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07/05/11 09:27 AM #34    

Robert Beede

Has anybody located Laura Morgan yet?  I saw Meg Bishop's post the day she did it, and wrote immediately to her.  We had a great little Email chat, remembering the good ol days when love was simple, sweet, and pure.  Meg was SUCH a cutie!  I bet she still is!

Anyway, I would love to contact Laura as well, to see how she is doing. She was a very grounded and compassionate lady in High School!

I wish we were as insightful at 16 as we are now!

Best to all!

Bob Beede

 


06/06/14 08:06 AM #35    

 

John Gilderbloom

Hey I will be going to the Giants versus Nationals game at noon this coming Thursday on June 12, 2014.  If anyone wants to join me for some afternoon talk about the old days at Mills High School---I am especially interested in my Mills Viking chum whose  SF real estate investor  friend  is
Barry Bonds and has a suite at AT&T parik.  But I can't kiss and tell---but I ask every year and we just end up having pizza in North Beach.   Hey!   I am just asking for two and will pay whatever cost it is for you!   Howard?  After the game I head to Tahoe to stay at family home in Incline Village and then back to the city for the weekend.  Any thoughts of what a native must do on a weekend?    I will also be in Portland, Oregon doing research, going on bike reides and  giving a speech this coming Sunday through Wednesday.  Any Vikings out there?  Please email me at Jgilde02@sprynet.com or call me at 502-608-7567.  t

 

Thanks, John "the best Viking Mascot ever" Gilderbloom!

http://www.gilderbloom.org

http://sun.louisville.edu


06/08/14 07:00 AM #36    

Jonette "Joni" Middleton (Brockway)

As a local - how about Beach Blanket Babylon and a trip to Filoli. 


08/22/15 01:01 PM #37    

Lori Palmer (Leary)

We are so sad to hear of Dereck's passing. We shared some fun times back in the 70's and Tom and I have been reminiscing about our crazy times together. Anne and family, take care, and please know we are thinking of you all. Love, Lori (and Tom)


08/23/15 03:39 PM #38    

Robert Castelli

Derecks passing is a shock to anyone who knew him. He was full of life, and a great person to do things with while at Mills. We were able to reconnect at past reunions, and had some good laughs. Go in peace my friend, and may God bless you. You will be missed. Prayers to the Dragonetti family at this most difficult time. 


12/29/15 10:25 AM #39    

 

John Gilderbloom

Come to Cuba with me!  by John "the Viking" Gilderbloom

            As a planner some of our most celebrated work has been here in East Russell which has been recently hailed in the Journal of Community Development as a model for urban regeneration. We specialize in renewal without removal of residents or even better can take an abandoned boarded up “Village West” and with $30 million dollars repurpose it an attractive, affordable and sustainable mixed income development.   This anchor green development in East Russell has seen crime cut in half while home prices have the second highest increase in the city from 1990 to 2010.  

As our reputation grew on the art of rebuilding abandoned urban neighborhoods, I got invitations to work in other Kentucky cities like Newport and Covington, speak at top Universities,  featured in the Sunday New York Times, and wrote op-ed pieces in Wall Street Journal and Washington Post.  East Russell was cited by President Clinton as a model when he spoke to the U.S. Conference of Mayors.  At the same time, Clinton’s  top South African advisor (Donald Terner who worked with us as a consultant) told President Nelson Mandela that East Russell partnership was much better designed and humane than faceless Le Corbusier / Khrushchev projects that were being pushed by Russia.  Later Planitzen ranked me as one of the top urban thinkers in the world.

            Our reputation for regenerating neighborhoods continue to grow with an unprecedented invitation from the Cuban National Architecture Union to give a series of lectures behind the bamboo curtain.   I was one of the first non-Marxist American planners invited there. I got a hero’s welcome by Cubans, speaking in outdoor venues covered by Cuban TV and newspapers. The Cubans honored me with a special Diploma /Certificate in Architecture. The lectures went so well I was asked by both Cuban and American authorities to organize cultural exchanges that involved 31 programs totaling 480 days from 1997 to 2007. 

            Even the most jaded traveler would find Cuba, one of the most beautiful and fascinating places in the world. With 500 years of history and heritage, it is the site of one of the largest intact collections of Spanish Colonial architecture as well as the largest collections of Soviet era prefabricated buildings. UNESCO has declared Havana a world heritage site.  In this beautiful and intriguing setting, travelers experienced a radically different economic, social, and cultural life; like Soviet Union and China, the painful truth is that Socialism was unworkable within a competitive global economy.

Several travel magazines and books, including Holiday Travel, Travel Smart, and Budget Travel, have praised our Cuba travel programs.  “Time Out: Havana and the Best of Cuba” ranked it as the best “educational optioned and “the least bureaucratic way” for a U.S. passport holder to travel to Cuba.”

