Mimi Pollack

Mid-City Center is an oasis in the heart of City Heights. It is the main center for the English as a second language program, part of San Diego Community College District Continuing Education. The six continuing education centers offer a variety of free classes, including ESL, computer, citizenship and various vocational classes. SDCE celebrated its 100th birthday last year.

Many of the people who live in City Heights are low income, recently arrived immigrants and refugees from all over the world who are finding their way in this new country. That is why City Heights plays such an important role as it is a place where they can come together and learn English, citizenship and computer skills, along with learning about each other’s cultures.

On Thursday evening, as a Cinco de Mayo celebration, students and faculty were treated to an extraordinary mini concert by local jazz singer Sacha Boutros, who grew up in Chula Vista. Being multilingual herself, Miss Boutros sang in English, Portuguese, Spanish, French, and even performed a little ditty in Arabic, much to the delight of some of the African students.

Many of the students had never been exposed to jazz before, and although some did not know what to make of it, most of them got into the groove of the music and her powerful voice and really enjoyed the performance.
It was also a way for the singer to give back to the community as this professional is used to singing in more glamorous venues and had never sung in front of a room full of students from so many different backgrounds. However, she sang as if she were at a five star resort, not the lobby of a school. Many of them marveled at her voice while a few fidgeted. It was truly a cultural experience all around.

The evening event was sponsored by the Mid-City Associated Student Body who invited Miss Boutros to come and perform. The ASB is made up of elected students along with a faculty advisor. However, at Mid-City, two ESL teachers, Kara Valenzuela and Harla Yesner, share the faculty adviser role.

The role of the ASB is to promote the interests and welfare of the students and the campus community. As faculty advisers, Valenzuela and Yesner run the elections, schedule the meetings, and help bring the ASB officers’ ideas to fruition. Those ideas include bringing in performers for the students to enjoy and enrich their lives, such as Sacha Boutros for Cinco de Mayo.

www.sdce.edu

It is not easy leaving your home and moving to a new country as an immigrant or refugee. Many immigrants and refugees’ lives are shattered by political or religious conflict and they have to flee their countries. The ones who arrive in the United States have to learn a new language, and get accustomed to a new culture and different types of food. Not only that, many immigrants and refugees go from living in a rural place where they had land, or perhaps a house in the city with a garden to living in small, urban apartments. Sometimes, they feel homesick and long for what they had back home.

This is why the opening of the IRC/Kaiser community garden in El Cajon in 2013 was such a good idea. The IRC or International Rescue Committee is an organization that works with immigrants and refugees helping them to survive in their new country and forge a better life and future. The IRC/Kaiser Community Garden was created, so that families could have a plot of land to garden and grow familiar food.

For the IRC, the garden is a place that serves different purposes. First, it is a place for families to grow fresh vegetables and fruit that they can consume, providing nutritious food, and a way to strengthen and support local food systems.

It is also a place for both physical and mental health. Getting outside in the fresh air and walking around is good for physical health. Planting and digging in the dirt is good for mental health, especially taking pride in the results that follow. There is something very satisfying about eating the food that you grow.

The garden is located in a large lot across the street from the Travelodge Kaiser Permanente in El Cajon where an old hospital used to be. After tearing down the hospital, Kaiser leased the land for free to the IRC with the intention of fostering gardens that would provide healthy, fresh produce. There are forty plots and each plot is about 600 square feet.

Thirty four of those plots belong to Iraqi refugees as there is a large Iraqi population in El Cajon. Three plots belong to employees of Kaiser, two to families from Liberia, and one to a family from Burma. Each family or garden member is responsible for the maintenance and water conservation is encouraged with either drip irrigation systems or low water plants. Water bills usually run $300 a year.

The garden has proven to be popular and unfortunately, there is a waiting list of about two years to get a plot. There are also rules and regulations to keep things running efficiently. The families have to come out and work the plots, do weeding, and generally maintain them. They also have to attend monthly meetings.

The IRC also views the garden as a place for cultural exchanges and sharing food. On the day that I visited there, I met a friendly and welcoming American woman named Vendla [Vennie] Anderson who had just retired from Kaiser. She was joking and sharing gardening tips with a jovial and equally welcoming Iraqi man named, Raad Kareem. Both had bountiful gardens, especially Anderson, who had large artichoke plants. She told me that she loved gardening and being like an American ambassador, working with the folks there and even giving impromptu English lessons.

