Giving Thanks

With the year coming to a close, I have so many people and so many things to be grateful for.

I am grateful for our over 300 members, who recognize the unique and special place that Heritage Square is.

I am grateful to our corporate supporters (Sempra Energy (the Gas Company), Verizon, State Street Bank and Trust, Benjamin Moore Paint, US Bank, and Union Bank) and to our Foundation supporters (S. Mark Taper Foundation, The Green Foundation, William C. Bannerman Foundation, Kenneth and Eileen Norris Foundation, Georges and Germain Fusenot Foundation and Peterson Foundaion), who collectively show a commitment to education, history and preservation that means they are looking out for more than just the “bottom line”. Along the same line, I am grateful to the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, for recognizing architecture as an important and under-funded art form.

I am grateful for our many volunteers, some of whom have logged over 100 hours! Speaking of volunteers, I am grateful to our Board of Directors, who have worked tirelessly on behalf of the organization, to everyone who has served on a committee or sub-committee to do the same, and to our Officers, who have had even more meetings than the rest!

I am grateful for longevity – to volunteers like Natalie Meyer, Nancy Rhinehart, Barbara Schneider whose length of service encompasses three decades! I am grateful for youth – to interns like Mindy Chen, Carlos Lopez, Marrissa Rosemblat, Herman Van Buren, Lilly Raven, Maria Soto, Rachel Trombetta and others.

I am grateful for engaged public officials– to Ed Reyes / Council District 1 for his help with many events this year and with permitting issues critical to the organization, to Mike Fong for being an incredibly responsive and dedicated Field Deputy, and to Assemblyman Kevin De Leon’s office, who have made a commitment to assist us in getting freeway signage next year.

I am grateful for the staff of Heritage Square, who should number in the hundreds rather than numbering six– to Leti Munoz for re-defining the position of Store Manager, to Jessica Rivas for taking an education program that did not previously exist and turning it into one that serves 1,000 children annually, to Jose for being the hardest working man I’ve ever known, to Jessica Maria Alicea-Covarrubias for her 10 years of dedication and commitment to the organization, and to former employee Blake Ferris, who I now consider a close friend.

I am grateful to Barry and Marie Herlihy, for recognizing the value of staff education and continuing to be involved in this critical area and to other former board members, like Ray Phillips and Ilean Welch, who continue to keep in touch and support the museum.

I am grateful for legacies - for the Hastings Family of the Longfellow-Hastings Octagon Home, for Anabel Ford of the Ford House, for the Simmons’ Family of the Colonial Drugstore Project and for Justin Gershuny, whose commitment to the museum is being measured not in months or years, but in decades.

I am grateful for an inquisitive mind–to Mike Ontiveros for his work on the Long Road Home exhibits I and II...I am grateful to Moises Rodriguez and Ken J. Johnson, our resident volunteer photographers and all around great guys.

I am grateful to Steve Nelson at Ft. MacArthur Museum for arranging the donation of the Model T. Truck.

I am grateful to the professionalism of our contractors and vendors, including Davis Blue Print, Ric Reimold, Ric Scozzarri, General Equipment Company, Chris Karlson, Modern Image Business Design, Sir Michael’s and to Mirimil and Norma at Citizen’s Business Bank. I am grateful to MJZ Entertainment for our long and fruitful relationship.

I am grateful to architect Rochelle Compomanes, who is currently working on the drawings for Phase II of the Victorian Fence Project gratis. Speaking of architects, I am also grateful to Steven Ormenyi, who did the same for the Octagon Veranda and has been watching diligently as construction has progressed. I am grateful to Mitzi Mogul for getting the plans approved. And, I am grateful to David Marshal for doing the same with the plans on the Colonial Drug Store project.

I am grateful to the media for their coverage this year. On radio, I can thank of KPCC (special thanks to Kitty Felde), JackFM, KABC and others. On television, we give thanks to KABC, KCBS, KNBC, KCAL, and KTLA. In print, we give thanks to the Los Angeles Times, the LA Weekly, Arroyo, Senior Times, Verdugo Magazine, Pasadena Star News, the Arroyo Seco Journal, the Boulevard Sentinel, Old House Journal, American Bungalow, the Northeast Sun and even the Chinese World Daily!

I am grateful for the many community organizations that have supported us in one way or another, including the Arroyo Seco Neighborhood Council, the Lincoln Heights Neighborhood Council, the Cypress Park Neighborhood Council, the Glassell Park Neighborhood Council, the Highland Park Neighborhood Council, the Mt. Washington Alliance and the Glassell Park Improvement Association and to the businesses who have supported us, such as The York on York, the Highland Park Animal Hospital, North Figueroa Animal Hospital, Davis Blue Print, the San Gabriel Bead Company, Jill’s Paint, Raphael Gurien, Lizard Auto Service, the Shop Auto Body, City Living Realty, Steven Ormenyi Associates, Laurie Casebier of Wells Fargo Bank, F&F Foods (makers of sen-sen), Novotny Refinishing, Scott Racusin / Wedbush Bank, Scott Chevrolet, Glendale KIA, Charles Horton Tax Office, Heidi Hirsch / Visual Terrain, Videotecheque, Trader Joe’s, Bristol Farms, How’s Market, Rock Rose Gallery, Bar Time, Budget Rent-a-car in Pasadena, Architecture Tours LA, Peter Pepper Products, Wexford Management, the Uptown Gay and Lesbian Alliance, Alhambra Beauty Supply and others.

I am grateful to John Bwarie for helping me make LA Heritage Day a reality and for establishing the LA Heritage Alliance to show organizations how to make themselves relevant to their respective communities. I am also grateful to the members of the committee working to make next year’s LA Heritage Day an even grater success. This diverse group of people represent the Highland Park Heritage Trust, the LA Conservancy, West Adams Heritage Association, the Autry, and Hollywood Heritage.

I am grateful to Raphael Guerin, whose enthusiasm for the Concert Series was contagious and helped to make what would have been an o.k. event into a great event.

I am grateful for partnerships – be it with the Art Deco Society of Los Angeles, the Highland Park Heritage Trust, the Yale Cabaret, Rock Rose Gallery, the reciprocal member museum days led by the Japanese American National Museum or our Museums of the Arroyo Day partners, including the Gamble Home, the Pasadena Museum of History, the Los Angeles Police Historical Society and Museum, the Lummis Home and Gardens, and the Southwest Museum. Next year is this exceptional events 20th Anniversary, so be on the lookout for something extra special.

I am grateful to people in the Arroyo Seco who are working to bring together the many resources we have in new and interesting ways. These include Elliot Sekular (founder of Lummis Day), Amy Inouye of Future Studio, Heinrich Keifer of Kiwanis, Carmela Gomes of the HPHT, Nicole Possert of the Arroyo Guild, Laurie Arroyo of the Arroyo Arts Collective and countless others.

I am grateful to the Board Members previously mentioned – to Scott Racusin for trying to tackle some difficult issues, to Justin Gershuny for historic perspective, to Steven Ormenyi for a passion for his projects, to Dana Anderson and Helen Yeo for always being there to listen, to Alison Pinsler for helping to keep abreast on critical filming issues, to Mitzi Mogul for her tenacity and vision, to Charles Horton for going above and beyond to see our finances are kept in order and to Saline Davies, who has done a truly great job in her first year as President.

I am grateful to have had friends like Grayson Cook, who will be missed.

I am grateful to everyone not on this list who have helped make Heritage Square the place it is today.

Finally, I am grateful to my wife, Angela, whose love and understanding underscores everything I do…

Feel free to add what you are grateful for in the comments section
Wishing you a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah and Happy New Year…

Brian Sheridan