The Malibu Times Publishers Arnold and Karen York announce the 2011 Dolphin Award winners. The awards recognize contributions made
by individuals or groups to the Malibu community. Those recognized are in many ways more than contributors. They help form the backbone
of the community. Here, we salute our 2011 recipients and celebrate some of their accomplishments.
By Michael Aushenker / Special to The Malibu Times
Kathy Cook
As director of St. Aidan’s School (for ages 2-6), Kathy Cook has been making a difference in the lives of young children in Malibu for almost 26 years.
Cook says the best part of her work at St. Aidan’s comes from the satisfaction of seeing the children absorb what they learn.
“Their wonder and their joy every day,” she said. “It puts things into perspective.”
Cook came to Malibu in 1986 to work at the Mallmainson school which, at the time, was a Montessori school renting space at St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church. When Mallmainson gave way to St. Aidan’s own school in 1994, Cook became the school’s co-director before being promoted to director in 2007.
During that time spent raising other children, she also raised her own sons James (28) and Jonathan (22) in Malibu. It’s something she had spent perhaps a lifetime preparing for.
The daughter of a landscape artist (her father worked in Simi Valley and at the Universal Studios Tour) and a receptionist, Cook moved from Monrovia to Pacific Palisades. In 1975 she began to work at a children’s camp in Malibu run by Vilma and Helga Ebsen, sisters of actor Buddy Ebsen, who famously played Jed Clampett on “Beverly Hillbillies.”
“We’d drive people from the Palisades up to Point Dume and they held the camp at their home,” she recalled.
Cook stayed in education after the camp, working at a daycare center in Venice, and preschools and nursery schools in Brentwood. After her son James was born, Cook found a new job at Mallmainson in Malibu but the commute proved too difficult.
“I took a job teaching in Malibu and it was too much commuting with a young toddler,” she said. So Cook moved to Malibu and didn’t look back.
In addition to her work at the pre-school, Cook worked for Point Dume Community Service District, running its summer camps and after-school programs. She still keeps busy volunteering for both Malibu Friends of Music and Trancas Riders and Ropers, where her boys rode ponies when they were young.
“If we had stayed in the Palisades, we would never have had that opportunity,” she said.
While educational trends come and go, Cook’s approach to education has not wavered from her core priority.
“My passion is for children to have a childhood that’s creative and spontaneous,” she said. “That has changed a bit because parents are worried about reading and writing when they are two. One of my favorite sources for that is Alliance For Childhood-a great resource for me and a great inspiration for the school. They have a lot of documentation of studies about childhood and letting children enjoy childhood.”
Ani Dermenjian
Every year, Veterans Day in Malibu is a special holiday when hundreds of people turn out to meet and listen to survivors of various wars as they share their incredible stories. What many may not realize is that this event did not happen before 2000. That’s when Ani Dermenjian, a Realtor at Coldwell Banker and then-president of the Malibu Chamber of Commerce, decided to organize an annual Veterans Day celebration.
“At the time, there were no such events to bring the community together,” Dermenjian recalled. “I wanted to bring together the local schools, Pepperdine, the local businesses. This year, we had over 250 people attend the event.”
As chair of the event, Dermenjian tries to vary the programming every time.
“I try to get a new speaker each year and a new student [to perform] each year,” she said.
But each year one constant remains, as the ceremony is capped off with a rendition of “America the Beautiful.”
Dermenjian has been married to husband Raffi, owner of MemorableGifts.com, for 22 years. They have two boys, 2-year-old Christopher and 7-month-old Alexander. The couple have lived in Malibu for 12 years.
“Malibu is such a beautiful magical spot that I can’t imagine living anywhere else,” Dermenjian said. “The nature, the climate, the people…it’s just magical. The town has given us so much that giving back is the least we can do.”
Living and participating in this community has also made them proud Americans.
“My husband and I are very patriotic,” Dermenjian said. “I was born in Lebanon and my husband was born in Iraq. We’re both extremely blessed that we live in this country.”
Following the program last Veterans Day, Dermenjian remembered, “These veterans, they came up and thanked me for giving them the opportunity to share their stories…I was like, thank you!”
She looks forward to continuing this special Malibu tradition again November 11.
“Each time, it’s like I’m doing it for the first time,” she said.
Kurt Lampson
For nearly three decades, Kurt Lampson has been teaching ocean safety. In the summer months, Lampson instructs two or three classes per day of up to 30 kids, who range in age from six years to teenagers. Wind and tide patterns greatly affect whether conditions will be ideal for waterskiing, snorkeling, scuba diving or kayaking, and Lampson teaches children how to identify what is safe and what isn’t.
