Winters Express: Wednesday, August 28, 2024

Fire chief responds to allegation of secret meetings

By Adilia Watson Express staff writer

After residents accused the city’s fire chief of having secret conversations with local landowners regarding a controversial measure earlier this month, the official formally denied it and explained how the obligations and needs are different between the department and the fire protection district.

An attendee at the Aug. 6, city council meeting asked the Winters Fire

Department Chief Jack S. Snyder III if he met with private landowners to discuss Proposition 218, legislation that would approve an assessment to fund new staff at the local fire department and improve fire suppression, outside of a public forum. It would also create an avenue for the department to request an increase in property taxes up to 3 percent for services.

Since the eruption, City Manager

See CHIEF, Page 5

Elementary students raise money for preschool

Migrant students experience college through residency program

By Logan Chrisp Express staff writer

Four students from Winters Joint Unified School District had the opportunity to experience college life firsthand through a two-week residential program at Fresno State University, funded by migrant grant funds. The two-week residency program aimed to immerse students in a collegiate setting, giving them a glimpse of university life while still fostering their academic and personal development.

The program came to fruition after Winters JUSD reapplied for migrant grant funds and collaborated with the Butte County Office of Education, which oversees migrant education for the region. The district

worked closely with the Migrant Parent Advisory Committee to identify the needs of migrant students, leading to the revival of the Fresno State residency program.

“We spent some time in the spring working really closely with our Migrant Parent Advisory Committee to identify what the needs were,” Assistant Superintendent Phoebe Girimonte said. “One of the challenges in this era has been we have incoming streams of funds to provide for enrichment, like the Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELOP), however, the intent of migrant dollars is really to go above and beyond and provide needed supports for students who experience transiency as a result of being in migrant families. And so our parents told us loud and clear that they really wanted their students to have an opportunity to experience what it was

like to be in a collegiate setting.”

Delia Garcia Espinoza, a key organizer of the program, played an instrumental role in coordinating the logistics and ensuring the students’ participation. She even transported the students to and from the program, but also reassured parents who were concerned about their kids being away for the two-week duration of the program.

Garcia Espinoza shared about some of the opportunities that students were able to experience during the program,

“There were so many activities, including enrichment opportunities. You can see on one side, one of the students putting together a computer, and at the end, the student had the opportunity to bring the computer home and refurbish it,” Garcia Espinoza said. “Imagine, you know, engineering.

See COLLEGE, Page 3

Weather

Supervisors, farmers discuss agricultural issues at Western Yolo Ag Roundtable

By Logan Chrisp Express staff writer

Yolo County Supervisors Angel Barajas and Lucas Frerichs hosted the second annual Western Yolo Ag Roundtable at the Capay Valley Health and Community Center on Tuesday, July 2.

The event aimed to strengthen communication and build relationships between the representatives of the farmers and agricultural producers. The supervisors hoped the event could help them understand the concerns of the Ag community in Yolo County, and facilitate ways to address their needs.

Paul Muller of Full Belly Farm in Guinda, attended the meeting and appreciated the supervisors’ efforts to reach out to the agri-

cultural community in Yolo County.

“It was good dialogue, important dialogue, and it was great that Supervisor Barajas made the time to do it… I think farmers appreciated having time to sit down and talk directly with supervisors,” Muller said.

There were three panels featuring speakers across the industry to facilitate communication between supervisors and the agricultural community of Yolo County. Issues that agricultural workers currently face in Yolo County were the main topic of discussion among the three panels.

The first panel, the Ag Worker Panel, featured Rodrigo Lopez, Yolo County’s Agricultural Labor Coordinator, and Yolo Food

Bank’s Karen Baker and Maria Segoviano. Part of the discussion was the current food insecurities that farm workers are facing, presenting findings from the 2024 Food Access Survey Report.

“I think that most folks were kind of surprised at the level of food insecurity that might exist in the county, you know, with the food in food banks figures. There were a number of farmers in the room who are donating to the food bank. And so I think that relationship is a really strong, positive one in the farming community, and the Food Bank’s an essential function of assuring that we’re meeting some of the hunger issues in the county,” said Muller.

See FARMERS, Page 5

Courtesy photo

Yolo County Supervisors Angel Barajas (District 5) and Lucas Frerichs (District 2) hosted the second Western Yolo Ag Roundtable on July 2, at the Capay Valley Health and Community Center. The roundtable’s goal was to strengthen relationships with the agricultural community in western Yolo County, present current information on programs and services and provide a forum for discussion.

