Discovery Science Center

Costa Mesa-based Emulex Corp. announced this week the appointment of James McCluney to president, chief executive and a member of the board of directors. McCluney takes the place of longtime chief executive Paul Folino, who will move to become the executive chairman of the board of directors. Folino has been a household name in the community for his work with the Orange County Performing Arts Center and as chairman of the New Majority — Orange County, a Republican organization and a major contributor to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

3 win community service award Three Newport Beach residents have received the Girl Scout Council of Orange County's 2005 "Women of Distinction" honor for community service. Peggy Goldwater Clay, Julie Jacobson and Ronna Shipman will be honored by the council at a luncheon on April 5 at the Hyatt Regency Irvine. Proceeds from the luncheon will benefit Project Hope School, an outreach program for girls in homeless families. Clay, a board member of the KOCE-TV Foundation and the Brain Imaging Center at UC Irvine, has also done fundraising work for abused and hearing-impaired children and for the Discovery Science Center of Orange County.

Alicia Robinson If all goes as planned, more than 200,000 tiny plastic bricks will set a record at the Orange County Fair today. Orange County "Legophiles" spent the weekend creating an American flag in their preferred medium, and they hope it will qualify for a Guinness record. Friday, members of the Southern California Lego Train Club and curious fairgoers began building the flag, which the club expected to complete today. The club also has a separate Lego train display -- the largest it has ever made -- at the fair.

It has been a most fashionable and festive time on the Orange Coast to kick off the holiday season. The Junior League got Newport-Mesa in the mood with their annual Christmas Company shopping extravaganza at the Orange County fairgrounds. The four-day event began with a gala opening night followed by a shopping breakfast, afternoon tea parties, cooking demonstrations with a special event featuring the League’s own cookbook “Orange County Fare,” celebrity speakers including Olympian Janet Evans and best selling authors Dr. Beth Hamilton and Dr. Stephanie McClellan , and of course holiday items showcased by some 90 international vendors.

It is a cocktail reception that anyone associated with Orange County philanthropy does not want to miss. Pacific Life of Newport Beach, the largest insurance company in the state of California handed out $2 million this week out of a total of more than $3 million earmarked for charitable and civic causes in 2003. The Pacific Life Foundation, a division of the giant insurance corporation, recognized more than 150 organizations, giving grants of $2,500 to $200,000 to assist them in their charitable endeavors.

Although Costa Mesa student Grayson Erskine didn?t end up with a perfect projectile, he still had fun and learned a lot. At the annual bottle-rocket launch at the Boeing facility in Huntington Beach, put on by the Discovery Science Center, Grayson used tape to add several fins to the sides of his bottle. ?I was just experimenting, but it didn?t fly straight,? said Grayson, 11. He and his family joined nearly 1,000 would-be rocket scientists Saturday at Boeing, where they dispatched hundreds of two-liter creations into the sky. ?

Bryce Alderton Sophia Courtemarche, 2, dipped her paintbrush into a plastic bowl full of brown paint and began whisking brown strokes across the blue construction paper, all while keeping quiet about what she was creating. "I don't know whether that's something she wants to [reveal]," chuckled Sophie's grandmother, Loretta Courtemarche, when Sophie was asked what she was making. The duo and Sophia's mother, Lisa, enjoyed the craft table on Sunday during the second and final day of South Coast Plaza's Thanksgiving Celebration Weekend.

The Literacy Project Foundation called on the Newport-Mesa crowd this summer to learn "What Dreams Are Made of." This second annual luncheon supporting the goals of the Literacy Project Foundation unfolded in the dining room at Big Canyon Country Club, Newport Beach. Chaired by Sue Tucker and Doug Freeman , the $100 per ticket luncheon sold out the dining room, attracting an audience of people who understand and care about the importance of educating our broad and diverse population.

Events are subject to change at the discretion of the Orange County Fair. Fair hours: 10 a.m. to midnight Fair location: Orange County Fairgrounds, 88 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa Parking: $5. Buses park free. Tickets: $7 for ages 13 to 54, $6 seniors 55 and older, and $3 for children 6 to 12. Children 5 and younger get in free. Information: (714) 708-3247 or www.ocfair.com. TODAY ALL DAY Uncle Sam memorabilia -- Collections and Memorabilia Building No. 13 Creature Feature and Ribbit Exhibit -- Building No. 15 Discovery Science Center -- Youth Building Vintage tractor display -- Silo Building Lawn Lace making demonstrations -- Millennium Barn Newborn animals -- Livestock Area/Maternity Barn Small animals -- Livestock Area/Small Animal Tent Oxen, junior dairy goats and junior dairy cattle -- Livestock Area 10 A.M. Hop-dance marathon -- Kids Park Stage Junior dairy cattle judging -- Livestock Arena Open poultry judging -- Livestock Area/Small Animal Tent 11 A.M. Kuuipos Polynesian Dancers -- Heritage Stage Great American Petting Zoo and Educational Show -- Green Gate Southern California Taekwondo Academy -- Sun Stage Barbara Sharp, vocals -- Grass Roots Stage (Floral Building)