International Women's Day - Honoring Women In Walnut

Press release from the City of Walnut:

March 08, 2021

In honor of Women's History Month and International Women's Day, the City of Walnut is honoring some of the remarkable women we have right here in the City of Walnut who have gone above and beyond to help those in need. Please feel free to join us for the City Council meeting on March 10th and March 24th to hear more about these women, or you can read more about them in their bios below.

Maryam Malik

• Vice President of Board of Coordinating Council at WVUSD for 2018/19 and 2019/20 school year
• Coordinating Council Westhoff Elementary School 2015-2018
• Vice President Board of Community Club Westhoff Elementary School 2018/19 and 2019/20 school year
• Secretary Board of Community Club Suzanne Middle School 2018/19 and 2019/20 school year
• Chair Head for Blue and Black Tea, Suzanne middle school 2018/19 and 2019/20
• Team mom for AYSO Soccer 2017-2020
• Participant at “Teddy Bear Tea” held by Walnut Valley Education Foundation from 2015-2020

Carmen Elsahrgty

She is Middle Eastern from Egypt has lived in Walnut for 35 years.

She has been a strong advocate for helping new immigrants settle here.

She has been teaching English as a second language for over 21 years at Rowland Heights adult education to help those whose mother tongue was not English.

What sets her apart from others is her complete and total dedication to her two grandchildren who happen to be twins and who lost their mother to cancer when they were 3 years old.

Besides dealing with the loss of her daughter she jumped in and has been an amazing grandma/mom to the kids.

She volunteered at their Montessori school here in Walnut while they we attending and continues to stay active and engaged with their elementary school CJ Morris.

Cat Castaneda

I went to the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY about 17 years ago to earn my degree in Culinary Arts. After, I worked for Renowned Chef Suzanne Goin in Los Angeles at her restaurants (Lucques, AOC, and Tavern) for about 5 years, then for Palate Food and Wine for about 2 years, then Forage Restaurant in Silver Lake for 5 Years. After I become a Private Chef for about 2 years.

During the end of my time as Chef at Forage, my father Marcel Castaneda was diagnosed with non hodgkin's lymphoma. My sister and I then took it within ourselves to take care of him through his chemo treatment. When he was at the City of Hope, I had realized that there are not many restaurants nor grocery stores that offer Organic or Pesticide Free foods within the area, and especially my hometown of West Covina/Walnut. This struck a chord in me.

6 Months after being diagnosed, our father passed away. I wanted to give up Culinary and finish my degree in Agricultural Science at Cal Poly Pomona (I'm still 5 classes away from my degree). Something pulled me back to cooking. I was driving past the plaza that Native Fields currently is at, and I had this feeling that, this is the place we should open up a restaurant. Our mother had a State Farm office in that plaza for 15 years, and now something was pulling me to come back to that plaza.

With every penny our father left us, we put into building Native Fields. To bring locally grown pesticide free food to our hometown/community. To offer wholesome food in an area that not many places offer these types of foods, that you can only get in places like Los Angeles and other major cities.

Native Fields mission is to support Local Farmer's that grow food in the spirit of Organic. Some of the Farmer's we get our produce from are: Weiser Family Farms, Chavez Family Farms in Chino, The Seeds of Xanxadu (Walnut Bred Farmer), JF Organics in Ontario/Chino, Black Sheep Farms in Chino, and many other farmer's at the Claremont Farmer's market.

Native Fields produce is 100% locally and pesticide free grown, and we are very proud of that. Most of the items we make in house such as the Pita Bread, Burger Buns, all of our sauces. Our pastries are also made with organic ingredients by Baker's Kneaded, a company based in Los Angeles. Our coffee comes from Black Ring Coffee Roasters, and they're based out of Long Beach. It is our mission to also support small local businesses as well. Our kombucha is also from a Los Angeles Based Company Better Booch.

We hope in the future we will be able to expand to other suburban cities in need of our style of food and ethics.

We are very grateful to everyone who continues to support us, especially in the past year through the Covid-19 pandemic.

March 20th marks our 3rd year anniversary, and we will be collaborating with other local chefs to celebrate. We would like to invite the City of Walnut and the community to come celebrate with us!

