Hope District teachers make progress on contract

Several key clauses of the Hope District Teacher’s Association contract were agreed to this week, after months of negotiations, said Superintendent Les Imel. “The health and welfare benefits part has been completed,” he said. He added that because there is a retirement agreement that is still active for two more years, the district and the union have elected to not discuss that this year.

Because of the financial situation with the state, Imel explained that the contracts are likely to be renegotiated every year from now on. “To get out there too far and make more than a one-year agreement is risky, for the employer as well as the employees, because of volatility of it. A district would be not be prudent (to negotiate longer terms) because the state is so up and down.”

At Monday night’s closed session board meeting, the school board voted to accept a counterproposal from the HDTA that will allow teachers with class sizes of 28 or higher to have additional aide time and additional release time on a graduated scale.

Accommodations for larger class sizes are of particular concern to upper grade teachers, as class sizes are bulging, especially in the fifth grade. As of Aug. 17, Hope School had 64 fifth graders enrolled, with two teachers planned; Monte Vista had 67 fifth graders enrolled, with two teachers planned; and Vieja Valley had 77 fifth graders enrolled, with 2.5 teachers planned and a fourth/fifth combination classroom.

But these numbers are not final, stressed Imel. “Until that first day of school when you count the bodies … we really don’t know where we are.”

While the state provides incentives for having no more than 20 students per class in the lower grades, there are no such incentives for grades four and above. In addition to the financial consequences associated with hiring additional teachers, the Hope District schools also face some space issues — there simply aren’t enough rooms to add additional classrooms. This issue is likely to cause further challenges for the district in the future, as the nearby 170-unit St. Vincent’s housing project is expected to break ground in late September.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on August 26, 2004.

Parks Dept. shifts softball to major league

Photo by CherylHolt, pixabay.com.

Photo by CherylHolt, pixabay.com.

On the heels of the U.S. women dominating the diamond in Olympic softball this week, the Santa Barbara Parks and Recreation Department received approval from the City Council to contract with Major League Softball, Inc. (MLS), for adult softball league services, a shift that will save the city money and also lower fees for participants.

While Councilman Dr. Dan Secord praised the cost efficiency involved in privatizing recreational services, Councilman Das Williams expressed some concern that a trend toward privatization might ultimately take money out of the pockets of local residents. However both men supported the proposal, in a unanimous vote. Councilman Brian Barnwell was absent.

Originally the department proposed increasing league fees to cover a higher percentage of the program costs. However, it received “numerous amounts of public comment that the fee increases would be prohibitive to the players and continue to limit the teams that were participating,” said Sarah Clayton, recreation programs manager. When efforts to find a nonprofit agency to take over the program failed, the city then turned to MLS, which currently serves 27 cities and counties in Southern California and has been in existence since 1986. MLS will provide their services for four softball seasons a year. We’re currently only doing two seasons, said Clayton.

By outsourcing the softball leagues, the city will save a minimum of $37,000 over the next two years, said Acting Parks and Recreation Director Nancy L. Rapp.

In addition, the fees will be reduced for program participants: from $630 to $538 for a nine-week season and from $840 to $654 for a 12-week season. “So it’s a good plus for participants that want to engage in the program,” said Clayton.

“We expect that numbers which have declined in recent years — from 352 teams in Fiscal Year ’03 to 242 teams in Fiscal Year ’04 — Major League Softball says to us that they hope to bring it back up to a level about 480 teams playing per year,” said Clayton. “So we hope to revitalize the softball and do it in a very quality way.”

Santa Barbara’s agreement with MLS will run for two years. League registration will start in mid-September and field renovation will also take place then, said Clayton. “We hope to start leagues in the first week of October.”

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on August 26, 2004.

Elings Park fills in blanks with new capital campaign

After its impressive conversion from an old city dump to a bucolic multiuse park with one of the best views in town – financed solely by donations from the community — Elings Park is looking to secure its future by appealing to the public once again.

