February 4, 2005

Tom Francois named Citizen of the Year and
Custom Vending Systems named Business of the Year

By Jane Kennedy, Mayor
Special to the Times

The Campbell Chamber of Commerce selected Tom Francois as its 2004 Citizen of the Year. Francois is very active in the Campbell community: He has been serving as a Planning Commissioner for a number of years and works as a Reserve Police Officer.

The Chamber also selected Custom Vending Systems (CVS) as its 2004 Business of the Year. CVC is owned by Alan Aerts who is also very involved in the Campbell community. Congratulations to both Tom and Alan!

I’m pleased to report that the Vasona Light Rail Extension project in Campbell is nearing completion as six-month train testing from the San Jose Diridon Station to the Campbell Winchester Station begins this month. Service to the public is now anticipated to begin in August 2005.

Museum and Ainsley House Curator, Karen Brey, will be holding a book-signing event Feb. 22 at the Pruneyard Barnes and Noble. Her book “Campbell” from Arcadia Publishing includes many photos and historical narrative of our city’s origin and development. The book is also one of the top five best sellers in its category at Barnes and Noble. We are all very proud of the book and grateful for Karen’s hard work. For more information about the book signing, contact the Pruneyard Barnes and Noble at (408) 559-8101.

The Ainsley House Museum has some entertaining activities and exhibits coming up that are worth mentioning. First, there’ll be a Tea and Peach Preserve Tasting on Feb. 23 at 2 p.m. featuring David Mas Masumoto, author of numerous books including “Planting Roots in American Soil,” “Country Voices, The Oral History of a Japanese American Family Farm Community” and “Letters to the Valley: A Harvest of Memories.” Space is very limited. For more information, call (408) 866-2757.

Beginning March 3, Ainsley House will sponsor another exciting exhibit entitled “Second Fiddle: Women’s Clubs Orchestrate Changes 1900-1920.” The exhibit will also feature a commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of the Campbell Country Women’s Club. To commemorate the exhibit opening, a special tea event will be held on Saturday, March 12.

Finally, the Ainsley House is still continuing its “Raise the Roof” fundraising campaign. The plan is to raise enough funds for a much-needed special faux thatch roof to replace the existing one. Construction is planned for fall 2005.