Courtesy photo

Winters K-Kids Club member Vivian Serratos (front left) presented Winters State Preschool Director Bea Jordan (front right) with a donation check at the Aug 15, school board meeting. Winters K-Kids members, a youth service leadership program sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Winters, hosted a fundraising campaign as their community service project for the 2023–24 school year so preschool staff could utilize funds to buy new supplies. Winters K-Kids raised $250 for the Winters State Preschool. Winters Joint Unified School District trustees unanimously approved to accept the donation following the presentation.

Apply for fall OneCreek Seasonal Restoration Technician Program

Special to the Express

Putah Creek Council’s OneCreek Seasonal Restoration Technician Program is a paid, part-time, seasonal position designed to give entry-level participants experience working with local partners and stakeholders within the Putah Creek watershed. With the help of partner agencies, the OneCreek Program provides work experience and skill development in fieldwork days and nursery work days.

The Fall 2024 OneCreek season runs for eight weeks from the week of Sept. 23 through the week of Nov. 11. The time commitment is between 6 to 10 hours

a week and includes a combination of onsite fieldwork and independent readings, depending on participants’ availability. Previous restoration experience is not required and applicants do not need to be enrolled students to participate.

Train and network with industry professionals selected for their expertise in habitat restoration and maintenance, outdoor recreation management, native plant propagation, and nursery operations. Technicians receive an introduction to restoration and conservation career paths from professionals in the Putah Creek watershed and surrounding area. These experts will

give guided presentations and engage in discussions about the concepts learned. Work days will be held primarily outdoors within Solano and Yolo Counties and vary depending on the day. Transportation to the work site is not provided. Applicants may apply via Google Forms, found online, and submit their resume and cover letter to the Education Program Manager, Brenda Brinkhous-Hatch, at brenda@putahcreekcouncil.org and Executive Director, Phil Stevens, at phil@ putahcreekcouncil. org

More information is available at putahcreekcouncil.org/who-we-are/ job-opportunities.

Solano supervisors approve county’s 1st EV policy

By Todd R. Hansen McNaughton Media

Solano County Su-

pervisor Mitch Mashburn said Tuesday, Aug. 13 it is going to take a fleet of employees to manage a fleet of nearly 900 county vehicles when fully converted from gas-powered to electric.

The board chairman lamented the “hidden costs” in meeting the state directives on electric-vehicle conversions.

“Right now I am putting in the rules on how to operate and I don’t know how much it’s going to cost,” said Mashburn, while not directly stating it, is clearly not in favor with Gov. Gavin Newsom’s push for electric vehicle mandates.

Some of those other costs include the likely need to hire more enforcement officers in the Sheriff’s Office to protect against vandalism, plus added fencing, equipment and facility costs.

Supervisor Erin Hannigan, who owns two electric vehicles, was ecstatic about the board action to approve the county’s first electric vehicle policy for use and fees. She encouraged everyone to go electric to improve the quality of air and environment.

“I have been waiting for a policy since I got my first electric vehicle,” said Han-

nigan, expressing her frustrations about how the public abuses their use charger stations.

Megan Greve, director of General Services, described the unregulated situation as the “wild, wild West.”

No one spoke during the public hearing on setting fees at 39 cents per kilowatt hour for Level II charging station and 49 cents for Level III stations. There will be a two-hour charging limit. An island fee will be added in the near future for those who exceed that time limit, Greve told the board. The time limits will likely change with the faster Level III stations being dropped to one hour after island fees can be established.

The county will get 7 cents in revenue sharing on each kilowatt hour.

Greve said the county has entered into a five-year contract with EVCS for the operation and maintenance of the EV charging network. EVCS is contracted to build 26 Level II chargers and 26 Level III chargers. However, it has not secured enough funding to build out the entire network.

The county is working with Engie, which is heading Solano’s giant energy conversion program, for installing additional charging ports.

Eight existing Lev-

el II charging ports – six from the county administration parking garage and two from William J. Carroll Government Center in Vacaville – will be repurposed for county fleet-specific uses. The chargers at the parking garage and the William J. Carroll center will be replaced and become part of the pay-for-use network.

There are 14 ports designated for county use only, and the possibility of an additional 90 ports if infrastructure funding can be secured.

