Valley people

 Ben Lomond woman earns fashion design degree
Ashley Lynn Verbin, a Ben Lomond resident, recently graduated from the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles with an associate degree in fashion design.
Verbin, a 2007 alumna of San Lorenzo Valley High School, graduated from University of California, Los Angeles, with a bachelor’s degree in history in 2011.
She is working as a manager at the Bruins Theater in Westwood and hopes to continue a career in the field of fashion design.
 
Ben Lomond resident named Very Inspiring Person
Dyane Leshin-Harwood, 42, a resident of Ben Lomond, was chosen by the healthy-living website Spryliving.com as its “Very Inspiring Person of the week” in early January.
As part of being awarded VIP honors, Leshin-Harwood — an author and the founder of the Santa Cruz County chapter of the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance — wrote about her experience with bipolar disorder in an article published on the site.
The article can be found at http://spryliving.com/articles/vip-coping-with-bipolar/#ixzz2JJjrkZp4.
 
SLV Water District honors former director
The San Lorenzo Valley Water District honored former board member Fred McPherson at a public reception Friday, Jan. 25, at the district board room in Boulder Creek.
McPherson, a videographer and instructor of natural history at University of California, Santa Cruz, served on the district’s board for six years. He was appointed in June 2006 and served through 2012, when he decided to devote more time to nature videography in partnership with his wife, Roberta McPherson.
 
Choir members honored
On Jan. 19, Janine Snyder and Nikki Olivas, two members of Beth Hollenbeck’s chorus at Scotts Valley High School, received a standing ovation as they spent the day with other high school singers from Northern California at the Sweet Adelines’ Young Women In Harmony workshop in San Mateo.
Master teachers and prominent quartets from Sweet Adelines — a worldwide organization of women singers committed to advancing the musical art form of barbershop harmony through education and performance — coached the girls before they performed for the organization’s regional convention. 
 
Honor choir, band announced
Two members of the Scotts Valley Middle School band, Natasha Ahrweiler and Ross Perry, and two musicians from the San Lorenzo Valley Middle School band, Annamarie Hagen-Esquerra and Gage Miller, were selected to play at the California Music Education Association Central Coast Honor Band and Choir concert at Santa Cruz High School on Saturday, Jan. 26.
Natasha was chosen as first flute and earned the Donner Mine Music Camp Scholarship, which will pay for a week of summer music camp.
Jesse McMilin, a student at SLV High School, participated in the high school honor band.
Several local singers were also selected to be part of the honor choir at Salinas High School on Saturday, Feb. 2.
Scotts Valley Middle School sent nine singers, Sheridan Smith, Onjolie Silva-Padovan, Justine Bell, Anna Schroeck, Alicia Snyder, Jenny Johnston, Erin Dahlby, Faith MacDonald and Cammie Brown. They were joined by Rowan Nolan, a San Lorenzo Valley Middle School student.
Nikki Olivas was selected to sing from Scotts Valley High School, and Kayla Staats and Abi Young represented SLV High School.
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