The Committee of 100 - Balboa Park San Diego

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The Committee of 100 - Balboa Park San Diego

The Balboa Park Committee of 100 is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Our charitable tax identification number is 95-8187105

09/11/2026

Mission Beach in 1913: after the success of Coronado, John D. Spreckels built another seaside attraction at San Diego's Mission Beach, including the Plunge, the Giant Dipper rollercoaster and a dance hall. This is one of many stories about John Spreckels (1854-1926) shared by C-100's Ross Porter during his presentation at the Bankers Hill Community Group in July.

09/01/2026

Work has begun on replacing the roof of the Air & Space Museum as well as replacement of fluorescent lights behind the columns, repair of cracks in the facade and new access ladders to the roof.

Designed by industrial architect Walter Teague for the Ford Motor Co., the $2 million building showed off Ford cars at the California Pacific International Exposition in 1935. In the second year, it became the Palace of Transportation. The 251st Coast Artillery trained there in 1940, and when the U.S. entered World War II, it became a vocational school for aircraft employees. It was returned to the city in 1956 and used as storage until the Air & Space Museum opened there in 1980.

Founded in 1961, the museum was housed in the Electric Building until an arson fire destroyed the building and the museum's collections in 1978. The Casa de Balboa was built on that site in 1983. This project is costing about $7.7 million.

08/27/2026

Afrotruko concert at Twilight in the Park Concert at Spreckels Organ Pavilion, August 20th, 2026. The last Twilight concert will be at 6:30 p.m. on August 27th (TODAY!!)

08/18/2026

We stop for Packards! You never know what toy you may see on one of my Balboa Park walking tours!

Join Ross this Friday, August 21st at 11 a.m., beginning at the Balboa Park Visitors Center (1549 El Prado)

No RSVP required! We hope to see you there!

08/12/2026

C100 Past President Roger Showley with José Aroeste, president of the La Jolla Shores Sunrise Rotary Club, at a recent presentation to his club on the wins in Balboa Park's improvement, including the recreation of ornamentation in permanent materials on the Municipal Gymnasium. The 1935-36 original, made from fiberboard, was removed at the conclusion of the California Pacific International Exposition.

08/07/2026

Internationally recognized artist Bestabee Romero brings Green Carpet: The 12th Player to San Diego on Saturday, August 8th at 4:30 pm. Join us for an evening of art, food, soccer, and connection at the Plaza de Panama!

07/28/2026

Women in Balboa Park, Week 13

Meet Gertrude Gilbert!

As chair of the Music Committee for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition, Gilbert brought internationally recognized concert artists to Balboa Park.

In the 1920s, she and her sister, Bess Gilbert, became leading advocates for preserving the Exposition's Spanish Colonial Revival buildings. Opposing plans to demolish them, Gertrude famously compared the effort to "letting a loved one die because it wasn't convenient to raise money to pay the surgeon."

Her dedication helped preserve the historic character of Balboa Park for future generations.

07/21/2026

Women in Balboa Park, Week 12

Meet Darlene Marcos Shiley.

A philanthropist and longtime supporter of the arts, Shiley helped shape the future of the Old Globe through a $20 million gift in 2006, which led to the naming of the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage.

She is also the current major underwriter of the Shiley Graduate Theatre Program, a partnership between the Old Globe and the University of San Diego.

In addition to her support of Balboa Park institutions, Shiley has contributed extensively to organizations throughout San Diego, including USD and UC San Diego.

07/16/2026

San Diego celebrates its birthday on July 16, the anniversary of Junipero Serra's dedication mass for the Mission San Diego de Alcala in 1769. At the time, this marked the "launch" of Spain's project to establish a chain of 21 missions in "Alta California" from San Diego to San Francisco.

07/07/2026

Women in Balboa Park, Week 11

Meet Belle Baranceanu (1902–1988)

A Guggenheim Fellow and Chicago-trained WPA muralist, Baranceanu became San Diego’s premier muralist of the Depression era.

Her mural, The Progress of Man (1935), still hangs in the Balboa Park Club. During a visit to the 1935 California Pacific International Exposition, Eleanor Roosevelt called it “one of the best murals she had ever seen.”

Baranceanu also created WPA murals for Roosevelt Junior High School, preserved at the San Diego History Center, and the La Jolla Post Office. In 1950, she served as president of the San Diego Artists Guild and taught generations of local artists.

Follow along as we continue sharing the women who shaped Balboa Park.

Address

San Diego, CA

Telephone

+18587890986

Website

http://balboaparkcommitteeof100.net/, https://pancalarchive.org/, https://cparchive.org/

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