CRA News October 2003

CRA members recognized by Council

Certificates of Appreciation were presented by the City Council on Oct. 7 to Bob Kohn and Wayne Kelley for their service on the Forest and Beach Commission and to Anne Bell for serving on the Historic Preservation Committee. Although Bell and Kohn, chairpersons of their respective groups, had requested reappointment, both were rejected. Kelley had not sought reappointment. All three have considerable expertise in their respective areas, have worked diligently for the city and should be commended for their many years of service.

New board members

Suzanne Arnold and Pat Wilson have recently joined the Carmel Residents Association's Board of Directors. Look for profiles by Walter Gourlay on each of these talented residents in the next two issues of CRA News.

Beach Cleanup

Carmel beach yields 381 pounds of debris!

Headed by CRA President Larry Rodocker and Kay and Harvey Kuffner, Carmel's part of the statewide coastal cleanup was very productive. Seventy volunteers picked up 101 pounds of recyclable items and 270 pounds of trash. Included in the massive pile of debris were 882 cigarette butts, 14 filled mutt mitts, 127 bottles, 97 aluminum cans, 332 food wrappers, 13 balloons, a tennis racquet and a racquet ball racquet. Also a cell phone and car keys. When the Kuffners went to the informational meeting for all coastal cleanup volunteers, they were told by the Coastal Commission representative that "Carmel Beach is considered the cleanest beach in Monterey County." This is due to the efforts of the Carmel Residents Association Beach Cleanup as well as other dedicated beach walkers.

No Beach Cleanup This Month -- CRA Volunteers will March in Oct. 25 Parade!

Cleanup volunteers and other CRA members who want to march in the parade should meet at 10:15 a.m. in front of Perspectacles, San Carlos between Ocean & 7th. The parade begins at 11 a.m. If you don't have a vest, we will supply one. It's lots of fun and this group is always a great hit with its familiar chant:

For more information, see the article below or call Clayton Anderson at 624-3208.

It's Time for the City Parade and Barbecue

Once again the famous CRA precision marching team will perform in the Halloween parade. (See article above). The parade will begin at 11 a.m. at San Carlos and 7th, make a loop on Ocean Ave. and then go to Sunset Center. The barbecue begins at noon and an open house, including the new theater, three levels back stage and the historical exhibit in the Marjorie Evans Gallery, runs from noon to 4 p.m.

Tickets for the chicken barbecue lunch are available at City Hall and Nielsen Brothers Market, San Carlos at 7th Avenue, at $10 per adult. Hot dogs for children under 12 are free. And, as always, there will be delicious birthday cake, ice cream and live music.

If you have questions, please call Community Services Manager Christie Miller at 620-2020.

CRA Profiles by Walter Gourlay

How can CRA member Howard Brunn be described in one brief article? He deserves a full book. Wartime bomber pilot with many decorations, former actor, successful businessman, environmental activist, public benefactor, former City Council member, long-time Carmel resident, Howard Brunn seems to have done it all.

Born in San Francisco in 1923, but raised in Carmel when his father opened a garage here in 1926, Brunn has been successful in just about every endeavor he has chosen. His life story is closely entwined with the history of the village he loves.

Howard attended the Sunset Grammar School, then went to the newly opened Carmel High and graduated with its second class. His favorite subjects were English and dramatics, and he developed a taste for the theater. He acted in school plays, and, a natural leader, was elected president of the student body.

Then, while in high school, he turned his attention to aviation, an interest that has never left him. In 1941 Howard passed the exam for Aviation Cadet and graduated from school shortly before Pearl Harbor. He went directly into the Army Air Corps. Stationed in Corsica during the war, he flew seventy missions piloting B-25 bombers in the Mediterranean and European Theaters. He earned the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal with eleven oak leaf clusters, the European Theater Ribbon with four battle stars, and his outfit won two Presidential Unit Citations.

After separation from the Air Force, he returned to his first love, the theater, and on the G.I. Bill studied drama at the Gellar Theater Workshop in Westwood and the Oliver Hillsdale Studio. He returned to Carmel in 1949.

"But in those days in Carmel," Howard recalls, "there was really very little theater. I'd travel to New York just for the plays."

Soon he found other interests. He'd often noticed, in Kip's Market (formerly at San Carlos and Ocean), a "beautiful blonde, living on Carmel Point, with two little girls in tow." He prevailed upon some friends to introduce him, and married his wife, Courtney, in 1960. In addition to Vance and Karen, Courtney's daughters by a previous marriage, the Brunns have two sons, Mark and David, and a daughter, Robin.

