Greetings, fellow Avilones. How can it be??? The holiday season is already knocking on our door, but doesn’t it seem like just yesterday we were still winding down from summer? I suppose it’s time to “talk turkey” and get down to the business of preparing for Thanksgiving. Of course, that celebration won’t take place until after the November 8th general elections, the outcome of which will undoubtedly have a major impact on how our country is governed the next two years. Speaking of turkeys (no, I’m not referring to political parties), wild ones sure seem to be in abundance these days, taking up residence at the Avila Beach Golf Resort and the rolling hills neighborhoods in the San Luis Bay Estates. While the turkeys can be a nuisance, they are just one of the many wildlife species that regularly inhabit or visit our Avila Beach communities.
As I have mentioned in recent newsletter columns, the “Foundation” has returned to its traditional grant-making procedures after two years of special pandemic-related assistance to local agencies. In an effort to re-acquaint ourselves with our community partners, we hosted a “Meet the Grantees Social” at our board meeting on October 13th at the Avila Beach Community Center. This was a wonderful opportunity to gather our community partners, let everyone learn more about their collective work, and meet some of the new agency leaders that weren’t around before the pandemic. In case you are curious, the “Foundation” has awarded grants in excess of $3 million since 2001. And since 2009 nearly $600,000 has been awarded collectively to the agencies in attendance at the 10/13 social gathering.
I imagine a good number of you who spend time at the beach during the summer have noticed the activities of the Avila Beach Junior Lifeguards Program. We recently heard from director Russ Edwards that this year was another one of high energy and great success. According to Russ, over 300 kids were able to participate during this summer’s two sessions, the most ever for the program. In addition to the educational components of the JG program is a series of skills competitions against other JG programs. This summer the Avila Beach team came in second place at the Carpinteria JG Competition behind their arch rival Santa Barbara JG program. The next week at the Santa Barbara competition the Avila team finished in first place, beating Santa Barbara on their home turf. Says Russ, “with thousands of points out there and thousands of kids competing, first place was decided in the final event of the day and Avila Beach came out on top, and we once again sent a large number of JGs to the State Regional Championships and represented very well there with several of our JGs as state champions!” The Avila Beach Community Foundation is a proud sponsor of our local team, and we congratulate Russ, his staff and the entire team for their great success this year!
The Central Coast Commission for Senior Citizens is conducting a survey to assess the needs of seniors on the central coast. The preferred method of completion would be online. The online survey can be accessed through the home page of our website or at: https://centralcoastseniors.org/needsurvey2022/. Hand written forms can be emailed to: surveys@centralcoastseniors.org or mailed to 528 S. Broadway, Santa Maria, CA 93454.
I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but there is an increasing amount of graffiti appearing at our beach town. Some under the bridge crossing the creek that flows to the ocean, and some on our marquee public art lifeguard tower murals. It is defacing and disturbing, to say the least. I realize no community is immune to vandalism of this sort, but for the most part Avila Beach has been relatively untouched. There is a cost associated with the ongoing removal of graffiti, and the “Foundation” has established a special fund for this purpose. So, with Christmas and Hannukah fast approaching, I once again invite you to contribute to this fund by securing a special gift for one or more of your Avila Beach family members or friends. Yes, this is an unabashed “commercial moment”, but worth your consideration. You can acquire this limited-edition License Plate Holder when you make a contribution in any amount to the “Avila Beach Public Art Development & Preservation Fund.”
Send your check to: Avila Beach Community Foundation
P.O. Box 297, Avila Beach, CA 93424
Be sure to include your contact information so we can arrange delivery of your frame(s).
That’s it for now, fellow Avilones. I wish you an enjoyable Thanksgiving celebration. See you at the beach!
As I have mentioned in recent newsletter columns, the “Foundation” has returned to its traditional grant-making procedures after two years of special pandemic-related assistance to local agencies. In an effort to re-acquaint ourselves with our community partners, we hosted a “Meet the Grantees Social” at our board meeting on October 13th at the Avila Beach Community Center. This was a wonderful opportunity to gather our community partners, let everyone learn more about their collective work, and meet some of the new agency leaders that weren’t around before the pandemic. In case you are curious, the “Foundation” has awarded grants in excess of $3 million since 2001. And since 2009 nearly $600,000 has been awarded collectively to the agencies in attendance at the 10/13 social gathering.
I imagine a good number of you who spend time at the beach during the summer have noticed the activities of the Avila Beach Junior Lifeguards Program. We recently heard from director Russ Edwards that this year was another one of high energy and great success. According to Russ, over 300 kids were able to participate during this summer’s two sessions, the most ever for the program. In addition to the educational components of the JG program is a series of skills competitions against other JG programs. This summer the Avila Beach team came in second place at the Carpinteria JG Competition behind their arch rival Santa Barbara JG program. The next week at the Santa Barbara competition the Avila team finished in first place, beating Santa Barbara on their home turf. Says Russ, “with thousands of points out there and thousands of kids competing, first place was decided in the final event of the day and Avila Beach came out on top, and we once again sent a large number of JGs to the State Regional Championships and represented very well there with several of our JGs as state champions!” The Avila Beach Community Foundation is a proud sponsor of our local team, and we congratulate Russ, his staff and the entire team for their great success this year!
The Central Coast Commission for Senior Citizens is conducting a survey to assess the needs of seniors on the central coast. The preferred method of completion would be online. The online survey can be accessed through the home page of our website or at: https://centralcoastseniors.org/needsurvey2022/. Hand written forms can be emailed to: surveys@centralcoastseniors.org or mailed to 528 S. Broadway, Santa Maria, CA 93454.
I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but there is an increasing amount of graffiti appearing at our beach town. Some under the bridge crossing the creek that flows to the ocean, and some on our marquee public art lifeguard tower murals. It is defacing and disturbing, to say the least. I realize no community is immune to vandalism of this sort, but for the most part Avila Beach has been relatively untouched. There is a cost associated with the ongoing removal of graffiti, and the “Foundation” has established a special fund for this purpose. So, with Christmas and Hannukah fast approaching, I once again invite you to contribute to this fund by securing a special gift for one or more of your Avila Beach family members or friends. Yes, this is an unabashed “commercial moment”, but worth your consideration. You can acquire this limited-edition License Plate Holder when you make a contribution in any amount to the “Avila Beach Public Art Development & Preservation Fund.”
Send your check to: Avila Beach Community Foundation
P.O. Box 297, Avila Beach, CA 93424
Be sure to include your contact information so we can arrange delivery of your frame(s).
That’s it for now, fellow Avilones. I wish you an enjoyable Thanksgiving celebration. See you at the beach!
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