It is the Brea 8K Classic Race/Walk. This year it begins at 8 a.m. on Feb. 25, and is a USATF certified course.  The 8K takes place rain or shine. Go to www.brea8K.com to register. Do it soon, too.

This is the 31st year of the 8K Classic that began with 68 participants. This year, 2,000 runners and walkers from all over SoCal are expected to hit the pavement for the 5.1-mile race through Brea streets.

Race Director Elizabeth Fuchs said net proceeds from the 8K Classic, including entry fees, sponsorships and donations, benefit Brea Olinda High School’s instrument music programs, choir and color guard.

The 8K Classic has three events. The biggest is the race for runners, walkers and even a wheelchair division. There is a virtual race for those who rather run or walk without others, and a Fun Run for kids age 10 and younger. The youngsters’ race has its own course and goes from 10 to 10:30 a.m. And like all the other racers, the Fun Runners will receive an official Brea 8K Classic T-shirt and a finisher’s medal. Pretty cool.

Register for the race as an individual or a team. Maybe get some friends to join as a team, or sign up your family to run/walk as a team. To save 10% on your race entry, register by Feb. 14 at www.brea8K.com.

Just put in the coupon code 24HEART to receive the discount. Happy Valentine’s Day.

Mayor Christine Marick said, thanks to her teenager, their family races every year.

This year is a bit different since she is mayor. “I’ll be officially kicking off the race, and we have a busy day of events already planned,” Marick said.

Councilmember Steve Vargas said he’s run the race for years with his neighbor, Kenny Suierveld, and will again this year.

Councilmember Cecilia Hupp said she and her husband, Scott, have participated in the 8K many times and probably will this year. Most of the school board will be in the race, including board president Paul Ruiz.

Just don’t include Fido in your team. Fuch noted that due to insurance coverage changes, except for service dogs, dogs are not allowed in the race. Strollers are still allowed.

The race course starts on East Birch Street, by the Brea Mall, and takes participants over Brea streets, including Associated Road, Lambert Road, Kraemer Boulvard to East Birch Street, and State College Boulevard to the finish line at the Brea Mall.

Come cheer on your friends and family in the race.

According to Fuchs they need approximately 500 to 700 volunteers along the race route to help keep non-participants off the race course, hand cups of water to runners and walkers and other easy duties. Or volunteer to work at the registration table or wherever extra hands are needed that day. Email volunteers@brea8K.com to be a race day volunteer.

Beyond the finish line, in the mall parking lot, the weary racers will find the 8K food court with snacks, food samples and beverages from several area restaurants, and all for free, but for racers only. Your racer’s bib is your entry ticket to the 8K food court.

As in years past, the Brea Mall is the presenting sponsor and other returning sponsors include Snail’s Pace Running Shop, FIT Design, Sheila Buonauro Team, Alex Horowitz Group, Brea Chamber of Commerce, 7-Eleven and many others including the City of La Habra – La Habra Races.

Sponsorships are available until Feb. 14. Go to website for sponsorship information.

The awards ceremony will be near the food court and corporate sponsor area.  Trophies will go to the fastest male and female, top three male and female runners and to the biggest team.

Want to win? Be a runner or walker in the 31st Brea 8K Classic.

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.

Heading the list is the Brea Mall, where owner Simon Property Group has already demolished the former Sears store, tire center and nearby parking lot, making way for a mixed-use project. That project includes an eight-story apartment building (five levels of apartments and three of parking), a posh fitness center, assorted shops, restaurants and a public park-like area that could be used for community events and concerts.

Sounds good. I just hope they bring back Williams-Sonoma.

Starting this month, the mall project will include overnight work on the underground utilities and storm drains. From 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. expect a lane closure on Randolph Street and delays on Imperial Highway. Best to just avoid that area after 10 p.m.

While the Laurel Elementary School students were on winter break, major changes happened at Gaslight Square, across from the school.