Howard found that rehearsals took too much time from his family, so, ever versatile, he gave up acting and turned his talents to business, opening Howard Brunn's Men's Shop in the Pine Inn. "We specialized in traditional clothing," he says. "This was an innovation in the West." From the 60's to the 80's he owned several successful stores in Carmel, some of them in partnership with his wife, who had business skills and interests similar to his. She also opened stores of her own. Over the years, Courtney has won renown as a skilled interior designer, and most recently was involved with the interior of the renovated Sunset Theater.

In the 1980's Howard joined the Robert Talbott Tie Company and worked there for seventeen years. Now retired, he continues to serve on their board. He's also on the board of Paula Skene Designs, a manufacturer of greeting cards located in Berkeley.

Howard combines his talents for business with community service. He's what the mainstream press likes to call an "activist," concerned about habitat preservation and the environment. As a member of the Carmel City Council from 1978 to 1982, he helped organize OLAF, the Odello Land Acquisition Fund, which kept the artichoke farm near Point Lobos from being sold to developers. He was a leader in the fight to keep supertankers out of Monterey Bay. For thirteen years he's served the Hatton Canyon Coalition as board member and treasurer, and celebrates the fact that "it will never, never become a freeway." Howard helped in the early days of the Big Sur Land Trust and was a member of its initial Advisory Committee. Today he serves on the boards of the Carmel Preservation Foundation and the Carmel Valley Forum.

The Brunns live in a strikingly beautiful home near the mouth of Carmel Valley, contemporary in styling, with a marked feeling of openness. Howard explains that when they bought it, it was considered a "tear-down," but Courtney went to work, and thanks to her, it's a thing of beauty.

As for his early interest in the stage, he says he has no time to be active. "We go to plays here and still go to New York every year for the theater." Furthermore, an active interest in jazz has led to his becoming the president of the very successful Monterey Jazz Festival. "After all," he grins, "isn't the Festival really a form of theater?"

A few years ago, he decided he missed the joys of flying. So, in his mid-seventies, he went to Hollister to take up gliding-powerless flight. "Mostly for the challenge of doing it right," he says. And, like everything else he does, he did it right. So very right that he gave it up because it became "boring," "Not enough of a challenge."

Whatever he does, he once told a reporter, "I love every minute of what I'm doing."

That sounds like Howard Brunn.

More travel tips, Halloween,
end of daylight savings
by Carmel Fire Department Captain Mitch Kastros

Last month we discussed safety and survival tips when staying in high-rise hotels and emphasized investing a little time in being prepared and knowing your surroundings in the event of a fire. Having a way out and knowing when to risk attempting to exit a hazardous situation is extremely important. If you decide to stay in your room, you can make your room safer with some simple applications, and buy yourself some time until help arrives. If you missed these tips, please call 620-2030 and we'll send you a copy of the article, or refer to the online version of the article.

Motels and bed and breakfasts may not pose the challenges of a high-rise hotel, but there are potential health and safety concerns. Knowing your surroundings, obstacles and at least two escape routes will go a long way in helping you in the event of a fire.

Motels are just hotels with their hallways and corridors outdoors instead of indoors. For the most part they are less confining than hotels and easier to get out of. But don't get complacent. Heavy smoke is still harmful outdoors, so use extreme caution if you attempt to expose yourself to it, and stay low outside as well as inside. A bed and breakfast is usually more confining than either a motel or a hotel, with tables, chairs and other objects creating difficulties for people trying to exit in an emergency.

Road travel, whether a trip to the store or across country, is full of challenges that can try the patience of even model citizens. A split-second lapse in concentration due to aggression, distraction or lack of common sense and courtesy can immediately and dramatically change our lives for the worse. Some simple suggestions and basic practices for safe driving that can help you avoid accidents are as follows:

As with escaping a fire, maintain awareness of your surroundings and have a way out if trouble develops. Maintain more than adequate distance between your vehicle and the vehicle in front of you, and never put yourself between two big rigs when on a freeway. And, as difficult as it may be for any of us, do not confront inconsiderate, aggressive drivers. Just let them by and in a few seconds they will be out of your life. This is a better option than challenging them and having an accident, and, if lucky, only ending up in court.

Halloween will be upon us soon, kicking off the holiday season with the use of candles, decorative lights and other electrical novelties. Please use common sense and caution, and be aware of safety during this festive time of year. We will touch on more holiday safety tips next month.

Daylight Savings Time ends on Oct. 26th, when we turn back our clocks one hour to Standard Time. This is a reminder for all of us to replace the batteries in our smoke detectors.

Have a fun and happy Halloween.

Emergency class offered

Remember that your City Council is on T.V.