Opinion

The many joys of writing by Jan Wheatcroft   I like words. I like the way they roll on and off my tongue and the way they look on the page. I like to think about the origin of words and, since I speak some Greek, I am always happy when I can suss out […]

by Jim Elsasser, EdD, CUSD Superintendent of Schools Keeping children safe at school is of the utmost importance for the Claremont Unified School District. We work diligently to maintain safe schools by having policies, procedures, and practices in place to hire and annually train and supervise our staff on appropriate behaviors and interactions with students. […]

by John Pixley Usually, when I buy a ticket, I feel happy. I feel excited. I feel lucky and privileged that I get to see the performance. I might feel relieved that I managed to snag the ticket. I don’t usually feel sad, like I want to weep. But it was different a few weeks […]

Remembering Harrison Stephens Dear Editor: It was with great sadness that my wife, Rochelle, and I read of the death of Harrison Stephens. When we moved into our home on Bridgeport Avenue in 1972, the first people who welcomed us were our next door neighbors, “Steve” and his wife Doris. As long as they were […]

The new museum: Not a monument to college administrators Dear Editor: As a patron and graduate of Pomona College, I hope that the city of Claremont and the newspaper will generate public support to ensure that a multi-purpose, multi-use museum building serves the broader community.  The site, across the street from the old Claremont Inn, […]

by Debbie Carini “A 12-day tour, a 12-day tour” (Sing to the theme song from “Gilligan’s Island”) When seven people set sail on what was scheduled to be a three-hour sightseeing tour on the charter boat The Minnow, they got caught in a storm and ended up stranded on an uncharted tropical island—it was a […]

by John Pixley Some things haven’t changed. The film started late. When I got to the auditorium, I wondered if the screening was canceled, because it looked like no one was showing up. Maybe I hadn’t gotten the notice. When I saw that the room was still empty at 7:30 when the film was scheduled […]

May has arrived and, with it, so has National Preservation Month. In a city where I once lived, we had a Historical Society, which most people referred to as the “Hysterical Society.” It was active only when there was a perceived threat to a historic resource. Everyone would run around in a sky-is-falling frenzy and, […]

Claremont has a serious water problem. Its dimensions became glaringly clear on April 18 when the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) announced that the City of Trees must reduce its residential consumption of water by 36 percent. That is the highest tier of reductions statewide, putting Claremont on a par with the much-maligned Beverly […]

by Mellissa Martinez Six years ago when I began the column Lex in the City, I ran into Pat Yarborough at a COURIER event. She took a long look at me and said, “Are you the same Mellissa Martinez who used to run around the field as a little girl at your dad’s meets? I […]

Plans for Pomona College Dear Editor: Thank you for your coverage of Pomona College’s Master Plan and specifically the plans for a new Pomona College Museum of Art. As you reported, the college requested earlier this week to have our request for approval of the master plan, environmental impact review and zoning change removed from […]

by Jan Wheatcroft I have a granddaughter named Violet. She is the child of my younger son. He is a super father—loving, playful, thoughtful and hands-on. And my daughter-in-law is a fabulous mother—warm and caring. Together they have produced this delightful child who is both serious and funny, and an intense little explorer. The sad […]

Eclectic Garden Tour [Editor’s note:?The following letter was sent to the Sustainable Claremont Garden Club with a copy forwarded for publication. —KD] Dear Editor: We just got home from the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden tour, and I want to send this email before life gets in the way. Over the last 27 years, my […]

by John Pixley Last summer, I wrote a column pretty much about a tree.  There had been two or three articles in these pages about the tree, which was on Seventh Street and well over 100 years old and had been badly damaged. Despite a good deal of effort, it wasn’t able to be saved. […]

Clearing up water Dear Editor: Two specific points  for the COURIER story on April 10 seem worth more public attention. The first regards the information under pictures on pages 1 and 3:  San Antonio Dam was built by the Army Corp of Engineers for flood prevention. Although it could hold 11.880 acre feet of water, […]

  With thanks to Claremont Dear Claremont community: Claremont High School suffered a terrible tragedy on Sunday, March 29, when a CHS student passed away. It was a painful week for the students, staff and families of the CHS community; however, the support CHS received from this town and local agencies helped ease our burdens, […]