Big Brother

Sue Doyle CORONA DEL MAR--Eight-year-old Nico Napolitano and his brother Luke, 4, love horsing around in the water. But the two boys now know that swimming skills are not just for fun and games. Knowing how to swim can save lives. Last week, Nico bravely plunged into the ocean and saved Luke from drowning. Nico was playing with a group of other children, jumping off a dock into Beacon Bay. It seemed like a fabulous idea to Luke, who takes swimming lessons and can comfortably paddle around a pool.

-- Story by Danette Goulet; photo by Taya Kashuba. Once he got a taste of what it was like to help children in need, 28-year-old Michael Price kept craving that feeling. When Price was in school at Arizona State University, the administration stressed the importance of students performing community service. So he went out and volunteered his time at a child crisis center. "I'd volunteer my time to play with the kids, talk to them and in some cases comfort them if they had just been dropped off the night before by their dad who beat them, or because their family had no food and couldn't take care of them for a while," he said.

-- Interviews and photos by Matt Grenert The Daily pilot asked sixth-grade students at Eastbluff Elementary School how they feel about leaving elementary school and moving on to the next upper grade level school. "I am very excited to move on to high school, even though I am going back to my old school and I will not see my friends from here. I look forward to art projects and talking on the phone. I know that it will be hard, but it will be a nice change.

NEWPORT COAST ? When Corona del Mar High and Sage Hill School compete in athletics it is like big brother versus little brother. Friday the boys' soccer teams took the metaphoric sibling rivalry to a new level. Sage Hill freshman Chris Burke played stopper for the first time against Corona del Mar, marking the Sea Kings' best offensive player, his brother senior midfielder Brian Burke. The nonleague game ended in a 0-0 tie and Chris Burke felt comfortable to go home and face his older brother.

It has been six weeks since I started this column. My goal for each article is to look at issues that affect us all and try to drill down to what is really going on below the surface. People who have a vested interest in how a particular situation turns out will spin things in such a way as to hide or confuse the public to the point that it is hard to understand what is actually happening. This reminds me of George Orwell's book "1984," which when I went to high school was mandatory reading but, taking a quick survey in my office, none of college-educated 20-somethings had even heard of it. Orwell wrote it in 1948 and flipped the date for the book about the future.

Amara Aguilar One day 17 years ago, Jerry Green's dad brought something home that would change his life forever. It would consume much of Green's time, shape his future in some ways and be the center of some special memories. It was not anything really uncommon, just a basketball backboard and rim. Green was 4 when his dad brought the goal home. The neighbors helped them set it up on the roof at the Green's Pomona residence. "Ever since then, I loved playing the game," said Green, now a senior on the UC Irvine men's basketball team.

Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd Class Justin H. Bell was enjoying himself at the agency's casual awards ceremony and barbecue Sunday afternoon when, to his surprise, he heard his name called. Lt. Luke Byrd, Bell's commanding officer, had chosen him as Sailor of the Year for the Coast Guard cutter Narwhal. The Orange County and Newport Beach chapters of the Navy League sponsored the awards ceremony at the Coast Guard's Corona del Mar headquarters. "Two words ? shocked and surprised," the Newport Beach resident said of his initial reaction.

Just days before the July 1 motorcycle accident that claimed his life, Wesley Estes made the decision to take his father off of life support. Afterward, Estes told his mother, Margaret Van Over, that if he was similarly dependent on life-support machines that he didn't want to be kept alive. On Tuesday as Van Over signed the paperwork to turn the machines off on her firstborn son who lay in a coma after the accident, she wondered whether would she regret not holding out longer.

EDITOR'S NOTE: When Steven Allen Abrams drove his Cadillac onto a playground filled with playful tots at Southcoast Early Childhood Learning Center this May, he cut short the lives of two young children. One boy, Brandon Weiner, would have turned 4 years old on Sunday. The following is a letter to him written by his mother, Pamela. To my precious angel Brandon, Happy birthday my sweet angel! Brandon, it has been 5 1/2 months now since you were taken away from us. We all miss you so much.

