Featured - page 18

Artwork painted on plywood boards that covered store windows during a Black Lives Matter protest in downtown Redwood City on June 2 is now on display in the Main Library parking lot.

Thousands attended the peaceful, youth-led rally in Courthouse Square, which protested police brutality in the wake of the death of George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody. Before the event, warnings of possible looting prompted many businesses downtown to board up.

The Fox Theatre was among those to do so, and it invited artist Jose Castro, creative director of Anonymous Recipes (Recetas Anonimas), to paint messages on the bare boards supporting the BLM movement. What Castro and others created became a visible, impactful symbol of the protest.

The plywood murals have since been preserved. Now, Redwood City is displaying them at the Downtown Library through Aug. 14 in solidarity with the movement and also “as a catalyst for ongoing dialogue about anti-racist actions we can all take together,” Library officials said.

The library is exploring additional, related displays in the future. Meanwhile, the city has expressed an intention to display the plywood mural at other city locations following its tenure at the library.

Photo credit: Redwood City Library

With Independence Day occurring at a tumultuous time marked by a global pandemic and a national crisis over racial injustice, Climate gave local contributors carte blanche to write their perspectives on what makes America special. We will be publishing our contributors’ American Stories now through July 4. Keep an eye out for these unique and personal pieces.

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Sometimes I feel like Willy Loman, the main character in Arthur Miller’s celebrated play “Death of a Salesman.” Loman worked hard all his life, but was ignored and unappreciated, leading to the famous line about “Attention must be paid.” I think it’s time attention be paid to me and millions of other members of the generation sandwiched between the Greatest Generation and the Baby Boomers.

Born in 1937, I missed the big historic moments of the 20th century – too young for World War II and too old for the sexual revolution. That’s okay. A lot of people got hurt in the sexual revolution. I was a mere child of seven when the war ended in August of 1945, but that shouldn’t distract from the fact that the war had a profound influence on my future.

Everywhere I looked I saw men in uniform. I regarded them as heroes, role models who had the courage and determination to defeat evil and save a way of life they thought was worth dying for but they hoped to live for.

The former GIs are passing away at an increasing rate. I expect when the final Taps sound there will be a good deal of rewriting of history by those who want to control the past and thus control the present and the future. There are already signs of this. In Tom Brokaw’s book, “Boom! Voices of the Sixties – Personal Reflections on the ‘60s and Today,” some members of that generation insisted they, and not the WWII veterans, were actually the “greatest.” They cited their fight for civil rights, gender equity, anti-war protests and sexual freedoms, as though they had dared to go where no one had gone before.

My generation, the one born during the Great Depression, had it made. We marched toward adulthood when America was, as Jimmy Cagney shouted from the burning tower in “White Heat,” on “top of the world.” The rest of the globe was in ruins. “Sound as a dollar” was not a simple cliché then. It was true. Along with “gas is cheap.” In addition, our comparatively small numbers benefitted from the large generation that followed. The Boomers needed doctors, teachers, police officers, firefighters and just about anyone else called on to minister to their needs. I had only two jobs during a 40-year career in which one paycheck was enough to support a family, and I consider myself a “Lucky Jim” indeed.

Jim Clifford worked at United Press International and the Associated Press during his journalism career and is the history columnist for Climate and the San Mateo Daily Journal.

Perspectives:

The Vote

The ties that bind us still

The Lucky Generation

Arrival Stories

The generosity of angels

The American Dream

The opportunity to do better

The great American songbook

Americas can-do attitude

Freedom

The Kaleidoscope

The American Military

An American lens

American unity

With Independence Day occurring at a tumultuous time marked by a global pandemic and a national crisis over racial injustice, Climate gave local contributors carte blanche to write their perspectives on what makes America special. We will be publishing our contributors’ American Stories now through July 4. Keep an eye out for these unique and personal pieces.

