PEOPLE WE LOVE
JEFF BAKER
Jeff Baker and his family moved to Malibu nine years ago. Baker is a law professor and the director of legal clinics at Pepperdine’s Caruso School of Law. Raised by parents who instilled in him the need to serve from a young age, Baker believes in people helping people. When the Woolsey fire wreaked havoc and despair throughout Malibu, Baker’s immediate reaction was to find a way to help his adopted community. “I have the real gift of working at a place in a job where our mission is to serve and strengthen our community,” said Baker. According to Baker it’s a simple thing, to help uplift the community that he lives in comes as second nature. It’s a value he has also instilled in his two daughters who both attend school in Malibu and serve the community in their own ways as well. Baker worked to establish a pro bono Disaster Relief Clinic at Pepperdine to help with the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in 2017. So when the Woolsey Fire brought despair to Malibu, it was an obvious solution to Baker and his colleagues to redeploy the Disaster Relief Clinic. Baker and his students worked fast to begin providing assistance to victims of the Woolsey Fire with any legal services that they needed. Baker views his profession in law as a way to serve others just as his parents taught him. MALIBU MAGAZINE loves Jeff Baker for his initiative to help others, no matter where he goes.
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Photo by Ryan Bough
Serving Others
LEVON AKOPYAN
Simple Joy in a Timeless Craft Malibu is an atypical small town where people of all sorts are able to carve out a section of the world. That is what Levon Akopyan was able to do with the help of his father nearly 35 years ago. Akopyan was raised working alongside his father repairing shoes. Akopyan’s family moved to America from Armenia when he was 14. Following a short period in the real estate business, he quickly realized that his love for his family’s work was his true calling and returned to his origins. Akopyan’s father had always dreamed of having a shop on the beach someday and gave him the idea to do just that. Akopyan opened the doors to his European Shoe Repair nearly 35 years ago where it has stood since, and has expanded to repairing purses as well. Life as a cobbler has brought Akopyan great joy, his customers frequently ask him what makes him so happy. For Akopyan, it’s simple, making the people in his community happy comes first. “I love what I’m doing and it’s an awesome feeling when you do something for somebody and they appreciate it and they like it,” said Akopyan. The relationship that Akopyan shares with Malibu and his customers is definitive of the small town support Akopyan has always received since opening his shop. “What I love is having that special connection with people that you know [...] I don’t consider it as a job, I consider it as a hobby,” Akopyan stated. MALIBU MAGAZINE loves Levon Akopyan for the happiness he shares with the Malibu community and for his exquisite craft.
MALIBU MAGAZINE
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