Opinion

By Mellissa Martinez Last month, I started a class at The Claremont Club called Bikini Boot Camp. Yes, as grueling as it sounds, a group of dedicated women suffer through 45 minutes of sit-ups, weight lifting and various unimaginable exercises in order to get in shape for summer. Back in the 1970s, it seemed less […]

by Sandra Grady With the coming of Memorial Day, I’m reminded of my father, Lawrence Wesley Grady, a man who deserves to be remembered. As a child, I remember him driving our car as I sat behind him in the back seat.  From there I could lean forward and touch with fascination the two dime-size […]

Crossing paths [Editor’s note:?The following letter was forwarded by Marcus Dowd on behalf of the author, his wife Elin Dowd, in the hopes that it might inspire a bit of kindness in Claremont. —KD] Dear Editor: Hug. Last night, I set out for my run. I use “run” in the very loosest of terms, as […]

by Jennifer Scheetz In order to understand the environmental issues of California, you must have intimate knowledge of CEQA. The first time I heard this, I wondered who she was. But she’s not a she. She’s the highly-maligned California Environmental Quality Act of 1970, signed into law by Governor Ronald Reagan. (Whose next environmental foray […]

By John Pixley It wasn’t there—the building. It wasn’t there anymore. The building had been there a few days earlier or was it the day before? Now, suddenly, there was only a wall or two and a huge pile of rubble. It looked like there had been a catastrophic earthquake right at that spot. Or […]

Wilderness park master plan Dear Editor: This year, the city of Claremont has embarked on a study to develop a master-plan that will guide the management of the Claremont Hills Wilderness Park. Over the past months during public meetings on the master plan, several voices from the city council, the Technical Advisory Committee and neighbors […]

Even as the publishing industry continues to evolve and in some cases downsize, your Claremont community newspaper and website continues to be quite popular on a variety of fronts. The latest example is the COURIER’s unique approach to managing our Facebook page. The key difference between our account and that from just about any other […]

by Karl Hilgert When my wife Judy and I moved from northern California to Pilgrim Place in Claremont in August of 2012, we were not quite sure how we would fare in getting to know our 324 new neighbors. We got a bit of an inkling, however, when I wheeled the rental moving truck up […]

by Mark von Wodtke, FASLA, and Ben Wise, PhD Trees. In addition to beauty and enhancing the value of property, trees are essential for a comfortable and healthy habitat. Properly feeding our urban forest helps sustain well-being, not just for us but for all living creatures. When we spread poisons on soil and trees we […]

by Jim Elsasser, superintendent of the Claremont Unified School District It is an exciting time for Claremont Unified School District. CUSD has had a long standing tradition of excellence in academics, the arts, athletics and extracurricular and co-curricular activities.  As the 2013-2014 school year comes to an end, I would like to highlight several of […]

Foothill Boulevard plans Dear Editor: The city of Claremont is in the process of creating a master plan for Foothill Bouelvard. Current discussions revolve solely around the tangible issues: sidewalks, bike lanes, landscaping, etc. There is, however, another aspect to be considered, which has not yet received much recognition. Let’s call them the “intangibles.” The […]

By Debbie Carini It took Michelangelo four years to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. I mention this because my name ends in a vowel, and I am on the verge of feeling that it might also take me that long to paint…my kitchen. It’s probably some form of blasphemy to compare oneself to […]

Embracing self-esteem, part II [Editor’s note: Claremont Girl Scout Junior Troop 1094 from Sycamore School is in the midst of earning a “Becoming a Teen” merit badge and, as such, have been working to debunk the myth of beauty in the media through an examination of airbrushed and Photoshop-enhanced images of women and girls online […]

Celebrating Beth Dear Editor: Among the many reasons I value the COURIER is the opportunity it provides for upward-bound journalists like Beth Hartnett to launch a career. Thanks to the COURIER for starting her, and thanks to Beth for starting here! Butch Henderson Claremont   Earth Day with the league Dear Editor: This week, people […]

By Mellissa Martinez By all accounts, Pope Francis has had a successful first year as leader of the Catholic Church. Celebrated for paying his own bills, washing the feet of non-Catholic prison inmates, residing in simple guest quarters at the Vatican and publicly pondering “Who am I to judge?” Francis has surprised the world as […]

My life has been a love affair with the English language, an infatuation fostered by Tolkien and time. I loved early readings of The Pokey Little Puppy, Little Golden Book Classic and personal bedtime story staple, with the same love I would find later for Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Soaking in the words of […]