The Crown City Podcast

02/27/2024

Community Corner: In times of social unrest and environmental challenges, poetry can offer a way to connect, heal, and inspire.

That is the message that four acclaimed poets will share at the Altadena Public Library on Tuesday, Feb. 27, as part of the Altadena Poets Laureate Reading Event. The event, which is free and open to the public, will feature readings by Hazel Harrison, Teresa Mei Chuc, Elline Lipkin, and Thelma Reyna (Episode 9 of The Crown City Podcast), who have all served as Altadena Poets Laureate in the past.

The program, which began in 2016, honors two local poets every two years for their contributions to the literary and cultural life of the community.

“I believe in the universality of human feelings and many of the things that we deal with in life,” Thelma Reyna, one of the featured poets for the upcoming event, said as she expressed her faith in the program. “I feel confident that usually what we community poets write does resonate with a number of fellow human beings.”

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02/26/2024

Since The Crown City Podcast was launched in the fall of 2020, it has been a self-produced and hosted labor of love.

At such a difficult time in all our lives, I wanted the show to be a place of open and honest discourse. I also wanted it to be a platform to introduce others to some of the most inspiring people I know.

To date, I have hosted elected officials, authors, historians, activists, civic leaders, and small business owners. Every episode is different (even if there are some similar questions) and every “season” brings new opportunities for the show.

That is why I have some very exciting news to share!

For the upcoming Fourth Season of The Crown City Podcast, the show will be produced in collaboration with the incredible team at Pasadena Media.

Pasadena Media is the amazing non-profit that oversees Pasadena’s public, education, and government access channels and operates the community media training center and television studio.

This is a dream partnership and I cannot be more excited about where the show will go from here.

The biggest change will be that the podcast will be recorded on video, and for a host with a face for podcasting, that will be a big but really fun adjustment.

I am grateful to Pasadena Media for this opportunity and to all those who have supported the show over the years.

Please stay tuned to Instagram for more information!

02/19/2024

February 19th is a significant date in American history.

“On this day in 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which gave the U.S. Army the authority to remove civilians from the military zones established in Washington, Oregon, and California during WWII. This led to the forced removal and incarceration of some 120,000 Americans of Japanese ancestry living on the West Coast, who had to abandon their jobs, their homes, and their lives to be sent to one of ten concentration camps scattered in desolate, remote regions of the country” (​Japanese American Citizens League​).

Executive Order 9066 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt profoundly affected Japanese Americans in Pasadena.

Councilmember Gene Masuda’s parents, Sam and Alice, were among thousands of local Japanese Americans rounded up and held in “relocation centers” until the war ended.

After being taken to the Santa Anita Racetrack in Arcadia, the couple was eventually separated. Masuda’s father was sent to another relocation camp, Manzanar, in Owens Valley, and his mother, pregnant at the time with Gene’s older brother, interned at Tule Lake (Pasadena Now).

May we use this Day of Remembrance to reflect on the nation we want to be and the values we want to uphold.

02/12/2024

Community Corner:

- a Burbank native and the innovative mind behind the Proud Stutter podcast, is making waves with her latest endeavor — a comic book dedicated to shedding light on the stuttering experience.

Chupkov, alongside Proud Stutter’s board member Julian Benavidez and illustrator Indy Ho, aims to liberate and represent the stuttering community through this unusual medium. The self-published comic book, titled “My Stutter: Life of Verbal Turbulence,” will be unveiled at a launch at this evening, February 12th at 6 p.m.

The event will bring together people from the Los Angeles stuttering community to share their stories and experiences.

If you are able, come and support this wonderful community!

02/10/2024

02/04/2024

Who needs take out when you make the best pizza at home.

01/26/2024

A huge congratulations to friend of the podcast on her third Caldecott Honor for picture book illustration.

The book is a triumph written and illustrated by one of the kindest and coolest people I have gotten to know doing the show.

It is a well earned and much deserved honor Marla!!!

01/25/2024

Celebrating Cheeseburger Week in style.

01/15/2024

Today we celebrate the man and the vision of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

A titan of the civil rights movement, Dr. King traveled extensively, but found himself in Pasadena on several occasions.

In 1958, Dr. King spoke for several days at , giving formal speeches, dining with students and meeting with faculty.

At the invitation of Pastor Marvin T. Robinson, a fellow civil rights activist, of (Friendship Baptist Church), Dr. King returned in 1960 while fundraising for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

In a sermon entitled, “The Three Dimensions of a Complete Life,” Dr. King delivered the above highlighted line, “For in a real sense the Negro cannot be free in Pasadena or Los Angeles until the Negro is free in Jackson, Mississippi and Montgomery, Alabama. We are all involved in a single struggle.”

As a poignant example that intolerance and racism were not isolated to the South, prior to Dr. King’s visit to Friendship Baptist Church, an 18-foot tall cross was burned on the lawn of a black family in Altadena.

We are not that far removed from such incidents by either location or time and it is the responsibility of us all to make sure those times are not repeated.

Finally, Dr. King would return to Friendship Baptist in 1965, where Pastor Robinson introduced him as the “Moses of the 20th Century.”

