Each year, The Malibu Times asks the community to help choose individual Malibu citizens or groups and recognize their contributions to the community. Through their local contributions, they inspire others to do the same. Here are the Dolphin Award winners of 2010. They will be honored at an event in Malibu March 19. Biographies continued on page B4.
Shelby Basso
Shelby Basso, operator of Malibu Garden Center, takes each day with the outlook that “life just seems a little better in a garden.”
Basso, a 40-year resident, is involved with numerous local gardening and environmental organizations such as the Malibu Green Machine and the Cornucopia Foundation. She, and her late husband Frank, has been a part of Malibu’s environmentalist community for years.
“It was very unexpected and awesome, it’s a wonderful feeling,” Basso said of winning a Dolphin Award.
Basso credits her motivation for gardening and helping others to her family. She has been interested in gardening since her grandfather taught her how to plant a seed.
Basso recalls, “My mother always said, ‘Don’t you want the world to be a better place because you were here?’”
Basso felt the question challenged her to make a positive impression by helping her community.
In addition to helping local organizations, Basso values teaching others about her trade. “To teach people how to grow food, it’s just very inspiring to me; people are inspiring to me.”
Basso, along with the Malibu Green Machine, established the garden at the Malibu sign drivers see as they approach the city from the north. She continues to maintain the garden, which features primarily native plants.
“I’m a community outreach person,” Basso said. “I just like to help.”
Zare and Seda Baghdasarian
Zare and Seda Baghdasarian are the owners of the ChocolateBox Cafe, the site of many community events. The business owners are credited with being both good businesspeople and citizens.
The Baghdasarians have lived in Malibu on and off since 2003 with their two sons. They believe that it is the duty of local business owners to contribute to the community that supports them. They’ve hosted and sponsored all sorts of events for the community, from business networking mixers to film screenings at the Malibu Film Society.
“I believe any business has to engage the community and be good to the community,” Zare said. “Any local business gets the benefit from the community and has to give back.”
The business owners said they are both complimented and surprised by receiving a Dolphin Award. “We don’t expect to be rewarded,” Zare said. “We’re really honored. This makes us feel much better about the community we’re in.”
“The fact is that they came into town, and they immediately recognized that they needed to do well by doing good,” said Karen York, cofounder of the Malibu Film Society and The Malibu Times co-publisher. “They recognized the various nonprofit organizations they wanted to work with…and they’ve been out there doing their part.”
York also acknowledged that it is unusual for new businesses to participate so actively and generously in the community, further contributing to the ChocolateBox Cafe’s worthiness of recognition.
“We do our best,” Zare said. “We do what we do out of the goodness of our hearts.”
Rod Bergen
Rod Bergen, current president of Malibu’s oldest service organization, Trancas Riders and Ropers, has been a fixture in and a giver to the community for more than 50 years. In addition to his work with Trancas Riders and Ropers, Bergen is a Los Angeles County reserve deputy, a member of the Malibu Chamber of Commerce’s Environmental Committee, is involved with Malibu’s Emergency Preparedness team, helped initiate the Los Angeles County Equine Response Team, and teaches horseback riding and solar energy classes. He also played an important role in the city’s 10th anniversary celebration.
Bergen resides with his wife of more than 50 years on the ranch they’ve called home since 1972, along with six horses and two dogs. They have three grown children and three grandchildren.
“I feel that Malibu is one of the grandest places on earth,” Bergen said. “I personally feel that we are blessed to live here and that we all share an obligation to give more than we take.”
Bergen’s nominating letters cite his numerous years and areas of contribution as reasons for recognition. “Rod Bergen has been a continual contributor for over 50 years,” Judge Larry Mira’s nominating letter states. “Before Malibu was even a city, Rod worked with the Malibu Township Council regarding local water quality in the Malibu Lagoon.”
Bergen said being awarded a Dolphin pleased him.
“I am extremely proud to have been nominated for this award and I feel very privileged to be considered for this honor,” Bergen said. “As a consequence, it encourages me to contribute even more to the community in the coming years.”
Steve and Debra Cole
Steve and Debra Cole are dedicated to Malibu’s music programs. Despite the fact that their children graduated from Malibu High School years ago, the couple continues to donate their time and effort to the school’s music department. The Coles have two children, Louis and Liz.
Steve has participated as an accompanist, coach and substitute conductor for the program. He attends rehearsals, helps set up concerts, and provides transportation and moral support, along with writing musical charts for the program. Previously, Steve has worked with the Malibu Funk Band, a jazz and funk band that performed at numerous charity events such as Operation Smile Fundraisers and Malibu United Methodist Church Thanksgiving dinners.
Debra served on the board of the Malibu High School Arts Angels booster club for six years, serving three as president. She has also worked as the chairperson of the Malibu High School Quilt Committee, as an associate director of the Shark Fund and as a main parental liaison for the music department. Along with her husband, she’s helped with rehearsals, concerts, transportation and moral support.
The Coles were awarded the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District’s Stairway of the Stars Annual Award in 2005, which recognizes people who have made contributions to music in local schools.
Of the Coles, nominator Eric Myer said, “They are two wonderful people and extremely deserving of this recognition.”
“We are honored to be nominated for this award which has gone to so many people in Malibu whom we admire,” the Coles said.
Dick Van Dyke
Along with being an actor, comedian, producer and writer, Dick Van Dyke contributes numerous hours to local charities and the community. Van Dyke has partaken in all sorts of community activities, from book readings at Christmas to entertaining at local fundraising dinner parties.
