A curfew agreement, which stipulates take-off times no earlier than 7 a.m., is up for renewal and part of negotiations underway with John Wayne Airport, according to Newport Beach City Manager Dave Kiff, who updated Laguna Beach’s City Council last week on the proposed terms.

Kiff said in order to extend the 7 a.m. curfew agreement until 2035, negotiators had to offer concessions elsewhere, allowing the cap on annual passengers to increase to 11.8 million over time, and possibly as high as 12.5 million. Negotiations also allowed for an increase in the number of loudest flights.

The current settlement, amended and extended a decade ago, includes a prohibition on commercial airplane departures from John Wayne between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. The agreement also limits traffic to 10.8 million passengers annually and expires in 2015. Though the curfew itself doesn’t expire until 2020, its renewal has been negotiated along with the agreement’s other terms.

The proposed revised pact, which must comply with the California Environmental Quality Act, needs the approval of county supervisors and a Federal Aviation Authority exemption from noise and capacity restrictions.

“The curfew was and is our number one priority, that’s why we pushed for that extension and gave on a couple of other things,” said Kiff.

Laguna Beach is among 10 cites countywide that, while not a part of the agreement, are affected by it and formed the Corridor Cities Coalition to support it.

Laguna council member Toni Iseman, who with council member Steve Dicterow is responsible for investigating airport related noise concerns, asked if complaints of Laguna constituents about recent increases in noise were echoed in Newport.

While previously one of every 10 flights overhead was heard by his constituents, now four or five reverberate, Kiff confirmed. He said eastbound flights that used to fan out as they headed out over the ocean and turned back now “are narrowed down to almost a funnel to get out and over the bay, and I know they follow that same curve as soon as they turn around and come back over Laguna.”

This may be partly explained by the FAA’s new procedure in 2011 that reduced the fanning of flight tracks.

Still, Laguna Beach resident Wolfram Blume, who flies a private plane from John Wayne, said there might be more to it. In tracking John Wayne departures via an online flight watch web site, he noted that the real-time trajectories pictured on screen differed from the published standard departure route.

While the published departure showed a flight path turning over the ocean and crossing Dana Point’s shoreline, actual flights seemed to consistently turn closer to Laguna, Blume said. He pointed out that any change from the published departure course was not up to the pilot, but had to be proscribed by the air traffic controllers.

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Morton, known as Redz, performed with and married lead singer Deborah Sullivan, known as Princess. Together with keyboard player and vocalist Jelani Jones, the trio created what became known as the California reggae sound that would go on to influence recording artists including World Anthem, No Doubt, Sublime and Common Sense, according to Sullivan and Anthem’s Ron Pringle.

Fittingly, the public is invited to a memorial concert jam session on Wednesday, June 19, at Laguna’s Sandpiper Lounge, location of Rebel Rockers’ standing midweek gig of the last five years. Many of the band’s 30 or so former members are expected to perform.

A memorial paddle out from Bluebird Beach is also planned for Morton on the morning of June 29.

Morton, a native of Philadelphia who grew up in Laguna Beach, studied music privately but found a muse in Aston Barrett, the bassist in Bob Marley’s Wailers band known as Family Man, Sullivan said. Barrett originated a distinctive style within the genre, playing with deliberate space between the notes, Pringle said.

“As much as reggae was popularized by the Wailers, in Jamaica and Miami and Laguna the Rebel Rockers were the jumping off point,” he said.

After playing top 40 hits in nightclubs early in his career, by 1979 Morton was disillusioned, burnt out and ready to quit music, Sullivan said. That changed when the couple visited Jamaica to record “Night Train to Kingston” for producer Jack Miller and became inspired by reggae music and its message of unity.

“That was the beginning of a deeper journey,” said Sullivan, who married Morton in Jamaica. They stayed several months before returning home and establishing Rebel Rockers.

“We wanted our time on the planet to be about something that was uplifting,” she said. “People loved it from the very beginning; on any coastline and in any country,” said Sullivan, who remained the band’s lead singer but divorced Morton in 1984.

