Welcome to The Santa Monica Star

For years, The Santa Monica Star has been a trusted voice on the Westside – connecting neighbors, celebrating local stories, and fostering meaningful relationships throughout the community. Published monthly in both print and e-newsletter formats, The Santa Monica Star is thoughtfully distributed where life happens – banks, restaurants, medical offices, schools, boutiques, and gathering places across Santa Monica, now extending into Mar Vista and West Los Angeles. Each issue shines a spotlight on the people and businesses that define the area, highlighting our local “celebrities” alongside vibrant coverage of community events. The Santa Monica Star is a platform for connection – helping businesses reach engaged local audiences while keeping the spirit of the Westside front and center.

SHARING THE WONDERFUL MEMORIES OF MOTHERHOOD

Hodge, Kelly Patterson, and Mack

Columnist Maureen Molé surrounded by her grandchildren.

Ruth and Nancy More

Our May Featured Articles

Moms: Caring For Yourself Shapes Children, Too

By Cheryl Thode

     I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what our kids actually see when they look at us mothers. Not the obvious things. We all know they see the lunches packed, the schedules managed, the reminders, the rides,the constant doing. But beyond that, there are the quieter things. The way we move through our days. The way we treat ourselves. Whether we mean to or not, we are showing them something about what it looks like to grow up. For a long time, I have thought being a good mom meant giving everything. If I am honest, part of me still feels that pull. It is hard to shake. Growing up, I believed that was simply what mothers did. They gave and gave and did not stop to think about themselves in the process. To be fair, a lot of motherhood does ask that of us. There are seasons where the needs are constant and the days are long, and you are pulled in every direction.

Keeping Track of My Party Ideas

By Maureen Molé

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms. My mother, who was a fabulous hostess, taught me so much about entertaining at home. I dedicated my book, The Book of Entertaining at Home, to her.
     As I began to entertain in my own home, one memorable idea that my mother taught me is to keep a notebook with the details of every party that I host. It could be hard copy or digital. Sure, it sounds like a lot of work, but it is so very helpful and only takes a few minutes to jot down. I recorded the date, the guests, the menu, a few notes about the menu and what the guests liked, and what I wore. Sounds funny, right? Not really. Before I kept the party book, a friend came to another dinner party at my home a few years later.

The Strength of Sisterhood – The Topic of My First Meeting as Speaker

By Qin Sun Stubis

Growing up, I relied on my mother and three small sisters for everything, from food and warmth to survive the Great Famine, to the hopes and dreams that kept us going during the Cultural Revolution. Whether we sheltered ourselves in the tiny wooden hut my father built with his bare hands or our small concrete home later in life, we never had much and didn’t know what tomorrow would bring. But we always had each other. Sisterhood was what sustained us and helped us not just survive, but thrive. As the rest of the world shunned us as political pariahs after our father was imprisoned for seven long years during the Cultural Revolution, we became our mother’s only friends. Ranging in age from two to ten, we learned to shoulder hardships with her, picking up twigs from local parks, finding unburnt charcoal briquettes from a nearby dumpster, and learning to cook over an open fire when she was sick in bed. There was nothing we couldn’t do, even though we were only four “worthless” little girls, as my grandmother often called us.

Coming Home: The Return to Pacific Palisades

By Richard Lombari

It’s been more than a year since the fire changed everything. Like so many others, Julia and I found ourselves displaced, adjusting to a version of life we never expected. What we thought might be a temporary chapter stretched into months, and then into more than a year. Along the way, we learned to adapt, but we never stopped knowing – we would come back. Now, we are. Coming home, however, doesn’t mean returning to our home. Not yet. For now, we’re moving to the Highlands, while our home will be rebuilt in Marquez Knolls. Julia continues to serve as the area representative for Marquez Knolls, and our connection to that neighborhood – and to the broader Palisades community – has never wavered. If anything, it has only deepened.

The Santa Monica History Museum Names Anne Wallentine as Executive Director

The Santa Monica History Museum has named Anne Wallentine as its new Executive Director. Anne previously served as the museum’s curator from 2023-2025, where she developed innovative exhibitions and community-focused programs highlighting the city’s cultural and civic history. Her notable contributions include the museum’s first exhibition on LGBTQ+ history, a collaboration with the OUTWORDS Archive; an interactive exhibition on the history of housing; and an exhibition on the city’s treescape for Santa Monica’s sesquicentennial. Anne’s exhibitions thoughtfully connect history to contemporary issues, inviting visitors into active dialogue through oral histories and interactives – such as a ‘game of housing’ that illustrated the social inequities of housing history.

Experience the Safety of Riding an Electric Bicycle

The team at the Upway Showroom in Redondo Beach will set you up for a trial ride on an e-bike that will make you comfortable. Upway is revolutionizing e-bike retail by making premium electric mobility accessible and sustainable. Based out of their Los Angeles UpCenter in Redondo Beach, they offer top-tier brands like Aventon, Specialized, and Super73 at up to 60% off retail prices.
     Quality is their priority. Every bike undergoes a rigorous 50-point certification process conducted by their expert L.A.-based mechanics. By repairing and revitalizing components rather than discarding them, they extend the life of every bike and significantly reduce the demand for new raw materials.

Creditor’s Claims After a Death

By Lisa Alexander, Esq.

After someone has died, if the credit card company does not file a claim against the estate within 120 days, then they don’t have to pay the credit card debt. That’s only half true. When there is a Probate, there is an automatic 120-day “Creditor’s Claims Period” that starts when the Court issues Letters Testamentary to the Executor. The Executor is required to give a notice to all the creditors the Executor knows about. The notice tells the creditor that a Probate has been started and the date by which a creditor’s claim must be filed. A creditor must file a claim against the Estate before the end of the 120-day period. If no claim is filed, then after the end of the 120-day period, the creditor is cut off from making a claim. True so far. Here is where it’s not true. The automatic 120-day Creditor’s Claims Period only applies to a Probate. In California, a Probate is only required when the total value of the deceased person’s countable assets exceeds $239,700.

Why is Typhus a Public Health Concern?

By Dr. Frank Lavac,MS,DVM

A: Typhus is a fleaborne illness that can cause serious infections in people. Typhus is caused by a microorganism called a Rickettsia. It can cause fevers, rash, and headaches in people and often requires hospitalization. There were 220 cases reported in L.A. County in 2025 with a recent outbreak in Santa Monica. It is spread from pets or wildlife that carry the infected flea. It can be diagnosed with a blood test. Prevent typhus by using proven flea control products on your pets. Keep pets away from stray animals and wildlife. Do not feed wild animals. Rats, opossums, and stray cats are common carriers of infected fleas.

Further information can be found on the websites for CDC and L.A. County Public Health.
If you have any questions, you can always contact Dr. Lavac at 310-828-4587.

A New Way to Think About Parenting

By Frances Barry

You just pulled into your driveway from picking the kids up from school. There was silence from one kid, shouting and kicking from another, and you forgot to buy groceries. As you turn off the engine, you ask yourself, what just happened?
As a parent, you carry an ever-expanding backpack of worries – screen time, ultra-processed food, academic pressure, financial strain, community tensions, political and environmental anxiety – layered on top of daily tasks.
This is why I think a “toolbox” approach to parenting – stay calm, validate feelings, set consistent limits – all good advice, but not a complete solution. Rather than framing parenting as a toolbox,
      I’d like to suggest we, as a society, embrace “parenting” as a standing invitation to strengthen the parent-child bond. It’s the foundation of an approach I call ORCA – Observe, Reflect, Connect, and Act. I’ll explain with the example of the car ride above.

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