I saw things up close that few people new or understood.  I also could credibly argue that the U.S. travel and economic blockade was not only un-American but gave Cuba an excuse to blame its impoverishment on the U.S. instead of authoritarian undemocratic socialism.  I appeared on both U.S. and Cuban media outlets (popular and scholarly), CNN, and gave testimony before U.S. Senate, addressed former   Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, key Republican and Democratic Senators,  and spoke candidly in the ultra-secure  “situation room” of the U.S. State Department for ending the U.S. blockade.   

With travel restrictions still in place, University of Louisville Center for Sustainable Urban Neighborhoods has a U.S. Treasury license to take Kentucky citizens, on a people-to-people exchange program March 12 to 20. For detailed information about how urbanists, planners, designers and architects can participate, please visit our website at http://sun.louisville.edu, with $200 deposits due by January 6, 2016.     This program is an exceptional value, with non-stop air from Miami to Havana, 4 star accommodations, transfers, daily breakfast, several dinners, travel Visa, entertainment, English-speaking  guides, and U.S. Treasury license. As Cuba slowly opens up to trade, this is a great opportunity for entrepreneurs to get a leg up on new business opportunities in health, agriculture, preservation, transportation and housing.

 


Inline Image Not Displayed
UofL Planning Professor, Dr. Gilderbloom visiting Hemingway’s “Old Man and the Sea” the late Gregorio “El Capitan” Fuentes.


02/12/16 08:56 AM #40    

Jonette "Joni" Middleton (Brockway)

Bottlerock Napa Valley Music Festival May 27 - 29, 2016

http://www.bottlerocknapavalley.com/

 

I understand that several of our classmates are planning on attending the Bottlerock Festival.

The link (above) will give you information on how to buy tickets.

I know that John Gilderbloom was working on setting up some get-togethers for our classmates. (If you are on Facebook check out John's January 14th posting on Facebook)

Please use this forum to help arrange meet ups with fellow classmates.


02/12/16 06:52 PM #41    

 

John Gilderbloom

Hey everybody.  I got the VIP tickets since it provides a separate area without people pressing up against you, better food, clean bathrooms, chairs and shade.  It will also be easier to meet up with Mills High Alumni in these areas.  I will come as a Viking!   My family has a ranck in the Russian River Area but its an hour drive so if anyone know about a good airbnb or Motel.  Let me know.  Hope to see you all there!  Thanks for the post.  Stevie Wonder was better than Paul or Bruce when he came to Louseyville. 


06/13/16 10:21 AM #42    

 

John Gilderbloom

Beautiful and Courageous Vikings!  Now you can go on a real big Viking Cruise filled with all of our favorite bands that played the Fillmore and Avalon!  I have seen several of them in the past year and they get it note perfect :see  Animals,  5th Dimension,  Family Stone,  Three Dog Night, Zombies, Monkees, Chad and Jeremy, Lovin Spoonful, Rare Earth,  Spencer Davis, Vanilla Fudge, Yardbirds, and many more. 

 

Come Join us for a rock and roll Caribbean cruise Feb 27 to March 4--

 

Yes, I am finally going to my first cruise leaving  March 27 from Ft. LAUDERdale, to Jamaica  and Bahamas and returning back March 4 to Ft. LAUDERdale.  They got this incredible line-up of groups  with some of the early members still kicking!

When we stop  in the cool tourist beaches of Jamica and Bahamas, we can go shopping, do walking tours and go snorkeling.     Call it an end of the world rock and roll party of friends and lovers especially if Trump has his fingers on the nuclear warheads So let’s go out with a bang! We did this in Cleveland and it was a blast seeing Bruce Springsteen, John Fogerty, R.E.M.   and others.    Anyway,  its an amazing price of just $1,200 to share a room without a window and with a window about $1,700.  Also, if you give this code number AROTR you can get $200 off per cabin.  Here is the website:

 

http://flowerpowercruise.com

 

Please forward this to others who love to rock and roll in the sunshine while our families are freezing. 

 

Warmest Regards,

 

John Gilderbloom

1405 Morton Ave

Louisville, KY 40204

502-608-7567


09/18/17 08:31 AM #43    

 

John Gilderbloom

Congratulations to Professor John I. “Hans” Gilderbloom who was nominated as one of the world’s most influential urbanists. Dr. Gillderbloom is only one nominated out of Kentucky:

https://www.planetizen.com/node/94570/vote-most-influential-urbanists

We hope you will give him a vote along with the many other outstanding candidates on the list!

