Palisadians Remember Laker Legend Kobe Bryant
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20 Pages Thursday, January 30, 2020 ◆ Pacific Palisades, California $1.50 63 Volunteers Participate PaliPali BeeBee 20202020 in Palisades Homeless Count By LILY TINOCO Reporter orpus Christi Church filled with enthused volunteers CWednesday night, January 22, for the annual Homeless Count in Pa- cific Palisades. The Greater Los Angeles Homeless Count is a three-day census of individuals and families experiencing homelessness. LA’s count is the largest in the United States, with more than 8,000 volun- teers counting 2,160 census tracts. The Department of Housing Sharon Kilbride with a volunteer Rich Schmitt/Staff Photographer and Urban Development and other federal agencies use the data gen- Wednesday night began with “I like volunteering and it’s erated in the count to determine opening remarks from PPTFH important because everybody de- funding allocations that provide Homeless Count Committee Chair serves somewhere warm to stay,” services and housing to the home- Kim Clary and new LAPD Com- Hunter said. “I work close to here, less population. manding Officer of the West LA so I said I’d come out and help.” “The homeless count is a Area, Captain Jonathan Tom. Volunteers were then divvied Students at Palisades Charter Elementary School are gearing up for the 2020 Pali Bee, which returns visual count and allows a differ- “There’s aspects of enforce- up into 11 teams and made their on Sunday, February 23, for students in first through fifth grade who live or attend school in the ent perspective of homelessness, ment that we have to do, but what way to the streets, from Will Rog- Palisades. If you are interested in signing up or learning more information, visit palipost.com/pal- you’re seeing that there’s a lot of we call a ‘whole government’ ap- ers State Beach to Castellammare, ibee2020. Rich Schmitt/Staff Photographer homeless youth, there are a lot of proach, which includes community taking count of encampments, families, a lot of children,” Mari- organizations, is really the key to tents, vehicles and individuals. sol Lara, coordinator for LAH- success,” Tom said. “You guys are The raw data from the Home- SA’s Advisory Groups, said to the the model moving forward for the less Count is given directly to Palisadian-Post. “It’s vital to be rest of the city, and I just want to LAHSA, where it is used for geo- able to know what resources we thank everyone for what you do.” graphic studies and formulated to Palisadians Remember need, where funding needs to go A total of 63 volunteers worked eventually come up with a total and just allowing the community the evening—an increase from last number of individuals. to be involved in this fight to end year’s 49—and more than half of “As has been the trend in the homelessness.” the group were newcomers. Clary Palisades … in general, the overall Laker Legend Kobe Bryant This was the Pacific Palisades added that it was nice to see so numbers of individuals experienc- Task Force on Homelessness’ sixth many new people get involved. ing homelessness were down from The 41-Year-Old time conducting the count since Friends Edwina Hunter and last year,” Clary shared after the forming in 2015. To date, the task Tamara Senegal came all the way count. Died in a Helicopter force has helped a total of 109 in- from Carson and Hawthorne to par- The official numbers from the dividuals get off the streets and into ticipate in the Palisades Homeless count will not be available until Crash with housing. Count. spring or early summer. Eight Others on Sunday Morning Democratic Club Gathers By JENNIKA INGRAM Reporter for Annual Meeting eople in Los Angeles and By LILY TINOCO around the world are mourn- Reporter Ping the loss of basketball legend Kobe Bryant, who died along with he Pacific Palisades Democrat- eight others—his daughter Gianna ic Club held its annual meeting included—in a helicopter crash TSunday, January 26, at the Pacific on Sunday morning, January 26, Palisades Woman’s Club, address- in the Santa Monica Mountains in ing homelessness across California, Calabasas. A memorial has been set up near the crash site in Calabasas. affordable housing and fire safety. Kobe, 41, his daughter Gi- PPDC President Erika Feresten anna Maria-Onore, 13, and seven Passengers on board were Or- trick-or-treating at his house. asked attendees to hold a moment Bonin addresses the crowd. Rich Schmitt/Staff Photographer other passengers were flying in a ange Coast College Head Base- Then, when Piehl worked of silence ahead of the event in hon- Sikorsky S-76 helicopter