Meet Your New Neighbors

David and Bonnie Michaels arrived in Tehachapi at the end of June. They had lived in Chino Hills in San Bernardino County since their marriage 26 years ago. Bonnie retired on June 30 after working for the City of Chino Hills for the last 16 years. They both said that the area had become too congested. After looking at various retirement locations, Tehachapi offered the rural environment that they had once had and was still within close proximity to their grandchildren in Victorville. After months of looking, they finally settled on a house in Stallion Springs.

David is not retired. He is a business analyst and said that he can either work from home or at a client's office. He has been self-employed for the last seven years, ever since the company he was working through moved back east. He said that he had the option to move with them but declined to leave California.

Prior to her work for the City, Bonnie had worked in human resources in the private sector. As Emergency Services Coordinator for the City of Chino Hills, she ran volunteer programs for Neighborhood Services and had been in charge of National Night Out for 10 years. Both she and David are experienced in emergency services and are HAM Radio and CERT trained. They now look forward to working with the local Stallion Springs emergency groups.

David is a second generation Californian and was born in Los Angeles. He has an older brother who lives in Rancho Cucamonga.

Bonnie was born in Akron, Ohio. Her family moved to California when she was about 10 years old. She and her two brothers and two sisters grew up in Lynwood, an area of Los Angeles. Her son Brandon is a mechanic with Mesa Airlines in Houston, Texas. Her daughter, Valerie, and her family live in Victorville. Valerie's husband works at Rio Tinto in Boron and they are the parents of Bonnie's four grandchildren ages 1½ to 11. Bonnie and David are looking forward to their visits to Tehachapi.

Until those visits, Bonnie and David have the company of their two cats Oscar and Butters and are looking forward to being unpacked. David enjoys working with computers and home improvement projects. He already has plans for the new house. Bonnie likes to go Line Dancing when she can. She said that David goes with her but just to watch.

I suspect we will be seeing a lot more of the Michaels in and around Tehachapi. Welcome to you both.

Estrella (Starr) Brunner moved back to California and Bakersfield from North Carolina about two years ago along with her seven year old son, Teofilo (Teo). Bakersfield had been her family's home since they moved there from the coast in 1990. It was not long after her return that she met her boyfriend, Carlos, online at eHarmony. He lived in Tehachapi so Starr and Teo eventually moved to Tehachapi as well.

Starr was raised in California. She has three brothers and is the second oldest of the four. She spent many of her early years on the coast. She said that she spent first and third grade in Santa Maria and to this day she still loves the beach. One of her brothers lives in Oceano. Her family was very involved in Habitat for Humanity, particularly after they moved to Bakersfield. Starr began working for Habitat with her mother at the age of nine. In 1999, Starr put 500 hours into building a house for her parents.

Starr attended Youngstown State University in Ohio where she had family. Her parents sent her back east to give her a different perspective than Bakersfield. She majored and got her Bachelor's Degree in Communications. She has now added a Masters in Management (MM) from University of Phoenix and also holds a Non-profit Management Certificate. Starr said that she worked with Mary Kay for 11 years. For the last year, she has been putting most of her efforts into developing her business with Plexus Health and Wellness Company. Just recently, she resigned from her online customer service job with Williams Sonoma.

Starr likes to walk and Tehachapi is a great place for that. Teo, like most seven year olds, is into LEGO and video games. Starr maintains her activities with Habitat for Humanity and has become active with the Tehachapi Mountain Vineyard church as well. Starr told me that the name Teofilo is a family name and means Friend of God. What a wonderful name!

Welcome to Tehachapi, Starr and Teo.

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.