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Ask any American where they came from, and they will tell you an amazing family arrival story. Whether they landed yesterday or 400 years ago, someone in the family began a journey that was as unique as it was intrepid. Here are just a few of the stories I’ve heard over the years:

•The first in my family arrived in 1667 as an indentured servant. His great grandson fought for the American Revolution. That patriot’s grandson chose indenture in 1825 so he could buy his own farm out west – in Illinois. A generation later, his descendant fought for the Union at Shiloh.

•My caddy at a posh country club on the East Coast was nephew to an African king. Just before a bloody coup, he was sent to a relative’s in Virginia. Despite his less-than-grand circumstances, he considered himself the most fortunate of all his royal relatives.

•A young golfer, a psychologist, told me his great-grandfather was a prominent Jewish neurologist in Austria who sensed the impending Holocaust. After sending his wife and young sons ahead to America, he came to New York and on his first day, got mugged. Surprise! Both a boxer and a black belt in Ju-Jitsu, he preserved the family fortune of Krugerrands he had sewn inside his coat. His young sons trained as doctors at Stanford, and three generations continue to thrive.

•A distant cousin tracked some relatives to Poland, among them, 10- and 16-year-old sisters. They sailed unaccompanied across the Atlantic in 1901 hoping to join their parents who had come several years before. These Polish girls landed in New York, speaking not a word of English and wearing signs strung around their necks that bore their names and their parents’ address. But they managed to reunite 800 miles away in Chicago!

Our nation’s 245th birthday comes amid civil strife, a deadly pandemic, economic unease and much unhappiness. Yet however imperfect our nation, we can renew our faith in its purpose of freedom, justice, and equality by remembering, with love, who got us here, and how. Ask anyone: How did your family arrive? They’ll have a story … and it’ll be a good one!

Jill Singleton spent nearly 25 years as Cargill’s public representative in the Bay Area. Her story about the experiences of her physician-father during the polio epidemic in the 1950s appeared in Climate’s May issue.

Perspectives:

The Vote

The ties that bind us still

The Lucky Generation

Arrival Stories

The generosity of angels

The American Dream

The opportunity to do better

The great American songbook

Americas can-do attitude

Freedom

The Kaleidoscope

The American Military

An American lens

American unity

With Independence Day occurring at a tumultuous time marked by a global pandemic and a national crisis over racial injustice, Climate gave local contributors carte blanche to write their perspectives on what makes America special. We will be publishing our contributors’ American Stories now through July 4. Keep an eye out for these unique and personal pieces.

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Nineteen years ago, I was thinking of retiring after a career in real estate. It was about the time of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack, and my husband and I were talking about a memorial to the people who died that terrible day. Rich suggested there should be a memorial at Sequoia High School honoring students who died while in the military. Three of our friends died during the Vietnam War —but their names were not on the Vietnam Memorial because they didn’t die in combat. Our idea was to create a memorial honoring all Sequoia students who died while serving in the military. I decided that would be a good project after I retired.

Fast forward five years, we had raised a little over $50,000 and needed $3,000 more for the project and $2,000 for a dedication ceremony. Donations had slowed, so I put a request in the Sequoia High School Alumni Association newsletter, “Smoke Signals,” asking for $5,000 to complete the project. A few days later the doorbell rang, and my husband said someone was asking for me. The gentleman had graduated from Sequoia a few years ahead of us. “I hear you need more money to finish the memorial,” he said, and handed me a check for $5,000. I was so flabbergasted I’m not sure I said anything but a meek “thank you.” After I closed the door, I cried. I couldn’t believe it.

A drive began a few years ago to raise $50,000 for the Redwood City History Gallery, which will be located on the second floor of the Lathrop House. I wrote to my guardian angels asking if they would be interested in contributing. They sent a check for $5,000. Just last month, this wonderful couple came through yet again with another $5,000 contribution to the San Mateo County Historical Association’s annual campaign.

In the theatrical world, “angels” are generous patrons who save imperiled shows. In business, “angel investors” enable a great idea or product to get off the ground. We are so fortunate in America to have an abundance of people like my guardian angels who match their good hearts to good causes.

