Foothills Sentry May 2022

Page 9 Foothills Sentry May 2022 Assistance League hosts record-breaking Embrace Orange After waiting three years for the timing to be right, Assistance League of Orange set attendance and donation records for its Embrace Orange fundraising gala on April 4. Thanks to the generosity of 370 guests, community donations, and the support of the Balboa Bay Resort, the event raised enough money to fund nearly half of the organization’s philanthropic budget for the coming year. Many of the event’s longtime underwriters and sponsors continued their backing, even during the years that the annual event was delayed due to COVID. This commitment showed in the quality of decorations, food, wine and entertainment. Community Circle Award Hon- oree, Al Ricci was introduced by Orange Mayor Mark Murphy and Orange Citizen of the Year and Assistance League member Margaret Greinke. Assistance League President Karen O’Keefe recognized city leaders in atten- dance from Orange, Villa Park, the Chamber of Commerce, the Community Foundation of Or- ange, former state senator John Lewis, former OC Supervisor Bill Steiner, as well as Gaddi Vasquez, former Ambassador to the United Nations. She also thanked all of the members who contributed their time, talent and treasure to make Embrace Orange possible. Toward the end of the evening, O’Keefe recalls feeling, “overwhelmed by the compassionate response from the audience” to a video that showcased the group’s impact on people in the community. It touched on Assistance League’s partnerships with WISEPlace and the Orange Senior Center, its Operation School Bell and other programs. Following the video, auctioneer Jim Nye and his team logged over $50,000 in direct donations from audience members to fund these needs, by far the most ever received at an Embrace Orange event. For more information, visit AssitanceLeague.org/Orange. Left to right, Gaddi Vasquez, Community Circle Award honoree Al Ricci, Margaret Greinke and Mark Murphy on stage at Embrace Orange. Photo by Zoom Theory “One Man Band” at Covenant The Women’s Fellowship of Covenant Presbyterian Church will feature entertainer Ron John- son, known as the “One Man Band” on Thursday, May 19. Johnson, a singer, keyboardist and guitar player, will take the audience through a musical journey, playing songs from the 40s through the 90s, as well as country and pop songs of today. The program is open to the community, and will be presented in St. Andrew’s Hall on the church campus, 1855 N. Orange-Olive Road. Doors open at 11 a.m., with a catered lunch at 11:30 a.m. The program and lunch is $15, pay- able in advance; reservations may be made by calling Linda at (951) 237-9888 before noon on Mon., May 16. To attend the program only at 12:30 p.m., reservations are not required; the cost is $5. TAWC awards scholarships The Tustin Area Woman’s Club has awarded $1,000 scholarships to eight graduating seniors from the four high schools in the Tus- tin Unified School District. They are, from Foothill, Corinne Kopp and Natalie Salvatierra; from Tustin, Gillian Alegre and Keira Baum; from Hillview, Paola Cruz and Rosa Irana Sanchez; and from Beckman, Malaya Gaerian and Angela Zhang. TAWC is a nonprofit organization serving the Tustin area. For more information visit TustinAreaWomansClub.org. NTAC gives the nod to lot splits The North Tustin Advisory Committee (NTAC) voted to rec- ommend approval of two lot sub- divisions located on hillsides and a third on relatively flatter land. The hillside lot splits came with caveats that the county Subdivi- sion Committee ensure the geo- technical stability of any future development. Owners of a 1.05-acre parcel on hilly Broadview Place want to divide it into two parcels to accommodate a custom home on each lot. No firm development plans exist at this time, but one home would be built entirely on caissons or pylons due to the steepness of the terrain. One neighbor expressed concerns that “there is no flat land,” and the hill might be degraded if someone built on it. Another reported that the hill has “been on the move” for the 21 years he has lived there. A third said that the neighbors are concerned about how future grading would affect the integrity of the hillside, and noted that his pool fills up with mud whenever it rains. Slope stability saved for later NTAC members noted the con- cerns identified, but were remind- ed their task was to approve or deny the lot subdivision, not any future development. They agreed, in a 5-1 vote, to approve the lot split with the stipulation that the county take “special care” to consider the stability of the prop- erty and the impacts development would have on downhill homes. The committee also considered subdividing a 2.2-acre parcel on Sunrise Lane into four lots, each of which would be developed with a single-family home. The property was described as “all hill.” The split was unanimously approved with the same conditions as the Broadview parcel. A subdivision proposed on Crawford Canyon would split 2.4 acres into four lots. Again, there were no development plans at this point. It, too, was approved by unanimous vote. NTAC is composed of resi- dents who thoroughly review de- velopment proposals specific to that area, and recommends either approval or denial to the county planning commission, or in this case, the subdivision commit- tee. The committee includes Mike Fioravanti, Kendra Carney Mehr, Peter Schneider, Dessa Schroeder, Kirk Watilo and Pat Welch.