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Our Other Editions Serve: East Sacramento • Land Park/Grid • Arden/Carmichael

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DOTTIE MARIE Dottie Marie is a Sacramento elementary school teacher and artist. Her work ranges from realistic to abstract, but always focuses on capturing vibrant colors found in the natural world. Shown: “Chrysanthemum, Cheerfulness in Adversity,” acrylic on canvas, 30 inches by 30 inches. Photo reference is from thegardenhelper.com. This piece is for sale at $2,000. Contact the artist about this and other pieces via Instagram: @dotdotdottie_art.

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SEPTEMBER 2020 VOL. 7 • ISSUE 8 6 8 10 12 18 20 22 24 26 30 31 32 34 35 36 38 40 42

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School is Essential

EVIDENCE SHOWS KIDS NEED CLASSROOOMS

ince I have no school-age children or grandchildren, I’ve watched the debate over school openings from afar. But every American has a stake in the discussion over how, when and if to bring kids back to school. Pandemicdriven closures last spring affected 62 million pre-primary, primary and secondary school students, along with parents and teachers. Sadly, the debate is taking place at a divisive time—the 2020 presidential election, as our country experiences unprecedented civil and economic

CH By Cecily Hastings Publisher’s Desk

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unrest and a rise in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths. The debate about reopening classrooms peaked when an alliance of teacher unions and progressive groups sponsored what they called the National Day of Resistance in early August. With mock coffins, they protested a return to teaching would “kill them.” Teacher groups have been busy listing demands before they return to classrooms. These include canceling rents and mortgages, a freeze on evictions and foreclosures, and a moratorium on standardized testing. They favor abolishing charter schools and voucher programs. They insist if public schools do not open this fall, private schools must likewise remain closed. Completely unrelated to coronavirus, they demand Medicare for All and police defunding. Many unions threaten to strike if asked to return to work. One rare blessing of the pandemic has been our country’s outpouring of support for “essential” workers. These include doctors, nurses, other

health care workers, first responders, law enforcement (at least until George Floyd’s death), grocery clerks, truck drivers, postal workers, sanitation workers, utility workers and more. Millions of Americans courageously show up every day, interacting with other Americans. Why can’t teachers? It seems to me they are just as “essential.” Clearly, we must take seriously the risk teachers and school staff could transmit the virus to each other—as we would in any other workplace. Older teachers and those with underlying health conditions should remain home and receive paid medical leave. The good news is: The accumulating scientific evidence and real-world experience is reasonably consistent. In the midst of uncertainty and disagreement regarding COVID-19, there exists a common refrain among the scientific community. Doctors and pediatricians agree—we’ve got to open schools. Evidence suggests the risk of kids getting sick from virus is less than the harm done by keeping children out of

school. According to a report in the New England Journal of Medicine, “Children living in poverty, children of color, English language learners, children with diagnosed disabilities, and young children face especially severe losses.” The head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pushed for schools to reopen in the fall, saying it’s in the “public health interest” to do so. “I don’t think I can emphasize it enough, as the director for the Centers for Disease Control, the leading public health agency in the world: It is in the public health interest that these K-12 students get the schools back open for face-to-face learning,” Dr. Robert Redfield told Congress. The CDC reported 45 American children under age 15 have died of COVID-19 since February. The American Academy of Pediatrics summarized the case for reopening: “The importance of in-person learning is well-documented, and there is already evidence of the negative impacts on children because of school closures in the spring of 2020. Lengthy time away

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from school and associated interruption of supportive services often results in social isolation, making it difficult for schools to identify and address important learning deficits as well as child and adolescent physical or sexual abuse, substance use, depression and suicidal ideation. This, in turn, places children and adolescents at considerable risk of morbidity and, in some cases, mortality.” Food insecurity among students is another big issue. The vast majority of schools participate in the National School Lunch Program, providing daily meals to more than 30 million children. Many families depend on schools for student health services. Of the 25 countries that either never closed schools or already reopened classrooms, there appears to be very few, if any, reports of virus transmission by a child. We can learn a great deal from the experiences of other industrialized countries. Iceland, Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Austria, Germany, Finland, France and Sweden reopened schools in April and May. Their experiences have been largely positive with safety protocols in place. The outcomes have been as positive in countries where the pandemic has

been as deadly as in the U.S. and countries where it has not. Every European country that reopened in spring plans to start the new school year on time. Our state can learn a great deal from the successful variety of global school modifications by age groups. Dr. Scott Gottlieb of the American Enterprise Institute and former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration wrote recently, “Teachers and students can limit spread by wearing masks. Weather permitting, classes can meet outdoors, where the risk of transmission is lower. Children should be kept in pods. Intermingling among groups should be limited to prevent one instance of the virus from infecting a large group. Social distancing should be maintained as much as possible.” It’s not just children who are affected by school closures. When closures took place this spring, millions of working parents were impacted. If their jobs could be performed at home, they were lucky. But they still had to juggle work—while helping their children learn remotely. Parents with essential jobs had to find childcare. Single parents suffered most. Many were forced to stop working to care for their children, often with devastating

financial consequences. A report by Goldman Sachs found that since May, 7 million people a week are unable to work because of caring for children. More than 24 million had to stop working to care for children. Our own Inside staff includes three mothers with school-age children. They were lucky because we have always offered an option to work remotely. But they all reported challenges. And they all know families that have been hurt by school closures. The political right has favored school reopening, while the left has favored a continuation of distance learning. But that seemed to shift in August as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer concluded, “If we don’t open up the schools, you’re going to hurt the economy significantly.” In July, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an order to close almost all public and private campuses indefinitely and focus on remote learning. He hinted at a complex waiver system that might allow some to physically reopen. At this writing there have been zero COVID-19 deaths of children under 18 in California. At the same time, 13,088 children have died of other causes.

Our governor appears to have given union officials veto power over the opening of schools, discounting the wishes of some teachers themselves. Polls show teachers are split 50-50 on reopening classrooms. Several teachers I know consider themselves essential. They favor a resumption of in-person education. It’s time to move beyond partisan politics. The social and educational costs of keeping our state’s children out of the classroom are enormous. Lost learning can translate into fewer opportunities and lower incomes later in life. Let’s hope Gov. Newsom seriously considers the evidence to support reopening.

HELP SUPPORT INSIDE Please sign up for our Inside Sacramento weekly newsletter with even more local news than we deliver in print. And consider an Inside membership, staring at $19.95 a year. Visit insidesacramento.com/shop. And TAKE THE 100% LOCAL PLEDGE! Cecily Hastings can be reached at publisher@insidesacramento.com. Previous columns can be read and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento. com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram: @insidesacramento.com. n

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Sara Ruiz

Distant Lessons HOW SCHOOLS MEET COVID CHALLENGE

ot August nights morph into cooler September evenings. But lately, residents wrangle with two hot topics—schools reopening and

By Corky Mau Pocket Life

POC SEP n 20

mail delivery problems. Let’s take a look. State coronavirus mandates mean all public and private schools in Pocket and Greenhaven will start the 2020-21 school year with distance learning. Multiple educational and logistical challenges face our teachers. Schools are using platforms such as Google Classroom, Zoom, Seesaw and Clever to conduct lessons. Teachers accustomed to in-person instruction find they need lots of training. It takes time to create internet-based lesson plans, especially

if you’re not familiar with online applications. Some younger educators such as my neighbor Sara Ruiz are more tech-savvy. Ruiz teaches second grade at Delta Elementary Charter School. She spent the summer preparing lesson plans and attending training sessions. “Last spring, distance learning was a real learning experience,” she says. Ruiz hopes distance learning will go more smoothly this time. She will conduct online lessons from her classroom, doing weekly virtual check-ins with each student. “I want

my students to know we are still one classroom family, regardless if they’re alone at home or together at school,” she says. Matsuyama Elementary School principal Judy Farina is preparing for in-person instruction when protocols allow it. “We’re planning on a hybrid model,” she says. “Small groups of students will meet on campus for four days, with one day of online instruction. During that home instruction day, the campus will be deep-cleaned.” Classrooms will be reconfigured. Student desks will be placed 6 feet apart and students will face forward. Students won’t share any materials. There will be frequent hand washing. Every student will have hand sanitizer. For all families with schoolchildren, resident Cathy Fagunes Palmer offers this advice: “Please offer grace to your child’s teacher and other school personnel during this time. They love your kids and will be doing their absolute best to educate your child.”

SPECIAL CLASSROOM Heidi Sanchez has been a special education teacher for more than 20 years. She works at Caroline Wenzel Elementary School. Her students are at the fourth- to sixth-grade age level with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities. Most students have physical impairments and intellectual delays. Sanchez depends on her instructional aides and her “classroom grandma”— retired teacher Jean Briggs. When schools closed in March, Sanchez scrambled to create custom binders for each family. Her students were given computers for distance learning. However, she says, “All my students have fine motor skills challenges. Typing and performing multi-step processes to access online educational programs on a computer is just too hard for them.”

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Sanchez can use help to acquire laptops, headphones, printers, a classroom projector and document readers for students. If you’re interested in helping, contact her at heidiisanchez@scusd.edu.

LATE MAIL Is your mail delivered at 9 p.m. instead of 9 a.m.? Do you go days without mail service? It’s not your imagination, mail carriers tell me. They have asked that I not use their names. The problems result from three key issues, they say. First, the coronavirus has slowed the process. Second, new Postmaster General Louis DeJoy ordered cost-cutting measures in July that slowed delivery. Third, parcels moving through the main distribution center in West Sacramento have almost tripled in volume because more people are ordering goods online. Workers are calling in sick due to the coronavirus, so there are fewer people to handle the volume. Almost every day, route deliveries have to be adjusted and staff shifted to provide coverage. One carrier says, “Our trucks are filled with more parcels than during the Christmas holidays. The entire system has been overwhelmed since June.” They believe

the situation will get worse when election materials are added. In response, workday hours are being tinkered with. For a while, carriers were told to start their routes later in the morning to give sorters more time. As a result, some were on the streets until 9:30 p.m. At one point, carriers were told to get off the streets by 8 p.m. Undelivered mail was returned to the station to be delivered another day. “We’re exhausted, working 10 to 12 hours a day, sometimes seven days a week,” one carrier says. “After we finish our own routes, some of us help other carriers. We worry about getting sick because we’re exposed to lots of people.” Postal workers are striving to keep our lives as normal as possible. Cut them some slack. Show them some love. Know they are doing their best to deliver your mail. Corky Mau can be reached at corky. sue50@gmail.com. Submissions are due six weeks prior to the publication month. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento. com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

Heidi Sanchez with student Kamarion Burns Photo by Aniko Kiezel

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STRONG

MAYOR

STEINBERG’S CAMPAIGN MUST ANSWER ONE QUESTION: WHY?

o introduce his strong mayor proposal to voters, Darrell Steinberg needed to answer a simple question: Why? Voters rejected strong mayor in 2014. There was no call to resurrect the idea in 2020 amid a pandemic and social unrest. Changing the city charter is complex. The process demands comprehensive public debate and a vote of the people. Steinberg had time for just two City Council meetings before the door closed on Nov. 3 ballot initiatives. As the mayor pushed forward, the question remained: Why? To explain his motivation, Steinberg settled on George Floyd, the African American man killed by Minneapolis police in May. “It was around that period of time I really began thinking about it,” Steinberg says. Steinberg believes many residents hold him responsible for the social unrest in Sacramento after Floyd’s death. If he is being held accountable,

