ALAMEDA
USS Hornet Sea, Air & Space Museum officials invite the public to join them from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. May 25 for the historic ship’s Memorial Day commemoration.
The USS Hornet is partnering with the groups Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and the C4 Foundation to create a meaningful Memorial Day event that will start at 11 a.m. featuring Christina Ramos, the DAR’s state regent, as the day’s emcee of events. The featured keynote speaker will be U.S. Navy veteran aviator Chris Flaherty, and Civil Air Patrol Composite Squadron 10 will provide a color guard.
The commemoration will be completed with a wreath-laying from the ship’s fantail. Up on the flight deck, the C4 Foundation will hold “Operation Charlie,” featuring a workout conducted in honor of Charlie “Chuck” Keating IV, who was killed in northern Iraq in 2016 (visit bit.ly/4wmxnAp online for more details).
On Memorial Day Monday, May 25, all active-duty and retired U.S. military personnel (Marines, Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard and Space Force) will be allowed aboard for free all day. Alameda’s USS Hornet is docked at 707 W. Hornet Ave. on Alameda Point. For online details about the day’s events, go to uss-hornet.org/event/memorial-day-2026.
— USS Hornet
Kiwanis Foundation awards its 2026 scholarship winners
The Alameda Kiwanis Foundation is pleased to announce its scholarship winners for 2026: six graduating seniors representing Alameda high schools. Many applications from exemplary students were evaluated by a committee of seven Kiwanians.
Criteria included academics, leadership, financial need, community service and extracurricular activities. The awardees were recognized at the Kiwanis Club of Alameda’s (KCA) May 6 meeting with their families and friends in attendance.
The scholarship winners are Christine Yu (Encinal High School) for the Key Club Scholarship; Katey Lee (Encinal High) for the Herb & Jeanne Justin Scholarship; Catalina Cabrera (Encinal High) for the Martin & Lucille Stohr Scholarship; Ziyao Yuan (Alameda Science and Technology Institute) for the Kiwanis Legacy Scholarship; Jacky Kuang (ASTI) for the Kiwanis Foundation Scholarship; and Jonas Locke (Encinal High) for the Kiwanis Legacy Scholarship.
These graduating seniors have contributed many hours in community service in activities such as Alameda Meals on Wheels, the Alameda Food Bank, Alameda Red Cross, Kiwanis Club of Alameda, the Alameda Recreation and Parks Department, elementary and secondary academic tutoring programs for Alameda youth and the Mosaic Project.
To celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2023, the KCA began and continues to fund $100,000 a year to its four-year scholarship program. For more information, visit k01025.site.kiwanis.org online or email alamedakiwanis@gmail.com.
The Alameda Kiwanis Foundation has awarded 2026 scholarship winners Jacky Kuang (Alameda Science and Technology Institute), from left, Katey Lee (Encinal High), Catalina Cabrera (Encinal High), Christine Yu (Encinal High School), Ziyao Yuan (ASTI) and Jonas Locke (Encinal High). (photo courtesy of Patricia Bowen)
Ruby Bridges Elementary hosts Alameda Bike Festival
The city of Alameda, Alameda Municipal Power, the Alameda Recreation and Parks Department and the Alameda Unified School District sponsored the Alameda Bike Festival on May 2 at Ruby Bridges Elementary School.
Other service organizations joined in the activities from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., including the Kiwanis Club of Alameda which gave away more than 130 bike helmets, fitting them to each child and explaining how to properly wear them to parents. The Encinal High and ASTI Key Clubs and the Encinal High and ASTI Red Cross Clubs volunteered with the Kiwanians.
Transform California organized the event that featured free classes (with preregistration) in family cycling, kids riding to school and urban cycling for adults and teens. Various groups offered free bike repairs, free bike bells, helmet decorations, face painting and a simulated traffic situation with signage and lanes for cyclists to practice in a safe environment.
Despite a cool and overcast start to the day, families seemed to enjoy the activities. Three food trucks provided all volunteers with a free lunch and food for public purchase, and a bicycle-powered blender producing fruit smoothies was a big hit!
The Kiwanis Club of Alameda took part May 2 in the Alameda Bike Festival at Ruby Bridges Elementary School. (photo courtesy of Patricia Bowen)
Apply by Friday for grant awards to local nonprofit groups
The Alameda Kiwanis Foundation is accepting applications for its annual grant awards benefiting local 501(c)(3) groups. The application form with all relevant information is posted on the Kiwanis Club of Alameda’s webpage at k01025.site.kiwanis.org.
All applications are due by the end of Friday and can be emailed to leadingedgealameda@comcast.net. If preferred, applications can also be mailed (if postmarked by Friday) to the Alameda Kiwanis Foundation, P.O. Box 1217, Alameda, CA 94501.
On Jan. 31, the Kiwanis Club of Alameda (KCA) hosted its annual winter fundraiser at the Albert DeWitt Officers Club on Alameda Point. The proceeds, more than $20,000, will be completely distributed to Alameda nonprofits serving the community, with a particular emphasis on children and their families.
For the 2026 grant awards year, the foundation’s grant committee will reach out to nonprofit groups working to combat violence and racism and to promote equity and equality. The foundation’s goal is to grant at least 25% of the available funds to those organizations.
— Patricia Bowen
Alameda High senior wins annual Van Sickle Scholarship
Alameda High School senior Sarah Bakhtary has been named the 39th annual winner of the $6,000 Ken and Shirley Van Sickle Scholarship. A top student at Alameda High, Sarah is the founder and president of the school’s Afghan Club. She has been a tutor and translator for fellow students, participated in the school’s drama program, managed the flag football team and mentored young women in the community.
Sarah says she plans to study international relations at UC Davis and is pursuing higher education with the goal of helping her family and community. In addition to Sarah, three other students were selected as scholarship finalists — Encinal High School’s Catalina Cabrera, the Alameda Science and Technology Institute’s Jacky Kuang and Alameda High’s Delaney Mahony-Bick.
“We are very pleased to support Sarah as she pursues her dream of a college education,” said Keith Van Sickle, the scholarship foundation’s president. “She is truly outstanding and has demonstrated both academic talent and leadership in her school and community.”
The scholarship honors Ken and Shirley Van Sickle, two distinguished high school teachers who devoted their careers to Alameda’s students. Applicants to the scholarship are judged on a combination of academic achievement, leadership and financial need.
— Keith Van Sickle
To submit an item for the Alameda Journal’s “In brief” section, which is now usually published in print on each month’s third Friday, please email it, at least three days before print publication, to njackson@bayareanewsgroup.com. Each item should be 90 to 180 words and include a short headline along with the name of the group or individual to credit for it.