 His fingerprints are all over hundreds of cities around the world for his work in sustainability, health, and transportation.  His books and articles are used widely in classes around the world.  He has been credited as a major player in getting passed and defending the enactment of tenant protections against unfair evictions and unreasonable rents in over 125 cities including Los Angeles, San Francisco, and over 100 New Jersey cities.  These laws cover millions of tenants.  His research on the housing and transportation needs of the disabled and elderly was provided a justification for Congress  passing  Americans Disability Act according to Planning Magazine.  Dr. Gilderbloom has also showed how to partner up with non-profits, government, developers and banks in creating and renovating  attractive, affordable, and sustainable homes in cities.  He has also linked this success  to traffic calming by converting fast multi-lane one way streets into calmer two-way for greater walkability, biking and transit use. Dr. Gilderbloom also argues the need to empower poor citizens to demand and act to create livable neighborhoods by cleaning up graffiti, liter, and painting homes to encourage neighborhood regeneration. Dr. Gilderbloom  was also an effective advocate for ending the U.S. Embargo of  Cuba testifying in the US Senate and writing about the harsh situation. Finally, Dr. Gilderbloom research has encouraged cities to take a more active role in reducing air, water and ground pollution that will improve life span, prosperity, housing, and health.   

Links:

Center for Sustainable Urban Neighborhoods
http://sun.louisville.edu 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvacxkfyNSQ&t=32s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYNsUdRrxlU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ra3U8h4MSY
 

 

 


09/19/17 04:04 PM #44    

Yvette Arrighi (Royce)

WOW!!  Way to make a positive difference in our world.  yes

You rock, John!

(And, whoever shared this, thank you.)


06/08/18 01:17 PM #45    

 

John Gilderbloom

Hey anybody have some good contacts, organizations, bookstores, community groups, preservation organizations, that might want me to give a talk while I am on the West Coast starting in LA and SB (August 2 & 3), SF August 4&5, SR August 6; Portland August 7-9; Seattle August 10!  I am talking about my latest book: Chromatic Homes: The Joy of Color in Historic Places. We are thinking of doing a party at the Cable Car Museum August 5 at noon and then going to the Chowder House at Fisherman's Wharf.  Please go this website that gives lots more information and shows some of the cool colorful and chromatic houses that are part of this exciting and pleasant book!

http://www.chromatichomes.com

 

Chromatic Homes:  The Joy of Color in Historic Places by John Gilderbloom

 

Lexington, KY—Walking through a historic neighborhood can be relaxing and offer a feast for the eyes—tree lined streets of white clapboard Queen Ann cottages, the earth-toned stucco of Italianate villas, the brick and dark wood of Arts and Crafts bungalows, perhaps the gray stone façade of a Romanesque-revival church. Then around the corner looms an imposing gothic revival home with bright teal-colored vertical board-and-batten, trimmed in school-bus yellow, leading up to salmon-colored ginger breading accenting the steeply pitched roof. Such a site is impossible to ignore and begs the question, “Who would do this, and why?”

When he began his research for Chromatic Homes: The Joy of Color in Historic Places, John I. “Hans” Gilderbloom was studying “painted ladies”—Victorian houses with three or more colors that embellish architectural details, most notably found in San Francisco. During the course of his work, however, he noticed a broader trend of colorful homes that were not necessarily Victorian or multi-colored, but had a similar impact, both visually and within their neighborhoods. To talk about this trend, he coined the term “chromatic homes” to encompass the bright, joyfully decorated houses that are widespread and diverse, ranging from New Orleans to Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Gilderbloom documents not only where these homes can be found, but also the impact they have on their neighborhoods and cities.

Gilderbloom’s study of chromatic homes started in San Francisco with the painted ladies that have become a hallmark of the city’s appeal, but it did not stop there. He focuses the bulk of his attention on what he terms the five sister cities of chromatic homes. Aside from San Francisco, there is Louisville, also home to numerous painted ladies; Miami and its art deco homes from the 20s and 30s; New Orleans’ colorful shotgun homes; and Cincinnati, where color was used to revitalize a largely abandoned neighborhood. The same spirit of revitalization is found across the Ohio River in Covington, Kentucky, where 100-year-old buildings were renewed with color. He also outlines an older, international tradition of colorful buildings such as St. Basil’s Cathedral in Russia as well as homes in Cuba; Burano, Italy; and Arles, France.

Chromatic homes brighten a neighborhood, but can also have non-aesthetic effects on their communities. The conventional wisdom is that colorful homes do not sell, but as Gilderbloom shows, vibrant paint can actually generate higher property values for the owner and the neighborhood. They can revitalize communities that have started to fall into disrepair and bring new life to neighborhoods that are being deserted. For instance, Louisville turned around a dying neighborhood by painting the old Victorian homes bright, inviting colors. The positive effects of chromatic homes are not just limited to property values. This type of individual expression has been shown to make people happier and healthier, and even just one house becoming a chromatic home can spark a change for the better throughout a neighborhood.

Gilderbloom goes beyond the tightly focused concept of the “painted ladies” to open up a new area of observation and study. There is still much for experts to explore and learn about chromatic homes and the impact they can have on communities and residents. Chromatic homes not only provide opportunities for researchers to learn, but also for homeowners who wish to bring new life to their homes. Gilderbloom has shown that chromatic homes are joyful representations of self and community that can rejuvenate neighborhoods struggling with abandonment and bring new, creative energy to their area. The value that chromatic homes bring and the possibilities they present are well worth the cost of the paint.