Dee Eva of Redwood City is an active community volunteer with a particular interest in local history. She was co-chair of Redwood City’s Sesquicentennial Committee in 2017.

Perspectives:

The Vote

The ties that bind us still

The Lucky Generation

Arrival Stories

The generosity of angels

The American Dream

The opportunity to do better

The great American songbook

Americas can-do attitude

Freedom

The Kaleidoscope

The American Military

An American lens

American unity

With Independence Day occurring at a tumultuous time marked by a global pandemic and a national crisis over racial injustice, Climate gave local contributors carte blanche to write their perspectives on what makes America special. We will be publishing our contributors’ American Stories now through July 4. Keep an eye out for these unique and personal pieces.

—

I was born in San Francisco in 1966, my mother was born in Mexico City and my father in San Francisco, as his father was the Consul General of Mexico there. My mother’s American dream was to become an American citizen, be a mom and become a nurse. She accomplished it all. My father’s dream was to serve his country, have a family, buy a home and be able to provide for his family. He accomplished that.

I did not grow up learning about the American dream from my parents, relatives or from my teachers. It was my love for American history that drove my American dreams, no matter how often they changed.

My father wanted me to be to be a UPS driver; he thought it was a great company to work for and they were union, which provided long-term job security. To him that was the American dream he wanted for me. It wasn’t until I was around my mid-20’s that I picked up an old history book sitting on a shelf and started reading the Declaration of Independence. And there it was, right in front of me: “All men are created equal, with the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” A picture of a painting on the opposite side of the page depicted the signing of the document.

The American dream for me was not about owning a house with a white-picket fence, it wasn’t about security and it wasn’t following what my father hoped I would do. It was about my inalienable right to pursue my own dreams, no matter how crazy they were, how many there were, how short-lived some were or how often they beat me down. When you find others along the way who share those same dreams, and you help one another pursue them, it just makes those dreams even more worthwhile to go after. Just like it was for the country’s founders 244 years ago.

So, I continue to add to my collection of dreams and continue to be proud to be living in a country that does not limit me in pursuing as many dreams as I want, for as long as I am able to pursue them. God Bless America.

Ernie Schmidt, 53, has had a lifelong love of the theater and became the general manager of Fox Theatre Properties in January. He and his wife Gina have been Redwood City residents since 2001.

Perspectives:

The Vote

The ties that bind us still

The Lucky Generation

Arrival Stories

The generosity of angels

The American Dream

The opportunity to do better

The great American songbook

Americas can-do attitude

Freedom

The Kaleidoscope

The American Military

An American lens

American unity

The cities of Half Moon Bay and Pacifica will close all city beaches and their parking facilities for the holiday weekend to reduce crowds that can spread COVID-19. The beaches will reopen Monday morning.

Half Moon Bay will also close a portion of the Coastal Trail between Seymour Bridge and Kelly Avenue during that period. In Pacific, The Coastal Trail, Mori Point hiking trails, Beach Boulevard Promenade, and Pacifica Pier will remain open.

The cities say the weekend closures follow guidance by Gov. Gavin Newsom, who ordered vehicular access at all state beaches be closed during the Fourth of July weekend in the counties of San Mateo, Marin, Monterey, Orange, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz and Sonoma. No parking facilities are available to the public and parking on roadways is prohibited.

The San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office will have additional staff conducting fireworks and DUI enforcement and who will be present at all closed beaches ad coastal trail sections, according to Half Moon Bay officials.

“If the potential crowds here are similar to previous holiday crowds we’ve seen, this kind of action is necessary for the protection of public health and safety,” Half Moon Bay Mayor Adam Eisen said.

A spike in COVID-19 cases in the state has also prompted Gov. Newsom to order 19 counties on the state’s  monitoring list to keep closed indoor operations for restaurants, wineries, movie theaters, family entertainment centers, zoos, museums and cardrooms for at least the next three weeks. San Mateo County is not currently on the state’s monitoring list.