The next time you go to walk your dog, paraglide, jog, ride your bike, picnic, play soccer, paint, attend a wedding, visit the BMX track or softball fields at the park, you’re likely to be greeted by an Elings supporter requesting donations to help the nonprofit foundation raise the $126,700 it needs to maintain its 364 days a year/from 7 a.m. till sunset level of service.

Unrestricted operating capital — as opposed to money for specific projects — is the hardest kind of money to raise, but it’s also the most critical, said executive director Mike Warren.

“We’ve been running at a deficit for three years, so we’re flirting with disaster,” he said. “If 5,000 people gave us just a little over $25, like $27.30, we’d be there.”

In addition to trying to raise money for operations, Warren has his plate full with plans for the third phase of the park, the lower 23 acres on the left as visitors enter off Las Positas Road. The plan — which includes an international size all-weather soccer facility, an 11,500-square-foot community center, a permanent BMX track, basketball, handball and volleyball courts, and permanent park office space with four additional offices to rent — is undergoing city review now and ready to begin the environmental impact report phase, said Warren. He roughly estimated the total project cost would be about $14 million and the development would happen in phases, as did the earlier growth of the park.

“Phase three or the development of the lower plateau will complete the original 97 acres of what we lease from the city,” said Warren.

Also eventually in the works is what is known as “South Park,” the old Jesuit property above Cliff Drive that currently is zoned by the county for residential and light agricultural use. Jeff Elings Drive and a small parking lot were built earlier this year to allow access to the property from Cliff Drive. Right now the plan is just to continue to use the property “as is” for passive recreational uses such as hiking, mountain biking and paragliding, Warren said.

For more information on the “Elings is MY Park!” campaign and upcoming events at the park, call 569.5611 or visit www.elingspark.org.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on August 19, 2004.

Think globally, act regionally

While the jobs-housing-congestion dynamic is hardly new news to anyone who travels the 101 freeway at 5 p.m. weekdays, a report, titled “Taking Action Regionally,” is actually the first official study to tackle the situation on a broad regional basis and lay out actions to take.

Traffic photo courtesy Pexels.com.

Traffic photo courtesy Pexels.com.

“What really differentiates it is its broader geographic perspective,” said John Jostes, a public policy specialist who led the Santa Barbara County/Ventura County panel that did the report.

“What we discovered is that the level of communication between Ventura agencies, communities, nonprofits and government and Santa Barbara’s (counterparts) is almost non-existent,” said Jostes. As a result, individual community policies and actions are having unintended detrimental effects collectively.

The study has a series of recommendations in seven different areas, including advancing housing policy that reflects regional priorities, integrating regional thinking into job creation and economic development and legislative advocacy for change.

As to the next step, Jostes said he thinks the report was well received by the powers that be. “But whether anything comes of it is another story. That’s where the political leadership and the community leadership comes in.”

The City of Santa Barbara has already initiated work to get some financial resources for the continuation of the effort, said Gregg Hart, a former councilman who is now the spokesperson for the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments, one of the key players. “If that is successful, the plan is to then go to the City of Ventura to talk about their interest, etc.”

“(Report team member) Jim Youngson has been using the analogy of a campfire, ” said Hart. “Looking for kindling and starting seeds to get a fire going. If the City of Santa Barbara really embraces this sort of a kindling approach … then it will continue.”

When asked if there were state level funds available to continue the work, Jostes said there might be. “That’s one of the things I think everybody would like to see, but it’s a regional problem. In order to attract the interest and the resources that the state has to offer, it’s crucial that western Ventura and Santa Barbara County start acting like a region. That means talking about the collective problems that face us all.”

The full report can be viewed online at www.sbcag.org

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on August 12, 2004.

Fiesta celebration a quiet one for law enforcement

This year’s Fiesta celebration went off with few hitches, which is just the way law enforcement likes it.

