Get Fit in 2010 See Page 18
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February 19, 2010
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Tip your hat to the vintage clothing exhibit at the Clayton Museum PAMELA WIESENDANGER Special to the Pioneer
HANK STRATFORD
MAYOR’S CORNER Shop Clayton and keep tax dollars at home The budget sub-committee met recently to go over the city’s mid-year financial status. We expect to finish the fiscal year (June 30) with a slight deficit of about $45,000. Our expenses are on track, but our revenues are trending down – which should be no surprise to anyone. Since we have already cut expenses, the sub-committee will recommend to the City Council that we continue to monitor the budget but not transfer any funds until we see where we are at the end of June. If you are wondering what you can do to help, the easiest thing is to shop and eat in Clayton so the sales tax dollars don’t go to other cities. I was recently talking with my friend Patty and she told
See Mayor, page 4
Vandals hit 14 cars in Oakhurst
PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID CLAYTON, CA PERMIT 190
Residents of Windmill Canyon in Oakhurst were awakened in the early hours of the morning on Feb. 12 by a surprise visit from Clayton police. Officer Rich Enea was patrolling the area around 3 a.m. when he discovered car after car with smashed windshields. Some cars had multiple windows broken. “There was a lot of damage,” he said. Police say it looks like the work of vandals with baseball bats. “This is the kind of thing that really gets to us,” said officer Richard McEachin. “There’s absolutely no reason for it,” All of the cars were parked on the street and there were no reports of items missing from any of them. Anyone with information is asked to call the Clayton Police Department at 673-7350.
Tamara Steiner/Clayton Pioneer
CLOTHES DEFINITELY MAKE THE WOMAN as Bess and Kate Amos discovered when they dug into the basket of dress-up clothes that are part of the latest vintage clothing exhibit at the Clayton Museum. The exhibit runs through Mar. 24.
When the curtain falls, this family takes their happy ending home LOU FANCHER Clayton Pioneer
When Tevye’s three oldest daughters sing “Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match” in “Fiddler on the Roof,” they might as well be singing about Chris and Jon Marshall. The couple had been together 5½ years plus one day when we met at Starbucks in Clayton for this interview, on Jan. 14 – a tidy fact dispensed in a delicate manner by Jon, as if handing over a precious package. They married six months ago and recently moved to Clayton with their children, Jordan and Jacob Ben-Shmuel. Marriage and moving are often equated with “madness,” but in the theater, where Chris and Jon spend much of their time, madness has led to beautiful kismet. Chris is brief and down-toearth about getting married, just what you’d expect from a theater manager. “It was time to make it
official,” she says. Speaking about moving, their words overlap – the relocation was for the schools. “Clayton Valley High School has a wonderful arts academy program,” she explains. But beyond all the pragmatic words and practical decisions, there lies a fairy tale story of fate and flexibility. Hearing from a friend about an opening, Jon called the Willows Theatre Company 10 years ago. He auditioned the same afternoon and got the role of Perchik in “Fiddler on the Roof.” Although an equity stage manager and actor, he prefers to leave the impression of an inadvertent entry into his career as an actor. He lists his credentials minimally, saying only, “I sang in high school,” and offering up the fact that he has a living room full of instruments. He’s more assured about the See Theatre Family, page 8
What’s Inside Around Town . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Book Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Church News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
Setting up the “Dressing Up for Going Out” display at the Clayton Museum was as much fun for Sue Fletcher as it will be for you to visit. It was the first time Fletcher has displayed all of the treasures from her greataunts. The exhibit features an eye-catching arrangement with twinkle lights, tulle and flickering candles to spotlight hats of felt and fur, wraps, jewels, gloves, purses, kerchiefs and shoes from the 1930s and ’40s. Six sisters were born into the Stroik family in Ashland, Wis. Collette was the only daughter of one of the sisters, Agnes. Collette bore the family’s first granddaughter – Sue – who now lives in Clayton. Over the years, all the hats and accessories lovingly worn by the sisters ended up with Fletcher. Train cases have protected the costume jewelry and other accessories, while hat boxes preserved the 40plus hats, keeping them safe as they made their way from Wisconsin to California.
See Museum, page 7
Clayton Station to clean up creek corridor TAMARA STEINER
Clayton Pioneer
Tamara Steiner/Clayton Pioneer
FAMILY LIFE PLAYS OUT AT THE THEATRE as well as in the kitchen for Chris (seated at left) and Jon (standing) Marshall and their children Jacob (front) and Jordan Ben-Shmuel.
Community Calendar . . . . . . . . . . .16 Directory of Advertisers . . . . . . . . . .5 Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Financial Sense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Fitness Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18 Food for Thought . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Garden Girl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
Going Green . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Movie Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 Obituary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Pets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Pioneer Photo Album . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Safety Zone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
The Clayton Station Shopping Center may be waiting awhile for the face lift approved by the city last year, but clean up of the area behind Safeway will not. The Clayton Planning Commission has agreed to extend an application submitted in January 2009 for exterior modifications to the shopping center on the condition that the owners clean up the creek corridor and agree to an ongoing maintenance plan. Shopping carts and debris in the creek and along the banks, dying landscaping and graffiti has been a source of aggravation for the city for several years. “This area has been an eyesore, for a long time” said Council member Julie Pierce. The building owners have See Clean
Up, page 7
School News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Senior Moments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10 Teen Speak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Travel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Upcoming Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Your Health . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13