Teachers Win Praise for Political Participation

The Westminster Teachers Assn. was named winner of the Joyce Fadem Chapter-In-Politics Award presented by the California Teachers Assn. for the group’s active involvement in political action.

The Westminster group collected signatures and campaigned for Prop. 71, the Gann spending limit change and Prop. 98, a school finance measure.

The state group also selected Carolyn Anderson, a teacher at Franklin Elementary School in Westminster, as winner of its Teacher Involvement Award for helping motivate her fellow teacher members in political activities.

The Rev. Joni Messenger, an associate pastor at Shepherd of the Hills United Methodist Church in Mission Viejo, and the Rev. Kenneth Macklin, whose last assignment was at St. James Episcopal Church in Newport Beach, have been named associate pastors at the United Methodist Church of Garden Grove.

Frank J. De Santis of Villa Park, co-founder and past president of the Orange County American Italian Renaissance Foundation, has been elected state president and national delegate of the Grand Lodge of California, Sons of Italy in America.

De Santis, who owns several businesses including pizza parlors in Santa Ana and Glendale, was elected to his post of the 100,000-member American Italian organization at the group’s convention in Denver.

He is a member of the order’s Renaissance Lodge in Orange and is a UCLA graduate.

Joyce Boyer, a member of Laguna Hills Theta Gamma chapter of Sigma Alpha Sorority, was elected national president of the 900-member organization at its recent convention in Milwaukee. She is a 20-year member of the group.

Soroptimist International of Capistrano Bay selected Wilma Bloom, Donia Davey and Nampet Panichpant-M, all of San Clemente; Alice Cary Thompson and Judy Curreri, both of Dana Point; Linda Blanchard of San Juan Capistrano; Aubrey Beauchamp of Capistrano Beach and Margaret (Peg) Maynard of Monarch Beach, as winners of the group’s Women of Distinction awards.

Irvine resident Michael C. Jones was presented the Jack E. Froehlich Memorial Award by the California Institute of Technology in recognition of his outstanding promise for a creative professional career. The award is presented to a junior in the upper 5% of his class. He is majoring in chemical engineering.

Suzanne Snyder of Santa Ana and Bobby Westling of Orange were named Docents of the Year by the Bowers Museum Docent Guild. It was the first time in its 16-year history that the selection ended in a tie.

“These two ladies epitomize the ideal Bowers Museum docent,” said Joan Austin, who headed the selection process. “They are dedicated, creative and true leaders. A tie was the only alternative.”

Snyder, a docent since 1980, is chairman of Senior Outreach, an audience participation program, and Westling, a docent since 1981, was chairman of the Docent Guild last year.

Anaheim resident Madeline Evans was presented the John West Memorial Award, which recognizes a volunteer who has demonstrated an outstanding commitment to individuals with mental retardation.

Evans, area director of the Orange County Special Olympics, has been active with the group for more than 20 years and is a former member of the Advisory Commission on Special Education for the state Department of Education.

A volunteer contingent from the 60 Orange County branches of Bank of America delivered an estimated 500 cans of food collected from employees to Mary McAnena, 87, who cooks and serves meals at 2 p.m. every day to 75 to 100 homeless people at W.O. Hart Park in Orange.

In addition to the food, McAnena dispenses blankets, clothing and toiletries to the homeless. The Orange resident depends primarily on donations, a pension and Social Security income to carry out her work. “She is a sincere individual dedicated to helping address one of today’s major social concerns,” said Bank of America spokeswoman Charmaine Coomier.

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