Page 12 February 17, 2022 EL SEGUNDO HERALD
Featured Pets of the Week
Lenora Bentley Poppy
look no further! https://spcala.com/adoptable/
pet/?ss=LACA-A-1451
With soft black fur and standout white
whiskers, Lenora is an 8 years, 8 month old
domestic short hair beauty. Lenora can be
on the shy side when meeting new people.
Come in to see if you’re a good match
for this adorable kitty. https://spcala.com/
Tashi
Provided by Hannah Collett, spcaLA
Tashi is 100% love. She is a 3 years, 4
month old female Terrier, Pit Bull mix. She
is here for all the pets and human touch you
would like to give. We are working with
her on basic obedience until she finds her
cuddle bud. She’s practicing find it, sit, and
down. If you are looking for a loving dog
adoptable/pet/?ss=LACA-A-2344
Bentley is an exuberant 2 year old pit bull
terrier mix boy looking for a good home. He
is working on his basic obedience while here.
He’s very smart and is catching on quickly.
He’d do well with a companion with moderate
dog experience. https://spcala.com/adoptable/
pet/?ss=LACA-A-2379
Couple from front page
with him giving her a hug and parting ways.
As it turns out, their mutual friends had been
planning this setup for a long time. Gorman’s
friend was, in fact, not sick, she’d just had a
little too much to drink the night before, and
her husband lied to cancel so that Maccarone
would be free.
Their friends asked for updates, and Gorman,
not wanting to give away that she might
have feelings for the person they sent with
her to the concert, gave a lukewarm answer.
Meanwhile, Maccarone called them up and
mentioned he wanted to ask her on an official
date. Because of Gorman’s miscommunication,
they thought she wasn’t interested and tried to
talk him out of it.
On their second date, they learned that they
were both divorced, coming from unhealthy
relationships they entered quite young. As
they watched Improvised Shakespeare at the
Largo, Maccarone thought this was his chance
to make clear this was a date. Wanting to be
clear but not invasive, he decided to reach for
her hand. “If you could imagine all the signs
and signals saying, ‘How to tell a guy that
you’re not interested, that’s basically what
[she] did,” he jokes.
“I panicked!” she retorts. Having been
divorced for over a year and fully embracing
being single, Gorman hadn’t been on a date
in a while. So, while Maccarone was quietly
accepting rejection, Gorman was sweating it out,
thinking how to save the moment. Finally, she
put her hand back in his, and the relationship
took off from there. “It was such an innocent
gesture,” she says, “and I felt such a spark.”
Six months later, the two moved in together.
In their 30s now, both Gorman and Maccarone
had been in marriages that didn’t work
out, and neither were keen on dating, much
less getting married again… until they met
each other. With all the lessons from their first
marriages, the two now have excellent communication,
healthy boundaries, and generous
support for one another.
After some time into living together, Maccarone
proposed in the comfort of their home,
with a ring designed by Gorman here on Main
Street in El Segundo. After their first weddings,
they realized that at the core of the ceremony
is the celebration of a new partnership and
decided to opt for a low-key, kid-friendly option
during the day in Los Feliz.
The ceremony was officiated by none other
than the friends who set them up, to begin with.
The dress code was “wear what you want,” and
Gorman changed out of her colorful wedding
dress into comfy sweatpants after the ceremony.
Instead of a cake, there were donuts.
The two now have a child together named
Henry and are co-parenting seamlessly as they
planned their parenthood, knowing they had
the same values and ideas of how to raise a
child. As he was born at the beginning of the
pandemic, Gorman and Maccarone are excited
for Henry to get to experience the world outside
their home and spend time with friends
in conditions that are safe.
If the couple has any advice for budding
relationships this Valentine’s Day week, it’s
this: Listen to your gut, and ensure that you
align on values.
“When your gut is telling you that there
are some red flags,” says Maccarone, “even
if they’re not dealbreakers, you need to pay
attention to them.”
“Interests can change,” says Gorman, but
she adds that you can grow with your partner’s
interests (be it skiing or traveling, or in the
case of Maccarone, martial arts), as long as
your core values are aligned.
Their household has one important rule: “We
vocalize any expectations in our head or any
hope. We have to communicate, and we say when
something is important,” says Maccarone. This
way, when unsaid expectations aren’t met, no
one is setting themselves up for disappointment
and an argument over a miscommunication.