Honrita (Honchee) Natividad

Retired in 2009 to be able to travel back and forth to the Philippines and be with my aging Mom who is now going 94. This also gave me the chance to dabble in building and selling townhouses.

Retiring also gave me the opportunity to do more volunteer work at St Lorenzo Ruiz.

Living in Walnut paved the way for giving back through my volunteer involvement in medical missions, campaigns, grass root start up of Walnut American Cancer yearly fundraiser, city commissions, festivals and various church events.

Melba Collins

After traveling the world and retiring as a lead flight attendant for Delta Airlines, the 33 year resident of the city of Walnut, Melba Collins reignited her first passion of giving back to the community by establishing "Angels in Flight" a nonprofit 501(c)3. Affectionately known as "Florence Nightingale" by her family and friends for decades, and passionate about helping seniors and the sick and shut in, Melba started Angels in Flight. Her career as a flight attendant spanned 47 years and placed her in the fortunate position to travel all 50 states in the United States and over 30 countries globally. As a result, when she says that Walnut is a very special place on this earth, she has the travel to back it up. The flexibility she experienced as a flight attendant allowed her to visit and spend time with family members and friends who needed her support. Whether they were undergoing a medical procedure or required support during the day while other family members were at work, Melba would happily step in to care for her loved ones. Because of her job, she was usually the perfect person to help. This service led her to a greater passion and purpose to help seniors and the sick and shut in.

Over the years, Melba has grown familiar with how important it is to spend time, share stories and provide care to seniors and the especially the sick and shut-in. Some seniors are without any family and few friends. Melba saw the need to support them. Creating her nonprofit was a labor of love. Melba does not charge a fee for her work with seniors and the shut in. She started Angels in Flight in 2018 and licensed the organization in her dear hometown of Walnut, CA. Angels in Flight's mission is to outreach and visit seniors and the sick and shut-in. Before the COVID 19 pandemic, "Melba's Angels", the endearing team she uses to describe her volunteers, visited nursing homes, provided transportation for community members to and from doctor's appointments, helped with grocery shopping, and assisted with light chores in their homes. Once Melba and her angels are vaccinated, they will resume their work with Angels in Flight in Walnut! Melba is married to Mansfield Collins, Esq, and has two beautiful adult children, Lyndsey and Brandon Collins.

She is honored to receive recognition for her community service from the City of Walnut.

Linda Argumosa

A Walnut resident of almost 30 years, Walnut is truly Linda Argumosa’s home. Linda opened her Farmers Insurance Agency in Walnut 25 years ago and raised her children, Corey and Katie, alongside her husband of 32 years, Frank, in the same Walnut home near Creekside Park. Throughout the decades, Linda has committed herself to giving back to the community that welcomed her and her family with open arms. Linda has donated her time and money to various Walnut Valley Unified School District fundraisers and locally-run sports organizations, including DBWV-Man United Soccer Club, Walnut AYSO and Walnut Pony Baseball. Linda has raised thousands of dollars to Walnut student-athletes and has encourage students to graduate from high school and attend colleges – Linda is perhaps most proud of this accomplishment.

Additionally, Linda has held various positions on the Westhoff Elementary and Suzanne Middle School Community Clubs and Coordinating Council. Linda is well known for the homecooked meals and table decorations of baked goods she has prepared over the years for various City and Walnut Valley Unified School District events. Linda has recently committed her efforts towards Walnut’s combatting of COVID-19. Specifically, Linda has donated her office, money and time in organizing free COVID-19 testing for Walnut residents. Moreover, Linda has recently coordinated various appointments for Walnut residents to obtain the COVID-19 vaccine. Linda believes that together, we can slow the spread of COVID-19.

Gayle Pacheco

A Walnut Resident for 35 years.

Dedicated mother of two children, David and Cristina and two grandchildren.

Gayle has volunteered for 32 years, giving of her personal time, dedicated to directing the Children’s Choir at St. Lorenzo Catholic Church. She has helped three generations of children learn to love music while practicing their faith through music. Some children taught by Gayle now have their children participating in Gayle’s Children’s Choir carrying on the tradition.

