EL SEGUNDO HERALD March 5, 2020 Page 5
Your Neighborhood
Therapist
Calendar of Events
Deadline for Calendar items is the prior
Thursday by noon. Calendar items are $1
per word up to 25 words. Email listings to
marketing@heraldpublications.com. We accept
Visa and MasterCard.
UPCOMING EVENT: SUNDAY, MARCH 15TH
• Senior Comedy Afternoons Presents “O’
LUCKY YOU, TOO!”, Noon @ The Proud
Bird, Tickets $40 - $75, Call: 714-914-2565,
www.seniorcomedyafternoons.com
THURSDAY, MAR. 5
• El Segundo Certified Farmer’s Market, 3:00
PM. – 7:00 PM., located on Main Street,
Downtown El Segundo
• History Committee Meeting, 7:00 PM. – 8:00
PM., El Segundo Public Library, 111 W.
Mariposa Ave., Call: 310-524-2726.
FRIDAY, MAR. 6
• PUPIL FREE DAY – NO SCHOOL FOR
ESUSD STUDENTS!!
• Bingo, 1:00 PM. - 3:00 PM., 50 Plus, $3.00
minimum, Senior Club of El Segundo, 339
Sheldon Street
• HS Teens: Fun Friday, 3:00 PM., for HS
teens only please, El Segundo Public Library,
111 W. Mariposa Ave., Call: 310-524-2726.
SATURDAY, MAR. 7
• Women’s Self Defense Class, 8:00 AM. – 12:00
PM., El Segundo Teen Center, 405 E. Grand
Ave., taught by the El Segundo Police Dept.,
Space is limited, please email: lmuir@elsegundo.
org or call: 310-524-2295 to sign up.
• History Room – Open to the Public, 1:00 PM.
– 3:00 PM., El Segundo Public Library, 111
W. Mariposa Ave., Call Sari: 310-364-0117.
• Saturday Night Dance, 7:00 PM. – 9:45 PM.,
Cost: $5.00 Per Person, Adults of all Ages
Welcome, Senior Club of El Segundo, 339
Sheldon St., Call: 310-524-2705.
SUNDAY, MAR. 8
• Bridge & Pinochle Groups, 11:30 AM. – 3:45
PM, Senior Club of El Segundo, 339 Sheldon
St., Call Pam at: 310-318-2856.
MONDAY, MAR. 9
• HS Crafteen – Beaded Bracelets, 3:00 PM.,
for HS teens only please, El Segundo Public
Library, 111 W. Mariposa Ave., Call: 310-
524-2726.
• Canasta Group, 11:30 AM. – 3:00 PM., 50
Plus, Free, Senior Club of El Segundo, 339
Sheldon St., Call Pam at: 310-318-2856.
• RSS PTA Meeting, Richmond Street School
Auditorium, 6:30 PM., 615 Richmond Street,
Call: 310-606-6831
TUESDAY, MAR. 10
• Toddler Story Time, 10:00 AM. – 10:30
AM., ages 24 – 36 months, El Segundo
Public Library, 111 W. Mariposa Ave., Call:
310-524-2726.
• Middle School Teen Club, 3:30 PM., for
grades 6-8, El Segundo Public Library, 111
W. Mariposa Ave., Call: 310-524-2726.
• Board of Education Meeting, 7:00 PM., District
Administrative Offices -Board Room,
641 Sheldon Street
• Pinochle, 11:30 AM. – 3:30 PM., Senior
Club of El Segundo, 339 Sheldon St., Call
Pam at: 310-318-2856.
WEDNESDAY, MAR. 11
• Parent Night on Cyber Education/Safety and
Social Media, 6:00 PM., ESHS PAC, 640
Main Street, Call: 310-615-2662.
• Bowling, 1:30 PM – 3:30 PM, 50 Plus, Senior
Club of El Segundo, Gable House Bowl, 22501
Hawthorne Blvd., Torrance, Cost: $8.75 for
3 games, Call Joyce at: 310-322-7621.
• Preschool Story Time, 10:00 AM. - 10:30
AM., El Segundo Public Library, 111 W.
Mariposa Ave., Call: 310-524-2726.
• Baby Story Time, 11:15 AM. – 11:45 AM., ages
0 to 23 months, El Segundo Public Library,
111 W. Mariposa Ave., Call: 310-524-2726.
• Library Club, 3:30 PM. – 4:30 PM., El
Segundo Public Library, 111 W. Mariposa
Ave., Call: 310-524-2726.
