The Malibu Optimist Club hosted its annual Youth Appreciation event last Thursday, honoring 22 students for their achievements. The breakfast event, which was co-sponsored by Pepperdine University, drew more than 80 attendees.
Malibu Optimist program chair Bonnie Lockrem and Malibu Optimist program emcee Ken Kearsley presented each student with a certificate of commendation at the gathering. After the breakfast, the students were escorted by local sheriff’s deputies to the Malibu Courthouse, where Superior Court Judge Lawrence Mira addressed them. The students finished the morning with a visit to Malibu City Hall, where they met with City Council members.
Elementary school awardees include Joy Bonewitz, Aaron Bond and Tea Petretti, from Juan Cabrillo Elementary School; Katie Loftus and Tallulah Dempsey from Point Dume Marine Science School; Sami deNicola and Brodie Anderson from Webster Elementary; and Erin Muldoon from Our Lady of Malibu.
Middle school winners were Jullian Neuner, Sophia Polard and Kole Smith from Our Lady of Malibu; and Kaia Gerber, Stella Bloch and Mathew Le from Malibu Middle School.
High school honorees include Luke Appel, Sasha Savitsky, Ara Bolander, Nolan Webster, Sabrina Dawson, Devyn Masterson, Chris Finck and Andrew Yazdani, all from Malibu High.