Additionally, Gayle offers legal counseling services to at risk youth and juvenile offenders. She works with a variety of local organizations to mentor transitional age youth, foster youth and other at-risk populations who are seeking vocational training, career path development and other services. Gayle has served as a guest Supreme Court Justice for Western State University College of Law and has acted as a judge on behalf of the Frank N. Darras Disability Law Moot Court Competition. Gayle is a member in good standing of the California State Bar Association since 1993. A member of the National Association of Female Executives; A member of the Industry Manufacturers Council and National Association of Women Business Owners and is the founder of the 4 Corners Chapter of the CWLA, California Women’s Leadership Association.

Gayle has been a volunteer for numerous organizations including Walnut Lions Club, Walnut Valley Educational Foundation and the Women’s Club. She is Treasurer for the Walnut Valley Educational Foundation Director and has been a member of the Walnut Unified School District Personnel Commission for over 20 years. Gayle is President of the Walnut Valley Symphony Orchestra which has provided concerts in Walnut and the San Gabriel Valley

Cherie Liu

Being in love with event industry for most of her life, Cherie joined the food industry, in 2014, and became an Executive Pastry Chef which allowed her to be part of her love of celebrating events and people. Intrigued with the artistry, creativity and innovation that goes into a single pastry, and the way it makes people feel, she taught herself to mix, create, bake and innovate. From watching YouTube videos, she further mastered her craft and was able to bring peoples’ dream cakes/pastries to live. Growing up as the go to person for event organizing, Cherie naturally embraced the baking world.

In 2014, Cherie founded Puffect Bakery Cafe, a local Bakery that consisted of long hours, hard work and most importantly her love for the craft. Puffect has gone from baking the most delicious desserts someone has ever tasted to helping the community to catering birthdays, quinceañeras and weddings.

Jennie Choi

Jennie Choi, owner of Donut Tree, has been serving the city of Walnut since 1988. As a family-owned business, she has provided a sense of community to the residents of Walnut and honors her customers as family. She has watched her community grow for many years, as Donut Tree has become a staple shop in the heart of the city. She proudly serves delicious, fresh pastries and coffee to the city in Walnut and neighboring cities with excellence.

Theresa Hamilton

My name is Theresa Hamilton and I have been a fortunate resident of Walnut coming up on 32 years. I am a Connecticut Yankee raised and educated graduating from the University of Connecticut and later Pepperdine University. My husband Mark and I have one adult son Cameron who attended schools here. He was fortunate to have remarkable and inspiring teachers. My working career was spent at Morgan Stanley as Project Manager and Assistant Vice President rolling out the firm’s new initiatives throughout the country for 25 years.

I started my community involvement in Walnut through my son who in elementary school became a member of the Boy Scouts. I actively became involved in the meetings held at Oswalt Elementary School at the same time enjoying every outing. As my son progressed to Suzanne Middle School, I joined their Community Club and actively supported their fund-raising campaigns. Giving of my time to the school was I felt the least I could do given the exceptional teachers and administrators that were afforded to our students.

For several years I was the Chairperson for the annual cultural event sponsored by the Council of African American Parents in addition to being on the membership committee. The organization participated numerous times in the Walnut Festival. Set ups at the event the night before were always challenging. I was always astounded by the remarkable support and assistance from other participants int the festival. They would rush to give a helping hand to those in need which was most assuredly myself. I am a member of St Stephens Missionary Church.

When relatives and friends visit from back east they always tell me how lucky I am to live here in such lovely tranquil surroundings. I consider my community an oasis each time I drive through and look the peaceful hills and walking trails. I hope that the rural splendor and open spaces will never go away.

In my retirement I’ve joined the Walnut Senior Center and the Walnut Walkers. For several years I worked the polls during the elections and was able to assist many residents during their voting. Walnut reminds me of my own community which I grew up in Connecticut during simpler times. The Walnut friends and community leaders I have met and known throughout the years made my time here all the more pleasant and memorable. I don’t for one minute take that for granted. I count my blessings for having my husband select the town of Walnut for us to call home.

This press release was produced by the City of Walnut . The views expressed here are the author’s own.