John I. “Hans” Gilderbloom is a professor in the Graduate Planning, Public Administration, Public Health, and Urban Affairs programs at the University of Louisville, where he also directs the Center for Sustainable Urban Neighborhoods. Considered one of the foremost urban thinkers of our time, he is the author of five books, fifty-five scholarly articles, and op-eds in Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times along with features of his work in the New York Times and Planning.

 

 


07/27/18 09:26 PM #46    

 

John Gilderbloom

Dr. John I. “Hans” Gilderbloom be giving a book talk and slide presentation of his highly acclaimed book, Chromatic Homes:  The Joy of Color in Historic Places ( Http://www.chromatichomes.com ),  at the Burlingame Public Library (480 Primrose Road) on August 5 at 3:00 p.m. Dr. Gilderbloom who grew up in Burlingame is now  considered one of the nation’s top urban thinkers in a international poll by Planetizen. 

Walking through a historic neighborhood can be relaxing and offer a feast for the eyes—tree lined streets of white clapboard Queen Ann cottages, the earth-toned stucco of Italianate villas, the brick and dark wood of Arts and Crafts bungalows, perhaps the gray stone façade of a Romanesque-revival church. Then around the corner looms an imposing gothic revival home with bright teal-colored vertical board-and-batten, trimmed in school-bus yellow, leading up to salmon-colored ginger breading accenting the steeply pitched roof. Such a site is impossible to ignore and begs the question, “Who would do this, and why?”

When he began his research for Chromatic Homes: The Joy of Color in Historic Places, John I. “Hans” Gilderbloom was studying “painted ladies”—Victorian houses with three or more colors that embellish architectural details, most notably found in San Francisco. During the course of his work, however, he noticed a broader trend of colorful homes that were not necessarily Victorian or multi-colored, but had a similar impact, both visually and within their neighborhoods. To talk about this trend, he coined the term “chromatic homes” to encompass the bright, joyfully decorated houses that are widespread and diverse, ranging from New Orleans to Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Gilderbloom documents not only where these homes can be found, but also the impact they have on their neighborhoods and cities.

Gilderbloom’s study of chromatic homes started in San Francisco with the painted ladies that have become a hallmark of the city’s appeal, but it did not stop there. He focuses the bulk of his attention on what he terms the five sister cities of chromatic homes. Aside from San Francisco, there is Louisville, also home to numerous painted ladies; Miami and its art deco homes from the 20s and 30s; New Orleans’ colorful shotgun homes; and Cincinnati, where color was used to revitalize a largely abandoned neighborhood. The same spirit of revitalization is found across the Ohio River in Covington, Kentucky, where 100-year-old buildings were renewed with color. He also outlines an older, international tradition of colorful buildings such as St. Basil’s Cathedral in Russia as well as homes in Cuba; Burano, Italy; and Arles, France.

Chromatic homes brighten a neighborhood, but can also have non-aesthetic effects on their communities. The conventional wisdom is that colorful homes do not sell, but as Gilderbloom shows, vibrant paint can actually generate higher property values for the owner and the neighborhood. They can revitalize communities that have started to fall into disrepair and bring new life to neighborhoods that are being deserted. For instance, Louisville turned around a dying neighborhood by painting the old Victorian homes bright, inviting colors. The positive effects of chromatic homes are not just limited to property values. This type of individual expression has been shown to make people happier and healthier, and even just one house becoming a chromatic home can spark a change for the better throughout a neighborhood.

Gilderbloom goes beyond the tightly focused concept of the “painted ladies” to open up a new area of observation and study. There is still much for experts to explore and learn about chromatic homes and the impact they can have on communities and residents. Chromatic homes not only provide opportunities for researchers to learn, but also for homeowners who wish to bring new life to their homes. Gilderbloom has shown that chromatic homes are joyful representations of self and community that can rejuvenate neighborhoods struggling with abandonment and bring new, creative energy to their area. The value that chromatic homes bring and the possibilities they present are well worth the cost of the paint.

 

 He notes with pride that his Grandfather Herbert Lauder left San Francisco right after the earthquake of 1906 and started a remarkable career in building houses and apartments in Burlingame.   Herbert Lauder, an immigrant from Scotland,  was known for building more houses and apartments in Burlingame in the 1940’s with one newspaper calling him the richest man on the San Francisco Peninsula.  He was a “mover and shaker” in Burlingame pushing for trees everywhere and fought hard to have the gigantic Eucalyptus trees along El Camino Real and insisting no commercial developments be built along El Camino—save Burlingame and Broadway Avenue. Herbert Lauder called for beautiful human scale design and  once said:  “when you build it, make it beautiful otherwise it won’t last..” Nearly eighty years later, his houses and apartments are still there honoring the architectural heritage of Spain, Mexico and England.   Jeanette Gilderbloom along with her three brothers and sister (Margaret) inherited and managed his beautiful apartment building in downtown Burlingame. Today planners rank Burlingame as one of the best examples of sustainable development and “new urbanist” city.   It should also be noted that Dr. Gilderbloom’s,  Aunt Margaret’s husband  and his brother  were also involved in saving the Cable Cars from extinction by  painting them bright colors and Uncle Art was known as the Maestro of the colorful cable cars.  This program is a celebration of what makes Burlingame one of the greatest towns to live in. I have attached some pictures for local newspapers, social media and historic preservation groups.  Here is the PR on the book. Other book presentations are being given in LA, Santa Barbara, Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle. Please spread the word!