RG By R.E. Graswich

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he should have real power, not the minimal authority granted mayors under the city’s 1921 charter, Steinberg reasons. While he may be sincere in appropriating Floyd as motivation for political change, Steinberg was thinking about strong mayor long before the murder in Minneapolis. In May 2019, he ordered a poll to test support for an executive mayor governing system. The results were dismal. Steinberg backed away. Regardless, voters now face the fifth iteration of an idea that won’t go away. I worked on three strong mayor proposals as special assistant to Mayor Kevin Johnson, who spent six years trying to become strong mayor. During my time at City Hall, the best advice we received from actual strong mayors was to let the proposal take effect with the next mayor, thus removing any personal interests. Johnson ignored the advice. So has Steinberg. During his first six years in office, Johnson went to extreme lengths to sell strong mayor. He met with hundreds of community members. He held town halls and office hours. He believed if people could hear his ideas, they would see the wisdom of strong mayor. Steinberg has a much tighter deadline and far fewer opportunities. The City Council placed Steinberg’s

measure on the ballot Aug. 4, just two months before voters begin casting ballots. Unlike Johnson, Steinberg is trying to link strong mayor to concepts designed to appeal to progressive voters. The strong mayor package includes requirements for equity and gender reviews of ordinances. Commissions for ethics and fair housing would be created. Forty million dollars would be taken from the budget annually for the undefined concepts of “inclusive economic development” and youth. Steinberg says strong mayor is intended to help distressed neighborhoods. Comfortable neighborhoods don’t need strong mayor, he says. The current city charter is focused on operational needs, not human needs, he suggests. Under his campaign strategy, Steinberg hopes more affluent voters will agree to deliver more money to neglected neighborhoods. The strong mayor will act as a catalyst for this new form of civic equity. Unfortunately for Steinberg, the City Council members who represent the city’s historically neglected neighborhoods oppose strong mayor. Larry Carr of Meadowview and Allen Warren of Del Paso Heights voted against placing Steinberg’s initiative on the ballot. They criticized the

mayor’s timing and goals. Incoming member Katie Valenzuela, who will be the council’s youngest and most progressive member, also opposes strong mayor. As medium-sized cities go, Sacramento is often cited as a best-practice example. The budget is balanced. Solid managers guide municipal departments. The City Council functions with consistency and stability. There are big problems—the pandemic has destroyed large chunks of the economy, homelessness is rampant and city pension plans are unfunded. But moving to strong mayor won’t solve those problems. California has 468 cities with governing systems similar to Sacramento. Five have strong mayor—Los Angeles, Oakland, San Francisco, San Diego and Fresno. Strong mayors have not spared those cities from malfunction and corruption. Once again, Sacramento voters will decide if they want to join the lineup. R.E. Graswich can be reached at regraswich@icloud.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

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STRONG MAYOR: WHAT IT WOULD DO

wo words sum up Darrell Steinberg’s ambition: strong mayor. To accomplish his goal of becoming Sacramento’s first executive mayor, Steinberg wants voters to approve the most complex rewrite of the City Charter in 99 years. The Sacramento Mayoral Accountability and Community Equity Act of 2020 does much more than make Steinberg the city’s president and CEO. In language spread across 22 pages, the proposal seeks to reconfigure city government. Here are highlights of the initiative, which appears on the Nov. 3 ballot: • Mayor is accountable to public but doesn’t have to attend City Council meetings. • Mayor approves or vetoes council actions. Council can override veto. • Mayor hires city manager with council approval. • Mayor produces annual budget. Council approves budget. Mayor can veto changes made by council. Council can override veto. • Budget to include $40 million for “inclusive economic development” and youth. • New City Council committee evaluates decisions for equity. City auditor reviews equity policies. • Limits mayor to two four-year terms (Steinberg is already in second term, but would start fresh). • Creates new ninth City Council district in 2022. • Establishes ethics commission to review complaints against city officials. • Establishes fair housing and human rights commission to review policies. • Takes effect immediately. • Voters can reconsider strong mayor in 2030 or sooner with City Council approval. — R.E. Graswich

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Numan Begovic

Online Art

SAC OPEN STUD DIOS GOES VIR RTU UALL TH HIS YEAR R

Joseph and Paula Bellacera

his year’s Sac Open Studios—the annual celebration of more than 100 local artists hosted by Verge Center for the Arts—will go virtual due to COVID-19. Join Verge online for the Sac Open Studios Virtual Launch Party on Thursday, Sept. 10, followed by two weekends—Sept. 12–13 and Sept. 19–20—of virtual events featuring webinars, live-streamed tours, demonstrations, talks, panel discussions and workshops. A preview exhibition of selected pieces will be held Sept. 10–30 at Verge. Due to this year’s online format, participating artists don’t need a studio—since no one will be visiting in person! Verge is providing technical training and support to all artists. A new online Sac Open Studios Artist Directory will supplement the printed Sac Open Studios Guide, a free fullcolor magazine that includes artwork and contact information for all participating artists. Also included are event listings, artist profiles and ads to help tour-goers plan their experience. “We hope these changes will ensure our ability to present the program and continue to serve artists, advertisers, sponsors, community partners and tour-goers during these uncertain times,” Verge reports. “This was not an easy decision to make, and the health and safety of our community is our top priority.” For more information, visit vergeart. com/open-studios/attend-sac-openstudios.

GO FUND CREST THEATRE Nearly 900 donors have helped the iconic Crest Theatre raise more than $35,000 on GoFundMe for muchneeded repairs and maintenance following vandalism in July. With an initial goal of $20,000, Crest management explains on the GoFundMe page that the repairs would have been easier to complete if they were open to the public and making money, but COVID-19 restrictions have made it difficult.

JL Ed Forrest By Jessica Laskey Out & About

More than 100 artists will participate in this year’s virtual Sac Open Studios.

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“These funds will help us make sure that when the time comes, whether this fall, or into 2021, we will be able to reopen and give Sacramento the great entertainment venue it deserves,” general manager Robert Alvis says. “If we make it through this, it will be because of you.” To donate, search Help The Crest Sacramento on gofundme.com.

HEROES HELPING HEROES Taggart Neal, local Navy veteran and CEO of TAGCarts, has invented HEROCart, the first-ever single-use patient bedside medical cart to hold personal protective equipment for nurses on the frontlines. The recyclable, pop-up, multi-drawer bedside carts are made of corrugated cardboard, and assembled and shipped by PRIDE Industries, which employs veterans and people with disabilities. “We responded to Gov. Newsom’s call for California’s health care companies to innovate in the face of COVID-19,” Neal says. “I knew our young Sacramento company, which focuses on values of sustainability and social responsibility, could be of service in a meaningful way.” The Sacramento HEROCart Project started in mid-April and has been supported by several local organizations, including PRIDE and the Sacramento Kings Foundation, which has set up an online donation fund to offset the cost of the carts. Hundreds of HEROCarts have already been sent to the field hospital at Sleep Train Arena, as well as Los Angeles County and the Navajo Nation.

COVID-19 JOB HELPLINE For those whose jobs have been affected by the pandemic, the city of Sacramento, Sacramento Central Labor Council and Center for Workers’ Rights recently established the Coronavirus Job Protection Helpline at (916) 9051625. Call the hotline for questions related to unemployment, paid family leave, disability insurance, paid sick leave, workers’ compensation and other workplace issues. The helpline, which is funded by the CARES Act, is available to all workers in the Sacramento region.

SLICE OF CALIFORNIA Landscape painter Timothy Mulligan’s solo show “A Slice of California” will be on display Sept. 5

through Oct. 1 at Elliott Fouts Gallery at 1831 P St. The show will feature paintings of Lake Tahoe, Sacramento and San Francisco. For more information, visit efgallery.com.

LAUGH OUTSIDE Though comedy clubs are closed, Laughs Unlimited co-owner Jennifer Canfield has found a way to keep the laughter alive. “Inside Jokes Outside Laughs” is an outdoor comedy experience every Thursday through Saturday in Old Sacramento. Audience members watch the show with headphones—reminiscent of a silent disco—to decrease distractions from being outside, while remaining socially distant under the stars. “Laughs Unlimited has been bringing (the healing power of laughter) to Sacramento for 40 years,” Canfield says. The club celebrated its 40th anniversary Aug. 6. “I wanted to find a way to continue to do so safely and still have fun!” For ticket information, visit laughsunlimited.com.

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CHALK IT UP! The 30th annual Chalk It Up! festival will take a different form this year due to COVID-19 restrictions. In lieu of the annual three-day event at Fremont Park, Chalk It Up! Around Town!, set for Labor Day weekend Sept. 5–7, will dispatch volunteer artists to locations throughout the region. Sponsored chalk artists will be matched with sponsors to create chalk art squares in front of businesses, residences and parks. Independent chalk artists will participate from their homes and neighborhoods on driveways and sidewalks. Sacramento musicians also will live stream from their quarantine locations via the event website.

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Nancy Pearl—best-selling author, literary critic, American librarian and former executive director of the

Washington Center for the Book—will speak virtually Tuesday, Sept. 22, as part of the Sacramento Public Library’s Authors Uncovered series. During the one-hour event, hosted by CapRadio’s Donna Apidone, Pearl will discuss her work and latest release “The Writer’s Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives.” To register and purchase a signed copy of the book, visit saclibrary. org/event/special-events/authorsuncovered.

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Chalk It Up! Around Town! will be held Labor Day weekend.

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River Walk Trail in West Sacramento offers views of Sacramento skyline. Chalk It Up! has supported K-12 classrooms and youth art programs throughout the Sacramento region through its youth grant program since 1994. To participate, sponsor or donate, or for an interactive map, visit chalkitup.org.

SCENIC WALKS Need some fresh air and new scenery? Try out these scenic walks, both local and slightly farther afield to stretch your legs and enjoy the beauty of our region. In Sacramento, the levee-top River Walk Trail in West Sacramento offers great views of the Sacramento skyline and Old Sacramento. Across the way, the Riverfront Promenade connects Old Sacramento with the Sacramento River Bike Trail.

The American River Parkway, stretching from Old Sacramento to Folsom, offers plenty of sightseeing, especially near Guy West Bridge in East Sacramento and Sunrise Recreation Area, which has views of the Fair Oaks bluffs. Up for a drive? The Miners Ravine Trail in Roseville runs from downtown Roseville to Sierra College Boulevard and offers views of oak groves and Native American grinding stones. Stone Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in Elk Grove provides miles of walking trails through protected wetlands—home to thousands of migratory birds. Auburn’s Hidden Falls Regional Park offers more than 30 miles of trails through open grasslands, plus observation decks for views of Sacramento Valley and Sutter Buttes. The UC Davis Arboretum Trail boasts three interconnected loops through a stunning collection of trees and plants from around the world.

LANGUAGE SCHOLARSHIP

Nicholas Tidwell receives scholarship to study Indonesian language.

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Nicholas Alexander Tidwell, a senior at C.K. McClatchy High School, has been awarded a National Security Language Initiative for Youth Virtual Summer Intensive scholarship to study the Indonesian language for five weeks. A program of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the NSLI-Y scholarship provides opportunities for American youth to develop linguistic skills and cultural knowledge to communicate internationally. Due to COVID-19, this summer’s intensive is an online alternative to the usual overseas immersion program.

Cal Expo’s Sept. 11 memorial opens for annual ceremony. “Nick has always had an interest in studying the Southeast Asian region in his spare time because he is halfFilipino through me,” says his mother, Sylvia Isaac Tidwell. “One of Nick’s favorite parts of the program is learning about the similarities and differences between Bahasa Indonesia and various Philippine languages. Every night after class, he comes to me and we compare the words he learned. He is also learning to cook Indonesian dishes and make Indonesian crafts.” Tidwell was selected from 3,000 applicants from across the country and is one of 500 students studying Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Indonesian, Korean, Persian, Russian and Turkish as part of the virtual exchange that connects participants with teachers, international peers, cultural organizations and communities where the target language is spoken. For more information, visit nsliforyouth.org.

9/11 MEMORIAL The Cal Expo September 11 Memorial Plaza will be open to the public on Friday, Sept. 11, for its annual Memorial Ceremony. Construction of the memorial—which includes a fountain inscribed with

the names of the victims—began a year after the attack, when Cal Expo board member Larry Davis personally acquired and donated 125,000 pounds of wreckage from the World Trade Centers. The exhibit is open to the public Sept. 11 each year during the California State Fair and upon request. The Memorial Ceremony will be hosted by Brotherhood American Combat Veterans and California Mexican American Veterans Memorial, Inc. Admission and parking are free. For more information, visit calexpostatefair. com/attractions/september-11memorial-plaza.

