At the Brea City Council’s annual reorganization Dec. 2 , Cecilia Hupp was elected mayor and Marty Simonoff mayor pro tem.
The vote was 3-1 with Councilmember Christine Marick absent, and Councilmember Steven Vargas’ no vote.
Mayor Blair Stewart nominated Hupp and Simonoff, with Simonoff seconding the motion. Then Vargas nominated himself for mayor pro tem, but the nomination did not receive a second, so it died.
This has happened many times before in the 15 years Vargas has served on the City Council, he was elected mayor once.
Some people may wonder why the voters in Brea do not elect the mayor and mayor pro tem. It is because Brea is a general law city, in which the mayor and mayor pro tem are chosen by their fellow council members.
It has always been that way, beginning when Brea became a city in 1917 and Jay Sexton was elected by his fellow council members as the city’s first mayor.
Hupp and Simonoff will serve one-year terms, unless one or both are reelected in December 2026.
Also at the Dec. 2 council meeting, during Matters from the Audience, Working Wardrobes CEO Bonni Pomush gave a mini-presentation of the nonprofit organization and announced that it is coming to Brea in January.
She further explained that Working Wardrobes will be located and join with the OC Workforce Solutions Center, 675 Placentia Ave., in Brea. Working Wardrobes offers business clothing free to people who need appropriate clothing for work and especially for those all-important job interviews.
The clothes are in good shape and were donated to Working Wardrobes for its retail shops.
“This location will not include a retail shop,” said Pomush, “Instead will serve solely as a hub for delivering our mission to help people overcome barriers to gainful employment.”
They plan the location, along with the American Job Centers of California and OC Workforce Solutions job centers, to be a one-stop location for community members who need help in seeking employment, such as laid off employees, folks who have been unemployed for an extended period, veterans, people with disabilities, older workers, those who need to complete their high school education and women and men seeking a path to a new career.
All of those people and others can receive no-cost basic career services through the OC Workforce Solution center. Those services include skills assessment, referrals to support services, information on job prospects, free career workshops. Access to onsite computers, Internet, phones and copy and fax machines is always free.
And when the job seekers are ready to land a job, staff at Working Wardrobes has personalized styling appointments for that perfect interview outfit and, I think this is really important, capsule wardrobes.
A capsule wardrobe consists of several days of interchangeable pieces that let the new worker have more than one outfit to wear at the new job. The Working Wardrobe stylists show them how to mix and match the pieces so they get several days of outfits. Has to help the self-esteem.
If you have business clothes you no longer can or want to wear, take them to Kona Cleaners on Rose Drive in Placentia. They clean and deliver them to Working Wardrobes. A win-win for sure.
Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at daxoncomm@gmail.com.