Las Madrinas recently announced the 26 families and their daughters—including several residents of Pacific Palisades: Gable Catherine Gering, Channing Van Petten Pauley and Asher Rose Harris Rawlins—who will be honored for their service to the Southern California community and Children’s Hospital Los Angeles at the annual Las Madrinas Ball on Saturday, December 21.
Others to be honored include Elizabeth Adair, Kelsey Grace Babcock, Katherine Courteen Deardorff, Katherine Shea Dietrick, Ruby Wilhemina Elliott, Frances Louise Foy, Lucy Jo Griffin, Cornelia Scott Halferty, Annie Shea High, Grace Victoria Hutchins, Kathleen Duffy Keller, Alana Juanita Laurie, Julia Elizabeth Dillon Lokey, Penelope Lynn Nakasone, Grace O’Malley, Cecily Paige Rasmussen, Reilly Kathryn Robinson, Sarah Elizabeth Rocchio, Eliza Jane Sandifer, Hailey Nan Webber, Aubrey Rae Wendling and Talia Bahar Zafari.
Photos by Nick Boswell Photography
The American Legion Ronald Reagan-Palisades Auxiliary Committee of Judges recently voted to give $500 prizes to Resilient Palisades and Veterans Gardens for their floats in the Fourth of July parade. Resilient Palisades received its award for Best Incorporation of Parade Theme, which was Happy Days in the Palisades.
“They creatively interpreted the theme, incorporating elements that celebrated our local heritage and community spirit, captivating both participants and spectators alike,” read a statement about the prize. The funds will go toward Resilient Palisades’ scholarship program, which awards students who “choose to further their education in environmentalism.”
Photos courtesy of Sara Marti
Brentwood School’s Board of Trustees has appointed Dr. Tim Cottrell as the next head of school, which will be effective July 2025.
Photo courtesy of Brentwood School
“The search began in January, after current Head of School Dr. Mike Riera, who has led Brentwood School since 2011, announced that the 2024-25 school year would be his last,” read a statement from the school. “A Head of School Search Committee of nine trustees was led by Board of Trustees Chair Adam Cohn, Vice Chair Laura Dudley and trustee and former Board Chair Tom Gordon.”
Cottrell is entering his 13th year as head of school at Iolani School in Hawaii.
“We are delighted to welcome a leader of Dr. Cottrell’s talent and accomplishments, an experienced educator who readily came to understand—and embrace—Brentwood’s culture and core values,” said the Search Committee co-chairs in a letter to the Brentwood School community.
Palisadian-Owned Rosenthal Wine Bar and Patio Offers Tastings, Beach Views and More
By LILY TINOCO | Assistant Editor
For those looking for a unique wine experience, one Palisadian has crafted a space along Pacific Coast Highway offering just that, with roots in the business dating back several decades.
Rosenthal, the Malibu Estate Wine Bar and Patio, is situated across from the beach at 18741 Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu—just over a mile outside of Pacific Palisades.
Owned by a father and son team, George and Marquez Knolls resident Mark Rosenthal, the Wine Bar and Patio has been open since 2011, holding the title as “the only wine bar and tasting room on the Pacific Coast Highway.”
“George first planted grapes in the mid-1980s at the Newton Canyon vineyard in Malibu after finding that the soil and climate was on par with the best of Bordeaux,” the Rosenthal team shared with the Palisadian-Post. “Since the early 1990s, Rosenthal, the Malibu Estate Vineyard, has produced award-winning Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay and Viognier wines.”
Father and son, George and Mark Rosenthal
In homage to the “surfing heritage” of Malibu, the family also produces wine varietals under the Surfrider Wine label—from Sparkling Rosés to Sauvignon Blanc, with red varietals, including Grenache and Syrah.
“The Wine Bar and Patio is a Malibu institution that people enjoy for good friends, good wine and good music,” Mark said.
The space hosts different types of live music and events throughout the week, open to the public Wednesdays through Sundays. The month of August invited Comedian Shang, as well as performances by Notice of Intent and The Weasels.
This month, Palisadians can partake in a Paint and Sip event on Sunday, August 25, at 1 p.m., and Malibu Comedy Night on Friday, August 30, at 8 p.m.
The August 30 Comedy Night will feature comedians from Netflix, Comedy Central and more, including Sarah Tiana, Greg Santos, Craig Lowe and Anna Simeri, hosted by Sean Leary, with tickets for $28.52.
“Enjoy sips and giggles under the stars with an outdoor comedy event at the gorgeous Rosenthal Wine Bar and Patio in the heart of Malibu,” according to the event description. “Feel free to bring food [and] snacks. It’s a party.”
In September, Rosenthal will present “Music Under the Stars” on Friday, September 6, an outdoor concert featuring three surprise guests. Tickets are $34.
