Center to Break Ground on Garden

The North Valley Jewish Community Center will break ground Jan. 16 on a Unity Garden in honor of those who supported the center following the Aug. 10 shooting.

The large garden will be planted in front of the center building, where a gunman went on a shooting spree, wounding three children, a teenage counselor and the receptionist. Later, a Chatsworth mail carrier was killed, allegedly by the same gunman.

The planting will be part of an open house and party held to mark the opening of the new Center of the Arts, which will offer an eclectic mix of classes for adults and children, said Luane Sugarman, director of the arts program.

The start of classes has been delayed because of low registration, Sugarman said. All Monday classes will begin Monday; the remainder will start Jan. 18.

Classes include mime, swashbuckling and Shakespeare. There will also be several courses in jazz singing, acting, tap dance and sculpture.

Children in a youth symphony course will learn what it is like to perform in an orchestra. Members of the New Valley Symphony will mentor them.

“This program is one of a kind and the beginning of an ongoing, exciting arts program,” Sugarman said.

All 28 classes will be offered at the Jewish Community Center, which has eight classrooms, a dance studio, two indoor production spaces and an outdoor amphitheater. Classes will last eight weeks and cost $90 to $400. A discount is available for the first session.

The center will host an arts festival in May, when students will have a chance to showcase what they have learned.

For information, call Sugarman at (818) 360-2211.