Community news: Lions Club provides vision screenings, musician Isabella Ramos to perform, TubaChristmas concert
The Northwest Glendale Lions Club provided vision screenings during the third annual Glendale Health Festival sponsored by the Armenian American Medical Society of Southern California at the Pacific Community Center in November.
The Lions have provided eye screenings at this event since it began, according to member Ross Adams. A total of 326 people were screened. Fifteen children, infants to age 6, were screened in the KidSight program. The Lions provided 100 certificates for free eyeglasses. There were eight cataract cases and seven minor glaucoma cases detected during the screenings.
A total of 51 volunteers participated including six doctors, 10 Northwest Glendale Lions, 17 Glendale College Leos, 11 optometry students from the Western School of Optometry and Dr. Brian Van Dusen and his wife, Patti, from the Lions Friends in Sight, who provided two non-contact glaucoma units. Also attending were six puppies from Guide Dogs of America with their trainers.
Optometrist Ani Halabi, of the Northwest Glendale Lions, arranged for the doctors and students to attend and coordinated the Lions participation along with Lion Vince DeSantis, co-club Sight Conservation chairman. Both worked with the Armenian American Medical Society to plan the event, which attracted more than 1,000 participants, Adams said. Other members helping were President Bob Dollenmayer, Steve High, Ted Walters, Ryan Nekota and Josh and Brittany Evans of the Glendale College Leos.
Glendale youth is soloist
A Glendale girl will be among a trio of soloists performing during the Los Angeles Children’s Chorus annual Winter Concert at 7 p.m. Dec. 9 and 16, at the Pasadena Presbyterian Church.
Isabella Ramos will be featured along with Yulan Lin and Madeline Lew on Benjamin Britten’s “Missa Brevis.”
Additional pieces on the program are the English cathedral anthem Psalm 150 by Sir David Willcocks and Ola Gjeilo’s Ubi Caritas. In addition, the chorus performs works by King Henry VIII, an African song learned on the choir’s recent tour to South Africa and folk songs from Austria, Japan, France and England.
For tickets, call (626) 793-4231 or visit www.lachildrenschorus.org. Pasadena Presbyterian Church is at 585 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena.
Tubas will herald the holidays
There are many choirs and orchestras performing shows filled with music of the season, but another musical group offers a jollier take on the holidays with the Merry TubaChristmas concert.
Hundreds of tuba and baritone players ranging in age from 8 to 80 will gather for the 36th annual event at 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 16 at the Hall of Liberty in Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills, 6300 Forest Lawn Drive, Los Angeles. They will perform Christmas and Hanukkah selections. The concert is free, and the audience is encouraged to sing along.
Featured guest artists will include Los Tubas, a 12-piece ensemble that is considered to have some of the best professional players in the world, and the Tubadours, a professional quartet. Marking his second year as conductor is Scott Wilkinson, who is a professional tubist and longtime TubaChristmas participant.
All tuba and baritone/euphonium players are invited to participate, regardless of ability; students are especially welcome. For more information, visit TubaChristmasLA.com or email Scott Wilkinson at TubaChristmasLA@gmail.com.
JOYCE RUDOLPH can be reached at rudolphjoyce10@gmail.com.