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Saratoga Sampler
Hakone Gardens sponsors trip to gardens in Japan
By Mary Ann Cook
TO JAPAN: Hakone Gardens is sponsoring a spring trip to Japan, a special garden tour, and two who are looking forward to the trip are Kik and Jim Sugai. Jim is the former parks superintendent for Los Gatos. Both Sugais have relatives in Japan. They've been to Japan before, but that was more than 20 years ago.
Saratogans who have signed on are Ruth Brunner, Joe and Marty Clevenger, Nina Hitchcock, Ralph and Helen Metcalf, and Roy and Eiko Shimicu. Los Gatans making the trip are Mariette Kennedy and Shellie Lee.
John Tauchi and his wife, Aiko, are putting the trip together. The group will visit public and private gardens throughout Japan. Most of the travelers are members of the Hakone Foundation Board. Tauchi has led many fascinating trips to Japan and other Far East destinations for Hakone through the years.
COMMEMORATIVE TRIP: Ted and Joan Braucht celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary a bit late: They celebrated the October date in December and January. But it was well worth the wait. Their celebration encompassed a 7,000 mile cross-country motorhome trip topped off with a holiday reunion with their offspring in Orlando, Fla.
That would be daughters Karen and Sherry and their husbands, children and grandchildren. The Christmas holidays were spent hosting the whole family at Disney World. After the younger generations left, there was still plenty of time for Florida golf.
It was a six-week trek, and they took in lots of sights along the way. Back home, both Braudts seem to be drawn to holes-in-one. Joan recently toted up her second, this one at Rinconada. That's one more h-i-o than her husband, he proudly points out.
BACK TO THE PAST: Laddie and Jan Petrucha of Saratoga write that they are having the trip of a lifetime on their Mediterranean cruise, plus stops in Athens, Ephesus, Rhodes, Crete and three days in Istanbul. A terrific learning experience, they describe it, viewing the grounds from whence the grassroots of classical civilization and Christianity sprung.
HEARTS IN THROAT, ART IN HAND: The Los Gatos Art Association members may have their hearts in their throats as well as their art in hands at their February meeting. They'll have the chance to have a professional evaluate their work when they meet Feb. 12. Courtney Granner will do the critiques. He's assistant professor in the illustration/animation department of the school of art at San Jose State University.
At the March 11 meeting, Mary Offermann will demonstrate pastels.
There are close to 200 members of the association who meet monthly to nurture contacts, learn about other techniques--to network, to exhibit and to sell. The art group meets at 1 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church, 19 High School Court. Contact is Kathy Keenan at 358-7358.
AT WAR: Los Gatos at War is the new exhibit at the Forbes Mill Museum. The show opens Feb. 3 and runs through April. The exhibit traces how the locals were affected by conflicts from the Civil War to the Gulf War. A reception will be held Feb. 27 from noon to 4 p.m.
AUTHORS' LUNCH: The yearly authors' lunch that benefits the AAUW Education Foundation will be held Feb. 3 at La Rinconada Country Club. Authors to be featured are Glenda Burgess, Laurel Doud and mystery writer Lora Roberts, whose protagonist is a Palo Alto freelance writer.
Burgess's book is Loose Threads. Doud's book is This Body. Tickets are $45 and can be ordered from Nancy Hobbs at 395-4045 or Mary Henderson at 867-1928.
In other AAUW action, The Chinese New Year Gourmet Dinner will be held Feb. 10 at Hong's Gourmet Restaurant on Big Basin Way. Proceeds benefit a female West Valley College re-entry student majoring in science or math and transferring to a four-year school in pursuit of a bachelor's degree.
The dinner speaker will be Rose Marie Twu, co-chair of the Chinese Historical/Cultural Project. Tickets at $30 per can be ordered by Feb. 5 from Margaret Ford, 13444 Beaumont Ave., Saratoga. Checks should be made out to ISPF (Interbranch Special Project Fund). Louise Quenon can arrange rides to the dinner, and Carol Howard is scholarship committee chairman.
BAY AREA BACKROADS: Los Gatos is the subject of the Feb. 5 edition of Bay Area Backroads. The show airs at 6 p.m. on Channel 4. We know the filming group had breakfast at Los Gatos Cafe, but what other high points were covered remains to be seen--at show time.
SASO GARDENS: Though retired, Virginia and Louis Saso continue to educate others about the splendors and therapeutic benefits of gardening and herbs. Their apprentice classes begin in February for eight sessions.
Some apprentices are so dedicated they continue to work at the garden voluntarily long after attending the program. The volunteers include Rotrout Wolter of Saratoga and Lonni Goldman of Los Gatos. Lecture tours and craft classes begin in April. Daughter Mary Lou Saso will help teach the craft classes.
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Saratoga, California Since 1955