Dubbed “the rock gods of the Palisades,” The Weasels are set to return to Rosenthal on Sunday, September 15, from 1 to 5 p.m. No tickets are needed to attend.
On Saturday, October 26, Rosenthal will be hosting a Haunted Wine Run 5K, with three different start times at 8 a.m., 9:30 a.m. and 11 a.m.
“This is a fun run that includes stairs and running, or walking, through sand along the beach,” the event description read. “If you like running or walking and love wine, this fun run is for you.”
Participants will receive a cotton T-shirt, shatterproof, collapsible and portable wine glass, and pour of wine. Rosenthal is partnering with The Autism Resource Project for the event.
Those visiting Rosenthal can expect different food trucks on Saturdays and Sundays. Visitors are also welcome to bring their own food or picnic, with the exclusion of outside alcohol. Saturdays and Sundays are strictly for guests 21 and over.
For parties of two or more over the weekend, reservations are recommended but not required. Walk-ins are always welcome.
For more information or to purchase tickets to the events listed, visit rosenthalestatewines.com.
I ran into Brendon in my kitchen. Brendon is a friend of my son, Charlie, who was in Amsterdam, so I wasn’t clear why Brendon was standing in front of me.
“Oh, I’ve been staying here for the week,” he said. “Didn’t Charlie tell you?”
I mumbled a fake, “Welcome,” and hobbled away.
Charlie—along with three of my other children, plus spouses, plus six grandkids—were all together in Europe. Without me.
Months earlier, I’d realized that my teenage grandson Gabriel needed exposure to another culture, any culture. We discussed Canada, Costa Rica, Japan. Since half our family was visiting Paris and Charlie wanted to show us Amsterdam, that became our trip.
All was well until I fractured my toe as I was lunging into my closet to tear open a new outfit for the trip. I couldn’t manage the cobblestones, as I could barely keep up with the grandkids on the uneven Palisadian sidewalks, so I had to remain home. Poor me.
Our house was so quiet it looked abandoned. I smelled the flowers in our front garden. Hmmm. We opened the front door, stepped inside and, for the first time in decades, faced an empty nest. A new experience awaited us—solitude.
Or not. Within minutes, an unexpected knock on the door and the entry of two vicious yet playful hounds broke our revere.
Surprise! Will, the original “ask for forgiveness rather than permission” kid, had not arranged placement for his rescued pitbull/Doberman/shepherd mixed mutts. They were ours, for 15 bitter days.
Since their adoption six months ago, the girls, Patty and Moo, have doubled in heft every two months. By the time of their surprise visit, they were the size of a 3-year-old “miniature” pig. We have two pet hogs ourselves, so they are our point of reference.
The first night wasn’t bad because the dogs were as terrified of us as we were of them. We have a small room off the back porch that leads into the yard, so we put blankets on the floor, food and water right outside, and left the door open to the elements.
The first few days, the dogs spent hidden in our patio bushes. Although the girls have shiny, black coats, because of the thickness of the hedges and the shadows from the trees, Patty and Moo were perfectly camouflaged. They were literally invisible, so, shattered toe and all (fear, old age), I forged my way into the brush, throwing shredded cheese and kibble everywhere, praying each pup got enough to eat.
Early on, Patty and Moo discovered screens covering glass doors. Quickly doing away with the screens, they used their snouts to open the doors and get inside the house. I believe the correct term is “breaking and entering.”
Besides us elders, the house was empty—literally the first time since 1990. Somehow the mutts found our upstairs bedroom, sat down and began emitting earth-shattering howls.
“What howls?” asked my husband—Joe “Braveheart” Edmiston—the next morning. (If you sleep through an attack, are you still a warrior?)
Joe went to Gelson’s and bought some costly meat/veggie loaves for the dogs. Over the next few days, we scattered the food like Easter eggs, relieved to know the mutts were eating something healthy.
I knew Patty and Moo had not been eating healthy because they devoured my red wooden shoes from Holland, bought for me by my parents on a family holiday when I was 13. These clogs had survived everything—high school, Berkeley, many moves, wretched roommates, innumerable pets, two husbands, seven children, earthquakes, storms and Covid, only to be destroyed by dogs who preferred balsa wood.
It was the same scenario every night: I’d open the door, smile broadly and say, “Hi puppies!” and Patty and Moo would become terrified, as if seeing a monster. They’d run away from me, racing through the upstairs hall, down the back staircase and out into the safety of the night.
Joe and I saw that the dogs desperately needed to be walked every day. It’s just, we couldn’t do it. My toe—broken in three places!—prevented me from walking slower than both the tortoise and the hare. Joe’s right foot was a mess, causing so much pain when he walked, he appeared to be standing still.
