Short Takes Short Takes (August 31, 2005)

There's no such thing as bad publicity

Atherton's Vice Mayor Charles Marsala may have landed in hot water with neighbors when he neglected to get a special event permit until the last minute, but the extra attention appears to have benefited a worthy cause.

He says the added media attention helped sell at least another $10,000 worth of tickets to the fundraising concert benefiting the Support Network for Battered Women that he hosted in his Emilie Avenue backyard.

All told, the "Hearts on Fire" concert raised $25,000 for domestic violence awareness and programs, said Mr. Marsala
Fat cats in Atherton?

Maybe not fat, but apparently pretty happy. A woman in the 200 block of Park Lane in Atherton called police Wednesday, August 24, to report that she thought she heard a mountain lion purring behind her poolhouse.

Police checked the area but found no footprints or other signs of a large, and possibly contented, mountain lion. They did report hearing two animals fighting, although they didn't say whether the skirmish was a territorial battle over occupancy of the poolhouse.
Remembering Andy Garcia

The fourth annual Andy Garcia Memorial 5K Run-Walk-Bike is set for Labor Day, September 4, in Portola Valley.

The event commemorates the birthday (August 28) of Mr. Garcia, the Portola Valley businessman who perished in the crash of United Airlines Flight 93 on September 11, 2001, in Pennsylvania. He would have been 66.

"We've had amazing support from the community the last three years," said his daughter Kelly Garcia Arrillaga, "with many families, friends and pets coming out on foot, on bikes, in strollers and even on roller blades."

The run starts at 9 a.m. on Monday at Triangle Park, the intersection of Alpine and Portola roads in Portola Valley.

There will be free coffee, pastries and water at the park after the event.

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