News Release

Poetry contest winners to be announced Saturday The Laguna Beach Library and the Friends of the Laguna Beach Library will present the winners of its 14th annual Poetry Contest at 3 p.m. Saturday. Winners will be awarded with gift cards to Laguna Beach Books, and the winning poems will get a spot in the Friends' annual poetry booklet. Everyone is invited to listen to the winning poets share their poems. The Laguna Beach Library is at 363 Glenneyre St. * 'Change' program raises nearly $3K for PMMC Almost $3,000 was raised for the Pacific Marine Mammal Center during its "Change" the Life of a Seal Program, according to a news release from the center.

Kids get hands on during Ocean Institute programs The Ocean Institute has made several stops to the Boys & Girls Club of Laguna Beach in the past few weeks. The institute's "Visiting Classroom-Safari into the Intertidal Zone" made an appearance at the TLC Branch on April 25, the Main Branch on May 9 and at the Even Start Preschool on May 21, according to a news release. The program covered topics like what kinds of animals live in tidepools and how important it is to not disturb these animals in their habitats.

The Park Avenue Players, Laguna Beach High School's dramatic acting group, will stage Neil Simon's "Rumors" to close out the theatrical year. The production will open Friday night and run through June 3, the Players announced in a news release. The cast is dedicating its rendition of "Rumors" to the memory of Andy Hedden, an adjunct teacher at the high school who died earlier this month. "For several years, Hedden helped LBHS writers and actors present the annual Playwrights Festival, an inspiration for many aspiring Laguna dramatists," the release noted.

Fred Karger, the GOP presidential hopeful, held his precinct walk in Laguna Beach on May 5 with about a dozen volunteers and a bagpiper, according to a news release. Karger and volunteers walked up and down the streets, talking to voters and handing out "Fred Frisbees. " They started in North Laguna, then headed to Heisler Park and Main Beach and down Forest Avenue to the Fire Station. The bagpiper gave concerts along the route, and upon arriving at the fire station, a local firefighter grabbed his bagpipe and formed a duet, the press release said.

Forty-eight Top of the World Elementary School students participated in the mile-long Kids Run at the OC Marathon on May 5. The race was part of a 12-week fitness training program, which parents and teachers implemented this spring to encourage physical activity and healthy eating habits, according to a news release. During the program, known as KROC, students engaged in 25.2 miles of moderate to vigorous physical activity. The Kids Run at the OC Marathon event marked 26.2 miles the kids have accumulated in exercise, the full distance of a marathon, and they will receive an official OC Marathon medal.