One of the people who has been integral to the revitalization of the Los Angeles River is councilman Ed Reyes. He grew up in Glassell/Cypress Park - a very park poor part of the city - and the only place he had to play with his brothers during the summer was a small stretch of "beach" in the Los Angeles River.
Few dared venture into the river, but Ed and his brothers did. That may be the reason why he took it upon himself to make sure the river was part of our public and policy debate.
I set up a time to interview councilman Reyes and I warned Monica - his press deputy - that I wanted Ed to actually get into the river for a video portrait. When Ed showed - he choose the exact spot where he used to play with his brothers! - he was wearing a natty suit, tie and nice shoes. I asked him if there was any way he would go into the water. He thought about for a minute and then asked Monica to go to the nearest fire station to fetch him a pair of boots (size 11).
Here's Ed putting on his boots.
Walking into the river....
And finally, the money shot:
Thanks Councilman Reyes, you made my day and my work worth a thousand headaches!
Leave a comment