COLLUM PERFORMS BEFORE HIS IDOLS AT GALA FOR RAY CHARLES.

Byline: SIMONE SCHRAMM Community columnist

Kody Collum, a visually impaired senior at Birmingham High School in Van Nuys, performed at an all-star gala sponsored by the American Foundation for the Junior Blind honoring music legend Ray Charles.

The gala featured poet Maya Angelou, who talked about triumphing over challenges and adversity, and musician-producer Quincy Jones, who presented the honor to Charles.

``Playing in front of Quincy was something that I never dreamed to be possible,'' said Collum, an accomplished blues and jazz guitarist who considers Charles one of his main inspirations.

``Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles have definitely played a huge roll in helping and encouraging me to perform regardless of my disability.''

Collum received his start in music and special academics at Frances Blend Elementary School For the Blind.

Kindergarten students from Calahan Street Elementary School in Northridge dressed as trees, read stories and displayed drawings during a ceremony launching a campus beautification project.

Art Gastelum of Gateway, Science and Engineering, a valley landscaping firm, donated four mature trees to begin building Calahan Grove.

``Eventually our campus will be a beauty spot of Northridge,'' said Principal Liane Jacob said.

The ceremony also marked the beginning of an effort to finance new playground equipment.

One thousand piggy banks were put up for ``adoption'' on Saturday to benefit the West Valley Boys & Girls Club, with Washington Mutual kicking off the event with a grant of $5,000.

Participants will have four weeks to plump up their pigs with loose change, dollar bills and checks. Once the pigs are ready, the fund-raiser will end with a festive ``Pig Round-up'' scheduled for early April.

For information or to participate, call [phone].

Al and Sharon Rhodes-Wickett received the Care Partners Award from the Alzheimer's Association at the organization's annual fund-raiser.

The couple belongs to the association's Memory Club, which is based at California State University, Northridge.

Proceeds from the benefit will help the Alzheimer's Association of Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties.

Five local students were among 50 Southern California recipients of the Ronald McDonald House Charities/African American Future Achievers scholarship.

Each student will receive $1,000 to offset expenses at the college or university attended.

The recipients are:

Hiwot Berhe of North Hollywood, ChiQuita Clark of Palmdale, Sade Malloy of Calabasas, Ashley Prosper of Glendale and Raymond Weaver of Ventura.

Lisa Wirsing of Granada Hills has been accepted into The American Musical and Dramatic Academy's 2003-04 performing arts program.

This year's students auditioned in 25 U.S. cities and four cities in Canada.