The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • 335

Cos Anflete Slimes advertising! special supplement Saturday, July 29, 1989 BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT 2 nil V'X Kiyoshl Ishikawa, center, who lost everything but his chefs knives and mixing bowl in a fire that destroyed his sushi bar, is opening another restaurant, Kiyosaku, with his wife and partner, Teruka, right, in Palm Springs Camino Plaza Center. With them is Lindsey Armstrong of The PrudentialHampton Realtors, who represented the Ishikawas in leasing the new $200,000 restaurant. "Celestial sign' inspires sushi chef to rebuild Senior center officials clarify lines between food programs Officials c' the Palm Springs Senior Centt. tleased a report recently detailing (he center's programs in an effort to end confusion over the facility's role in a separate government program that distributes surplus USDA commodities to needy persons. Concern had been raised about the possibility that only senior citizens were receiving the surplus goods, which included cheese and milk, at the center.

The statewide program makes the food available to qualified persons and families of all ages. To settle the issue, center officials met with state representatives and decided to move administrative activities for the program to First Southern Baptist Church in Palm Springs. The food is now distributed from 9 a.m. to noon on the second Friday of each month at the Palm Springs Pavilion. A detailed registration form, available at the church, must be completed at least two days before the distribution date by those wishing to receive the food.

The church, located at 1111 E. Vista Chino, can be reached at (619) 327-7800. Ben Green, executive director of the senior center, says that the facility still provides various food programs to both active and homebound seniors and to all seniors "who are in need of food." "The Palm Springs Senior Center continues its food programs year-round," he said. Green points out that in many cases, people and businesses will donate food directly to the senior center. "When this happens, the food is given out on a first-come, first-served basis," he said.

"All of our food programs are possible only through the cooperative efforts of the Palm Springs Board of Realtors, the City of Palm Springs, Food in Need of Distribution (FIND), Desert Hospital, Frances Kelley and the Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP)." In his report. Green said the weekday lunch at the center is provided by Riverside County. Seniors donate $1.50 for a complete luncheon, but must make reservations by telephoning Marilyn Grant at 323-1067. A free breakfast is served at the center from 8 to 10 a.m. each Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

The menu includes cereal, milk, fruit, coffee and pastries. The center's Meals on Wheels service is for homebound senior citizens who are unable to cook for themselves. A daily fee is charged for the service, based on the type of meal required. Interested persons are asked to call Francine Brooks weekdays at 323-5689. The center has an Emergency Food Baskets program for seniors who need food immediately.

The program, directed from the senior center, is coordinated by Kay Lehr and Marilyn Purdy of the Out-' reach staff. of space in the Camino Plaza Center on North Palm Canyon Drive in Palm Springs and plan to have a new 45-seat, $200,000 sushi bar in operation by Labor Day. It will be called Kiyosaku, as was their former sushi establishment in Palm Springs, which burned to the ground April 2. Everything in the restaurant was destroyed, save for Ishikawa's knives A sushi bar operator who lost everything but his chef's knives and mixing bowl in a devasting fire is opening again in a new location, convinced that the spared utensils were a celestial sign that he should overcome the disaster and start anew. Nicherin Shoshu Bhuddist Kiy-oshi Ishikawa and his wife, Teruka, have leased 2,320 square feet and mixing bowl, which he kept in a secret hiding place.

"We felt it truly significant that only the tools of our trade were spared," says Ishikawa, who has been a chef for 25 years. "The knives were very special to us and we used the bowl for making all our sauces from secret recipes. "We took it as a sign to take heart and begin again." 3 senior athletes return to desert with medals Three senior athletes returned to their desert homes last week, two with silver medals and the other with a bronze won in competition with senior athletes from all over the United States in the U.S. Senior Olympics held in St. Louis, Mo.

John McKenzie of Palm Springs won his silver medal by placing second in the 200-meter backstroke for men aged 70-74. Norman Siegel won the silver in tennis doubles for men 75-79. Gloria Baumann of Palm Desert won her bronze by taking second in the 100-meter breaststroke finals for women 60-64. Ben Green, executive director of the Palm Springs Senior Center, who led the desert athletic contingent, said 3,452 senior athletes competed in the games. More than half of those athletes had competed in the regional Olympics, which were held earlier this year in Palm Springs.

