Monthly Archives: June, 2019

Faeries and Fantasy: The Huntington Features Forgotten Father of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Charles Altamont Doyle (British, 1832-1893), “The Eavesdroppers,” pen and watercolor over pencil. Gift of Princess Nina Mdivani Conan Doyle with assistance from The Friends....

Weiss “Stoked” By Motor Classic’s Success

It’s difficult to gauge the success of an event that is as ambitious in scope as the San Marino Motor Classic, but two words summed up the opinion of Aaron Weiss, who was in on the ground floor of the event that last Sunday celebrated its ninth iteration. “I’m stoked,” said Weiss, a longtime San Marino resident who a decade ago decided to bring a “car show,” for lack of more sophisticated terminology, to Lacy Park after a similar enterprise held near the Rose Bowl ceased operations. An audience estimated to approach 4th of July standards descended on Lacy Park this past Sunday to see the approximately 470 cars on display (over a hundred more than a year ago) while visiting 40 vendor booths. On Saturday night, 425 attended a gala in the park to kick off the 9th annual event, eclipsing another record. But Weiss is wary of getting bogged down in the numbers. “The attendance, the number of cars on display…all that is good, but what is more important is that we will again generate a lot of money for our worthwhile charities,” Weiss said. “Also, people from across the country are bringing their cars to our show, and that says a lot about how relevant we are becoming. This year’s event exceeded all of our expectations.” The San Marino Motor Classic has doled our over $1.9 million in its first eight years of existence with an even larger cut expected to benefit the three charities this year, with the Pasadena Humane Society, Cancer Support Community Pasadena and San Marino Rotary Charities scheduled to receive assistance. “That is really what is important to us,” said Weiss, himself a car collector. This year’s event received a boon when the Ferrari Club of America Southwest Region asked to fold its free car show—entitled Concorso Ferrari—into the San Marino Motor Classic, bringing more than 100 more vehicles to Lacy Park. “I think that made a huge impact on our show,” Weiss said. Another San Marino resident also made a “huge impact” at the event, as the Best In Show: Pre-War to 1942 award went to Joe and Janice Conzonire for their Thomas Flyer Model M 6-40 Touring. Another notable vehicle that made a splash was a Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost - Riviera Town Car owned by Richard Atwell, that claimed first place in the European Open (Full Classics Only) division. The car was featured in the 1954 movie “Sabrina,” which starred Humphrey Bogart, Audrey Hepburn and William Holden. The Silver Ghost also received the historical vehicle award and will be registered in the United States Library of Congress. The show also featured five Ford Probe concept cars, a 1906 Model T and comedian Jay leno, who made what seems to be his annual trek to Lacy Park, where he graciously posed for pictures with attendees. Weiss thanked his all-volunteer staff for their yeoman effort on what turned out to be an unseasonable hot day (at least for this recent season) before making sure everyone has next year’s event already on the calendar. “June 14, 2020,” said Weiss, who will undoubtedly make the tenth edition the best.

15th Blecksmith Run Set for Thursday, July 4 at 8

The San Marino Tribune will proudly co-sponsor the 15th annual J.P. Blecksmith Memorial 5K Walk & Run on Thursday, July 4. An Independence Day tradition, the event will begin at 8:00 a.m. in the northwest corner of San Marino Avenue and Huntington Drive. The race honors the memory of United States Marine Corps 2nd Lieutenant J.P. Blecksmith, who gave his life during the war in Iraq. A San Marino resident, Blecksmith received an appointment to the United States Naval Academy, where he was a four-year member of the Midshipmen football team. After graduation from the Naval Academy in May 2003, he accepted a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps, completing The Basic School and the Infantry Officer’s Course at Quantico, Virginia. In April 2004, he was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment of the 1st Marine Division and commanded the 3rd Platoon of India Company. The Battalion was deployed to Iraq on September 10, 2004. On November of that same year, Blecksmith was killed while leading his platoon on a house-to-house campaign during Operation Phantom Fury. The J.P. Blecksmith Memorial 5K Walk & Run supports several charities, including the J.P. Blecksmith Leadership Foundation at Flintridge Prep, where J.P. graduated high school in 1999. A scholarship is awarded annually in his name to a deserving senior. The event also benefits the USC Marshall School of Business Masters of Business for Veterans program, a fully accredited 1-year graduate degree created specifically for military veterans, those on active duty and reserve personnel. The cost of the event is $25, which includes an official race t-shirt and commemorative finisher’s medallion. Registration is available at jpblecksmith.org or on race day beginning at 6:45 a.m. and closing at 7:45 a.m. For more information or to learn about sponsorship opportunities, please email mitchlehman@sanmarinotribune.com

