Lawhern a friend of history

"It’s called the landmark, one day it was there and the next day it was demolished.” he said, explaining why the Belmont Historical Society got started.

Since the loss of "The Landmark,” the Belmont Historical Society has helped the city of Belmont create ordinances regarding the preservation of historic buildings in the area. In 1991 the society did a survey of all of the buildings that had been built before 1941 and then designated some as historic local, state or potential federal designations.

One of the big projects the society is working on right now is the preservation of the Emmett house.

"If we can preserve a few buildings like the Emmett House, which we’re working on now, its not so much its going to be a beautiful building today but its also going to be a beautiful building 200 years from now,” Lawhern said. "We want to preserve the building but at the same time maximize the use of it for affordable housing.”

Lawhern was one of the founding members of the Belmont Historical Society, created in the 1987.

"When I got started I was kind of a junior member and now a lot of the older members have passed away and now I find myself being up there as one of the senior members,” Lawhern said.

He loves history but that isn’t his favorite part of working with the Belmont Historical Society.

"I think the part I love most is interacting with different people.” Lawhern said. "And right now my most enjoyable part about it is working with the residents in senior facilities. When I go there my goal is to spark an interest.”

He works part time as manager at Superior Body Shop, and in his spare time creates historic slideshows of Belmont, the Peninsula and the Sierras.

He often visits senior care facilities to show them the 30-minute slide shows.

Now the society’s president, Lawhern has lived in Belmont for 43 years. When he first moved into the community he started to give back. He served 12 years on the Planning Commission and many years with the homeowners association, the PTA and the scouts. He won the Ralston award in 1997 for citizenship for his community contributions. A California native, Lawhern and his wife Toni moved to Belmont to raise their family. He is still dealing with the pain of losing his wife last year, but he has had a lot of family and community support. He has a daughter Toni Lyn, a son Jason and a foster child Dwight.

Lawhern has been a driving force in the community for 40 years. He is as much a part of Belmont’s history as any of the buildings he loves. And his work in the Belmont Historical Society has helped preserve the treasures of Belmont’s past.

The Belmont Historical Society’s History Room is located in Twin Pines Park and is open on the second and fourth Saturday of the month at 1225 Ralston Ave., Belmont, Calif., 94002. The phone number is (650) 593-

4213.