“This Fiesta had fewer large problems than the last several recent Fiestas,” said police Lt. Paul McCaffrey, a department spokesman.

He credits much of the success to the preplanning and prior year analysis that goes into making decisions.

To make things work smoothly, all hands are on deck within the department, both officers and civilian personnel.

“Days off, holidays, vacations are all canceled during Fiesta,” said McCaffrey. “The courts don’t say ‘Oh, well, it’s Fiesta’ and give us extra time to get the reports done.”

Also lending a hand were officers from other agencies, including the Sheriff’s Department; Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Santa Paula and Ventura police departments; Santa Barbara County Probation; and the California Youth Authority. While having additional officers on the streets helps, the reinforcements also brought special knowledge of known gang members from their areas.

“The incidents we did have were largely gang-related problems,” McCaffrey said. “Having officers from other agencies that are knowledgeable of who the gang members are, who might have a warrant, the terms of probation. Some people are not allowed out of their county, out at night, (or to) associate with gang members, some are prohibited from consuming alcohol.”

Being able to quickly take action on some of these minor types of violations allowed police to “send a message of what we will and will not tolerate here in Santa Barbara,” McCaffrey said.

“… Especially a gang of 20-25 people, take one or two people out of group for something relatively minor, we’re sending a message. That philosophy did a lot to prevent problems,” he added.

Another big part of police effectiveness was increased communication and mobility. McCaffrey said another radio frequency was added and there were extra officers on bicycles, motorcycles and on foot on State Street, where most of the action took place.

“Gangs aren’t hanging out at the Noches de Ronda,” said McCaffrey, who added that they like the see-and-be-seen atmosphere of State Street.

“A big part of the gang mentality and lifestyle is to defend your gang and look for other gangs.”

Authorities estimate there were 524 arrests during Fiesta vs. more than 650 last year. McCaffrey said the department will have a “great big Fiesta debriefing” in the near future.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon

Back To School

Photo by Wokandapix, pixabay.com.

(To the tune of “Can, can, can you do the cancan”)

Can, can, can you pay attention

Do I have to mention

Everything I said I’ll say again

Can you hear me?

Listening is good for you

Pay attention

Maybe you’ll learn something new

– Song played after recess in a third-grade classroom at Santa Barbara Community Academy

If learning, as some experts claim, is about attention and repetition, what happens during the longest recess of all – summer vacation?

While research measuring the effectiveness of year-round schools vs. traditional calendars is inconclusive, parents, students and educators at year-round schools all said they think children learn better when they have shorter breaks.

“I find that they come back refreshed. Having only a couple weeks (off) they pick things up pretty quickly. I really like that,” said Heather Nicolas, who teaches third grade at Santa Barbara Community Academy.

“… Not only just remembering the facts and the educational academic aspects, but remembering how to be in a classroom, how to behave … you have to do your homework and you have to sit and listen for different parts of the day,” said Erin Cavazos, whose son is a third-grader at the academy.

Children, too, think they learn better.

“It’s easier to remember stuff because it’s not such a long break,” said Leo Adame, a fourth-grader at the academy.

They also recognize the behavioral benefits.

“You have to remember how to behave even though it’s only a three-week break, you still have to remember,” said Nayelhi Romerez, an academy sixth-grader.

While most local children won’t be heading back to school until after Labor Day, the academy is well into its summer session. Along with Cleveland School, it’s one of two year-round elementary schools in our area.

“The advantages are mainly for the students,” said academy principal Joan Jamieson. “Especially students that are at risk. They don’t have a chance to forget things. … The very best thing also is for English learners, they get a chance to get continuing reinforcement of that second language without losing it over a long break.”

A school of choice, meaning that any student in the Santa Barbara Elementary District can attend, the academy has other things that distinguish it, along with the year-round curriculum.

“The founding principles were core knowledge, year-round, uniforms, parent participation; those are probably the four cornerstones of the program,” said Jamieson.