THURSDAY, MAR. 12
• El Segundo Certified Farmer’s Market, 3:00
PM. – 7:00 PM., located on Main Street,
Downtown El Segundo
• Read to a BARK Therapy Dog!, 3:30 PM.,
El Segundo Public Library, 111 W. Mariposa
Ave., Call: 310-524-2726. •
Election 2020
Herald’s Candidate Q & A Dear Neighborhood Therapist,
I’m a new mom. My husband works while I
stay at home all day with this beautiful child,
and often my only interaction with another
human being is changing diapers and feeding.
If I go back to work, it will basically just
pay for us to hire a nanny, so then I end up
working for nothing and being away from my
child. Everyone tells me this is supposed to be
the best time of my life, but I’m lonely and
miserable. I feel like I cannot tell anyone about
this. I feel like a totally inadequate mother and
therefore a totally inadequate person. What is
wrong with me? What am I doing wrong?
- Lost at Home, El Segundo
Dear Lost at Home,
This is an easy one. Coordinate your maternity
and paternity leave over the next several
months so that both of you can take the needed
time to bond with your child and learn to live
as a family. Once the child is robust enough,
take them to the free, high quality child care
center down the street next to the kindergarten.
Enjoy this time to be together with your child
and bond with them, going to the playground
and meeting other parents who have children
of similar ages. When you need a break, get
a babysitter and go out on a date with your
husband. Join a mom’s group and trade tips
and secrets.
Wait, what? We don’t have free preschool?
Maternity leave isn’t enough? (We’re lucky in
California - most states have none.) Wait, and
you also don’t have family who lives nearby?
Or your parents are elderly and cannot take
care of a newborn? Wait, and because you’re
not working, and because babysitting costs a
lot, it’s also too expensive to go out on a date?
And on top of all that, you’re not naturally
an extrovert, or you don’t like comparing
yourself to other moms at a mom’s group? If
you answered “true” to any of these questions,
then you must be an inadequate mother and
person! Right?
Of course not. This is not easy; it’s impossible.
You are one of millions in what I call
a Postpartum Situation, under the thumb of
a system not set up (ahem, set up mostly by
men) to support new families, especially now
that one salary is no longer enough to support
most families in Southern California. It
is a system that blames mothers for anything
that goes wrong, adding enormous pressure to
an already intense situation. It is a huge and
horrible problem.
So what to do? In dire circumstances,
connection with others is often the best way
forward. Do you have anyone you are comfortable
connecting with? If not, let me know.
I am starting a Secret Kindness Club in El
Segundo and I can help connect you.
To everyone else: do you know any new
parents? Sometimes they are really struggling
even if it does not seem that way. If you have
a chance to reach out and help, do not pass
it up. You may make more of a difference in
the life of a friend or acquaintance than you
can possibly realize.
Please write to tom@tomandrecounseling.
com or text to 310.776.5299 with questions
about handling what is affecting your life,
your family, the community or the world. Tom
Andre is an Associate Marriage & Family
Therapist (AMFT96089) supervised by Chris
Thomas (MFT78020). The information in
this column is for educational purposes only
and nothing herein should be construed as
professional advice or the formation of a
therapeutic relationship. •
For the 2020 El Segundo Election for City
Council, there were three seats open and
three qualified candidates Incumbent Drew
Boyles, Incumbent Carol Pirsztuk and Business
Executive Lance Girou. The Herald has
collected questions from local business owners
and prominent members of the community to
post to the candidates. Here are our questions
and their answers:
1. What is your vision for Park and
Rec over the next two decades and how
will your vision be implemented to best
serve the community?
Drew Boyles: Recreation programs, transportation
(such as lunchtime and beach shuttles),
maintenance of our beautiful parks, and care
for our hundreds of tree species are just a few
of the everyday essential services provided by
our Recreation and Parks Department.