Let us remember not only the man but also the crusade.

As Dr. King said 64 years ago, civil rights remains our unifying “single struggle.”

For more information about Dr. King and Pasadena, please read great 2011 article “Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Visits to Pasadena” in the Patch.

📷Original photo credit of Dr. King at Friendship Baptist goes to the amazing as it is part of their J. Allen Gawkins Collection (JAH19072n8).

01/14/2024

It’s Neighbor Day in Pasadena!

Come celebrate with wonderful friends Mika and Russell from for an evening filled with fellowship, fun music and great beer from !

Unfortunately, Covid knocked me out this week and I am still in isolation.

Support what makes Pasadena such a great place to live, work and play with portions of each pint and merch sold being donated to local nonprofits.

Thank you for the organizers for bringing Pasadena together!

01/11/2024

I love public art that enriches our built environment.

As such, I am so proud and grateful to friend of the podcast Victor (Episode 22) and Lisa for sharing their talents with Pasadena and creating another beautiful mural.

01/10/2024

We made it almost four years, but it finally caught up to us (and with a vengeance).

With Covid raging in Southern California, please be safe everyone and take care of yourselves. Especially our littles ones.

01/06/2024

There are official or special occasions for flying the American Flag.

January 6th is not officially one of them, but it is special to me.

It is a day I will forever remember as the day Congress did its job in certifying the 2020 election and a day when brave Capitol Police officers defended the seat of our government, several of them paying for it with their lives.

It is an important reminder of how fragile our democracy is and how vital our participation is to ensuring it continues for generations to come.

On this page, we believe …

Democracy is Important;

Truth is Vital;

America is a Beacon of Light in the World;

Our Troops Secure Our Freedom;

Community focused policing is essential for safety;

Black Lives Matter;

Women’s Rights are Human Rights;

No Human is Illegal;

Science is Real;

Love is Love;

and Diversity Makes Us Stronger.

May we be united by a commitment to a better and stronger tomorrow, guided by love and respect.

Let this be what we remember on January 6th. Now and forever.

01/02/2024

The real heros of the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game are Public Works….

“Pasadena Public Works Department crews were expected to collect more than 33.44 tons of trash from the parade route after Monday’s 135th Rose Parade.

Additionally, about 35 tons of trash were expected to need collection after the Rose Bowl Game, with an anticipated 5 tons of cardboard headed for recycling.“

Thank you to the crews that keep our city clean!!!

12/31/2023

Thank you for a gorgeous day Pasadena!

12/25/2023

However you celebrate, Happy Holidays to you and your family.

If you haven’t checked it out, released a holiday album last month and the album was illustrated by the one and only .

Wishing you all a wonderful day filled with love and good cheer!

12/20/2023

Even on a gloomy day, is still gorgeous and The Huntington Store is a perfect spot for holiday gifts!!

But with a two year old in tow, the Children’s Garden being closed because of the rain was a bummer. A good reason to return!!

12/20/2023

NEW EPISODE WEDNESDAY TO CLOSE OUT 2023!!

Episode 49: Author and Publisher Pamela McColl joins the podcast for a special Holiday Episode to discuss her book Twas The Night - The Art and History of the Classic Christmas Poem in celebration of the bicentennial of the iconic poem “Account of A Visit From St. Nicholas” by Clement Clarke Moore on December 23, 1823.

During our conversation, Pamela discusses her journey in art and history and how it led to a personal ten-year project researching and curating a book on “Twas the Night Before Christmas.” Expanding on the poem’s theme, we talk about its impact on the spirit of the Holiday Season and how its message of kindness and generosity has stood the test of time.

For more information, please visit twasthenightbook.com and follow Pamela on Instagram for the latest news and updates.

This marks the 49th episode of The Crown City Podcast and the last for 2023. Thank you all for your love and support and I will see you next year!

The featured music on the podcast is courtesy of Pasadena’s own The Nextdoors. As a special gift for Hannakuah, Mika and Russell released the beautiful original Hebrew version of their featured song “All the Right Here” - “Tamid K’Rovim.”

Please visit nextdoorsmusic.com and follow them for more information and updates on their live shows.

Finally, a special thank you to Christine Johnson from . Please support them and all small businesses this holiday season.

To support the podcast, please subscribe, leave a review on your favorite podcasting app or sponsor us at www.thecrowncitypodcast.com or www.patreon.com/thecrowncitypodcast.

12/19/2023

The holidays are always a special (and often stressful) time of year, but one of my favorite traditions is making Christmas cookies as it was something that filled my grandparents’ house for the entire month of December.

My grandmother would fill tins and tins of cookies to be sent to family and friends near and sometimes far. There would be angels and bells, Christmas trees of many kinds, gingerbreadmen and women (called “gingies”), donkeys, wreaths and the list goes on.

We have resurrected the tradition in the form of making cookies for our children’s teachers and support staff.

Because of illness (when are we not sick these days), we waited until the last minute and so in the course of less than two days, we made cookies of various shapes and sizes and consumed more than 12+ pounds of flour and likely 6+ pounds of butter.

My wife called our little operation “Crown City Cookies.”

So joyful we did it, but happy they are done (for now).

