Saratoga News

Saratoga Sampler

Mary Ann Cook

Betty Peck dinner honors garden author

TENDING YOUR GARDEN: Betty Peck held a dinner reception for author/photographer Elizabeth Murray at the Peck manse one recent Saturday. Murray is the author of a garden book called Cultivating Sacred Space: Gardening for the Soul, a subject that is right up Betty Peck's path. As a kindergarten teacher, her philosophy is that every kindergarten door should open into a garden and all curricula should be based on the garden. "The garden is the source of all wisdom and the basis of all art" is the B. Peck philosophy. "When you work in the garden, you're working on your own soul."

Photos of the Peck garden, outdoor theater, Gypsy cart and bench with the words "Changing Culture through Conversation" are all featured in the Murray book. Plus, there's a dedication to Betty Peck. Murray read excerpts from her book at the gathering, and Sarah Rainville (a Peck grandchild), 7, performed some Irish step-dancing, accompanied by her mother, Anna, to celebrate Murray's Irish roots.

This is Murray's third book. Monet's Passion, text and pictures of the artist's garden, was her first. Well, Claude Monet's garden at Giverny may be impressive, but it doesn't have a narrow-gauge railroad running by it. Also credited in the current Murray book is the Saratoga firm of Design Focus, operated by Hank Helbush and Rebecca Dye. Murray also spoke at Peck's autumn equinox seminar for kindergarten teachers last week, and she will be featured in the Nov. 25 Foothill Club lecture, open to the public.

OPERA GUILD: San Jose Opera Guild held a 50th-anniversary celebration at La Rinconada Country Club last week. Arias from both Opera San Jose and the S.F. Opera season were performed by S.J Opera Company members commemorating the opening of the opera season. Singers were Barbara Divis, Brian Leerhuber, Thomas Truhitte and Liya Fang. Accompanying them was Thomas Webb, vocal coach. Clifford "Kip" Cranna, musical administrator of the S.F. Opera Company, spoke about the opening of the refurbished S.F. War Memorial Opera House.

The Opera Guild is headed by Alice Skurko at 356-7651. The guild hosts several lectures each season at the L.G. History Club to correspond with a coming opera. For lecture info: Saratogan Joy Hulme at 741-1331. The guild sponsored a fundraiser for Hakone at the garden this summer and also offers an outreach program to schools.

CELEBRITY PORTRAITS: Saratoga artist Maree Lubran's portrait of Herb Caen will be on exhibit at the Triton Museum of Art in Santa Clara Oct. 9-19. The work will be part of the auction action Nov. 6-9 to benefit KTEH. Other celebrity portraits Lubran has donated to the auction are Maya Angelou and John Inman (British actor/
comedian of Are You Being Served?). These three portraits are painted in black and white; another, of Red Buttons, is in color.

Lubran, a former president of the Los Gatos Art Association, has donated paintings to benefit the public broadcasting company for the past four years. She paints the celebrity portrait, then mails it to him/her (if she can't meet in person) to get it autographed. She calls this process her collection of "art-o-graphs." This is the first year she's been selected to hang work at the Triton. A reception for the artists at the Triton exhibit will be held Oct. 11.

PHOTOGRAPHY HONORS Also at the Triton, this time in a photography show, is Audrey Ray Daniel (Saratoga High '76), daughter of Esther and Jerry Daniel. The show had more than 400 entrants statewide and was judged by Sandra Phillips, photography curator of SFMOMA. Daniel, a professional photographer, received an Award of Merit. Her work is also on display at S.F. Academy of Art College and at the Honolulu Academy of Art. She had a one-person show at White Bird Gallery in Cannon Beach, Ore., this summer. Audrey studied at New York University and Marylhurst in Oregon, as well as S.F. Academy.

SR. CENTER ACTION: The Senior Center offers luncheons every Wednesday at noon for $3 and programs besides. A recent program was a tribute to Betty Hadsall, who was active in the Needlework Network, the quilting group. Her quilts, all hand done, were on display throughout the room. Hadsall's daughter, Carol Utter, talked about how much enjoyment her mother got from the offerings at the center, having taken art classes there, too. Needlework Network leader Dorothy Mallo added her fond remembrances of Mrs. Hadsall, in particular her appreciation of nature, being a confirmed "cloud watcher."

Besides lunch and a speaker, the Senior Center offers free tickets to local entertainment events and provides a free service each week. The service that Wednesday was optical. Three opticians were present to adjust any eyeglasses that were out of line.

SIZZLING SENIORS: The Sizzling Seniors, an outgrowth of the dance aerobics classes led by Bev Myers of Saratoga, are held at the Los Gatos Neighborhood Center.

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