Christmas morning and no gifts under the tree? Unfortunately, far too many children will experience just this scenario on Christmas morning, the day many of us will be celebrating with family, engulfed in wrapping paper, and opening boxes filled with wonderful surprises—expressions of the love that is all around us. What brings meaning to the [...]
Did you know Lurch? He died alone. On a bench. Right here in Pasadena. How about Tom, who died next to a dumpster at a pharmacy? These are just two out of the 50 local homeless people who died in 2011, and 50 out of the thousands nationwide who die each year from illness, exposure [...]
This holiday season, as we wait for an uptick in the economy, people have thought of helping by buying from their local, independently-owned shops. Ten Thousand Villages is offering a “three-fer” to sweeten the deal. Buy a gift from their local store (#1) that supports fair trade practices and artisans from around the world (#2), [...]
A turkey feast with all the trimmings. Be welcomed and treated like royalty. This Thanksgiving, the Pasadena Senior Center will once again be offering a feast, continuing its tradition of doing all the cooking and the cleaning up. The menu includes roasted turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, seasonal vegetable, salads, beverages and desserts. All these delicious victuals will [...]
Holiday shopping just got easier. The Assistance League of Pasadena is raising money for Operation School Bell, which every year provides school uniforms, underclothes, shoes and an age-appropriate book for more than 1,300 elementary school students in the Pasadena Unified School District. ALP will be raising the money from what many people consider their favorite [...]
The deadline: this Thursday, November 11th. Foothill Family Services is once again offering its Adopt-a-Family program to bring relief, smiles, and a large dose of holiday cheer to families who only see the upcoming holidays as a daunting mountain of impossibilities. FFS was founded more than 85 years ago and has programs that include mental [...]
When the next cynical curmudgeon says, “This generation of kids is so self-absorbed—with their noses stuck in their electronics—the future of our country is doomed,” remember Sarah Gilman and Anne Marquardt. With these young philanthropists leading the way, we’re pretty confident the future looks really, really good. A neighbor of Anne’s had breast cancer. This [...]
The second someone hears the “C” word from her doctor’s mouth, it can be like getting sucked into a vacuum or being dropped in an isolation tank—and one wonders, how can anyone feel so alone? The shock may linger for a long time, even as those around offer comfort and support. Dr. Susan Love: leading [...]
A half a century ago, Mara Moser decided to befriend lonely and overwhelmed mothers. Wow. Couldn’t the world clone a million and one of her? Moser’s efforts grew into a space where mother’s could find friendship, support, and encouragement, as well as social interactions for their children. Her vision is still alive and thriving at Mother’s [...]
Remember what weekends were all about when we were kids? “Go clean your room!” Well, now that we’re the grownups, it’s time to clean up a different kind of “room”—a part of our valued domain, the Central Arroyo Seco. This Sunday, Arroyo Seco Foundation volunteers are cleaning up a stretch of this popular natural space, [...]