City, Residents Discuss Possible 710 Projects Proposed by Metro

San Marinans came out June 10 to the Crowell Public Library with numerous questions, ideas and some lingering confusion as the resident-led group Citizens for Safe San Marino held a press conference that followed by a Town Hall meeting organized by city staff to discuss the proposed projects for 710 freeway extension alternatives with $32 million from Measure R sales tax funding through the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro). The funds are meant to address traffic impact due to Metro’s decision to not construct the 710 tunnel project, which aimed to link the 710 and 210 Freeways. The currently presented projects considered in San Marino are Huntington Drive intersection work ($12 million), Huntington Drive signal synchronization ($7 million), work in front...

Local Student Takes 7th At National History Bee

Isaac Jung finished 7th in the National History Bee. You might recall the exploits of Isaac Jung, who recently completed the fifth grade at Valentine...

Titanium Robotics Kicks Off Annual Summer Camp

On Wednesday June 5, San Marino High School’s Titanium Robotics team kicked off its annual summer camp. The camp lasted from 1-4 p.m. and...

San Marino’s Steele Picked By Marlins In MLB Draft

San Marino resident Joey Steele was recently selected by the Miami Marlins in the 30th round of the Major League Baseball draft. Steele, a 2014 graduate of St. Francis High School, took a post-graduate year at the IMG Academy in Florida before enrolling at the University of San Francisco, where he played for the Dons. A pitcher, Steele made 28 appearances for USF in 2019, striking out 54 batters in 35 innings as the Dons went 30-26 overall. The son of Paula and Bill Steele, Joey graduated from USF last month with a degree in Business and planned on attending graduate school until the Marlins came calling. “Joey has a tremendous upside,” said former San Marino High School baseball coach Mack Paciorek, who has followed Steele’s career. “He is a big guy with good velocity and a wicked slider. If given enough time, who knows what can happen.” A righthander, Steele is listed at 6’2” and 195 lbs. Father Tony Marti, president of St. Francis High School, said Steele is “an excellent young man.” Nino Giarratano has coached the USF baseball team for 22 years and is a big fan of the big righthander. “I am so proud of him,” said Giarratano. “I know how hard he has worked and what he has put into the game. I am so happy that he will be able to live out his dream of being a professional athlete.” Giarratano said Steele has the rare combination of “a tremendous attitude and exceptional physical ability.” “Joey competes at the highest level and holds himself accountable as a player and a person,” said Giarratano. “He battles back when things don’t go his way and he is humble when they do. I am so happy for this great kid and his family.”

