Baer Has New Perspective on Career
The Sept. 11 attacks may have been 3,000 miles away, but the efforts of New York firefighters in the aftermath have resonated with Lauren Baer.
The Westlake Village Westlake High senior tennis player is a Ventura County Fire Department cadet, and what she saw happening across the country last month only confirmed her chosen career path.
“If anything, it made me respect the job even more,” Baer said. “Going into college, I know exactly what I want to do.”
She always has.
“I’ve wanted to be a firefighter since I was a little kid,” she said. She has learned the ropes at Ventura County Fire Station 35 in Newbury Park, working at least 10 hours a week in a yearlong work-experience program.
“I go on all the calls with them. Last week, there was this fire and I was running around changing the [oxygen] tanks. That was pretty cool. We go on all sorts of calls, people with shortness of breath, all kinds of things. I love it.”
Baer also enjoys serving as co-captain of Westlake’s tennis team, playing at No. 1 or No. 2 singles after two years at No. 1 doubles, and playing forward on the girls’ soccer team.
“Definitely there are times when I get worn down. My parents will ask me, ‘Don’t you want to quit something?’ But I love what I’m doing, and there’s not anything I would want to stop.”
Terrific trio: Three freshmen, including two from Ukraine, have helped fill a void for Beverly Hills, No. 4 in The Times’ rankings. The freshmen--Tessa Tran and Ukrainians Anne Liktovskaya and Liana Babich--have helped counteract the loss of Iris Ichim, Beverly Hills’ top player and the No. 1 player in the USTA Southern California Girls’ 18 division, who decided not to play high school tennis.
This year Babich and Tran play No. 1 doubles, and Liktovskaya usually plays No. 3 singles. Their talent eased their transition.
“That really did help them to be accepted easily by the older players on the team,” said Mike Margolin, first-year coach of Beverly Hills (12-4, 6-0).
Liktovskaya, who arrived from Ukraine three months ago, is not as proficient in English as Babich, who was born in Ukraine but came to the United States as a toddler with her family. But Babich translates for her teammate.
The team benefits too. “We’ve done pretty well,” Tran said.
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THE TIMES’ RANKINGS
1. Corona del Mar (17-1, SS--Pacific Coast)Sea Kings have lost only to Peninsula in the National High School All-American tournament.
2. Palos Verdes Peninsula (17-2, SS--Bay)Panthers managed three wins last week despite a strong challenge from Dana Hills.
3. Dana Point Dana Hills (13-5, SS--South Coast) Kristen Wilson and Kristin Bronowicki have won 16 of their last 18 doubles sets.
4. Beverly Hills (12-4, SS--Bay)Normans, top-ranked in Division III, haven’t solved Peninsula, but otherwise they’re on course.
5. Calabasas (12-1, SS--Frontier)Winning despite Monica Wiesener being busy with International Tennis Federation events.
6. Fullerton Troy (15-3, SS--Freeway)Warriors need to take care of business against Sunny Hills and La Habra.
7. Palm Desert (13-3, SS--Desert Valley)Aztecs tried a mix-and-match lineup but couldn’t quite solve Troy.
8. Newport Beach Newport Harbor (10-5, SS--Sea View)Natalie Braverman (14-1 in sets) has lost only to Peninsula’s Alex Jurewitz.
9. Irvine Woodbridge (15-6, SS--Sea View)Elizabeth Exon has lost only to Kady Pooler, Anne Yelsey, Natalie Braverman and Riza Zalameda.
10. Villa Park (12-4, SS--Century)Lindsey Nelson has recovered from a toe injury, and the Spartans have recovered from flu bug.