Phantom Projects Tackles Tough Topics Through Live Theatre
I was driving in my car the other day when my five year old asked me, "Mommy what does bombing mean?"
For once, my reply wasn't, "Where did you hear that from?" Rather, I found myself turning off the news radio channel and tried to answer my son’s question. Part of me felt my child had a right to know what a bombing was because he needs to know right from wrong, but the other part of me, like most parents, didn't want to discuss anything and change the subject altogether. Truth be known, today's current events are sparking conversations, questions, and confusion from our children and as parents we may find ourselves in a predicament we simply are unfamiliar with. We don't know the answers--- and you know what? That's okay.
This is not the first time mankind is questioning the actions of some. Why is there suffering in the world? What is the reason for such acrimony and discourse? How do we begin to make peace with one another when the focus is often on our own differences? When movies depict war, television blasts non-stop political banter and books take past events and put a modern "Hollywood spin" on conflict, what are parents left to tell their children?
This week, I had the pleasure of attending Phantom Projects production of Number the Stars, based on the book by Lois Lowry. I read this book years ago as a sixth grader and now as a school librarian, it sits quietly on my book shelves only to be checked out occasionally. In Number the Stars, ten-year old Annemarie Johansen goes about life in Denmark in 1943 with her best friend, Ellen Rosen. Confused by the looming presence of German Nazi soldiers, Annemarie, Ellen, and 
Kirstie (Annemarie's younger sister), have so many questions for their parents, all of which can't be explained or the complete truth withheld from the young girls. Soon, Ellen's parents are gone and Annemarie and Kirstie are told they must pretend Ellen is their sister. The Johansen’s, with the help of their late daughter's fiancé, Peter and Uncle Henrik, assist in the escape of The Rosen’s and other Jews to Sweden. At the doorstep of fear, Annemarie chooses bravery and soon discovers many others do as well.
Under the direction of Steve Cisneros, Number the Stars pulled together a cast of actors that excelled in their portrayal of Lowry's characters. The young actors in this cast (Veronica McFarlane as Annemarie, Molly Malia Arii as Ellen, and Noelle Lidyoff as Kirsti) were extremely talented and believable. Their hard work and dedication (as well as the entire cast) was visible as they stay true to the character Lowry's created. I was extremely pleased with this performance and am eager to see the additional productions from Phantom Projects under the direction of Cisneros. It's not often a cast and director take a chance on a book that only a few may have heard of-- those of you that have read the story understand fully how brilliant it is to take this story to stage, especially in light of recent events.
Matadores to Play La Serna at Home in CIF Finals
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| The La Mirada High Matadores celebrate in Los Angeles this past Friday night after their convincing victory over Cathedral. Photo (c) La Mirada Blog 2015-courtesy D. Barrett. |
Los Angeles~The La Mirada High Football team will be heading to the CIF finals after beating Cathedral this past Friday night 38-7 in the southeast semifinal in Los Angeles.
Sei-J Lauago rushed for 188 yards on 24 carries and scored three touchdowns as the Matadores return to the finals for the first time since 2012.
La Mirada (10-3) returns home to take on La Serna (11-2) for the Southern Section Southeast Division title this Saturday night at 7:00 p.m. at Goodman Stadium.
UPDATE 120515 22:21: The Matadores beat La Serna 45-20 to capture their first CIF title since 2009. Sei-J Lauago rushed for 300 yards and scored three touchdowns.The Matadores earn a spot in a State Regional Bowl game, taking on Oceanside at home December 11th beginning at 7:00 p.m.
Last Remaining Remnant of La Mirada Landmark Appears to be on Chopping Block
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| The last trace of Valley View Farms, the Van Dam home, has been fenced off for apparent demolition. |
La Mirada~The home of the Van Dam’s, one of La Mirada’s pioneer families, has been scheduled for demolition a family spokesperson has told the La Mirada Blog.
Cornelius Arie Van Dam opened Valley View Farms on the northwest corner of Rosecrans and Valley View Avenues in 1954 and it quickly became one of the few dairies that produced, processed, and distributed its own milk.
Born in the Netherlands, he was on the forefront of the dairy industry in southeast L.A. County in the 1950’s
Other than Olive Lawn Mortuary that opened in 1928, Valley View Farms is really considered La Mirada’s first business.
Shortly after opening, Van Dam opened a drive-thru retail outlet to sell his milk and other products to the new, burgeoning population of La Mirada.
The “Cash-n-Carry” as it was called, is thought to be the first drive-thru dairy store in Southern California.
The dairy operation was a huge hit for school field trips, where children learned everything from raising cattle to the production of milk; some even witnessing the birth of a calf. His pastureland and fields were a haven for neighborhood kids.
The last of the Valley Views Farms herd was shipped to Idaho in March of 1995 and the land was ultimately developed with industrial buildings, ending an era in La Mirada.
This was a big cultural shock for this small town; however La Mirada’s most famous modern-era home, where Van Dam and his wife Florence raised their family remained, to this day.
He told us in 2005, “It was just too much, all at once, we wanted to keep the house.”
Van Dam died in late 2007. Florence remained at the home until earlier this year when she was moved to a “wonderful living facility” because she was having small issues moving around and about.
Biola’s Holmquist Notches 900th Victory
La Mirada~This past Tuesday night, a journey that’s taken 1,255 games and 38-plus seasons hit another major meaningful milestone as Head Coach Dr. Dave Holmquist became the eighth collegiate men’s basketball coach to hit 900 career coaching victories.
A 79-60 victory over the Bethesda Flames at home got coach Holmquist to the big number as the 2015-16 Biola Eagles team improved to 9-1 to start the season.
