Almaden Valley Women's Club Gives Back to Community for 51 Years

Almaden Valley Women’s Club Announces Scholarship and Logo Award Winners
By Linda Stone

Anticipation was high at the award ceremony for the winners of the Almaden Valley Women’s Club scholarship and logo contest. Proud parents and relatives filled the room at the Almaden Community Center on May 5. Competition was stiff, over 100 logo design entries were received and 25 scholarship applicants, all from local area schools.
The scholarship awards are open to graduating high school seniors who will attend an accredited two or four Year College or university as first time freshmen in the fall of the upcoming year. Applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.3 and reside within the 95120 zip code. Winners are selected based on outstanding volunteer experience, academic performance, school activities, letters of recommendation, and personal essay.

Sierra Thompson-Klima, a Leland High School student, saw a need for youth participation in community volunteer events and created a field hockey referee team. “It allows them to give back to community and their confidence level goes up it challenges them to go out in the community,” she said. The team has tripled in size since its inception.
Another winner, Johnathan Pang, a homeschooler, has a passion for helping special needs children. For the past two years, he has volunteered for Joni and Friends, a family day retreat in the Santa Cruz mountains. “We take the kids off their hands for the week. Parents can relax; go to boardwalk, and the beach.” He also travels to Mexico to build homes for the disadvantaged. 
The logo design competition winner will have her drawing on festival posters and wine & beer glasses. This year’s winner is Tiffany Ebrahimi of Leland High School. Her logo was selected from over 100 submissions received from local schools and studios. She has been drawing and painting since the 5th grade. For inspiration, she searched online for ideas as well as reviewed prior year’s entrants. Her plans are to attend medical school and become an ophthalmologist. 

In addition to the awards, State Senator Jim Beall, District 15, gave each student a Senatorial Merit Certificate of Recognition for their commitment to learning and public service.

Of course none of this would happen if it weren’t for the club’s major fundraiser, the Almaden Valley Art & Wine Festival. It has the distinction of being one the oldest, continuously held festivals in California attracting an average attendance of 20,000 people for their one day event.

Club president, Carina Johnson said that the club’s goals for the festival are the same today as they were as its festival's inception in 1976, to have an place where family can spend the day together, a place for residents to come and be thankful for the Almaden community, a place where local talent is promoted and a festival that would generate funds for schools and provide grants for the Almaden and San Jose communities. “Attendance at our festival supports our club's mission to give back to our community.”

This year's 40th Annual Almaden Valley Art & Wine Festival will be held Sunday, Sept.11, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at Almaden Lake Park. For more information about the festival or club, visit www.almadenwomen.org.

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