Green is also executive director of the Southern California Regional Senior Olympics. During the national Olympics, Green was elected vice president in charge of the Western Region of the United States in development and management of the Senior Olympics. Green is now one of three vice presidents in charge of organizing the growth of the Senior Olympics in the nation, with responsibility for California, Arizona, Nevada and Washington. The first Senior Olympics were held in Southern California in 1969. Since then, local and regional games have been growing, with an estimated 50,000 athletes currently involved.

Green, who has directed the three Palm Springs Invitational Senior Olympics, says that plans are already under way for the 1990 Invitational. He notes that 400 athletes took part in the first Palm Springs Olympics in 1987, 800 in 1988 and 1,300 athletes in 37 events this year. The 1990 Palm Springs Invitational Senior Olympics will be held from the last weekend in February through the first weekend in March. Green anticipates that about 1,500 athletes will compete in a slate of 39 events. For more information, contact Green at the Palm Springs Senior Center, 550 N.

Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs, or call (619) 323-5689. Museum committee gears up for season The Women's Committee of the Palm Springs Desert Museum will host three major fund-raising events during the 1989-90 season, according to committee president Twila Wernicke. The season will open with the traditional MOOD (Museum Opening of the Desert) gala on Saturday, Nov. 11, at the museum. Chairing the event, which will feature a "magic" theme, are Saralee Rudnick and Lenny Singer.

Wernicke will chair the museum's annual Gala program on Friday, Feb. 9, at the Ritz-Carlton in Rancho Mirage. The final event will be a new one for the committee, "Spring Time (The In Museum Event)." It will be a fashion show and dinner on Thursday, April 12 at the Desert Springs Marriott. Chairing the event, which will feature fashions from Ebony, is Judy Gelfand. For further information regarding any of the events, telephone Mary Margaret Wilson at (619) 325-7186.

Coachella Valley Tomorrow board of directors chairperson John Stiles, left, and executive director Ranny Burke go over plans for funding Jhe new, business-oriented organization. Coachella Valley Tomorrow to give businesses a voice A group of area business leaders have banded together to form Coachella Valley Tomorrow, an independent economic development corporation for the desert resort communities. Described by its board chairperson, STR Commercial Brokerage's John Stiles, as a "business-oriented" convention and visitors bureau, Coachella Valley Tomorrow will be a nonprofit organization funded and directed by the private sector. Organizers say its purposes are to encourage the creation of economic opportunities for area businesses and residents while serving as a voice for the business community on a valleywide basis. The board members represent a substantial cross-section of the Valley's business community.

Serving on the board are Paul Ames of The Ames Group, Bob Barley of the Bank of California, Andy Druhl of Sfingi Hannon Insurance, Curt Dunham of Birtcher-Dunham and Mark Empy of Best, Best Krieger. Also serving on the board are Bob Hird of Southern California Gas Stephen G. Hoffmann of Palm Springs Savings Bank, Greg Kelli-her of Naegele Outdoor Advertising, Les Kovalcik of Southern California Edison Co. and Don Tan-nahill of Landmark Land Co. One of the bureau's first official acts was the appointment of Ranny Burke as executive director to supervise the operations of the new organization.

A resident of Indio, Burke, 43, served as executive director of the National Date Festival in Indio from 1986 to 1988. During his tenure, the expansion of scheduled events and exhibits, including the institution of satellite wagering for off-track betting, helped lead to an increase in fair revenues and attendance, which rose to more then 250,000. Please see VOICE, Page 2 Development authority holds introductory session An introductory session has been held for the Agua Caliente Development Authority, which was established by ordinance of the Agua Caliente Tribal Council this past April. The 11-member board will be headed by a chairperson to be named soon by the tribal council. An executive director will then be hired.

Six non-tribal members have agreed to serve on the authority, representing a wide range of financial, legal and business expertise. They are architect Howard P. Lapham of Palm Springs, real estate broker Robert M. Fey of Palm. Springs, certified public accountant Lloyd Marya-nov of Palm Springs, attorney James M.