STUDENT LEADERS Four local high school students have been selected for paid summer internships through the Bank of America Student Leaders program in partnership with Boys and Girls Club of Greater Sacramento. The students are Tyus Carey of Foothill High School, Emelia-Rose Engel of McClatchy High School, Alaza Flores of Sacramento High School and Julia Zara of St. Francis Catholic High School. They will gain experience in leadership, civic engagement and

workforce skills-building through virtual sessions with mentors and 300 other Student Leaders across the country. They also will each receive a $5,000 stipend. “Creating opportunities for our youth to gain skills and build a network is a powerful investment in the future of our community,” says Matt McCormack, Sacramento market president for Bank of America. For more information, visit bankofamerica.com/studentleaders.

SAC LOVE NOTES As local businesses struggle to stay afloat, our support is needed more than ever through curbside pick-up, takeout, delivery and online gift cards. Let these businesses know you appreciate them by tagging them on social media in a positive note with hashtag #SacLoveNotes as part of the Downtown Sacramento Partnership’s #SacLoveNotes campaign. Download or print one of the premade notes at downtownsac.org or create your own message and snap, tag and share with your favorite Downtown businesses.

PLAY SUMMIT The year’s Sacramento Play Summit, presented by Fairytale Town and Sacramento Public Library, will be held online Saturday, Sept. 12, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The eighth annual event highlights the importance of play in early childhood development with keynote speakers Dr. Olivia Kasirye, Sacramento County’s public health officer, and Dr. Stuart Brown, author, medical administrator, producer and scientific consultant.

Registration is $25 per person. For more information, visit fairytaletown. org/play-summit.

RIVER/CITY ART Archival Gallery in East Sacramento will present the group show RIVER/ CITY and new works by Jonathan Lowe on the front wall Sept. 3 through Oct. 3. RIVER/CITY is a celebration of the unique landscapes, cities and architecture of Northern California in all mediums with featured artists Richard Stein, Miles Hermann, Janet Weidel, Marie Gonzales, Stephanie Taylor, Jadelle Andrews, Jill Estroff and more, as well as works by Jian Wang and the late Laureen Landau. There will be no Second Saturday reception, but visitors are welcome during normal business hours with no appointment needed. Face masks must be worn at all times. For more information, visit archivalgallery.com.

RESEARCH EXCELLENCE Sacramento State nursing professor Dina Baker was recently awarded the 2020 Award for Research Excellence from the Association of Professionals in Disease Control for her work as the lead researcher on a nationally recognized study that identified poor oral hygiene as a leading cause of life-threatening pneumonia in hospital patients. In 2012, Baker teamed up with Barbara Quinn, a clinical nurse specialist at Sutter General Hospital, to launch the study that ultimately discovered the connection. As a result, an increasing number of hospitals are implementing oral-care improvements with the help of new protocols and an oral hygiene toolkit designed by Baker.

“Feather River at Tyndall Landing” by Richard Stein is part of exhibit at Archival Gallery.

SIERRA 2 TAI CHI Tai Chi for Arthritis and Falls Prevention is now offered on the front lawn of Sierra 2 Center in Curtis Park every Monday at 9 a.m.

Developed by a team of medical and Tai Chi experts led by Dr. Paul Lam, the program is endorsed by the U.S. Arthritis Foundation and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as a proven safe and effective way to relieve pain and improve balance. A $5 donation

Tyus Carey, Emelia-Rose Engel, Alaza Flores and Julia Zara receive Bank of America summer internships.

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is requested. For more information, call (530) 400-3013.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME Sacramento County has been awarded $14.5 million by the California Department of Housing and Community Development for a proposed 127-unit housing development on Stockton Boulevard. The No Place Like Home program provides grant funding for critically needed housing for chronically homeless individuals who are also struggling with mental illness. The new apartment complex will consist of seven residential buildings. Thirteen units will be ADA accessible, five will be wired for audio and visual devices, and 67 units will be designated through project-based vouchers for people experiencing homelessness. Of these, 50 will be designated for NPLH clients who also require treatment for mental illness. “This represents Sacramento County’s ongoing commitment to develop permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals and provide community-based support for individuals with behavioral health challenges,” says Ryan Quist, Sacramento County behavioral health director.

SHELTER IN STUDIO Arden-Arcade artist and curator Peter Foucault has launched Shelter In Studio, a website repository of stories from 100 California artists discussing their experiences navigating the COVID-19 crisis. “When these terrible times pass, we can look back at a collective document of how hard-working, resilient and adaptive California artists were in response to a really tough situation,” Foucault says. “Your work and your voice are important.” To read their stories—or if you’re an artist interested in participating—visit shelterinstudio.org.

WRITE YOUR MEMOIR Former Inside Sacramento columnist Kelli Wheeler is offering memoir writing classes on Zoom through the Mission Oaks Recreation and Park District starting Tuesday, Sept. 1. Through guided journaling and writing exercises, Wheeler helps novice writers craft something of value for themselves, their family and future

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Elly Award nominees Kate Ruecker and Spencer Fitzpatrick from Christian Brothers High School perform in "Peter and the Starcatcher,” also nominated for overall production.

KIDS ART PROJECTS Keep the kids busy and creative with Verge Center for the Arts’ DIY Kids Packs, designed for children 6 and older. By signing up for a weekly or biweekly subscription, you’ll get art activities developed by Verge’s education staff emailed directly to your inbox. The projects are specifically designed to utilize supplies you already have at home. For more information, visit patreon.com/vergeart.

CENSUS STILL OPEN

readers. For more information, visit morpd.com.

B STREET SOCIAL JUSTICE WEB SERIES Re-Imagine is B Street Theatre’s weekly social justice web series that amplifies the voices of Black artists and other people of color through play readings, poetry, music and more. The series is available on Zoom every Tuesday at 7 p.m. Re-Imagine is under the direction of executive producer Jerry Montoya and Latrice Madkins, the company’s newly minted equity, diversity and community inclusion director. The series will give voice to thoughts, feelings and experiences of BIPOC artists through the performance of personal and historical narratives. For more information, visit bstreettheatre. org/reimagine.

LIFT GRANTS The James B. McClatchy Foundation has awarded its inaugural LIFT Grant Initiative to six Central Valley organizations, including Sacramento Area Congregations Together. Awardees exemplify the pilot program’s goals of championing the First Amendment by uniting diverse groups of people in civic engagement, promoting local journalism in the home language of their residents and empowering traditionally underserved populations.

Each organization was awarded a one-year grant averaging $50,000 to continue its work addressing issues in underserved communities. “We’ve identified a cohort of civic engagement leaders and partnerships across a compelling spectrum, from grassroots organizations, to community media, to education,” says Misty Avila, JBMF program officer for civic engagement. “It’s a network of local partnerships that are building traction and can be scaled and modeled in other communities. This is creating critical, real-world impact throughout the Central Valley.” For more information, visit jbmcclatchyfoundation.org.

CITY APPOINTEES The city of Sacramento has appointed licensed clinical social worker Bridgette Dean as the interim director of the newly created Community Response Office. The initiative is funded with $5 million over the next two years from the current budget to transfer calls that don’t require a law enforcement response to alternative first responders. In addition, the city of Sacramento has appointed employee/labor-relations negotiator Dr. Nicole Clavo as manager of its Office of Violence Prevention. “The city’s Office of Violence Prevention plays a critical role in keeping our kids and communities safe, stable and secure,” Clavo says. For more information, visit cityofsacramento.org.

Due to COVID-19, the deadline to respond to the 2020 Census—online, by phone or by mail—has been extended to Oct. 31. Why is the census so important, you might ask? This once-a-decade count determines congressional representation, informs hundreds of billions in federal funding for critical services and provides data that helps business owners make decisions about where to open new stores and recruit employees—which affects the community for decades. For more information, visit 2020census.gov.

ELLY AWARDS In honor of the 38th annual Elly Awards, SARTA (Sacramento Area Regional Theatre Alliance) will host a virtual Elly Awards ceremony for both the youth and adult divisions Sunday, Sept. 13, at 7 p.m. on Twitch TV. Prior to Elly judging being suspended mid-March due to COVID-19, 151 shows were submitted by 61 theaters in the greater Sacramento region for the 201920 season. Forty-eight theaters and 82 productions received nominations. Nominees from Sacramento include The Acting Company, Green Valley Theatre Company, Theater One, Big Idea Theatre, American River College, City Theatre at Sacramento City College, Theatre in The Heights, Errant Phoenix Productions, California Stage, Black Point Theatre and several high schools. For more information, visit ellyawards. com. Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Submissions are due six weeks prior to the publication month. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

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‘NOT BE REPLACED’ LEVEE FENCES GET THEIR DEATH NOTICE

or years, levee lovers have known the offensive fences that block people from walking on the Sacramento River levee would disappear during the major levee repairs now underway. State and city authorities told me (and anyone else who asked) the fences would be removed by construction crews and not replaced. The construction removal was strategic. It was designed to avoid arguments with a few people who live along the river and insist they need fences stretched across the levee for security and privacy. The homeowners can’t argue with levee repair crews. Construction is a good excuse to clear out illegal fences that should have been bulldozed decades ago. There are nine of them. They all violate their permits—too big, built in the wrong place or reinforced with prohibited accessories such as razor wire. The removal plan makes political sense. But there’s been a problem. Nobody with authority would put it in

RG By R.E. Graswich Pocket Beat

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writing. Despite my best efforts, I could not find an appropriate official willing to sign a statement saying, “We are getting rid of those damned fences and gates and they aren’t coming back.” Now it’s in writing. In June, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Central Valley Flood Protection Board published a new Supplemental Environmental Impact Report for the Big Dig levee repair project. While I can’t recommend the document as light reading, there is a wonderful sentence on page 46 that should make Pocket, Greenhaven and Little Pocket residents celebrate: “Privately owned encroachments removed during the construction will not be replaced.” That means the fences and gates are gone for good. The Army Corps and Central Valley Flood Protection Board are agencies that matter when it comes to levees. The Corps is responsible for levee repairs. The flood board, a state bureaucracy, owns the levee and controls access to it. For decades, the flood board was deferential to a handful of homeowners in Pocket and Little Pocket. Beginning about 50 years ago, the flood board handed out fence and gate permits to property owners, allowing them to build fences that blocked public access. The fences gave property owners exclusive rights to enjoy your levee.

The relationship between the flood board and property owners has always been murky. Rumors simmered about insider deals and special treatment. For many years, riverfront property owners got just about anything they wanted from the flood board. All they had to do was ask for a permit. The request would be granted. Want to build a levee fence, gate or staircase? No problem. Want to transfer a permit after a property owner died or moved away? Done. The cozy relationship began to change in the last decade. Residents— many inspired by Inside Sacramento’s crusade for public access along the river—began to complain about the fences. Why can’t I walk the levee? Who put that fence there? Embarrassed by past excesses, the flood board stopped issuing new levee fence permits. It began to enforce rules against razor wire. The board is legally empowered to yank levee fence permits anytime for any reason. But fear of being sued by property owners frightened the flood board, which claimed it lacked resources to fight nuisance lawsuits. Once the board realized the deployment of levee repair equipment would require removal of fences, the solution to the longstanding embarrassment over fences was apparent. A half-century ago, the city of Sacramento promised residents an

open levee bike path from Freeport to Downtown. The promise was part of a visionary master plan for parks and recreation. It’s taken generations to fulfill the promise. For all those years, we’ve waited to read 11 words: “Privately owned encroachments removed during the construction will not be replaced.” REMEMBERING ROBBIE WATERS The death of Robbie Waters from coronavirus at age 84 brought countless remembrances of the former City Council member, elected Sheriff and city homicide detective. Many stories focused on his determination, resilience and conservative ways. But there was another side to Robbie. Several times I saw him break into tears while recalling a deceased family pet. And as he prepared for death, he instructed his family to deliver his remains to the care of Morgan Jones, the Broadway funeral home that has served the African American community since 1948. “Charlie Jones will take care of everything,” Robbie told his family. And he did, which is everything you need to know about Robbie Waters. R.E. Graswich can be reached at regraswich@icloud.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

Right now, your health care is everything. This has been a year of change—in how we interact with one another and how we care for ourselves and those we love. From distance learning and new working conditions to connecting with Grandma on Zoom, we know you’re handling a lot. And that’s why having a health care team you depend on means everything. At Dignity Health, we take pride in establishing long-lasting, trusted relationships with our patients. And, while we’re always focused on meeting their needs, in these unprecedented times, we’re more committed than ever. So this year during Open Enrollment, make sure you’re getting the most out of your relationship with your doctor. Choose a health plan that connects you to Dignity Health hospitals and our affiliated doctors—such as Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield and Western Health Advantage. For a complete list of insurances accepted, medical groups and doctors, visit DignityHealth.org/OpenEnrollment.

