Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 2, No. 22 - May 28, 2020
Inside
This Issue
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.......................8
Classifieds............................2
Entertainment......................2
Hawthorne............................3
Hawthorne Hotspot............3
Lawndale..............................4
Inglewood.............................5
Legals............................. 4,6,7
Pets........................................8
Weekend
Forecast
Friday
Partly
Cloudy
68˚/60˚
Saturday
Partly
Cloudy/Wind
68˚/59˚
Sunday
Partly
Cloudy
70˚/60˚
Lawndale Tribune
AND lAwNDAle News
Hawthorne Press Tribune
Featuring the Weekly Newspapers of Hawthorne, Inglewood and Lawndale
Centinela Hospital Gives Thanks
to Their Courageous Staff
Kyle Myers Enjoying his Fun Life
By Gregg McMullin
In every graduating class, you’ll find
some very influential students. They will
be standout students who get involved with
the ASB. Others will be active in drama, the
band, choir or clubs. Then there are those
who made their mark as outstanding athletes.
Kyle Myers is one of those students who was
influential in an all-around way. A friend to
all, he will be remembered as a down to
earth person who was funny.
When you first meet Kyle, you’ll notice he
is not flashy, outspoken, or one that craves
attention. You are drawn to his innocence and
his shy demeanor that lightens the room with
his funny disposition. Kyle reminds you of
someone you need to be friends with because
he makes everyone around him feel important.
Kyle says his favorite class is AVID,
which stands for Advancement via Individual
Determination. AVID helps prepare students
for college by getting them to try more challenging
courses, and by getting them to think
more in-depth about their future. He’s been
in AVID all four years and says it was the
best decision he’s ever made to enroll. He
says the class was so important to him that
it was like a second family, and he made
life-long friends. “My favorite teacher was
Mr. (Jim) Whalen in AVID because he has
taught me a lot about school and life.”
Kyle is like other students going through
these uncertain times. He stays in touch with
his friends online and the typical social media
outlets. He says he’s been using voice calls
more and more these days too. He admits
to playing an online game with friends, “We
play Call to Duty for entertainment and stay
connected.”
Kyle has been a good student throughout
his four years of high school. He will take
an impressive 3.6 GPA to San Marcos State
to study Business Management. His AVID
teacher, Mr. Whalen, says, “Kyle embodies
the AVID spirit, which is to bring your
determination to succeed but to do it in a
team framework. Kyle is a key component
of a strong AVID class of 38 graduates this
year. I cannot imagine his classmates feel
anything but respect for him because he is a
guy who shows care and concern for others.”
Kyle comes from an athletic family, so
naturally, he was interested in sports. His
grandfather, Jerry Filson, was one of his class’
top athletes. He was a two-year starter for
the baseball team that won back-to-back CIF
championships. In his only year of playing
baseball as a freshman, Kyle became the
lead-off batter and played centerfield. Kyle
also played basketball, football and ran track.
Kyle played basketball and football for
all four years and ran track his sophomore
year. Kyle’s love for basketball was noticeable,
and he was one of the team’s leaders
on each team he played on.
His basketball coach, David March, was
impressed with Kyle and said, “He was one
of the hardest working and toughest players
I ever coached. Kyle epitomizes what El
Segundo basketball is all about.” Kyle was
the team’s Defensive Player of the Year his
senior year.
On the football field, Kyle, a two-year
starter, used his speed and knack for being
a defensive standout. His legendary football
coach, Steve Shevlin, says he could always
count on Kyle. “Kyle’s football IQ was high,
and he stood out because of his competitiveness.”
Coach Shevlin went on to say that
Kyle was as intense as an athlete he’s had
and, “he embraced competition.”
Kyle, who tied a school record for interceptions
in a game, was a decorated football
See Kyle Myers, page 4
Two-Legged: How Wolves Change
Lives at The Shadowland Foundation
By Chase Maser
Photos by Ariel Romeo Davis
Paul Pondella couldn’t fill out a job
application.
His dyslexia was too overwhelming,
and at the age of 18, he was kicked out
of high school. Two weeks later, in 1978,
he was arrested for growing marijuana.
Standing in front of the judge, he was
given a choice: get a job or go to prison.
Paul played baseball during school. He
was an all-star for 12 of the 13 years he
played, and remembering that McDonald’s
was one of his team sponsors in
the past, he found a contact and met for
an interview. The manager was happy
to see him. Right away, he gave Paul a
free meal and an application to fill out,
but panic set in.
“I was so embarrassed that I couldn’t
read the application,” says Paul.
“I snuck out of the restaurant and left the
food there, too. Then I went back home
and the only place I knew where to go
next was outside. I couldn’t apply for a
job, but I had enough courage to go and
knock on neighbors’ doors to ask if I could
mow their lawns and clean their yards.”
So after a failed interview at McDonald’s,
Tree King Tree Service was born
and it evolved from there.
Located in Lake Hughes, CA, Paul and
his wife, Colette Duvall Pondella, run the
See Wolves, page 5
No better way to start your day than to thank those who come into work to save the day. Photo courtesy Centinela Hospital.