Our Town

The Alameda County Sheriff’s Mounted Posse will participate in Tournament of Roses Parade next month.

Sheriff ’s Posse Saddles Up for Rose Parade

By Michael Singer

CASTRO VALLEY FORUM

There are going to be some familiar faces in the 134th Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena next month. The Alameda County Sheriff’s Mounted Posse (ACSMP) has been invited to participate in the annual event on January 2, 2023. Fifteen riders (three men and 12 women) and two assistants walking alongside will be situated in the 19th position in the parade—sandwiched between the Kaiser Permanente fl oat and the Kiwanis International entry. They will be one of 16 equestrian units in the parade, more than 75 entries overall. This will be the fi rst time ACSMP has been represented since the 1950s. “It’s absolutely crazy how this came together,” said Sergeant of parade logistics and Castro Valley resident Barbara Hoffman. “We sent in our application in March, and in August, we got word we were accepted. Now we are on the journey of preparing for the parade. It’s a lot of work to pull this off, but we’re very excited to be representing Alameda County.” The Posse is a volunteer group with 20 members. While most people see them in parades, they also provide mounted crime prevention services both at the Alameda County Fair and the Coliseum in Oakland. The delegation

see POSSE on page 10

Bicycle Do-Gooder Receives Jefferson Award

By Michael Singer

CASTRO VALLEY FORUM

Billy Bradford is the person to see in Castro Valley if you need a bike. His Bad Business Model Bikes has donated about 700 bikes over the years to people. For example, he recently donated 23 kids’ bikes to this year’s Alameda County Fire Department Toy Drive. Last week, Bradford was acknowledged for his philanthropic efforts with a Jefferson Award by KPIX the CBS Television affi liate in San Francisco. The station is a media partner of Multiplying Good, a 50-year-old national public service organization formerly known as the Jefferson Awards Foundation. “I wasn’t expecting this at all. It’s a bit odd to get an award for something you do because you love to help other people,” Bradford told the Forum. “And even though I got the award, I am just the middleman. The bikes are donated to me by giving people, and I just fi x them up and pass them along to other people in need.” Those in need included several cyclists participating in this past year’s AIDS LifeCycle Ride fundraising event from San Francisco to Los Angeles. Most of the bikes are picked up by locals who just need two wheels to get around town. “I enjoy taking a bike that’s thrashed and making it pretty,” Bradford told the KPIX report er. “For me, it’s like restoring a painting. It’s art in motion.” In exchange, Bradford asks that new bike riders pay it forward and do something nice for someone else. Of course, Castro Valley Forum Readers have known about Bradford’s passion for restoring and donating bikes for some time now (check out our article here: https://mycvforum.com/recent-headlines/ two-wheeled-passion). Bradford said he retired this year and now is devoting more time to the bikes and building community through his program. “There’s like this circle of happiness that’s happening. People are happy they’re helping. I’m happy to work on the bikes, and the people that get the bikes are happy,” he told KPIX. “There’s a whole lot of happy in my driveway. And I’m in the middle of it.” Bradford says he’s been invited to the television station’s award ceremony in February along with other local Jefferson Award recipients.

Billy Bradford

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Sheriff ’s Report

COMPILED BY MICHAEL SINGER

Followed With a Knife

Sunday, December 18: at 3:35 p.m., a 31-year-old man from Castro Valley was arrested on suspicion of public intoxication and illegal possession of a 6-inch knife. Deputies responded to a call about a restraining order violation at a house on Leroy Drive near San Miguel Avenue. During questioning, the man smelled of alcohol and was found to have the knife tucked in his belt behind his back. The man was taken into custody.

Verbal Argument

Turns Physical

Sunday, December 18: at 11:55 a.m., a 911 call about a loud and aggressive-sounding argument sent deputies to an apartment on Congress Way near Park Way. There, they arrested a 19-year-old man from Newark on suspicion of assault on a family member and child endangerment. Deputies report that the man was in a verbal argument with the mother of his child when he became physical. The man was taken into custody. The victim was treated at the scene.

Shoplifter had Cocaine and Methamphetamine

Saturday, December 17: at 7:38 p.m., deputies arrested a 32-year-old man with no permanent residence on suspicion of possession of cocaine and methamphetamine drugs. The man was seen leaving a grocery store on Redwood Road and the Boulevard when the store manager called for help. Deputies found the drugs in his pocket and identifi ed that he had a warrant for his arrest. The shoplifting charge was dropped, but the man was taken to Santa Rita Jail.

Spousal Assault

Friday, December 16: at 10:10 a.m., a 42-year-old man from Castro Valley was arrested on suspicion of spousal assault. Deputies responded to an

see REPORT on page 11

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