Joanette Willert of Huntington Beach and...

Joanette Willert of Huntington Beach and a senior park ranger for

North Coastal Operations, was recently named employee of the month

for February by Harbors, Beaches and Parks, a division of Orange

County’s Public Facilities and Resources Department. Willert oversees

operations of north coastal beaches, including Sunset Beach, Sunset

Aquatic Marina and Lower Newport Harbor ... The Huntington Beach Elks

Lodge No. 1959 has been acknowledged for its support of the Drug

Abuse Resistance Education program over the years. “Boomer” Steeman

accepted a plaque by Fountain Valley Police Chief Elvin Miali ... Air

Force Airman Christopher R. Lemler, brother of Huntington Beach

resident Ryan Walsh, has graduated from basic military training at

Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas. During the six weeks

of training, Lemler studied the Air Force mission, organization, and

military customs and courtesies ... Army National Guard Private Jay

A. Stone, son of Huntington Beach resident Evelyn M. Stone, has

graduated from basic combat military training at Fort Still, Lawton,

Okla. ... Kevin Johnston, 17, who attends Edison High School; Jade

Payette, 14, who attends Huntington Beach High School and Meghan Van

Winkle, 15, of Huntington Beach who attends Huntington Beach High

School have been selected as semifinalists in the Music Center’s 15th

annual Spotlight Awards program. These three talented high school

performers are among 100 semifinalists, and were selected from 828

Southern California students who auditioned in various performance

categories. The Music Center is the performing arts center of Los

Angeles county ... Kelly E. Iwanabe, of Huntington Beach has been

chosen as the winner of the academic and extracurricular competition

for the Bank of America’s 2003 Achievement Awards competition.

Iwanabe attends Edison High School ... Undergraduates from the

University of Santa Barbara who made the Dean’s List during the

winter quarter include Huntington Beach residents Kate Elizabeth

Andruss, Laura Elizabeth Aydelotte, Rhett Clayton Buckley, Kristy

Jennifer Burnett, Kristen Marie Green, Daryn Thomas Katzen, Daniel

Jeremy Le Franc, Rajinder Singh Mavi, Ben Cash Ogawa, Shaun D

Pennington, Yadir Peralta, Turi Jocelyn Wilson, Andrew Shusterman,

Benjamin Michael Simkin and Kristin Taffy Tam ...

* NEIGHBORS is news about Huntington Beach people achieving and

doing good in the community. To submit information to this feature,

please send it to the Independent, Attn.: Neighbors, 18682 Beach

Blvd., Suite 160, Huntington Beach, CA 92648; fax it to (714)

965-7174; or e-mail it to hbindy@latimes.com.