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The Nutshell The Walnut Creek Neighbors and Newcomers Club Volume 49, Issue 5 www.walnutcreeknewcomersclub.org January 2009 The President’s Monthly Message The Holiday Social is but a wonderful memory. Those who attended had a great time with plenty of food, drink and friendship. Many thanks to all who helped put it together. The committee included: Sylvia Allen, Pat Hacker, Connie Wylie, Nikki Harris, Ann McBride, and Lynda Smith. Special thanks to the following husbands: Max Winnie and Dan Smith the parking attendants and bartenders Ken Hacker and Nikki’s husband Craig Spitzer. Frank Ruotolo did a fantastic job selling raffle tickets to support our chosen charity “Child Protective Services food boxes.” I also want to thank all who helped clean up after the party. We have really good news to report. We raised $520 during the Holiday Social and December coffee for the “Child Protective Services” food boxes! Thank you to everyone who donated to the cause. We will be shopping after the first of the year and assembling the boxes to be delivered the week of January 19th. You should all feel great about helping someone who is having a tough time. There are many out there. If there is anyone out there who wants to do more, call or e-mail Pat Hacker. We have some interesting guest speakers lined up for the January and February coffees, thanks to Pat Hacker. We have an artist for January and a hypnotherapist for February’s coffee. Lunch Bunch will be at Metro Lafayette. Upcoming Bay Area Excursions include one to Intel. Check out this newsletter for more information. Our featured member this month is Lynda Smith. She is our 3 rd Vice President in charge of coffees and just recently stepped into heading up the documentaries. I am constantly reminded how dedicated the women are in this club. We never seem to be short of those willing to help in any way they can. That’s what makes this club special in so many ways. We are continuing our growth with several new members signing on recently. Make sure when you see them that you make them feel welcome. If you have friends or neighbors that you think would enjoy our club, invite them to a few functions especially the coffees. We want to continue this growth. The more the merrier! Kathy Winnie, President The Nutshell January 2009 Inside this issue: Our Name and Officers ...... 2 Bay Area Excursions ........... 3 Out to Lunch ................... 4 Walk & Talk .................... 4 Welcome Coffee ................ 5 Small Activity Groups .......... 6-7 Member Profile ................. 8 Birthdays,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,.....8 Calendar ........................ .9 New Members, New Friends: Jody Getson 2487 Harvard Circle, W.C. 94597 jnjashnc@yahoo.com Birth date: 8/6 Moved from CT in June Interests: Excursions, Bridge, Lunch Bunch, Scrapbooking, Walk N Talk, Community Outreach Bonnie Hibbs 160 Shady Lane, W.C. 94597 bonz415@hotmail.com Birth date: 4/15 Moved from S. Carolina in October Interests: Excursion, Lunch Bunch, Night Owls, Walk n Talk Page 1 About the Walnut Creek Area Neighbors and Newcomers Club The purpose of the Walnut Creek Area Neighbors and Newcomers Club is to promote friendship among women in the Walnut Creek Area through social functions, activities, interest groups, and community service. Additionally newcomers to the area will be introduced to the charm and vast resources of the Diablo Valley and the Bay Area. 2008-2009 Executive Board of Directors President 1st Vice President 2nd Vice President 3rd Vice President Secretary Treasurer Kathy Winnie Vinita Ramsay Agnes Shintani Carolyn Priest Ann Smith Lynda Smith Ann McBride Sandy Kretsch Monthly Luncheon Monthly Luncheon Membership Membership Assistant Coffees Executive Activity Chairperson Bay Area Excursions Book Discussion Group Bridge Bunko Casual Bridge Community Outreach Documentary & Discussion Duplicate Bridge Golf Lunch Bunch Marriott Bridge Night Owls Partnership Bridge Scrapbooking Tennis Walk and Talk Activity Chairpersons Audrey Green Laurie Harken Carolyn Priest Sue Eltringham Nancy Bocanegra Pat Painton Pat Hacker Vinita Ramsay Sue Eltringham Paulette