Spread love and kindness and however, you celebrate, Happy Holidays to you and yours this season!

12/16/2023

Come and support friends of the podcast for their 4th Annual “Christmas in ‘Dena” celebration today from 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm!

Thank you to them and all their community partners for making this season a little more special.

12/07/2023

As regular listeners know, “All Right Here” serves as the wonderful music of the podcast from my friends .

But the song has an incredible story -

Before there was “All Right Here” there was תָּמִיד קְרוֹבִים - Tamid K’rovim. In summer 2020 Russell worked from home at a then all-online summer camp with co-workers from around the world. One, Keren Better, was from Israel, and Russell decided it would be a fun challenge to co-write a song with her in Hebrew.

She composed lyrics about the virtual 2020 camp experience, and Russell set those words to music. The result was a song called “Tamid K’rovim” and it was sung in subsequent years at in-person summer camp.

When making Linda Vista they wanted to put the song on their record, so Russell translated it into English. This ended up their most-played song on Spotify in 2023!

As a brilliant Hanukkah surprise, they released the original Hebrew version publicly.

I agree with Russell that Hebrew is a beautiful language, and Israel has a vibrant and creative arts culture!

Please listen to both “All Right Here” and תָּמִיד קְרוֹבִים - Tamid K’rovim

Happy Hanukkah, happy holidays, and best wishes for a better 2024 for all!

12/05/2023

Incredible news about from the Pasadena office market and South Lake Avenue.

Coretrust Capital Partners' Pasarroyo office building at 251 South Lake Ave. in Pasadena will to go to a foreclosure auction Dec. 20.

Coretrust Capital Partners managing principal John Sischo told Bisnow the firm tried to refinance the property for about two years to no avail.

“The capital markets are not in existence to take out a refinance for an office building, no matter how great the property is,” Sischo said. “It’s not there.”

Sischo declined to comment further.

The property, which holds about 600K SF of office and 40K SF of retail space, is being sold to pay debts secured by the deed of trust.

What will this mean for the buildings? South Lake Avenue? The Pasadena office market?

Lots of questions with few answers. Time will tell.

12/01/2023

Thank you for the great coffee and muffin this morning.

Wonderful addition to beautiful Altadena.

11/28/2023

On this , I am grateful for all of the people and organizations that selflessly serve others so that we can live in a better world.

If you can, please support ones close to my heart:







dads.club

11/26/2023

It’s

Museums foster appreciation and knowledge of art, nature, culture, science, and history.

When you purchase a gift from the museum store, you help to sustain the museum’s service to their community and the public. Products found in museum stores are curated just like the works displayed in their respective institutions, with many items often developed exclusively by the museum, resulting in distinctive and unique offerings. Be A Patron on Museum Store Sunday and all year round.

Local participating Museums include:

11/25/2023

Having grown up around one and being a part of one now, there are few things I love more than small businesses. They make our communities vibrant places to live and work.

On this , please support the guests and friends of this show today and throughout the entire holiday season.












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11/22/2023

NEW EPISODE WEDNESDAY!!

Episode 48: Piper + Enza’s Rita Ho-Bezzola joins the podcast to discuss the road she has taken from growing up in Taiwan and becoming a concert pianist to becoming the Founder and CEO of .

During this engaging conversation, we talk about everything from the demands of family businesses to how going through Covid as a parent inspired Rita to launch Piper + Enza - a company built to provide children with engaging stories and toys and parents with expert resources to serve their family’s physical and mental wellbeing.

At the end of the show, learn about Rita’s Perfect Day, which includes coffee at , lunch at and a walk through , amongst other great places to eat and visit.

For more information, please visit piperandenza.com and follow them on Social Media for the latest news and information. As we head into the holiday season, please check out their store for some great items for your little ones!

The featured music on the podcast is courtesy of Pasadena’s own The Nextdoors. Please visit nextdoorsmusic.com and follow them on social media for more information and updates on their live shows.

To support the podcast, please subscribe, leave a review on your favorite podcasting app or sponsor us at www.thecrowncitypodcast.com or www.patreon.com/thecrowncitypodcast.

+enza

11/16/2023

Community Corner:

Two very different put important events tonight.

The first is Pasadena United Against Hate at to learn how we can take action against hate in our community.

The second is Open House for the holidays.

If you can, learn about how to be active member of Pasadena in the campaign against hate and support the small businesses that make our community such a special place.

11/15/2023

Recently I had the privilege to be a guest on the MySGV podcast and this week our episode dropped on all platforms and YouTube.

In a very similar way to The Crown City Podcast, it’s a show that highlights the people and small businesses in the San Gabriel Valley.

Scott, Russell, and Victoria have created a wonderful platform for a diverse series of guests to share their stories and I am grateful for the opportunity to be featured.

It was a surreal experience to be the one answering questions instead of asking them and I can’t recommend the My SGV Podcast more to my friends and followers.

For more information and to listen to my episode with Scott and Russell, please follow

11/11/2023

I am proud that honors our Veterans with a celebration of their service to our community and our nation.

Let us remember and honor those who have served in our armed forces every day we live under the blanket of freedom they have provided us.