Major demolition took place and all that is left of the former professional offices and retail center are the two dental-medical offices located there. All the other brick buildings are gone to make way for a 2,000-square-food, drive-thru restaurant with outdoor seating, a 6,000-square-foot commercial building to house another restaurant plus medical or retail space, plus parking for 104 vehicles.

The center will have a new, modern architectural style. The red bricks? Doubt they are coming back.

We’ll be watching to see what tenants will be moving in. Will Raising Cane’s give it another try?

Another major project getting underway this year is Aera Energy’s Brea 265 project. It is a master-planned residential community that will span the former oil fields near the Brea Sports Park, mainly in the vicinity of Lambert Road, Valencia Avenue and Rose Drive.

The 1,100-residential-unit project will range from posh single-family homes, to townhomes to apartments. It will be low- to medium-density residential and include 110 affordable units.

Brea 265 will also include 15.1 acres of parks, trails and 47.5 acres of open space. These are major changes to the former oil fields and the Christmas tree farm formerly on Rose Drive, and the eastside of town.

More than 1,000 residential units does means more traffic, but Aera is also funding expansions of Lambert Road and Rose Drive. We need it now.

They are also funding an expansion of Olinda Elementary School and adding 13 acres to the Brea Sports Park, which will include pickleball courts, tennis courts, full-size football and soccer fields, basketball courts and playgrounds. Expect the Brea Sports Park to be a major, countywide draw for sport teams and fans.

One very cool amenity planned by Aera is an illuminated pedestrian tunnel running beneath Lambert Road. It was formerly used for oil operations. Sounds great, but hope it is safe. Aera also plans a one-acre site for a fire and police sub-station.

The Brea 265 project will take several years to complete. We’ll be watching its progress.

We learned last year that Amazon is coming to Brea. The former Bank of America building at 275 Valencia Avenue is planned to become a huge Amazon warehouse-delivery facility.

The plan is for the 637,503-square foot, three-story office building to be torn down and a single-story, 181,500-square-foot, 44-foot tall Amazon warehouse built in its place.

So far, the project is being reviewed through an EIR or environmental impact report. After that, it will be presented to the Planning Commission. If the commissioners approve it, we can expect the former Bank of America building to go the way of the Sears buildings and its parking lot, unless the project is appealed. Then its fate will be determined by the City Council.

Lots of changes for Brea, but that is what keeps our town alive, or does it?

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.

For one, the Brea Police Department’s Integrated Crime Center will be taking shape, thanks to a nearly $6 million grant they received from California’s Board of State and Community Corrections.

At the City Council’s Dec. 19 meeting, which lasted only seven minutes, the City Council approved spending $1,995,008 in the current fiscal year for software and hardware for the ICC. That purchase will include an Avigilon Control Center, drone software, fixed video cameras, license place readers and a Command Central Aware system. The city will cut a check for the $1.9 million and then be reimbursed in full from the BSCC grant.

Brea Police Chief Adam Hawley can’t just pull funds from the grant for purchasing equipment for the ICC, but must first have council approval. The city will continue to be reimbursed by the BSCC for additional costs to be incurred through December 2026. So the PD has until then to fund more equipment, hiring personnel and other expenses to get the ICC up and running. We’ll be hearing more about it in 2024.

Something else we can expect to hear about in 2024 is permanent supportive housing for Brea. You may have read about in the city manager’s October memo where he noted that the city was awarded a $6.03 million grant from CalOptima Health for the construction of a permanent supportive housing project in Brea at 323 N. Brea Blvd. That property is city owned.

Before we get all NIMBYish about it, here are a few facts about what permanent supportive housing really is and is not. Jason Killebrew, Brea’s community development director, is really the city’s expert on housing types and the laws governing them and explained the differences to me.

For one, permanent supportive housing is NOT a homeless, emergency or temporary, shelter. It is affordable permanent housing for the working poor whose income qualifies them to live and pay lower rent in a particular development.

