Blood Drive at LCIF

Today, Thursday, May 14, LCIF will host a blood drive for the American Red Cross from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the church’s Fellowship Hall. Walk-ins are welcome. Those who wish to schedule a specific donation time can do so by visiting redcrossblood.org and entering “lcifoothills” when prompted. All donors will receive a $20 Amazon gift card, courtesy of the Red Cross.

Visit lcifoothills.org for event details. 

For more information or to request/offer help, email office@lcifoothills.org or call (818) 790-1951. 

The church is located at 1700 Foothill Blvd. in La Cañada Flintridge. Office hours are 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Monday through Thursday.

St. Bede Holding Open House, Introducing New Pre-school Director

St. Bede the Venerable Parish and School announced the appointment of Mercedes Benigno Rosales as the preschool director for its new St. Bede Preschool, opening in August 2026. The preschool is now enrolling and accepting applications for the 2026–27 school year. A meet & greet open house is scheduled on Sunday, May 17 after all morning Masses.

St. Bede Preschool will welcome children who are 3 or 4 years old, with students required to be 3 by Sept. 1, 2026. All students must be fully potty trained.

To accommodate a variety of family needs, the preschool will offer several scheduling options:

• Half-Day Program: Monday–Friday, from 8 a.m. to noon
• Full-Day Program (three days): Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Full-Day Program (five days): Monday–Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Optional after-school care will be available in the preschool classroom until 6 p.m. for an additional fee.

Class sizes will range from 16 students to a maximum of 20 students, led by a highly qualified lead teacher and supported by one to two instructional assistants at all times, maintaining a low child-to-teacher ratio of 1:12 or less.

For more information, contact Brandon Birr, principal, at (818) 790-7884 or email bbirr@stbedeschool.net.

ICF – Branch 374 Sponsors Italian Workshop

Italian Catholic Federation (ICF) – Branch 374 is sponsoring workshops on conversational Italian. The workshops are on six Saturdays through June 13 from 9 a.m. to noon at St. Bede Catholic Church. The cost for the workshops is $130 for ICF members, $150 for non-members.

The workshops will be taught by Laura Godin and Raffaella La Scala, native Italian college professors, at St. Bede, 215 Foothill Blvd. in La Cañada.

For more information call (818) 599-6626 or email icf374@outlook.com.

UUCVH Extends Kindness Challenge, Hosts Cesar Cardona

The Unitarian Universalist Church of the Verdugo Hills (UUCVH) has joined the United States of Kindness challenge to participate in 250 acts of kindness, one act for every year of the nation’s history. The community is invited to join in this challenge. Acts can be big or small: helping a neighbor, thanking a teacher, mentoring a student or giving back to the local community. People can post acts of kindness on the @UUVerdugo Facebook page and share their story to inspire others. 

To learn more about the United States of Kindness by Kindland visit the webpage https://www.usofkindness.org/.

UUCVH welcomes back writer and musician Cesar Cardona to the pulpit on May 17 for his talk: “Using Common ‘Cents’: Weaponizing Your Wallet.”

Growth mindfulness guide Cardona will empower everyone with his knowledge. Known as “The Common Cents Guy,” he dismantles the myth that people are powerless to big business and replaces that misconception with an undeniable truth: Your Wallet is Your Weapon. 

He will be in person at 10:30 a.m. (Pacific time) at 4451 Dunsmore Ave. in La Crescenta or visit the UUCVH website for the ZOOM link https://www.uuverdugo.org/.

This Week at Mount Olive Lutheran

The community is invited to take part in the following events at Mount Olive Lutheran Church:

* Food Donation on Sunday, May 17: Mount Olive is collecting dry goods for the Bailey Center, a community outreach program of Tujunga United Methodist Church. The Bailey Center provides emergency food, clothing and medical/hygiene kits to those in need.

* Wednesday Bible Study & Prayer Group: All are invited to the Wednesday Bible study and prayer group at 6:30 p.m. in the fellowship hall at Mount Olive. The group is studying the Book of Genesis. Everyone is welcome.

* Breakfast Bible Study on Saturday, May 16: Meet at Panera at 8:30 a.m. for breakfast, fellowship and study.

Mount Olive is located at 3561 Foothill Blvd. in La Crescenta. For more information, call the office at (818) 248-4253 or visit MOLC.org.

CSL Offers Gentle Movement Class

The Center for Spiritual Living – La Crescenta is offering a gentle stretch and relax chair movement with Michelle Gillette. It takes place every Friday from 10 to 11 a.m. The cost is a $10 donation.

The class is at Chaffee Hall in the Center for Spiritual Living – La Crescenta.

The Center for Spiritual Living is located at 4845 Dunsmore Ave. in La Crescenta. For more information, call (818) 249-1045.

Walk and Word 

Walk and Word participants will meet in the parking lot of Deukmejian Wilderness Park, 3429 Markridge Road in La Crescenta/Glendale at 8 a.m. on May 17, 24 & 31. Participants will walk for the first hour and then gather to read a selection of Scripture. About a half hour will be spent journaling about what was read and then there will be conversation, sharing thoughts.

Participants are asked to bring something to write with, anything wanted to eat or drink, and a chair to use for the writing part of the morning. Because people will be outdoors and social distancing will be practiced, masks will be optional. 

Those with questions can email Jeanne at jnlavieri@earthlink.net. 

All are welcome. If the hike is too strenuous, there are level paths at the park. There are ramps from the parking lot to the field where the group gathers after the hike.