President's Letter: February 2016

"There's been an awakening. Have you felt it?" What a great line from Star Wars: The Force Awakens, but we're actually talking about El Nino -- or Darth Nino -- whichever you prefer.

City Councilmembers Lorie Zapf and Chris Cate have been on hand with sand bags to withstand the record downpour and potential flooding that we've all witnessed over the last month. If you would like information on obtaining sand bags, please reach out to James McGuirk (District 2) at 619-236-6622, or Allen Young (District 6) at 619-236-6616.

Our February meeting will be held Thursday, February 4th at 6:30pm in the Cadman Elementary auditorium. We will fill a vacancy for Director-at-Large, as well as hear a presentation from American Red Cross of San Diego/Imperial Counties on disaster preparedness.

CTC Memberships were due on January 1. If you need to renew your membership, or have not yet joined for this year, then please visit our website for more information: clairemontonline.com/join.

Finally, our 20th Annual Clairemont Garden Tour is coming up in May, and we are looking for gardens! If you'd like to showcase your garden, or nominate your neighbor's garden, then please email GardenTour@ClairemontOnline.com, or visit gardentour.clairemontonline.com.

Working for you, Clairemont!

Ryan Trabuco
CTC President

E-Blast: January 2016

Click image to read our latest e-newsletter

A Personal Thank You Note...

Last month, the CTC Board of Directors -- in their infinite wisdom -- surprised me with the "Iron Man Award" at our annual potluck dinner.

Totally caught off guard.

As our Historian notes, and as the award signifies -- not just for my love of Disney and Marvel comic book characters -- but starting 2016 as the longest-serving President of the Clairemont Town Council.

It is a milestone made all the more significant given the 60+ year history of CTC, and made all the more humble factoring in who previously held the record: Henry Ross, Jr. -- who served from 1965-1969.

The last four years have flown by, and truth be told... I had no idea what to do when this started.

I can only appreciate and whole-heartedly thank  everyone who has served on our CTC Board over the last four years. Without their confidence, guidance, and ideas, we wouldn't be where we are today, and certainly, this  opportunity would never have come to pass if it weren't for them.

Many of you in the Clairemont community have e-mailed and told me over the years how much you appreciate my leadership skills and abilities, but I've learned about leadership from listening to all of you.

The ability to share our achievements and our skills with other communities throughout San Diego is made even more rewarding because we've done it here in Clairemont.

Without rambling too much longer, I just want you all to know how much this is appreciated.

Thank you. (smiley emoticon)

-- Ryan.

Iron Man Award presented to CTC President Ryan Trabuco

President's Letter: January 2016

Welcome to 2016 -- if you are a Clairemont Town Council member, renewals are due! If you'd like to renew or join the CTC, please visit our website at www.clairemontonline.com/join.

You don't have to be a member to attend our meetings however, like any membership organization, we are only as strong as our members. Membership dues go towards furthering the Council's purpose and objective over the last 60-plus years of working to benefit our Clairemont community.

Last month, Assemblyman Brian Maienschein joined us for our annual potluck dinner. We also had the honor of presenting awards to those who went above and beyond to help make Clairemont a better place. Our list of honorees included:

• Business of the Year: Sandwich Emporium
• Non-Profit/Organization of the Year: Clairemont Hilltoppers Little League
• Elected Official Staffer of the Year: Allen Young (Councilman Chris Cate's Office)
• Community Volunteer of the Year: Michael Snyder (Clairemont Mesa Education Foundation)
• Event Volunteer of the Year: Lynn Haims (Clairemont Garden Tour)
• Youth Volunteers of the Year: Clairemont High School Chieftain Cheer
• Youth Volunteer of the Year: Jesus Martinez
• Board of Directors Award: Holly Tafoya & Larry Hesselgesser (San Diego Police Dept. Northern Division)

Our January Inaugural meeting will be held Thursday, January 7th at 6:30pm in the Cadman Elementary auditorium. We will swear-in our newly elected board members, fill our vacant Director Central position, and open the floor to ideas and suggestions for the Council's 2016 goals. Also, we will hear a presentation from the San Diego Office of Homeland Security on disaster preparedness.

Finally, our 20th Annual Clairemont Garden Tour is coming up in May. Planning is already underway, so if you'd like to be on the committee or showcase your garden, or nominate your neighbor's garden, then please email GardenTour@ClairemontOnline.com, or visit gardentour.clairemontonline.com.

Let's kick off this new year right!

Working for you, Clairemont!

Ryan Trabuco
CTC President