Safe Place

LA CRESCENTA — Manager Norma Gutierrez and fellow Burger King employees got a lesson Tuesday on lending a hand to troubled teens seeking a safe place or advice. The fast food restaurant at 3517 Foothill Blvd. was the fourth area Burger King to be designated as a Safe Place — a Salvation Army program to provide safe havens for troubled youth, coordinator Meghan Ravada said. The restaurant’s employees were also one of several Burger King staffs to get training from Ravada on how to properly help teens with problems.

City declares Safe Place Week NORTHEAST GLENDALE -- This week is Safe Place Week in Glendale and the one-year anniversary of the city's Project Safe Place. The project, designed to aid youth and families in crisis situations, is run through the Glendale YMCA with 27 sites where teens can go to get help, including the YMCA's two locations, the YWCA, three Domino's Pizza stores, all Glendale libraries and nine fire stations. A teen-violence class on dealing with relationships and abuse will be offered at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the YWCA, 735 E. Lexington Drive.

Zarian to host council forum Six of the 12 candidates in the April 7 race for City Council will appear live on ?The Larry Zarian Show? Thursday forum to be moderated by Glendale News-Press reporter Jason Wells. The show will be the first of a two-part forum series, which will feature the remaining six council candidates March 26. Scheduled to appear tonight are incumbents Ara Najarian and Bob Yousefian, along with challengers Vartan Gharpetian, Laura Friedman, Lenore Solis and Edward Lafian.

Open House was held at Mountain Avenue Elementary School on Tuesday and Crescenta Valley High School on Wednesday. The events allowed students to share their classrooms with family and friends. The high school evening began with a barbecue meal fundraiser through Prom Plus, an organization that gives seniors a safe place to go after their prom. The Falcon Committee sold beautiful pieces of glass jewelry designed and made by teacher Patricia Rabe. The proceeds go to the Falcon Award Scholarship.

Open House was held at Mountain Avenue Elementary School on Tuesday and Crescenta Valley High School on Wednesday. The events allowed students to share their classrooms with family and friends. The high school evening began with a barbecue meal fundraiser through Prom Plus, an organization that gives seniors a safe place to go after their prom. The Falcon Committee sold beautiful pieces of glass jewelry designed and made by teacher Patricia Rabe. The proceeds go to the Falcon Award Scholarship.

Glendale Memorial Hospital has awarded $50,000 in grants to four local organizations. Glendale Healthy Kids and the Armenian Bone Marrow Project received $15,000 each, and the Glendale YWCA and the YMCA of Glendale each received $10,000. The grant to the Armenian Bone Marrow Project is designed to aid donor recruitment, and the YWCA funding will support a vocational English-as-a-Second-Language program offered to victims of domestic violence and abuse.

Fourth of July fireworks show to be held in La Crescenta The Crescenta Valley Fireworks Assn. will host a Fourth of July fireworks show Sunday to give families a safe place to view fireworks, which are illegal in Glendale and the foothills. The event will take place at the field at La Crescenta Elementary School, at 43443 Prospect Ave. Gates open at 4 p.m. and close at 8:30 p.m. Before the fireworks, which begin around 9 p.m., festivities will include music, carnival rides, food vendors and face painting.

At the Wednesday board meeting of the Glendale Unified School District a very special student was honored. Eight-year-old Justin Flores attends College View School and is autistic. He and his twin brother Noah can only communicate through signs, gestures and some verbal communication. For some this may sound like limitations, but not in Justin?s case. Justin was honored at the meeting by the school board and the Glendale Fire Department for his heroic efforts in saving his brother?

Over 13,000 visitors spent last Sunday at three different annual events and enjoying the weekly Harvest Market on Honolulu Avenue in the Montrose Shopping Park. Wags-n-Whiskers, Kids-n-Kritters and Taste of Montrose offered something for everyone. The morning began with an early walk with stylish pets in Wags-n-Whiskers T-shirts walking their pet parents down the avenue. The event benefited the Glendale Humane Society. Kids had a chance to show off their pets during several contests that highlighted eyes, noses, smiles and love.