Community: New mini park installed at Joslyn Adult Center
Members of Leadership Burbank have replaced a shuffleboard court at Joslyn Adult Center with an Oasis — a mini park that seniors and the community can enjoy.
First, the team removed about 2,300 square feet of concrete, said Jeff Carlon, project leader.
A concrete walkway was poured around a circle of artificial turf. There are six benches where visitors can sit and read or eat lunch. The perimeter has been landscaped with drought-tolerant plants that are irrigated with reclaimed water.
The pergolas have been refurbished and provide shade. Planters are punctuated by boulders unearthed by city crews at other locations and stored for many years, Carlon said.
The project would not have happened without the collaboration between Leadership Burbank Class of 2014 and the Burbank Park, Recreation and Community Services Department, said Gayle B. Migden, recreation supervisor at Joslyn.
“This class was so passionate about developing this project and they did an amazing job,” she said. “I wanted to know how many times people need to walk around the circle to reach a mile and they just got back to me and said it takes 31 laps.”
Migden is hoping that Joslyn class instructors will be motivated to move outdoors to conduct their classes and programs and that people will walk the 31 laps.
“It’s really a healthy, lovely outdoor space that is so pretty and relaxing with the rocks and the plants,” she said.
The Leadership Burbank team received city approval for the renovation in December and completed it in May.
Funds were raised at a Flappers Comedy Club night and through donations. Donors who gave $1,000 will have their names placed on plaques on the boulders. Donations of $2,500 earned the donor their name on a bench. The firefighters union donated $4,000 and will have its name placed on a boulder.
The total raised was $92,000 and includes a $15,000 Demonstration Garden grant from Burbank Water and Power. The class submitted a proposal and was awarded the grant. Visitors can stop by and consider implementing the water efficient system into their yards.
The city’s Park, Recreation and Community Services Department invested a total of approximately $40,500 of its budget for the Oasis project, said Gaby Flores, parks deputy director.
“This was an amazing partnership that resulted in a tremendous investment in community building,” Flores said. “The parks department would not have been able to address this project in the timeframe that was achieved without the passion and resources of the Class of 2014.”
The team learned how to work with the city regarding securing permits and handling problems with demolition.
“Everybody got on board and not just with money,” Carlon said. “A neighbor came by and asked if he could help shape some of the rocks and landscape to make them look more natural.”
The project brought together people from different occupations — many who were leaders and accustomed to making independent decisions. They learned to work as a team, said Vicki Fenton from Nickelodeon Animation Studios.
“I have my own team at Nickelodeon and we have to work together, and this was a great exercise in how that’s supposed to look and look what you can do when you work together as a team,” she said.
Members of the Leadership Burbank class who completed the project were Ani Khukoyan Boniadi, Jeff Carlon, Brenda Castaneda, Kimberley Clark, Andrew Corral, Lianne Depino, Ricardo Eichwald, Joy Escalante, Vicki Fenton, Dave Freedman, Caleb Gonzalez, Marcos Gonzalez, Carol Granados, Tom Kissinger, Jenn Logan, Kevin Mitchell, April Moreno, Lucretia Rimmer, Merisol Speat, Nerissa Sugars, Charlene Tabet, Anna Varnon-Grier, Tanya Vreeken and Jane Winter.
To join the next Leadership Burbank class, visit leadershipburbank.org.
The class will maintain the space, Carlon said, so it remains an oasis.
Attending academy leadership program
Michael Ospina is attending the U.S. Naval Academy’s accelerated leadership program for rising seniors this week in Annapolis, Md. He is the son of Fabian and Darlene Ospina.
This is a USNA-sponsored summer seminar that teaches prospective applicants about life at the Naval Academy.
Michael will begin his senior year at Burroughs High in the fall. He is the current running back for the varsity football team and was Most Valuable Player Offensive and starting running back for the junior varsity football team in 2012-2013. He was also Most Valuable Player Freshman and starting quarterback in 2011-2012.
He has maintained a 4.0 grade-point average while balancing a demanding athletic life and maintaining his high academic standing including Advanced Placement classes. In 2013, Michael was selected to attend the National Student Leadership Conference, focusing in medicine and healthcare, at American University in Washington, D.C.
Michael would like to become a doctor and to pursue a career with the U.S. Navy.
Burbank High raises the most pennies
Burbank High School took first place for the second consecutive year in the Pennies for Patients campaign, a national fundraiser for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, said Wendy Miller, advisor of the Associated Student Body.
The school was honored at a ceremony in mid-May. Schools competing were from Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.
Miller brought the program to Burbank High when she started teaching there in 2000 and, during the past 14 years, the school has raised more than $77,000.
Dancing toward dollars
Pacific Ballet Dance Theatre will present a benefit performance titled “A Collection” at 7 p.m. on Sunday at the Colony Theatre, 555 N. 3rd St., Burbank.
The show features highlights from the body of works by choreographer/artistic director Natasha Middleton, including the heartfelt “Brother Can You Spare a Dime,” starring Arthur Alexsanyan, and the vivacious “Ain’t Got No Swing” tap dance, performed by Chris Trousdale.
Middleton will also preview a new contemporary ballet duet titled “Searching,” starring Clayton Velasquez and Irena Gharibyan.
Tickets are $30. For more information, call (818) 842-0647.
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JOYCE RUDOLPH can be reached at rudolphjoyce10@gmail.com.