The Cupertino Courier
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Stars will shine at annual banquet
The Cupertino Chamber of Commerce is hosting its annual STAR Awards Banquet on March 15 at 6 p.m. at the Cypress Hotel, 10050 S. De Anza Blvd.
The ceremony celebrates this year's winning recipients, including Citizen of the Year Martha Kanter, chancellor of the Foothill/De Anza Community College District, and The Learning Game as the Small Business of the Year.
The Santa Clara County Fire Department's Cupertino station received the Large Business/Organization of the Year, and Mark Sarjeant was named ambassador of the year.
For more information, visit www.cupertino-chamber.org.
Free workshop on preparing for emergencies
Residents can learn basic safety skills to keep their families and homes safe during a no-cost personal emergency preparedness workshop.
The workshop is scheduled March 18 from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. in the Quinlan Community Center's Social Room, 10185 N. Stelling Road.
Online registration is available at http://reg4fun.cupertino.org/econnect.
Call 408.777.3120 for more information.
Church schedules spring choral performances
The West Valley Presbyterian Church hosts the 17th annual spring sing of Handel's Messiah March 16 at 7 p.m. and March 17 at 7:30 p.m.
Performances include popular choruses, solos and an Easter section.
Free tickets are available by sending a self-addressed stamped envelope to the church with the number of requested tickets and the performance date desired.
West Valley Presbyterian Church is located at 6191 Bollinger Road, Cupertino, 95014.
For more information, call 408.252.1365 or visit www.wvpc.org/messiah.
Monta Vista senior wins speech contest
The Rotary Club of Cupertino announced that Janhavi Athavale, a senior at Monta Vista High School, is the winner of the local Richard D. King annual youth speech contest. She will advance to the District 5170 finals, which will be held at the Rotary District conference brunch on April 13 at the Doubletree Hotel in San Jose.
Each of the 59 clubs in Rotary International District 5170 is eligible to hold a speech contest drawing students from private and public high schools. Local finalists are awarded a first prize of $100.The first place winner in regional level competition is given $200.
Athavale's winning speech centered on kindergarten and what she learned on the playground about leadership and sharing. She tied into the importance of education and her concerns over the proposed billion dollar cuts to education that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is proposing.
Cupertino Rotary meets at 12:15 p.m. Wednesdays. For more information, visit the www.cupertinorotary.org website.
Free compost is available for spring planting
The city of Cupertino's compost site reopens on March 28--in time for spring planting.
The Stevens Creek Quarry site on Stevens Canyon Road (across from the dam) will be open for bulk compost pickup on Fridays and Saturdays from 8:30 to 11 a.m. at no charge. No appointments are necessary. The site is closed during rainy weather or if the site remains muddy and on holiday weekends. The following rules apply:
Only Cupertino residents can use this program. Please bring proof of residency.
If a resident has hired a gardener, the resident must accompany the gardener when he or she picks up the compost.
There will not be any staff at the site to assist residents in shoveling compost or moving bags. Please bring adequate shovels and people to help.
Bring containers to hold your compost.
Bring a tarp and tie-down ropes to cover compost carried in your truck.
For recorded information call 408.777.1320, or city offices at 408.777.3269 (6:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.). Information is also available on the city's website at www.cupertino.org .