For the next three decades, the band toured the U.S. and Europe, and made appearances as the top foreign band in Jamaica’s Reggae Sunsplash music festival in 1987 and 1989. Rebel Rockers also recorded the single, “Come Dance With Me,” at the famed Tuff Gong Studio in Kingston where Marley recorded.

“Record companies pursued us,” said Sullivan, but she and Morton refused contracts with demands for changes in approach that they viewed as compromises. The band recorded their music but released little, said Sullivan, who now intends to compile a music catalog of Rebel Rocker recordings and establish a foundation to keep Morton’s vibe alive.

Morton is featured performing in the 1981 Richard Dreyfuss film and soundtrack of “Whose Life is It Anyway?” as well as Miller’s 2008 “Dreadlock Rock” documentary about California reggae.

Morton, a student of martial arts and natural healing, married Tiffany Casler in 1990. Morton also was an avid ocean swimmer, kayaker and body boarder.

He is survived by his mother, Riva Morton, and stepfather, Mark Diamond, of Laguna Woods; and siblings Rachel Morton Daniels and Bruce Morton, both of Laguna Beach. He was predeceased by his father, Walter, and brother, Peter.

Pringle suggested Morton coined his own pitch-perfect epitaph: “Ponder this: it is what it is and there are no mistakes.”

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Board members Fred Sattler and Pat Kollenda book-end some Festival of Arts’ award recipients; back row from left, Jovan Majano, Haley Castuera, Dylan DelPizzo-Howell and Katrina Parker; front row, Blake Allard, Makenna ZurSchmiede, Ava Eastman, Natalee Palmer and Elliott Glass.

A 66-year history serves as testament to one of Laguna Beach’s special traditions, now an ingrained coming of age ritual for the town’s high school graduates.

Witness the $328,955 in scholarships awarded at Laguna Beach High School’s Honors Convocation last week to 107 graduates, the largest sum in the school’s history, according to foundation officials.

Fewer than half of the 251-member graduating class of 2013 were recipients of the 271 awards. Many received multiple awards, some tallying five figures.

“It’s a pretty amazing organization,” says Debbie Steel, a trustee of the Laguna Beach High School Scholarship Foundation, which acts as the go-between for students and donors. “All of the scholarships are unsolicited and come from a small community that believes in education.”

Indeed they do as the number of sponsors has risen to 111, including organizations, memorials, and families. There were six new donors this year, says LBHSSF President Kerry Rubel.

The standout award came by way of a full-ride college scholarship for Emma Deehan, courtesy of lifelong Laguna resident Donnie Crevier. Though he was not present, Crevier’s praises were sung roundly.

“I can’t say enough good things about him,” says Jeannie Harrell, former scholarship coordinator for LBHSSF. “He saw himself in this student; she had such stamina.”

Crevier had a rough young life and learned the importance of perseverance, Harrell explained. Thus, he admires those who too overcome significant struggles, such as Deeham has. As Crevier sees it, just because one’s situation is not good does not mean one cannot do better. Crevier, Harrell says, has great admiration for Deehan.

“She has had a tough life, and Mr. Crevier saw she made the most of it,” Rubel says of Deehan, noting the student’s maturity, resiliency, and ability to persevere. “He wanted to give her an opportunity it took him a little later in life to realize. He wanted to make a difference in her life.”

Retired former science teacher Art Smart, now an LBHSSF trustee, says his friend, former owner of Santa Ana’s Crevier BMW and who now runs Crevier Classic Cars, has taken his personal successes and put them back into the community. Still, Smart says, Crevier does not like the limelight.

The night’s single largest award of $40,000 was split evenly between Spencer Anderson, Jared Boetes, Dylan Bush and Sydney Saxe, recipients of the Jessica Wagner Memorial Scholarship, which was liquidated. Rubel explained that for Jessica’s father, Jim Wagner, it was time to put to rest the painful memories of his daughter’s death. So, Rubel says, Wagner decided to distribute larger amounts and make a big difference for the students receiving it. Next year, the award will have a different name.

Another moment of drama was the presentation of the “Driven to the Max Award,” provided by Laguna resident Jay Blahnik.