While it’s not surprising that parents like the uniforms, some of the kids do, too.

The uniforms are good, said Leo. “Less clothes to wash,” he explained.

But not all of the children were fans of the regular blue and white and plaid outfits.

“I don’t like it,” said fifth-grader Camisha West.

“You don’t get to wear your cool shirts like this shirt,” said third-grader Destin Cavazos, pointing to his after-school dinosaur duds.

Parents are required to work at the school for six hours per quarter, with a variety of activities available to accommodate different schedules.

“I love the parent involvement,” said Valerie Banks, who has twins in the fifth grade. “I think education has to be with parents and teachers and children all together.”

Banks, an Eastside resident, took her children out of Vieja Valley School two years ago to attend the academy.

“I was equally happy with Vieja Valley, but … it was kind of a trek. The academy was more convenient for me and I really like the year round thing,” Banks said. “We have some excellent teachers, they’re great. They’re really consistent with the kids and I really like that. Parents are much more hands-on.”

Even single parents, like Teresa Culhain, who has two children and works two jobs, like the emphasis on parent participation.” I think it’s good,” she said. “Parents should be involved. … It is first and foremost the parents’ responsibility to know what’s going on with the teachers and at school.”

Cavazos agreed. “The parents are part of the school community, which I think makes a parent feel … like your child is wanted and the people there want to teach your children and they want to be a community within the larger community.”

So You Think You Know Your ABC’s…

By SALLY CAPPON and LESLIE DINABERG

A — Adams School begins technology education in kindergarten. By the time students leave Adams they have a keyboarding fluency of around 35 words per minute.

B — Backpacks. Studies show the average student carries about 22 percent of his or her weight in a backpack. The recommended maximum: 15 percent.

C — Cell Phones are now a common sight on school campuses.

D — Ding Dongs. Want to be popular at lunchtime? Bring along extras of these chocolate-covered cream-filled treats.

E — E-mail is now the preferred communication method for many teachers.

F — Free Lunch. More than 4,000 low-income students in Santa Barbara County received free lunches last year.

G — Groundhog Job Shadow Day, in which students shadow local professionals in the field of their choice, will kick off Feb. 2.

H — Hollister School students enjoy a fabulous art program, which culminates in an art show and a spring chalk drawing festival.

I — Isla Vista School has 17 different languages spoken in its student body.

J — Junior Highs on the South Coast include Carpinteria Middle School, Goleta Valley Junior High, La Colina Junior High, La Cumbre Junior High, Santa Barbara Charter Middle School and Santa Barbara Junior High.

K — Kellogg School’s playground was resurfaced this summer.

L — Lunch Boxes. Spider-Man, Barbie, the Power Puff Girls and Yu-Gi-Oh are among this year’s most popular designs.

M — McKinley School’s close proximity to Santa Barbara City College helps provide lots of classroom volunteers.

N — No. 2 Pencils. Get them out; we’re going to have a pop quiz.

O — Open Alternative School has its own organic garden.

P — Partners in Education is a group of local businesspeople working together with educators to support our schools.

Q — Quarter. Milk used to be nickel at school, but now it’s a quarter most places.

R — Recess. The highlight of our day.

S — School Supplies. Pee Chee folders, Elmer’s Glue and lined paper are among the list of school supply essentials.

T — Teacher’s Fund, administered by Village Properties, provides grants to teachers for specific school projects.

U — UCSB’s Gervitz Graduate School of Education has credentialed many local teachers, counselors and administrators.

V — Vending Machines. Last year there was a move to put healthier food selections in school vending machines.

W — Westmont College is known, among other things, for having great babysitters.

X — X-ing Guards help students cross streets safely.

Y — Year-Round Schools. There are two on the South Coast, Cleveland School and the Santa Barbara Community Academy.

Z — ZZZZZ … No sleeping in class!

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on August 12, 2004.

