Language Barrier

Gretchen Hoffman The elevator stops between floors, trapping a woman and her young grandson inside. Glendale firefighters arrive in minutes and pound on the door, but they don't get much of a response. Capt. Ed Ackerman yells up to her in English, then Firefighter Juan Perez gives it a shot in Spanish. They ask a passing Armenian man to try, but to no avail -- the blaring alarm makes it impossible to communicate. It's another minute or two before they get the elevator lowered to the second floor.

Darleene Barrientos Looks of apprehension and uncertainty were replaced with satisfaction and accomplishment Wednesday as Wilson Middle School students learned how to write the Japanese character for "friend". Thirty 12-year-old boys and girls from Higashiosaka's basketball team in Japan were in Glendale for a four-day trip to teach their American counterparts classic calligraphy, visit classrooms, eat American food and play basketball. Higashiosaka is Glendale's sister city.

Words cannot express the sadness I feel after reading all the recent letters from fellow Glendalians on the topic of the different races in our great city. I am not writing this letter as a person of any particular race, I find that to be irrelevant, but as a human being. I choose to live my life looking at people as people. Instead of wasting time complaining about not being able to understand each other because of a language barrier, why not look at it as an opportunity?

Gary Moskowitz A new Armenian parent committee that would better familiarize Armenian parents with school policies is something many Glendale educators and Armenian parents are anxious to get started. With the success of local groups like Latinos Unidos -- a Latino student support group -- and a Korean parent support group for Korean students in Glendale, a similar program for a large Armenian population is well overdue, according to board member Greg Krikorian.

My good friend Ani, (yes, another Ani) was furious the last time I went to pay her a visit. Ani was angry to the point of being vulgar after she explained to me what had happened at a recent social function she attended. Being the open-minded person she is, Ani attended a gathering consisting mainly of Hindi-speaking guests. The guests, all of whom knew English, spoke in Hindi for almost the entire duration of the evening's conversation. After spending several hours at this function, she felt excluded because she was unable to communicate with other guests in a common language.

Ben Godar For anyone in the western United States looking to take a trip to China, a good first stop is a small office in Glendale. The China National Tourist Office Los Angeles, at 600 W. Broadway, Suite 320, is one of only two such bureaus in the country. Funded and operated by the Chinese government, the nonprofit organization encourages Americans to travel to the People's Republic. Inside the small but brightly decorated office, prospective travelers can find hundreds of free booklets and brochures addressing aspects of traveling to China.

Crescenta Valley High School junior Rosetta Ragusa and her teacher, Amber McLeod, have been informed that they have won the Maybelline "Time to Shine" Contest through Seventeen Magazine . Ragusa entered the contest by writing about one person who really affected her life ? Mrs. McLeod. "[I wrote about how] high school has to do with girls and how they can be mean. She [McLeod] taught me to just forget about it and become a stronger person," Ragusa said. Through McLeod, Ragusa has, among other things, started the "Save Uganda Club" at CVHS that helps SOS Uganda, a charity in Uganda, Africa.

A sea of fingers flooded into the air as summer- school teacher George Glandian asked, "Which two words have the 'ah' sound in them?" He picked a hand. "Draw!" shouted a girl in pink, one of 19 students, ages 7 to 11, who spent their summer in the pursuit of American assimilation. That was a correct answer, as the six-week-long Summer Academy Newcomers program at John Muir Elementary School ended on Friday, triumphant in its goal to teach young children English as their second language.

Crescenta Valley High School junior Rosetta Ragusa and her teacher, Amber McLeod, have been informed that they have won the Maybelline "Time to Shine" Contest through Seventeen Magazine . Ragusa entered the contest by writing about one person who really affected her life ? Mrs. McLeod. "[I wrote about how] high school has to do with girls and how they can be mean. She [McLeod] taught me to just forget about it and become a stronger person," Ragusa said. Through McLeod, Ragusa has, among other things, started the "Save Uganda Club" at CVHS that helps SOS Uganda, a charity in Uganda, Africa.

A sea of fingers flooded into the air as summer- school teacher George Glandian asked, "Which two words have the 'ah' sound in them?" He picked a hand. "Draw!" shouted a girl in pink, one of 19 students, ages 7 to 11, who spent their summer in the pursuit of American assimilation. That was a correct answer, as the six-week-long Summer Academy Newcomers program at John Muir Elementary School ended on Friday, triumphant in its goal to teach young children English as their second language.

My good friend Ani, (yes, another Ani) was furious the last time I went to pay her a visit. Ani was angry to the point of being vulgar after she explained to me what had happened at a recent social function she attended. Being the open-minded person she is, Ani attended a gathering consisting mainly of Hindi-speaking guests. The guests, all of whom knew English, spoke in Hindi for almost the entire duration of the evening's conversation. After spending several hours at this function, she felt excluded because she was unable to communicate with other guests in a common language.

Darleene Barrientos Like most other classes at Glendale High School, students sit with books and notebooks open, with pencils and pens in hand, as Kenneth Gamon begins class. But as soon as Gamon speaks, the class becomes distinctly unique -- the lesson is almost entirely in Japanese. Gamon teaches the sole Japanese language class in the district at Glendale High School. This is the program's first year and the class has progressed to the point where the class is mostly taught in Japanese, with just a sprinkling of English.

Darleene Barrientos Looks of apprehension and uncertainty were replaced with satisfaction and accomplishment Wednesday as Wilson Middle School students learned how to write the Japanese character for "friend". Thirty 12-year-old boys and girls from Higashiosaka's basketball team in Japan were in Glendale for a four-day trip to teach their American counterparts classic calligraphy, visit classrooms, eat American food and play basketball. Higashiosaka is Glendale's sister city.

Josh Kleinbaum If developer Rick Caruso wrote the three questions that will appear on the ballot in the Sept. 14 citywide election to determine the fate of his Americana at Brand development, they would conjure images straight out of a feel-good Hollywood movie. "I'd say that there will be birds chirping, it's safe, peaceful and that there are free drinks on Wednesday nights," joked Caruso, who proposed the $264.2-million retail and residential project in downtown Glendale.

ANI AMIRKHANIAN I'd like to take the opportunity to respond to a reader who recently posed a question that I think is worth considering, and perhaps offer some insight that I hope will be of value to other readers, as well. In my last column, I painted a somewhat sad and maybe even grim picture of Sarkis, the boy who was unable to read, and his mother, who, after living in this country for some 20 years spoke in broken English, had no idea the predicament her son was in due to his inability to read.