’26 June

Rome is graduating from Santa Monica College this month, heading for Sonoma State University in the fall. Rome was honored for their participation in a service organization and for academic excellence. The graduation ceremony isn’t until later in the month.

Rome wrote this for the family and I’m sharing it here!

For anyone who may not be all the way caught up, I want to share a little bit about my next steps: I am committed to transferring to Sonoma State University in the fall, where I will continue to study education. Go Seawolves!

I will be working towards earning a Bachelor of the Arts in Liberal Studies. My concentration will be in Elementary Education Pre-Credential, meaning I will continue schooling after graduating from Sonoma to earn my teaching credential. My school at Sonoma is called Hutchins School of Liberal Studies. All classes in this school are seminar based and have no tests (YAY). If you are interested in learning more about Hutchins, their website is here. Before moving north for school in the fall, I will move back in with the Kanouse House for the Summer. Move in day at Sonoma is August 19th, so I will be heading up north around then! 

.

We have lunch together pretty regularly and that makes me happy, happy like this fruit salad is happy.

It’s the last couple weeks for our Gustavo at the Disney Concert Hall.

The first show, our usual Sunday matinee, was so emotional, it shook me up (the first time I’ve gone with my hearing aids in and I have to wonder), I had wet eyes many times!

Sierra, Strauss, Dudamel

.

Here’s the LA Phil write-up of the Thursday show. You can click here to read the program.

For 17 years, the musicians of the Los Angeles Philharmonic have been close collaborators with Gustavo Dudamel in countless performances. To celebrate Gustavo’s tenure as Music & Artistic Director, principal musicians of the LA Phil take center stage for an evening of symphonic favorites.

The first half of the evening presents a range of “classic” showpieces for bassoon, oboe, horn, flute, violin, piano, cello, and harp. After intermission, all eyes and ears are on percussion, clarinet, trombone, bass, and trumpet during a showcase of contemporary music.

The program is bookended by world-premiere pieces by two dear friends of the LA Phil, John Williams and Gabriela Ortiz. Williams’ Bravo Gustavo! takes its name from the commemoration of Dudamel’s first 10 years with the LA Phil, highlighting the valiant energy of the trumpet section, while Ortiz’s Mujer Arena celebrates the entire ensemble.