Interesting People
Unwanted Test
For Sacramento students applying to college this fall, the future is shrouded in uncertainty. Hailey Kopp, a senior at St. Francis Catholic High School, says, “Things aren’t going as planned, so it has been difficult to adapt.”
Local high school seniors have received countless lessons in adaptability as they tackle the complex process of deciding where and when to begin their college careers amid COVID-19.
Curtis Park Reboot
When you drive by Franklin Boulevard and 11th Avenue—one of the most highly trafficked corners of Curtis Park, just off Highway 99—you might notice things look a bit different.
The formerly nondescript building one block down from Sutterville Road now features an arresting mural by local artist Natalia Sanchez (who goes by the moniker CH3Z) of a Medusa-like figure with flowing locks and piercing eyes that glow at night. Overgrown bushes have been pruned or replaced with bright blooms. The building has been painted, and sleek new exterior lighting illuminates a chic sign for The London Beauty Bar. Everything in the three-tenant shopping center looks brighter and lighter—all thanks to new owner Margaret Levandoski.
The Art Of Public Speaking
Though Derek Yuan is only 17 years old, you wouldn’t know it talking to him on the phone. The Mira Loma High School senior credits his impressive verbal poise to six years of speech and debate training. And he’s determined to give other kids the chance to develop their own public speaking skills through Leaders Speak, a free online training program he co-founded with fellow Mira Loma senior Hemang Dhaulakhandi.
“I was very shy growing up,” Yuan admits. “I was really lucky I made the speech and debate team in middle school or I wouldn’t have gotten started on this path. Once I got to high school, I realized that I’d gained all these skills by participating in speech and debate competitions—but not everyone has the same access to those opportunities. We decided to spread our experience and knowledge to as many people as possible.”
All In The Family
“There’s a restaurant in every family tree,” writer Nancy Econome says. “I wanted to bring out those stories.”
Econome has done just that with her debut novel, “The Classic Grill: A Tale of Greek Gods and Immigrant Heroes,” which chronicles the family struggles of a successful Greek-owned restaurant in Vallejo in 1942. The book is loosely based on Econome’s grandparents’ restaurant of the same name.
The Real Deal
Jennifer Sattler is the first person to admit that “fashion is fluffy—but it also makes a big difference.”
Now striking out on her own after 20 years as a personal stylist at Nordstrom, Sattler is all about how clothing makes you feel—and it doesn’t need to be designer to make you feel your best.
“It’s not just about the brand, it’s about your aesthetic, your lifestyle, what resonates with you,” she says. “Whether it’s Target or Chanel, you have to know what works for you.”
Here Comes The Sun
Sunburst Projects’ new executive director Jacob Bradley-Rowe likes to say that he’s proud of his organization—a nonprofit that empowers children, women and families living with HIV—for always taking the extra step. The same could be said of Bradley-Rowe himself.
Bradley-Rowe has dedicated nearly two decades of his life to nonprofit work, both as a staffer and volunteer. The interest in giving back to his community was instilled in him from an early age—as the sixth generation of his family to raise cattle and sheep in Grass Valley, Bradley-Rowe spent his childhood deeply involved with 4H and FFA.