In addition, as Lora Logan, Senior Farming and Food Enterprise Program Coordinator, explained, some of the people who garden there not only provide food for their families, but they have also learned about growing and selling on a small scale as there are some families that sell their produce at the Farmer’s markets in El Cajon and City Heights. One Iraqi man even sells his produce -he is reported to have the sweetest chard]- to Harvest Ranch Market.

Finally, in my opinion, community gardens seem like a win/win situation especially in the more urban areas of San Diego County where plots of land to garden are harder to come by. The IRC has done a good job with the community garden in El Cajon. In addition, they also operate a large community garden near City Heights on University Ave. This garden serves a more diverse population, including families from Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America. Hopefully, this idea will continue to sprout in neighborhoods all over San Diego.

If you are an animal lover, you will be happy if you stay at Rancho La Puerta, a Jewish owned spa retreat in Tecate, Mexico. Known affectionately as “the ranch” Deborah Szekely and her late husband, Edmond, started the place in 1940.

Back then, it was very rural, rustic and primitive as they were living in harmony with the surrounding nature. That love of nature continues, and today Rancho La Puerta is ranked as one of the best spa destinations in the world.

It is also a safe haven for the stray cats that have wandered in over the years. Guero is one of them. As guests stroll around the large, lovely, and peaceful gardens, they may encounter Guero, a Siamese mix with gorgeous blue eyes, near the guest lounge. He will come and rub himself against you, and say hello.

Guero is one of the approximately 10-12 ranch cats, including Gizmo, Little Rat, Ginger, Uma, Missy, Sylvie, and Gracie. Most of them are strays that have found their way there.

Barney showed up one day and has proven to be a favorite. He is known as the “Dude” with his laid back attitude. He is also up for adoption to a good home and has all his shots and papers.

Each cat has its own spot to rest, play, and hunt. Gizmo and Guero like to hang out near the guest lounge and concierge office. That is a good vantage point to greet people.

Several of the ranch’s fitness instructors, including Denise, Margie and Mike, have been instrumental in the caring of all these cats for many years now, and have adopted several of them. Thus, there are ranch cats and staff cats.

However, all the cats that wander onto the property are rescued, spayed and neutered, checked for health, and then put up for adoption. Some guests have adopted them and taken them back home. The cats seem to know which guests to approach or when to hide.

The cats are a favorite of the animal loving guests. Many repeat visitors come back and ask or look for them. One time, some women who were returning, asked Margie if “their little cat” was still around.

The ranch cats have their own following and add to the wonderful atmosphere of this spa with their own special touch. The ranch cats make the guests feel welcome in their own furry way.

Yale Strom may be a multitalented man and a well known musician both locally and internationally, but he is also refreshingly down to earth and modest, answering my questions at his rustic, comfortable home in Mission Hills with his loving dog, Olive, snuggled on his lap.

Where to begin? Strom is a musician, composer, writer, historian, photographer, and filmmaker. He has also been an ‘artist in residence’ teacher at SDSU for the last ten years, a position created for him. He has 15 CD’s, 14 books, and 9 films under his belt.

He was born in Detroit 55 years ago to a strongly socialist family. Although his parents were not musicians, music was always present in the house growing up. The family moved to San Diego when Yale was child, and he graduated from SDSU with a BA in both American Studies, and in Furniture Design. He went on to get his Masters from Colombia University in Yiddish Studies with an emphasis on Klezmer music. Thus, his talent in many areas started young.

His interest in Klezmer music was social, historical, and musicological. This led to him to a fascination with Roma or Gypsy music, the connection between Eastern European Jews and the Roma, and one of many memorable trips to Romania, Moldova and other countries in Eastern Europe. One connection they had is that both minorities had been marginalized, and many of the Roma moved into former Jewish areas. They also had stereotypes about each other, but many ultimately bonded through their music, and sometimes played in each other’s bands. Another unfortunate fact is that they were the only two ethnic groups targeted in the Holocaust.

As Strom mused, “The DNA of Jewish music comes from the Middle East or the ancient scales of the “Ites”, and Roma music also has similar ties.

Today, Strom has several Roma friends and a Roma accordionist in his Klezmer band, Hot Pstromi. He actually has a San Diego version of Hot Pstromi and a New York City version. Strom proudly states that there are very talented musicians in both bands, and some play both coasts. However, the two constants are Strom and the lead singer, his wife and muse, Elizabeth Schwartz. They have an 18 year old daughter who studies at UCSD.

