Your positive feedback is appreciated – we ARE glad to be back! Now if we could just get our editor to relax and say what’s really on her mind…please don’t hold back, Judith!
Undoubtedly helping to shine up their image a little (especially with their Culver Crest neighbors) Plains Exploration & Production (PXP) presented a $20,000 check to the Culver City Education Foundation (CCEF) at the last CCUSD Board meeting. The funds will be used to buy 10 tech combos (a document camera, LCD projector and secure cart) for all the Culver City Middle School science classes. Come Fall 2012 the CCMS science students will take part in a field trip to PXP with the goal to learn more about oil and gas exploration and hopefully motivate students to keep taking math and science courses.
The reservation deadline has passed, but you still may be able to squeeze in to the 32nd Annual Mayor’s Luncheon, set for this Thursday, March 29 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Los Angeles, Westside, 6161 Centinela Ave. Out-going Mayor Mehaul O’Leary will give the State of the City address at the luncheon (can we get him to sing the “Star Spangled Banner?”). This event provides a once-yearly opportunity for businesses, religious organizations, schools, service clubs (who forgo their regular meetings for this luncheon), and community organizations to meet together over lunch, see friends old and new, and get a closer look at our community’s programs and accomplishments over the past year. The Culver City Chamber of Commerce is hosting the Annual Mayor’s Luncheon, and all reservations must be prepaid. Call (310)287-3850 to see if you can drop your check ($25.00 per person) by the Chamber office, 4249 Overland Avenue. No walk-ins will be admitted to the event. Doors open at 11:30 a.m. and the luncheon buffet begins at 12 noon.
Got a teen who’s thinking about a California college, but just which one? and do you have the time to take them on a campus tour? This year the Culver-Palms Family YMCA is offering its first Spring Break Caravan. This unique camp will take your student to California Poly San Luis Obispo, San Francisco State University, and the University of California Santa Cruz. Not only will campers tour each of these schools and meet with the administrators, but they will have the opportunity to explore the cities surrounding each campus. Trained camp staff will lead discussions on interviewing, resume writing, and preparing applications. Caravan dates are April 2-8 and is for students in grades 9-12. The fee is $325 for facility members, $375 for program members, and financial assistance is even available for those who qualify. For more information contact Katie Laase at (310) 390-3604, or drop by the Culver-Palms Family YMCA at 4500 Sepulveda Blvd. and sign ‘em up!
The (really)“official” guide to activities in Our Town is available online The Spring 2012 edition of the Culver City Living Leisure Services brochure is available on the Culver City website at www.culvercity.org/CulverCityLiving. Check out the latest edition and you’ll be amazed at the wide variety of exciting programs and activities being offered for all ages via the city’s Parks, Recreation and Community Services Division.
Did you know that the person behind you in line at the supermarket or maybe just watching his/her dog play with yours at the Dog Park might be the one to save your life in the event of an emergency in Culver City? Hundreds of locals have taken the CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) classes, held at the Culver City Fire Department Training Facility on Jefferson Blvd., and congratulations go to last week’s Spring grads. If you too would like to be a CERT member, mark your calendars now for the June 5, 9, 16 and 23 training dates. There are also CPR classes, amateur radio emergency services training – lots of ways to be an even better Culvercitizen than you are now. Go to www.culvercitygovernment.org/PublicSafety then scroll down to CERT.
Following in the “over the rainbow” spirit, the Culver City Rotary Club has now adopted the Culver City Teen Center Computer Room, and a number of Rotarians and guests at their recent “Local Heroes” event purchased a $100 yellow “brick” to be mounted on the wall of the Teen Center. Additional bricks for the Center’s walls are still available for purchase and each will be inscribed with the donor’s name. Rotarians will hold a luncheon meeting there in the near future to admire the new wall – and we bet a few more bricks will be purchased then if President Ann Murakami has her way!
Reminder – your comments are appreciated below – and if you’d like to have your club’s picnic, family reunion, birthday bash or etc. included in LOCALmotion, send your news to [email protected].
Editor’s Note – I’ll be publishing my thought on the CCEF taking a donation from PXP this week, and yes, I promise to overcome any shyness on the topic.
I look forward to reading the editor’s thoughts about the PXP check given to the CCEF. I made the following comments on the Culver City Progress Blog
“On the same night (March 13) that another community meeting was held to discuss fracking, a PXP representative handed the Culver City Education Foundation a check for $20,000. This took place during the Culver City Unified School District board meeting. Although I have not been following the fracking discussions until recently, I wondered why an oil company based in Texas would give our schools money.
“Something else occurred that made me wonder if the school district gave the money back or wanted to keep the gift quiet. In the March 19 district newsletter, thanks were given to all of the groups that had donated money to our schools. There was no mention of the largest donation, which was from PBX.
“I would like to see more transparency related to this gift. The community has a right to know if the gift was accepted or returned.”
Then I wrote another comment stating that, “According to an article dated March 21 in the Culver City Observer, the Culver City Education Foundation has accepted the check.”
I still wonder if the check was accepted because it occurred to me that PXP might have placed the story in the Observer.