Regional coordination sought for challenges

A new report says jobs, housing and transportation issues need a unified response.

While the jobs-housing-congestion dynamic is hardly new news to anyone who travels Highway 101 during commuter hours, a new report is actually the first official study to tackle the situation on a broad, regional basis and lay out actions to take.

“What really differentiates it is its broader geographic perspective,” said John Jostes, a public policy specialist who led the Santa Barbara County/Ventura County panel that compiled the report, “Taking Action Regionally.”

“What we discovered is that the level of communication between Ventura agencies, communities, nonprofits and government and Santa Barbara’s (counterparts) is almost nonexistent,” Jostes said.

As a result, individual community policies and actions are having unintended detrimental effects, collectively.

The study has a series of recommendations in seven different areas, including advancing housing policy that reflects regional priorities, integrating regional thinking into job creation and economic development, and legislative advocacy for change.

As to the next step, Jostes said he thinks the report was well received by the powers that be.

“But whether anything comes of it is another story,” he said. “That’s where the political leadership and the community leadership comes in.”

The city of Santa Barbara has already initiated work to get some financial resources for the continuation of the effort, said Gregg Hart, a former councilman who is now the spokesman for the Santa Barbara County Association of Governments, one of the key players. “If that is successful, the plan is to then go to the city of Ventura to talk about their interest, etc.

“(Report team member) Jim Youngson has been using the analogy of a campfire,” Hart continued. “Looking for kindling and starting seeds to get a fire going. If the city of Santa Barbara really embraces this sort of a kindling approach … then it will continue.”

Asked if there were state-level funds available to continue the work, Jostes said there might be.

“That’s one of the things I think everybody would like to see, but it’s a regional problem,” he said. “In order to attract the interest and the resources that the state has to offer, it’s crucial that western Ventura and Santa Barbara County start acting like a region. That means talking about the collective problems that face us all.”

The full report, “Taking Action Regionally,” can be viewed online at www.sbcag.org.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on August 12, 2004.

Cottage housing plan causes conflicts

While some neighbors are still leery, city planners last week praised Cottage Health System‘s plan to build workforce housing on the site of the old St. Francis Medical Center, which it purchased for about $18 million last year.

The purpose of the three-hour plus meeting was to outline which environmental impacts should be studied, but comments from the public were much further reaching, with equally passionate opponents and proponents of the project.

Neighbor Frank Hernandez offered praise for both the project itself and the public review process. “This is one of the better experiences I’ve had in Santa Barbara,” he said. “This is an excellent way to use seven acres.”

Cottage plans to build 115 units for its workers, with 81 of them sold at below-market rates. The remaining 34 market rate units are required in order for us to be able to afford construction of the project, said Cottage’s Chief Executive Officer Ron Werft in his presentation of the project.

These market rate units were of some concern to neighbor Jennifer Miller. “If it was 100 percent Cottage, I’d feel a lot more comfortable supporting it,” she said.

Traffic and parking are also big issues in the neighborhood and many urged the environmental report to take the County Bowl into consideration, as well as the unique situation of having at least 81 Cottage employees living in the same place. While a shuttle service is being planned for the development, the city and the hospital have not yet come up with a way to enforce its use by employees.

Throughout the meeting, the six planning commissioners expressed that they thought the project was a good one, but that the environmental report should look at impacts related to construction, noise, traffic, parking and circulation.

“The general concept of a major employer taking advantage of an opportunity like this is just phenomenal,” said commissioner Grant House. “It’s a way to take a bite out of it (the housing crisis) instead of just a nibble.”

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on August 5, 2005.

Some do want to get away for Fiesta

Old Spanish Days Fiesta Parade, photo by Damian Gadal, courtesy Wikipedia Commons.

Old Spanish Days Fiesta Parade, photo by Damian Gadal, courtesy Wikipedia Commons.

There are plenty of sanctuaries within driving distance.

