View from Mt. Tam

We have two important words to greet our core circulation audience—Marin County homeowners—with this issue: YES and FREE.

YES. That’s what we need you to say if you want to keep receiving Marin for FREE. Because of the rising costs of delivering Marin for FREE (did we already mention that?) to your home, we must change our postal classification. In order to do that, we need you—our readers—to tell us you want to continue having Marin mailed to you.

Here are two simple ways you can JUST SAY YES: Go to marinmagazine.com/yes and fill out an online form, or fill out and mail in the postage-paid card wrapped around this month’s cover. That’s it. No hassle. No cost. Easy.

We love producing Marin Magazine for you each month, and we know you love the stories and photographs about Marin life, people and issues because so many of you are kind enough to tell us. So, please, help us continue bringing Marin to you for FREE (there’s that word again). JUST SAY YES! Fill out the card or the online form. And for readers outside of Marin Couny, we are continuing our newsstand distribution and subscription programs.

In this issue (behind the cover by Marin artist Kay Carlson), education is a theme. Editor-at-large Tim Porter explains the connection between the quality of the three R’s in our public schools and the cost of the fourth R—real estate. Samantha Bronson has two stories—one on Kiddo!, the Mill Valley school arts program foundation, and another about how to get kids ready to apply to college. And Kirk Citron links then and now with the story of a 30-year Novato’s San Marin High School reunion.

Other features include a look by P. J. Bremier at the art (and business) of staging homes for sale. In Journey we ride the rails in western Canada.

Erika Lenkert finds lunch well worth the excursion to the Olema Inn; Somer Flaherty details trends in summer beachwear; Toni Weingarten shows use how to unwind in a labyrinth; we profile Cartelligent, a unique Sausalito car broker; and in Microclimate we wander about the Dominican neighborhood of San Rafael.

As always, our wish is for your good reading. Enjoy Marin Magazine, as we continue to celebrate this extraordinary place!

Lisa Shanower, Publisher
Nikki Wood, Editorial Director
Jim Wood, Executive Editor