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The Foundation supports the Meals on Wheels program and other services to benefit needy Village residents. With a bequest made in the memory of Dr. Adelyn Bonin, a village resident, this special program was started over a year ago and is located at Braille Institute which is less than a mile from the Village at 24411 Ridge Route Drive, Suite 110, Laguna Hills, and can be reached at 949-330-5062. Braille Institute’s Laguna Hills Neighborhood Center offers one-on-one low vision consultations, small group classes, and in-home training, all designed to help people with low vision continue to live well. The pilot project proved so successful in helping residents purchase magnifiers, canes, and specialized lighting, the Foundation decided to continue it.  Braille Institute will apply to the Foundation on behalf of residents who are deemed financially needy to help them live independently.  All requests for assistance will be confidential with the identity of recipients shielded.  

In addition, with the bequest funds, the Foundation recently provided additional funding to the Village Library to purchase large print paperback books, another means of helping residents with vision needs, since these books have proved very popular.

It is the goal of the Foundation to continue meeting the needs of residents.  If you are aware of a need in the Village that is not currently being met, please contact the Foundation at foundation@comline.com or 949-268-2246.

Neille Gail Moulton Biography

On March 24, 1999, the City of Laguna Woods was incorporated as Orange County’s 32nd city. In addition to being one of California’s safest cities, Laguna Woods is unique in that the average age of its 16,000 residents is 73.

Laguna Woods, as a community, began in the 1900s when its approximately four square miles of gradual and varying slopes, hills, and low-lying areas were a part of South Orange County’s expansive Moulton Ranch. This ranch was the combination of the former Mexican land grant of 13,316 acres called Rancho Niguel plus several other properties to form 21,723 acres, under the ownership of LF Moulton and Co. In the early years, dry farming and cattle grazing dominated the area with a few scattered ranch dwellings and barns.

In 1962, Ross Cortese, a young and energetic developer whose previous projects included Rossmoor and Leisure World Seal Beach, purchased 3,500 acres of the Moulton Ranch. His goal was to create a second Leisure World community, “to supply the basic needs of life for people aged 52 and older; create a serene atmosphere of beauty; and provide security, recreation, and religious facilities – then leave the living to the individual.” His dream materialized and on September 10, 1964, Leisure World Laguna Hills (now called Laguna Woods Village) received its first 10 residents. Since then, Laguna Woods Village has grown to be one of the world’s premier retirement communities for active adults.

The prospect of forming a city first arose in 1971 and was a lingering issue until 1996 when the potential of a reduction in municipal services provided by the County of Orange and the possibility of a commercial airport at the site of the former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station became very real concerns. Cityhood proponents were successful in gaining the necessary approvals to place the issue of incorporation on the ballot for a special election on March 2, 1999 and on March 24, 1999, Laguna Woods officially became a city.

Today, Laguna Woods is bordered by the cities of Aliso Viejo, Irvine, Laguna Beach, and Laguna Hills, as well as unincorporated County land. In addition to Laguna Woods Village, it includes several senior-oriented residential communities, a number of thriving commercial centers, and a large amount of open space.

Overview:

Timeline for Creation of Laguna Woods

Touching The Past With Street Names

The romance and stories of Laguna Woods are preserved in some very “concrete” ways. A walk or drive along our streets provides courses in the Spanish language, geography and history. You may find yourself amazed, amused, and enriched, whenever you stop and read the sign posts.

A variety of streets refer to Spain’s towns and provinces: Castilla, Cadiz, Aragon, Sevilla, Majorca, Granada, to name a few.

Other streets provide Spanish descriptions of fair or beautiful locations: Via Buena Vista (good view way), Sosiego (calm), Sosiega (nightcap), Monte Hermosa (beautiful mount), Punta Alta (high point), Via Serena (serene way), Via Dicha (happiness way), Jardin (garden), Via Alhambra (Alhambra way), Rayo del Sol (ray of sun), Calzado (footwear), Campo Verde (green field) and Mariposa (butterfly).

Some streets suggest more amusing or curious references: Duenas (chaperones), Calle los Caballeros (street of the knights), Cantante (singer), Via Carrizo (reed way), and Brazo (branch). Other streets have more descriptive names: Calle Iglesia (church street), Calle Azul (blue street), Via del Faro (lighthouse way), Luz del Sol (sunlight), Paseo del Lago (lake promenade), Bahia Blanca (white bay), Via Puerta (gateway), Cabildo (town council), Punta Algarrobo (carob tree point), and Alta Vista (high view).

Spanish ladies’ first names are: Carmenita, Magdalena and Elvira. Mexican place names are: Via Mendoza (Mendoza way) and Calle Sonora (Sonora street).

And then there are those roadways that reflect the stories of this place. One major thoroughfare adopted the name of the principal owner of Rancho Niguel, Lewis Moulton. His ranch covered the area now occupied by Laguna Woods, Laguna Hills, Aliso Viejo and Laguna Niguel. It extended from El Camino Real (now the I-5 freeway) to the Pacific Ocean, covering 21,723 acres of farmland.

Another major street is El Toro, a name applied to this area as early as the 1860s. Some say that the bellows from the herds of cattle that moved around the Serrano home (the owners) caused the ranch hands to refer to the ranch as El Toro (the bull) although its real name was Rancho Cañada de Los Alisos. The Serrano house still stands on a knoll in Heritage Park at 25157 Serrano Road in Lake Forest. It was the arrival of the railway that prompted adoption of the name El Toro in some official way.

When a railway station and a post office were to be built, it was discovered that the designated name, Aliso City, was similar to several other locations. So, to be distinctive and unusual, the settlers asked that the station and town be called El Toro after the common name given to the ranch area. The name stuck until individual areas began incorporating and the voters had to choose names for their new cities. The results were Lake Forest, Laguna Woods and Rancho Santa Margarita.

Lewis Moulton’s two daughters also show up on some street names in their Spanish versions: Charlotte (Avenida de la Carlota) and Louise (Calle de la Luisa). These two Moulton family descendants continue to operate ranches in Northern California. Moulton’s wife, Nellie Gail, also has a nearby street named for her so that these two pioneers may continue to meet each day at that corner.

As we can see, our local street names reflect the historical significance of this area—originally possessed by the King of Spain, then claimed by the Governor of Mexico and finally American pioneers.

Friendship Walk Tree Guide

Serpentine Tree Walk Guide