Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve nonprofit awards first college scholarships
Eight high school seniors have received some money to help them get started in college, thanks to a new scholarship provided by Huntington Beach environmental nonprofit Amigos de Bolsa Chica.
Amigos presented the scholarships to the students from Long Beach and Orange County-area high schools on May 17. The recipients, their families and guests were then treated to a tour of the Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve, as well as the Shark Lab at Cal State Long Beach with Dr. Chris Lowe and Amigos volunteer Sam Lopez.
Ocean View High senior Alexa Barrera, the oldest daughter in her family and the first to attend college, was among the recipients. Barrera has been active in the Seahawks' college preparatory program, Stepping Up, and served on the stunt cheerleading team this year.
She will enroll in the nursing program at Golden West College.
The scholarship is named after Bill and Meredyth Stern, according to Amigos de Bolsa Chica President Mel Nutter. Bill Stern, an Amigos board member, died in 2022, and his wife Meredyth subsequently made a $2 million donation in his honor.
'She wanted to honor Bill by providing Amigos with some additional resources for the different things we were doing, including encouraging us to create the scholarship,' Nutter said. 'It's been kind of an exciting ride for us, because of course part of what Amigos de Bolsa Chica is interested in is environmental education. It's a new thing. On the other hand, we anticipate we're going to be doing it from now on out.'
The others awarded included Annabelle Kerendian of Lakewood High, Jillene Wetteland of Long Beach Poly High, Fernando Ortega of Santa Ana High, Yayoy Espinoza Soriano of Segerstrom High, Jim Le of Westminster High, Tiffany Nguyen of Garden Grove High and Kristy Huynh of Rancho Alamitos High. Each were selected after Amigos de Bolsa Chica received numerous applications.
Nutter said a framed picture has been signed by each recipient and will be sent to Meredyth Stern. He said it was fun meeting and celebrating the high school seniors.
'I had never been to the Shark Lab myself before, and it was really impressive,' Nutter said.
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WWII Vet Grows Food for Hungry Kids—And Still Helps at Age 96!
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Courier Journal great Bill Luster, ‘the most beloved person in all of photography,' dies
Bill Luster, a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer for The Courier Journal and member of the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame, died Thursday after battling the types of diseases that come with being older. He was 80. He used light and a camera to tell stories in the newspaper in such a way that few could equal. Whether it was Barack and Michelle Obama sneaking a quick dance outside the White House's Blue Room, or a dog stretching while country folk gathered in lawn chairs under a shade tree, Luster had a knack for conveying an entire story in a single frame. 'He operated in such a quiet way, I don't think he ever forced his way into a situation,' said Jay Mather, a former Courier Journal photographer who shared the 1980 Pulitzer Prize for international reporting with reporter Joel Brinkley. 'He gained the trust of subjects easily because of his quiet manner.' Standing just 4'11', Luster was a giant in the world of photojournalism — a world where he used his height as an advantage. He loved to tell the story of when actor John Wayne visited Louisville in 1976 to be grand marshal of the Pegasus Parade. Luster met his plane at the airport and as Wayne climbed off the plane, Luster scrambled backward as he shot. 'He got about 10 feet away, knelt down and said, 'How's this, little pardner,'' Luster wrote in 2008. 'So I do have some advantages, and I still treasure that picture.' Back in the days before digital photography, when photographers had to print pictures using a device called a photo enlarger, Luster needed to stand on a stool — known as a 'Luster Lifter' — to see what he was doing. His photos had a unique perspective both literally and figuratively. Michael Clevenger, The Courier Journal's director of photography, said when he was a young photographer he figured out that talented photographers at the newspaper like Luster didn't necessarily love what they were shooting, but 'what they really loved was telling the best story they could through photos — and Bill was a master at that.' Photographers, Clevenger said, often have just one chance — and a small rectangular box — to tell a story. 'What Bill did best was he used that entire rectangle. Edge to edge, he told stories. … I'm always amazed at how good he was at protecting that space.' In 2010, Luster won the Joseph Sprague Award, the highest honor in American photojournalism, from the National Press Photographers Association. He also won the Joseph Costa Award for Innovative leadership from that organization. C. 