By indicating the importance of the topic, it
signals to their partner how much what they’re
saying should be prioritized.
Be on each other’s team, and give each other
the benefit of the doubt, says Gorman. “We
both don’t like the adage that relationships are
hard, or relationships take work. We think life
is hard, and the relationship should make life
easier and more fulfilling.”
The two planned a laidback Valentine’s Day,
marked by some Sugarfish or a greeting card,
but mostly by spending time together. •
Gorman and Maccarone opted for a low-key wedding, inviting
their friends for a laidback get-together.
Scott Maccarone and son Henry love to play in Library Park and
watch the trucks go by.
Poppy is a lovely 6 year old female domestic
short hair Torti cat ready for the love
and admiration of a new companion. Poor
kitty came to spcaLA as a lost cat and no
one claimed her. She would love a sunny
sill to snooze on and some yummy cat treats
in her bowl. https://spcala.com/adoptable/
pet/?ss=LACA-A-657 •
Brady Stuart from front page
He started his Laker career “delivering mail
to everyone,” getting to know the staff, and
befriending many of his co-workers at the
training facility. When the Assistant Equipment
Manager job became available later in
2019, Stuart had a leg-up on other candidates
in scoring the job because of his familiarity
with people in the building and the day-today
operations at the training facility.
Amongst Stuart’s duties as assistant equipment
manager include, but are not limited
to, managing the team’s equipment room
operations in their practice facility; assisting
with project preparations for each game and
practice; and sundry other duties relating to
managing the Lake-show’s equipment.
Stuart said he relished his time as assistant
equipment manager, working in a new
training facility, which happens to be in El
Segundo, which is “so clean and organized.”
With his current job, he gets to travel with
the team, but while he said interfacing with
the players is “exciting,” he relishes being
part of an “organized organization.”
After two seasons on the equipment side,
Stuart said his current job “opened up.” He
was not given much time to decide if he
wanted to tackle the new opportunity, but he
“decided to jump on it because it was the
exact logistical experience” to see the other
side of a sports operation.
Stuart was always interested in seeking
employment in the field of “action sports.”
Think the X-games, or maybe some of the
newer sports associated with the Winter
Olympics, like snowboarding.
He said that in the first week in his new
position, “I did not think that I would be
able to do the job,” mentioning organizing
digitally his job duties, which was a little
different from his past job duties, where he
was “organizing everything physically. A lot
of moving parts,” Stuart said of his new post.
He is tasked with managing travel planning
for Lebron’s team, working with the hoopsters
on the squad, and “collaborating with
partners, arenas, and internal stakeholders.”
Looking back a bit, Stuart was working his
Laker assistant equipment manager gig when
COVID struck America in March of 2020. He
and his co-workers were severely challenged in
the Winter of that year, with the tragic death
of Laker icon Kobe Bryant in January, and
then the spring shutdown of the NBA season,
a season that was commenced and concluded
in a Florida bubble environment. “That year
was non-stop,” Stuart said. He and his fellow
workers in the equipment department “had
to learn something new every day.”
He has lived in El Segundo for the past
three years. As a 29-year-old resident of
Mayberry, Stuart said that he “really likes
how low-key the city is and that you can
find parking.” He also likes that El Segundo
is still somewhat of a “drive-by” city, with
many of the folks speeding down PCH
heading to either LAX or heading South,
seeking Manhattan or Hermosa Beach as
their destination.
Zach Webster has known Stuart for four years.
Their paths crossed when both were working
for the The Color Run company at an event
in Dallas and have built a strong friendship.
Webster extolled some of Stuart’s virtues in
an email. “Brady is someone that you will
meet and not forget.” Webster wrote. “He will
become friends with strangers; he makes you
feel important,” Webster said, calling Stuart “a
loyal friend, someone who will get something
done with no questions asked.”
So, where does Stuart want to be in ten
years? “Definitely in the South Bay,” he said.
“Mentally, I want to be happy, with my family
and friends, and my girlfriend, hopefully, my
wife at that time. I hope that I am in a job
that gives me time to spend in places that I
enjoy the most.”
What drives Stuart to succeed? “Family,
friends, and my girlfriend motivate me,” he said.
“(Just) keep your head up and keep pushing.”
It seems like the one-time placekicker is
still booting the ball through the uprights. •