Blahnik became inspired to donate scholarship money five years ago after reading a story about former LBHS student-athlete Max Mullender, who overcame a difficult childhood. Blahnik sought out the foundation to repay Mullender’s gift of inspiration with a monetary award, even naming it after him. Ever since, Blahnik has sought inspirational stories and rewarded hardworking students. As he sees it, as he does not have kids, this is his way of investing in the future.

Repeating a stunt he pulled during last year’s awards ceremony, Blahnik brought up the recipients of his $3,000 scholarship, Alexis Del Toro and Joseph Redfearn. Blahnik described them as inspirational people. He, in turn, asked each to name a student who inspires them. Blahnik promptly pledged to match the scholarship money for two more recipients, Mackenzi Baldridge and Armando Barraza.

The Festival of Arts also continues its tradition as one of the town’s largest scholarship benefactors, distributing more than $30,000 in awards last week, all of which are renewable over four years.

Giving and inspiration proved a recurrent theme throughout the night, demonstration of a small community’s unquenchable philanthropic spirit.

During a donor’s reception prior to the ceremony, two former LBHS students described how their lives have changed for the better, helped by scholarships they had received as students. Caroline Cannan, class of 2012, and Trevor Murphy, class of 1990, explained how they tried to live up to expectations and were able to pursue their dreams in part due to scholarships.

Harrell marvels that for the sheer number of scholarships and amount of money awarded, the ceremony and intention, “is unprecedented. Anywhere.”

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The San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station near San Clemente won’t be restarted again, but it will be years before its distinctive double domes disappear from the coastline.

“It doesn’t happen overnight,” said Edison spokeswoman Maureen Brown, describing a years-long process decontaminating and deconstructing the plant under supervision of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Once ceasing operation, the utility is required within two years to file a decommissioning plan, which must be completed within 60 years, according to the NRC’s website. The expected tab is $4 billion, Brown said.

Money to fund the nuclear power plant’s dismantling began trickling into a fund from its first day of operation 40 years ago from customers, including residents in Laguna Beach and Newport Beach. Edison’s share now stands at $2.7 billion, she said, with the remainder contributed by the plant’s other co-owners, San Diego Gas and Electric and the city of Riverside.

Anti-nuclear advocates are shifting their concerns to the 1,400 tons of nuclear waste, known as spent fuel, being stored at the Edison plant, located just above the renowned San Onofre surf break.

“A thimbleful of plutonium could take out San Clemente,” said Gary Headrick, co-founder of San Clemente Green, a grassroots advocacy group that pressed for San Onofre’s closure. Some anti-nuclear advocates gathered on the frontage road at the plant after last Friday’s surprise announcement. “To think we have 1,400 tons of it here is a much bigger threat.”

The shutdown announcement by Edison, operator of the, came just three days after the former prime minister of Japan, Naoto Kan, publicly denounced the use of nuclear power at a press conference in San Diego. Kan, in office during the Fukushima meltdown, and former U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission chairman, Gregory Jaczko, were among five panelists speaking out against nuclear power.

“I have a great sense of relief. The more knowledge I had about San Onofre, the clearer it became that it shouldn’t start under any circumstances,” said Toni Iseman, a member of Laguna Beach’s City Council, which joined several cities in raising safety questions about Edison’s intent to restart the plant.

While Edison said uncertainty over bearing more financial costs drove its decision, Iseman pointed out Laguna and surrounding areas also faced an economic threat from the plant’s continued operation. “If Edison had another event, what would that do to tourism in Laguna?” she asked. “It was a risk we couldn’t afford to have.”

Iseman said she wrote a letter to the NRC, arguing about the risks of restarting San Onofre, which has the industry’s worst safety record. “Why choose to jeopardize the whole industry by turning it back on?” Iseman said she asked in her correspondence with regulators.

San Onofre was shut last year after a radiation leak from a worn tube that was part of a replacement steam generator installed in 2010.  Anti-nuclear advocates Friends of the Earth contended that the new steam generator constituted grounds for a license review, a process that would have opened up the installation to a full investigation and public input. The Atomic Safety and Licensing Board, an arm of the NRC, agreed. The ruling created further uncertainty about restarting the plant.