Will’s girlfriend, Tina, and Gabriel’s mom, Briana, each came a few times to play with and walk the dogs. As soon as the pups saw these beautiful young women, they turned into different animals—elated, tail-wagging, bouncing beasts who were bursting with dog joy. However, once the visitors left, the girls returned to “sick dog” (Moo) and “dying dog” (Patty).
Time moved on and we entered week two in relative peace, other than the four patio chair cushions that were eaten and destroyed. But it wasn’t a disaster; the cushions were moldy and needed to be replaced.
One night, at the beginning of the second week, I heard quieter noises. I went downstairs to discover Moo alone in the house. This did not make sense. We had finally hammered shut the broken screen entry, so how was Moo inside? The only answer—a robber let her in.
I put Moo out in the patio, then hobbled through the entire house, fearlessly. Nobody there. Only then did I limp up the stairs, screaming to Joe that there was an intruder.
Joe searched the house fully and there was nobody, aside from the two ancient fools. Finally, Joe realized he must not have shut the door correctly, allowing Moo to enter before the door shut Patty out. Duh!
Soon Will and Gabriel arrived home: “We never did the time change!” Gabriel said. “Dad and me stayed up all night making music.”
Sounded like a perfect trip. Will, Gabriel, Patty and Moo rolled around on the ground for 15 minutes. The mutts were so happy they actually jumped on me, licking me and messaging, “Now that we know you’re not our forever placement, we think you’re OK.”
We were thrilled with Will and Gabriel’s arrival, and their pups’ soon-to-be departure. Later that night, daughter Susan, her husband Keith and their children also would return home from Europe. Our multi-generational household was coming together.
Charlie wouldn’t stay in Amsterdam forever and someday would come back, bringing his girlfriend with him. And, soon, sons Jon, Matt and Ben would visit, herding their families toward us. Our people were coming home.
On Sunday mornings I love to go to Pacific Palisades Farmers Market and look for inspiration. With all the summer fruit and vegetables available, my mind spins with endless possibilities.
I have decided to share some of my favorite ideas with you after a trip through the market.
Tomatoes. So many varieties, from the traditional red to heirloom and cherry tomatoes. Tomato season is the best season.
Some of my favorite dishes to make are bruschetta, fresh tomato sauce, caprese salad and, of course, just pop the little ones into my mouth for a snack. Don’t forget a fresh bouquet of basil and a bulb of garlic—all which can be found at different stands.
For the bruschetta, I just dice up a bunch of tomatoes, grate some garlic, a couple pinches of salt and a swirl of olive oil. I stir it up and let it chill in the fridge.
When I’m ready to serve it, I either use it as a dip or top toasted slices of baguette. Then a chiffonade of basil. It’s my signature dish.
You could serve these tomato dishes with a baguette, or you can pick some fresh pitas from Mother’s, Brothers’ and Aliki’s stands. They also have feta and kalamata olives, which pairs nicely with these dishes. If you pick up any of their dips, you can make a fresh vegetable platter, filled with gems like Persian cucumbers and snap peas, and it’s always fun to get different colors of cauliflower.
Produce at Pacific Palisades Farmers Market Photo by Avery Zemlak
The strawberries are so vibrant, and make for a great base for fresh strawberry ice cream or a strawberry shortcake. At night, if I really want to satisfy my sweet tooth, I’ll melt some chocolate and dip my strawberries in it. If I’m patient, I’ll put them in the fridge for 20 minutes until they harden, otherwise, it becomes a makeshift fondue.
Sliced up they make for a sweet filling in a yogurt parfait. Just take your favorite yogurt and layer it with strawberries and granola. Perfect for breakfast or a snack.
Summer blueberries are the best. The exterior has a nice snap to them, and when you bite into them, you taste the sweetness. My two favorite uses for blueberries are in a cobbler or in blueberry muffins.
The recipe we always use is Jordan Marsh’s Blueberry Muffins as published in The New York Times. Otherwise, my mom uses them to dot her Saturday morning blueberry pancakes.
Corn! I love opening up each husk to make sure there are no worms. I’m kidding, I don’t love that, but you definitely need to check out each ear before you get home.
We will either eat it boiled or on the grill. If there’s leftover corn, it gets cut off the cob and used in salads or gets turned into cowboy caviar—a real simple combination of black beans, corn, chopped tomato and avocado. Add a squeeze of lime and some salt, give a stir, and serve with tortilla chips.
Additionally, buying flowers every Sunday really helps brighten up the house. I love how you can choose from so many varieties. The sunflowers really spoke to me this week.
I hope this has encouraged you to shop at our local farmers market—and inspired you to create some of my favorite dishes I mentioned above.
Pacific Palisades Farmers Market is located along Swarthmore Avenue and Antioch Street each Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Happy shopping and cooking!