Chandler Elaine Steele Bette Perez Ann Thelwell Henny Dijkman & Petie Wright Mary McDonald Connie Wylie Eugenia Rutledge Standing Board Committee Members 2008-2009 Ex-Officio Historian Newsletter Editors Parliamentarian Publicity Roster Web Master The Nutshell Nikki Harris Francine Ruotolo Anna Freitas & Sylvia Allen Carroll Brooks Fran Love Marj Russell Sylvia Allen January 2009 Page 2 Bay Area Excursion: Intel Museum, Santa Clara Thursday, January 29th 9:15 AM Carpoolers meet at Heather Farms (4th driveway) 11:00 AM Docent Tour RSVP: Nikki Harris nikkihar@aol.com / (Please indicate if you are willing to drive) Nearly 80,000 people a year visit Intel’s 10,000 square foot museum, which celebrates 40 years of the Santa Clara chipmaker’s history through more than 30 interactive exhibits, educational programs and docent-led tours. Notable exhibit Item: A binary-code exhibit allows visitors to spell words using a combination of 0’s and 1’s in a computer’s binary, or two-part, language. Odd fact: The most common request by visitors is to visit an actual silicon chip fabrication facility, or fab, which cannot be accommodated because the facilities must be kept perfectly clean. The museum has created an exhibit that recreates what it is like to be inside a fab, and visitors can dress in technician ‘bunny’ suits. We will have lunch at a popular Santa Clara restaurant. Please contact Nikki or Kathy with any suggestions near Intel, which is located at 2200 Mission College Blvd. Cost: Each passenger should plan on compensating car pool drivers $4 for gas and share in any parking expense. Lunch costs are based on individual selection. Holiday Social and December Coffee Raffle Our raffle to raise money to fill Food Boxes for Child Protective Services was a great success. As a result of your generosity, we have $520 to spend on food. This amount will be supplemented by some donated food and we are hoping to fill 15 boxes. If you, by chance, have a food donation contact, please let us know because that would increase our ability to help. The food to fill the boxes will be purchased in bulk by members of the Community Outreach Activity Group in early January. We will meet at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, January 20, 2009 to pack the boxes. Our packing location is the home of Andy Freedman, 2189 Ridgepointe Court, Walnut Creek. If you need directions call Andy. We invite everyone to participate. It will be fun to get together and see this project through to completion. Let Pat Hacker know if you will be helping pack (pla615@sbcglobal.net). Many thanks to everyone who bought raffle tickets. By the way, Sandy Kretsch was the lucky winner of the beautiful "Toast the Town" basket. The Nutshell January 2009 Page 3 January Out to Lunch When: Where: Tuesday, January 20, 2009 11:30 am METRO LAFAYETTE 3524 Mt. Diablo Blvd (between First St. and Moraga Road) Lafayette METRO LAFAYETTE is located in the Plaza Shopping Center between the 76 Gas Station and Pacific National Bank. Though the restaurant borders and faces Mt. Diablo Blvd., its entry is from the rear. Park in the large parking lot behind the restaurant, and you will see an elongated onestory building with Spanish tile roof and a small sign “METRO” in vertical letters on the building. By Thursday, January 15 Agnes Shintani agnes.shintani@gmail.com Location: RSVP: METRO LAFAYETTE opened in June, 2007 and soon received a “winner” rating by Diablo Magazine. Offering an electic mix of Asian and Mediterranean cuisine, its menu has a bit of something for everyone. Popular dishes include the Thai chicken salad, the roasted pork loin panini sandwich, and its small plate of crispy brussel sprouts with aioli - yes, brussel sprouts!! The dishes are all tasty with fresh, seasonal, and local ingredients. Go to www.metrolafayette.com to view the lunch menu. METRO LAFAYETTE is a great way to start off our monthly Out to Lunch in 2009! Do join us! WALK & TALK When: Tuesday, January 13, 2009 at 10:00 AM Where: Moraga Commons Trail (next to St. Mary’s College) RSVP: Lynda Smith dns.lns02@astound.net Eugenia Rutledge te.rutledge@yahoo.com Please RSVP to say you are coming so we can wait until you arrive or notify