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Kara Knack RC of Santa Monica Speaker 10/19/01
Kara will be discussing the future of the Griffith Observatory and what they are planning for this 66 year old institution. More than ever, people need a place to get good information about our biggest environment, the sky. Griffith Observatory serves nearly two million people a year and 50,000 children in School programs. The building has not had any significant improvements since 1935. Kara Knack is currently serving as a Renovation Communications Officer on the Board of Directors for Friends of The Observatory. In the sixteen years she has been on the board, she has held every office but Treasurer, serving three terms as President. She writes s a monthly column for the Griffith Observer and contributes a great deal of time giving talks and preparing information about Griffith Observatory and public astronomy. Her commitment to Griffith Observatory grew from a terrific first impression when she was five years old. Over the many intervening years, she attended school programs, went on cheap dates, and frequently visited the Planetarium before joining the Board of Directors in 1985. “We all have a place we love,” she commented, “and I love that Griffith Observatory is there for the people of Los Angeles. Kids in school, young adults, families, and visitors from every country are a continuous population of this picturesque institution. It’s a privilege for me to be involved in its future.” In 1987 Kara served on the Master Plan Committee, seeing it through City approval processes in 1990. She sat on the selection committee for architects and project managers and currently serves on the Steering Committee that guides the $63 million Renovation and Expansion project. She has traveled extensively visiting planetariums and observatories around the world. Kara has lived most of her adult life in Southern California, graduated form Taft High School in Woodland Hills, went to local junior colleges, and continues to look at the sky as often as possible. Looking up is more than a metaphor for Kara. It’s a mission. |