625 Lincoln Boulevard Los Angeles, 90291 310-581-9404 wurstkuche.com
By MERV HECHT | Restaurant Critic
I’m continuously on a quest in search of restaurants that offer special and unique fare, something different and special. To my great surprise and delight, I think I’ve found the best one yet.
Years ago, I was posted to an office in Munich, Germany, to help open a hi-tech company. Some of my best memories of that short stay are eating the most delicious bratwurst sausage with a flavorful German beer, surrounded by beautiful trees and birds in an outside garden. The place did not look that appetizing from the outside, but once I bit into that flavorful sausage, I was hooked.
Well, I just had a similarly overwhelming and unique experience in Venice, on the Santa Monica border.
Wurstküche is not overly appealing from the outside, at 625 Lincoln Boulevard in the middle of a lot of automotive repair shops. However, there is the newly opened Baby Blue BBQ across the street.
When you enter, you find yourself in a small room with a sausage counter on the left, filled with a large variety of sausages, and a counter to take orders. People come and go, buying sausages to take home. When you order, you are given a number to put on the table for the server to identify you.
It took me quite a while to make a decision regarding my order because there are 18 different sausages on the menu, divided into “Classics,” which included the most popular, the Bratwurst, “Gourmet,” which is the section I ordered from, and “Exotics.”
Some of the exotics were very tempting, such as the Duck and Bacon, and the Lamb with Mediterranean spices. I decided to save those for next time.
Not only do you have to think through 18 sausage varieties, but you also have to decide which toppings and side dishes will best pair with it, or whether to just focus on the sausage alone and pass on the sides.
Then you have to select your drink. Beer, of course, in my case anyway.
There are about 50 different selections, but I stayed with one of the 13 German draft beers listed, making a mental note to try one of the Belgian beers on draft for my next visit. I don’t see any reason to select a bottled beer from the 18 available when draft beer is available.
Of course, they don’t spell it “beer” on the menu; it’s “Bier.”
Only after you’ve ordered and paid are you given access through a dark passageway to the dining area—and what a surprise that is!
The main dining room is large and airy, with seating for about 50 people plus a couple of small rooms for more privacy. There is a large bar (not always attended) and an open area leading to a outside patio. I felt like I was right back in Germany on a lovely spring day.
Of course, I elected to go into the outside patio and made friends with a couple from the neighborhood and their cute dog. Very quickly, the server arrived with my Hungarian spicy sausage and my large glass of German beer. The beer glass was decorated with a logo stating that it was from the world’s oldest brewery.
On the table, there were four plastic jars of different kinds of mustard, and I decided to select the German style, but only after tasting the one marked “hot.” It would have added a nice additional flavor to the already spicy Hungarian sausage, but I must confess, the sausage was incredibly delicious and cooked to perfection on its own.
I took my time savoring the sausage while washing it down with the refreshing German beer. It took a while to savor it and bring down the level of the beer. Soon thereafter, I realized I was still hungry, so I went back to the order desk and ordered a Mango Jalapeño sausage to pair with the rest of my beer.
Sitting there in the outside patio, with my German beer and my sausage sandwich, I might as well have been back in Munich. I thought to myself how wonderful it was to be able to travel only a few minutes from my home to find something this special and authentic, even though I was minutes from my home in the Palisades.
What a wonderful experience. I’ll be back there soon with friends.
I also must admit that another attractive feature of Wurstküche is that it’s one of the quietest restaurants I’ve been to in a long time.
Merv Hecht, like many Harvard Law School graduates, went into the wine business after law. In 1988, he began writing restaurant reviews and books. His latest book “The Instant Wine Connoisseur, 3rd edition” is available on Amazon. He currently works for several companies that source and distribute food and wine products internationally. Send comments to mervynhecht@yahoo.com.
Although the effects of pollution and climate change threaten all of humanity each day, they have a disproportionate impact on marginalized communities that have gone largely unnoticed until recently.
Many of the hardest-hit communities are low-income populations which, as reported by the International Monetary Fund, depend on natural resources to survive, such as fishermen and those in agriculture or forestry industries. Rising temperatures and pollution also create disparity in the poorest areas of dense cities, whose residents are very often mostly of color.
The Princeton Student Climate Initiative calls this “environmental racism,” which is defined as “the unequal access to a clean environment and basic environmental resources based on race.”
In Los Angeles, the inner-city areas feel the worst of it. According to the Los Angeles Times, record-setting heat waves have a greater impact between South LA and Watts, because there are less trees for shade, more pavement that permeates heat and many residents who cannot afford air conditioning.
In 2021, our city created CEMO, the Climate Emergency Mobilization Office, which has since helped to create more cooling centers, bus stop shelters for outdoor shade and access to affordable air conditioning. In addition, thanks to large federal grants last year, over 2,500 trees are being planted in disadvantaged LA neighborhoods to provide much-needed canopy shade to combat record-breaking heat.