you if there is a reason to cancel. If anyone wants to carpool, meet at Heather Farms in Walnut Creek on San Carlos Drive, 4 th driveway on the right side, in the ball field parking lot by the restroom at 9:30 AM. The Nutshell January 2009 Page 4 JANUARY 2009 COFFEE Hostess: Where: When: Paulette Chandler 1601 Geary Road, Walnut Creek, CA 94597 Wednesday, January 14th at 10:00 am (Board meets at 9:00 am) Nikki Harris, Pat Hacker, & Carolyn Priest The Art of Landscape Painting Co-hostesses: Program: We are delighted to announce that we will be brightening up our dreary January landscape by hosting a presentation about landscape painting by a young and accomplished Bay Area painter. Bryan Mark Taylor currently works out of his Bay Area studio and also teaches at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Since moving to California, West Coast landscape has become an exciting challenge for Bryan who previously spent much of his early career depicting both southern Italy and the Rocky Mountain region. He has connected with the plein air movement and has participated in many plein air events. Brian is a member of the Oil Painters of America and was juried in their 2005 National Exhibition. He was also juried into the San Luis Obispo Plein Air Show in 2004, 2005 and 2006, winning an award in 2005. Make sure you put this special event on your calendar! In fact, you might consider inviting a friend to join you at this coffee with its unique opportunity to learn more about landscape art, the process of painting, tips on collecting and also personally experience a live demonstration of how an artist begins a new work. Directions: From highway 680, take the Geary/Treat exit. Travel west about .3 miles on Geary to Hall Lane. Turn Left and Paulette’s townhome will be located on the right. Visitor and street parking is available. Notice: Unclaimed 2008-2009 Membership Directories A good number of members have yet to claim their new directory at one the Fall events where they have been th available for pick up. Those unclaimed will once again be available at our January 14 Coffee and we would appreciate it if you would stop in to socialize and pick yours up. If you are unable to pick it up at the January Coffee, please contact Carolyn Priest (carolynb.priest@gmail.com) to make alternative arrangements. The Nutshell January 2009 Page 5 Small Activity Groups Book Discussion January’s book for discussion is A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith. The book is a classic about a young girl’s coming-of-age at the turn of the century. When: Tuesday, 1:00 pm January 27th Where: Lynda Smith’s, 3420 Chugach Pl., Concord RSVP: Dns.lns02@astound.net Bridge — Partnership We meet every month in a member’s home, usually on the fourth Saturday. Partners play together the entire evening. With two tables we play 6 hands then rotate. It will be 18 hands for the evening. With three tables, we rotate every four hands, making 20 hands for the entire evening. When there is only one table, we play rubber bridge till the guest or host suggests the playing stops. We are always happy to have additions to our group. Join with a partner or as a solo substitute. Henny Dijkman & Petie Wright Bridge We meet every Friday at 12:30 pm for as many rounds as we can fit in! The requirements of this group are to enjoy playing bridge and to have a good time! Please call Sue Eltringham for the January hostess. Bridge--Casual We play with our notes and “cheat sheets!” Our friendly group meets first for a light lunch and then rounds of bridge. New players are encouraged. The hostess and location change every week. Please call Pat Painton (099-9952) for specific details. When: Every Friday, 11:30 am-3:00 pm Where: Various members’ homes RSVP: Pat Painton Evening Bunko Come celebrate the New Year at the home of Nancy Bocanegra, 2814 Velvet Way, Walnut Creek on Thursday, January 8th at 7:30 p.m. with a game of bunko. All permanent players must find by substitute if they will not be able to attend. Please RSVP by Wednesday, January 7th to njbocanegra@yahoo.com,. Community Outreach We will be planning our projects for the new year at our first meeting of 2009 on February 9. We would