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Nathaniel Colley and his daughter Sondra in 1956

LEGACY BATTLE FIGHT TO SAVE ALDER GROVE HEATS UP

t’s not often that a Sacramento redevelopment proposal pushes as many hot-button issues as the city’s West Broadway Specific Plan. As it moves through the approval process, the long-range planning document has ignited passions about scarce affordable housing, the possible demolition of two public housing projects, historic preservation, isolating traffic patterns, gentrification, civil rights, Black Lives Matter and the memory of a Sacramento icon whose legal skills and advocacy improved the lives of African Americans here and around the nation. The plan is focused on improving traffic flow and housing options in a 244-acre slice bounded by the Sacramento River on the west,

GD By Gary Delsohn Building Our Future

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Broadway on the north, Muir Way and Fifth Street on the east, and Fourth Avenue and Merkley Way on the south. This largely industrial area has been overlooked, but some of the property is listed on state and federal registers of historic places. And success at the pioneering Mill at Broadway housing project has created new excitement about West Broadway’s potential. The issue gets messy, however, because plans call for realigning the street grid. Realignment would require demolition of much of the Alder Grove housing project at Fifth and Broadway. Opened in 1942, Alder Grove is Sacramento’s oldest public housing complex. Also referred to as New Helvetia, the community is where the late Nathaniel Colley, Sacramento’s first practicing Black lawyer, went to court to end the quota that allowed just 16 of 61 apartments to be occupied by African Americans. Colley was humble and self-effacing, but a star in court. Through his intellect, character and fierce advocacy for civil rights, Colley—74 when he died of brain cancer in 1992—counted among his good friends President John

F. Kennedy and Anthony Kennedy, who spent almost 30 years as the swing vote on the U.S. Supreme Court. Although they had political differences, Colley and Justice Kennedy became friends when both taught at McGeorge School of Law. In a “Dear Nat” letter found in Colley’s collection of historical documents, Justice Kennedy told Colley: “You have taught generations of attorneys and judges by an unparalleled example of decency, dedication, and passionate advocacy. You still teach that the law must respond to pleas for compassion in order to vindicate our own humanity.” After Colley’s legal challenge ended the Alder Grove quota, he won a landmark Supreme Court ruling that said an entity getting federal aid could not discriminate in housing policy. That ruling paved the way to abolish race-restricted housing policies in much of the country. A few years ago, when another plan called for Alder Grove to be demolished, a local group of Colley friends, relatives and admirers formed the Colley Civil Rights Coalition to educate people about his legacy and save the low-income apartments.

This time around, the coalition hired a lawyer, a local public relations firm owned by former KCRA anchor Kellie DeMarco and an urban planner who drafted a thoughtful alternative proposal that would preserve much of Alder Grove. That plan includes a modest but welcome history center where Colley’s impressive legacy could be showcased. This is a man whose lofty record of accomplishment deserves broader recognition. Politically savvy, the coalition sent a letter to the city’s Planning and Design Commission in July that focused on the lousy timing and irony of the city even talking about possible demolition of Alder Grove, where its mostly minority residents would be uprooted. It’s a safe bet that if Colley were alive, he’d find a way to step in and protect the people living there. “In recent months, the exposure and correction of horrific systemic racism have dominated our country’s national public discourse,” the letter from Susan Brandt-Hawley, a lawyer from Glen Ellen, says. “Goals of social justice are finally moving forward. Surely the City should develop the Specific Plan through the lens and in the context of

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DON’T MISS THIS GREAT FALL SALE! the Black Lives Matter movement and preservation of Sacramento’s Black history.” A release from DeMarco made the point even more forcefully. “This neighborhood is a historic visual reminder of the importance of Nathaniel Colley's contributions to the civil rights and social justice issues of his day,” the release says, adding: “Destroying a nationally recognized site of civil rights history to create a street grid aimed at alleviating future traffic congestion caused by racially insensitive urban planning only further retrenches race relations in the city.” The Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency, which owns Alder Grove and the nearby Marina Vista apartments, says it will renovate and not remove the sites. But the Colley Coalition is not convinced. It believes

street realignment would require demolition. If not for the COVID-19 pandemic that has forced most public meetings to go virtual, the West Broadway plan would surely bring Alder Grove residents and affordable housing advocates to City Hall in protest. So far, it’s been the Colley Civil Rights Coalition that has been most vocal in opposing the plan while pushing alternatives. Like its namesake, the Colley Coalition is doing a good job standing up for people who need a champion. Gary Delsohn can be reached at gdelsohn@gmail.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

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Model for

Change NEW FRONT STREET MANAGER PUTS EMPHASIS ON FOSTER CARE

e was four months into his job heading the city’s animal shelter when COVID-19 shut down Sacramento. Phillip Zimmerman joined Front Street Animal Shelter as animal care services manager last November after leading the Stockton Animal Shelter for six years. “I was running a shelter with the same number of animals, but with a lot less staff,” Zimmerman says of his time in Stockton. “We were doing really great things with a lot less money. So, I thought, I’ll be OK in Sacramento. Then COVID hit.” Like other businesses, Front Street was forced to shut its doors. Zimmerman and his team joined other shelters in Sacramento and across the country in quickly moving animals into emergency foster homes. “We moved out over 100 dogs in two days,” he says. Approximately 20 cats also were relocated.

CR By Cathryn Rakich Animals & Their Allies

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Six months later, Front Street is up and running again—taking in strays and conducting adoptions, all by appointment to ensure the safety of staff and community. But the fostercentric model is at the forefront. The majority of healthy animals are placed into foster homes within hours or days of arrival. The shelter keeps ill, injured and dangerous pets not suited for foster care. Zimmerman replaced former— and popular—animal care services manager Gina Knepp, who retired in October. “I don’t have Gina’s personality. I’m a little more reserved,” Zimmerman says. “She is a bigger risk-taker than I am. As far as the sheltering part, I think I bring a lot to the table.” Born in Sacramento, Zimmerman earned his bachelor’s degree in social science at California State University, Stanislaus, and joined the Stockton Police Dispatch Department as a 911 dispatcher in 1997. He was eventually promoted to supervisor. After 18 years with dispatch, he needed a change. “I was tired of being stuck in a room,” Zimmerman says. When the manager position for the Stockton Animal Shelter came up, he was reluctant. “I saw the position advertised and I said, ‘I’m not going to go work at the pound.’”

Phillip Zimmerman Photo by Aniko Kiezel

But with encouragement from a friend at the shelter, Zimmerman decided to apply. Despite his lack of animal care experience, he had 18 years in law enforcement, including handling animal-related 911 calls after shelter hours. “I get out there and wow. They had a partnership with the San Francisco SPCA. And they were doing great stuff. I thought, I can do this,” he says. Zimmerman was hired Jan. 1, 2015, and quickly produced results. He boosted the volunteer program, hired a shelter volunteer coordinator, held community adoption and fundraising events, and applied for more grants. What enticed Zimmerman to seek the head position at Front Street Animal Shelter when Knepp left? “I blame it on Gina because she was on my hiring panel in Stockton. From that day, Gina and I were friends,” Zimmerman says. In addition to Knepp’s influence, Zimmerman has

extended family in Sacramento. Plus, “Sacramento has a lot more resources,” he says. Knepp came to Front Street with a similar background—20 years with the Sacramento Police Department 911 call center. During the Stockton interview, “Gina told me it’s a heartwrenching job,” Zimmerman recalls. “It’s emotionally charged—sometimes for good reasons, sometimes for bad reasons. I told them I’ve been on the phone when people have been shot or a parent has lost their child. I’ve dealt with all of these things on the phone. “Gina said, ‘Just so you know, this job is going to be way tougher.’ And she was 100 percent correct. When you are on the phone, you have the ability to compartmentalize. But when you are looking at animals that can’t speak, and humans are making decisions for them, that’s difficult.” Zimmerman and his husband live in Fair Oaks with “one very old cat,” two Yorkies and two Chihuahua

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mixes. “Chihuahuas are always mixed with something,” Zimmerman laughs. One of the dogs is a recent adoption from Front Street. “Right before the first shelter-in-place order, a social worker came in with a homeless man. They were trying to convince him to get off the streets. But he didn’t want to get rid of his dog. I said, ‘Look, I’ll foster the dog. When you get in your housing, you can have the dog back.’” The gentleman finally found housing, but couldn’t take the dog. “She slept in a kennel in our bedroom at first. That lasted about two weeks. Now she sleeps on the bed with us. She loves everybody. She was living in a homeless encampment. She got to know everyone.” Despite more overall resources in Sacramento, the Stockton shelter had more medical staff, which is why Zimmerman’s vision for Front Street includes a larger medical team. “It’s challenging when you don’t have a robust veterinary team,” Zimmerman says. “They’re the core. Animals have to receive medical treatment.” A second vision for Front Street is access to affordable veterinary care. “I

have no doubt that a lot of the stray and injured animals that end up here are owned animals, because owners cannot afford veterinary care,” Zimmerman says. The third goal is to make the foster-care model work. “I’m seeing the benefits,” he says. “Animals are leaving healthier. They are getting adopted. We’re not going to have everything figured out in animal welfare right now. But is there a better way to do it? I am cautiously optimistic that this is the future of animal sheltering.” If you find a pet, text FOUNDPET to 555888 for tips to find the owner. If you can’t care for the animal, call 311 to discuss possible options and/ or schedule an appointment to drop off the pet at the city or county shelter. For more information on what to do if you find a stray, visit sspca.org/ letstalkstrays. Cathryn Rakich can be reached at crakich@surewest.net. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

The city’s Front Street Animal Shelter has embraced a “foster” over “shelter” model, which was gaining nationwide popularity before the pandemic. But the foster-centric program has led to controversy. Critics question why the public is put in the position of doing a municipal shelter’s work. How can staff provide the necessary amount of support to Front Street’s 200-plus foster homes? How do employees adequately screen potential foster parents? How do they keep track of the more than 400 animals—the majority being litters of kittens—in the foster system? Pre-COVID, “our animal care technicians were spending five to six hours a day cleaning kennels,” says Phillip Zimmerman, animal care services manager for Front Street. Now, with a robust foster system, staff has more time to assist in other areas. “We trained all the staff to support the foster program because we should all be involved in programs like this.” A national coalition, Human Animal Support Services, promotes community collaboration to reimagine the traditional model of animal services by housing most pets in homes, not kennels. Twelve organizations are participating in the pilot program, including shelters in Fresno, Oakland, Los Angeles and San Diego. Gina Knepp, former manager of Front Street Animal Shelter, is on the HASS leadership team. Under this model, the core functions of the physical shelter are to provide emergency medical care and short-term housing for pets with urgent needs. Front Street continues to house ill, injured and dangerous animals. “I’m a big fan of the idea and I think it could really be a gamechanger in sheltering,” says attorney Jim Houpt, longtime Front Street volunteer and president of Friends of Front Street, the city shelter’s nonprofit arm. Kelli Lorenz began fostering dogs for Front Street in May. “Obviously, there are some dogs that are not going to be able to be fostered,” she says. “But when dogs can be in a house, that’s so much better.” Sheri Achterberg has been fostering dogs for Front Street for six years. “For the dog’s sake, it’s way better. They’re in a home. They’re comfortable. They have socialization.” Both Lorenz and Achterberg report that Front Street staff have been responsive and helpful with supplies, medical needs and the adoption process. “The shelter is the worst possible place to bring dogs,” Houpt adds. “A lot of our dogs develop behavior issues just in reaction to the shelter environment. The best of all possible worlds is getting dogs in and getting them into a home immediately.” “Organizations are not opening their doors to go back to the way things were,” Zimmerman says. “We would be remiss to animals, to people, to taxpayers, to our staff who work in the shelters, if we didn’t give this new model a try.” For more information, visit humananimalsupportservices.org. —Cathryn Rakich