Poor air and water quality from pollution is also a predominant issue. Polluted air is linked with heart disease, stroke, lung cancer and pneumonia in addition to other fatal diseases, as cited by the World Health Organization.
In Watts this year, the EPA ordered a scrap metal recycling plant to prevent its chemicals, along with sharp metal and lead debris, from washing down into storm drains. This industrial wastewater washes up onto a neighboring high school grounds and into the Compton River, which is a part of the Los Angeles River.
In East LA, community residents are opposing a permit renewal for the only lead battery recycling plant in the United States west of the Rockies, because its smelting process is known to release toxic and cancer-causing lead particles into the air, water and soil of surrounding neighborhoods.
Sim Bilal, Los Angeles County youth climate commissioner and lead organizer at Youth Climate Strike Los Angeles, expressed that environmental justice communities “are on the frontlines of multiple different crises.”
These regions face issues like lack of educational funding, low employment access, low healthcare access and substance abuse problems, just to name a few. Environmental justice communities are more heavily affected by the impacts of climate change because of historically discriminatory practices regarding housing, education, employment and healthcare.
Bilal and his family are from the South Bay and they have felt the direct impact of climate change and its effects. He explained that his grandparents met working in the area, and the atmosphere of burning fossil fuels, oil drilling and activities surrounding the LA port contributed to his grandmother’s development of cancer and early death at 50 years old. He said his mother suffered a similar fate, dying at only 25 due to environmental impacts on her health.
Now, Bilal explained, both his grandfather and aunt are sick for the same reason, and he has dedicated his life to fighting for environmental justice.
“People have built a life and a community [in the South Bay], and it’s not so easy to just leave,” said Bilal as he reflected on environmental problems in his home city. “It’s sad to think of how common it is and how the issue is dismissed so often.”
The issue in the South Bay is pressing and has sparked an immediate need for environmental justice; yet, the issue of environmental degradation on health and wellbeing goes beyond low-income, minority communities.
While these communities require immediate focus and should be a priority in climate action, more fortunate regions are simultaneously facing the effects of climate change. Outside of urban areas, surging global temperatures contribute directly to climbing rates and intensities of natural disasters (droughts, hurricanes, floods, etc.), a greater likelihood of food shortages, rising sea levels and countless other effects.
For example, increased levels of carbon dioxide from climate change are absorbed by the ocean, then a series of chemical reactions is succeeded by a release of hydrogen ions, lowering the pH of the water. This ocean acidification affects plant and animal life, causing issues for those that rely on the waters for food and other economic purposes—specifically indigenous populations like Native American communities.
If improvements are not made to our society’s contribution to environmental devastation, every community will suffer on all levels. The impacts of humanity’s actions are already being seen in our own town, with landslides, extreme heat and torrential weather patterns.
The easiest way to catalyze these necessary changes is to educate yourself. Learning about environmental justice, its origins and its impacts will open a world of opportunities for synthesizing meaningful contributions to the fight against climate change.
Global warming and environmental decay are issues that have impacted minority communities for much of the last 50 years, and actions must be taken. If justice is not served in one way or another, we will all succumb to the fate brought on by climate change.
Samantha Sonnett is a student at Palisades Charter High School and passionate about saving the environment. She is an activist with the American Conservation Coalition. She can often be found at the beach or strumming on her guitar. Samantha hopes that the world can continue to fight for a more sustainable future, in order to preserve the planet and avoid further climate change.
Dr. Parviz Shargh was born in Tehran in 1930 at a time when the nation was perched on the precipice of modernity and young people were poised to lead that change. Parviz went to France to study at the Sorbonne Paris and in 1956 received a PhD in economics—in addition to a law degree, which he had already received earlier from the University of Tehran.
He returned, armed with a doctorate degree in economics and ready to take part in leading a cultural revolution that would push Iran into the modern world with one of the fastest growing economies in the Middle East, led by a uniquely secular government headed by a Shah who saw himself and the dynasty, which bore his name, as stewards of a great leap for the betterment of a nation rich with resources, geographic significance and great human capital.
Dr. Shargh led pivotal industrial ventures which were the building blocks of the growing Iranian economy of the 1970s. He was instrumental in Iran’s advancement in the production of cement to fuel its unprecedented growth while serving as director of the nation’s largest industrial lending bank (Etebarat Sanaati).
His instinct gave rise to factories and industrial advances in a free-market economy that was increasingly appealing to global companies. Joint ventures and new investments poured into Iran, led by local entrepreneurship as well as multi-national investment.
Dr. Shargh enabled local industry to flourish and supported a growing stock market by helping strengthen markets and systems that would form the backbone of a strong economy for generations to come.
As his last act of industrial development before the 1979 revolution, which would oust his family and see them move first to France then to the U.S., he formed a joint venture together with the French government called Air Liquide.
