The Downtown Campbell Business Association only got half of what it wanted.

On Nov. 1, the Campbell City Council voted 5-1 to allow a slight expansion to the St. Patrick's Day Irish Festival in downtown Campbell, but said no to the association's request to expand the hours of the event.

The association requested that the festival, planned for March 17, 2005, be expanded by half a block from the railroad tracks on E. Campbell Avenue to the Kensington Art Centre's parking lot. Last year the event was cordoned off at Central Avenue. The organizers were also asking to extend the event's time from 9 to 10 p.m.

Although most of the council members voted to allow the expansion in geographic size, they rejected the association's request for an extension of hours, citing concerns about alcohol consumption and the cost of providing security. Mayor Donald Burr cast the only vote against expanding the event.

Penoyer singled out
for years of service

On Nov. 1, after more than three decades as a part-time steno clerk in the Campbell Public Works Department, the Campbell City Council commended Lynn Penoyer for 35 years of service to the city.

Penoyer began her career on Nov. 24, 1969. After she was hired, she became an engineering aide in 1974 and worked her way up the ladder to her current position in 2001 as manager for the Campbell environmental and land-development programs.

Penoyer plans to retire from city service on Dec. 30. The city is planning a retirement event for her in early 2005.

Fundraiser to help
women and girls

For those looking for a different kind of gift during the holiday season, the Soroptimist International of Silicon Valley will be holding its Holiday Boutique fundraising event.

Proceeds will go toward funding the club's projects, including an annual award given to a female head-of-household enrolled in a degree program; a financial award given to girls between the ages of 14 and 17 actively involved in local service projects; and a program that provides housing, counseling and support for survivors of domestic violence and their children.

Jewelry, fabric art, cosmetics and paper projects made by local artists will be available for purchase.

The event will be held at the Odd Fellows Hall in downtown Campbell, 276 E. Campbell Ave., on Nov. 20, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. To learn more about the organization, visit its website at www.soroptimistsilicon valley.org.

Santa Clara Library
is ranked at the top

For the fourth year in a row, the Santa Clara County Library has been ranked one of the top libraries in the country. The library topped the Hennen's American Public Library Ratings list of libraries that serve 250,000 to 500,000 people.

The Santa Clara County Library operates community libraries in Campbell, Cupertino, Gilroy, Los Altos, Milpitas, Morgan Hill and Saratoga, as well as the Alum Rock and Woodland branches and a bookmobile that serves outlying areas.

This year, the Santa Clara County Library was the only library in California to be ranked among the 100 best in the United States for high quality and cost-effective service.

The ranking is a bittersweet honor, as a defeated parcel-tax measure in March has forced the county library to cut back on some of its services and impose fees for others.

Del Mar instructor
will travel to Japan

It's going to take a lot longer for Del Mar High School teacher Linda Goytia to get to work during November.

Instead of driving her car to the campus, she'll be hopping a plane to the Land of the Rising Sun, where she'll mingle among Japanese teachers and students at primary and secondary schools, visit cultural sites and industries and live with a Japanese family.

Goytia was among approximately 600 teachers selected from a pool of 2,000 applicants nationally who will travel throughout Japan for three weeks as a guest of the Japanese government on the Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program.

The Fulbright Memorial Fund Teacher Program, which is meant to promote greater intercultural understanding between the United States and Japan, was established by the Japanese government to commemorate a program named for Sen. J. William Fulbright. It is not related to the U.S. Fulbright Program.

Educators throughout the United States can apply for the program. For more information about the 2005 application, call the Institute of International Education at 1.888.527.2636 or visit the website at www.iie.org.

Realtors team up
for local charities

The Santa Clara County Association of Realtors in the Campbell, Willow Glen and Rose Garden areas has raised $11,000 for local charities to use during the holiday season.

The group held a "Pumpkin Auction" at its regular marketing meeting in October at The Elephant Bar in Campbell. The decorated pumpkins with gift certificates went for $300 to $400 each. The seventh annual auction raised $10,000, with another $1,000 coming from a barbecue.

The monies will be divided between Second Harvest Food Bank, Loaves and Fishes, InnVision and Sacred Heart Community Services.

Participants are all members of the Santa Clara County Realtors Foundation, established in 1991. In the past decade, the foundation has contributed more than $250,000 to local charities

New CUSD Program will benefit educators

The Campbell Union School District is educating more than just children.

On Oct. 27, the district launched its CUSD Online Education Center, a professional-development program aimed to educate the educators themselves.

The new program is open to all California teachers. It offers courses that are state- and university-approved and that meet the standards set by California's Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment program. Courses were designed by practicing experts from the Campbell Union School District and the University of California at Santa Cruz to emphasize flexibility, instructor support and feedback, discussions and the elimination of geographical barriers.

So far, each class runs between $160 and $225. Campbell Union School District Superintendent Johanna VanderMolen said the district anticipates future funds generated from teachers taking advantage of the program will help reduce budget cuts, bring back services that support schools, and help pay for programs that benefit libraries, music, art and counseling services.

For more information about the CUSD Online Education Center, visit the website at www.campbellusd.org/edcenter.