Meet your new neighbors

After living in Palmdale for a few years Jean Morgan and Gary Katz have moved to Tehachapi. It seemed natural since Jean’s family lives here and Gary saw a need in Tehachapi for his skills. Gary is a third generation horologist. He repairs clocks of all kinds at his home in Bear Valley. He started in the 1970s with his dad and uncles. His family was, at one time, the world’s largest importer of clocks. They owned Ted’s Clock Emporium, a business located in 14 malls all over Southern California. Gary said that there is still one in Las Vegas. Ted’s imported and serviced all types of clocks from all over the world.

Gary’s other passion is music. He was raised in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles and began playing music at the age of 10. He majored in music at Valley College. Currently he plays guitar and is a one-man-band specializing in classic rock. As a matter of fact, Gary will be playing at Souza Family Vineyard on Friday evening, July 31 from 5-7 p.m.

Gary is also interested in photography and video. He taught video at the American Institute of Video in North Hollywood, has researched material for several music documentaries and made a video on clock-making.

He has three children. His two daughters live in Sonora in California’s gold country and his son lives in the San Fernando Valley. He also has a sister who now lives in Portland, Oregon.

Jean met Gary four years ago and they have been together ever since. Jean currently works as an administrative assistant and has six years of experience in social work. Most of her family lives in Tehachapi. Her father lives in Bear Valley and at 86 years old is a docent for CALM. He has also volunteered at the Tehachapi Depot Museum. Jean’s brother used to live on Highway 202. Her sister, Sue, and her brother-in-law own Treasures eConsignment in Old Town.

Jean’s pride and joy are her two children. Her son Jeff served two tours of duty in Afghanastan with the 82nd Airborne and now lives in Pasadena. Daughter, Patty, is a zookeeper at Wildlife Waystation in Santa Clarita and a L.A. Zoo docent. Jean is also mom to two dogs, Watson and Rosie, and a cat named Snowball.

Welcome to Tehachapi, Jean and Gary! Anyone in need of Gary’s services can reach him at [email protected].

Susan Sabo comes to Tehachapi from Ann Arbor, Michigan, by way of Santa Maria. After the worst winter in 134 years, Susan’s son, who lives in Bakersfield, brought his mother out to California. He thought she would like Santa Maria but she didn’t, so after three months she moved to his second choice, Tehachapi. The four seasons and country setting were much more to her liking. She said that there had been no sun in Ann Arbor from November to March. She was ready to leave.

Susan and her brother were born in northeast Detroit. Susan attended a Catholic girl’s school, and “guys were alien beings” according to the female students says Susan. Their father passed away when she was 18.

She had a “full ride” scholarship to the University of Detroit, at first she majored in Chemistry and minored in Math but then changed her major to German. She got her Masters in German Literature from Ohio University Athens thinking she wanted to teach German but ended up in management for Kresge/Kmart. As Assistant Manager of the Muskeegan store she sold 12,800 skeins of yarn one season. “Those girls could sure knit!” she said.

After she married she decided to go to law school. She practiced law in Birmingham and Ann Arbor for 20 years. A series of bad baby sitters resulted in her working from home for 13 of those years.

Eventually she went into banking before deciding to get a teaching degree at University of Michigan, followed by a MS in Education. She has taught mostly math and ESL (English as a second language).

A “woman for all seasons”, Susan is also an artist (sculpture and paint), musician and poet. Her art and poetry have been published, and she also loves photography.

Susan’s son, Matt, is a behavioral analyst is Bakersfield and her daughter, Debbie, lives and teaches in Mountain View, but is currently doing an internship on a sustainable living farm. Both of her children were educated in Michigan.

Susan has not decided what her next incarnation will be but we’re glad she is here in Tehachapi.

Welcome, Susan!

If you have moved to the Greater Tehachapi Area within the last six months and would like to know more about your new community, call 661-822-8188. We will be happy to make an appointment for a hostess to come by and give you lots of helpful information, some valuable coupons, gifts and much more. Many families and individuals who come to the area are pleasantly surprised with the amount of knowledge they gather about their new home. Publishing your welcome article is completely voluntary and is not a requirement of being welcomed.