In 1978, Dr. Shargh moved with his family of four to Paris where they lived for one year and then Livingston, New Jersey, where they had family ties and resided for more than a decade.
The family later moved to Los Angeles, with Dr. Shargh and his loving wife of more than 60 years eventually settling in Santa Monica, where he is now resting in peace at Woodlawn Cemetery and Mausoleum.
Parviz was a beloved son, a revered elder brother, a cherished husband and father, a treasured father-in-law, and finally a much-adored grandfather to three. His spirit of kindness was infectious.
His worldview was one that exuded the grace of a worldly man upon whom good fortune had bestowed many opportunities and a front-row seat to history as it unfolded. Parviz has memories of the Tehran Conference in 1943 during World War II when Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin met in Tehran to discuss the opening of the “Second Front” in Western Europe.
His father was a prominent landowner with tea and tobacco plantations, which still exist today—though no longer in family hands.
Parviz regaled his Iranian-American grandchildren with tales of old days and historic events until the very end, when poetry and family time took over his days.
He died in peace surrounded by his family in his own home at the age of 94. Parviz is survived by his wife Sohi Zargham, his son Cyrus Faramarz, his daughter Maryam, their spouses and his three grandchildren.
Head coach Dylen Smith is confident the Dolphins can win every game on their schedule, starting Friday night versus Dymally. Photos by Steve Galluzzo
Season Opens Friday for Palisades High Football Team, Which Aims to Defend League Title and Return to Open Division Playoffs
By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor
By any measure, Dylen Smith’s first season as head coach of the Palisades High football program was a success. Under his leadership the Dolphins finished 7-3, won the Western League title and made the City Open Division playoffs—one of only eight teams to do so.
Upon being hired, however, he made it clear his ultimate goal was to pilot the team to its first section championship. That may seem far fetched as he begins his second year at the helm, but Smith believes the Dolphins are capable of winning all 10 games on the schedule—six of which will be played at the friendly confines of Stadium by the Sea, starting with Friday night’s season opener against Dymally (varsity kickoff at 7 p.m.).
His confidence was bolstered by the Dolphins’ performance in last Friday’s scrimmage against SantaMonica, Smith’s alma mater, on the Vikings’ new navy blue synthetic turf field. If official score were kept the Dolphins would have lost 14-7, Nevertheless Smith liked a lot of what he saw, especially from his offensive line.
“The scrimmage went ok,” he said. “Not the best showing we wanted to have. We did some good things and some bad things—all fixable.
I was most pleased with the O-line. They blocked really well in the pass game and in the run game. On some plays the defensive line had more guys than they could block so that wasn’t their fault, but I was really, really pleased with them.”
If the Dolphins are going to win at least a share of their seventh league title in 10 years, improving as the season goes on and keeping injuries to a minimum will be key.Palisades has won 20 of its last 22 league games, both losses to Venice.
Schedule
According to Calpreps, Palisades’ strength of schedule is weaker than last year, so the Dolphins should take full advantage against overmatched opponents like Dymally, which graduated most of its best players from last year’s nine-win squad that made the City Division I semifinalis. For its second game Palisades was supposed to travel to Boyle Heights to face Roosevelt, but the Rough Riders’ field renovation is not complete, so the contest was relocated to Palisades, where the Dolphins routed an undermanned Roosevelt squad 42-14 last August. Replacing St. Genevieve on the nonleague slate is Harvard-Westlake, which ended up 4-6 overall and 1-3 in league last fall (including a 22-21 defeat to St. Genevieve) and missed the Southern Section Division 12 playoffs. The Dolphins dropped the Charter Bowl to Granada Hills last year and make their first road trip Sept. 6, but the Highlanders’ best player, running back and All-City defensive back Darrell Stanley, has transferred to City Open champion Birmingham. Last year’s 16-point loss snapped Palisades’ nine-game winning streak in the Charter Bowl.
Palisades has lost two in a row in its “Sunset Showdown” intersectional battle with Brentwood, but Eagles quarterback Boone Lourd graduated and Smith is extra motivated to beathis old team (he was an assistant under Jake Ford at Brentwood before taking the Palisades job) when the schools renew their rivalry Sept. 13. The league champion will likely be the winner of the Dolphins’ Oct. 18 homecoming game against Venice.
The teams have split their last four meetings with Palisades coming out on top 28-24 last fall.
Offense
Junior quarterback Jack Thomas passed to wide receiver King Demethris for a 70-yard touchdown on the final play of last Friday’s scrimmage and the next day Smith named Thomas the starter for tomorrow’s opener following a spirited battle for the first-string spot throughout camp with senior Brett Federman, who had backed up Roman La Scala (he graduated in June) last season.