Seniors Learned Well from A Wise Professor

Anyone who may have thought a Harry Potter-themed Grad Night might be lost on San Marino High School’s graduating class of 2018 had better think again. Though the motifs are chosen through a vote by the students themselves, some felt the franchise could be too tween for those about to head off to higher education. Proving themselves to be wise in the ways of the world as well as book-smart, however, the grads seemed to thoroughly grasp the many lessons provided by the historic works of author J.K. Rowling, which chronicle the lives of a young wizard and his friends as they meander through a highly pedigreed school. Students strive to distinguish themselves from the tribes which precede and follow them, and while the Class of 2019 has accomplished much in the classroom and on the fields and stages, San Marino High School’s recent graduates will leave a legacy of gratitude. Starry-eyed upon first sight of the elaborate Grad Night set, the young people spent their final eight hours wrapped in a warm embrace of a community to which they have given much, but received even more. “Graduation and Grad Night were both such unforgettable, fun, and bittersweet events where I was so happy to spend time with everyone from the Class of 2019 for the last time,” said Erina Widjaja, who is headed to USC. “By the end of Grad Night, I couldn’t stop crying realizing that it was all over, and I just wanted to thank San Marino for shaping the person I’ve become in the past 13 years.” Katherine Choi, who was one of three students chosen to speak at last Friday’s graduation ceremony and afterwards, told The Tribune it was “surreal.” “Honestly I’m experiencing a mix of emotions,” said Choi, who is headed to Georgia Tech. “Sad because I’m leaving a place I called home for all these years, but also excited for the things to come.” Boulder-bound Tommy Long said it was “a magical way to wrap up four years.” School Board President Lisa Link started the evening’s speeches off by reminding the assemblage of this community’s special nature. “You are fortunate to have gone to school at San Marino High School,” Link said. “You are among the best-prepared high school students in California and this country, and you will soon appreciate that advantage. You have had excellent teachers and coaches who taught you how to think and improve your skills, counselors and administrators who guided your academic and personal growth, and support staff who ensured that everything ran well and that the campus was clean.” Link reminded graduates that “there aren’t many communities that line the streets during the Homecoming parade and the Fourth of July parade. Or where you graduate with the same people who you went to Kindergarten with. Or where you can’t get away with anything because everyone in town knows everyone else.” “Where else do parents and community members come together for six months and donate thousands of hours and dollars to create the biggest, best, and most unbelievable party that you’ll ever attend…the Magical World of Harry Potter Grad Night?” Link said as the audience, at her behest, cheered Grad Night chairs Donna Balbin, Jennifer Giles and Helen Spitzer. Principal Dr. Issaic Gates encouraged his grads to not be afraid of failure. “Inherently, everyone wants to be successful,” Gates said. “However, most folks are not willing to fail at attempting to be successful because the comfort zone feels so good. In your comfort zone, you’ve calculated the cost, you control the environment, you see the entire spectrum of potential outcomes, you know what you are capable of, you are safe. Safe.” He then asked if there “any future dream makers out there; any world changers; any folks who can find that ‘It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.’” “Can I talk to you for a moment?” Gates said, his voice dropping in dramatic anticipation. “To you, I say ‘go ahead, color outside...

Farewell, At Least for Now…

“Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in,” says a famous line from The Godfather Part III, and even though the life’s work of Loren Kleinrock has absolutely nothing to do with organized crime, it wouldn’t be a stretch to hear those words coming from his mouth. The 2018-19 school year marks Kleinrock’s 43rd at the San Marino Unified School District and—to quote another film, “Never Say Never” – it is most likely his last. After graduating from UCLA, Kleinrock came to the San Marino Unified School District in 1975 as a Government and History teacher. He was named assistant principal at SMHS in 1986 and served until 1992, when he went to Huntington Middle School for a two-year stint as principal. He returned to SMHS in 1995 and served as principal until the summer of 2011, when he was named superintendent upon Dr. Gary Woods accepting a similar position at the Beverly Hills Unified School District. Kleinrock stayed on until Dr. Alex Cherniss was hired as superintendent in 2014. Kleinrock spent the next two years “flat retired,” in his words, until Cherniss invited him back as a consultant in 2016 to implement the state’s Next Generation Science Standards and the framework for a new state History and Social Studies curriculum. In the spring of 2017, Dr. Eric Bergmann, San Marino High School’s assistant principal of activities, athletics and discipline, resigned to become principal at...

Antosy Is A Member Of A Very Elite Club

Steve Antosy gets his Members Only jackets on ebay, according to his daughter, Leslie, which answers one of the many questions I have for her father. His impeccable style notwithstanding, there is much more to the longtime San Marino resident than the iconic outerwear that was a hipster favorite in the 1980s, but apparently survives to this very day among America’s veterans. He doesn’t wear glasses, takes only preventive medication, walks every day and moves nimbly about with flawless recall of events both recent and past. And he certainly needs no reminder of his whereabouts seventy-five years ago from Thursday, that’s for certain. Let’s go back a bit. On June 19, 1943, shortly after graduating high school in his hometown of Reading, Pennsylvania, Antosy was drafted into...
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