Published in the April 13-26, 2016 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Robert Airoldi
Photo courtesy California Federation of Teachers
Theresa Sage and Gemma Abels with their awards presented by Melinda Dart, vice president of the California Federation of Teachers.
Robert Airoldi
A most worthy salute goes to Theresa Sage and Gemma Abels, two teachers with the Morgan Hill Unified School District who last month received the honor of the California Federation of Teachers’ Women in Education Award. The two were presented with the award by CFT Vice President Melinda Dart during the March 12 California Teachers Federation Convention.
“The best part is that it’s nice that I got to publicly thank my mom,” Sage told us. “My mom was a union waitress is San Francisco and she instilled union values into me.”
Her mom, Barbara Finkemeir, told us she was a bit embarrassed by her daughter throwing the spotlight on her.
“They gave me a standing ovation and I wasn’t going to stand up but they said stand up and so I stood up.”
Sage, a former history teacher at Sobrato High School who now is assistant principal there, stepped down last year as president of the Morgan Hill Federation of Teachers. Abels, an English teacher at Live Oak High School, is now the president of the local teachers union.
Congrats to both of you fine educators!
• • •
Got stuff in your house you want to get rid of but don’t want to bother having a garage sale or haul it to the thrift shop? Consider giving it to a group of fine young middle school students to help them raise money for a trip to Japan this summer.
The students are part of the Morgan Hill-Mizuho Student Exchange program and they are collecting unwanted items to raise money to pay for their cultural exchange trip to our town’s “sister city” located near Tokyo. Their Spring Clean-up Day will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 23 in the parking lot in front of the Rosso’s furniture store in the shopping center at the corner of Tennant Avenue and Monterey Road. Can’t make that date? Then there’s a second chance with drop-off dates 2 to 4 p.m. April 15 or 8 a.m. to noon April 16 at the Morgan Hill Buddhist Community Center located at 16450 Murphy Ave.
The students might say, “Arigatou gozaimasu” (“Thank you, very much” in Japanese) for helping them fund their trip to the Land of the Rising Sun.
• • •
Now the entire Bay Area knows that we have officially an outstanding pub in the Santa Clara County area. Huntington Station was chosen the “Best Pub in the South Bay” thanks to KFOX Radio listeners who voted online to help owners Debbie and Dan Creighton win the honor for their downtown Morgan Hill eatery.
Deejay Tim Jeffereys did a KFOX live broadcast at Huntington Station April 2, with guests enjoying food and drink specials, raffles, great music and tons of fun. Yours truly was there, and believe me people went wild at the honor.
On another note, according to Huntington Station’s Facebook page, the restaurant is looking for an experienced line cook for days and weekends. Please message them or come in and talk to Debbie Creighton if you are interested in the position. And if you get the position, you gotta be good. You’re gonna work for the best pub in the South Bay.
• • •
Arely Oliva will be moving to a new life in Seattle and asked if her sons Angel Garay, 11, and Kylan Mendoza, 5, could say a special goodbye on our pages to their friends and teachers at P.A. Walsh STEAM Academy. Here’s the letter that the boys prepared:
“We want to thank you very much school team academy P.A. Walsh for allowing us to be part of it. It was a pleasure to study at this school and we’re very grateful to our teacher and classmates and the entire institution for support in our studies. It was fun and a real pleasure. Until forever, P.A., with love and respect, Angel Garay (fourth grade) and Kylan Mendoza (kindergarten).”
We wish the Oliva family the best in their new life in the Evergreen State.
• • •
Morgan Hill Life Publisher Marty Cheek attended the 91st celebration of the Morgan Hill Flower Lovers Club April 6 and enjoyed a piece of cake and a nice chat with member Cassie Castleberry. As the newly elected chair of the Library, Culture and Arts Commission, she told him that Mayor Steve Tate presented the South Valley Lodge #187 of the Masons with a token of appreciation for stepping up to take care of the bronze art pieces such as “Waiting for the Train” and “The Dear Family” in the city.
“The Masons have volunteered to supply the material and to clean all the bronzes to keep them looking nice,” Castleberry told Cheek. “We gave them a certificate last night. I think they should be front and center. I enjoy your newspaper so much and I love the fact that you end up featuring these kinds of things, so I think it’s important that we acknowledge what the Masons are doing.”
You got it, Cassie. Here’s a tip of the hat to the Morgan Hill Masons for cleaning up the town.