Josh Chinchilla centers a talented line, flanked on either side by ColeWard (6-5, 220 lbs.), Liam Hudson (6-3, 230), Liam Giannantonio (5-10, 180) and Mitchell Ghotanian(6-5, 220). Other linemen includeSamuel Pizante, Matthew Franco, Luc Vallernaud, Bryan Ochoa, Iliya Heydarkhanie, Hunter Kizzee and Walter Perez. The receiving group is deep with Demethris, Max Hejazi, LeHenry Solomon, Michael Meraz, Armani Lindley, Adan Diaz, Ricardo Martin, Harrison Carter and tight ends Augie Evans, Eddie Guevara and Alex Vasquez. Carter will also head a stable of running backs that also features Tyler Jones and Deveron Kearney. The top gainer last year, Teralle Watson, transferred to Warren High in Downey.
Defense
Despite the graduation of City Defensive Line MVP Evan Nehrenberg and All-City defensive backs Matt Spoonamore and Saxon Ward, the Dolphins return one of the bestall-around defenders in the section in 6-4 senior outside linebacker Jake Treibatch, who led the squad with 60 tackles, nine for losses, last year.
Cash Allen will also play outside linebacker alongside Noah Roshan, Brayden Khani, Reggie Montanez and Nico Townsley. Rowan Flynn will patrol the middle. Nose guardsAri Hosseinzadeh and Justin Rodriguez will have help from tackles Kenneth Sanchez, Kayden Kohan and Leandro Fabian and ends Mike Tobin, James Tisdale, Dylan Nazarian, Didier Amaya, Nikan Modaressi and Joseph Bucher-Leighton should apply plenty of pressure to opposing quarterbacks. The secondary is also full of playmakers in strong safeties Connor Petoyan and Skyler Walters, free safeties Jaden Joch, Jack Crosby and Tavian Talbert, and corner backs Solomon, Jackson Kaufman, Diego Partow, Ethan Nazarian, Desmond Russell andErvin Hernandez.
Special Teams
Seniors Jacob Leatherman and Jack Malloy will handle the kicking and punting duties. Palisades lost All-City punter Caden Robertson(35.6 yards per punt average) and placekicker Kellan Ford 34-of-36 on PATS and two-of-three in field goal attempts) both graduated. Solomon returns as the Dolphins’ premiere kickoff and punt returner, having re-
turned 10 kickoffs for 275 yards (includng a 95-yarder) and seven punts for 150 yards in 2023. Carter averaged 15 yards in his three kickoff returns and averaged 10 yards in his three punt returns.
History
Palisades has become one of the winningest programs in the LA City Section over the last five seasons, posting a 40-11 record in that span, including Open Division postseason berths in 2019, 2021 and 2023 and a run to the Division I finals in 2022.
Prior to 2022, Palisades had only reached the finals twice in program history. In 1974, under their first coach Dick North and back when there was only one playoff division, the Dolphins lost to San Fernando 12-10 in the championship game on a foggy night at the LA Coliseum when quarterback and kicker Rick Myers missed what would have been the game-winning field goal as time ran out. In 1987, quarterback Perry Klein set school passing records on his way to leading Palisades, coached by Jack Epstein, to the 3A final, where the Dolphins fell to Franklin 30-14 at East LA College. Klein finished the year with 3,896 yards and 36 touchdowns.
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Sloane Le Chang (left) and Samo 12U Gold teammate Charlie Albores after a recent workout at the Field of Dreams. Photos by Steve Galluzzo
Charlie Albores and Sloane Le Chang Shine for Santa Monica Fastpitch 12U Softball All-Stars
By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor
In the heat of competition, friendship can be strengthened or weakened and in the case of Palisadians Sloane Le Chang and Charlie Albores,a bond formed with them and their teammates that will last a lifetime.
As members of the Santa Monica Girls Fastpitch 12U Gold All-Star team this summer, the two helped their squad finish fifth out of 31 teams at the Western Nationals in Salem, Oregon—one of the highest finishes of any team in league history. Samo qualified for Nationals after taking second in the LA/South Bay District, then placing in the top four at the State SoCal Championships in Lancaster over Fourth of July weekend.
“The reason we were so successful is teamwork,” said Le Chang, who lives in the Highlands and is starting eighth grade at Calvary Christian School and plans to attend Palisades High next year. “If you don’t have a team that plays together you won’t get that far.”
“We’re one big family,” adds Albores, who lives near The Village and is now a seventh-grader at Paul Revere. “If our pitcher isn’t doing well we’re there for her. At my lowest points, they’ve always been there for me.”
Head coach Mike Denbeau, whose daughter Maddie Denbeau (a pitcher and outfielder on the squad) used to go to Calvary Christian, guided the 12Us to a 30-17-1 record during the All-Star season, including a 5-5 mark at Nationals, where they scored 89 runs in 10 games, the most combined runs of any team in the tournament.
