Saying “Good-bye” to Old Edgemoor

The last stage in the move from the old Edgemoor to the new comes this week as the buildings on the hospital’s former site meet the wrecking ball. According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, a contractor hired by the County will begin demolition sometime this week – possibly as early as Monday. There had been some attempts to save some of the historical buildings, but only the old polo barn and one other will avoid the ball. The County decided that preservation was not worth the cost of restoring the old structures. The old community garden is already gone. Soon little will be left except the memories – good and bad – of the complex that once tended to the “poorest of the poor” in San Diego County.

Business Spotlight – Prestige Beauty Supply

Today I’m kicking off my new “Business Spotlight” series with a post on Prestige Beauty Supply in the CVS/Best Buy shopping center. Prestige focuses on beauty needs and products,  and has been around over 20 years. The store was bought by new owners Janet and Paul Seeger about 3 years ago, and they have worked to keep up the business’s good reputation - especially in light of some poor reviews online about a similarly named shop. From what I could tell the few times I have stopped in, everyone seems to be pleasant, cheerful, and helpful.

Manager Amy Boerner (L) and Owner Janet Seeger (R)

Earlier this month Janet and Paul started what they hope will be a monthly event: Queen for a Day. They know that women, especially mothers, need a little special pampering now and then, so they brought in massage therapists from Chiropractic Healing Arts to provide chair massages at $5 for 10 minutes. They also invited in Mary Kay consultant Cynthia Howard to provide makeovers and Brenda Plasting of Original Sprout to share samples and information.

Chair Massages

You can tell that Prestige is dedicated more to the customer than to the bottom line. Not only are they becoming active in the Santee Chamber of Commerce, they have a working relationship with Sally’s Beauty Supply. If anyone comes in to one of the shops and can’t find what they are looking for, they will be referred to the other store. I found this to be true when I stopped by Prestige to find a wig cap for my daughter (for a role in a church play). Since they don’t carry wig caps separately, the sent us over to Sally’s where we were able to find what we needed.

Prestige Beauty Supply is located at 9740-C Mission Gorge Road. You can reach them at 619-258-2700 or online at http://www.prestigebeautyandhair.com/, or on Facebook. They also have a shop in Ramona in the Stater Brother’s Center.

Mary Kay Consultant Cynthia Howard giving makeup tips

Brenda Plasting of Original Sprout

SR-67 Closures for Construction

This week CalTrans will be closing SR-67 between Prospect Ave. and Woodside Ave. from 9:00 pm to 5:00 am on 12/20-21, 12/21-22, and 12/22-23 (Sunday through Wednesday). They will also be closing the Magnolia Ave. on ramp to SR-67 each night starting at 8:00 pm. This is part of the continuing work on the SR-52 extension, which is still scheduled for completion in 2010.

Sheriff’s Department Runs DUI Checkpoint in Santee

In an effort to cut down on the number of drunk driving accidents, the San Diego Sheriff’s Department conducted a DUI checkpoint on westbound Mission Gorge Road between SR-125 and SR-52 on Friday night. I was on the way to the freeway, and got caught up in the traffic. At first I was, admittedly, frustrated about getting stuck – especially after I sat through three signal changes at the 125/Mission Gorge intersection without moving. But I realized that this action, as inconvenient as it might feel for some people, is a way to get a few dangerous drivers off the road – and possibly deter some people from driving drunk in the future.

The deputies had blocked off all but the far right lane on westbound Mission Gorge, and about a half dozen were stationed along the driver’s side of the lane. A group of cars would be allowed into the checkpoint and the deputies would get to work. These officers were very professional and polite, asking to see driver’s license, registration, and insurance at each car. You have to admire them for being able to deal with the variety of responses they must get – from polite to downright belligerent, I’m sure.

I’m going to take the opportunity to urge everyone to make a commitment not only to NOT drink and drive, but to help keep others from driving under the influence. Take the keys, volunteer to be designated driver, and please don’t allow or help underage drivers to drink. We have lost too many young people recently to drunk driving accidents.

Lakeside Youth Bring Holiday Music to Santee

On Thursday, December 17, Lakeside Middle and Lakeside Farms Elementary Schools entertained family, friends, and shoppers at the Santee Trolley Square with selections of holiday music. Reflecting the commitment to the arts in these schools, the kids in these two groups put on a great show of standard and offbeat songs of the season. These ranged from the younger Chorus’ recitation of “The Night Before Christmas” to the older Choir’s performance of of “Let’s Hear It for Mrs. Claus.” Unfortunately for anyone who missed today, these were the last performances of the season for these two talented groups of kids. But expect to hear more from both in the future.

Lakeside Middle School Presents Songs of the Holidays

Thursday afternoon, December 17, the Lakeside Middle School Show Choir will perform at the Trolley Square amphitheater, starting at 4:00 pm. Now, I admit that I am a bit partial, since my daughter and several of her friends are in the group, but this Choir is one of the best I’ve heard. If you haven’t gotten into the holiday spirit yet, these kids are sure to put you over the top. They will be joined by the Lakeside Farms Elementary School Choir – another great-sounding group of kids. Come out, have some fun, and support the Arts in East County.

2009 Taste of Santee

On Thursday, December 3, the Union Bank branch in Santee once again hosted the annual Taste of Santee Mixer. This event is not just an opportunity for local restaurants and caterers to showcase their goodies. It also helps to raise funds, food, and toys for Santee Santas, a group which has provided assistance to needy Santee families since 1953. The Taste of Santee has been going on over 20 years now, and continues to be an important part of the community.