Brea adopted the Inclusionary Affordable Housing Ordinance in 1993. It requires developers of new residential projects, including apartments, condominiums and single-family houses to reserve 20 or more units, or a minimum of 10% of the units as affordable, or pay in-lieu fees that go into the city’s housing funds. According the Killebrew, the city can use those funds to help private development of affordable housing projects.

The Bonterra Apartments in the Blackstone neighborhood and the Birch Hills Apartments on Kramer Boulevard are examples of affordable housing. I drove through both complexes recently and noticed that they are well maintained and look like many other Brea apartment communities.

Like those affordable apartments, permanent supportive housing has no limits on length of stay, and provides services by an onsite manager to make sure the tenant is maximizing their ability to live and work in the community. They are required to pay rent like their neighbors.

Killebrew said the main difference between the affordable apartments and permanent supportive housing is the area median income. Permanent supportive housing tenants’ income is in the lower bracket, and that could possibly be as low 0% to 30% of the area median income.  It is yet to be determined.

The proposed permanent supportive housing project for North Brea Boulevard would be only 40 units and construction would not get under way until the city secures 100% of the funding, or a development/lease agreement is approved by the City Council. That could be many months from now.

Remember the tenants will be working people, maybe who work in local shops and restaurants we all frequent. They deserve a safe, permanent place to live in the new year.

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.

The two roles are chosen by the councilmembers each year from among their ranks.

Marick, who served the last year as mayor pro tem, and Stewart were nominated together by Councilmember Marty Simonoff, who was wrapping up his year as mayor, and seconded by Councilmember Cecilia Hupp. There were no other nominations nor any discussion. The vote was 5-0.

Marick was first elected to the City Council in 2012, and re-elected in 2016 and 2020. This is her third time as Brea’s mayor.  She previously served as mayor in 2016 and 2020. Stewart just completed his first year as a councilmember. Not bad.

So what can we expect from our city’s new leaders? Marick said, “My goal is work with my colleagues, city staff and our engaged resident/businesses to keep Brea a top-tier city that continues to attract families, businesses and visitors.” She added that they would have a continued focus on homelessness, infrastructure, including Arovista Park, and major investments in  public safety.

She and Stewart recognize a lack of affordable and workforce housing and the major importance of public safety, including support of the Brea Police Department’s planned integrated crime center to help combat crime, including the smash and grab crimes so prevalent today.

Marick serves on the Orange County Waste Management Commission, the Orange County Public Library Advisory Board and the city’s Investment Advisory Committee.

In the past year as a first-time Brea councilmember Stewart worked on the city’s Development Committee, and is a member of the Wildlife Corridor & Conservation Authority and the Hillside Open Space Education Coalition or HOSEC. Stewart expressed interest in being the city’s representative for the Orange County Sanitation District.  We’ll see if he gets it.

Sometimes council members vie for the same commissions and it gets ugly. I recall a City Council study session several years ago when two council members both wanted on a particular county committee. I believe it was for the Orange County Mosquito and Vector Control District. It got a bit testy and the tempers heated up. All I could think was that they needed a mom in there to separate those arguing kids.

But in the end, it is the mayor who appoints council members to city and some county commissions. Other appointments are done through an interview process by the county agencies.

It is important for our city leaders to be a part of county and regional organizations because often what affects them also affects us, and our city should have a say in it.

At present, Stewart is a HAZMAT firefighter for the Torrance Fire Department, while Marick is the CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Brea, Placentia and Yorba Linda.

And speaking of the Boys & Girls Club, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Dec. 16 there will be a holiday toy giveaway for kids of all ages. To receive a toy, children must be accompanied by one adult or parent per family. A child must be present to receive a toy. No picking up something for a sibling who didn’t come.

Bring the kids early because the toy supply is limited.

The Brea clubhouse is at 502 S. Sievers Ave., next to the Brea Senior Center.