“I’ve coached this team, including Charlie and Sloane, since they played 10U two years ago,” Denbeau said. “That team was a disappointing 2-14 and never qualified for state. They were talented but hadn’t figured out how to play as a team. That’s what made this year’s group so special. They always had the individual talent but after two years of playing together they became a family and truly began playing for each other, which is the ingredient you need against the high-level of competition we faced during our run through states and nationals.You’ll get down, get beat, you’ll be nervous and scared but you realize the team’s bigger than you and you draw strength, resiliency and inspiration from your teammates and refuse to let them down. Charlie and Sloane exemplified that spirit.”
Le Chang likes hitting most whereas fielding is Albores’ specialty. In the spring, Charlie played for the Bronco Tigers in the PPBA.
Denbeau, whose younger daughter Bella is 10 years old but was called up to the 12U All-Star team to be a courtesy runner, assessed both Palisadians’ skills.
“As our starting second baseman, Charliewas a rock in the middle of the infield, getting key defensive outs all season while making spectacular “Sportscenter Top 10” type leaping and diving plays that saved us in games,” he said. “She takes pride in her craft as a defender, gives maximum effort on every play and is one of the best, if not the best, defensive second basemen in all of California. She’s no slouch at the plate either. As I recall at Nationals she came up with a huge bases-loaded hit that tied the game against North Shore of San Diego—a game we went on to win in extra innings.”
On the diamond, she made zero errors in 32 chances at Nationals and turned several doube plays with shorstop Mali Gutierrez.
“Sloane was our starting center fielder and hit in the middle of the lineup,” Denbeau added. “She was one of our four veterans and like all good hitters eventually experience she went through a hitting slump in the middle of the season. I benched her for one of our games and I know deep down she was disappointed but instead of pouting and being angry she showed great maturity, cheered on her team from the dugout, put her feelings aside and took pride in the team’s success. After that game she was focused and spent hours outside of practice working on her hitting. At States and Nationals she found her groove and got back to crushing the ball, including a triple that came within a few feet of going out of the parkagainst Rampage DC, a strong travel team from Vancouver, Washington.”
Both girls relish the grind of playing softball 10 months out of the year and in season practicing for two hours a day, three days a week. All the hard work has paid off.
A lifelong Palisadian, Le Chang is also an accomplished volleyball and lacrosse player. Her older brother Noah is a freshman on the JV football team at Pali High. Her younger brother Luke plays tennis and pickleball and is going into sixth grade at Paul Revere.
Albores’ family moved from New York City to the Palisades when she was 3. She used to run cross country, skateboard and play lacrosse and she graduated from the Junior Lifeguard program at Will Rogers State Beach. Charlie’s big brother Oliver is a sophomore on the surf team at Pali High.
Short for her age, Albores does not think size is a factor on the diamond, saying: “It doesn’t matter if you’re tall or small.”
Since 8U, Albores has a tradition of letting her teammates sign her cap. Were it not for softball the Palisades girls might not have met—and for that they are thankful.The two will be on different All-Star teams next summer, but neither will forget this year’s shared experience.
“Sloane is moving up to 14U next season, but we’re returning eight of our 11 players from this team in 12U—including Charlie,” Denbeau said. “So watch out!”
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Sloane Le Chang was Samo’s starting center fielder and made a running catch in a key game at the state tournament.
Sloane Le Chang tripled off the wall in a game versus Rampage DC at the Western Nationals in Salem, Oregon.
Charlie Albores made zero errors in 32 chances at second base during the Western Nationals in Salem, Oregon.
Charlie Albores got a clutch hit with the bases loaded to tie North Shore of San Diego during the Western Nationals.
Senior Hazel Irving is one of the Dolphins’ captains this season. Photo: Steve Galluzzo
The last time the Palisades High girls volleyball team won a City Section crown was 2020. For most schools, four years is no big deal but at Palisades that is an eternity.
The Dolphins have 30 City crowns to their credit since 1973, by far the most of any program, and they hope to add to that total with a roster that returns 11 players from last year’s squad, which lost to El Camino Real in the Open Diviion semifinals. Co-captains are senior middle blocker/outside hitter Hazel Irving and junior libero/outside hitter Lucy Neilson. Bolstering the lineup are hitters Ashlynn Sells, Tulah Block, Gaby Bartle, Paige Monaco, Isabella Drake, Adalee Foster and Bianca Dolotta; middles Annie Refnes, Gabby Flynn and Margot Madeira; liberos Sophia Winston and Ava Dyer; and setters Christie Turner and Lila Barajas.
Palisades swept Eagle Rock in its season opener Aug.16. On Sept. 6-7 the Dolphins play in the Chatsworth Invitational. The following weekend they head to the Falcon Classic at Crescenta Valley and Sept. 27-28 they play in the Venice Invitational.
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