LMML Presentation 2016: Linda's Story

In September of 2016, the Linda Mae Mahon Lema Foundation performed its Inaugural Annual Foundation Play Reading. The Annual Performance is one of the major objectives of the Foundation as part of our overall mission to record and present oral histories of the Greater Elk Grove Area. Performed by alumnae and current students of the Sheldon High School Theater WORKS program, the subject of the 2016 Play Reading was the story of our namesake: Linda Mae Mahon Lema. Chronicling Linda’s life in Elk Grove, the story was presented in a fast-paced, captivating, and sometimes humorous manner that left the audience with a deeper understanding of Linda and her passions for visual and performing arts and the skill of storytelling.

LMML Presentation 2019: Irene B. West Story

In September of 2019, the Linda Mae Mahon Lema Foundation performed its 4th Annual Foundation Play Reading, which was presented during the annual Elk Grove Area History Week. Performed by current students of the Sheldon High School Theater WORKS program, the subject of the Play Reading was the story of Mrs. Irene B. West, who was the first African-American teacher in Elk Grove. A graduate of Fisk University in Tennessee, she came to Sacramento when her husband accepted a job transfer. Mrs. West applied for a teaching position at the Elk Grove Unified School District in 1962, at a time when racial tensions were rising in the south and the civil rights movement was gaining energy nationwide. Her story is an inspiring journey of personal courage, determination, and an overriding passion to teach.

LMML Presentation 2018: The Elk Grove Book Club

In September of 2018, the Linda Mae Mahon Lema Foundation performed its 3rdAnnual Foundation Play Reading, which was presented during the annual Elk Grove Area History Week at the Elk Grove Historical Society’s Plow-to-Plate Dinner. Performed by alumnae and current students of the Sheldon High School Theater WORKS program, the subject of the Play Reading was the story of the Elk Grove Book Club. Established in 1936 by ten Elk Grove women, the Book Club is one of the oldest book clubs in the country. Entering its 83rd year, the Club continues to follow the original charter of reviewing all manner of titles and subjects.

LMML Presentation 2017: The Jackson Family

In September of 2017, the Linda Mae Mahon Lema Foundation performed its 2nd Annual Foundation Play Reading. The Annual Performance is one of the major objectives of the Foundation as part of our overall mission to record and present oral histories of the Greater Elk Grove Area. Performed by alumnae and current students of the Sheldon High School Theater WORKS program, the subject of the 2017 Play Reading was the story of the Jackson Family of the Florin and Elk Grove areas. The story traces the Jackson family roots through several generations from the son born at sea of a sea captain and his wife, the daughter of the shipowner, to early America, to migrating to the Midwest, then venturing further west, by oxen wagon, to South Sacramento County. Here the family settles and prospers. They are credited with the establishment of a church, two one-room schools, a cemetery, and many inventions which were critical to the growth of area agriculture.