“I didn’t think Edison would throw in the towel so early,” said Arnie Gunderson, a former nuclear industry engineer and author of a critical report about San Onofre released by Berkeley-based Friends of the Earth. Gunderson, who says he receives reports from whistleblowers at plants all over the country, receives more critiques from San Onofre workers than anywhere else.

Gunderson said it takes about two years for ocean water near a nuclear power plant, which uses the water to cool the generators and is then returned to the ocean, to reach safe levels of lower contamination.  The sea water at San Onofre hasn’t been used at the plant for a year and a half.

“The easy part is over,” said Gene Stone of Residents Organized for a Safe Environment. “We have a lot of work ahead of us to make sure it’s decommissioned properly to make sure the federal government, the NRC and the state regulators come together to decommission San Onofre in the best way possible for the citizens.  There’s no way in the world that we are going to allow this nuclear waste dump for 200 years.”

Gunderson said he expects  the domes at San Onofre will be gone within 10 years.  “It’s a big demolition project,” he said.

“It’s premature to speculate about potential reuse,” Edison’s Brown said. “Just as we’ve been committed to the safe operation of San Onofre, we’re also committed to its safe decommissioning,” she said, which will also include public hearings.

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The deal for the building at the corner of Forest Avenue and Ocean Avenue is expected to close on July 18 and will speed up preparations for the village entrance project, which was also approved on Tuesday.

The building’s proximity to City Hall proved a key factor in its acquisition by providing a solution to housing 15 city employees, currently working out of temporary structures and trailers behind City Hall. The area needs to be cleared before the construction of the proposed parking structure begins.

The purchase of existing office space eliminates the need to construct quarters in the ACT V canyon parking lot, as previously planned.

The city will fund the acquisition with money already set aside for relocation in the capital improvement fund.

Purchasing existing space instead of constructing a new building reduces relocation costs by $300,000, bringing them to $2.2 million from an estimated $2.5 million. It also saves 25 parking spaces in the canyon lot, said Pietig.

The deal will come before the City Council on June 18.

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Tony Crowell

From Corrections To Jazz

The market’s uptrend momentum lost energy and the background news of anxieties about interest rates pushed it into a “correction.” This was to be expected after its strong run this year. This environment demands restrained buys and even some sells. As reported last week, I sold a few positions in order to take advantage of a possible dip.

This pause in the market’s rise this year hardly means that we are plunging back into the abyss. Since the beginning of the year, the S&P 500 stock average is up 14%. At this point, it’s ahead for both the First Quarter and the current Second Quarter, the first time stocks have managed that since 2007.

The U.S. economy continues to inspire more confidence. Retail sales were up 0.8% in May with broad-based strength in autos and parts, building materials and food sales. Rising house prices led to a new record in household wealth and lower jobless claims showed progress in the labor market.

The fears that sparked recent selling seemed to have their roots in concerns that the Federal Reserve will soon end its successful program of boosting the economy by asset purchases. That will, of course, eventually happen but the fears that prompted selling were, as usual, exaggerated.

More concern comes from overseas, particularly from Japan, where the Bank of Japan slowed its badly needed stimulus programs. That sent stocks down in Asia and Europe, eventually rippling into our markets. In comparison to these markets, U.S. stocks are becoming even more attractive in relative comparisons, thus more foreign capital is likely to flow into our markets.

Concerns will persist, particularly as financial commentators speculate as to when the Federal Reserve will scale back its stimulus program. The Fed has made it clear that it will continue buying bonds, thus keeping a lid on interest rates, until there are more definite signs of a sustained economic recovery. These will come, as will the eventual slowing of Fed support, but probably not until fall.

Until then, the market will probably trade within a range of a few hundred points, providing opportunities to tune portfolios by adding to stocks that can do well in an environment of approaching higher interest rates. That could be difficult for housing related stocks, reflecting another reason why I believe the Fed will not be hasty to abandon its support.

