Briefly In The News

Editor’s note: This corrects the time Career Transition Coaching Group will take place.

Tolan to discuss book on Middle East

Sandy Tolan will discuss his book, “The Lemon Tree: An Arab, A Jew and The Heart of the Middle East,” from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, 428 Park Ave., Laguna Beach. The event was previously scheduled for Feb. 23. The book was selected by the monthly book group St. Mary’s Reads and was the first selection of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles for its reading program, according to a news statement from the church.

Tolan has just returned from a trip to the Middle East and will be available for a question-and-answer session following the program. All are welcome to attend.

For more information, call (949) 494-3542 or e-mail parishoffice@stmaryslb.org.

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Conservancy to host Borella

Max Borella, who recently joined the Laguna Canyon Foundation as executive director, will be keynote speaker at the 6 p.m. March 7 meeting of the Laguna Canyon Conservancy.

Borella was born and raised in Laguna Beach and has experience in environmental education, nonprofit management, and international development, according to the Conservancy. He has worked with graduate students at Stanford University’s School of Earth Science and was a Peace Corps volunteer in Bolivia, where he has worked in the field of community water resource and hazard mapping as the director of the nonprofit Terra Resource Development International.

Tickets for the dinner meeting are $10 for members and $15 for nonmembers, and may be paid at the door with prior reservation. To make a reservation, call Ed Drollinger at (949) 494-6465.

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Support group for career transition

Laguna Presbyterian Church is hosting a free one-hour Career Transition Coaching Group weekly led by John Gabbard at 7:30 a.m. Tuesdays. The group is designed for those who are unemployed or under-employed and offers skills in looking for new or additional work. The group meets in the church parlor off the church’s rose garden at Forest Avenue and Second Street. The public is welcome. For more information, e-mail john.gabbard@miramarpropertyholdings.com.

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Fundraiser planned for Animal Shelter

Tivoli Too and the Laguna Board of Realtors are hosting a fundraising for the Laguna Beach Animal Shelter.

The champagne tasting and jazz brunch will be held March 13 at Tivoli Too. The George Gilliam Trio with singer Elena Gilliam will entertain.

“It’s not too often that fundraisers are held for city facilities, so I like to announce it,” City Manager John Pietig said at the Feb. 15 council meeting.

Tickets are $75 per person, with $25 of it going to the shelter. For more information, call the Realtors’ board at (949) 497-2474.

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Assistance Fund applications due today

The city of Laguna Beach is accepting applications for the Community Assistance Grant Program for fiscal year 2011-12 through 5 p.m. today. The program’s objective is to assist local nonprofit/public organizations in funding new projects and/or expanding community services. Grant recipients in the past have included social service, cultural, sports, senior and youth organizations.

Grant applications will be accepted at the Community Services Department, 515 Forest Ave. Applications may be downloaded from the city’s website at https://www.lagunabeachcity.net, or may be obtained via e-mail by calling (949) 497-3311 ext. 426.