Over a dozen local establishments shared some of their best with the many who attended. Among the guests were members of the Santee City Council, Santee Chamber of Commerce, and many friends of Santee Santas. As in past years, the group Honky Tonk Kings provided the musical entertainment for the evening. The Kings consider this as their way of helping to give back to the community that has supported them over the years.

Santee Mayor Randy Voepel thanked participants of Taste of Santee

City Councilmember John Minto talked about the importance of Santee Santas

Santee Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Warren Savage thanked attendees

Miss Santee Teen, Nicole Ehlke, is joined by Santee Princess Michelle, Miss Congeniality, Maria Maes, and Miss Santee Teen Third Runner Up Rebecca Hudson

Incoming Chamber of Commerce President John Olsen and wife Gina

Honky Tonk Kings

A Few of the Great Restaurants Involved

Pinnacle Peak served up several barbecue specialties

Mimi’s Cafe brought some of their favorites

Olive Garden shared pasta and breadsticks

Chips and salsa from Chili’s

Rubio’s featured freshly made tacos

Don Lucio’s Taco Shop shared tacos with all the trimmings and tamales

Everyone had a fun time and Santee Santas went away with a nice collection of toys and food to help out this holiday season. Thank you to all who donated time, talent, toys, food, and everything else needed to make this a success. If you missed this year, be sure to mark the first Thursday of December 2010 so you’ll be ready.

Recovering Teacher Blog Up and Running…at Last

I have finally gotten my Recovering Teacher blog up and running, after much delay. This blog will feature my writing, editing, and photography projects outside of Scouting Santee. I plan to have several different pages showing off some of my work, as well as posts discussing topics such as writing and education. I hope you will stop by and see what I do in my non-Santee time.

Santee Kicks Off the Holiday Season

The holiday season officially came to Santee on Friday, November 20, when the annual Holiday Lighting Celebration took place at Santee Trolley Square. Put on by the City of Santee and sponsored by Waste Management, Santee Trolley Square, Daphne’s Greek Cafe, and Fireworks America, the event brought  a jolt of spirit to help start the season. Other participants this year included Target, Lowe’s, and the Santana High School cheerleaders. Also on hand were Miss Santee and Miss Teen Santee with their court, and Santa and Mrs. Claus.

I noticed that this year, whether because of the economy or other reasons, the Celebration was smaller than the previous year’s. There was still the music, the lighting of the tree, the iceless skating rink, and the carriage rides, but little more. Gone were the booths that filled the parking lot in front of the amphitheater last year. And the musical entertainment was also toned down, though still festive.

Singing Solo, a local program that provides kids age 6-18 the opportunity to sing in public, provided the pre-lighting music as well as covering for the main music group during their breaks.  The Singing Solo artists ranged from six-year-old Emily singing “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” to seventeen-year-old Kelsie doing a rocking version of  ”Santa on the Rooftop.”  Also on the ticket for the evening was the U.S. Navy Band Southwest Brass Quintet with a selection of holiday music.

The highlight of the evening, of course, is always the lighting of the tree on the amphitheater stage. This year host and tree lighting duties were handled by Vice Mayor Brian Jones and his family, with help from the Clauses. Also on hand for the lighting were representatives from the City, Waste Management, Trolley Square, and the Miss Santee court.

The evening was fun, even though lower key than last year. But I do hope that this won’t be a trend for the future and that next year will have the community and business involvement missing this year.

(L-R) Santee Princesses Madison and Michelle, Miss Santee – Sierra Billock, Miss Teen Santee – Nicole Ehlke, Miss Congeniality – Maria Maes, Miss Teen Santee First Runner-Up – Taylor Shelton, Miss Teen Santee Third Runner-Up – Rebecca Hudson, Santee Princess Miranda

Lighting the Tree

Carriage Ride

Real Horsepower

Carolers

Santana Cheerleaders at the Cookie Decorating Station

Santee Chamber of Commerce’s Own Reindeer (?) Greets the Clauses

Santee Shows Its Heart

Possibly one of the worst things that can happen to parents is having a serious injury happen to their child. This happened to the Niemiec family in October when their daughter Jordyn was severely injured in an auto accident that also injured her mother and younger brother and sister. While the rest of the family has recovered, Jordyn is still in Children’s Hospital where she continues to recover and undergo physical therapy. In order to help the Niemiecs cope with the expenses involved, a caring and dedicated group of family and friends has put together Team Jordyn to help raise money. More than money, what they have raised is awareness and support for this courageous little girl.

On November 10, Team Jordyn organized a fundraiser that showed just how much heart Santee and the rest of East County have. The great folks at Philippi’s Pizza Grotto donated the use of an entire room of the restaurant for the event. Local radio personality Clint August was Master of Ceremonies and Thomas Hootman, co-owner of Simply Spa, brought his Funk Experience DJ music to keep everyone entertained.

Several businesses and organizations donated prizes to the fundraiser, including Padre Dam/Santee Lakes; Simply Spa; Domo Sushi; Bear, Buddies, and Toys; Rock 105.3; Pina Business Services; and Julie Edwards Photography. People had the option of putting tickets in the General Raffle bucket, or special buckets for prizes such as a free tax preparation, photography session, or Zoo/Wild Animal Park annual passes.

Many of Jordyn’s friends from school and softball were there, along with their parents and coaches. If good wishes and love have power, this girl is in good hands. All together, with raffles, donations, and a percentage of the tab from dinners at the restaurant, Team Jordyn was able to raise over $7,900 to help the family. If you would like to know more, or donate to help the family, you can go to Team Jordyn for information.

Dancing to the Sounds of The Funk Experience

Jordyn’s Dad Joins Thomas Hootman and Clint August

“You lookin’ at me?”

Some of the Great Folks at Philippi’s Pizza Grotto