The technology sector usually does well amid higher rates due to its potentially high growth. Cisco Systems (CSCO-$24) is quite a different stock from its skyrocket days in 2000 when its P/E ratio was well over a hundred. Its P/E ratio is now 12 and it offers a 2.8% dividend yield. Through a decade of tumult, it retained its position as the leader in computer networking. Sales are $44 billion, growing at 5%, while earnings are increasing at 14%.

The big medical and biomedical stocks are doing well, among them Amgen (AMGN-$98), Bristol-Myers (BMY-$47) and Cooper (COO-$121). Abbott Labs (ABT-$36), a leading maker of medical equipment, continues to post steady increases in sales, earnings and dividend payments. Novo-Nordisk (NVO-$167), the Danish-based world leader in diabetes care is forecast to continue its earnings increases at around 15% per year. It is one of my ten largest positions and remains a buy recommendation.

A new buy, Jazz Pharmaceuticals (JAZZ-$69) is a biopharmaceutical company targeted at meeting perceived unmet medical needs. This focus has led to innovative products in narcolepsy, oncology, pain management and psychiatry. Earnings have been surprisingly steady for a company in this dynamic sector and are forecast to hit around $5.50 a share for 2013, up 25%, with a similar increase currently seen for 2014.

Dublin-based, there may be a bit of blarney in its name selection. The company likens the efforts of its team members to the individual musicians who make music together in order to create jazz music. Its stock will add some new riffs for most investors.

Tony Crowell manages stock portfolios for individuals and their trust and retirement accounts with CROWELL•ROBERTS Investment Counsel, a registered investment advisor in Laguna Beach since 1993. aic@cox.net 949.494.1376/

800.697.2622 www.crowellroberts.com

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By Chris Quilter

This edition of Patchwork got underway in the utilitarian jurors’ lounge at the Santa Ana Courthouse, where solid citizens silently pray they will not be required to demonstrate their commitment to our democratic way of life. My prayers went unanswered, which is only fair when they are so transparently self-serving. Additionally, the last time I served on a jury—and witnessed the wheels of justice turn far more slowly than they do on “Law & Order,” but turn—was an acceptable number of years ago. To be completely fair, it’s my turn.

My sense of justice has always been commingled with the idea of fairness. This no doubt springs from the tragic circumstances of being a middle child. Not only wasn’t I born first, I was then usurped by some little wretch who could have modeled for Ivory Snow… Heavens, what brought that on? I tell you what: an invitation I received recently to attend the latest in a long line of medical fundraisers for completely deserving friends and neighbors who are battling life-threatening illnesses which have left them financially flattened.

In “Sick Around the World,” PBS visited five other capitalist democracies — the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, Taiwan and Switzerland — to see how they delivered health care. Experts in each country were asked: how many of your citizens find themselves bankrupted by medical debt each year? Their shocked answer: “Why, none, of course.”

Darrin Reed visiting in Mexico.

A study published in 2009 in The American Journal of Medicine found that over 60 percent of our personal bankruptcies—which numbered about 1.5 million in 2011—had a medical cause. We’re not talking financial irresponsibility here. We’re talking medical bills. Of the bankruptcies caused by cancer, 78 percent reported having some form of health insurance, de-bunking the myth that medical bills only crush the uninsured.

In a small town like ours, we all know people in this particular pickle and the friends who rally to their sides. Now the call has gone out from the Friends of Darrin Reed: they are having a fundraiser on Thursday, June 27, 6 p.m., hosted by Mark La Palma at ReMark’s Restaurant in Laguna Canyon. Tickets are $125, and the easiest way to get one, or make a donation, is to go online at friendsofdarrin.com.

Anyone who knows Darrin knows one of the nicest guys in town. I met him when he performed in “Lagunatics” a while back. Parents know him as the voice of the Laguna Beach Unified School District, where he’s worked for the past 15 years as the assistant to a series of superintendents. Last fall, at age 47, Darrin was diagnosed with leukemia, and he has since endured endless rounds of chemo, emergency surgeries, nearly 100 days in the hospital, and a bone marrow transplant. (Check out caringbridge.org/visit/darrinreed for the details, told by the other hero in this story, Darrin’s partner Ray.)

LBHS Principal Joanne Culverhouse brings good cheer to Darrin Reed during a recent hospital stay.

