Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 2, No. 33 - August 13, 2020
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Professionals.......................7
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Entertainment......................2
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Huber’s Hiccups..................3
Lawndale..............................4
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Legals............................. 4,6,7
Pets........................................8
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Famed Coach Willie West Jr.
Receives Award from Mayor
The Mayor and Council of the City of Inglewood recognized Willie West Jr., for his outstanding contributions to the community at large. Photo courtesy City of Inglewood.
South Bay Resident Linda Johnson
Gives Back to her Community
By Duane Plank
that was held as people bunkered at home.
Connecting with El Segundo resident Linda
“Great way to engage.”
Johnson for a phone interview had proven to be
Johnson, who has been a Woman’s Club volunteer
a challenging task for this Herald scribe. She
for the past four years, said she was just
has been busy working from home, fulfilling her
“a tiny cog in a big wheel,” of volunteers trying
duties as the Member Services representative
to help in these trying times. She noted that
for the El Segundo Chamber of Commerce, and
the mask-making idea was germinated by the
mastering the magic of Zoom teleconferencing
Woman’s Club, but had mushroomed, as others
with local business leaders. She had also been
got wind of the project, and were eager to
busy volunteering, with other members of the
volunteer their time. She said part of her duties
El Segundo Woman’s Club, to make the now
is not only to sew the masks but deliver them.
ubiquitous protective facemasks for essential
She called her work as a delivery driver for the
personnel, and now, all of us, in the area as
mask distribution, a “life-changing experience.”
the COVID-19 pandemic rages-on, including
She had gleefully said she made a mask for
supporting hospitals, pharmacies, and markets.
an autistic child who makes frequent trips to
When this story was initially filed, Johnson and
the hospital. She said that the Woman’s Club
her cohorts had artfully stitched and delivered
efforts were a “grassroots program,” seeking
more than 700 facemasks. The mask building
to fly under the radar, with all needed supplies
has now reached about 1,500.
being corralled by donations. “I have the best
And then three days before this story was to
part of it,” she said, alluding to her delivery
run back in April, Johnson notified the Herald
driver drop-offs to grateful essential workers.
that she had been furloughed from her job with
“Even if they do not use (the masks), people
the El Segundo Chamber of Commerce (COC),
are just so touched that someone is thinking
another victim of the COVID-19 scourge.
about them.”
Because the Chamber is classified as a 501c
Johnson, an El Segundo High School graduate,
(6) organization, they were not eligible for
has done much more for the community
the government’s PPP money, so the budget
than volunteer at the Woman’s Club. She has
was squeezed.
served on the board of the El Segundo Education
Chamber CEO and President Marsha Hansen
Foundation for more than a decade and is
is eager to get Johnson back on the payroll as
also a pivotal ambassador for the El Segundo
soon as possible. “We hope with the next round of
Museum of Art (ESMoA).
the relief package, Chambers will be included,”
Barbara Boehm, ESMoA Director of Operations,
Hansen emailed. “so that we can get Linda
said Johnson is “one of our rock-star
back in the office soon. We are a true team.”
volunteers and friends of ESMoA since day
When we were able to speak initially,
one. I cannot picture an opening without her.
Johnson had shared her recent attempts to
She is an advocate and a true friend of ours.”
stay business and socially connected. “Zoom
“Linda enriches ESMoA on so many levels,’
is the best,” she said, alluding to a recent
emailed Boehm. “She is a wonderful,
El Segundo Education Foundation (Ed!) meeting
loving, caring, generous and fun person you
can always count on. Her involvement and
support at ESMoA are a gift to us and to our
community at large.”
Johnson said that she relishes her work with
ESMoA, calling it “an amazing educational
place,” and that it gives her another opportunity
to make a difference and utilize her passion
for the arts.
She believes that the ESMoA fills a gap
for creative students looking to broaden their
horizons and that the groups “art educators
are phenomenal.” She feels the vibe of a collaborative
El Segundo community that values
the support of the arts and science, saying,
“supporting our kids is something that I need
to be involved with.”
Another passion for Johnson, who graduated
from Long Beach State, is her long-standing
support for education, which she gets to fulfill
by pitching-in with the Ed! Foundation as
they attempt to fulfill their pledge to the El
Segundo Unified School District for the current
school year, a task that has become infinitely
more challenging with the implementation of
distance-learning.
“I believe that education strengthens you as
a person,” Johnson said. “Education gives you
opportunities and options.” She said that she has
“had a wonderful life because of education.”
Local business owner Neil Cadman, who
served multiple years as the Ed! Foundation
chairman said Johnson is a pivotal cog in
the fundraising group’s success. “She might
be the nicest person that I have ever met,”
Cadman said. “She is such a positive force, a
beautiful person.”
Johnson, who lives in El Segundo with her
husband of nearly 40 years, Bob, hopes to
See Linda Johnson, page 5