By Mary O’KEEFE

The Crescenta Valley High School Falkon 589 robotic team recently visited the Los Angeles Breakfast Club.

“For the 101st anniversary of the start of the Los Angeles Breakfast Club we [are] focused on our future. Bringing in the Falkon robotics team 589 was one way to give the atmosphere a futuristic feeling as well as show off a group that has benefited from a grant through the Breakfast Club Foundation, the philanthropic branch of the organization,” said Joanna Linkchorst, Breakfast Club member. 

Linkchorst discovered the Los Angeles Breakfast Club when a friend found a blurb about it on social media. The Club is well-known for its speakers and Linkchorst’s friend thought this would be a good audience for her to share the history of Rockhaven Sanitarium. Linkchorst is the president of Friends of Rockhaven and a constant voice in support of this woman-owned and -operated historical property at 2713 Honolulu Ave. in Montrose. 

As the founder of Friends of Rockhaven, she made the presentation to the Club that included the history of the 1924 Montrose sanitarium. She not only loved meeting the members of the Club but decided to become a member.

CVW wrote about the Club during its 100th anniversary: 

Anyone who visits one of these early morning meetings must leave their preconceived notions of what being a member of a club means. This is not like any other organization … there are songs, stimulating conversation about a variety of topics that range from the film business to gardening and space exploration – with actual rocket scientists and sci-fi writers. CVW was invited to a morning meeting a few weeks ago and the memory is strong of this group of eclectic people who have so much fun just being around each other. 

“It all started back in the fall of 1924 with a grand group of sportsmen that revolved around the officers and directors of the Los Angeles National Horse Show,” according to information provided by historian Rachel Skytt.

The group of riding friends met on Friday mornings at Al Meyer’s Griffith Park Riding Academy. They would ride into Griffith Park where Marco Hellman would meet them with his then-famous chuckwagon and they would have a hearty breakfast. Hellman, a banker who was he son of a banker whose family were early residents of LA. He loved LA and horseback riding. 

Riding horses to a beautiful spot and having a big breakfast and then riding back to the stables with a full stomach was not easy. So Hellman decided to have the breakfast moved to the stables and riders would eat after their ride, which was much easier on the stomach. Hellman added some entertainment to the breakfast by inviting a “group of Mexican artists” to play for the breakfast guests. 

Maurice DeMond, a member of the Horse Show, proposed an early morning breakfast club and the LA Breakfast Club was born. 

The Club has a history of bringing interesting people in to talk to during its meetings; in the past presentations were made by Dale Carnegie, Louis B Mayer and Vin Scully. 

For the 101st celebration, the entire Club was decorated. 

“The way the programming team went above and beyond with decorations and an engaging morning of celebrating the Club of Friendship is one reason I come back nearly every week,” Linkchorst said. “We always have impressive speakers.” 

The Club has grown immensely in the nine years since Linkchorst has been involved. It has always brought together a diverse group and fostered friendship, which is appropriate since the group meets at Friendship Auditorium at Riverside Drive and Los Feliz. 

That inclusive feeling was perfect for the 589 team, which invites everyone to join them who is interested in robotics. 

“[Team] 589 spoke about the missions of FIRST [For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology] and Falkon robotics, in addition to sharing what the team does overall. The students shared 589’s technical aspects, including an event scouting app, prototyping center, CNC machine and robot upgrade projects. They also discussed their external operations and outreach, such as their annual free Engineering Expo for students K-eighth [grade] to explore various STEAM activities and FIRST Lego League teams,” said Aimee Beck, 589 mentor and Southern Regional director for FIRST Robotics. 

The team has spent the last eight weeks designing and building a robot that can shoot balls into a goal and climb onto a ladder rung, Beck said.

Each year FIRST creates a game. Teams across the world then design and build a robot to play that game. Teams have eight weeks to complete the robot and then travel to different competitions.

“The team will be attending the Ventura District Event at Ventura College and the Aerospace Valley District Event in Lancaster. Hopefully, they will qualify for the Southern California District Championship at the Anaheim Convention Center April 9-12,” Beck said of this year’s competition season.

But the competitions are expensive and the team must raise funds to not only build their robot but to also attend the events. 

“People can support [the 589 team]  in so many ways. The team is always looking for financial support to allow 589 to continue to operate in our open-door format, allowing anyone to participate regardless of their financial needs. Beyond financial support, the team would love to show what they have learned. They love giving demonstrations to groups and would love to have people cheer them on at a competition! [Visit] https://www.cvrobots.com/support-us,” Beck said. 

For Linkchorst the future of the Los Angeles Breakfast Club looks bright. 

“It is a happy, special place of connection,” Linkchorst said. “Even when things in the rest of my life bring me down being around friends for a few hours to eat, be silly and learn helps me get through. People ask how I am and I say, ‘Right now? I’m great.’ Everyone is welcome, and we love it when they share the spirit of the Club and want to join as a member. It really seems the more the merrier.”