love to have you join us and offer your ideas. Please RSVP to Francine to let her know you will be attending. When: Monday, February 9, 10:00 a.m. Where: Home of Francine Ruotolo, 533 Allegheny Drive, Walnut Creek, CA RSVP: Franwc@aol.com Bridge--Duplicate Duplicate Bridge meets on the first Monday of the month at 12:30 pm. We may not meet in January as it is so close to the New Year holiday with people's travel plans. If enough people are in town the group may meet on the second Mon, Jan 12th. Members will be called by the hostess. Bridge — Marriott We meet monthly on the fourth Wednesday at the Marriott Hotel in Walnut Creek, beginning play at 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. A lunch break is scheduled around noon. Our members rotate hostess duties. In January our hostess is Marian Viramontes. Please give her a call. The Nutshell January 2009 Page 6 Small Activity Groups Documentary & Discussion “Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room” A documentary about Enron a big business whose CEO’s deceived investors into purchasing stock in the company. Enron ultimately was disclosed to be a fraud. Our current economic situation prompted the selection of this documentary. After the film, we will have a discussion. All viewpoints and opinions are welcome. Directions: From Treat Blvd. east past Oak Grove Rd. about 1 mile. Turn right at Citrus Ave. and go 2 short blocks and turn right on Chugach Pl. We are the 3rd house on the left. When: Where: Time: RSVP: Thursday, January 8, 2009 3420 Chugach Pl., Concord 10:00 am Lynda Smith dns.lns02@astound.net out. Sometimes the evenings include a movie and dinner, or other times, a movie with dessert. Regardless of the plans, make some time just for yourself and join the fun! Suggestions for new activities are very welcome. When: The fourth Tuesday evening of the month Where: Location to be decided; call Ann for details RSVP: Ann Thelwell, Golf Our regular golf day is Wednesday morning with the exception of the second Wednesday of the month, which is our monthly coffee morning. That week we try and fit in another day depending on the ladies’ schedules. The course we frequent the most is Diablo Hills in Walnut Creek, but we sometimes try other courses. We are a fun and not so serious group…….give us a try! When: Every Wednesday, except the second Wednesday. Tee times vary. Where: Most often, Diablo Hills Golf Course RSVP: Paulette Chandler, 932-5205 Knit and Stitch Come join us and work on those projects you've been meaning to start (or finish!) Even if you are a beginner or not sure about your project, we can probably help you and have some fun. We are just starting this group. If you are interested, please contact Fran franlove@sbcglobal.net. Scrapbooking Monthly Lunch Bunch This is a monthly, casual potluck luncheon held in a Newcomer member’s home. Francine will be hosting an "After the New Year Soup and Salad luncheon". Please call Francine to RSVP and indicate if you'll be bringing an appetizer, salad or soup. Date: Monday, January 26, 2009 Time: 12:00 PM Hostess: Francine Ruotolo, 533 Allegheny Dr, W.C. We are resuming scrapbooking on Jan 21st, from 10 to 2 at Remember When at 607 Gregory Lane, Pleasant Hill. If you have any questions, please contact Mary McDonald at 939-8206. Please note that her cell phone in the directory is wrong. Tennis Please grab your racket and join us for some tennis, of course, but also some chatting at the court exchange. We play on Mondays and Thursdays at 8:30 am and are now playing at the courts at Bancroft Village where I live. The courts are steps away from my address of 432 Augustus Ct. in Walnut Creek. Please call Connie email at conjw@aol.com for directions and information as our schedule changes according to how many are available to play. Night Owls This group meets once a month for a fun girls’ night The Nutshell January 2009 Page 7 Member Profile Lynda Smith is our featured member this month. She is the 3rd Vice President in charge of coffee. She also has graciously taken on the documentaries in Vinita’s absence. She is a great example of someone always willing to help. Here is Lynda’s story in her own words: I am a native Californian