 

Bright, vibrant, intriguing, and unique, chromatic homes are speckled across the world’s landscape. These historic houses and buildings are saturated with colors – often highlighting decorative woodwork and architecture—to enhance, revive, and regenerate various neighborhoods and communities. John I. “Hans” Gilderbloom explores and celebrates the appeal of these captivating houses in Chromatic Homes: The Joy of Color in Historic Places. 

 

Highlighted in gorgeous detail are the relevance of the homes’ styles and colors as well as their history—many believed to have been around for decades in American cities such as Louisville, Cincinnati, San Francisco, New Orleans, and Miami, and around for centuries in far-flung places such as Havana, Cuba, Venice, Italy, and Moscow, Russia. Gilderbloom reveals how renewing and updating historic homes has the ability to transform and galvanize a community, and these houses serve as creative havens for artists, writers, and musicians: author Alice Walker wrote The Color Purple in one of the most famous chromatic homes in San Francisco, and Mark Twain wrote The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer in a spectacular “painted lady” in Hartford, Connecticut. 

 

Filled with 182 engaging and eye-catching photos of homes all across the nation and the world, Chromatic Homes perfectly illustrates how the simple act of painting an ornate structure in bright or bold colors can inspire, empower, sustain and enlighten an entire community. Chromatic Homes creates prosperity, pride, and joy for the homeowner and neighborhood. “Great neighborhoods are the secret sauce of great cities and communities of all kinds, sizes, and stripes, but great neighborhoods don’t happen by accident. They are continuously rebuilt, revitalized, and actively redesigned. They can, and should, be inclusive places where regeneration benefits everyone. Gilderbloom argues that the principles of chromatic design can help us create better neighborhoods and communities. 

 

 

"This book is an important contribution to the future of cities.”—Richard Florida, author of The Rise of the Creative Class 

 

 

“Painting houses is a worldwide practice for self-expression. It also cues in that someone of responsibility and concern is around. Color, and its maintenance, can thus be an urban force for confidence. Chromatic Homes takes such concerns seriously and helps us see what, when taken to exuberant forms, can be the delightful result.”—Harvey Molotch, author of The City as a Growth Machine.

 

 

“Brilliant, beautiful and brash.”— Larry Muhammad, playwright, journalist and book author 

 

 

John I. “Hans” Gilderbloom is a professor in the Graduate Planning, Public Administration, Public Health, and Urban Affairs programs at the University of Louisville, where he also directs the highly lauded Center for Sustainable Urban Neighborhoods. Considered one of the foremost urban thinkers of our time by a international survey conducted by Planetizen, he is the author of six books, 55 scholarly articles and op-eds in Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Times. He wrote this book in his own chromatic home in Louisville, Kentucky which was previously featured along with a separate profile in the New York Times.  He  was raised in Burlingame and grew up in the house that my Grandfather built.  My Grandfather Herbert Lauder came to Burlingame after he witnessed on Market Street the great San Francisco  Earthquake of 1906.   He led the effort to have  Eucalyptus Trees planted along El Camino Real and banning commercial enterprises along the route in Burlingame, argued for train stations to be located at Burlingame Ave and Broadway,  built hundreds of rental houses and apartments for working people with style, beauty, sustainability, and walkability. 

 

John I. Gilderbloom Ph.D.

University of Louisville Presidential Medal for Distinguished Faculty Research and Creative Activity

http://www.chromatichomes.com

Top 100 Urban Thinker Planetizen International Survey

Professor of Planning, Public Administration, Urban Affairs and Public Health

Home of the Top Ranked (#14) Planning Program in North America by Citation Index

 Center for Sustainable Urban Neighborhoods


10/01/20 06:00 PM #47    

 

John Gilderbloom

Hi Joni. Us Vikings in Kentucky, Arizona, Netherlands, and Italy reallly appreciate all the work you have been doing.   I would go ahead and reschedule for next summer (2021)  before fire season:  May, June, July or August. I fear that if you wait good dates might be reserved.  For example, Crystal Springs Golf is sold out for May, June and July--Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.   People are optimistic that better times are ahead.  Just set a date for the summer 2021 and hope for the best!  If they cancel, move it to 2022.    I fear if you wait we will lose good dates.  I also sense that Domenico's could use a shot in the arm and our money could help keep them afloat. I am planning a trip back to Europe but will organize it around a date for the reunion. I thought the Zoom meeting was healing, fun, and old grudges were thrown over the cyber Golden Gate Bridge   I am already booked for a law conference in Miami August 1 to 4 and a family reunion May 22/23.  I just would urge you to grab a date for Domenico's. OK, while I have you on my screen here is a plug for my last two books:

