Three students from local high schools have...

Three students from local high schools have been given citizenship awards by the Santa Fe Springs City Council. The Excellence in Citizenship award and $500 was presented to Heather Buscombe, a Santa Fe High senior with a 3.5 grade-point average. Gilbert Hernandez and Christy Sandoval received $200 each. Hernandez, a member of several school clubs, is a senior at Santa Fe High School. Sandoval, who has participated in an annual march for hunger, attends St. Paul High School.

Downey residents Dr. Mary R. Stauffer and Ron Kolar have qualified for membership in the Founders’ Gallery of Downey Community Hospital with donations of at least $100,000 each to the hospital. Stauffer, a general practitioner, has been affiliated with the hospital since 1969 and is the only woman to have served as president of its medical staff. Kolar, president of L’Abri Management and L’Abri Properties, is a member of the hospital’s corporation and helped to raise funds for its 36-bed patient wing.

Long Beach City College has appointed John Dideon as administrative services director to replace Frank Larkin, who is retiring. Dideon, of Long Beach, was director of the Private Industry Council at Cerritos College. In addition, Charles Hobbick, a part-time instructor in the Long Beach City College aviation maintenance program for the past three years, has become a full-time teacher. Dan Ripley has been named head coach of the women’s track team. Ripley is a former record holder and national champion in the pole vault.

Jan Foster, director of the Continuing Education Center for Women at Long Beach City College, has received the Women Helping Women Award from the Long Beach Soroptimist Club. She has been instrumental in developing a physical fitness class that attracts more than 350 women each semester, a yearly non-traditional job day for women and numerous issue-related workshops for women.

A new chapter of Sigma Delta Mu, the national honor society of Hispanic studies for two-year colleges, has been formed at Compton Community College. Installed as officers are students Jose Roca, president; Maria Jensen, vice president; and Athel Greenough, treasurer. Faculty advisers are Loretta Bailes, chairman of bilingual and bicultural studies; Luz C. Watts, Spanish and bilingual professor; and J. Wilson Bowman, dean of academic affairs.

Carmen Mirabal of Bell will travel this month to Peru with a volunteer team of Pilot International Club members to lay the groundwork for a women-helping-women project. Titled Project: Womanpower, it is a training program to be conducted in the fall for women in small business enterprises in that country. Mirabal and her husband, George, own a mortuary in Bell. She was manager of the Bell Chamber of Commerce for three years, and has a real estate license. She is a member of the Pilot Club of Southeast Los Angeles and was its president.

Long Beach residents Cynthia Grinstead, Dana O’Brien and Matthew Smith have been studying with members of the Los Angeles Philharmonic through an endowed program of seminars for young musicians. Grinstead and O’Brien took part in a flute seminar taught by Philharmonic principal flutist Ann Diener Giles, and Smith participated in a violin class taught by concertmaster and first violinist Alexander Treger.

Alex A. Garcia, a senior at Huntington Park High School, participated in Student Awareness Day in Government sponsored by the Los Angeles Unified School District and supported by the county Board of Supervisors. Garcia visited the county Hall of Administration and was given a certificate of merit by Supervisor Pete Schabarum. The program is designed to introduce students to career opportunities in government.

Three Whittier College alumni are to be honored at the Alianza de Los Amigos 12th annual scholarship fund-raising banquet Saturday night at the Pasadena Hilton. They are Robert Ponce, an assistant superintendent in the state Department of Education; Judge Manuel Ramirez, Orange County Superior Court; and Laura Robles, a Ph.D. candidate at the California Professional School of Psychology. Alianza de Los Amigos is the college’s Latino alumni group which in 12 years has awarded more than $150,000 in scholarships to Latino students.

Lakewood Councilwoman Jacqueline Rynerson was among women chosen from throughout the state to be honored at the Capitol in observance of Women’s History Month. She was invited by Assemblyman Paul E. Zeltner (R-Bellflower) to represent the 54th Assembly District. Rynerson was chosen for her service to community, which includes the Lakewood City Council, Parks and Recreation Commission, city Environmental Council, Southern California Assn. of Governments and PTA organizations.

Donald R. Powell, city manager of Santa Fe Springs, has been appointed to the Los Angeles County Commission on Local Governmental Services. The commission examines and makes recommendations to the Board of Supervisors on jurisdictional matters of overlaping public services.

Leticia Hernandez of Pico Rivera has been elected a board member-at-large of the Spanish Trails Girl Scout Council. She will serve a two-year term. Chosen as delegates to the national council meeting of Girl Scouts are Judy Frazier of Whittier and Katie Jimenez and Yvonne Willoughby, both of Hacienda Heights. The national council will meet in October in Portland, Ore.

First-prize winners in the Lakewood Artist Guild’s annual membership show are Chuck Hammond, Mary Folks, Dan Hare, Jean Madueno and Andras Csaplar. Doralee Dowdy was given the Ediss Award, and the Steyl Award went to Beverly Stricker.