Darrin is far from well but has been getting better. He also has a mountain of medical bills and no salary until he is well enough to return to work. Why is that? Pardon my rant, but why does the American way of providing health care force solid citizens like Darrin to beg for charity? Don’t get me wrong: Darrin is the kind of person we can feel honored to help. I’ll be at ReMark’s on the 27th. I hope to see you there and share our good fortune to be part of a community which looks after its own.

It’s the best we can do. But it’s far from good enough.

This column by Laguna local Chris Quilter has been scanned for subversive content by the National Security Agency, which is not responsible for its content.

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A past Féte de la Musique performer invites the audience to move with the downbeat.

Street chanteuse April Walsh, an Irish-American lass with a French grandmother and several Gallic cousins, sings the lyrics of “La Vie En Rose” with a perfect French accent that will add a distinctive vibe spilling out of downtown Laguna Beach streets this Saturday, June 15.

Walsh’s sultry flair with songs from the 1930s and ‘40s will mix among nearly 40 street performers scheduled for the sixth annual Fête de la Musique, from 1 to 4 p.m., beginning and ending at Main Beach.

Organized by the Sister Cities Association that has united Laguna Beach with a French sibling, Menton, the festival will also populate performers along Forest and Ocean Avenues and Coast Highway in unlikely mostly outdoor venues.

Traditionally held near the summer solstice on June 21, the musical feast originated in Paris and now springs up in 250 cities from Berlin to Brisbane.

High school students join the lineup for two warm-up acts, at Laguna Presbyterian Church’s rose garden at noon and Dawson Cole Fine Art’s sculpture garden at 12:30 p.m. The music begins officially with a 1 p.m. performance by the Laguna Concert Band Swing Set on Main Beach. In all, 38 musicians will perform, compared to 29 last year, all of whom are donating their time.

To avoid groups or individual performances from overlapping, Pat Kollenda, one of the Fête’s founders, and Festival of Arts events director Susan Davis will take on the duty of “Decibel Divas,” keeping acoustical order scooting around in a golf cart.

With the addition of Baja California’s Cabo San José as the new sister city and St. Ives, England, as a friendship city, the festival is broadening its cultural portfolio with mariachis and folk singers like Richard and Mary, selected by Fête chairman Ken Aubuchon, a self-described Francophile who attended his first festival in France’s Avignon. He sought out the Laguna version last year. “Although I am interested in music, my reason to get involved is cultural,” he said.

Passerby enjoyed the Grey Hill Gospel String Band, who will return to their Forest and Glenneyre Street venue this year.

A friendship city, by the way, is a precursor to becoming a sister city.

A volunteer for the last three years, Caroline Wright scouted for locations, making her rounds among businesses willing to host performers.

Laguna’s international alliances began seven years ago when Visitors Bureau chair Karyn Philippsen and Kollenda attended a Féte de la Musique in Los Angeles and wanted to transplant the concept. They succeeded, and last year’s fete drew music lovers at every corner.

The SCA will offer a raffle ticket for a trip to Cabo to new members who join on Saturday. Membership costs $25 a year, $50 for families and $100 for businesses.

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A vineyard scene in Italy.

A special advanced screening of “Somm” will be held at Montage Laguna Beach on Saturday, June 15 from 6 until 9 p.m. The film takes viewers into the court of master sommeliers.

To purchase tickets for the screening and wine tasting, advance tickets are required at http://somm-montage.eventbrite.com.  Space is limited.

The film opens Friday, June 21.

Jazz Rhythms Return to Outdoors

Led by trumpeter Bijon Watson, the Latin Jazz Syndicate opens the Jazz Wednesdays Summer Series presented by Laguna Beach Live! at the Hotel Laguna Rose Garden, 425 S. Coast Hwy, on Wednesday, June 19 from 6 to 8 p.m.

Cover charge is $15 online at lagunabeachlive.org, or by phone at 949-715-9713. $18 at the door. Doors open at 5 p.m.

Film Society Screens Comedy for Summer

            What happens when a young, rich, death-obsessed guy with a hobby of attending funerals meets a zany, elderly woman who shares his hobby but delights in living fully?