Chromatic Homes: A Design and Coloring Book:

http://www.chromatichomes.com

"Chromatic Homes is a love note to the power of color to transform neighborhoods...vivid photographs...a passionate case for revitalization of neighborhoods and he even the planet...Dr. Gilderbloom is a legendary figure makes a compassionate case for revitalizing their economy and cultural identity, increasing homeownership, sustainability, safety, and health."

 https://www.wvxu.org/post/book-review-x-2-chromatic-homes-john-gilderbloom#stream/0

NPR Radio Roberta Schultz December 9, 2019

https://www.wvxu.org/post/book-review-x-2-chromatic-homes-john-gilderbloom#stream/0

 Amazing This 83-page coloring book isn't only a fun way to pass the time, it's also meant to be a tool to promote better neighborhoods by inspiring a movement for chromatic colors in crumbling and forgotten neighborhoods. Besides pages to color, there are before and after photographs of homes in the Portland and Highland neighborhoods which were brought back to life with paint and imagination. 

Courier Journal https://www.courier-journal.com/story/entertainment/events/things-to-do/2019/11/12/john-hans-gilderbloom-chromatic-homes-a-design-and-coloring-book/2568148001/

https://www.courier-journal.com/story/money/louisville-city-living/2018/10/09/neighborhood-revival-bright-paint-attracts-buyers-renters/1124981002/

an uplifting dazzling masterpiece This fabulously written history of the chromatic edifices of the world is perfect and a must for academic and public libraries. I would highly recommend this fascinating book to anyone interested in stunning buildings or the history and subject of community development and maintenance. Melinda F. Matthews Southeastern Library Journal  University of Louisiana at Monroe https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1768&context=seln

The coloring book teaches and explores the art and science of the use of color in historic preservation, architecture, neighborhood design, and planning. Fifty-seven pages of illustrations show how color has been used in America's most charming cities, such as Louisville, Cincinnati, San Francisco, New Orleans, and Miami, as well as abroad in Havana, Venice, Amsterdam, Brazil and Moscow. "The Joy of Color in Historic Places" with 182 pictures that demonstrates how the simple act of painting an ornate structure in bright or bold colors can inspire, empower, sustain and enlighten an entire community.

Mary Rickard, Louisiana Landmarks Society Newsletter  

First of all, this is a fabulous idea! The explosion of coloring books for adults in recent years is astounding. But sadly, I don’t know any architecture or planning  school that teaches this. 

Steve Mouzon, The Original Green, Unlocking the Mystery of True Sustainability. Miami, Florida: Guild  Foundation Press 


10/01/20 06:40 PM #48    

 

John Gilderbloom



10/01/20 06:42 PM #49    

 

John Gilderbloom


10/04/20 11:38 AM #50    

 

John Gilderbloom


10/04/20 11:40 AM #51    

 

John Gilderbloom


10/04/20 11:51 AM #52    

 

John Gilderbloom

Hi everyone!  Surprise!  What are the odds? Carla Snyder and Dr. John I. "Hans" Gilderbloom  are engaged!  We wanted to share our happiness at the class reunion because we were getting married a day before at a private ceremony at Crystal Springs (Where else do you get married when growing up there?)  Anyway, we hope to see you all at the upcoming class reunion next summer 2021.  Below is our story but before you read it get a glass of wine and some Klenex.

From High School Rivals to Lovers—meeting in 1957 in Nursery School to getting married 62 years later:  The Incredible and Awe Inspiring  Story of Carla J.  Snyder and John Hans Gilderbloom

 

By Carla  J.  Snyder  (her voice) with plenty of input from John Hans Gilderbloom

The most incredible journey has unfolded for us both.  Who would have ever thought…these two would be destined to be together?  Meeting at age 5 in Nursery School; going together to middle school Church camp, high school, Thursday Night worship,  ten year reunions;   and finally meeting together at age 65 and finding love.    And the rest is now unfolding, a marriage upcoming May 28, 2020 had to be postponed till next summer of 2021.   We are so excited to be getting married in our hometown of Burlingame, California overlooking a breathtaking Crystal Springs Reservoir—seven miles South of San Francisco where we grew up.  We hope that our story will inspire others that true love can bloom with forgiveness, reconciliation, and happiness. 

The most important decision I (Carla) have made in my life was getting on that plane and traveling the 654 miles as the crow flies back to San Francisco Bay Area from Phoenix where this story began decades earlier. I thought to myself from his Facebook posts that he looked like he was doing some pretty interesting things and unbeknownst to him I was pursuing a vocation that aligned with his. We all assembled in our hometown library for his book talk on “Chromatic Homes: The Joy of Color in Historic Places.”[http://www.chromatichomes.com].  Fifteen people showed up.  I was flanked by my two best friends since Kindergarten and John accompanied by his sisters and cousins. Needless to say I was dressed to impress (as a former department store model) and when I came up to get my signed copy of the book (which he charged me full price!) he took my hand and he uttered the life altering words “Oh my God, are you single?”

