If Ann Kinzle sounds a bit like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, who kept repeating, “There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home,” it’s probably because Ann called Reseda home for more than 50 years and worked tirelessly on its behalf for most of her life.
“I remember a booming Reseda from my childhood and I’m active now because I just love the area and want to see it come back even better than it was,” Ann said in a 2008 interview.

Ann served as chair of CRA/LA’s Community Advisory Committee (CAC), which provides input and feedback from stakeholders on redevelopment projects in the West Valley. Appointed to the committee by then-councilmember Laura Chick, Ann worked closely with CRA/LA on projects such as the West Valley Façade Improvement Grant Program, the Reseda Theatre, the Reseda Business Improvement District and the Reseda Master Plan.

Ann was active in many other community organizations as well. In 1980 she began volunteering with the West Valley Los Angeles Police Department as a Crime Prevention Specialist, a program created to train civilians to lead neighborhood watch meetings. After 13 years of service, she was honored by the Police Commission for her work.

Ann also worked with the Reseda Chamber of Commerce, becoming executive director in 1984. She focused on bringing more businesses into the chamber and encouraging them to be more active in the community. Each year, she organized the chamber’s dinner to honor newly elected officers and welcome new businesses to the chamber.

Ann also helped create the Firefighter and Police Officer of the Year luncheon, an annual event honoring a local public safety officer. To thank her, Fire Station 73 on Reseda Boulevard presented her with the front door of the old station, which was built the year she was born. Ann proudly hung the door on her front patio wall, which became a great conversation piece for visitors. To complement the door, she placed two decorative Dalmatian dogs on either side.

“That gift meant so much to me,” Ann said in an interview. “I will always remember their kind gesture.”

When Ann was not working with police and fire officers, she was helping young people. She sat on the board of directors of KYDS (Keep Youth Doing Something) and West Valley Pals, non-profit organizations that provide young people with after school programs to keep them out of gangs and off the streets. Ann also sat on the boards of the San Fernando Valley Coalition against Gangs and a Los Angeles Police Department group for ending gang violence.

Originally from Chicago, Ann came to Reseda after her mom fell in love with the area during a visit and moved the family here. Ann lived, worked, married and raised four children in the area.

Ann passed away last month and will be deeply missed by the many people whose lives she touched.