and was born in Marin County. I lived there until the 1st grade and later moved with my family to Southern California where we stayed for approximately 3 years. We moved back to Northern California where I completed my schooling in Marin County and on the Peninsula in Los Altos, CA. I graduated from San Jose State University with a teaching credential and taught briefly in San Jose. I worked in the business world for approximately 20 years by working at defense plants during the Viet Nam War and at medical facilities. My last employment was with Kaiser Permanente. I met my husband, Daniel, in Los Angeles when I was working at UCLA. I met my husband, Daniel, in Los AngelesWe havewas working at for 35 We have been married for 35 years.Our when I been married UCLA. years. Daniel is a Naval Architect. Daniel is a Naval Architect. Our son, Matthew, was born inborn in Oaklandwe were living in Pinole, Pinole, CA a son, Matthew, was Oakland while while we were living in CA and is and Captain in the US Army National Guard andaattends graduate school at UCLA. Guard and attends graduate school is Captain in the US Army National I enjoy traveling and have traveled across the United States, into Canada, Japan, and through Europe. I like to at UCLA. read, listen to music, exercise, travel, garden, and love eating have traveled across the United States, into I enjoy traveling and good food. I am pleased to be a member of the Walnut Creek Neighbors and Newcomers Club.to read, found to music, to Canada, Japan, and through Europe. I like I have listen the ladies be fun, friendly and adventuresome. exercise, travel, garden, and love eating good food. I am pleased to be a member of the Walnut Creek Neighbors and Newcomers Club. I have found the ladies to be fun, friendly and adventuresome. I have spent most of my life as a wife and a mother. My work life mostly consisted of bookkeeping and accounting. I was fortunate while my children were growing up to do most of my work from home. So I spent many years as room mother, team mom, scorekeeper for baseball, basketball, volleyball, etc. When I retired from that, I spent a few Lots of best wishes for a year years out in the to these December birthday girls! again of happiness real rat race of the corporate world, but hard have found myself mostly retired, managing family trusts at the 1/4 Elaine Steele 1/15 Julie Langlade moment. I Sherri Regaas a wife. I have three children. Bryan is 29 and also retired 1/4 1/17 Carol Mejia working on Suesecond Masters1/17 his Eltringham at Georgia State Gravelle He wants to 1/4 Roberta University. pursue his Kathyin Philosphy, ultimatelyRegina Occhiogrosso I have Ph.D. Powell to become a professor. 1/11 1/23 1/12 twins that just turned 27. My daughter, Darcy, is a legal Molly Bright 1/29 Patti Gallinatti boy-girl secretary and lives in Walnut Creek, and my son, Darren, is a starving artist, budding film maker, part-time musician, and picture framer, living in Oakland. The Nutshell January 2009 Page 8 January 2009 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday 1 Tennis, 8:30am Wylie Friday 2 Bridge:12:30 Sue E. Casual Bridge 11:30am-3:00pm Painton/ Saturday 3 4 5 Tennis, 8:30am Wylie 6 7 Golf/Chandler Paulette 8 Tennis, 8:30am Wylie Doc & Discuss, 10 am Lynda Bunko, 7:30pm Nancy 9 Community Outreach 9 am Francine Bridge:12:30 Sue E. Casual Bridge 11:30am-3:00pm Painton/ 10 11 12 Tennis, 8:30am Wylie Duplicate Bridge 12:30pm Tentative 13 Walk and Talk, 9:30 am carpool 10 am start Lynda 14 Welcome Coffee 10am Paulette 9:00 Board Mtg 15 Tennis, 8:30am Wylie 16 Bridge:12:30 Sue E. Casual Bridge 11:30am-3:00pm Painton/ 17 18 19 Tennis, 8:30am Wylie 20 Out to Lunch 11:30 am Agnes 21 Golf/Chandler Paulette Scrapbooking 10 am Mary 22 Tennis, 8:30am Wylie 23 Bridge:12:30 Sue E. Casual Bridge 11:30am-3:00pm Painton/ 24 25 26 Tennis, 8:30am Wylie Lunch Bunch, Noon Francine 27 Book Discussion 1:00 Lynda Night Owls Ann T. 28 Golf/Chandler Paulette Marriott Bridge 10 am Marion 29 Tennis, 8:30am Wylie Excursion Intel Museum 9:15 am Nikki 30 Bridge:12:30 Sue E. Casual Bridge 11:30am-3:00pm Painton/ 31 Partnership Bridge Henny The Nutshell January 2009 Page 9 The Nutshell January 2009 Page 10