Winter Staff Appreciation Event Brings
Warm Feelings (and Warm Weather)
By Dennis Lyday

The holiday season – Los Angeles style. With the Santa Ana winds blowing and temperatures in the high 70s, Student Affairs staff convened on December 10 in the Clubhouse of the Los Angeles Tennis Center for our Winter 2004 Staff Appreciation event. More than 250 staff members attended. This was an overflow crowd for the Clubhouse, but when “overflow seating” means a warm afternoon in the bleachers alongside the LATC’s gorgeous center court, who’s complaining?

The main item on the program was “appreciation.” Vice Chancellor Montero told the audience, “Here we are coming up to the first final exams of the year, and we need to congratulate ourselves on a very good first quarter. It’s clear that we have made good progress on issues across all areas.”

She also noted, “It’s gratifying to see our staff come together for an occasion like this, where we have time to see colleagues from all parts of the campus and enjoy each other’s company.”

Following the Vice Chancellor’s greeting, the Student Affairs holiday chorus took the stage. It’s worth noting that this was the Chorus’s only performance of 2004, as members’ busy schedules forced a cancellation of our planned visit to the UCLA Hospital. Many thanks to everyone who came through for our staff event. Anthony Jones was a special treat on the keyboard, and Mary Dozier took the lead once again as our choir director.

The final item on the agenda was the drawing for door prizes. The Staff Development Advisory Group did a great job this year in the “donation” department. We received very thoughtful support from a number of off-campus friends, as well as from colleagues on campus, and generous donations to the cause from our Executive Management Group and Student Affairs Administration. Brenda Moore MC’d the drawing, and this portion of the event was, as usual, a highlight for everyone in attendance.

Special thanks to Rich Mylin, Sarah Lopez, and the UCLA Recreation staff in charge of the LATC for their great work with the set-up for our event. Finally, kudos to the Staff Development Advisory Group – George Auletta, Hugo Garcia, Cynthia Hall, Angela Michael, Brenda Moore, Alan Nagamoto, and Lisa Nunez – for making this event one of our best ever.