Santa Barbarans have a love/hate relationship with Fiesta. It’s a lot of fun, but it’s a lot of people and a lot of festivities to deal with for four days straight. If you start to feel like one more chorus of “La Bamba” will put you over the edge, read on for some cures for Fiesta fever.

The charms of Los Olivos are just a short drive away. For those who haven’t visited lately, Grand Avenue is indeed grand. Stop by the always delightful Persnickity (2900 Grand Ave.; 686.8955) for a wonderful selection of gift items, including vintage linens, birdhouses, ladies dresses and more.

Also worth a look are the Gallery Los Olivos (2920 Grand Ave.; 688.7517), which represents more than 40 regional artists, and the two Judith Hale Galleries (north at 2890 Grand Ave.; 688.1222, and south at 2884 Grand Ave.; 693.1233), an eclectic mix of Western and traditional artwork in all media, including bronze and stone sculpture, woodcarvings and jewelry.

Featuring the works of Santa Barbara artist Merv Corning, among others, is Young’s Gallery (2920 Grand Ave.; 688.9745), which specializes in original watercolors, oils and calligraphy.

A must for wine aficionados is the Arthur Earl tasting room (2921 Grand Ave.; 693.1771). Winner of the South Coast Beacon’s Savor Santa Barbara “people’s choice” tasting, this small winery produces only about 2500 cases a year.

Another small-yield vintner worth checking out is Andrew Murray Vineyards Tasting Room (2901 Grand Ave.; 686.9604), the only exclusively Rhone estate in Santa Barbara County.

Los Olivos Cafe & Wine Merchant (2879 Grand Ave.; 688.7265) is great. The food is excellent and there’s also a nice selection of local wines by the glass and bottles to purchase.

Grand Avenue even has a four-star restaurant, the Vintage Room at Fess Parker’s Wine Country Inn & Spa (2860 Grand Ave.; 688.7788.

After a visit to Los Olivos, you might want to go north to the Chumash Casino (3400 E. Highway 246), where there’s free live music every Friday and Saturday night, as well as a new resort hotel and spa.

Solvang, “the Danish capital of America,” is certainly an alternative to Old Spanish Days. No visit is complete without an aebleskiver — the Danish equivalent of the ubiquitous churro — available at any of the many bakeries in town. For theater fans, the PCPA features Bullshot Crummond, a takeoff on old “B” movies, running through Sunday. Call 922.8313 for ticket information and showtimes.

Nearby is Trattoria Grappalo (3687 Sagunto St., Santa Ynez; 688.6899) with its mouth-watering pastas and extensive wine list. If you’re feeling like a different kind of dining experience, the Chef’s Touch’s cooking class Saturday is “Married and Bored … Go to Dinner!” which features Thai food preparation and a meal. The cost is $45. Call 686.1040 for reservations.

For those looking to escape south, rather than north, there’s the Dallas Cowboys’ training camp in Oxnard (at the River Ridge Athletic Field on the corner of Ventura Road and Vineyard Avenue) from 9 to 11 a.m. and 3 to 5 p.m.

The Ventura County Fair is going on through Aug. 15 at Seaside Park (10 W. Harbor Blvd., 648.3376). There are arts and crafts, food, farm animals, carnival rides and games, a petting zoo and more. Events in the grandstand arena are free with admission and include Motorsports at 6 p.m. today; Brad Paisley, at 7:30 p.m. Friday; the Village People at 7:30 p.m. Saturday; and … guess you can’t truly escape it … Fiesta Day at 3 p.m. Sunday.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on August 5, 2004.

History On Parade

Old Spanish Days Fiesta Parade, photo by Damian Gadal, courtesy Wikipedia Commons.

Old Spanish Days Fiesta Parade, photo by Damian Gadal, courtesy Wikipedia Commons.

Along a route of less than three miles, El Desfile Histórico makes a colorful connection to Santa Barbara’s past.