With Independence Day occurring at a tumultuous time marked by a global pandemic and a national crisis over racial injustice, Climate gave local contributors carte blanche to write their perspectives on what makes America special. We will be publishing our contributors’ American Stories now through July 4. Keep an eye out for these unique and personal pieces.

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One of my earliest memories was listening to my mother talk about the ashrams, temples, and farms that littered her homeland. I hated those stories when I was young because I felt like this country had way more to offer. But it is our culture, the beauty that my parents had let go of in search of opportunity. My parents immigrated from southern India in 1999, and since then, they’ve given this nation everything they could.

My mother is a dentist, and my father helps her manage the practice. I never realized their sacrifice until they told me just how much they had to give up. They had to give up their citizenship, their family, their friends, their dignity in many cases, and even their country. They did this to reap the benefits of this country for themselves and my sister and me.

The hungry nights and the tight budgets that they had to suffer through for the first few years in the U.S. all paid off, and now we have the privilege of being able to live here with relative comfort. This country may be deeply flawed and even continues to disappoint, anger, sadden us frequently, but it still the land that I was born and raised in, and it is the country that I will help mend.

We have had so many opportunities to leave this country and have a much better life overseas with the wealth that we were, fortunately, able to accumulate, yet we stayed. Even amidst the numerous threats of deportation, or just my mom threatening to send me to India because I was not behaving, we still stayed. To me, that’s what makes America great. We can live in a country that shows close to no love to us, yet still contribute to it so that it may love us back. Hopefully, in the future, we will be loved back, but in the meantime, we will be working to make it better for everyone.

Jay Tipirneni, 17, is co-editor-in-chief of the Raven Report newsmagazine and will be a senior at Sequoia High School in the fall. The son of Srinivas Tipirneni and Siva Cherukuri, Jay and his family live in Redwood City.

Perspectives:

The Vote

The ties that bind us still

The Lucky Generation

Arrival Stories

The generosity of angels

The American Dream

The opportunity to do better

The great American songbook

Americas can-do attitude

Freedom

The Kaleidoscope

The American Military

An American lens

American unity

With Independence Day occurring at a tumultuous time marked by a global pandemic and a national crisis over racial injustice, Climate gave local contributors carte blanche to write their perspectives on what makes America special. We will be publishing our contributors’ American Stories now through July 4. Keep an eye out for these unique and personal pieces.

—

I remember the precise moment I fell in love with jazz. It was on an evening in 1962, in the summer of an unforgettable pennant race between the Giants and the Dodgers. I was seven years old, lying in bed and listening not (as usual) to the ballgame but instead to the Dave Brubeck Quartet, whose captivating new sounds wafted from my parents’ stereo in the living room.

The tune was, “Gone with the Wind.” Paul Desmond’s alto saxophone solo was quick as Maury Wills and smooth as Willie Mays. And then there was Brubeck’s piano playing – simple yet seductive melodies, contrasted with bulging, thumping chords that seemed to fill the whole house. Who could sleep?

My parents’ record collection was vast and varied. As the years went by, I discovered Ella Fitzgerald, Tony Bennett, the Delta Rhythm Boys, Rosemary Clooney, Frank Sinatra and Tyree Glenn, as well as Broadway musicals and the big bands of Duke Ellington, Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey and Benny Goodman. I listened to my share of the Beatles and the Beach Boys, but in high school it was Buddy Rich who really took me downtown.

My mother had played in a dance band during her own high-school years, and our piano bench was stuffed with yellowing, wrinkled sheet music from the 1920s, ‘30s and ‘40s. As I studied piano in my adolescence and early teens, I began sneaking away from Bach fugues and Mozart sonatas, and cozying up to the likes of “Deep Purple,” “Stardust” and “Manhattan Serenade” – all while my mother shouted from the kitchen, “Practice your lesson!”

