On the Passing of Victor McClinton

I want to join the many who are honoring the life and memory of Victor McClinton.

Near the end of 2012, it was front page on the Pasadena Star News and the most viewed article for days -- Pasadena Comes Together to Remember Victor McClinton.   McClinton was director of the Brotherhood Community Sports League.    At the age of 49, he was tragically killed on Christmas Day.

A recent Pasadena Weekly article aptly titled "One Very Good Man,"  again brought Victor to mind. 

I knew Victor only for a season - a football season.   Like thousands of area kids, my son participated in Brotherhood Crusade sports.   One year, he had the privilege of playing on a football team Victor coached.   So, I knew Victor as a dad knows a coach -- mostly from the sidelines.  But, I saw and  heard enough to know my son was fortunate to cross paths with this man.  

Though I did not know Victor well, I have known men like him -- men who are there for the kids month after month, year after year, consistent, resilient.   They get the keys to the gym or the field and they make sure the kids play.   They are more important than we realize.  

Well worth reading is a moving tribute to Victor written by his longtime friend, Danny Bakewell.    Over the years he led Brotherhood Crusade Sports and coached, Victor touched the lives of 20,000 area kids.  Few can say as much.   His was a monumental life.  "One very good man" who will be remembered by thousands for years to come..  

In Search of the Perfect Date Shake at Sierra Madre's Mother Moo

Yesterday at Mother Moo's, I enjoyed probably the best date shake I've ever had.   That's saying alot because, as I've posted before, I've had date shakes all over southern California.   If you are a date shake fan or ever wanted to try one, then get on over to Mother Moo in Sierra Madre.

Fresh from the desert, Mother Moo has a raft of organic dates and she's offering her own take on southern California's iconic date shake.   The dates are chunky and the ice cream is different than I've had in other date shakes.  Mother Moo's date shake is based in what they call "triple milk" ice cream and it is sans the usual vanilla.   It works and what you get a creamy thick date shake with plenty of date chunks.    

Mother Moo will make this shake to your order.   So, if you want to take this experience to the next level, I recommend asking them to add cinnamon and nutmeg.   The basic shake is good, but the spices put the Mother Moo Date Shake in my Date Shake Hall of Fame.       

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