Find out when the Laguna Beach Film Society kicks off their summer comedy series on Thursday, June 20, with “Harold and Maude,” starring Bud Cort and Ruth Gordon and featuring a Cat Stevens soundtrack.

The film screens at 7 p.m. at South Coast Cinema. Presale tickets are $7 at www.LagunaArtMuseum.org/LBFS, $9 at the door, $5 for students; $20 buys entrée to wine and a buffet at 6 p.m. at Laguna Art Museum.

A $20 summer comedy series season pass excludes pre-screening receptions, but includes tickets for “Harold and Maude” as well as “The Big Lebowski” on July 18, and “Sideways” on Aug. 15.

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Roger Bennett in action in Death Valley.

Resident artists of Forest and Ocean Gallery will be sharing their experiences in special presentations, beginning with Roger Bennett in the “The Art of Seeing” on Saturday, June 15 from 4 to 5 p.m. at 480-B Ocean Ave.

Bennett produces vibrant and stunning photographic prints.

Refreshments and light snacks will be served on the gallery’s patio.

Dreaming at the Sandstone Gallery

“Cosmic Dream” the newest exhibition of Sunny Kim’s abstract paintings and “Dreamscapes,” the contemporary paintings of Ann Kim, will be featured at Sandstone Gallery through July 1. Sandstone Gallery is located at 384-A N. Coast Hwy and is open daily, except Tuesday, from noon to 5 p.m.

The Gallery will also be exhibiting contemporary artists KL Heagen, Howard Hitchcock, Mada Leach, Anne Moore, Victoria Smith Porcello, Jong H. Ro and Lynn Welker.

Local Launches New Art Haven

Sue Osborne and her new venture.

Laguna Beach resident Sue Osborne opened The Shed Fine Art Gallery in Dana Point, a former wholesale nursery.

Gallery Director Michael Ruffini has curated a collection of contemporary art and sculpture.

The site houses a trio of clapboard buildings, which include the gallery, The Coop housewares store and OC Beads, Osborne’s 20-year business.

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Hope University’s band performs at a fundraiser for local families in need.

Local resident Donna LeClair’s recent medical crises galvanized her to find a means to connect with others who are suffering while teaching the rest of the community how to better respond to people in need.

Three months ago, something went amiss for LeClair’s 29-year old son, Shawn Sullivan, requiring emergency brain surgery. Because of the quick reactions of two friends, his proximity to Cedar Sinai Medical Center and the presence of a skilled neurosurgeon, “he is lucky to be alive, walking and talking,” LeClair said.

Sullivan faces a long recovery from what most likely was a brain aneurysm, along with a mountain of medical bills.

Despite support by family and friends, LeClair’s ordeal sometimes overwhelms her, while sensitizing her to others confronting crisis without community support.

She vowed to change that.

LeClair hosts a musical party from 5 to 10 p.m. Sunday, June 23, at Bridge Hall at the Neighborhood Congregation Church, to raise awareness for families facing daunting challenges.

Headlining will be Hope University’s Hi Hope band, whose members include musical savants with intellectual disabilities. Hi Hope will be joined on stage for an open jam session by local musicians and entertainers, including Jason Feddy, John Gardner and the classic rock band, The Blues Offenders.

“I want to show that we’re all one and that we are not alone and that we need to support each other,” LeClair said.

“Donna is one of the most big hearted and generous people I have ever met,” said Pam Wicks, music director of the NCC. “When there is a need, there is Donna, unconditionally loving, compassionate, loyal and hard working. She has given so much to so many. Now it is time to give back to Donna and her son.”

Funds raised will be used to help LeClair’s son with his expenses, to support Anaheim’s Hope University, and to start a fund to aid local families when needs arise.

Tickets for the concert and accompanying silent auction are $20. To donate items, food or drink to the event contact Donna LeClair at 949.903.9629 or at dameleclarir@gmail.com

Laguna Beach resident Robin Pierson writes about topics that appeal to her.