Over the next couple decades, I would like
to see us double the green space in town,
double the number of healthy trees, shift to a
more customer-centric organization, continue
to deploy technology, and restore our aquatics
program to its rightful world-class level. There
are abundant opportunities to double green space
through a collaborative, creative approach to land
use: pocket parks in industrial areas, vertical
gardening, and rooftop green space are just a
few of these possibilities. We should improve
the way in which we score and communicate
the health of our trees. Regarding aquatics,
we have a storied legacy of champions and
thriving swim and water polo programs. The
opening of the El Segundo Aquatics Center
marks a significant step towards revitalizing
our aquatics greatness. This year, we embark
on a full assessment of facility needs for the
Urho Saari Swim Stadium (aka The Plunge)
and your Council is committed to its renovation
Lance Giroux: The city’s Capital Improvement
Plan for the next three years is in place
and addresses two very pressing renovation
issues: The Teen Center and The Plunge. I
believe it is vital to complete these projects as
soon as possible because they are cornerstones
within our community.
With El Segundo attracting more dual-income
families with young children, there will be an
increased emphasis on the quantity and quality
of our facilities, green space and programming.
I foresee there will be two things that will need
to be re-evaluated as they have impact potential
on the city and community far into the future.
The first is the new El Segundo Wiseburn
Unified School District Aquatics Center. While
I have not seen the financials, my instinct tells
me that the city’s projections are way off. If
correct, I strongly believe the city needs to
review the strategic plan, make changes accordingly,
and consider moving into a new,
more strategic direction.
The second is the re-evaluation of the Parks
and Rec. The department cannot continue to
proceed as it has done since its inception -- El
Segundo is a very different city now than when
Parks and Rec was originally imagined. To that
end, I believe we should consider separating
the responsibilities and management into Parks,
Rec, and Aquatics and run each independently
of one another.
These strategic changes will help steer the
direction of Parks and Rec over the next two
decades
Carol Pirsztuk: The jewel of El Segundo
is its Parks and Recreations facilities. Growing
up, I was always told: “we don’t need to
belong to a country club; we have wonderful
Parks and Recs.” However, as with every
jewel, they need to be taken care of and polished,
and it is time for our Parks and Recs
to receive a polish. Over the last couple of
years, the City Council has approved projects
to replace the playground equipment at Holly,
Washington, and Acacia Parks, replace the
artificial turf at Campus, add shade structures
at Campus and Rec Park, resurface the hokey
roller rink at Rec Park and build the Aquatics
Center. In addition, in this year’s budget, the
Council has approved funding to complete a
comprehensive Parks and Recs facility assessment,
which will have a focus on improving
the restrooms facilities at all sites. With this
budget, the Council also approved the city
to move forward with developing a plan to
redesign the Teen Center, Skate Park, and the
Plunge. As a Council member, I intend to ensure
El Segundo’s Parks and Recs are maintained
and enhanced so future generations will have
a place to gather as a community and play.
2. What are your plans for Smokey
Hollow?
Drew Boyles: My wife, Lee, and I are in
the midst of redeveloping our Smoky Hollow
commercial property that served our transportation
businesses well for many years. As Smoky
Hollow started to transform into more of a
creative, technology and media company hub,
we embraced this momentum and have spent
several years reimagining and implementing
our building’s transformation to match it. Our
new tenants will likely be in technology or
health sciences as this sort of influx is happening
throughout the highly sought enclave. We
still have businesses in Smoky Hollow that
are more industrial in nature, and this mesh
of “old world meets new world” industries
creates exciting opportunities for innovation.
The Smoky Hollow Specific Plan approved
by Council last year (I recused myself) promotes
higher utilization of properties, green
space, improved parking and street configuration,
greater walk-ability, public art and other
aesthetic enhancements, and an emphasis on
bringing more of a sense of community to
this area. I look forward to seeing a vibrant
collection of businesses, art, cafes, greenery
and enhanced infrastructure in Smoky Hollow
in the near future.
Lance Giroux: I love Smokey Hollow.
Anyone who comes to El Segundo loves
Smokey Hollow. I believe it has the potential
to be a leading area in our city for the new
creative economy. How fun is it to see streams
of people walking from Smoky Hollow to
Main Street for lunch and dinner during the
week? There are already plans in place for
Smoky Hollow.. For details on this plan please
go to the city’s website or visit https://www.
smokyhollowspecificplan.com/plans
I look forward to seeing these plans come
to fruition over the next few years. There are
some beautiful and creative buildings being
renovated or built. The key will be to continue
to provide creative environments, which include
creative office space and mixed use residential
where possible, together with residual businesses
See Candidate Q & A, page 15