(Mission Times Courier, San Diego, Ca) -  On behalf of the members of the Allied Gardens Community Council, I would like to thank the community for their continued support throughout this past year.  All of the subscriptions and ads to our Newsletter, as well as donations, provide the only source of revenue by which our Council is able to fund special projects in our community, such as the Holiday Festival and maintenance of the Jacaranda Bowl. 

I would also like to take this opportunity to extend an invitation to attend our Town Hall Meetings for 2010.  These meetings are meant to provide a forum for the community, where issues concerning the quality of life and land use for Allied Gardens and Grantville residents can be openly discussed.  Our presenters are community members, city employees, project developers or elected officials; who speak on varying topics ranging from health issues to redevelopment concerns. 

In November, we had perhaps one of our most interesting meetings.  Our speaker, ret. Brigadier General Robert Cardenas, discussed aviation history beginning with his experiences during World War II.  Ret. Brig. Gen. Cardenas was a most informative and  engaging speaker as he told of his survival after being shot down and escaping to England; working with Chuck Yeager on breaking the sound barrier and even flying the stealth bomber.

Our sincere appreciation to longtime area businessman and realtor Chuck Ourlser, for his suggestion of ret. Brig. Gen. Cardenas as our main speaker and to Don Brennan, for donating his time and audio equipment for the presentation.   Don perhaps is familiar to many of you, as he helps sponsor and produce Allied Gardens' largest event of the year, SpringFest.  He also generously donates his time to plan, design, install and coordinate the Allied Gardens Movies in the Park, Pops Concert in the Park, and the Fourth of July Music Fest at Lake Murray Park.  

The AGCC Town Hall Meetings are held every other month at the Ascension Lutheran Church on Zion Avenue and begin at 7:00pm. The next meeting will be on March 23rd.  The Board is always interested in hearing your suggestions on topics for these meetings.  If you go to the AGCC website (www.alliedgardens.org), you can let us know your ideas.  Also, please consider joining AGCC.  From our website, you can find out more information on the organization; such as the volunteer work and land use involvement the members of the Allied Gardens Community Council participate in. 

Unfortunately, I must end this message on a sad note.  One of our Board Members, Edith Dabbs, passed away on Dec. 1.  Edith was one of the original members of AGCC. The Board was actually a civic association started for new residents of Allied Gardens in the 1950s, then later became known as the Allied Gardens Community Council representing both Allied Gardens and Grantville. 

Edith was also very active in the Women's Club of San Diego, of which a chapter was here in Allied Gardens until July of 2001.  Her lifelong work as a teacher at S.D. City College, led her to set up a scholarship fund to help young women in financial need complete their education. Among her many accomplishments was the A. G. Kiwanis 2003 Women of the Year award and in 2009 she was inducted into the  San Diego County Women's Hall of Fame.  We were all truly fortunate to have known and worked with such an amazing and dynamic woman, who throughout her life donated so generously to her community. 

By Marilyn Reed, Allied Gardens Community Council