This
morning the Dana Point Historical Society added more tiles to the wall at Baby Beach, including two honoring Jim Miller of Coffee Importers. These tiles were donated by the Dana Point Civic Association to honor Miller for his years of service to the community and for donating the use of his patio (and free coffee!) for the Association's monthly meetings in the Dana Point Harbor.
Nineteen restaurants moved into the Dana Hills High School mall area on March 26 and fed 800 hungry patrons, but in the end it was the class of 2009 who came out the biggest winners. The event is the Dana Hills High School Grad Night’s biggest fundraiser and event chairman Mark Leeds said the $24,000 raised at Taste of Dana will pay for a big chunk of the post-graduation celebration come June.
Alan Wicktrom of SOCSA fame did us a favor on March 26
and shot photos at Taste of Dana, the annual grad night fundraiser at Dana
Hills High School that invites local restaurants to serve up tastes of their
favorite dishes to the crowd. Check out his photos below.
DHHS sophomore Geoff Kaufman wolfs down a mini-burger from Salt Creek Grill.
Servers from Bad to the Bone serve up grub to some of the 800 folks who attended the event.
DHHS senior Sindre Karevoll sips a blended ice coffee drink prepared by the Coffee Importers.
DHHS Principal Robert Nye, standing alongside his wife Kelly, holds his son Matthew
Taste of Dana included a silent auction, with the proceeds going to Grad Night 2009.
The 5th Marines arrived at South Shores Church in Dana Point on Saturday armed with buckets and sponges and by the time they were done more than 600 cars had been washed to the tune of $12,000 in donations.
Proceeds of the event went to the Dana Point 5th Marine Regiment Support Group, a registered 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Corporation. The group’s mission is to support the 5th Marine Regiment at Camp Pendleton through care packages sent overseas and special events for the soldiers and their families at the base, including Christmas celebrations, pamper parties and kids carnivals.
Below are photos from the event.
The South Shores Church parking lot was packed for more than six hours during the fundraiser. How big is that lot? According to church officials, 224 spaces.
Above, two of an estimated 100 Marines washed, rinsed and dried more than 600 cars.
Harbor Grill chef Angel Fabian grilled up 375 hamburgers, 375 hot dogs and 20 pounds of carne asada.
Some of the hundreds of folks who enjoyed a barbeque lunch at the event.
Yes, that is a humvee and a very large military transport vehicle blocking off an entrance at South Shores Church.
A man was killed Saturday night in Dana Point after authorities say he drove off a cliff on Amber Lantern and plunged 250 feet to his death on Dana Point Harbor Drive. Firefighters and deputies responding to the call found Dennis Donovan, 55, dead at the scene just before 8 p.m. pinned inside his overturned Mercedes.
On Saturday, the Surfrider Foundation of South Orange County donated $10,000 to Doheny State Beach’s Interpretive Center, a program the foundation believes will provide educational opportunities for South County youngsters for decades to come.
“The center features a new watershed educational model that mirrors our continuing educational outreach efforts and our Respect for the Beach programs,” said Erkeneff, a Dana Point resident and chairman of the South Orange County Surfrider chapter. “We are thrilled to support the center at Doheny and look forward to hosting several educational programs on site.”
What's going on with the center, which closed in 2007 for renovations? Helen Borisoff, who is helping out at the center, sent us this update:
Doheny State Beach Interpretive Association is currently raising
funds in an effort to reopen Doheny’s Visitor’s Center, located directly across
from Doheny State Beach’s entrance kiosk. Prior to closing for renovations in
2007, the Visitor’s Center hosted over 75,000 guests and over 6,000 school
children. The Visitor’s Center is now in Phase II of the renovation and working
towards rebuilding the aquariums, tide pool and grotto. In addition to our
Mission Statement, our goal is to reopen and once again, offer our free public
education activities that focus on the importance of our local watersheds and
ocean awareness.
For more information on the event, check out this story from last week's DP Times.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars served 414 hungry folks
attending the Festival of Whales at a pancake breakfast March 15 at the OC
Sailing and Events Center, one of many events held at the Dana Point Harbor in
the two-week event.
Frank Tucker of the VFW reports that the stacks of pancakes, bacon and sausages garnered $1,113 for the veteran’s group. Not to be outdone, the Ladies Auxiliary raised $1,457 from raffle ticket sales.
Other money came in for neither. “We did have some people who just donated money, but did not eat or take tickets,” said Tucker. “I know one lady donated $50 and said “thank you.” I was there for that, don’t know why, but I always get stoved up when that happens.”
Another highpoint for the VFW during the breakfast? “The Coffee Importers was great,” said Tucker. “Jim Miller just brought and set up everything for us. Many, many thanks to him.”
The breakfast was so popular that lines extended out the doors, and Tucker said the VFW will add another griddle next year and ask that the student volunteers to take orders, sit the customers and then deliver their plates of breakfast to them. The veterans are also planning to pile on whipped cream, strawberries and blueberries. “Don’t miss next year’s Whale of a Breakfast!” said Tucker.
Eric Walters of Huntington Beach won the first annual Grunion Run on Sunday, March 15, finishing the 5K race at Doheny State Beach in Dana Point in 19 minutes, 43 seconds. Walters, 27, finished first out of a field of 178. Danielle Simpson, 22, of Lake Forest was the first woman to cross the finish line at 23 minutes, 21 seconds. Of the dozens of Dana Point runners, Stuart Glick, 50, finished first amongst the men (fifth overall) with a time of 21 minutes, 3 seconds and Meghan Devaney, 25, finished first amongst the woman (23rd overall) with a time of 34 minutes, 43 seconds.In the kids' 1K race, Max Kamper, 10, of Aliso Viejo finished first overall and Lauren Rose, 11, of San Clemente was the first girl to cross the finish line. Event organizers estimated more than 200 runners participated in the 5K run and the 1K kids run. The first annual event was run by Golden Legs Racing out of Laguna Niguel and is expected to become a regular event at Dana Point’s annual Festival of Whales two-weekend celebration. The event attracted a diverse field of participants ranging from elite athletes to moms pushing strollers. One racer even ran in a kilt. Proceeds from the event-more than $3,000-benefited the Doheny State Beach Interpretive Association, funds that will help support interpretive events in Doheny State Beach and to refurbish the park’s Visitor’s Center, the county’s largest public aquarium.
