On behalf of Malibu High School (MHS) and the MHS Athletic Booster Club, I would like to thank everyone who purchased items at our tree lot over the holidays. Our community comes out and supports MHS athletics every year, and this year was no exception.
I would also like to thank all of the volunteers who did such a great job staffing the tree lot. The athletes and their parents helped tremendously over the four weeks the lot was open.
I cannot discuss volunteers without thanking John Paola, who runs the tree lot every year. He puts in 10 hours per day for 30 days, not to mention the work he does to prepare in the months leading up to the tree lot. He has been running the lot for 18 years, and we could not do it without him. He is a familiar face to all of our customers, and our community looks forward to coming to the lot to see him every year.
Not only does he run the tree lot, but he has been a leader of the Malibu Kiwanis Club and works the snack shack at Malibu Bluffs Park during the baseball and soccer seasons. He has raised money for the Wounded Warrior Foundation and he has hosted a ceremony at the tree lot for the past couple of years where he gives a special chair to a wounded veteran. It is amazing to witness the happiness and gratitude shown by the soldiers and their families when they receive this gift.
John is a real asset to our community, and Malibu High truly appreciates all he does to help us raise money for MHS athletics.
Thanks to John Paola and our entire community for supporting Malibu High athletics through your contributions to the tree lot.
Wendy Sidley