After the talk a group of eight of us went out to socialize…John put his hand on my back to move us forward and there was a bolt of electricity that went through my body and I knew right then the trajectory of my life was moving in a new direction. We both yearned for each other—hometown boy and girl who made good but divided by the cultural earthquake of the sixties.

Later that evening John reached out by text and we agreed to meet up to renew our friendship. But we lived 1,717 miles by car and depending on the flight roughly 4 to 8 hours by plane. We both admitted that a long distance relationship was not our “thing”, but that there was no question we had much  in common:  work, education, spirituality and values from our upbringing.  I had already been divorced twice, John’s 30-year relationship starting from graduate school ended by her tragic passing, and he had a series of broken relationships that were just not working out.

My daughter coached me on the morning that I was to take John on a drive to Grand Canyon and Sedona. She said, please have fun with this opportunity!  Ah yes, this life is not a dress rehearsal, It is the Show!  So I let down my guard.  But let me regress.

The Burlingame Presbyterian Church, became my Sunday morning go to starting in nursery school / Kindergarten period.  Another young lad also found his Sunday morning home in those same environs.  I can only imagine the scene in class as little Carla who was pretty tightly wound designing a suburb of perfectly straight row housing  and  little Johnny Boy kicking it to rubble in an effort  to get my attention!

Or perhaps more to the point the tension and rivalry which would follow us all the way through high school graduation.  We were polar opposites in our political views and lifestyle at that time.    I was labeled as a” brainiack” and John “a troublemaker / rebel who ran with a tough but popular crowd. “  We competed vigorously in Debate Competitions and often ending in dispute and anger.  Truly blessed we graduated in 1970 a time of great promise and certainly a cultural revolution, which we saw right before our eyes especially in the hot bed of Haight Asbury 15 miles away. Santana, Neil Schon (who later started Journey) and Grateful Dead played at our teen dances, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham played at our big high school graduation party at an amusement park in San Jose. 

Even more alarming was upper classmates were going to Vietnam and dying.    Massive anti-war demonstrations, Black Panthers having shootouts and down the coast students U C Santa Barbara burned down the Bank of America.  Again, there was a loud debate over these issues and lots of division.       As an act to try to heal these divisions, I decided to have a graduation party at my house and invite all the seniors including the troublemakers--John and his friends.  The college bound jocks had dressed like they were going to Sunday Church, with classic Arrow shirts , dockers and  military style haircuts—they looked and dressed like sixties never happened and it was more like the fifties—“Happy Days”.  

None of the troublemakers came to the party until….   Then to everyone’s shock and surprise, John marched in  streaked blonde hair to his shoulders, polka dot shirt, stolen rental bowling shoes (yellow and red), blue sailor pants, and smelling of Patchouli oil.    He went straight for the Fritos and ate handfuls.   My Mom suspected he had the “munchies” from smoking pot.  So, without my knowledge, my Mom got four jocks to grab him by his hands and escort him out. 

After graduation, we went our separates ways to pursue college—local junior college for John and Arizona State University for me. During this thirty year, hiatus there were both tragedies and triumphs. John lost both his Son and wife under horrific circumstances as well as suffering a life threatening illness and a nasty home invasion of gunfire. Carla was a single parent from the time her children were 1 and 3 years old, maintaining a career on the road to support the family as well as having four major surgeries, which could have been forever debilitating.

Three decades passed before we were to again meet.   At that high school reunion party, John took special notice of me because my escort who was a runner up for Mr. Universe( still ripped ) he  and I owned the dance floor.   Wow!  John’s impression of me did a 180! He was amazed and proud of my new look, attitude, and vibe.  Similarly, at the reunion they announced that John was our most successful graduating senior—with a stack of academic awards, grants, consulting to Presidents, op-eds in top newspapers, a Professor, and even a profile in the New York Times. However, three high school reunions—10 year, 20 year, and 30 year we still were not talking with each other.  In addition, the same divisions existed---and we were still 20 feet apart. And that is the way it was always 20 feet apart in classrooms, the church bus, socials, and even coffee shops. But we always had eyes for each other:  curious, wanting and hoping.

Nevertheless, despite the barriers put between us—we later learn we always had a longing and desire for each other.  The untouchable Carla wanted to be touched, have dates and hang out with the bad boys.  Similarly, John wanted the “good girl” from Burlingame. 

It was after that 40-year reunion that we connected albeit infrequently on social media until that fateful announcement by John of the promotion tour of his seventh book. 