Strom made me smile when he told me that his father’s students used to call him, “Mr. Pastrami”, an inspiration for the band’s name. David Strom is a retired professor from SDSU, and one of the founding members of Chabad in San Diego. Father and son are very close.

Strom’s interest in music, history and culture led him to receive a grant from San Diego [Creative Catalyst Grant] to write musical pieces, incorporating the music of recently arrived immigrants. So far, he has written two pieces, incorporating Somali and Chaldean music to a more western form.

This spring there will be upcoming concerts. On March 13th, Hot Pstromi will perform at Torrey Pines Christian Church. On April 12th, there will be a concert at SDSU to celebrate the release of Strom’s latest CD called, “City of the Future”, with traditional Yiddish Russian songs. As an ESL teacher, the most interesting one for me will be the concert on April 17th at Temple Solel in Encinitas. The Hausmann quartet will perform Strom’s ‘Somalian Quartet’, and Hot Pstromi will present, ‘The Chaldean Jazz Quintet’.

Other exciting projects he has coming up are a documentary on the founder of the Socialist Party in America, Eugene Victor Debs. He is also working on an upcoming musical play on the life of painter Marc Chagall. This play is a collaboration between Strom, his wife, and choreographer, John Malashock. For Strom, Chagall is the man who inspired the play “Fiddler on the Roof” because of his painting. Strom has the blessing of Chagall’s, granddaughter, Bella.

Strom is a master juggler as he can work on several projects at once, doing them all meticulously, as well as his teaching. Despite his success as a musician, composer, writer, filmmaker, and photographer, he keeps his feet on the ground, never resting on his laurels. There is always the next exciting project!

www.yalestrom.com

The motto for California Labrador Retrievers and More is “Dogs + Families = Love”. Thanks to all their hard work and dedicated volunteers, this group, also known as Labs and More, has found homes for 3,900 dogs in five years. Just last week, they found homes for 60 dogs, an impressive record to start 2016.

They have made a difference in the lives of dogs that had a rough start in life. Take for example, Mollie Ann. She was found tied to a tree and abandoned with a broken leg and hip, all skin and bones. Thanks to a good Samaritan who brought her in, and a kind volunteer who fattened her up to regain her strength, she was able to undergo surgery to fix her leg, and this sweet, calm and friendly black lab mix is now ready to be adopted.

Then there is Larry, a lively and energetic black lab who was found wandering the streets in Orange County.  Larry was sweet, but completely wild. Thanks to his patient foster, he is still lively, but also polite and obedient.

Finally, there is Negrita, a smaller black mutt who was found in Tijuana. Her five puppies had all drowned in the severe rainstorms, but she would not abandon them. A kind woman scooped her up and brought her to the group. Labs and More will find loving, forever homes for all these dogs.

Labs and More was founded in 2011. The founders previously belonged to a Labrador Rescue group that focused solely on purebreds, but believed there were many other dogs deserving of rescue that were being passed over, so they broke off and started their own group.

The Board of Directors consists of 13 volunteers, including Donations manager, Nancy Manning, and Social Media manager, Pam Ahrens. There are 15 volunteer managers, and over 150 active volunteers who also assist in fundraising and adoption events.

Labs and More also has a group of 90 dedicated fosters, who believe every adoptable dog deserves a loving home until they find their forever home.They have between 80 and 150 dogs at any given time. Those dogs that are not in foster homes are kept in boarding facilities.

They have a sophisticated network of 21 volunteers who locate dogs in need all over Southern California and Northern Mexico and orchestrate their transportation to the organization.

This group has also worked with autistic children and wounded vets, and to date, have provided 40 service dogs that have been trained. In addition, they have created a special program called, “Compassion for Paws”, that provides medical care to sick, senior, or injured animals, and works with the adopters to help them provide continued medical care if need be.

Their Mission Statement is: “We will rescue Labradors, Retrievers, mixed and pure breeds, young and old and as we can, other breeds in need.  We will provide a soft bed, safety, medical care, training, and love to rehabilitate dogs so they have a chance at life.  We will partner with our Trainers, Veterinarians, Families and Volunteers so we can provide lifelong support to the dogs we have rescued and homed.  We will make time to have fun and enjoy the dogs we have saved.  We seek to save and protect dogs at risk of not surviving the harsh realities of animal shelters.  Seniors and dogs with medical challenges are received with open arms.”