Sibling rivalry comes in many forms, but few cases develop in such gritty desperation as that depicted in Suzan-Lori Parks' Pulitzer Prize-winning drama "Topdog/Underdog," now on stage at South Coast Repertory. This grim yet often comical play, which brings to mind the brotherly hatred of Sam Shepard's "True West," plays out in an exceptionally seedy urban apartment in a nameless city where two African-American brothers live by their wits after being abandoned by both parents in their youth.

It started off slowly; they were both shy and reserved. But now, Billy De Jong is preparing to celebrate his two-year anniversary as a Big Brother and friend. De Jong is one of 1,250 mentors in the Orange County Big Brothers Big Sisters. After spending almost two years with his little brother Walter, 16, De Jong doesn’t really consider himself a mentor. “I treat it more like a friendship than a mentorship,” De Jong, 25, said. Trying not to pry, but being available to talk is how De Jong likes to be. Also, being honest is important, De Jong said.

Two Newport Beach men have joined the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Orange County Board of Directors in hopes of making a difference, organization officials said Monday. Patrick Maciariello, an equity investor from Compass Group Management, and Paul Fruchbom, founder of KDF Communities LLC from Corona del Mar, said they’ve witnessed what mentoring young kids can do and want to play a role in helping the organization. Fruchbom is the founder of the Big Boys Men’s Camp, a weekend setting where men mentor underprivileged kids.

The fashion house of Giorgio Armani generously opened its formidable doors at the South Coast Plaza boutique welcoming Angelitos de Oro Angelitos de Oro in support of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Orange County. The elegant cocktail reception launched the 2008 Angelitos Shopping Card extravaganza at South Coast Plaza, which runs Nov. 5 through Nov. 10. This annual fundraising event is created around members of Angelitos in conjunction with South Coast Plaza selling a $60 card entitling the bearer to a 20% discount at 124 stores at the nation’s glamorous retail center.

On Saturday night the Tengis kids are making money. The theater is showing the movie “Chinggis Khan,” a Japanese-produced epic about the 13th century founder of the Mongol empire. Liberty Square is overflowing with cars. The children haggle with drivers for money to watch their vehicles. Essentially, they are being paid not to steal. If the owner pays them, the car is left alone. If not, there might not be any side-view mirrors or hubcaps left when he returns. The movie begins and the crowd disappears into the theater.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Orange County is holding an event Thursday to encourage local adults to mentor young people in need. The organization, which pairs children with adult mentors, will give community members a chance to meet Big Brothers and Big Sisters and learn more about the program. Former USC football players Anthony Davis and Darrell Rideaux will give a presentation called “Who Mentored Me?” The event will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Newport Sports Museum, 100 Newport Center Drive, Suite 100. Free appetizers and drinks will be served.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Orange County has announced the addition of Newport Beach residents Murray Joslin and Todd Walkow to its Board of Directors. Joslin is a managing director at Bowne & Co., a business communications company he said has had a long-standing relationship with Big Brothers Big Sisters. Since attending many of the organization's events and getting to know its leadership team, Joslin said he is "thrilled to be part of such a dynamic organization that makes such a positive impact on young peoples' lives."

Just days before the July 1 motorcycle accident that claimed his life, Wesley Estes made the decision to take his father off of life support. Afterward, Estes told his mother, Margaret Van Over, that if he was similarly dependent on life-support machines that he didn't want to be kept alive. On Tuesday as Van Over signed the paperwork to turn the machines off on her firstborn son who lay in a coma after the accident, she wondered whether would she regret not holding out longer.

It has been six weeks since I started this column. My goal for each article is to look at issues that affect us all and try to drill down to what is really going on below the surface. People who have a vested interest in how a particular situation turns out will spin things in such a way as to hide or confuse the public to the point that it is hard to understand what is actually happening. This reminds me of George Orwell's book "1984," which when I went to high school was mandatory reading but, taking a quick survey in my office, none of college-educated 20-somethings had even heard of it. Orwell wrote it in 1948 and flipped the date for the book about the future.