Schlecht of Palm Springs, financial advisor Stanley D. Short of Montrose and hotel consultant Burton L. Spivack of Palm Springs. The tribal members are Richard M. Milano-vich, Larry Olinger, Moraino Patencio and Barbara Gonzales Lyons.

Another has yet to be named. The authority, whose mission statement is "to increase tribal assets through accepted business practices to ultimately benefit the tribe," will meet on the first Friday of the month for the first six months of its existence. Desert AIDS plans outing The Desert AIDS Project (DAP) will host an outing in the mountains for clients, volunteers and staff Aug. 5 in Idyllwild. Organizers say the event is designed to be a day of fun, food and relaxation in the cool mountain air for the DAP "family" to share the day together.

Those planning to attend are asked to be at the DAP offices, 750 S. Vella Road in Palm Springs, by 10 a.m. for a caravan up the mountain. Clients will be transported in vans provided by Celebrity Tours. For more information, or to register for the outing, telephone Lorraine M.

Lopez at (619) 323-2118 by Wednesday. Maverick high school graduate chooses footlights over field lights 1 if r- It was the biggest tossup in Ed Staudenmayer's life last year when Palm Springs High School football coaches gave him an ultimatum: either quit spending time rehearsing for school plays or give up football. Jean De Santis, Staudenmayer's mother, says she doesn't know who was more flabbergasted, the coaching staff or her own family, when her son chose footlights instead of field lights. "He obviously made the right choice," De Santis said when her son received the 1989 Eadie Adams Memorial Scholarship for the most outstanding Palm Springs High School graduate majoring in theater arts at a four-year university. The scholarship, presented by Eadie Adams Realty is named for the late entertainer who was the original vocalist in Kay Kaiser's Orchestra and a film actress before founding her own realty company in Palm Springs and Palm Desert.

The scholarship was originated by the firm's current owners, president Jim Hicks and executive vice president Ed Nonnenbruch. Staudenmayer will use the $1,000 scholarship to help pay for his freshman year at UCLA, where he has been accepted as a fine-arts major. In a plot right out of a musical, Palm Springs High School drama coach Rosemary Mallet inadvertently planted the seeds for the classic conflict when she cast Staudenmayer in "The Music Man" during his freshman year. He went on to star in 18 other productions, ranging from "Hamlet" and "Tartuffe" to operas like "The Girl of the Golden West" and "II Travatore" without ever missing winter football. Giving up all theater to practice during the spring and summer with weights for senior varsity singing talents.

Who is this kid? Maybe they mixed up the babies in the hosptial?" The only inkling De Santis had that her son was a performer was his habit of of singing, loudly, in the shower every morning. In fact, if he failed to sing, De Santis said she would immediately check his temperature. "After we thought about Ed's decision to pursue acting, the whole family decided to rally behind him, including his four older sisters, my husband and Ed's dad," she said. "We finally thought, 'Well, if you had a choice between getting smashed in the face and putting on makeup, what would you Staudenmayer, who graduated with a 4.0 grade point average, may not have inherited his acting talent from his family, but his mother, who feels that "humor is what gets you through life," concedes that her son, who handles comedy roles with a deft touch, probably did inherit her sense of humor. After making the big choice, Staudenmayer was finally able to appear in a Palm Springs High School production that took place during the football season, and so it was that while some of his friends were making touchdowns, Staudenmayer was winning Best Supporting Actor for 1989 for his role as Will Parker in "Oklahoma!" The California Scholarship Federation seal-bearer graduate also won the school's Outstanding Thespian 1989 award, the Principal's Award and the President's Academic Fitness Award.

Ho also added the Los Angeles Music Center Wintcrfcst Spotlight Award's first runner-up for dramatic arts to a growing collection of drama Please see THESPIAN, Page 2 Ed Nonnenbruch of Eadie Adams Realty presents the scholarship check to Ed Staudenmayer. football forced the choice. But it was a difficult one: Staudenmayer had been named 1985 Most Inspirational player and 1986 Most Valuable Offensive Lineman on the junior varsity team before lettering on the 1987 squad. "Since Ed's father was a football player, semi-pro with the Ontario Bulldogs, and a police officer, the whole family expected Ed to be macho and put football before everything," De Santis said. "We have no idea where Ed got his acting and.