Student Drops Back In After 25 Years, Enjoys 2nd Chance

Bonnie Frankel had an inauspicious start when she first went to college. She wasn’t much of a student. But after a 25-year hiatus, she seems to have found herself.

Frankel, 46, is taking classes again at Santa Monica College. “I discovered that I was dyslexic and after years of frustration, I worked myself up from a D average to a B average,” she said.

Frankel says school now is a very positive experience. “I never stop learning with the kids,” she noted. “I like being with them, and they open me up.”

When she isn’t hitting the books, Frankel can be found running on the college’s track. She recently completed her first season as a member of the SMC track team. She was a regular competing in the 3,000-meter event. “Running makes you deal with relationships, power and problems,” she said. “It’s also something to do with your mind and body.”

In the fall, she will transfer to Loyola Marymount University to continue her education. When Frankel gets her degree, she hopes to become a teacher. “I would like to teach because I love helping people,” she said. “And I feel good when I do it, too.”

Santa Monica physician Richard Corlin will serve on a National Institutes of Health advisory committee.

Corlin, who is also president-elect of the California Medical Assn., will serve on the committee until his term expires in September, 1994. He is a past president of the Los Angeles County Medical Assn. and is a member of the LACMA Board of Trustees.

The Westside Center for Independent Living presented its 1991 Special Achievement Award to Mary Bloomberg.

Bloomberg, a longtime supporter of the organization, was honored at the center’s Celebration of Independence benefit dinner May 9 in Los Angeles. She was honored for her commitment of resources and volunteer service.

She is a 37-year resident of Brentwood.

Several Venice High School students have been recognized for their volunteer efforts at Washington Medical Center in Culver City.

The students are Amabel Buccat, Rosalba Gonzalez, Eddie Paredes, Sophie Le, Janet Kariya, Angel Lomeli, Daniel Nakada, Hung-Quoc Tran, Mark Toves and Stephanie Espinosa. Together, they have donated 2,385 volunteer hours to the hospital.

Thomas Wall, a Culver City attorney, has been elected president of the Los Angeles Central City Optimist Club for 1992.

The club, a nonprofit service organization, specializes in helping youths in the Chinatown area.

Santa Monica resident Sue Epstein has been elected to the board of directors of El Nido Services. She will serve a two-year term with the Los Angeles nonprofit agency, which counsels youths and parents. Epstein, a graduate of UC Irvine and Southwestern School of Law, is vice president and associate legal counsel for First Federal Bank of California.

Robert Johnston has been appointed executive director of the Betty Clooney Foundation for Persons with Brain Injury in Long Beach. The foundation supports vocational and recreational services for survivors of brain injury. Johnston, formerly associate executive director of the International Institute in Los Angeles, earned a master’s degree in business from Pepperdine University. He lives in Santa Monica.

Three Westside architects have been named Fellows of the American Institute of Architects for their outstanding achievements in architecture. This lifetime honor has been awarded to William Adams of William Adams Architects in Santa Monica, Rebecca Binder of R.L. Binder AIA Architecture & Planning in Playa del Rey and William Fain Jr. of Johnson Fain and Pereira Associates in Los Angeles.

Dr. W. Grant Stevens has been named chairman of the department of surgery at Daniel Freeman Hospital in Marina del Rey.

Stevens, who is also chairman of the surgery review committee, was recently appointed by former Gov. George Deukmejian to the Medical Board of California.