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Luster had two photo essays appear in The National Geographic magazine — the holy grail of news photographers — and had images published in Time and Newsweek, according to his website. Sam Abell, who worked for National Geographic for more than 30 years and has known Luster since he was a photo intern at The Courier Journal in the late 1960s, said Luster's piece on organ transplants was the "single most difficult story anyone had ever done for National Geographic" both in terms of subject matter and emotionally as he had to photograph people while they were making the excruciating decision about donating a loved-one's organs. "Bill Luster is the most beloved person in all of photography," Abell said. "He had a combination of things: personal charisma, absolute hard work, and belief in the high calling of photography." He covered 55 Kentucky Derbies, continuing to shoot them even after he retired until just a few years ago when his health and mobility issues made it impossible for him. 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And he often stole her keys and moved her car in The Courier Journal parking lot so she couldn't find it. Before she left for an interview for a Neiman Fellowship at Harvard University, Luster and Mather snuck into her house and hid a frying pan, a tambourine and a copy of the Yellow Pages in her suitcase. "When I got to Boston and opened my suitcase, It took me about 30 seconds to figure out Bill did it," Spaulding said. "When I called him, as soon as he heard my voice, he was on the floor laughing. ... But it wasn't just me, everyone in the country has been pranked by Bill Luster." Charles William Luster was born in 1944 in Glasgow, Kentucky, to Betty and Earl Luster. Earl Luster was a civil engineer and was just starting a long career in the military with posts around the world and around the country when Bill Luster was born. Betty and Earl Luster soon split up and when Bill Luster was 4 years old, Betty married Joe T. Hall, a local rural free delivery carrier in Glasgow who raised his wife's son as his own. Bill Luster graduated from Glasgow High School in 1962 and headed off to Western Kentucky State College, where he began dabbling in photography as a hobby. He returned home to Glasgow in 1964 where he became a photographer and sportswriter for the Glasgow Daily Times. He improved his skills there for five years — occasionally shooting freelance photos for The Courier Journal — before The Courier Journal and Louisville Times hired him in 1969. He married the former Linda Shearer in a ceremony at Highland Baptist Church in 1976. Over 42 years at the Courier Journal, Luster would become the most well-known of the newspaper's photographers, winning some of the biggest national awards and leading the National Press Photographers Association as its president for a term. He had stints as the newspaper's director of photography and was the paper's chief photographer when he retired in 2011. He was part of the teams that won two Pulitzer Prizes for The Courier Journal. The first was the 1976 Pulitzer Prize for feature photography for the newspaper's coverage of court-ordered busing, and the second came in 1989 when the newspaper's news and photo staffs won the award for local reporting for its coverage of the Carroll County bus crash. The crash — the nation's worst drunken-driving accident — killed 27 adults and children on a church bus returning to Radcliff, Kentucky, following an outing to Kings Island amusement park near Cincinnati. Luster's iconic photo of police investigators peering at the burned-out shell of the bus on the newspaper's front page on May 16, 1988, gave readers a graphic image of the tragedy that happened two nights before. Luster was inducted into the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame in 2012. He is survived by his wife, his son, Joseph, and daughter-in-law, Lauren, and two grandchildren. Joseph Gerth can be reached at 502-582-4702 or by email at jgerth@ You can also follow him at @ This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Bill Luster, former Courier Journal photographer, dies at 80
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How often do tropical storms, hurricanes form in June? We look at NOAA's records to find out
The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season is predicted to be "above average" but when do the first tropical storms or hurricanes usually form? It's enough to make Florida residents a little jumpy, especially after three hurricanes made landfall in the state in 2024. ➤ Weather alerts via text: Sign up to get updates about current storms and weather events by location It didn't help when an area of potential tropical development popped up on the National Hurricane Center's tropical outlook map June 2, the day after the official start of the 2025 season. By June 4, chances for tropical development dropped to zero, with the non-tropical low pressure area expected to form over South and North Carolina, instead of staying over water. ➤ National Hurricane Center keeping eye on system off coast. See what Florida can expect So as we wait for the next "disturbance" to appear, we took a look back through NOAA's records to see when the first named tropical storm and hurricane has formed over the past several years. Looking at the big picture, follow advice from forecasters and emergency officials to prepare now. Tropical storms formed in June 11 times over the past 30 years, with another 11 developing in April or May. The first hurricane wasn't far behind, with six forming in June and nine during the first two weeks of July. A tropical storm is classified as a hurricane when maximum sustained winds reach 74 mph. A major hurricane is one that is Category 3 or higher, with maximum sustained winds of at least 111 mph. Here's an overview of when and how many hurricanes formed over two-week periods between 1995 and 2024: June 1-15: 2 June 16-30: 4 July 1-15: 9 July 16-31: 2 Aug. 1-15: 4 Aug. 16-31: 5 Sept. 1-15: 3 One hurricane formed in January. Here's the breakdown of the first hurricane by year: 2024: Major Hurricane Beryl, June 28-July 9 2023: Hurricane Don, July 14-24 2022: Major Hurricane Bonnie, July 1-9 2021: Hurricane Elsa, June 30-July 9 2020: Hurricane Hanna, July 23-26 2019: Hurricane Barry, July 11-15 2018: Hurricane Beryl, July 4-15 2017: Hurricane Franklin, Aug. 7-10 2016: Hurricane Alex, Jan. 12-15 The first hurricane after the official start of the season was Hurricane Earl, Aug. 2-6. 