Bits 'n' Pieces

Class Registration Begins

Registration for new recreation classes offered by Long Beach Parks, Recreation and Marine (LBPRM) is going on now for more than 400 classes in art, music, nature, fitness, special interest subjects; adult sports leagues and aquatics programs. These programs provide opportunities for exercise and recreation, social interaction and learning, and growth and relaxation for ages pre-school to adults 50-plus.

LBPRM’s spring “Recreation Connection,” class and program registration brochure describes hundreds of recreation classes for all ages taking place from March through May 2018, as well as registration instructions and information about events and activities for the entire family. The “Recreation Connection” is available at City park community centers and libraries, and can be viewed on-line at www.lbparks.org.

New classes this spring include:

All About Eggs! An Egg Dyeing Class for ages 2-5 and 6-10

Basic Cooking for Kids for ages 6-12 and 12-17

Little Ballers Hoop School for ages 3-4

B-Ballers Basketball Game Time for ages 5-12

Special Olympics “Top Flight on Ice” Ice Skating Instruction for age 12 to Adult

Zumba Gold with Mat for Ages 50+

It’s easy to register! Visit www.lbparks.org. (click on “RecConnect”), call (562) 570-3111 or visit the Registration Reservations Office at 2760 Studebaker Rd., Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Like LBPRM on Facebook and keep up on the latest program information!

Visit https://facebook.com/LongBeachParks.

Save the Eastside ER

A Community Hospital Task Force, comprised of business, community, civic and medical leaders has been established to determine ways to sustain ER (emergency room) services at CHLB for residents on the east side of Long Beach.

The Task Force convened its first meeting in January with 45 members.  The next Task Force meeting is on Monday, Feb. 26, 5 p.m. at the Assistance League of Long Beach, 6220 E. Spring St.  The public is invited to attend.  We anticipate we will be joined by elected officials and city staff.

Co-Chairing the Task Force are Michael Brascia, president/CEO of Brascia Builders and Ross Riddle, president/CEO of South Coast Shingle.  Facilitation for the Task Force and funding support for its efforts comes from the CHLB Foundation.

The Task Force will be overseeing a survey to determine consumer demand for critical care services, emergency care, ICU and CCU, in conjunction with CSULB and an independent marketing research firm.  The results will be available by the end of March.

In early April the Task Force will be supporting an assessment of the CHLB Campus by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) through a Technical Assistance Project (TAP) The ULI TAP will feature a two-day site assessment of the CHLB 8.7 acres. 

The objective of ULI’s visit is to determine ways to continue acute and critical care services, either in existing buildings or new facilities at the site.   ULI is the oldest and largest network of real estate and land use experts in the world.

Watch for information on the CHLB Task Force meetings and progress by visiting the www.chlbfoundation.org OR by calling the CHLB Foundation at (562) 933-5970.

View Crime Incidents Online

The Long Beach Police Department in collaboration with the Long Beach Technology and Innovation Department has developed a new crime incident mapping application that will make up-to-date crime activity information, occurring within the city, readily available for residents.

The new application provides the public with easy-to-use search tools to query crimes within their neighborhoods, including an interactive map that allows users to zoom-in/out throughout various areas of the city to identify crime incidents. The source is the last six months of data obtained from the Police Department’s Records Management System (RMS), which is updated weekly to provide the public with accurate and timely information. Additionally, there are built-in visual enhancements, such as charts, that users can view as they navigate through the data. For further analysis, users can create customized reports of selected areas as well as download raw data.

All data available through the application is preliminary based on reported incidents. Actual crime statistics are determined after a multi-level review process. The application can be found by visiting the Long Beach Police Department’s website at www.longbeach.gov/police/crime-info/crime-incidents/ or through the DataLB tab located on the city’s homepage.

‘Feed a Need’

Long Beach State University’s annual Feed a Need Spring Drive, a program that gives students with meal plans the chance to donate meals to food-insecure students, concluded recently with 1,005 meals raised. The total represents approximately 40 percent of the campus’ residential students donating to their peers.

The results of the Feed a Need drive were announced just as the California State University Office of the Chancellor released a study conducted by Dr. Rashida Crutchfield of Long Beach State University and Dr. Jennifer Maguire of Humboldt State University. Their research, which focused on “homelessness, low and very low food security” among students on the 23 California State University campuses, found that 41.6 percent of CSU students and 37.7 percent of Long Beach State University students reported food insecurity, respectively.

$1.5M Anonymous Donation

The Memorial Medical Center Foundation, who is the fundraising arm for Long Beach Medical Center, received a generous, anonymous donation of $1.5 million to renovate the catheterization (cath) labs in the MemorialCare Heart & Vascular Institute.

“We are so grateful to this member of our community for providing us with the funds to renovate the cath labs, which will provide life-saving care for children and adults through Long Beach and beyond,” says Sharon Thornton, president, Memorial Medical Center Foundation.

The MemorialCare Heart & Vascular Institute at Long Beach Medical Center includes a suite of five cardiac cath labs, which are examination rooms with diagnostic imaging equipment and interventional capabilities to visualize the chambers and great vessels of the heart and treat various cardiac abnormalities.

The Memorial Medical Center Foundation has served the philanthropic needs of Long Beach Medical Center and Miller Children’s & Women’s for more than 50 years raising between $7-15 million annually.

MTW Names New Staff

Musical Theatre West (MTW) announced the addition of Ted Watts, Jr. as education and outreach director and Matt Terzigni as the company’s new production manager.

Watts will oversee the development and execution of student matinee performances, in-school productions with professional actors, the student summer conservatory, and the Footlighter scholarship awards. MTW is committed to exposing thousands of children each year to the joy and magic of musical theater. Programs are provided for school-aged children in Los Angeles and Orange County, through generous contributions through individuals and sponsors.

Matt Terzigni is a stage manager and company manager who has worked on both coasts and internationally. His extensive credits includes productions on the New York stage scene, including The Events with the New York Theater Workshop and Should I Have … It’s all Wright, Sex with a Censor, and August Strindberg’s A Dream Play at the TBG Theatre.

Camerata Singers Board

Long Beach Camerata Singers announced its 2018 Board of Directors. On the executive committee are Jan Hower, president, David Bunker, vice president, Heather Chambers, treasurer and finance, Steven Nottingham, secretary.

Other members of the board include: Dee Abrahamse, Arlyss Burkett, Tish Camp, Jeffrey Denton, J.C. Edwards, Marianne Gastelum, Howard Griffiths, Myra Hillburg, Meredith Lee, Dick Lunde, Evelyn Meacham, Carl Porter, Carli Steers and Barbara Tressel.

The Long Beach Camerata Singers is dedicated to excellence in choral music as they enrich the lives of our communities and performers through a broad spectrum of repertoire, innovative programming and arts education. The 80-voice classical music choir is now in its 52nd season serving Long Beach and surrounding communities.