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.

It seems folks start their holiday decorating earlier each year, some right after Halloween. That’s too early for me.

But this is the time of year when the fireplace is burning logs nightly and beautiful scented candles add a festive touch to your holiday décor. But if you are not careful with candles and other flammable decorations, you could have more than chestnuts roasting on an open fire, and it wouldn’t be pretty.

Nicole Pesqueira, Brea’s new fire marshall, said via email that the major cause of holiday fires are from cooking, candles, faulty lights/electrical, decorations and dry trees.

Whether you go for a live Christmas tree or do like I finally did last year and purchase an artificial tree, you should be aware of fire dangers with live or artificial Christmas trees.

Aren’t artificial trees flameproof? According Pesqueira, artificial trees can be flameproof, but not all of them are fire resistant. Check the tree’s label. Mine is flame resistant.

Fresh trees need to be watered often to keep from drying out before Santa arrives.

To keep fresh and phony trees from going up in flames, use only flame retardant or flame resistant decorations and flameless candles.

And before decorating the tree or the house, check each string of lights you’ll use. If you spot signs of wear or find any broken cords or bulbs, don’t use that string of lights. Make the same check of lights on pre-lit trees.  And always unplug your tree lights when you go to bed or leave the house.

Also, place the tree at least three feet away from a fireplace, radiator or any other heat source. Be sure your fireplace has a screen before lighting a fire in it. I have remote-operated candles in my fireplace. They make a cozy glow, flicker like they have real flames but there are no burning logs or ashes to clean out.

But fires can start from faulty batteries too. “A new trend we are seeing,” said Pesqueira, “is lithium-ion battery fires. A lot of Christmas gifts will likely have these types of batteries.”

Lithium-ion batteries are those flat, coin-sized batteries used to power laptops, smart phones, smoke alarms, toys, e-bikes, e-scooters and e-cigarettes. Many plug-in hybrid or all-electric cars also use Lithium-ion batteries.

The National Fire Protection Agency says to quit using the battery if you notice an odor, there is a change in color, it gets too hot, changes in shape, is leaking or has an odd noise. They advise to move away from the device or anything that could catch fire and call 9-1-1.

Pesqueira also advises to only use the Lithium-ion battery designed for the device, put the batteries in the device the correct way, and only use the charging cord that came with the device.

Did you know Fire Marshall Pesqueira just started with Brea earlier this month? She said she worked for Brea Fire Department for more than five years as a fire prevention specialist II but left two years ago to be the fire marshall at El Segundo Fire Department. When she learned of the vacancy in Brea she applied and we got her back.

She said her duties include managing the fire inspectors, the inspection and new construction program, handling public education, investigating fires and other duties.

Welcome back, Fire Marshall Pesqueira.

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.

The ICC will include hi-tech cameras, drones, license plate readers, other equipment and additional personnel.  It is for combating organized retail crime, cargo theft and vehicle accessory theft. The original cost estimate was nearly $5 million, and was projected as a five-year project. Federal and state grants were sought to fund it.

Well, a big one came through. The Brea Police Department was awarded a Prevention Grant Award of nearly $6 million from the California Board of State and Community Corrections. Hawley explained at a recent City Council meeting that Brea was one of only five agencies in Orange County that received the grant. And due to the grant’s additional funding and its terms, the ICC is now a three-year project.

The City Council approved the grant at their Oct. 17 meeting and the ball is rolling. Hawley and staff have begun the acquisition process.

“We anticipate that our first purchases will be brought before the City Council in December or January,” said Hawley.

And they are now recruiting for key positions for the ICC, including an IT specialist, crime analyst and later drone operators. The ICC will be a state-of-the-art, very high-tech means to fight crime and to keep us all safer.

