March 5, 2008

Councilwoman rewards Cambrian leaders

Stars shine on Valentine’s Day

By Carol Rosen
Editor

More than 100 people crowded the Camden Community Center on Thursday, Feb. 14 as District 9 Councilmember Judy Chirco honored a group of D9 Stars that also are community leaders in the Cambrian area.

After introducing the three student body presidents at the breakfast, District 9 Councilmember Judy Chirco discusses the students' complicated lives and how much of the time they spend volunteering for the community. Above she talks about senior Chris Urakam, the student body president for Branham High School.

The list included clergy members and volunteers, fire fighters and librarians, school superintendents and students, principals and teachers, Home and School Club presidents and business owners and club members. This list includes all of the people that make the Cambrian area a good place to live and who are striving to make the community even better, according to Diana Miller, a Chirco staff member.

The guests were invited by Chirco and treated to breakfast with the council member and her staff, given some time to mix with other community members and to learn about Cambrian area supporters. There was a good deal of laughing as well as some bantering between rival principals, which may be the reason there will be a dodge ball tournament between the Branham and Leigh High School faculties at the Branham gymnasium on March 12.

This was Chirco’s second Valentine’s Day breakfast. “I feel that the community is stronger the more people get to meet and talk with each other. It’s a way for people to get together—schools, churches, students, city employees, business people—in our hectic lives where we have little time to stop and chat,” she told the Times.

“It’s a good day to honor those special people in the community and to acknowledge their giving of themselves to the community and the good works they do,” Chirco said.

She added that she and her husband have held holiday parties for friends and neighbors for the past 30 years allowing people to relax and talk and she wanted to extend those feelings to “the leaders of the Cambrian community.” She mentioned that she held last year’s get-together to allow people to meet each other because many community leaders were new. This year again is allowing them to get together and build and solidify friendships, she said.

It was also a time for Chirco to let people know some of the things going on in the Cambrian area including a new Kids Zone play area at the community center as well as the expansion of the Kirk Senior Center Nutrition program, which has grown to serve lunch to 50 to 60 seniors five days per week as well as program expansion and remodeling of the lounge for seniors.

The gathering offered “a good day to honor those special people in the community and to acknowledge their giving of themselves to the community and the good works they do,” said Councilmember Judy Chirco.

She noted that a local Cambrian Club, We and Our Neighbors, will celebrate its 117th birthday this March and the building, at Los Gatos Almaden Road and Union Avenue, in which the club meets will turn 100 in 2010.

Chirco also told those attending about the third annual Celebrate Cambrian Festival and County Fair on May 17 at Camden Community Center. Besides music and food the all-day festival includes a student art show, many city and county agencies and the Groove Kings band.

The morning also featured introductions from all of those invited. Many turned out to be funny. Tom Utic, principal of Branham High School and Donna Hope, principal of Leigh happened to be sitting together and teased each other. He gently twisted her arm while claiming “there was no rivalry between the two.”

Three students also attended, senior Chris Urakam the ASB president from Branham High School and eighth graders Alex Duquette and Elle Streitwieser, co-ASB presidents at Union Middle School.

Even though the get-together was VERY early, it started at 7:30 a.m., all of those attending can’t wait to meet again next year on Valentine’s Day.