“It feels great to have done this with so many people who have been here over the years,” said Holmquist. “I have so many good memories about so many former players and teams, and I feel very grateful that I was able to stay at one place for so long.”
Holmquist is in his 36th season at the helm of the Eagles and 39th season overall. He began his career in 1975-76 as he coached the first of his three years overseeing the Fresno Pacific Sunbirds.
The win even more firmly secures the coach’s place in history as he reaches a 900 win club that includes the likes of Mike Krzyzewski, Jim Boheim, Don Meyer and Bobby Knight.
The next illustrious head coach that Holmquist will pass on the all-time wins list is the legendary former Indiana Hoosier head coach, Knight. Three more victories this year would move Holmquist past Knight’s 902 and into seventh place all-time. Holmquist is already the winningest active coach in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Division I, and he was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame in 2002.
“This is such a good place to work,” said Holmquist. “It’s a place where people want to help you. I’ve been blessed to work here at my school. I feel so fortunate to have the job I’ve had and coach the people I have. I just feel very blessed.”
Residents Invited to Participate in Home Decorating Contest
La Mirada~Get out your decorations and start planning your festive holiday display. The City of La Mirada’s annual Holiday Home Decorating program is fast approaching.
Residents are encouraged to decorate their homes to spread holiday cheer throughout La Mirada. No application is needed for this program as every decorated home in La Mirada is considered for recognition.
Judging will take place December 1 through December 13. Winners will be selected in the categories of Most Original, Best Use of Lights, and Best Holiday Scene. Award winners will receive a holiday ornament and will be announced on the City’s website at cityoflamirada.org.
For more information on the Holiday Home Decorating program, call the La Mirada Community Sheriff’s Station at (562) 902-2960.
La Mirada Rotary and Walmart Team to Help Local Families
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ROTARY ASSISTS GOOD SAM PANTRY – Members of the Rotary Club of La Mirada donated $1,100 worth of Thanksgiving turkeys, canned goods and other items to the Good Sam Pantry at Beatitudes Church in La Mirada. Pictured are (l to r) Chris Robinson, Rick Jones, John Lewis, Tom Polley, Jose Lombera, President Russell Hall, Hal Malkin and Sean Bracey. The donation, which was made possible by a grant from the Walmart Community Foundation, is one of several Rotary projects to assist needy families. |
La Mirada~The Rotary Club of La Mirada marked the Thanksgiving holiday by donating $1,100 in turkeys, canned goods and other food items to the Good Sam Pantry at Beatitudes Church in La Mirada.
The donation, which was funded in part by a grant from the Walmart Community Foundation, purchased complete holiday meals for 40 families.
Rotarians purchased the food at the Walmart Neighborhood Market, located at Imperial Highway and La Mirada Boulevard, on the morning of Thursday, Nov. 19. The food was then distributed to needy families that afternoon by volunteers at the Good Sam Pantry.
Rotary plans to donate a similar amount of meals for local families prior to the Christmas and Easter holidays.
The Rotary Club of La Mirada performs a variety of community service projects throughout the year. The group meets on Wednesdays at 12:30 p.m. at the Elephant Bar Restaurant on Firestone Boulevard North in La Mirada. Visitors are welcome to attend.
Public Hearing Regarding Luxury Condos Continues at City Hall
La Mirada~The public hearing regarding the proposed construction of 33 luxury condominiums on La Mirada Boulevard will continue tonight at city hall.
On October 27th, the city council continued the public hearing on a 5-0 vote after residents and council members expressed concerns about traffic, land use, and other impacts the project may have.
Tonight, The Olson Company, the developer of the project, is expected to address concerns related to the company's plans to build 33 luxury condos/townhomes on 2.72 acres located at 12000 La Mirada Boulevard.
The plan calls for 30 duplexes and three detached units to be developed and they are expected to fetch from 
$600,000-700,000 apiece.
The property is currently occupied by two buildings including a closed pre-school.
The city council meeting begins at 6:30 p.m.
112415 11:30 UPDATE: The city council voted 4-1 in favor of the proposed project with Andrew Sarega being the lone no vote. A second reading is due in January.
La Mirada Headed Back to Semifinal
Matadores lose coin flip; southeast semi-final to be hosted by Cathedral
Compton~La Mirada beat Dominguez last Friday night 55-13 in the CIF-SS Southeast Quarterfinal and will advance to a semifinal for the first time since 2012.
The Matadores will travel to Cathedral High School in Los Angeles for the Friday contest after losing the coin flip conducted by CIF officials this past Saturday morning.
The game never seemed to be close after Sei-J Lauago ran back the opening kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown.
After taking a 31-7 at halftime, the Matadores held Dominguez at bay in the second half with a defense that continues to surge.
Tristan Meyer, the starting junior home-grown quarterback for the Mats completed 9 of 15 passes for 205 yards in his first taste of post-season football as the starter.
Dominguez had 250 rushing yards compared to La Mirada’s 136, but had only 31 total yards passing.
La Mirada had only 80 more total yards than Dominguez, 341 to 261 and the Dons actually possessed the ball more; with the Matadores holding the ball for a little over 28 minutes and the Dons having the ball a little over 19.
La Mirada Head Coach Mike Moschetti downplayed the significance of playing on the road this Friday, “We don’t care where we play.”
Including his first two seasons as co-coach with Ollie Lynch, Moschetti has reached the CIF playoffs all eight seasons as head coach of the Matadores and has captured the Suburban League title in six of those eight years including a CIF title in 2009 with Lynch.
Before Moschetti came aboard, La Mirada hadn’t won a league title in eight years.
Also, La Mirada now owns the state record for consecutive section playoff appearances at 36 after Long Beach Poly was declared ineligible following the forfeiture of games this season. The two teams had been tied since 1980.
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