“It’s an hourly change,” he said. “The tide comes in, the tide drops. If there’s wind, you can’t go kayaking.”
The son of a fireman, Lampson is a Malibu native who grew up on Broad Beach. After a brief sojourn in Hawaii he returned home for good with wife Carol in 1978, and settled in Decker Canyon. Through his son Kai’s swimming lessons he connected in 1984 with Rob Lemond, who was teaching ocean safety at the time, and began to assist.
But Lampson’s instinct for teaching does not end when Labor Day rolls around and summer ends. For 22 years, his main occupation has been running Lampson Martial Arts at Malibu Gym, where he combines instruction on four different styles of martial arts, including jujitsu and kickboxing.
“He loves what he does and it comes across,” said Carol, who added that when her husband teaches, “he has a knack for really reading the children really well and he tries to customize the instruction…They leave feeling good about what they’ve done.”
Lampson’s lifelong affinity for surfing, snorkeling, scuba diving, fly fishing and anything related to the ocean has rubbed off on more than just his students. His son Kai, now 33, works today as a marine biologist for the state Department of Fish and Game, studying species such as lobster, Pismo clams, abalone and sea urchins.
Recently, Lampson has begun to encounter students whose parents he taught ocean safety or martial arts to years ago. He takes great pride in seeing his work continue for generations.
“I see the individual it produces,” he said. “They grow up to be really confident, knowledgeable about the ocean. People will come back to me in their mid-20s. One guy told me, ‘I surfed 23-foot waves and I remembered what you told me. You really helped me out.’ That’s been my biggest reward.”
Georgia King
Georgia King has spent a lifetime working with and loving horses, and spreading that love to others around her. She has lived in Malibu for more than 20 years, and works at Sycamore Farms teaching horseriding.
“She teaches her students how to behave as a sportsman and keep a happy face even when you don’t want to. Georgia herself always has a smile on her face and a positive vibe,” says resident Cassandra Karaziss. “I wish only there were more teachers like her.”
Ironically, King was born in New York City and grew up in Harlem, far away from the sound of stomping hooves.
“It was a very unhorsey situation,” King says. “But I got the bug really early with the life I wanted to lead.”
As a teenager, King spent time in upstate New York and started to work with horses. After an ill-fated three years working a desk job in New York City, she departed for greener, horse-filled pastures. She spent time working all over the country, ending up in Pebble Beach near Monterey. She worked at an equestrian center there for more than a decade, where she met the actor George C. Scott.
Scott hired her to take care of his and his wife’s horses, which she did for a number of years.
In the early 1980s, she took a year off and traveled through Africa, teaching riding and judging horse shows in Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Kenya. Upon her return stateside she moved back to California, soon ending up in Malibu.
“I love California so much,” King said. “I’ve been lucky to do what I love and live in nice places.”
Her presence has been Malibu’s gain, as a generation of children and adults have learned how to ride and care for horses under King’s watchful eyes. Never far away was her beloved steed Wazuri (rhymes with Missouri), which means “perfect horse” in Swahili, and was born into her arms 23 years ago.
King’s style of instruction emphasizes the responsibility of the rider to the horse, respect for its strength and power and ultimately love for the animal.
“I watch Georgia daily nurturing young children and teaching them respect and understanding of these powerful, intuitive and sensitive creatures,” says resident Michele Maher. “She’s a ‘horse whisperer’ in her own right.”
Benjamin Krasner
This year’s Young Dolphin may only be 11 years old, but he is already a musical prodigy. Piano virtuoso Benjamin Krasner has played at national and international festivals ranging from Telluride, Colo. to Moscow, and he also routinely performs at benefit concerts to help local organizations raise money to fund scholarships for students, including performances in Northridge and Tarzana in the last three weeks.
Krasner said that his interest in piano developed at age 5. “I guess I just wanted to do something new,” he said. “My parents hired a teacher, who was remodeling our house. He started teaching me. My sister kind of [played piano] as a hobby.” Indeed, his sister Danielle, today 21 and completing a graduate program in biochemistry at Yale, is no slouch herself. She matriculated as an undergrad at age 12 and graduated by 16.