As much as the tremendous performers, it was the powerful vortex of the songs that sucked me in. The melodies were alluring and, more often than not, the lyrics were smart, especially when written by Ira Gershwin, Lorenz Hart or Dorothy Fields. But most of all, it was the harmonies that were intoxicating. I dug into the music the way a mechanically inclined kid would take apart a vacuum cleaner. Later, in college, music theory would become the one class I never skipped.

Upon graduation, I started playing jazz piano at night after working my day job as a writer. For 10 dollars I acquired an illegal “fake book.” It contained just melodies and basic chords, with the musician expected to fill in the ornamentations and deeper harmonies – in other words, to “fake it.” It was like a glittering, jangling charm bracelet, crowded with such baubles as, “I Got Rhythm,” “Ain’t Misbehavin’” and “Georgia On My Mind.” As I played through the book at bars and parties, I began to realize the incredible richness of American popular song, which captured the nation’s experience with everything from kisses and cocktails to lynchings and wars.

And that’s the thing. The Great American Songbook – the collection of hit tunes from around 1920 to 1970 – is about us: Americans, with all our myths, dreams and flaws. It is an immensely well-crafted chronicle of a fascinating, often-conflicted people at a particular time. It is classic, too, in that its melodies and stories are not just endearing, but also enduring. Jazz, and especially the Songbook, is among America’s great gifts to the world. And for me, it is the source of a longstanding romance that I know will never come to an end.

A regular contributor to Climate, Scott Dailey teaches piano and clarinet and leads his own jazz group.

With Independence Day occurring at a tumultuous time marked by a global pandemic and a national crisis over racial injustice, Climate gave local contributors carte blanche to write their perspectives on what makes America special. We will be publishing our contributors’ American Stories now through July 4. Keep an eye out for these unique and personal pieces.

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Ever since our nation‘s founding, part of the character of Americans includes the strength to stand with broad shoulders during times of challenge. We quickly assess the situation and do what we can do.

The year 2020 has brought a crisis for our modern age: a truly global health epidemic. Covid-19 is causing everyone to adjust our behavior patterns to meet the challenges of this crisis.

Unfortunately, to control the spread of the virus, it has been necessary to avoid public activities for over three months (so far). The impact of this on wage- earning and paying the rent and feeding our families has been staggering. Also, small businesses are scrambling to stay afloat and to bring back their employees, so that everyone can return to earning their living.

Fortunately, in addition to neighbors helping neighbors, there are many groups across America rising to meet the challenge. They are fighting for the families and seniors in our neighborhoods. One example in our community of people with these broad shoulders is our city and county leaders who are working long hours to coordinate the delivery of relief funding and services to folks in need. They are helping our neighbors who are in trouble, and also helping small businesses to get back on their feet.

Another part of delivering relief to the public is getting the word out about how to access relief services. Our cities’ Chambers of Commerce are dedicated to that and have been very effective. They are organizing and publicizing all of these relief services in collaboration with elected officials: food delivery to families in need, rent relief and eviction-protection, childcare resources, health services, housing and utilities assistance, financial relief and resources to help small businesses, and publicizing volunteer opportunities and ways to donate to these efforts.

It takes a special type of person during a major crisis to stand tall and help those in need. Fortunately, America is full of such good people: Those who love their neighbors. Those who work hard to help local businesses get back to normal. Those who stand tall, with broad shoulders, to pitch in and help their neighbors to weather this crisis.

It’s those people, with their can-do attitude, who make our country so exceptional.

Clem Molony is a 75-year-old community volunteer focusing on youth academic support, transit-oriented housing development, and environmental sustainability.

The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors approved a resolution Tuesday encouraging employers in the county to allow employees to work from home in order to benefit air quality.

Telecommuting that has occurred amid the COVID-19 pandemic has meant less car pollution and traffic congestion and improved air quality, according to the resolution. Supervisor David Canepa notes getting cars off the road also combats sea level rise.

At the request of Board President Warren Slocum, the county will look into ways to provide incentives to local employers to encourage telecommuting.

To view the full resolution, click here.