Oak Park resident keeps on giving

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers VOLUNTEER SPIRIT—Harvey Kern of Oak Park has made serving his community his life's work. He's retired, but remains active. Harvey Kern is 65 and retired, but his schedule as a volunteer keeps him busy like a full-time worker.

Kern spends two days a week giving tours at Gardens of the World in Thousand Oaks, one day a week at the Reyes Adobe museum in Agoura Hills and one day a week at the Adamson House in Malibu.

The former public health worker and longtime Oak Park resident is also secretary of the Oak Park Community Foundation and the volunteer editor for a community website.

Kern dons a different uniform for each volunteer role. He jokes that he has trouble remembering what to wear when he wakes up.

"I don't consider what I'm doing work," he said. "These things make life worth living. . . . I like being with people and meeting people, learning things from people and helping people."

In 2004, the Community Foundation for Oak Park honored Kern with the Golden Acorn Award for his exemplary volunteer efforts.

"Harvey has given so much to the community for so many years that we can't possibly express our gratitude and sincere appreciation to him often enough," said Mike Paule of the Oak Park Municipal Advisory Council.

Hoping to take advantage of his love for art, Kern joined the Getty Center in Los Angeles as a docent in 1987, but after five years on the job the traffic had became so unbearable for Kern that he searched for other docent opportunities closer to Oak Park. He joined Gardens of the World four years ago.

"I love the people I meet, the seniors, the children and the garden clubs," Kern said. "You really feel like you're doing something for the community."

A Los Angeles native, Kern earned his undergraduate degree in public health from UCLA and his master's degree in health science from California State University Northridge.

He spent 32 years in various jobs with the Los Angeles Department of Health Services, including nine years at Los Angeles County USC Medical Center, retiring in 1996. He taught health science to graduate students at CSUN for many years.

He also spent many years doing voice work in local radio and was the voice for the Costco phone system nationwide. Kern was the stadium announcer for Oak Park football games, the opening of the Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza and the annual Tim Conway Golf Tournament at the North Ranch Country Club.

In May of 2004, Kern suffered a stroke. He spent a month in the hospital and underwent four brain surgeries.

He's fully recovered, and says, "I'm very fortune to have no defects. I'm able to walk, play tennis and do all of my activities."

Welcome to Oak Park

Kern and his wife were living in Canoga Park when they saw an ad about Oak Park.

"Oak Park is probably 13 to 15 miles from Canoga Park but everyone told me it was the end of the world," Kern said.

The couple didn't like the early home models they saw, but when new models were built several months later, the Kerns returned.

In 1968 the couple paid $27,000 for a Maplegrove Street home where they lived for 38 years until separating and moving out two years ago.

"Oak Park has always been a wonderful community. The people are bright, interested, very community and family-oriented," Kern said.

Aging gracefully

Kern was among those who voted to make Oak Park an independent school district, and his daughters were among the first students to attend Oak Park schools from kindergarten through the twelfth grade. His oldest daughter wrote the Oak Park High School alma mater.

"I can't say I'm surprised at the growth of the area," Kern said. "But when the $1-million homes in Chambord opened we were stunned."

Kern appreciates how the community was developed with restrictions to prevent construction on hilltops. He worries that park district-owned land could become available for development if unprotected.

"I don't think any of us want houses built on hills," Kern said.

In Oak Park, the high cost of housing costs still remains and makes it difficult for young people to buy, Kern said.

"That's kind of sad because we were a community filled with children and young people in the early days," Kern said. "That hurts the school district. They're doing the best they can."

With only three small commercial centers, the community's tax base remains small. Limited resources make it difficult to pay for street and sidewalk repairs, and homeowners have to fix problems because the county can't afford to, Kern said.

Oak Park tried once to become an incorporated city, but the vote was unsuccessful.

Still, he commends the Oak Park Municipal Advisory Council, Ventura County Supervisor Linda Parks and local law enforcement personnel for "taking good care of us."

Kern says he's the proud father of two daughters: Carla Ronk, who lives in Westlake Village with husband, Kevin; and Ilana Ormond, who lives in Thousand Oaks with husband, Steven, and their children, Sophie, 11, and Benjamin, 7.

"Having grandchildren is the best part of life," he says. "It's just a wonderful experience to see them grow, mature and accomplish."