Page 9 Foothills Sentry DECEMBER 2025 Abigail Schaaf Ellie Knoll Olivia Jackson Troop 543 names three Eagle Scouts Troop 543 from Salem Lutheran School held a Court of Honor in October to celebrate its 102,103 and 104th Eagle Scouts: Ethan Tjoa, Tristan Morgan and Logan Doan. Eagle Scout is the highest rank in the Boy Scouts program, awarded for leadership, service, skills and completing a service project. Ethan Tjoa’s Eagle project was an Eucharistic Procession Canopy for La Purisima Catholic Church in Orange. Ethan graduated from El Modena High School, and will graduate from USC in May, before continuing to medical school. Tristan Morgan created an eight-foot arbor with climbing roses at the Meditation Gardens in Tustin for his Eagle project. Tristan currently attends Orange Lutheran High School. Scout Logan Doan created a “science life lab” for Salem Lutheran Church, consisting of four planter boxes to allow more space for Salem students to work on their science projects during the school year. Logan graduated from El Modena High School, and is currently a sophomore at Santiago Canyon College. Antlers members Brooklyn Colvin and Bailey Karich help the younger Halloweeners win a prize. The Orange Elks introduce Antler youth The Orange Elks Antlers, a group of young people between 12 and 20, bring fun, friends and leadership together to support the community The Antlers planned and carried out two events in October. They held a movie night, screening “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” with all attendees treated to pizza, ice cream and treats. The group also participated in “Trunk or Treat,” part of the City of Orange’s annual Treats in the Streets celebration. The volunteers helped young trick or treaters spin the Elks prize wheel. Tustin foundation collecting pajamas for children By Guy Ball There’s nothing like getting a new set of nice, warm pajamas, but it’s a luxury that many Tustin area families can’t afford. This year, the Tustin Community Foundation (TCF) is again trying to make that happen for more than 3,000 people. “Over the past few years, our generous community has collected and donated almost 3,000 pairs each year, which we now distribute to newborns through seniors via 19 organizations and nine TUSD school resource centers.” noted Erin Nielsen, executive director of TCF. “Project Pajamas brings smiles to deserving children and seniors throughout our community,” she said. “This year, we hope to beat our 2024 milestone” New pajamas from local residents and businesses are distributed through partner groups including Tustin Veterans Outpost, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Tustin Family Resource Center, family resource centers at all Title 1 schools, Mary’s Path, OC Rescue Mission and Tustin Police Department’s Santa Cop. Donating is easy. New pajamas in any size can be dropped off at the Tustin Community Bank, 13891 Newport Ave., or at over 26 other locations. Cash donations are also needed to supply sizes not covered by drop-offs. For more information, a list of drop-off locations, or to donate online, visit tustincommunityfoundation.org and click on the “Project Pajamas” logo box. You may also call the foundation at (714) 393-8506. TAWC announces Young Women of the Month The Tustin Area Woman’s Club has named Abigail Schaaf, Ellie Knoll and Olivia Jackson as its Young Women of the Month for November. Abigail Schaaf is an International Baccalaureate candidate at Foothill High School. She is involved in Mock Trial, Spanish Honors Society, National Honors Society and is on the board of the Health Occupations Students of America Club. Outside of school, Schaaf works as a coach at Wildfire Gymnastics, volunteers at Cell Dogs, Inc. and has spent the last two summers as an intern at the University of California, Irvine Ethics Center. After graduation, she plans to attend college in Europe to study international relations on a pre-law track. Ellie Knoll of Tustin High School has volunteered for over six years at the Asian American Senior Center where she has built meaningful relationships and learned the rewards of giving back to her community. She is currently the secretary general of the Model United Nations program, co-president of the Asian American Pacific Islanders Club, and captain of the varsity tennis team. Outside of school Knoll works at Kumon. She plans to attend a four-year university and is applying to schools now. Olivia Jackson, also of Tustin High, is a four-year volleyball player and competed in the CIF playoffs for Tustin High School. She is the vice president of the Freeminers Club at THS, where she encourages students to dive into STEM and explore their creativity through hands-on projects and presentations. She also participates in the THS T-Tech program and completes service hours through the AVID program. After high school graduation, Jackson plans to pursue a career in the accounting field. Also named for November are Uzma Nassr of Beckman High School and Katally Lin of Legacy High School. The Orange Elks Antler Program, for youth between the ages of 12 and 20, was recently established by the Orange Elks. The nine charter members are, left to right, Neilani Ito, secretary; Victoria Vega, president; Tyler Collins, vice president; KJ Martinez; Brooklyn Colvin, treasurer; Bailey Karich; Robert Nelson; Seth Lawrence; and Nick Masdea. Orange to revisit fireworks sales By Tina Richards With one safe and sane 4th of July fireworks sale under its belt, the City of Orange is reconsidering some of the details pertaining rules for participating nonprofits, timing and permit duration. City staff presented a number of suggestions to the council at its Nov. 12 meeting, based on input from fireworks merchandisers and nonprofits. Those suggestions included reducing the number of permits from 12 to eight; moving the application process from March to January; extending the permit duration to two years or removing an organization for one year after participating. Staff also suggested removing the restriction on organizations “affiliated with a registered 501(c)3” from applying for permits. The intention in that case was to limit applications to one per nonprofit, but recognizing that many organizations are interconnected or linked, that restriction is burdensome. While council members were amenable to moving the timeline to January, less certain about removing the “affiliated organization” section, and issuing permits for two years, they did not agree to reduce the number of permits. Booth reboot? “Why would we reduce the number of permits?” Ana Gutierrez inquired at the top of the discussion. The answer was disparity in sales. Because fireworks were permitted in just half the city, sales ranged from $80,000 to $13,000, suggesting that 12 booths oversaturated the market. Reducing the number would allow all participants to do better. Jon Dumitru pointed out that there was only one booth in West Orange, with most of them on Tustin Street. Spreading them out more might have driven a different outcome, he suggested. Noting that Orange is in competition with other cities for fireworks sales, he said he would like to stay at 12 to give more opportunities to nonprofits. “Reducing the number after the first year seems too soon,” Arianna Barrios objected. “Much of the disparity seems to be location, but it’s too soon to know. We need to learn more about locations." Denis Bilodeau noted that one booth actually shut down early due to poor performance. “The first year was tough,” he said, “because everybody was scrambling. I’d suggest cutting it to 10 rather than eight.” City Manager Jarad Hildenbrand told the council they did not have to agree on a number right then. “That would be an administrative fix,” he said. Staff, he said, could propose language reflecting options for one-year or two-year permits and removing (or not) the affiliated organization option. The discussion will resume at the council’s December meeting. VP Library offers holiday programs The Villa Park Library will host the Lil’ Dickens Carolers and invite attendees to make a snow globe, Wednesday, Dec. 10 at 5 p.m. This program is for all ages. Teens and adults are invited to make a masterpiece out of an old book by folding pages into unique designs, on Saturday, Dec. 13 at 2 p.m. All supplies are provided. A Recipe Exchange program, featuring a food trivia contest, is slated for Saturday, Dec. 20 at 2 p.m. The community recipe book will be released afterwards. The Villa Park Library is located at 17865 Santiago Blvd, in the Villa Park Towne Center. (714) 998-0861. Saturday, December 13 at 2pm BOOK FOLDING FOR ADULTS AND TEENS Folded book pages Eagle Scouts Ethan Tjoa, Tristin Morgan and Logan Doan with Scoutmaster Tim Endo.
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