The Valley Line: La Cañadans feel the beat as holiday season warms up
The winter holiday season is here. This joyful celebration began with our neighboring village’s annual Montrose Christmas Parade last Saturday, to be followed by our own community’s Festival in Lights set for Friday evening at Memorial Park. And, this week marked the start of the Jewish celebration of Hanukkah.
If you have been perusing this column for some (or all!) of the many years I have been writing it, you know that I love Christmas! My house is decorated completely, inside and out. One of my favorite things to do is decorate my Christmas tree. I gently unwrap each ornament that was wrapped in tissue paper and stored away for a year. They all bring up treasured memories and places I’ve been as I place them on the tree. Each one is like a little gift.
***
Opening up this happy season with a holiday dinner dance were members of the Stardusters/Alaroma dance club last Friday evening at the Valley Hunt Club.
Lillian and Roy Olafson are presidents of the Stardusters, a club that has a long history in La Cañada Flintridge. In recent years the Pasadena Alaroma Dance Club joined forces with the Stardusters.
Anyway, this first dance under the Olafson co-presidency was beautiful in every way. The dress code of the evening was black tie for the men and pretty cocktail attire for the ladies. Susan and Jim Holland were the chairs for the dinner dance that was held in the historic and beautiful Pasadena club.
The décor was absolutely glorious and festive. The dinner served that night was delicious and the band Murray Middleman & Park Avenue West provided the great dance tunes.
Among the 64 guests attending this evening were Polly and Brent Allen, Bob and Martha Brumfield, Fran and Terry Buchanan, Grace and Dave Cashion, Liz and Bob Craven, Francie and Jerry Crichton, Gloria de Olarte and Art Rothberg, Marlene and Bob Evans, Sue Franzen and Jim Nigra, Janis and Riccardo Gallo, Marion and Paul Greene, Kitty and Jack Gurash, Kathie and Rocco Liberio.
More attending the dance were Janet and Henry Minami, Jim Mramor and Edie Askew, Liza and Mark Nicoletti, Lillian and Roy Olofson, Pete and Cathy Palermo, Barbara and Tony Phillips, Rosemary and Bob Risley, Gigi and Jim Schlueter, Margaret and John Schock, Margot and Ed Simpson, Judy and Bob Snyder, and Lynne and Joe Thompson.
***
I recently had an opportunity to catch up on some news of the family of longtime La Cañadans Annsley and George Strong.
You know how challenging it can be to get families together these days. The Strong family succeeded in bringing most of the clan together for a dinner-dance at Annandale Golf Club in Pasadena. Everyone was there except daughter Alexis, who is in New York at Cornell University working on a doctorate program that integrates hospitality with healthcare.
It was a time for the family to get dressed up and enjoy cocktails, fine dining, gaming and dancing.
Joining Annsley and George that evening were kids and spouses Bryan and Courtney (Strong) Thomas, Brooke and Geordy Strong, and Meredith (Strong) White and her husband, Brian White.
Jane Napier Neely covers the La Cañada Flintridge social scene. Email her at jnvalleysun@aol.com with news of your special event.