In the meantime, we still have the 57 Freeway/Lambert Road mess to deal with. This weekend, Lambert Road from State College Boulevard to Point Drive will be closed off, as well as the 57 Freeway’s Lambert Road on and off ramps. The closures will run from 10 p.m. Nov. 17 to 5 p.m. Nov. 19 for repaving of Lambert Road under the freeway.

Sheilah Fortenberry, Caltrans’ District 12 information officer, explained that the repaving work must be done during the day due to weather temperature, but if it rains the project will be postponed until after Thanksgiving Day.

Instead of fretting about the Lambert Road closures, come shopping at Brea’s Nutcracker Boutique from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Nov. 17 and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Nov. 18 at the Brea Community Center on Madison Way. Admission is only $3.

For 29 years, the Nutcracker Boutique has been the place to find unique crafts and holiday gifts for all ages, plus earrings to die for, believe me. According to Kristin Steyerman, community services supervisor, there will be 290 vendors this year.

Additional free parking will be available at the Crosspointe Church, 217 E. Birch St. Park in the church’s parking lot and the Brea Trolley will take you to and from the Nutcracker Boutique, and for free.

But if shopping for cool stuff isn’t your thing, maybe genealogy is. Also on Nov. 18 is a free genealogy workshop at 3 p.m. at the Brea Museum on Brea Boulevard, at City Hall Park. It’s a good time to find famous or infamous relatives hiding in your family tree.

To reserve a spot or if you have questions, call 714-256-2283 or via email at info@breamuseum.org.  Museum Director-Curator Linda Shay said to bring your laptop. Happy hunting.

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.

It is hard for time to fly when it often takes you two signals to cross State College Boulevard at Lambert Road due to the endless stream of vehicles turning left onto Lambert to access the freeway.

According to Sheliah Fortenberry, Caltrans’ information officer, completion of the project is expected by the end of this year. The construction began in 2019, then the coronavirus pandemic shutdown came and the project was put on hold, plus other construction delays along the way.

At this time, there is some more bridgework to be completed, along with repaving the freeway ramps and Lambert Road in that area, plus their punch list items, said Fortenberry.

Michael Ho, Brea’s public works director, said the bridgework includes the digging up and lowering of Lambert Road beneath the bridge to accommodate the new higher height limits for trucks.

“It is going on right now,” said Ho, “Starting with the center median island and then the road itself.”

Of course, that means more lane closures during the street-lowering project.

When it is completed, however, we’ll have three lanes in each direction in that area of Lambert Road, plus three for the southbound on ramp and two for the northbound on ramp. Hopefully that will help move traffic along much faster than it is right now.

So what is it all costing? Ho said the original bid award was $47.5 million. Four years later, the project’s cost is $57 million to $58 million, said Fortenberry. Funding is coming from a variety of sources including federal, state, county and local dollars.

The plans for this project have been around since 2011, when a traffic study showed the need for improved circulation of the 57/Lambert interchange, including both northbound and southbound on ramps.

Liz Pharis, Brea’s public information officer, said the city partnered with the Orange County Transportation Authority and Caltrans to acquire grant funds, and was awarded approximately $75 million from state and federal sources. The city committed more than $12 million for the project from its local mitigation funds, and was awarded more than $12 million from OCTA Measure M2 funds, for property acquisition and construction. She added that approximately 88% of the project funding came from grants.

Remember when a car wash was just east of the Lambert Road off ramp? That area is now part of the huge cloverleaf to the northbound 57 Freeway.

So, by Dec. 31, will we no longer have to deal with freeway construction in Brea? Well, don’t get too comfy.

According to Pharis, the city is now working with Caltrans on improvements to Imperial Highway and the 57 Freeway southbound on ramp. That project was also noted in the 2011 traffic study. Pharis noted that the project is currently budgeted in the city’s 2024 Capital Improvement Program.

Someone coming into town before the freeway project is done is Santa Claus!

Santa visits at the Brea Mall start on Nov. 9. Seems early, but why wait? Check the mall’s website for reservations for Santa photos.

