Volume 1, Issue 18
Your Quality-of-Life News Source
FREE
Help Teresa Glover, who is battling
lymphoma cancer, by attending a
benefit
concert March 8
at Troy’s Bocce
Ball.
— Page 5
FREE
Feb. 19 - March 4, 2014
‘Legally Blonde’ comes to Playhouse stage
SVCT show begins this Friday, plays for four weekends
Residents’ son helped
co-produce Broadway musical in 2007
By Marty Cheek
A “ditsy” young woman goes to Harvard University and discovers her true
self as she tries to win back her boyfriend
by earning a law degree in “Legally
Blonde,” the South Valley Civic Theater’s
latest teen musical show starting Friday.
SHOW TIMES
Dates: 8 p.m. Friday Feb. 21, 28,
March 7 and 14; 8 p.m. Saturday
Feb. 22, March 1, 8 and 15; 2:30
p.m. Sunday March 2 and 9.
Location: Morgan Hill Community Playhouse, 17090 Monterey
Road.
The romantic comedy story provides
young girls with a lot of positive messages about their self-identity, one of the
reasons it was selected by the SVCT’s
board of directors, said Robin Bezanson,
the show’s co-producer with Roberta
Vinkhuyzen Rasmussen .
“I think it’s very empowering for the females, for the girls in the audience,” she
said. “I think it’s entertaining for the audi-
By Marty Cheek
South Valley Civic Theater’s
upcoming performances of the
musical “Legally Blonde” have
a Morgan Hill
connection with
its Broadway
hit co-producer
Tom Gabbard.
His
parents,
Tom Gabbard
Nelson
and
Bonnie Gabbard, resided in our
city. Now both deceased, the couple were great supporters of comPhoto by Marty Cheek munity theater, especially shows
Cast members playing sorority girls go through a dress rehearsal for “Legally
encouraging children to get on
Blonde,” the musical, which opens Feb. 21 and runs through March 9.
the stage.
As the president of the Bluence as a whole. It shows a young lady who singing it all through the day.”
menthal Performing Arts Center
is looking for the wrong things but realizes
Oakwood School senior Baily Konold, in Charleston, N.C., since 2003,
the strength in herself and realizes who she 17, plays “Elle Woods,” the leading fe- Gabbard has been involved in
really is and that she’s capable and able to male role who starts off her college career the creation of many musicals
do the things she chooses to do.”
majoring in fashion merchandising. “I’m that run on Broadway, London’s
The show also has humorous scenes to kind of a ditsy blonde girl at the begin- West End theater district, and
entertain the males in the audience, Be- ning who has a really clear sense of who tour nationally. He has co-prozanson said. “It’s just a very all-around she is,” she said, describing Elle’s char- duced hits including “Monty Pyexciting, fun show,” she said. “The music
is excellent, it’s really good. I find myself
See MUSICAL, Page 15
See GABBARD, Page 15
Coe’s Pine Ridge Association Council looks back at
2013, plans for future
helps preserve wilderness
GP update, coordi-
Formed in 1975, nonprofit helps
keep park ready for visitors
nation with Gilroy
high on 2014 goals
By Marty Cheek
Spreading across more than 87,000 acres
in the Diablo mountains west of Morgan
Hill, Henry W. Coe State Park has for many
decades served as a wilderness escape from
the stresses of Silicon Valley. And since it
was formed in 1975, the nonprofit Pine Ridge
Association has led the fight to preserve this
ruggedly tranquil landscape for the enjoyment
of generations of day-hikers, backpackers,
mountain bikers, equestrians and other users.
Only two rangers patrol the vast wilderness, and so the PRA members and uniformed
volunteers support nearly every aspect of the
park experience, said Ron Erskine, the PRA’s
vice president. Besides patrolling and maintaining trails, PRA volunteers staff the visitor
center, lead the popular spring-time wildflower walks and host public events such as the
Mother’s Day Breakfast, the family-oriented
Ranch Day and the Tarantula Fest programs,
and the popular Back-country Weekend.
“Our purpose is to enhance the experience
of every visitor to Coe Park, and these volunteers bring their passion to their work,” Erskine said. “The PRA is critical to keeping the
Jackson
Academy
engages
students
Page 4
By Marilyn Librers
Photo by Marty Cheek
Henry W. Coe State Park volunteer John
Thatcher talks to two visitors at last
October’s Tarantula Fest.
park ready and fit for visitors.”
Like many South Valley residents, Erskine
lived in Morgan Hill for several years before
he ventured into the park with friends and discovered all it offered visitors.
“I felt like a kid on Christmas morning,” he
said of his initial Coe explorations. “I couldn’t
wait to join the PRA and become a volunteer. I
have gotten far more than I have given through
the experience.”
Every fall, PRA members put on an extensive
New Bubbles owners
continue
serving
Page 9
See PINE RIDGE, Page 15
South Valley through
the eyes of
John Muir
Page 13
Last month, the Morgan Hill
City Council met with city
staff for the annual day-and-ahalf goal-setting retreat
to review our
goals from
last year and
also decide
Marilyn Librers
on this year’s
direction for the Morgan Hill
community. The council adopted the new goals at its Feb.
5 public meeting.
Overall, we saw that 2013
was a productive year, and
2014 is shaping up to be
another tremendous year with
many exciting goals that council members have embraced.
City council priorities for
2013 included the support of
our youth, stimulating economic development, enhanc-
Fenichel
says bluegrass a great
fit for MH
Page 17
ing community engagement
and diversity, participating
in regional issues, improving
organization effectiveness and
transparency, and financing
and advocating for infrastructure improvements.
I took the g