heading ball Coach John Altobelli, his at Ralphs in high school, he re- or of NBA great Kobe Bryant who, “The leading cause of this cri- “I have made a commitment to to his Mamba Sports Academy in wife Keri and his daughter Alys- membered Kobe coming into just hours before the event, was in a sis is … any one of the myriad of our fire chief that no matter what Thousand Oaks for his daughter’s sa—Gianna’s teammate; mother the store and seeing him in aisle tragic helicopter accident that took reasons that one might not be able happens with revenues, I am going game. and daughter Sarah and Payton eight. Piehl had a chance to shake his life, the life of his 13-year-old to make that last rent payment and to be fighting in this year’s budget Both the Federal Aviation Chester; Christina Mauser—a col- his idol’s hand and tell him he was daughter and seven other passen- you end up in a car on the streets,” cycle to continue fighting for re- Administration and the National lege basketball coach, mother and his favorite player. In return, Kobe gers. Bloom said. sources for LAFD,” Bonin said. “It Transportation Safety Board were wife; and the pilot, Ara Zobayan. smiled and said, “Thank you.” The event then went on to fea- Bloom added that 133 individ- is the most significant investment still investigating the crash as the During his time with the Lak- Piehl said Kobe brought him ture addresses by State Senator Ben uals in Los Angeles County are be- that we need to be making in agen- Post went to print Tuesday. ers, Kobe spent a decade living in utter joy too many times to count Allen, Assemblymember Richard ing placed into some form of hous- cies in the city of Los Angeles.” the Palisades in a Mediterranean and that for more than 20 years, Bloom and Los Angeles City Coun- ing daily, but at the same time, 150 Bonin added that LAPD has villa at the top of Lachman Lane. “My friends and I followed Kobe cilmember Mike Bonin. individuals fall into homelessness been expanding on its own ser- As Palisadians come to grips religiously.” Allen made mention of the every day. vices by placing more officers in with the unexpected loss of the Palisades Charter High fact that California Governor He shared that there are a num- the patrol pool since an effort he National Basketball Association School science teacher Karyn Gavin Newsom just as recently as ber of efforts on this front, includ- launched back in 2016. great and Academy Award-win- Newbill Helmig recalled a time January 15 announced his budget- ing his co-author of David Chui’s “There is not a neighborhood in ner, heartfelt memories and when Kobe came to campus on ary proposal, including millions AB 1482, a California rent control Los Angeles that feels safe enough, thoughts of their former neighbor a weekend to use the gym. His in emergency funding to address bill designed to prevent “rent goug- even though, generally speaking, are being shared around the com- trainer went to Newbill Helmig’s homelessness. ing.” Los Angeles is safer than it ever munity. classroom, which faced the gym, He shared that the challenge is Bonin then took to the stage has been,” Bonin said. Palisadian Brian Piehl said and asked if she had keys. Though finding a way to work collabora- and started his oration with the On the topic of homelessness, Kobe was the ultimate Los Ange- she did not, she was found a jani- tively with local partners to ensure news of Potrero Canyon Park open- a 100-bed shelter for homeless vet- les sports icon. tor who was able to help out. the issue is being dealt with, the ing within the next year-and-a-half erans will open at the VA, and three “He was my childhood,” Piehl “Kobe gave her an auto- money is being well spent and go- and a plausible dog park, drawing different buildings are in the pro- added. graph and talked with us for a ing to its intended cause. excitement from the crowd. cess of being rehabilitated at the VA Piehl remembers when Kobe few minutes before getting down Bloom carried on the conver- He followed up by providing a for long-term permanent housing moved to the Palisades, he went (Continued on Page 3) sation of the homeless crisis by ac- multitude of updates. for homeless individuals—neither knowledging its precursor and the Bonin stated that fire safety is of which are funded by the federal “simple, most significant reason one of his top priorities, both leg- government, Bonin said. that we have more homelessness islatively and budgetarily, and is “We’re not waiting, the people this year than we did last year”— continuing to restore services and of Los Angeles are going to do what the lack of affordable housing.