Santa is also looking forward to seeing kids and families on Birch Street in Brea Downtown. Santa will be there the first three weekends in December, then he has to head back to the North Pole. Glad he doesn’t have to take the freeway.

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.

Fortunately, all Brea Olinda Unified School District students, from preschool through high school can receive free breakfast and lunch every day for the 2023-24 school year.

“Under the Universal Meal Program public school districts are required to provide two meals at no-charge (breakfast and lunch) during each school day,” Assistant Superintendent Rick Champion said.

The Universal Meal Program is a statewide program benefiting all California public schools.

At present, about 1,800 free breakfasts and 3,000 free lunches are served at the district’s schools. It doesn’t seem that as many students as could are taking advantage of the program since there are 5,866 K-12 students in the district.

Remember bringing milk money to school to purchase a carton of milk to go with your sack lunch? My brother often lost his money. Well, today that’s not a problem because milk is no longer sold at Brea’s schools. If kids bring their lunches and want milk, they get it free, along with a piece of fruit and a vegetable.

What if a child only wants the milk? They have to take all three items and either eat them, trade with another student or drop them into the “share box,” where students deposit the food they don’t want. That way, a student who wants another apple, for example, can see if there are any in the share box.

And the leftover items in the share box are donated to Abound Food Care, an Orange County nonprofit corporation that collects excess editable food from schools, restaurants, hotels, grocery stores and growers and works with food banks, pantries and other nonprofits who prepare and distribute meals to those in need. So much better than being tossed in the trash can.

Champion explained that while parents are not required to submit a meal application in order for their students to receive the free meals, they are encouraged to do so to take advantage of the additional benefits of the program, depending on the family’s income. Some of those benefits include discounted AP exam fees, athletic fee waivers, discounted bus passes and Internet service.  Families can apply at family.titank12.com.

Another reason to fill out the application is that the school district gets additional reimbursements from the feds and the state for eligible families. It takes just a few minutes to fill out the form, and is so beneficial for many families. Champion noted that only about 19% of the district’s enrollment has completed the application for this school year. Why wait, folks?

Something kids and a lot of adults are waiting for is Halloween. Some Brea churches are having Trunk or Treat events on Halloween or in the days before.  Kids can go trick or treating from car trunk to car trunk in the church’s parking lot and a lot of people decorate their trunks and truck beds for fun.

And, on Halloween from 5 to 7 p.m., Treat on the Street takes place for the fifth year in Brea Downtown. It is always fun to take the kids trick or treating at all the restaurants and shops on both Birch Street and Brea Boulevard.

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.

It is interesting how it all came about.

According former Brea city manger and mayor, Wayne Wedin, via email, “We did know the civic cultural center components would have the ability to draw people from a greater distance to shop at the Brea Mall.”

He added that there were many discussions and information gathered from around the country regarding what to include in the new civic and cultural center and how it could support the success of the new mall. And promote the arts.

The mall continues to thrive and is growing, and so is the popularity of Brea’s performing arts theater, the gallery’s popular exhibits and the beautifully renovated Orange County branch library. Now it is time to prepare for Brea’s future of the arts with a new Cultural Arts Master Plan.

Wedin was also instrumental in getting Brea’s Art in Public Places started in 1978, after seeing public art displayed across cities in Europe and the United States. It is a Brea requirement that when a large development is constructed, a work of art must be included. I think all the art pieces, even the few I don’t care for, add to Brea’s culture.

And what about the future? I recently took part in an Art & Culture Visioning session at Brea’s Civic and Cultural Center. It was an informal brainstorming session on what we want, art and cultural wise, in Brea’s future.

It was the first of three approximately 2-hour sessions held at 6 p.m. on Sept. 26, 27 and 28. The session I attended was presented in English. The Wednesday session was in English and Korean and the Thursday session in English and Spanish, enabling more Breans to participate. If you missed them, more sessions are expected.