Krasner’s parents immigrated from Moscow to California 23 years ago, settling in Malibu in 1995. His father Paul Krasner, a business computer analyst, and mother Ann Krasner, an artist, have been very supportive and proud of his musical endeavors. Krasner, whose younger brother Sean, 3, is already singing, practices piano 4 to 5 hours a day. “He’s on an extremely high level of performance, competing and winning competitions,” said Ann Krasner. “We encourage him to be a very well-rounded person. He’s very good at mathematics.” When he is not playing piano, Benjamin has a lot of interests of the typical Malibu kid. “I used to do karate,” he said. “I already earned my black belt. I like to play soccer, ping pong … I hang out with my friends. I love the ocean. I love to surf in the summer. I like to go rollerblading.” And, of course, there’s school work at Malibu High, where, in fact, he will be performing in the school talent show in a few weeks.
As much as his parents enjoy seeing their son perform in international competitions, where he is often the youngest performer, they try to keep him grounded. “We’re trying to concentrate not on his competitions but on his education,” Ann Krasner said. His parents are proud that “he encourages kids to try to give them some points and lessons,” Ann continued. “It’s a work ethic. He stays humble about his achievements. He stays kind to people. He deals well with the stress [of juggling piano with school]. It’s a very admirable quality.”
Lisa Szilagyi
While it can be difficult for parents of children with special needs to entrust their child’s care to a stranger, Lisa Szilagyi, who teaches special education at Malibu High School, has made it easier on scores of parents. Perhaps that is because Szilagyi not only sympathizes with the parents, she knows from personal experience.
Szilagyi’s daughter Emily, 22, was born with a genetic disorder called tuberous sclerosis that caused her to suffer seizures and cognizant impairment.
“I have a really wonderful relationship with the parents of the kids because I understand the struggles and the heartaches they’re going through,” she said. “It’s made a really big difference and forms a nice partnership with the parents.”
Szilagyi started out as an instructional assistant about 16 years ago when her daughter was a toddler, and she became a teacher in 2001. “I had never dreamed of becoming a special ed teacher until my daughter was born,” Szilagyi said. “I thought about being a journalist. I got into the field and I found that I loved it.”
Szilagyi has channeled that enthusiasm to develop innovative new ways of helping her students. In 2010, Szilagyi helped develop an after-school program called Hand to Hand, which brings together special needs students with their peers for art projects, cooking activities and making music. The program offers opportunities to children who have physical or learning disabilities that might prevent them from speaking like other children, but which doesn’t impair their ability to sing or otherwise make music.
It also reinforces basic life skills such as socializing and promotes friendships they might not otherwise make. “It’s a chance for children who have disabilities to hang out with their peers,” she said. “It’s hard for them to make friends with [students with] non-disabilities.”
Szilagyi credits her husband, Rob Szilagyi, for much of her success, both professionally and in caring for Emily. In addition to Emily, the couple have a son, Jake, 19, who attended California Polytechnic. Jake is a graduate of Juan Cabrillo and Malibu High. “It’s not easy to raise a child, period,” she said. “Rob has been amazing and supportive. It’s obviously been a challenge to have a child with special needs but it’s also been a blessing in many ways. It’s brought my husband and me closer. The blessings have been as great as the challenges overall.”
Bob and Jackie Sutton
Proud members of Our Lady of Malibu Church, Bob and Jackie have led the charge for the past 49 years to “Keep Christ in Christmas” by organizing and mounting the Christian nativity scene each winter at PCH and Webb Way. “The money that we have to spend to get that up is given by [individuals] in the community,” Jackie said. “In the old days, nobody gave a darn about us. We have to start in August to get everything done. This year, of all things, we had every church committed to helping.”
For 26 years, Jackie has also been associated with the Getty Museum. She started out as a volunteer, then created the docent program and eventually was paid to help create the education department. Community activism has always been in Jackie’s blood.
“We’ve always had something to fight over here,” Jackie said of Malibu. “It was always something. We were very connected to that. It was always with the highway or having places for the children to play. My children grew up with nothing but little league. We didn’t have a theater.” As a result, she would run into Sean Penn’s mother or the Sheens at various youth sports events. “I was active in getting the school bus to stop for my Catholic kids,” Jackie said, recalling how there was no law prohibiting the school buses from transporting her children to private school. “For the next 10 years, we were on the bus with the public kids.”
She added that letting dogs loose on the beach has been another bête noire, and that Bob was once bitten by one of them. “Now they can eat on patios in the restaurants,” she said.
But don’t mistake her feistiness for grumpiness: Jackie clearly loves her community. The Suttons’ is a particularly Malibu relationship; the couple met, and married, 60 years ago when both were living in separate homes in the Big Rock area. Today, Bob and his wife still enjoy the Pacific Ocean view from their Big Rock perch. “Our home, we look out and it’s like looking out at the aquarium,” Bob said. “Our children loved the beach, they never watched television, they [played in youth leagues]. We love Malibu. That’s why we love it so much. It really hasn’t changed that much. We always hung out at our house. We’ve experienced so much of our life right here.”