Friday’s Old Spanish Days parade is always one of the highlights of Santa Barbara’s annual Fiesta festivities.

El Desfile Histórico, themed as “a celebration of early Santa Barbara,” will be the fruit of hundreds of hours of volunteer labor. About 800 horses, 30 carriages and as many as 20 floats will line up for the parade this year, according Kelly Magne, vice presidente of pageantry.

Because it’s Fiesta’s 80th anniversary, the parade will be a re-creation of the 1924 event, with every float either representing a 1924 float or something that existed in Santa Barbara in that year, said float chairman Marc Martinez. There will be floats depicting the 1924 Courthouse (which was later destroyed in an earthquake), City Hall, the Arlington Hotel, El Patio Restaurant (the precursor to El Paseo) and other historic buildings, events and figures.

Creating the Boys & Girls Club

Club of Santa Barbara’s Chumash village float was both fun and educational for the young art camp participants who researched the different elements of Chumash life, then designed and built the float from the ground up. One end of the elaborate float will feature two Chumash huts.

“We started with bamboo poles, but it didn’t work,” said Mitchell Cunningham, a Notre Dame School seventh-grader who helped build the float. “The bamboo looked good but it burst.”

“So we used authentic Chumash PVC pipe,” laughed Ingrid Bodnar, lead teacher for the project.

Fellow art teacher Lise Lange also contributed leaves from her yard to build the authentic-looking huts. The finished project will portray a seaside village, complete with sand, waves and Chumash grinding maize and going about their daily lives.

Also featured will be the club’s flamenco dancers, said executive director Erin Cavazos. They have new costumes this year, she noted, thanks to money donated by the alumni association.

St. Barbara is also getting a new look this year, said Dolores Hartnett of Reina Del Mar Parlor No. 126, Native Daughters of the Golden West, who’s been involved with the parade for “50 years at least.”

“We just rebuilt our float from the ground up … it’s going to be great for St. Barbara (portrayed by Marisol Cabrera) to ride,” said Hartnett. While all of the floats were drawn by horses at one time, St. Barbara is the only float drawn by horses now.

A new addition to the parade is the Fiesta Queen and her court, said Martinez. In the 1924 parade they held a queen competition as a fundraiser, where the girl who raised the most money won and had the honor of being led to the float by flower boys, a tradition that will be re-created this year, he said.

The queen will be portrayed by Diana Vandervoort, with princesses Thea Vandervoort, Jazz and Paisley Moralez, Marianne Freeman, Cari Kendric and Donna Egeberg.

The coming together of the whole parade is a work of art, said Magne, especially the horses.

“We have a full team of equestrians there that are making sure all the horses are under control and prepared. … It’s been an amazingly safe parade because of the skill of our team,” she said, giving special kudos to equestrian director Wayne Powers.

Besides being one of the country’s largest equestrian parades, it is also a qualifying parade to ride a horse in the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade on New Year’s Day, said Magne.

“Riding a horse in a parade is no easy task,” she said. “You need a lot of training and lot of years of experience to ride in noisy crowds.”

The equestrians are definitely big supporters of Fiesta and Old Spanish Days thanks them with a party, the Horsemen’s Rendezvous, said Magne, adding, “They usually stay one or two nights. It’s great because they spend their money here. We like that.”

“This is probably the best parade we’ve had in at least 20 years,” said Martinez, whose father, Abe, was the former float master. “I used his hammer to build many of the floats this year. It feels like he’s still with me.”

As directors, we’re only the caretakers, continued Martinez.

“It’s been the people, the families, that have kept it (Fiesta) alive to make this 80th anniversary,” he said.

“The parade is the signature event that makes everything work.”

The Fiesta Parade begins at the corner of Cabrillo Boulevard and Castillo Street at noon Friday and will continue for two-and-a-half miles, ending at the corner of State and Sola streets.

Originally published in South Coast Beacon on August 5, 2004.