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Health Crisis SUTTER FACES TROUBLE BEYOND VIRUS

here’s a big company in Sacramento that provides services everyone needs but tries to avoid. The pandemic wrecked the company’s business plans but made it more essential than ever. And the company is in trouble with the state attorney general. The company is Sutter Health. These are difficult times for Sutter, which began 99 years ago as a private hospital to replace an adobe clinic near the corner of 28th and K streets. The motivation for Sutter was the 1918 flu pandemic, which killed almost 30,000 people in California between 1918 and 1921—when the state had just 3.5 million residents. Threatened by the virus’ efficiency, medical and civic leaders were eager

RG By R.E. Graswich

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to build a modern hospital. They named it after the fort across the street. Today, Sutter is anything but a lone hospital. It employs more than 53,000 people across a network of five regional medical foundations and 24 hospitals in Northern California and Hawaii. Despite its size and success, Sutter faces unprecedented challenges. The COVID-19 crisis disrupted deliveries of medical services and prompted people to delay or skip doctor’s visits. Critical-care beds have filled with coronavirus patients. Simple acts such as visiting loved ones at Sutter Medical Center are either impossible or extraordinarily hard. And Sutter Health is trying to manage a $575 million settlement with State Attorney General Xavier Becerra, who accused the nonprofit of price gouging and monopolistic behavior. Unions and employers joined the lawsuit against Sutter.

Sutter Health is doing its best to soldier on, as illustrated by a statement to Inside Sacramento from Dr. William Isenberg, chief quality and safety officer: “Our hospitals, clinics and all care facilities are open and ready to provide care. We’ve taken several steps to help our patients, clinicians and staff remain safe.” Isenberg says Sutter mandates masks and isolation wards for patients with COVID-19 symptoms. He mentions screenings for all employees when they start their shifts. He cites extra cleaning and disinfecting procedures. For Sutter Health, the narrative goal is to make the community believe things are as normal as can be. The Sutter website opens with a headline proclaiming, “It’s time to get the care you’ve been waiting for.” A subhead addresses anxieties: “We’re taking extra precautions to keep you safe.” A blue COVID-19 banner shows pandemic resources, but once

the banner is closed, coronavirus references all but vanish. In his statement, Isenberg acknowledges various preparations for coronavirus surges. But the pandemic hasn’t stopped Sutter’s ability to perform routine duties. He writes, “We are experiencing an increase in cases in some of our footprint. Because of the breadth of our network, we are able to care for both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients across our communities.” Despite efforts to move forward, Sutter Health is financially hurting— thanks largely to the virus. The pandemic prompted Sutter to seek and receive hundreds of millions of dollars in federal aid. At the same time, Sutter tried to delay payment on the $575 million settlement. The agreement followed a lawsuit where the attorney general claimed Sutter Health patients, their employers and unions were forced to pay inflated prices for medical care. In trying to delay or renegotiate the settlement, Sutter downplayed its “open for business” narrative. The virus was prominent in Sutter’s defense—it’s why Sutter might seek to increase fees beyond limits established by the settlement. “Adjusting our entire integrated network to respond to COVID-19 has been an incredibly costly and difficult endeavor that will significantly impact us for years to come,” Sutter says in a statement. Add to these problems a symbolic dilemma. Sutter’s identity is being challenged by calls to rid the community of racist legacy monuments. In the 1800s at his fort, John Sutter enslaved hundreds of Miwok and Maidu people. He was responsible for the assaults and deaths of countless Native Americans. As social justice protests moved through Sacramento this summer, Sutter Medical Center removed a statue of Sutter after it was vandalized with paint. The name stayed. R.E. Graswich can be reached at regraswich@icloud.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

JOIN US FRIDAY, SEPT. 25

Soiree & (ART) Auction To Benefit

WIND YOUTH SERVICES I’m a proud board member of WIND Youth Services because this organization serves more than 1,000 youth annually who are experiencing homelessness. They offer transitional housing programs, permanent supportive housing, and three shelter programs. Their Drop-In Center offers case management, crisis counseling, respite, showers, hot meals, employment and health services, and much more. Cecily Hastings, Publisher, Inside Sacramento

To see more art items and to register for and attend the event

visit soiree.windyouth.org Jill Estroff, Rose Garden Basketball, acrylic on canvas, 16” x 20”, Estimated Value $500

Timothy Mulligan, Road with Blue Shadow, acrylic on canvas, 11” x 14”, Estimated Value $950

Margarita Chaplinska, Flower Study, oil on canvas, 9” x 12”, Estimated Value $450

Kathy Dana, Home at Last, acrylic on canvas, 8”x 16”, Estimated Value $550 A special thank you to art consultant Nisa Hayden for curating the art for the auction. Richard Stein, Yolo Wetlands, acrylic on canvas, 48” x 36”, Estimated Value $1,500

RIGHT:Leslie McCarron, A Big, Fat Bud, oil on wood panel, 8” x 8”, Estimated Value $240

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Calm & Collected

LAND PARK HOME HAS MID-CENTURY STYLE WITHOUT THE KITSCH

ayers. That’s how Renée Carter described her Land Park home when she purchased the midcentury-style abode in 2007. “Over the years there were layers,” Carter says. “It obviously went through several phases of homeowners trying to make it into something it wasn’t. “There was a layer of Asian influence. Then someone did Tuscantextured moldings.” The floors were covered in white Berber carpet. “When you came in, you had to see past all of that—and see the bones—the beautiful openness and all the light coming in.” Before Carter, who owns a Downtown technology consulting

CR By Cathryn Rakich Photography by Aniko Kiezel OPEN HOUSE

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business, embarked on remodeling the 2,500-sqaure-foot home built in 1962, she obtained the original plans from the city. Carter learned the two-story home was built by renowned Sacramento developer Robert Powell, who created Pavilions Shopping Center, Campus Commons, Gold River and other highend developments. Powell also built thousands of local residences from the 1960s to 2007. “I wasn’t trying to go back to a purist mid-century modern look,” Carter says. “I wanted it to be more classic modern so it would stand the test of time.” She also did not want a “kitschy” look. “There is no orange in this house.” To get started, Carter ripped out the Berber carpet, replaced the carpeting on the second floor, scrapped the moldings and smoothed the wall texture. “The fireplace had a sloping design—which was original—so I squared that off to give it a more classic modern look.” A massive 15-foot-high front door leads into the original wood-paneled entryway accented by four elongated windows. The living room features an Pat impressive wall of nearly floor-to-ceiling

Renée Carter with her dog, Harry

windows with a sliding glass door to the front yard. “I purposely don’t have a television in here,” Carter says. “This is a place for good conversation. You can open everything up and it’s really lovely.” Beyond the large living room windows is a front-yard swimming pool, a component of the original design. “It’s part of the ambiance of being in this room. It’s really relaxing to look out at water,” she says. At night, the pool lights up with “a beautiful Tahoe blue illumination.” Part of the home’s charm is a small bar adjacent to the fireplace and next to a Dutch door—the top half swings open to the front yard. “I guess you can hand cocktails out to people swimming,” Carter laughs. Scattered throughout the home is original artwork, including a polished stainless-steel sculpture by Sacramento artist Marc Foster. “When you are sitting in the living room, the other art is reflected in it,” says Carter, who sits on the board of the Verge Center for the Arts. Carter installed birch floors downstairs. But sunlight streaming in through the original windows turned the wood yellow. After installing UV-protected glass panes, she switched the floors to English oak. “They are easy to clean,” she says, which is important with her big dog Harry. She replaced the steps on the floating staircase—another eye-catching feature— because they had been “carpeted and

re-carpeted so many times the nail holes were impossible to repair,” but kept the original steel supports. “Thank goodness no one painted the stone work” behind the staircase, Carter says. “That would have been a tragic mistake.” The home’s smooth walls are painted various shades of gray, “which I think are calming.” Carter gutted the galley kitchen and expanded the footprint by turning a full bath into a powder room. “There is no bedroom downstairs, so it didn’t make sense to have a double sink, shower, tub, the whole works. So I took space out of that bathroom to put into the kitchen.” Kitchen cabinets and open shelving are a rich walnut. Countertops are black soapstone. Two square stainless-steel sinks—placed corner to corner—make an artistic statement. The island is topped with inch-thick glass. Backsplash tiles are by Heath Ceramics of Sausalito. The slate-like stone floors in the kitchen, powder room and hallway are by Blue Mountain.

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Technically, the house has three bedrooms. Two guest bedrooms were divided by a plastic accordion door. “That was typical of the mid-century style,” explains Carter, who now enjoys one large open space—sans divider—as a sitting room-guest bedroom. The generous master bedroom showcases another wall of windows with a sliding glass door to an outdoor balcony. “I love waking up to the light in the morning,” Carter says. The formerly “hideous” master bathroom now features teak cabinets, side-by-side square vessel sinks and a freestanding soaking tub. The shower’s river rock floor compliments white subway tile walls. The powder room has a black rectangle vessel sink nestled into a floating walnut cabinet. In the guest bath, “the sink, toilet and bathtub were all orange—and not in a good way,” Carter says. In their place are a large modern shower, wall-hung toilet and quartz countertops. The original

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cabinets were repainted. Carter kept the “fun stuff,” such as the cool chrome toilet paper holder and trash insert on the side of the cabinet, which are part of the home’s original charm. The homeowner is quick to compliment contractor Ron Simms, “who cleaned up every single night before they left,” Carter says. “He had a whiteboard that said this is what we did today. This is what we’re doing tomorrow.” Carter also enlisted the help of designer Macrina Rodriguez. “You have to work with someone who is a good listener. You have to find the right person who understands your vision.” To recommend a home or garden for Open House, contact Cathryn Rakich at crakich@surewest.net. More photography and previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

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Adapt or Close CREATIVITY KEEPS RESTAURANTS OPEN

Solomon’s Delicatessen Photo by Linda Smolek

nder state and county health rules, they closed their dining rooms, reopened and closed again. Many Sacramento restaurants pivoted to the new reality. Others weren’t so lucky. More than 130 restaurants in the Sacramento region have permanently shuttered under the pandemic, Yelp reports. Others plan to reopen, such as Pizza Rock on K Street. Some, such as Empress Tavern on K Street, downsized from more than 30 employees to four. Many restaurants kept their kitchens running by joining Great Plates Delivered, a program launched in April by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Great Plates creates meals for older adults. Solomon’s Delicatessen is participating in Great Plates, but has gone further. When the virus hit, Solomon’s temporarily closed. Co-founders Andrea