Pamela Conley Ulich
Mother of two, Pamela Conley Ulich has served on the Malibu City Council since 2004. While her time on the council comes to an end next month due to term limits, the longest-serving City Councilmember has had a key hand in civic affairs as Malibu has matured as a city.
“It has been an honor to help the City of Malibu survive our teen years and take courageous steps to gain independence and become of age,” Ulich said.
Ulich’s tenure has coincided with the construction and opening of stormwater treatment facilities at Legacy Park and Paradise Cove, the purchase of Bluffs Park from the state in 2006 and the purchase of a Malibu City Hall. She has spearheaded work on the soon-to-open Malibu Library Renewal Project (and served on the Los Angeles County Library Commission) and also helped implement bans on smoking on the beach and on plastic bags citywide. “The people of Malibu are responsible custodians of our environment who are dedicated to protecting our natural resources,” Ulich said.
Culturally, she is heartened seeing “new traditions in Malibu take seed and grow such as the Cine Malibu summer outdoor movie series, a teen ‘First Friday’ series, new senior events and Malipalooza.”
She moved to Malibu in 1996, where she met and married David Ulich, a longtime Malibu resident and fellow attorney. In April 2004, she was elected to the Malibu City Council and re-elected in April 2008. “I love living in Malibu because it is a small town, and we are all connected. I consider my neighbors to be not only friends, but family.”
As she leaves the council, Ulich still has unfinished business. She says she wants the city to protect “mom and pop” stores, and regrets that the city declined to purchase almost 10 acres at Heathercliff Road and Pacific Coast Highway for ballfields. Everything considering, though, Ulich feels the city is in a healthy position.
In 2008, The Malibu Times asked the then-candidate for City Council, who, with her husband, has children Katarina and Konrad, what qualified her to run for her seat. Ulich replied, “When Mother Teresa received the Nobel Peace Prize, she was asked, ‘What can we do to promote world peace?’ Her answer was simple: ‘Go home and love your family.’ I love Malibu and feel blessed to live in one of the most beautiful places in the world. I hope my work on the council will help preserve and protect Malibu for generations to come and maybe even make Malibu, and the world, a little better.”
Jefferson “Zuma Jay” Wagner
Jefferson “Zuma Jay” Wagner’s single term on the Malibu City Council will expire next month, but in the four years since he was elected in 2008, he has helped to achieve quite a few Malibu milestones. A City Hall building was purchased and remodeled, three new parks were opened and two stormwater treatment facilities were built, with a newly renovated library set to open in April.
“The opening of Legacy Park was probably the best accomplishment that the City promoted,” Wagner said when asked to reflect on the changes. “For me personally, that was one of the finest. I was there at groundbreaking and I cut the ribbon. In less than four years, I saw it [go] from a pile of dirt to a beautiful park.”
During his time on the council, Wagner estimated he spent between 14 to 20 hours per week working on city priorities and attending meetings. His four-year term also included a 10-month run as mayor, which Wagner said had its perks.
“I enjoyed my time as Mayor,” Wagner quipped. “I made it onto three billionaires’ yachts. That part was fun. That was the icing.”
While most know Zuma Jay from his eponymous surf shop on Pacific Coast Highway that he opened in 1976, over the years he’s also enjoyed stints as a reserve sheriff’s deputy, special effects guru, Ralph Lauren model and even a run as the Marlboro Man in advertisements. These days, he makes a living as an explosives expert. For years those skills were put to work in the film industry, but he has since transitioned into contracts with the military to put its troops through “opposing force” training or, as he puts it, “Come in and do all the missions as the bad guy.”
Even after all these years, Wagner still loves living in Malibu, where he resides with Candace Brown, his girlfriend of nearly two decades. He has a daughter, Ava Q. Wagner, 20, who is currently a business major at Santa Monica College.
“I love the surf and the climate,” he said. “And the fact that we now have our own hardware store makes my life easier, too.”
With his City Council days winding down, he continued, “Now I’m going to be able to complete more military contracts with the special effects,” as well as resume practical effects works for upcoming films such as a “Police Academy” sequel.
He’ll also continue his passion for surfing and, if he has any free time left, he’ll indulge in some of his other past times, which include sailing, karate, basketball, chess and gardening. But don’t expect his hobbies to diminish his involvement in the community.
“I’m going to work on a road maintenance program and I’m on the board of directors on the Adamson House,” he said.