They hold an adoption event every other Saturday morning in the parking lot of the Road Runner Sports store in San Diego. There will be an important, upcoming fundraiser on May 21st.

 For more information, their website is www.labsandmore.org

The motto for the La Mesa Sunrise Rotary Club seems to be, “How can we help?” There are actually two La Mesa Rotary Clubs, but the Sunrise one is for the early birds as they hold their meetings once a week at 7:30 AM.

This service organization, which was started 27 years ago, does a variety of charitable projects, both locally and internationally. The 42 member club is diverse with different ethnicities and ages.

When asked why they joined, President, Manuela Murillo, Director of Youth Activities, Janet Castanos, Event Coordinator, Edda Temoche-Weldele, and Manuela’s husband, Assistant Governor, Hugo Murillo, all gave the same answer. They wanted to give back to the community. To this end, this high energy group organizes or participates in monthly events each year.

A notable project is Fern’s Bags, started by active member, Fern Platt-Hall. These are care bags for homeless people and contain protein bars, water, toiletries, and literature providing information as to where they can get help. The idea came about from her son’s Bar Mitzvah as he had to do some mitzvahs. For years, they had saved leftovers from restaurants for homeless people, and decided to take it one step further by making up bags. Most of the club members now keep them in their cars to hand out.

Fern and her husband, co-founder of the club and optometrist, Dr. Jeffery Hall, also began the Vision Project. They provide glasses to poor people internationally. In addition, they work with students from Diego Hills who cannot afford glasses. The club pays for the lenses and Dr. Hall’s office provides free eye exams. The frames are donated. This spring they will be taking glasses to the Rancho Santa Maria Orphanage in Baja California.

The club does ongoing work with students at Diego Hills Charter High School and Helix Charter High School. At Diego Hills, they consult the counselors and provide food gift cards or diapers for the teen mothers. At Helix Charter High School, they are going to participate in an upcoming project which consists of a school garden for their culinary and nutrition courses by providing seeds and soil, so the teens can learn about healthy eating, growing vegetables, and where food comes from.

They also work with Noah’s Home in Spring Valley and support other community projects, such as the Flag Day Parade in La Mesa.

Another international project of note is the Backpack Project in February. The club will provide 73 backpacks full of school supplies to HIV positive children in Nicaragua.

Other upcoming events include The Stone Soup Chili Night with the Urban Street Angels in January where they will cook chili and feed homeless youth, and in February, they will serve food at St Vincent de Paul. They also collect food and warm clothing for the homeless and their pets on a regular basis. There will be a Bowling Tournament in May, and they have various garage sales throughout the year to raise money.

This past November, they held the 10th annual Foster Kid Parent Respite Night. It is a holiday event for foster kids of all ages to have fun, and a much needed night off for foster parents.

All of this good work takes time and money. The rotary club operates strictly on a volunteer basis, so all items donated and money raised, go directly to the various projects. They will be collecting scarves, beanies, socks, and food for animals for the Stone Soup Night. They welcome monetary donations and always need items for their garage sales, etc. Like minded early birds in the community are invited to attend their weekly Friday meetings.

For more information, visit their website at www.lamesasunriserotary.com

In Spain, there is a famous pilgrimage/walk, called El Camino de Santiago de Compostela, a 450 mile walk. Many people have that walk on their bucket list. Here in San Diego, Maggie Espinosa has completed her own version of that peregrination by walking the 800 mile El Camino Real, up the California coast.

Espinosa was inspired by an article in Westway’s magazine about Ron Briery, a retired music teacher from Oregon, and decided to do the walk herself. She started at the Mission in San Diego and ended at the Mission in Sonoma. She walked to all 21 California Missions and 550 bells.

Her journey began on November 15^th, 2013, and ended on November 5^th 2014. She divided this 800 mile walk into 12 segments, walking approximately 80 miles a month, finishing this feat on her 54^th birthday, with her veterinarian husband by her side.