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Jodie Gates

Though former Joffrey Ballet prima ballerina Jodie Gates no longer pirouettes across international dance stages, she has kept in constant motion as a choreographer, founding director of the Laguna Dance Festival and dance professor at UC Irvine.

Her academic career took another leap in April when the University of Southern California appointed her to become director of the new USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance.

While starting work at USC in August, she will continue to live in town and lead the annual dance festival, which takes place in September.

As a professor, Gates has taught advanced ballet, choreographic composition, classical and contemporary repertory and mentored student projects. “It is an opportunity to share my vision and help birth a new, innovative dance school on the west coast,” said Gates of her new post.

Gates, who retired from the stage in 2005 and moved to Laguna Beach, founded the dance fest a year later. Since then, she has showcased a diverse group of dancers from companies such as the American Ballet Theatre, the New York City Ballet, Trey McIntyre Project and Complexions Contemporary Ballet.

Complexions’ Desmond Richardson returns to Laguna next week to teach a master class and star in a festival fundraising benefit at Seven Degrees.

The post Dance Leader Remains in Motion appeared first on Laguna Beach Independent Newspaper, The "Indy" - Laguna Beach News.

Maro Wood Grill, 1915 S. Coast Highway, offers brunch this Father’s Day, Sunday, June 16,  served from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. Guests have the choice between Maro’s regular menu and their prix fix brunch.

The special prix fix three-course brunch, includes complimentary beverages. For more information or to make reservations, visit www.marowoodgrill.com or call 949-793-4044.

Giving Dad a Sapphire Surprise

Sapphire Laguna offers join for a three-course brunch menu on Sunday, June 16, specially designed with Dad in mind.

The menu, served at 1200 S. Coast Highway, will be served from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at $48 per person and youngsters can enjoy a half portion three-course meal for $24. 949-715-9888 for Father’s Day reservations.

Offering a New Menu Each Night

Chef Brazier’s handiwork.

Chef Laurent Brazier is back and re-launching Mirepoix at Laguna Culinary Arts on Monday, June 24, offering a new prix-fix menu each night.

The menu features four-course prix fixe dinners Thursday, Friday and Saturday night and lunch Monday through Saturday from 11:30 a.m. until 3 p.m.

The menus can be viewed at www.lagunaculinaryarts.com and reservations can be made by calling 949-494-2719.

The post On the Table 6/14/13 appeared first on Laguna Beach Independent Newspaper, The "Indy" - Laguna Beach News.

Sam Dawson

Laguna Beach resident Sam Dawson makes an appearance at 1 p.m. at the local library, Friday, June 21, to talk about her book “Broad Appeal,” 363 Glenneyre St.

The book is a compilation of quotes that smashes stereotypes about older women and provides evidence that there is a full, rich adventure still to come after 60.

The book is available at the Abbott Press Online Bookstore or Amazon.com.

Graphic Design Author, Artist Speaks

To celebrate the release of John Van Hamersveld’s new book, “50 Years of Graphic Design” by John Van Hamersveld, the Surfing Heritage Foundation holds a free event Saturday, June 15 from 3 to 6 p.m. at 110 Calle Iglesia, San Clemente.

Hamersveld will give a talk about his career and finish with a Q&A session.

The post The Write Stuff 6/14/13 appeared first on Laguna Beach Independent Newspaper, The "Indy" - Laguna Beach News.

Garden helpers, from left, Gloria Broming, Sean McElwee, Tammy Keces, Christian Mache, Mary Kate Saunders and Larry Casner.

Future residents, their families, supporters and volunteers from Transition Laguna all pitched in with shovels in hand to plant flowers, vegetables and trees at Laguna Beach’s Glennwood House last Saturday, June 8.

The residence for young adults with developmental disabilities expects to open next month. Its residents will participate in maintaining the garden and enjoy its bounty, says a statement from the Laguna Beach Community Foundation, which maintains a fund supporting Glennwood’s capital campaign.

The foundation and the Massen Greene Foundation helped fund the garden, along with contributions from others, including Laguna Nursery.

The post Locals Support Glennwood’s Garden appeared first on Laguna Beach Independent Newspaper, The "Indy" - Laguna Beach News.