and restore. Will buy watch-es, bands, parts, boxes, etc. Tom (408) 712-3430

EmploymentMentor Tutor Connection seeking pgm mngr for Mountain View HS. PAID part time position which involves recruiting and interview-ing mentees as well as interview-ing and training MTC-approved volunteer mentors. [email protected] for more information.

35 years exp. Lic. B #494977 Tom 650-248-4434

Remodels, Carpentry, Plumbing, Painting, Tile,Drywall, Tape & Texture.

JOBS OF ANY SIZE!!

DATEBOOKFrom Page 41

See DATEBOOK, Page 43

InSpirit Praise & Prayer Healing Room. Healing service for those bat-tling an illness or injury, or feeling dis-couraged, 10 a.m. to noon, the second Saturday of each month. Mantra: With God, there is hope. Union Church cam-pus, 858 University Ave., Los Altos. In-terdenominational ministry, member of the International Association of Healing Rooms. [email protected].

Assistance League of Los Altos. Non-profit volunteer group that develops and runs programs benefiting children and others in need in nearby communities of Santa Clara County. Year-round volun-teer opportunities for adults and teens. 169 State St., Los Altos. 941-4625; losaltos-assistanceleague.org.

MVLA Adult Orchestra. Musicians sought; all orchestral instrumentalists welcome. Full 60-member orchestra is sponsored by Mountain View-Los Altos Adult Education. (408) 421-5193.

Glass and Decorative Arts Club. Speakers and light lunch. 11:45 a.m., fourth Monday of the month, Septem-ber through May. Foothills Congrega-tional Church Parish Hall, 461 Orange Ave., Los Altos. Free for newcomers. [email protected].

Young Adults Bible Study. For those ages 18 and up who want to grow spiri-tually. Read the Bible and be part of a small community. For ages 18 and up. [email protected].

Sons in Retirement, Southern Penin-sula Branch 5. Devoted to the promo-tion of independence and dignity of re-tirement. Small group of men who get together each month to socialize, have lunch and hear speakers on a variety of subjects. 11 a.m. fourth Wednesday of each month. Michael’s restaurant at Shoreline Golf Course, 2960 N. Shore-line Blvd., Mountain View. 299-9479; sirinc2.org/branch5.

Los Altos Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). Helps people trace Revolutionary War ancestors, promotes American history, and aids veterans and students through projects and scholarships. Meets month-ly. 965-8275; 948-5937.

Tuesday Toppers. Women’s nine-hole golf club with local members. 8:30 a.m. Tuesdays. Pruneridge Golf Club, 400 N. Saratoga Ave., Santa Clara. $22-$27 per round. pruneridgegolfclub.com.

Foothill Symphonic Winds. Percus-sionists and other musicians welcome. Rehearsals Wednesday nights, Blach Intermediate School, 201 Covington Road, Los Altos. [email protected].

Peninsula Harmony Chorus. Non-

profit choir organization featuring mainly Los Altos and Los Altos Hills senior citizens who enjoy singing, es-pecially a cappella. Rehearsals 7:15-9:30 p.m. Mondays. Los Altos Lu-theran Church, 460 S. El Monte Ave. peninsulaharmony.org.

Los Altos Hills Club. Historic social club promoting friendship and social contacts among women residing in Los Altos Hills. Activities include lun-cheons, social events, book groups, bridge, card games and a travel-interest group. 917-9221; [email protected].

Sons In Retirement, Mid-Peninsula Branch 51. Open to retired men who want to make friends and participate in activities such as golf, hiking, biking, bowling and travel. Monthly lunch meet-ings with guest speakers. 11:30 a.m. first Wednesday of the month. Fremont Hills Country Club, 12889 Viscaino Place, Los Altos Hills. 930-0510; SIR51.org.

Los Altos Library Great Books Group. Meets 7-9 p.m. every third Tuesday. Los Altos Library, 13. S. San Antonio Road. 961-7380; [email protected].

Mothers Uniting Mothers (MUMs). For mothers of young children inter-ested in getting to know other moms. 9:30-11:30 a.m. every other Wednesday. Los Altos United Methodist Church, 655 Magdalena Ave. Childcare provid-ed. [email protected]; mums.laumc.org.

Knitting and Crochet Circle. Begin a project or get help and inspiration to fin-ish an old one. Bring your own needles and yarn. 4-5 p.m. first and third Mon-days of the month. Los Altos Library, 13 S. San Antonio Road. Free. 948-7683.

Girl Scouts. Make friends, participate in outdoor activities, develop new skills and learn to be a leader. Open to girls entering grades K-12. [email protected].

Peninsula Clef Hangers. Women’s choral group seeks singers for fall and spring concerts for seniors and other groups. Rehearsals 7 p.m. Thursdays. Lytton Garden, 437 Webster St., Palo Alto. 947-3322.

Terrible Adult Chamber Orchestra of Silicon Valley. For those who want to play instrumental music with a friendly, sociable group. 2-5 p.m. last Sunday of the month. Los Altos Youth Center, Los Altos. 793-2218; ta-cosv.com.

Boy Scout Troop 75. Open to boys ages 11-18. Led by Joseph Cammarata. 6:45-8 p.m. Mondays. Grant Park, 1575 Holt Ave. Room No. 1. (408) 891-4889.

Rotary Club of Los Altos Sunset. 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays. Courtyard by Marriott Hotel, 4320 El Camino Real, Los Al-

tos. 325 Main St., Los Altos. (408) 807-0575.

Los Altos Senior Book Club. Meets one Thursday per month. Los Altos Se-nior Center, 97 Hillview Ave. Limited copies of the book are available for bor-rowing at the center. Free. 947-2797.

GreenTown Los Altos. Nonpartisan group of citizens helping the communi-ties of Los Altos and Los Altos Hills be-come more sustainable. 383-7540.

Book Club Beyond. For students in grades 7-9. 948-7683; [email protected].

SPAUG. Personal-computer group that discusses problems, solutions, software and hardware, and listens to featured speakers. Meets 7:15 p.m. the second Wednesday of the month. Elks Lodge, 4269 El Camino Real, Palo Alto. pa-spaug.org.

Zonta Club of Silicon Valley. Orga-nization of executives and profession-als dedicated to advancing the status of women locally and globally through service and advocacy. 6 p.m., second Wednesday of the month. Bay Café, 1875 Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto.zonta-eclubsv.org.

Foothills Amateur Radio Society. Am-ateur radio club serving Los Altos, Palo Alto, Mountain View and other nearby cities. 7 p.m. fourth Friday of the month. Covington School, 205 Covington Road, Los Altos. fars.k6ya.org.

Blacksheep Handweaver’s Guild. Meets monthly at Woodside Village Church, 3154 Woodside Road, Wood-side. 854-7125; blacksheepguild.org.

HP Retired Employees Club. Open to HP/Agilent retirees. Activities include luncheons, trips (local, regional and for-eign), volunteer work and more. (408) 867-5086; hp.com/retiree.

American Association of University Women, Los Altos-Mountain View branch. Open to women (and men) with a college degree who are interested in equity for women and girls. 207-6625; lamv.ca.aauw.net.

Los Altos Las Madres Playgroups. Playgroups for moms and their babies 5 and under. Meet other new moms for weekly walks, park days and/or indoor play dates in and around Los Altos. Ex-pectant moms, new dads and other care-givers welcome. 917-9914; lasmadres.org.

Quota International of Mountain View/Los Altos. Supports scholarships for hearing-impaired students, El Cami-no Hospital Infant Hearing Screening Clinic, Community Services Agency and CHAC. Noon first and third Thursdays of each month. Michael’s at Shoreline, 2960


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