Van Dyke’s charitable contributions are diverse as well. He has performed at the Malibu Performing Arts Center to raise funds for the Midnight Mission, a homeless shelter and rehabilitation center that have been in operation since 1914.
Van Dyke is clearly supportive of the charities he chooses to get behind.
“The Midnight Mission is not just a sermon-and-a-sandwich kind of place,” Van Dyke told The Malibu Times 2007. “They really rehabilitate and send people on to productive lives.”
Van Dyke, an advocate of the arts, has also attended various events in support of music and other arts, such as the Jr. Philharmonic Orchestra’s 73rd anniversary concert last summer.
Van Dyke’s contributions to the community and local charities cover a wide variety of causes. Even far into retirement, he continues to work as an active member of the Malibu community.
Violet Miehle
Violet Miehle, a senior at Malibu High School, is the Boys & Girls Club Malibu Youth of the Year 2011. She has been a member of the Boys & Girls Club Malibu since she was in the sixth grade.
Miehle competed against 26 other Youth of the Year from Boys & Girls Clubs throughout Los Angeles County. The results of the competition will be announced March 15. If Meihle wins, she could go on to compete at state, regional and national levels for college scholarship funds.
Miehle, who will be the first from her family to attend college, won a $10,000 scholarship check during NBA All Star week as a part of Taco Bell’s Skills Challenge. She earned the scholarship money thanks to partner Oklahoma City Thunder’s Russell Westbrook, who helped the pair place second.
In college, Miehle plans to work toward her goal of becoming a special education teacher. When she was in the fourth grade she was diagnosed with a learning disability and was placed in special education classes before testing out when she was in middle school.
“I know firsthand what it feels like to be singled out by my peers,” Miehle said. “I want to make a difference in lives and be a voice for special needs kids.”
Miehle credits the Boys & Girls Club Malibu with inspiring her to reach her goals. “The Boys & Girls Club drives me to be the best I can,” Miehle said. “The staff are there are for me whenever I need them, the club is the one stability in my life and I owe the club everything.”
Justine Petretti
Justine Petretti devotes her time to a number of local causes from the Juan Cabrillo Elementary School PTA to the Malibu Parks and Recreation Commission. Petretti, a 20-year resident, makes Malibu home with her husband Armando and their three children.
Along with the PTA and the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission, she is the founder and president of Friends of Trancas Park, a member of the Library Task Force and the city’s playground ad-hoc committee. Petretti, who has previously volunteered at the Santa Monica Women’s Shelter, has also organized numerous local fundraisers, beach clean-ups and food drives.
Petretti credits her family as a key factor in her inspiration to contribute to the community. “Most of it is for my children,” she said.
“Justine is a giver, there to help at a moment’s notice” Dermot Stoker wrote in his nominating letter. “We as a community are better off because of her positive energy and happy demeanor.”
As for receiving a Dolphin Award, Petretti feels appreciative. “It’s a huge honor,” she said. “It’s been a really special year for me, and that’s just the icing on the cake.
“We are so blessed to live here that I have to give back something,” Petretti said. “It’s the least I can do for this beautiful place.”
Robyn Ross
Robyn Ross, a local since 1993, is dedicated to both local and international causes. She is involved with schools in the community, serving on the PTA executive boards at Point Dume Marine Science Elementary School and Malibu High School. She also worked with the St. Joseph Center, a Venice-based social service agency for 17 years. Ross is a part of Vital Voices Global Partnership, an organization that works to “identify, invest in and bring visibility to extraordinary women around the world.”
She lives in Malibu with her husband, who is also one of her nominators, and their three children. Her family plays a role in inspiring her to devote her time to others. “My children also inspire me,” Ross said. “Many times, the work I do takes away time from them, which is disappointing for all of us, but when they see a project complete, a family housed or a village in Africa that can thrive, they get it.”
“All in all, Robyn has selflessly dedicated herself to her community,” Rick Ross wrote in his nominating letter.
Ross is known to her friends and neighbors for always being ready to lend a helping hand.
“As a Malibu mom, Robyn is there for just about everyone,” nominator Kasey Walker De Varennes wrote.
As for how she feels about being nominated and winning a Dolphin Award, “[I’m] a little embarrassed, to be honest,” Ross said. “There are so many people out there doing incredible work who deserve to be recognized.”
Ray Singer
Ray Singer, designer of the City of Malibu’s logo, has lived in Malibu with his wife, Fay, for more than 30 years. In addition to creating the city’s symbol, Singer is involved with the Optimist Club of Malibu, the Getty Museum and the Malibu Volunteer Patrol.
Singer, described by his nominators as someone who does not seek recognition for his efforts, said he feels a bit strange about winning a Dolphin Award. “Recognition, in this case, is for my following my major interests,” Singer said. “It seems strange, because isn’t this what we do with our lives?”
Although not one to call attention to himself, Singer’s efforts have not gone unnoticed. “Ray represents his community to outsiders and leaves them with the best impression of who we Malibuites are,” Bill Armstrong wrote in Singer’s nominating letter, which was signed by 19 other locals. “He is an inspiration to us all of what good citizenship is about.”
Singer is dedicated to supporting Malibu’s arts culture for youth and adults alike. Between his work as a docent for the Getty Museum and Villa and his creation of Malibu’s logo, he displays his devotion to local arts.
“I am rather moved, and deeply honored, by receiving a Dolphin Award,” Singer said. “It’s for doing what I do, and most people just do what they do. The fact that someone championed my cause is terrific.”