2015: Major Hurricane Danny, Aug. 18-24 2014: Hurricane Arthur, July 1-5 2013: Hurricane Humberto, Sept. 8-19 2012: Hurricane Chris, June 18-22 2011: Major Hurricane Irene, Aug. 21-28 2010: Hurricane Alex, June 25-July 2 2009: Major Hurricane Bill, Aug. 15-24 2008: Major Hurricane Bertha, July 3-20 2007: Major Hurricane Dean, Aug. 13-23 2006: Hurricane Ernesto, Aug. 24-Sept. 1 2005: Hurricane Cindy, July 3-7 2004: Major Hurricane Alex, July 31-Aug. 6 2003: Hurricane Claudette, July 8-17 2002: Hurricane Gustav, Sept. 8-12 2001: Major Hurricane Erin, Sept. 1-15 2000: Major Hurricane Alberto, Aug. 3-23 1999: Major Hurricane Bret, Aug. 18-25 1998: Major Hurricane Bonnie, Aug. 19-30 1997: Hurricane Bill, July 11-13 1996: Major Hurricane Bertha, July 5-14 1995: Hurricane Allison, June 3-6 A tropical storm is one that has maximum sustained winds of 39 to 73 mph. Here's an overview on when and how many tropical storms formed over two-week periods between 1995 and 2024: June 1-15: 8 June 16-30: 3 July 1-15: 2 July 16-31: 2 Aug. 1-15: 3 Aug. 16-31: 0 Sept. 1-15: 1 The first tropical storms formed twice in April and nine times in May. Here's the breakdown of the first tropical storm by year: 2024: Tropical Storm Alberto, June 19-20 2023: Tropical Storm Arlene, June 1-3 Not counting an unnamed subtropical storm that formed Jan. 16-17 2022: Tropical Storm Alex, June 5-6 2021: Tropical Storm Ana, May 22-23 The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Bill, June 14-15. 2020: Tropical Storm Arthur, May 16-19 and Tropical Storm Bertha, May 27-28. The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Cristobal, June 1-9. 2019: Subtropical Storm Andrea, May 20-21. The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Chantal Aug. 20-23. 2018: Tropical Storm Alberto, May 25-31. The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Debby, Aug. 7-9. 2017: Tropical Storm Arlene, April 19-21 The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Bret, June 19-20. 2016: Tropical Storm Bonnie, May 27-June 4 The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Colin June 5-7. 2015: Tropical Storm Ana, May 8-11 The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Bill, June 16-18. 2014: Tropical Storm Dolly, Sept. 1-3 2013: Tropical Storm Andrea, June 5-7 2012: Tropical Storm Alberto, May 19-22 and Tropical Storm Beryl, May 26-30. The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Debby, June 23-27. 2011: Tropical Storm Arlene, June 28-July 1 2010: Tropical Storm Bonnie, July 22-24 2009: Tropical Storm Ana, Aug. 11-16 2008: Tropical Storm Arthur, May 31-June 1 The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Cristobal, July 19-23. 2007: Sub-Tropical Storm Andrea May 9-11 The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Barry, June 1-2. 2006: Tropical Storm Alberto, June 10-14 2005: Tropical Storm Arlene, June 8-13 2004: Tropical Storm Bonnie, Aug. 3-14 2003: Tropical Storm Ana, April 20-24 The first tropical storm after the official start of hurricane season was Tropical Storm Bill, June 29-July 2. 2002: Tropical Storm Arthur, July 14-16 2001: Tropical Storm Allison, June 5-17 2000: Tropical Storm Beryl, Aug. 13-15 1999: Tropical Storm Arlene, June 11-18 1998: Tropical Storm Alex, July 27-Aug. 2 1997: Sub-Tropical Storm June 1-2 The first named storm was Tropical Storm Ana, June 30-July 4. 1996: Tropical Storm Arthur, June 17-21 1995: Tropical Storm Barry, July 5-10 Historically, named storms that develop in June pop up off the southeastern coast of the U.S. and the Gulf of America, according to data from NOAA and the National Weather Service. By August, storms usually develop in the Atlantic or as they emerge as tropical waves off the coast of Africa. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 through Nov. 30. Ninety-seven percent of tropical cyclone activity occurs during this time period, NOAA said. The Atlantic basin includes the northern Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of America, as the Gulf of Mexico is now known in the U.S. per an order from President Trump. NOAA and the National Hurricane Center are now using Gulf of America on its maps and in advisories. The peak of the season is Sept. 10, with the most activity happening between mid-August and mid-October, according to the Hurricane Center. We will update our tropical weather coverage daily. Download your local site's app to ensure you're always connected to the news. And look for our special subscription offers here. This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: NOAA historical tropical storms, hurricanes: When they develop month
