Foothills Sentry February 2023

Foothills Sentry Page 8 February 2023 START T HE NEW YE AR AT SCC! Spring 2023 Semester (Feb 6 – June 3) sccollege.edu/apply2023 SCC is ranked in the top 1% of community colleges nationwide and it’s right here in YOUR neighborhood! OTPA meeting features what’s new in town and city hall The annual meeting of the Old Towne Preservation Associa- tion (OTPA) was held at the new Richland hotel, Jan. 15. About 150 people attended the meeting, which featured updates from newly elected Mayor Dan Slater, District 1 Councilwoman Arianna Barrios and Interim City Manager (and former police chief) Tom Kisela, as well as a tour of the boutique hotel. Slater was met with enthusias- tic applause following his intro- duction by OTPA President San- dy Quinn. He noted that the last time he was in the building, it was a mortuary, and he was there for a funeral, adding that some 7,000 funerals had been held there. More than half the audience in- dicated, by show of hands, that they, too, had attended funerals at that location. The mayor recapped the first city council meeting that he had presided over, and previewed an item on the February agenda. He said he plans to initiate two com- mittees. The goal of the Santiago Creek Preservation Commit- tee will be to turn the waterway into “park land that we all can be proud of.” The Clean Orange Committee will focus on code enforcement, illegal signage and vendors. “We can’t wait to get started,” Councilwoman Barrios said of the new city council, “everyone has ideas and projects they want to pursue.” Her pursuits, she said, include protecting the treasures that are in District 1. “We’ve in- vested in our properties and our neighborhoods, and that’s worth protecting.” The Plaza district, she added, needs to be a balance of retail and restaurants, not too many of one over the other. Interim City Manager Tom Kisela explained that this “tem- porary assignment” is keeping him busy. Because so much of the city’s infrastructure is old, public works has been doing a lot of construction on streets, sewer lines, piping and potholes. Much of the work is financed by fed- eral dollars, he explained, and it is doled out incrementally; that’s why work is one block at a time. As a resident of Old Towne, he said, “my problems are your problems.” He’s working on parking issues and recognizes that the increase in ADUs (acces- sory dwelling units) is challeng- ing. “We’ll fight the good fight,” he assured the audience. The Richland, 137 E. Maple, opened Jan. 27. “We want to be part of this community,” Gen- eral Manager Cassandra Miranda said. “Join us for dinner or cock- tails, or hold your event here.” Villa Park Rotary Club President Vito Canuso and Rima Nashashibi Villa Park Rotary Club sponsors new club to combat human trafficking By Jay Applebaum The Rotary Club of Villa Park awarded a $1,500 grant to help establish a new online club, the Rotary E-Club of the West for Prevention of Human Trafficking. Villa Park Rotary became aware of the scope of the human trafficking problem in Orange County through an Anaheim- based nonprofit, Kherut, founded by restauranteur Yves Masquefa. That organization’s goal is to help rescue victims of sex or human trafficking by providing training in the culinary arts and long-term employment in a safe and supportive environment. Villa Park Rotary has support- ed this effort by donating funds to outfit a food truck that will pro- vide employment for these indi- viduals. The new E-Club President Rima Nashashibi is no stranger to this issue. She is an internation- ally known political and commu- nity leader who has over 20 years of experience in speaking out on women’s issues, gender equality, and racial and religious discrimi- nation. She has won numerous awards including, “Women Making a Difference in Orange County 2012” by the California State Senate, and a recognition award from the U.S. Con- gress in the same year. Rima is deter- mined to raise awareness of hu- man trafficking through presenta- tions at schools, religious and com- munity organiza- tions to prevent our youth from becom- ing victims. The Villa Park Rotary will work with her in supporting these goals. Orange Park Women's League adds Bunco The Bunco Babes of the OPA Women’s League are organized Karen Ashford, left, and Jamie Spence and ready to start rolling the dice. Leaders Jamie Spence and Karen Ashford have put together an en- thusiastic group which will meet the first Thursday evening of each month at members’ homes. You don’t need any experience to play this simple and fast-mov- ing dice game. It is well-known for its contagious laughter and the new friends it cultivates. Very simply, the rules go like this… Roll – Chat – Repeat! It’s that easy. For more information about this interest section or the many other sections enjoyed by mem- bers, see opawomen.org . OTPA members sample appetizers provided by the Richland. Save the date for WCO Flower Show Get those flowers and plants growing! Enter those special blossoms and blooms in the 84th Annual Woman's Club of Or- ange Flower Show, "Old Towne Blooms." The show will be held from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday, April 13 at the clubhouse, 121 S. Cen- ter St. Be sure to get the young folks involved, and enter them in the preschool through 12th grade divisions for homegrown plants and flower displays. For further information, see womansclubo- forange.org. TAWC solicits scholarship applications Tustin Area Woman’s Club (TAWC), an all-volunteer philan- thropic community service orga- nization, has announced that its college scholarship application forms are available at tustinarea- womansclub.com, or via each Tu- stin high school’s website. For over 60 years, TAWC has given college scholarships to de- serving Tustin Unified School District students. This year, TAWC will offer a $1,000 schol- arship to one or more graduating senior(s) from each of the four high schools in the district. The deadline is March 1. Orange Elks J C Cortez and Mike Cash address parents about the re- alities of drugs and their kids. The Elks partner with Orange Unified, the Orange County Department of Education and Orange GRIP, and provide literature and resource information in English and Spanish. . Photo by Tony Richards Elks combat drugs through education