BRIEFLY IN THE NEWS

Soup kitchen seeks Easter volunteersSomeone Cares Soup Kitchen in Costa Mesa is in need of volunteers, and donations of pre-packaged Easter baskets in anticipation of its Easter brunch event, which will run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.

The kitchen expects an especially large crowd for the holiday, the third busiest day of the year. Last year, the Easter Bunny passed out baskets to more than 400 children at the soup kitchen, and volunteers served about 625 guests.

Volunteer shifts run from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday. For more information, call Shannon Santos at (949) 548-8861.

Meeting today covers Pilot Cup specificsAn organizational meeting for the eighth annual Pilot Cup will be held today in the Kaiser Elementary School multi-purpose room.

The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. and will cover the tournament rules, player registration forms, selection of school colors, scholarships, referees, and bracketing for the tournament. Representatives of every Newport-Mesa school are encouraged to attend.

The Pilot Cup will begin May 29, with the finals taking place Sunday, June 3, at the Costa Mesa Farm Complex.

Local schools administrator honoredJohn Caldecott, the Newport-Mesa Unified School District’s executive director of classified personnel, has been honored by the Assn. of California School Administrators as one of the top school leaders in Orange County.

Caldecott, who served in five other districts before coming to Newport-Mesa, received the 2007 award for personnel or human resources administrator of the year in Orange County. Later this year, he will represent the county in the association’s state competition.

Elizabeth Novack, Newport-Mesa’s assistant superintendent of human resources, announced Caldecott’s award at the districtwide PTA meeting on Monday.

“We see you as someone who’s extremely compassionate and extremely bright and articulate,” she told him.

Caldecott previously held posts in San Ramon Valley, Stockton, Glendale and Los Angeles. In a short speech Monday, he said working in Newport-Mesa had been the high point of his career.

“Newport-Mesa is unique, and what I think is unique is the connection to students,” he said. “That’s not always present.”

Concert to cap Irish, environment festivalOrange Coast College’s 2007 Green Festival, a series of on-campus events dedicated to promoting environmental awareness and Irish culture, is set to wrap up tonight with a concert in the Robert B. Moore Theatre.

The headliners for the show are the Fenians, an Orange County band that specializes in Irish-style music, and Exit, an all-female combo that has played in concert with U2. Inventor and mandolin player George Margolin will open the show.

The show begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5.

Bravo searches for its next ‘Housewives’Bravo TV network and Evolution casting agency will hold an open casting call for its reality series, “The Real Housewives of Orange County” at the Balboa Bay Club.

Casting agents are looking for five “fabulous” housewives and their families for the third season of the series.

Women can be married, dating, engaged, divorced or remarried and should be in the early 30s to mid-40s with “big personalities.” Having active kids 13 and older is a plus.

The casting call will be held from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday at the resort, 1221 W. Coast Highway, Newport Beach. People who want to audition should bring photos of their families and homes. For more information, call the casting hotline, (818) 557-1198, or e-mail [email protected] .