SC By Scot Crocker Inside Downtown

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Lepore and Jami Goldstene decided to broaden the brand and expand the menu. The restaurant, named for Tower Records founder Russ Solomon, has kept its signature dishes—bagels, lox sandwiches and pastrami-on-rye. Additions have an international flair. “We wanted something new and different,” Lepore says. “Sacramento is diverse and we wanted to represent that diversity, so we brought in new influences and new menu items.” The result is upscale street food that includes dishes from Israel, Japan, China and Argentina. Solomon’s has a large outdoor seating area, perfect for the times. But the restaurant battles the perception that much of Downtown and Midtown are closed. “We needed to offer an experience,” Goldstene says. “We’ve taken things in-house. We are making our own artisan breads and desserts. It’s all very local and we are striving to make everything right. Our bagels are made fresh daily. But we also have pita bread, Japanese milk buns, babka and other creations from Emily Mallari, our lead baker.” Adds Lepore, “It’s awesome. Weekends are fun and we have a safe and secure

setting with 12 tables open on the patio that can service 30 to 40 people. Because of our redeveloped property at 700 K St., we are hoping to add more outdoor seating and continue to serve the small number of people who are going to work each day Downtown.” Henry de Vere White is another entrepreneur working to accommodate the pandemic at de Vere’s Irish Pub on L Street, which he opened with his brother Simon. They also partnered at two themed sites on R Street, The Snug and The Doobie Bar. “People have really come out to support us,” Henry de Vere White says. “We have reached deep to find creative solutions. We understand what is happening to people. Friends are losing their jobs. Rhythms of Downtown are off. Traffic has changed. We need to find ways to be memorable.” Governmental support from the city, state and Downtown Partnership helped, he notes. But de Vere White says survival would not be possible without his employees. “I’m very grateful each day for our team and proud of our people,” he says. “We have had to change almost

everything. We look for the right formula. Other restaurants are doing the same thing. They have to.” De Vere’s Irish Pub has outside seating with safety protocols. A Snug Jr. has opened at the L Street site with patio dining, curbside pickup and comfort food, including burgers and salads. On R Street, The Doobie Bar experience is contactless. A lifeguard ushers in customers. Boat drinks and beach music rule the waves. Orders are made and paid for via phone. Drinks arrive on a cart. “The restaurant and bar business can be a challenge when times are good. Now we have a whole new world affecting everything,” de Vere White says. “We don’t see any convention business. Tourism is limited. Offices aren’t open. There’s no sports or concerts at the arena. We do it because we love it. We take care of people, create spaces and new experiences for them.” Scot Crocker can be reached at scot@ crockerbranding.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

Reaching Stars for the

Chuck Real Photo by Linda Smolek

ave you ever looked up at the night sky and wondered what you were looking at? Chuck Real could probably tell you, as could the roughly 200 other members of the Sacramento Valley Astronomical Society, one of the oldest astronomy clubs in America. Founded in 1945 by 50 amateur astronomers, SVAS is celebrating 75 years as an educational nonprofit dedicated to teaching people about the beauty and complexity of the cosmos. For Real, who took over as SVAS president in March, the organization’s activities are a way of sharing his lifelong love of astronomy with amateurs young and old. “When I was a very young boy of about 7 or 8, my mother bought a microscope for me and a telescope for my brother for Christmas,” recalls Real, who lives in Orangevale. “Well, I already had an interest in astronomy, so my brother and I traded instruments. With that tiny little Gilbert telescope, I could see craters on the moon and rings on Saturn. At that age, anything can inspire you, and it just ignited my flame.” Real was so awed by astronomy that he built his own telescope in junior high and settled on becoming a scientist. In college, his interest shifted to earth science. “Instead of looking up, I started looking down,” he says. He went on to earn a graduate degree in geophysics specializing in seismology. In 2013, he retired from a 40-year career with the California Geological Survey as a seismologist working on identifying earthquake hazard zones. He won a lifetime achievement award from the Western States Seismic Policy Council for his work putting together legislation, following the Loma-Prieta earthquake in 1989, that established a $4 million program that uses satellites to map earthquake hazard zones. Once he retired, Real knew exactly what he was going to do: return to his childhood love of studying the stars. He joined the SVAS board in 2009 as a

JL LOCAL ASTRONOMY CLUB CELEBRATES 75 YEARS

way to learn the ropes and he’s been a board member ever since, helping plan and execute the organization’s monthly Star Parties, where members and guests bring telescopes, or borrow one from SVAS, and study the night sky together. He has also helped plan Star Parties for schools and community organizations, observing trips, telescope-making workshops and other public outreach events. “Nothing is more rewarding than seeing kids have their first views through a telescope,” Real says. SVAS also operates members-only research observatories in the Sierra mountains and offers scholarships to students who are majoring in physical sciences or mathematics with a focus on astronomy or space sciences. Real says that one of the group’s greatest successes is Heidi Poppelreiter Parris, winner of an SVAS scholarship in 2001 who went on to study aerospace sciences in college and work as a flight controller in Mission Control (responsible for the real-time navigation of spacecraft to the International Space Station) at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston. Though COVID-19 has brought Star Parties and other in-person gatherings to a halt, Real says that technology has been a saving grace, allowing SVAS members to stay connected with virtual meetings and remote observing—as well as launching an exciting new era of astronomical study. “Astronomy is in a renaissance,” Real says, because of technology like the astro-video camera. The Canadian invention, based on night-vision security cameras, is 40,000 times more sensitive than the human eye and allows a small telescope to capture light similar to a giant observatory telescope. Real made sure to buy one for SVAS. “We’re learning something new every day about the workings of the universe,” he says. “You can’t imagine how engaged students are seeing beautiful images of color emissions from nebula and galaxies on their own screens. Technology makes the whole hobby of amateur astronomy different— it ignites that spark.” For more information, visit svas.org.

By Jessica Laskey Giving Back: Volunteer Proﬁle

Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Previous profiles can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

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Photo by Steven Styles/ Belator Media

Year-Round Bounty

WITH FESTIVAL CANCELED, SACRAMENTO CAN STILL CELEBRATE

ven though this year’s annual Farm-to-Fork Festival has been canceled due to COVID-19, the harvest events, which include the Farm-to-Fork Street Festival on Capitol Mall, Legends of Wine and Tower Bridge Dinner, are set to return next September. Since 2013, the Farm-to-Fork Street Festival has developed into a popular two-day event highlighting Sacramento’s agricultural legacy and attracting more than 155,000 residents

TMO By Tessa Marguerite Outland Farm-to-Fork

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and visitors. The free open-air jamboree features musical artists, local food vendors, regional wines, craft beer, cooking demonstrations and more. Visit Sacramento President and CEO Mike Testa says that after talking with Sacramento County public health officials, the decision to cancel the festival was unavoidable. The reality of trying to maintain social distancing between the public and vendors would be unattainable. And while Testa says he and his team looked into going virtual, it wouldn’t quite work for a food-tasting event. “We were really excited about this year’s new elements,” Testa says. As Sacramento has gained more recognition as America’s farm-to-fork capital, some food industry celebrities are taking notice. In 2019, a Michelin Guide inspector came to Sacramento during the farm-to-fork events, resulting in the city’s first Michelin Star awarded to The Kitchen.

“Part of the reason we do this festival is to shine a culinary spotlight on our region,” Testa says. “Everyone expects me to say (our food) is amazing, but when Michelin says it, it’s valuable.” This year, Visit Sacramento had planned to invite the James Beard Foundation, a New York City-based national nonprofit culinary arts organization, back to Sacramento. Each year, the foundation awards chefs, regional restaurants, bakers, and even cookbooks and broadcast media. In 2013, Frank Fat’s restaurant received the James Beard Foundation America’s Classics Award and remains the only Sacramento restaurant with this recognition. Another aspect of the Farm-to-Fork Festival is the prestigious Tower Bridge Dinner. Rows of tables dressed in white tablecloths adorned with flowers are arranged along the iconic bridge, framed by its golden towers. A limited number of guests are invited to indulge in an

elegant, locally sourced feast prepared by the region’s top chefs. A portion of the proceeds from the Tower Bridge Dinner usually go to fund scholarships for Sacramento State students in the College Assistance Migrant Program. This federally funded program is available to students who are the children of migrant and seasonal farmworkers. In 2019, Visit Sacramento provided $5,000 in CAMP scholarships. This year the organization increased that amount to $7,000 to be used for seven $1,000 scholarships. In the absence of ticket proceeds, Farm-to-Fork Festival sponsor Bank of America will provide the scholarships in 2020. “It is important to us to continue to support farm-to-fork in a variety of new ways given the cancelation of this year’s event,” says Lori Rianda, senior vice president for Bank of America in Sacramento. “When the opportunity arose to cover the cost of the scholarships, we were happy to be able to help.”

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www.djkitchen.com 916.925.2577 Funds for the scholarship will be allocated from a microgrant program called Fork 2 Farm Relief + Restocking Grants, which is funded by Bank of America in collaboration with Visit Sacramento and Downtown Sacramento Partnership. Testa is confident the festival will return in 2021 complete with all the delightful farm-to-fork offerings of Sacramento’s soil. “One of the great things about Sacramento is we are farmto-fork year-round,” Testa says. “The festival is just the party celebrating it.” Sacramento residents can contribute to the city’s earthy food scene simply by patronizing local restaurants. Each gift card purchase or takeout order from one of Sacramento’s farm-tofork eateries directly supports servers, small business owners, farmers and many others.

“We’re disappointed to have to cancel this year, but it’s not gone,” Testa says. “Assuming (the pandemic) is behind us, folks can expect another celebration of Sacramento’s agricultural heritage next year.” For more information, go to farmtofork.com or visitsacramento.com. Tessa Marguerite Outland can be reached at tessa.m.outland@gmail. com. Our Inside Sacramento Restaurant Guide and previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

PRESENTS: 10th Annual Fundraiser Beneﬁting Triumph Cancer Foundation

SEPT 25TH 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

JOIN US ONLINE! A Virtual Event celebrating cancer survivorship! Beneﬁting Triumph Cancer Foundation a Sacramento-based non-proﬁt providing Triumph Fitness & other cancer recovery programs to adult cancer survivors at no cost. All programs offered in a safe virtual format! Event Sponsors Kaiser Permanente . KCRA . Delta Dental

In 2019, a Michelin Guide inspector came to Sacramento during the farm-to-fork events, resulting in the city’s first Michelin Star awarded to The Kitchen.

Alli Construction . Western Health Advantage . Sage Architecture Allworth Financial . Sactown Magazine . Interwest Insurance Inside Publications . Mercy Radiological Group . Sutter Health UC Davis Health . Lofings Lighting . Sierra Oncology Group

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Fall Forward GARDENERS GET BUSY WHEN SEASONS CHANGE

all arrives without warning, like flashing lights and sirens in the rear-view mirror. One day, we are bobbing in the pool. The next day, leaves are crimson and shelves are stocked with pumpkin-carving kits. Cooler air stirs the seasonal question, “What happened to summer?” September is transition time in gardens where there is lingering beauty and things to do. While still wearing sandals and shorts, give some thought and love to the garden before it’s too late. “Fall is my favorite time of year, especially for roses,” says Ellie Longanecker, a Master Rosarian and UC Master Gardener. “The colors brighten, the blooms are larger, the fragrance is more intense and the flower count increases. I love being outside again. Let’s face it, in Sacramento, the roses of July and August are just potpourri.” She recommends a fall feeding, using an organic fertilizer with beneficial soil