Within the first couple months, even with the challenge of miles between our homes, we were amazed at how much we shared in common,  writing, music, sports,  theater, working out, healthy foods, thin mint ice cream, Fig Newton’s and of course Frito’s. John admitted that women found him difficult with his ambitions, dreams and hopes but I embraced them like no other. We also spent hours on the road listening to our favorite CD’s and bringing back memories of our youth.  Robust laughter, singing and dancing as we recaptured the feeling that we always desired each other. So we started traveling together (always a supreme test) to New York, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, Aspen, Honolulu, Palm Springs, Grand Canyon, and Louisville. And the magic just kept getting better and better. No red flags or even a yellow flag!

It is not unusual for strangers to approach us and tell us about the glow of love that emanates from each other.  We were surprised that so many people noticed that vibe: giggles, hand holding, PDA’s and smiles.  It felt so natural and not forced---we found each other soul mates for life.

After a year or so of kicking the tires, taking this for a test drive, John proposed in the most beautiful and heartfelt way in May of 2019. He gathered my family together in Phoenix, dropped to one knee (an accomplishment for a 5 foot 17 inch man) and asked me to become his wife.  More ironic, his wedding ring is made out of my Mom’s ring.  We keep laughing and thinking:  I wonder what my Mom might say perhaps: “The last person on earth I wanted my daughter to see (let alone marry) was John and how truly ironic he is wearing my wedding ring”; well on second thought she might be saying after so many years alone my sweet daughter found the love of her life and John found his.” “I wish the best for them.”

And the rest is now unfolding, though like the rest of the world in these unprecedented times, the wedding ceremony has been  postponed. An unintended consequence however has blessed us with the opportunity to celebrate “ before marriage “honeymoon. To explain, John came out to Phoenix for spring break as he is a professor at University of Louisville on March 8th, 2020. Within a few days the world came to a halt as we know it, the University went virtual and John is still here in Phoenix teaching, research and doing service.   I, who ate brown rice /veggies for the last ten years since the kids moved on have picked up cooking again meditative in these stressful times for me and nourishing for the soul for us both. We are learning a new norm and building a stronger partnership each day.  It seems like every day we  realized how lucky we are to be together.  We appreciate each other more and more.  With COVID-19 we are together 24/7 doing our daily routines: walking together 4 miles a day at night, doing yoga and push ups, listening to music, teaching, raising money, staying in touch with friends and family. In the end, we have learned what Ernest Hemingway says “we are get broken in life” but we can repair ourselves by finding a partner for ever lasting love.

Hey Vikings you can reach us by email at;  Carla.Snyder@cox.net and jgilde02@sprynet.com

Sadly, for security purposes which is another dark and scary story, we are not posting this on Facebook.

 

 


10/05/20 11:14 AM #53    

Laurie Reeder (Charkins)

Love your story, loved talking with you both a few months ago- looking forward to 2021!  

 

 


06/04/22 01:54 PM #54    

Peggy Jones (Aycinena)

Dear Joni,

Indefensibly, it has taken me almost 2 weeks since the wonderful party in San Carlos on May 22nd to write and say thank you a million times over for all of the work you have put in through the decades in arranging five (!) unforgettable reunions for Mills High School Class of 1970.

Everyone who graduated that year owes you an indescribable debt of gratitude for everything you've done to make us feel like a community. You are truly, truly remarkable – thank you!!

- Peggy Jones Aycinena

70 @ Mills’70

p.s. And yes, kudos to Brooke Myhre for “70 @ Mills’70” …


06/05/22 03:26 AM #55    

 

John Gilderbloom

We Echo Peggy's thoughts, so perfectly put describing all of the efforts, patience, hurdles that had to be overcome all with your special kind of grace.  We are all so grateful for your efforts and that we could all celebrate together as a class of 1970. We will always hold in our hearts those that could not be with us for whatever reason during the celebration. Thanks again, Carla and John


07/08/23 09:50 AM #56    

Grant Rosenberg

My My new novel, GIDEON RESURRECTION  is the second book in the GIDEON trilogy and is now available on Amazon.  If you like suspense and mystery, check it out.  It's a great summer read.  PLUS...you'll find many familiar names and locations...

 https://a.co/d/d5lC6XB

I truly appreciate the support I've gotten from my fellows classmates.

Grant Rosenberg 

www.granterosenberg.com

 

 

 

 


03/12/24 06:49 PM #57    

Robert Beede

I just received Joni's email regarding English teacher Sam Anderson's death. I can still see him walking briskly down the hall at Mills before class. He was a very nice and learned young teacher! I remember him being a favorite among many of the high schoolers. We were very blessed to have so many great teachers at Mills! I don't know how at 16 I recognized that; it could only be that their excellence was impossible to overlook. We were SO FORTUNATE to live in Burlingame and Millbrae! Our parents provided us such opportunity and Mr. Anderson was one of those teachers that crafted our future success! May Sam rest in peace and may his surviving family realize the 100's of young people that he positively influenced!! Bob Beede

 


03/15/24 01:33 PM #58    

Daniel Caserza

I don’t recall taking an English class from Mr. Anderson, but I remember when a group of us wanted to form a chess club, we were told we needed a faculty advisor. We asked Mr. Anderson, and he was kind enough to oblige us.


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