She kept a journal that she wrote in every night while on the road. In it, she chronicled her thoughts and feelings, starting with a short entry the first day to a longer, more thoughtful one by the end. She then turned that journal into her new book, “On a Mission-An 800 Mile Walk to Discover California’s El Camino Real” which came out in September 2015.

http://www.amazon.com/Mission-800-mile-Discover-Californias-Camino/dp/0996441506/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1442344946&sr=1-1&keywords=on+a+mission+maggie+espinosa

Espinosa was not soul searching, nor is she an endurance athlete. However, she did want to find ways to make this walk not only a proud accomplishment, but also meaningful in her life. To that end, she invited family and friends to join her in this experience. Twenty five people joined her at different times, including her dog groomer, Tami Dahl, who went twice, her nephews, a Franciscan friar, and an agnostic friend, who not surprisingly, had a spiritual moment at the Santa Ines Mission in Solvang.

The walk itself proved to be glorious and difficult. She suffered from numerous blisters and it took her four attempts to find the right shoe and shoe size. It was physically and mentally taxing. Many times El Camino Real was right on the 101, so she had to be hyper vigilant of passing cars, or find an alternative route close by. It could also be rewarding as she discovered the kindness of many strangers or enjoyed the gorgeous landscape and views that were peaceful and inspiring.

Espinosa’s peregrination also became a way to deal with unexpected tragedy, for it was during this year that her beloved father passed away. While on the walk, she was able to work through her grief and heal. However, her twelve month walk became a ten month walk as she had to fly back east for her father’s funeral.

One of my favorite moments in her book is in May 2014, ten weeks after her father’s passing. He was in her thoughts as she walked in the Monterey Wine Country arriving at the Mission Nuestra Senora de Soledad. Her father was a cardiologist, and on one of the dirt paths, she found a little wooden heart. It was like a sign from her father and a lovely gift!

No doubt he would be proud of Espinosa, a travel writer, and her amazing accomplishment walking El Camino Real.

Espinosa’s website is  http://travelwithmaggie.com/blog/global-personal-shopper/#!/On-a-Mission-An-800-mile-Walk-to-Discover-Californias-El-Camino-Real/p/53258600/category=5330968

Although I am very proud to be Jewish, I consider myself more of a spiritual person rather than a religious one. I was born in Chicago and when my family lived there, my parents belonged to a temple, and were fairly active in the Jewish community. That all changed when we moved to Mexico City when I was five years old. Although our household was still culturally Jewish, I don’t remember any special Seder dinners or celebrating the High Holy Days. We also didn’t belong to any temple in Mexico.

I remember, when asked, my mother would say she was “international”. Her grandfather had been a Zionist Rabbi who went to Palestine/ Israel in the 1800’s and her older sister was born there. Perhaps because she had experienced anti-Semitism as a ballerina in the Ballet Russe [NYC Ballet Company] in the 1930’s, Mexico was a place to reinvent herself. My father was always very culturally Jewish, but I don’t remember him being very religious.

I remember my parents speaking in Yiddish when they didn’t want us to understand and I remember many cultural aspects, but there was no religious anchor in our household. As an adult, I found my path in spiritual teachings, especially those of Tibetan Buddhism. However, although I may not fully understand it, I still love celebrating the Jewish New Year in my own way and honoring my ancestors even if I don’t go to temple.

For me, the New Year is not only about sweetness and forgiving those who have wronged you [yes, I am lumping Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur together], but also starting the New Year with good deeds toward others.

To that end, I have started a Gofundme campaign to help the newly arrived African and Middle Eastern refugees in Europe. The picture of the little Syrian boy washed up on the beach was so disturbing. There is a crisis going on in Europe right now, and in my own, small way, I want to help.

I have made contact with a small non-profit agency in Belgium run by an American, called Solidarite Grands Froids. Because they are a small and volunteered based organization, there is little red tape. All the proceeds they receive go directly to buying blankets, clothing, and toiletries, much needed items for the refugees, as so many have arrived with nothing and winter is coming up. Their website is www.solidaritegrandfroid.be

The website for my Gofundme campaign is http://www.gofundme.com/6k3w8pu4

I realize that there are many organizations one can give to, but I like the fact that this organization is doing something right now to help the refugees as is seen on their website.

Personally, I also donate money to other organizations for both four legged and two legged ones and I gather donations every winter for some very poor neighborhoods in Tecate, Mexico. Whatever may be your cause or organization of choice, I hope you will consider donating. Helping others is food for the soul and good karma. May you all have a very sweet, happy, and healthy New Year.