DV By Dan Vierria Garden Jabber

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microbes, pruning out interior cross branching to allow better air circulation and resetting the irrigation timer for reduced water once temperatures drop. Oh, and cut a few of those gorgeous roses for bouquets. Consider “shovel pruning” disappointing roses in early fall. Dig them up, toss and amend the area with compost. By spring, the soil will have recovered and will embrace the newbies, Longanecker says. Trees are too often overlooked until there is a serious and expensive problem. It can take decades to replace a stately tree. September is an opportune time to get a tree checkup. Mature trees that may be diseased should be inspected by a certified arborist, preferably before powerful storms pound Sacramento. Getting an onsite opinion from certified and consulting arborists is always a good idea before hiring a tree service. Trees and perennials are best planted in fall when soil and air temperatures are cooler, but warm enough to greatly accelerate root development. By spring, they will be more established and take off like a 4-year-old after an ice cream truck. The Sacramento Tree Foundation has partnered with SMUD for the Sacramento Shade Tree Program. The program allows Sacramento County residents as many as 10 free trees! Visit

sactree.com for details and loads of tree information, including how to find certified and consulting arborists in our area. Tearing out the old and planting a new landscape is common in fall. Stephanie Robinson of the Sacramento Tree Foundation cautions that if you are removing lawn, installing walkways or patios or disturbing soil near existing trees, roots may be damaged. Consider consulting a certified arborist. Also consider permeable pathway material (water soaks through rather than running off) and rerouting paths to accommodate mature trees and root systems. Existing trees, according to Robinson, will appreciate a new layer of wood chip mulch. Tree mulches help prevent weeds and insulate roots from cold temperatures. She suggests incorporating fallen leaves with the wood chips to bolster nutrients and help build healthy soil. A 4- to 6-inch layer of mulch (pulled 6 inches or so away from the trunk) will make trees happy. There are always a few vegetable gardeners who attempt to keep tomatoes alive and producing until Thanksgiving and beyond. If that’s the plan, remove the dead and dying summer veggies in early fall. Dispose of any diseased plants and compost the rest. Clean up the entire veggie patch to discourage over-wintering pests and

lay down a mulch of straw or shredded leaves to deny weeds. Yes, it sounds daft to plant winter vegetables this early, but the warmweather head start will pay off. Beets can be planted in August and September, along with carrots and potatoes. Start planting onion sets in mid-September. If you are a home cook and a garlic and shallot grower, buy now before favored varieties are sold out. Both can be planted from September into November. I plant shallots and garlic the first week of October because it’s easy for me to remember. The UCCE Master Gardeners of Sacramento County offer the popular and handy “Sacramento Vegetable Planting Schedule” at sacmg.ucanr.edu. You will never have to guess again. Dan Vierria is a University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardener for Sacramento County and former Home & Garden writer for The Sacramento Bee. He can be reached at masterg29@gmail.com. For answers to gardening questions, contact the UCCE Master Gardeners at (916) 876-5338, email mgsacramento@ucanr.edu or visit sacmg.ucanr.edu. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

Outrunning

the Virus RG By R.E. Graswich Sports Authority

Rich Hanna Photo by Aniko Kiezel

RACE PROMOTER MAKES DUE WITHOUT RACING

unning should be among the safest of pandemic sports. Open trails. Space for social distancing. Virus loads diluted by fresh air. Fit and healthy runners. If two sturdy legs and a decent pair of running shoes don’t guarantee immunity, they help the odds. But what happens when 800 or 1,000 runners congregate for a Sunday race? Or when 29,000 show up for the Thanksgiving Run to Feed the Hungry? Health officials don’t want to think about that. In mid-March they banned organized races until further notice—a prohibition that wiped out the running calendar and threatens to linger into next year. Which means Rich Hanna has time on his hands. Hanna owns Capital Road Race Management, a Sacramento firm that organizes running events and provides everything from timing equipment to T-shirts and medals. With no races to manage and runners to clock, Hanna is a run promoter without a road. “It’s our new reality,” Hanna says. “We were getting ready for the Shamrock, which is run on the Sunday before St. Patrick’s Day. It was Tuesday. We opened up our packet pickup at Fleet Feet, where runners get their timing chip, bib number and T-shirt. On Thursday, we got the word from county public health that we couldn’t do the race. Our business was shuttered.” Scrambling to save the company he built over two decades, Hanna got creative. He figured out ways to let runners compete virtually by registering for races, running alone and sending in their times. “It’s not like the actual race,” he says. “It’s more of an honor system. You become your own race director. You can run the actual course, or any course you like.” Virtual races let race organizers salvage some of their investments—the T-shirts and medals made worthless by canceled races. Some promoters asked runners to defer entry fees to 2021 races. Others postponed events, hoping authorities would allow racing later in 2020—a strategy that now seems futile. Hanna expanded the possibilities of virtual races. He came up with “Shelter In Pace: The Social Distance Series.” It’s three virtual races of 3, 6 and 10 miles. Runners independently finish one segment or all three. They submit times, send in photos and receive a three-piece medal that fits together like a pizza. He’s thinking about scavenger runs, where groups of 10 (the maximum allowed under COVID-19) run around town looking for clues. Hanna says, “It’s possible because you can socially distance while you do it.” Hanna’s most ambitious idea is a creative leap that combines running with virus research. He would gather 200 runners, with each tested for the virus several days before the event. He would start them in waves of 50, masked and 6 feet apart. “At the finish, there’s no gathering. You pick up your medal, get your banana and water, and you’re gone,” he says. “Then you have to get tested again.” The event would create a wealth of data about runners and virus transmission. Hanna hopes to partner with a research outfit or COVID test kit company. “We need to prove we can put on a safe event, where people will not get the virus,” Hanna says. “We would have lots of data on everyone who entered. You know the data junkies would love something like that.” Creativity only goes so far. Hanna has three fulltime employees. The Paycheck Protection Program helped him avoid furloughs. But what he really needs is a full 2021 race calendar, filled with 100 events, like the old days. “Running is going to be in great shape when we get through this,” he says. R.E. Graswich can be reached at regraswich@icloud.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

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Jennifer Kim Sohn Photos by Aniko Kiezel

A Stitch in Time COMMUNITY ART PROJECT SHEDS LIGHT ON REFUGEE CRISIS

ulti-media artist Jennifer Kim Sohn understands that most people have nostalgic associations with crafts like sewing and stitching. There’s a sense of comfort connected to the medium, which Sohn uses to explore serious social and environmental issues.

DB By Daniel Barnes Open Studio

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“I want to bring these difficult issues through the comfortable artform so I can disarm people a little bit,” says Sohn, a South Land Park resident. In previous works, Sohn used fabric frogs to confront environmental pollution and fabric pillows to build awareness of human trafficking. “The images are not in your face. I want the viewers to arrive on their own decision, or at least give them room to reflect on these issues.” Sohn recently completed a largescale community art project called 25 Million Stitches, which draws attention to the global refugee crisis. More than 2,100 volunteers from all over the world created 25 million hand-stitches across approximately

2,000 fabric panels. Each stitch represents one of the estimated 25 million people forced to flee their homelands because of genocide, war, poverty, drought, violence and other threats. “In my own struggle to comprehend this number, I wanted to create a project that would provide meaningful clarity of the number of people affected,” Sohn says. “Participation mushroomed to include people all over the United States and the world—all wanting to voice their support and solidarity for those who have been forced to flee their homes.” Volunteers participated in the project from all 50 states and numerous countries, including India,

Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand, Jordan, Tanzania, Ecuador, China, Netherlands, Iceland, Germany, Poland, Romania, Russia, Uruguay, France, Mexico, Spain, Austria and Canada. Sohn received stitches from Southeast Asian refugees living in the Sacramento area, octogenarian Korean line dancers from Irvine, Palestinian refugees from the United Kingdom, third graders in the Dominican Republic and Waldorf students in Sacramento. The youngest participant was a 5-year-old who lives in San Francisco. “I’ve heard that some people stitch in public places, and it usually generates some conversation,” Sohn

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says. “One part of this project is to build a community of concerned citizens and start a dialogue that I think we need to go beyond this political divide we have on the refugee issue.” The concept for 25 Million Stitches began in 2016 when Sohn began seeing images of Syrian and African refugees on television. “My first reaction was to ignore it because it seemed like it was such a complicated issue,” she says. “But I couldn’t just shake it off, so I started doing sketches of the refugees.” Sohn also began researching the issue and found the United Nations Refugee Agency reports 25.9 million refugees worldwide. “That was just mind-boggling,” she says. “I thought that if I could make art that physically and viscerally represents this number, then that would be a good place to start people to think about this issue, about how big the problem is.” She got people to engage with 25 Million Stitches through word of mouth, initially reaching out to

fellow textile artists. “But I realized it would be a lot more meaningful and impactful if everybody could contribute,” explains Sohn, who drew inspiration and energy when opening the panels she received in the mail. “I’m so humbled when I see panels that clearly took hours and hours to finish.” For her part, Sohn immigrated to America from South Korea as a teenager. She earned her BFA from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburg and her MFA from Stanford University, and she started working as a graphic designer. After a nearly 20-year professional absence, Sohn took a fiber sculpture course taught by Carole Beadle at the College of Marin. The class inspired her to become a fabric artist. “I like the fact that fabric comes with a story that I can spin,” she says. “I think what I try to say with my art is not very different from what we read in our daily news. It’s usually trying to bring light into some of the dark stories.”

Sohn plans to show the finished work at Verge Center for the Arts in Sacramento, where she is a resident artist. “It’s a huge space, and we want to hang the panels. It would be like a kelp forest that you walk through,” she notes. The show is scheduled to open June 12, 2021. “The goal of the installation is to create an experiential textile art piece that allows participants to walk among the panels in order to feel and see the enormity of the number of people dislocated from their homes,” Sohn says. “Textile media uniquely exudes a traditional feel of home, which in this exhibit is juxtaposed amongst a message showing those who no longer have their homes.” For more information, visit jenniferkimsohn.com. Daniel Barnes can be reached at danielebarnes@hotmail.com. Previous profiles can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

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Fully

Baked PANDEMIC SHOWS VALUE OF THE BAKERY

ith each month it becomes more difficult to see even a few weeks into the future when it comes to the restaurant scene. We’ve lost beloved favorites. Local treasures have reopened only to shut down again within weeks. Some landlords have been graciously flexible with rental and lease terms. Others have not. It’s with confidence, though, that I say the following local institutions will still be plying their wares well after this column comes out. The humble bakery—set up for takeaway business and designed for in-home consumption—is an integral part of the community.

Estelle Bakery & Pâtisserie Photo by Linda Smolek

ESTELLE BAKERY & PÂTISSERIE

GS By Greg Sabin Restaurant Insider

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Estelle—Downtown and on Arden Way—brings a decidedly French impression on its baked goods. Starting with a copious collection of macarons in every color in the rainbow and then a few that only a baker’s imagination could conjure, the Gallic tilt to the offerings is up front for sure. Madeleines, croissants and quiches all delight with obvious craftsmanship. But, for my money, the brioche breakfast sandwich is in another league. What better role for a brioche roll than to support a slightly runny egg topped with swiss cheese, French ham and aioli? None, I say. None.

Freeport Bakery

Estelle Bakery & Pâtisserie Photo by Linda Smolek

Freeport Bakery

FREEPORT BAKERY Freeport Bakery, owned by Marlene and Walter Goetzeler since the 1980s, puts out special occasion treats, such as cakes for birthdays and weddings, yule logs for the holidays, and a slew of brightly decorated cookies and sweets. If you’re not a frequent morning visitor, you might not know that Freeport Bakery also serves a delectable “morning bun” that is the perfect combination of flaky crust and slightly sweet glaze. Or you might not know that most mornings you can find dozens of other pastries for the (home) office. With the same exquisite skill employed on every special occasion creation, Freeport creates morning baked goods deserving of special occasions all their own.

FARIA BAKERY Faria Bakery is one of the area’s newest bakeries. Located on Broadway in Oak Park, Faria turns out a carefully crafted, limited menu of gorgeous breads and pastries. It’s what I call a

savory bakery, with a few sweet items but a focus on breads and an occasional pizza night. The seasonal Danish (apricot when I last visited) was not only gorgeous, but fundamentally excellent in flavors and textures. From the beautifully articulated slices of apricot to the perfectly seasoned cheese, from the golden-brown pastry crust to the subtle dash of spices elevating the flavors, it was a work of art.

ETTORE’S EUROPEAN BAKERY & RESTAURANT Ettore’s has been a local institution for decades. When the organization filed for bankruptcy in 2018, longtime employee and manager Lisa Calk bought the brand and continues on at the original Fair Oaks Boulevard location. To the regular customer, very little has changed. Ettore’s puts out incredible croissants, decadent coffee cake, sumptuously gorgeous cakes for any occasion and flaky cinnamon rolls sure to please. With Ettore’s focus

more on the restaurant side than most bakeries, it has enough outdoor seating to keep up with demand and stick to the rigorous conditions of our current dining rules.

LA BOU La Bou, it’s safe to say, is an integral part of the local food scene. So integral it’s easy to take for granted. When I speak to friends who grew up in Sacramento in the ‘80s, they talk about La Bou. They talk about the ham and cheese croissant (the world’s best? We may never know). They talk about the dill dressing (how can something so simple be so good?). And they talk about how almost every recipe seems unchanged from when Reagan was in office (they’re not wrong). If there’s a La Bou near you right now (trust me, there is), head on over and treat yourself.