There were 10 attendees at the visioning session I attended, and they included city residents or folks who worked or lived near Brea and have interest in Brea’s art and cultural offerings. Rounding out the session were a few city employees, but they mainly observed.

The session was lead by Rick Stein, president and CEO of Arts Orange County, a nonprofit independent arts council and Orange County’s official local arts agency that promotes the arts and provides art education.

Carrie Hernandez, Brea’s community services manager, brought in Orange County Arts to be instrumental in developing Brea’s Cultural Arts Master Plan.

A steering committee for the project was formed in May, and the plan is expected to be presented to the City Council in December.

We were told the purpose of the visioning sessions was to get input from the residents and other attendees that will be used to create the master plan. We were queried about our interest in art, some people told of memorable experiences they had from an art piece or exhibition, and what art opportunities they would like to see in Brea.

Some of those opportunities included a location for youth and adult artists to create and display their artwork. Also how an event like a tamale festival can include art.  The idea is to have a Cultural Arts Master Plan that the people want and will enjoy for years to come.

We were told at the visioning session that we could take the art and culture survey on the city’s home page. I was able to, but then it was removed due to a glitch, but was expected to be back up soon. And it probably is by now.

It is available in English, Korean and Spanish.

Do take the time to fill out the survey and let Brea know what you think should be a part the city’s art and culture future.

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.

From 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. the center will host Brea’s annual Health Fair & Flu Clinic. This is the health fair’s 24th year, and some 400 to 500 people are expected to attend.

“To get a free flu shot, individuals only need to show their insurance cards,” said Rebecca Matta, program manager with the Community Services Department/Brea Senior Center. “No proof of age is needed.”

The health fair has come a long way since the early days, when it was just a flu shot clinic, according Matta. Shingles and pneumonia vaccines will also be offered.

While the health fair is not just for seniors, many of the health screenings and vendors’ services and products are geared toward older residents.

Something always very popular is a free year’s supply of Omega-3 Fish Oil supplements. Andrew Kim, owner of Spoonful Corporation, donates them for the health fair every year.

Besides health screenings, attendees can receive a lot of health and welfare information and even free samples and goodies from many of the 53 vendors with booths at the health fair.

Booths will be located in both senior center buildings and on the covered patio between them. I can’t list them all of them, but some of the vendors include HICAP, St. Jude Wellness Center, Braille Institute, the Orange County Council on Aging, local dentists, senior home care providers, various health plan representatives, Medicare information, spine specialists, eye care providers, senior living facilities, restaurants that feature healthy meals, the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute located at Cal State University Fullerton and even places to tone you up, including Nifty After Fifty and the new UFC GYM Brea, plus many other businesses catering to seniors.

The Brea Health Fair is definitely the place to get those fall vaccinations and lots of information on staying healthy.

Another way the Brea Senior Center promotes healthy living is with its Senior Grocery Program. The center partners with Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County, which delivers a large truckload of fresh, frozen, packaged and canned foods, even milk and eggs, to the senior center the second and fourth Tuesday of each month, serving approximately 175 households.

I stopped by last visit to see how the program worked. I learned it works quite smoothly, thanks to the efforts of the Brea Senior Center personnel and several volunteers, including VIPS or Volunteers in Police Service, members. Those volunteers were busy filling tables around the main room of the senior center with all the food for folks to take.

Matta said the food is not just for seniors, but you must be an Orange County resident. She also noted that Second Harvest supplies groceries for all of the senior centers in the county. Usually attendees are limited to filling one grocery bag, but on the day I visited, there was enough food that they could fill another bag or two.

Everyone brings their own bags or small, wheeled grocery carts. Only one person per family can shop and that person is given a number between 1 and 10. The numbers are called in random order, and 10 people with the same number make their way around the tables, collecting what they want. What a great, budget-saving program for our seniors. The next grocery giveaway day is Sept. 26.

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.