PICK-UP & DELIVERY I also want to call out those souls who are getting creative during the

COVID-era and creating incredible baked goods for pick-up and delivery. Dessert by Jackie Robinson is delightful. Robinson, the former pastry chef for Bacon & Butter, puts out bagels, scones, cinnamon rolls, cakes and more for delivery or pickup. Check out her Instagram or website at dessertbyjr. com. Similarly, Terri Does Desserts puts out lovely sweet cakes (her signature item is the German chocolate) for any occasion, from birthdays to any Tuesday afternoon. The bakery also supplied desserts for one of my favorite spots, Louisiana Heaven. The care and craft is evident in the product. The flavors couldn’t be more comforting. Visit terridoesdesserts.com.

Greg Sabin can be reached at gregsabin@hotmail.com. Our Inside Sacramento Restaurant Guide and previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento. com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

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Have ‘The Talk’ ADVANCE DIRECTIVES EASE BURDEN ON FAMILIES

ust before the quarantine started, my wife Becky and I sat with a lawyer redoing our estate plan. “I love that word ‘estate,’” I told the lawyer. “It makes me feel like I own the Ponderosa.” “Well, you don’t,” Becky said, using her no-nonsense teacher tone. “Right,” added the attorney. “It’s pretty much just a will.” She paused. “But there’s more. You’ll need to do an advance directive.” As a hospice chaplain, I knew this was crucial paperwork that would spell out my health care wishes should I ever be unable to state them clearly. I definitely wanted to get this done because I’d seen the heartache caused by several patients who lacked them. The moment triggered a lot of memories, but in particular I remembered visiting one patient during my days in 2013 working as a per-diem chaplain at the Sacramento VA Medical Center. Joining me for the visit was our

NB By Norris Burkes Spirit Matters

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Palliative Care Team consisting of a psychologist, social worker and doctor. Our patient was an 84-year-old farmer and Korean War veteran whom I’ll call Ken. As we walked into the room, Ken’s wife of 51 years stood to shake our hands with a self-assured grip. The woman, likely in her 70s, had the well-heeled look of a senior model. Ken, the victim of multiple strokes, did little to greet us, preferring instead the revolving wheel of a TV game show. With introductions made, we pushed our chairs into a semicircle around Ken’s bed. Our psychologist, a ponytailed man pushing 60, began with screening questions directed toward Ken’s wife. Had her husband been able to dress, feed and bathe himself? Did she think he had much understanding of what was going on with his body? “No” to all questions. The doctor then assumed control of the meeting by picking up her stethoscope. She was an athletic woman who’d had some luck cheating her 50s with youthful blue eyes and a pixie cut. She bent over Ken, searching his expression for understanding, but she saw little to indicate he was aware of his surroundings. “He really needs a feeding tube,” the doctor concluded. “Then let’s do that,” the wife said. Actually, there were few options left for the old farmer. He’d had multiple hospitalizations and suffered several recent bouts of pneumonia. Each

illness was followed by weeks in a rehabilitation facility in the Bay Area. With great sensitivity, the doctor told the woman that even with the feeding tube, Ken would likely choke, aspirating his saliva. In addition, he’d have to be restrained or heavily sedated because stroke-induced confusion would cause Ken to pull out the tube. “Is this the way your husband wanted to live his later years?” the psychologist asked. “No,” she said. “I suppose it really isn’t.” “Sounds like he values the quality of his life,” I reflected. She nodded. “He knows that heaven awaits.” The hour-long meeting ended when Ken’s wife agreed to let us implement comfort-care measures. Comfort care means that every person taking care of Ken would adopt a new goal—one designed not to make Ken get better, but to make him feel better. Our goal shifted to helping him live as well as possible for as long as possible. With the help of social work, psychology and chaplaincy, we would now care for Ken’s whole person. The real reason behind this difficult meeting was that Ken had failed to have “the talk” with his wife. Like many people, he had failed to discuss crucial questions with loved ones prior to arriving on his deathbed. Those questions are contained in the advance directive (sometimes called a living will). An advance directive is the

document that directs the doctors to follow the wishes of patients who are unable to speak for themselves. These quarantine days provide you with a crucial time to have “the talk.” If you don’t have a written directive, or you haven’t appointed someone who can confidently speak for you, then doctors will be obligated to do everything possible to save your life, even if “everything” means a painful delay of your death. Do you really want to be on a respirator for untold days? Or can you imagine a limit? Ken was well loved by family and fellow vets, but the truth is that a well-written advance directive could have eased the burden on his family and ensured that he’d have spent his final days with the dignity of his choosing. If you don’t have an advance directive, I urge you to get started today. For information and to access state-specific documents, visit www. caringinfo.org. Norris Burkes can be reached at comment@thechaplain.net. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. Burkes is available for public speaking at civic organizations, places of worship, veterans groups and more. For details and fees, visit thechaplain.net. n

ACROSS 1 ___ Gump Shrimp Co. 6 Competitive personality 11 Chop, as timber 14 “Sounds like ___!” 15 Goods for sale 16 Singer DiFranco 17 *Treasures stored at the Tower of London 19 Blue 20 Wail like a wolf 21 Coffee dispenser 22 “Here’s my Instagram handle!” 24 Remote batteries 25 A female one doesn’t have antlers 26 Small sprites 28 Reliable 30 *Easy to trick 31 Site of the Winter X Games 32 Model Delevingne 33 “Hey, over here!” 34 First to arrive, say, or a hint to each starred answer’s ﬁrst few letters 37 Country singer McEntire 4/4

40 Like many a teen’s skin 41 Largest dolphins 45 *Mix, like oil and vinegar 47 Corolla or Tacoma 48 “She’s not ___ anymore” 49 Mother to North and Saint 50 On the ___ (escaping) 51 Weasley family’s owl 52 This-that connector 53 Preﬁx for “chrome” 54 “___ see it ...” 55 *Television show about Bugs 59 Trike rider 60 “Et tu, ___?” 61 Justice Kagan 62 Lead-in to “Ball” or “Cap” 63 They’re abominable 64 Blends DOWN 1 Dominican social dance 2 Outcries 3 Goes viral 4 Cry loudly 5 Journalist Curry 6 Dance like Miley Cyrus 7 (I’m so-o-o tired!) 8 Letters before a check mark, at an airport

9 Its electric variety is actually a knife ﬁsh 10 Attack 11 Claims, with “on” 12 Glossy coatings 13 Far apart, as eyes 18 When the dog days start 23 Hang on a clothesline 25 Sicilian peak 26 Fuzzy toy that was supposedly intelligent 27 Jai ___ 29 Dictionary crossreference 30 In a happy way: Var. 32 Rocky face 35 Agitate 36 Part of a ﬂoor plan

37 Cooks, like some leftovers 38 “SelfReliance” writer 39 Chipotle order 42 Mustard, for example 43 All wrapped up 44 Pastries often served with chutney 46 Kind of date that might cause a dumping? 47 Neat 49 Reﬂex hammer targets 52 Opposed to 53 Stubborn animal 56 Catan resource 57 Not safe? 58 President pro ___

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Traffic

Stop DO D O WE W E NEED N E E D POLICE POLICE TO W TO WRITE RITE T TICKETS? ICKETS?

raffic stops are the way most people encounter police. About 25 million such contacts occurred in 2015, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Should those interactions always include an officer with a gun? One consequence of current traffic law enforcement is that Americans, including a disproportionate number of Black citizens, have wound up dead after being stopped. The instigation is often minor: a broken taillight, an improper lane change. Many cities, including Berkeley, Los Angeles and Sacramento, are changing or reconsidering whether armed police should respond to service calls for homelessness, mental health issues and other non-violent situations. This has been in response to the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police. Traffic enforcement has been the province of police for a long time, but

S W By Walt SeLfert Getting There

POC SEP n 20

it’s a duty that could be managed differently. Police once wrote most parking tickets. Today, unarmed attendants handle parking enforcement in many cities. Traffic enforcement should be a bulwark of public safety since crashes create far more victims than violent crimes. Yet police often make traffic enforcement a low priority. Police traffic teams are frequently understaffed and underfunded. Police do write tickets for moving violations. The revenue from fines can be important to cities. Yet drivers commonly break the law and there is no certitude traffic rules will be enforced fairly. The result is low levels of voluntary compliance. There are ways to take guns out of the enforcement equation. Automated speed and red light cameras could be on duty 24/7, free of bias, eliminating the hazards of stops for police and drivers. Speed cameras are proven and highly effective. But fewer than 20 states allow speed cameras. They are illegal in California, primarily due to law enforcement union opposition. Better street designs could also discourage speeding or other dangerous behaviors. Traffic enforcement doesn’t have to be a police job. It could be unbundled from police responsibilities. Berkeley

is moving forward with plans to have unarmed civilians in a new city department enforce traffic and parking laws. Other cities could do the same. Non-sworn, unarmed “community safety officers” could operate at a far lower cost and be dedicated full time to traffic safety. Police could be called upon only when situations, such as DUIs, warrant it. Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Jose police unions criticized Berkeley’s initiative, saying, “We do not believe that the public wants lax enforcement … by non-sworn individuals.” There are issues with civilian enforcement. Foremost is the tremendous discretion that police officers have regarding traffic law enforcement. Discretion would not disappear if civilians did the work. To reduce systemic racism, discretion must be limited. Our current system effectively gives police the powers of judge and jury, since few citations are overturned. Yet the decision to issue a citation is affected by a driver’s race, gender, age, residence, privilege and demeanor. A problem with unarmed personnel doing traffic enforcement is that drivers themselves may be armed and violent, though FBI data indicate routine traffic stops are rarely dangerous for police.

Because of the abundance of guns in America, police are on edge when approaching a vehicle. If drivers knew that “community safety officers” were unarmed, the danger might be reduced. But there would be no guarantees. The California Highway Patrol is the second-largest law enforcement organization in California, behind LAPD. While patrol officers have other responsibilities, their primary focus is traffic enforcement on freeways, state highways and unincorporated areas. The CHP makes a point of recruiting ex-military personnel and invests heavily in training, including firearms. But do CHP officers need a Smith & Wesson to write a ticket? Ideal traffic enforcement should be safe, certain, unbiased and cost effective. The goal should be safe travel for everyone. If we aren’t there yet, how do we get there? Walt Seifert is executive director of Sacramento Trailnet, an organization devoted to promoting greenways with paved trails. He can be reached at bikeguy@surewest.net. Previous columns can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

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HouseEstimation@gmail.com

SOLD in 7 days!

Growing or extended family? Empty-nesters? Desired South Land Park Area! Needing more space, or wanting less to maintain, housing-needs change. I can help you â&#x20AC;&#x153;Right-Sizeâ&#x20AC;? whatever your reason may be... making it a successful transition from your existing home to your â&#x20AC;&#x153;Right-Sizeâ&#x20AC;? home!

Martha Macias REALTORÂŽ

Masters Club, Life Member

SAR Leadership Academy

(916) 616-6600 Cell

(707) 280-6179 Cell

DRE #01263611

Member

DRE #02030590

ÂŽ

25+ Years of Experience

Broker Associate

RealtorEFerguson@gmail.com

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Fill in your address, loan amount, and your email... You will instantly receive your FREE Home Profit Report.

Mary Jew Lee

9162 Bader Rd, Elk Grove Apx 3,364 sf on Apx 2.5 acres! LAKEFRONT HOME, GATED RIVERLAKE COMMUNITY!

Go to... www.HouseEstimation.com H E i i

UCLA, UCD, CSUS - Degrees in Business Administration, Accounting & Psychology. Celebrating 20 Years in Real Estate!

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re Your Neighbor â&#x20AC;˘ Located on Lake Greenhaven Deemed Essential Services and Here To Serve! An independently owned and operated member of BHH Affiliates, LLC. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices symbol are registered service marks of HomeServices of America, Inc.ÂŽ If your home is currently listed with a Broker, this is not intended as a solicitation. Equal Housing Opportunity.

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