The total number of planned public-facing EV charging ports is 110 to be installed as funding is finalized. Solano County also was awarded a grant from PG&E to fully install four Level III chargers at the Fairfield Library, which was completed by EVCS.

The biggest challenge for the county is to come up with the funding to install the needed charger stations for its General Services fleet of cars and trucks, most of which also will be available to the public.

Those state goals include:

• 100 percent instate sales of new passenger cars and trucks to be zero-emission by 2035.

• 100 percent medium- and heavy-duty vehicles in California to be zero-emission by 2045.

• 100 percent drayage trucks to be zero-emission by 2035. Drayage is a trucking service that connects different types of shipping, such as ocean freight or air freight.

• Develop and construct zero-emission vehicle fueling stations, and expand access to ZEV charging for all Californians.

Yolo County hosts second Farmworker Resource Fair

Special to the Express

The Yolo County Health and Human Services Agency, YoloWorks!, and the Yolo County Workforce Innovation Board announced the second annual Yolo County Farmworker Resource Fair. This year’s fair will feature more than 30 regional organizations committed to supporting local farmworkers and their families.

This event runs from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 6, at Woodland Community College, at 2300 E Gibson Rd. in Woodland.

“Farmworkers are the backbone of our agricultural sector, and it is our responsibility to ensure they have access to the resources and support they need,” said Lucas Frerichs, chair of the Yolo County Board of Supervisors. “This fair unites a range of services designed to support these essential workers and their families, underscoring our commitment to their well-being and our community’s dedication to supporting those who play an indispensable role in

our local and global food systems.”

Yolo County is home to more than 6,000 farmworkers who play a crucial role in both our local economy and the global food supply. The annual resource fair is intended to connect these essential workers with a variety of services and support. Attendees will have access to resources including food assistance, counseling, health and medical care, legal support, safety and housing, child and family services, youth development, labor rights, employment opportunities, vocational training and public benefits.

The Yolo Food Bank will contribute food box donations, and Yolobus has generously provided bus passes to support the transportation of attendees.

Farmworkers often face significant challenges during the off-season, which spans from October to March. Many experience unemployment and financial hardship during this period. While some seek

unemployment benefits, not all are eligible, leading to further financial strain. This resource fair is designed to offer support and connect farmworkers with year-round resources and assistance.

“Supporting our farmworkers is not just a matter of appreciation but of responsibility, “ said Yolo County District 5 Supervisor Angel Barajas. “This resource fair is a crucial step in ensuring that those who contribute so much to our community receive the resources and support they need.”

The event features cuisine from Las Brasas and live music performances by Los Tres de Winters. Farmworkers are encouraged to register in advance at www.YoloCounty.gov/ TrabajadoresAgricolas or at tinyurl.com/ YoloFWRF. For information, contact Rodrigo Lopez, agricultural labor coordinator with the Yolo County HHSA, at 530-702-1790 or email to Rodrigo.Lopez@ YoloCounty.gov.

Help clean up local areas at Coastal Cleanup Day

Special to the Express

The cities, wastewater agencies and the County of Solano will join forces with the Solano Resource Conservation District for the 40th annual California Coastal Cleanup Day. Local events are planned to clean up areas at Lake Solano, Putah Creek and Lake Berryessa.

Since the event’s launch in 1985, about 1.8 million volunteers have helped remove more than 27 million pounds of trash from thousands of miles of California’s beaches and inland shorelines. On Saturday, Sept. 21, supporting agencies throughout Solano County are hosting more than 50 cleanup sites for the 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. event. Solano RCD provides county-wide event coordination.

More than 2,500 local volunteers participate in Coastal Cleanup Day events in Solano County every year. They meet at creeks, parks, open spaces, city trails and trash hot spots and work together to remove thousands of plastic cigarette filters and thousands of pounds of plastic bottles, single-use food containers and wrappers, grocery bags, and more. Solano County Cleanup organizers strive to eliminate waste created by the cleanup itself. They ask volunteers to bring reusable cleanup supplies-like work gloves, water bottles, or buckets-to help make the sites they work at zero trash gen-

erators. If volunteers can’t bring supplies, each site will have materials on hand.

The Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta runs along the County’s southern boundary, draining over 40 percent of California’s runoff water to the Pacific Ocean. Without concerted efforts like Coastal Cleanup, trash and chemical pollution generated by county residents flow into storm drains and other waterways to eventually enter the Sacramento River, Suisun Marsh, Carquinez Strait or San Pablo Bay and then drains to the ocean. Eighty percent of plastic in our oceans comes from cities. Removing that trash upstream–from our city streets and creeks–helps prevent trash at its source, protecting birds and other marine animals, keeping our food chains protected while also beautifying local communities.

Coastal Cleanup Day volunteers contribute to the world’s largest database on plastic pollution on land and in the ocean. This database is used

to develop pollution management policies such as the plastic bag and straw bans enacted in California throughout the past decade.

Local Solano County events are part of a statewide effort that involves more than 1,000 sites throughout California. Coastal Cleanup is the state’s largest annual volunteer and data collection event and Solano County is proud to participate and take care of our lands and ocean. For residents who want to put more time into cleaning up our shorelines, the Coastal Commission introduced a self-guided program in 2020 to allow participation across the entire month of September. Last year, more than 45,000 volunteers dedicated their time to cleanup activities over the course of September, including the time spent at cleanup sites on Coastal Cleanup Day itself. You can find a complete listing of Solano County partners and community cleanups, visit cleanupsolano.org.

Shawn King/Courtesy photo

A member of the Monticello Ski Club organizes trash at Steale Canyon Resort at Lake Berryessa in part of the

La ciudad solicitará subvención para financiar construcción del centro para personas mayores Eventos hispanos

Por Logan Chrisp Traducido por Carol Alfonso

El

Ayuntamiento

del Winters City Council aprobó una solicitud de subvención para financiar el centro para personas mayores del Winters Senior Center en la reunión del pasado 6 de Agosto. La subvención en bloque para el desarrollo comunitario proporcionaría 3.25 millones de dólares para la construcción del centro para personas mayores. Se estima que el Winters Senior Center costará un total de 5.5 millones de dólares y, si se concede la subvención, se necesitarán fondos adicionales para completar el proyecto, que actualmente está previsto que tenga 7,500 pies cuadrados. “Una parte provendrá de la subvención y otra parte se puede obtener de los ingresos del programa,” dijo la directora de subvenciones, Colleen Brock.

La ciudad intentó anteriormente construir el Winters Senior Center en el 2022, a través de un proyecto combinado con Domus Development Corporation para construir los apartamentos para personas mayores de Blue Mountain Terrace y el edificio del centro para personas mayores. Sin embargo, debido a la financiación insuficiente y otros problemas relacionados con el COVID, la ciudad tuvo dificultades para adquirir los derechos de los planos del centro para personas mayores previamente aprobados. Aunque los apartamentos para personas mayores de Blue Terrace se completaron en Junio del 2022, el Winters Senior Center se eliminó del proyecto y la subvención designada para financiar el proyecto expiró en Marzo del 2024.

“Como saben, esta ha sido una solicitud constante y una gran necesidad de la comunidad durante más de 10 años,” dijo Brock. Ahora, con los

Some of the students had the opportunity to work with robotics, and another student from Winters had the opportunity to participate in guitar lessons. At the end, the student brought the guitar home.”

Other activities included visual arts, where students created collages and paintings, and salsa dancing. “It was an amazing program for two weeks,” Garcia Espinoza said. “At the beginning, the parents were a little hesitant, questioning whether or not their children were going to be able to stay for the duration of the program. Imagine two weeks, and they endured the program, and they were happy.”

Garcia Espinoza noted the students’ excitement upon returning home, saying, “One of the highlights was when they saw me there to pick them up.

planes recién elaborados, la ciudad espera que un “proyecto listo para comenzar” acelere el proceso de aprobación. Durante la sesión de audiencia pública, Sandy Vickrey, residente y miembro del Comité de recaudación de fondos del Winters Senior Center, felicitó al administrador de la ciudad Jeremy Craig, a Brock y al director de obras públicas Eric Lucero por la cantidad de progreso que han podido iniciar este año.

“Hemos avanzado más en los últimos dos meses de lo que probablemente hayamos avanzado en los últimos dos años,” dijo Vickrey. Craig le dijo a los miembros del ayuntamiento que parte del

“Hemos avanzado más en los últimos dos meses de lo que probablemente hayamos avanzado en los últimos dos años.”

Sandy Vickrey, miembro del comité

contrato de la ciudad con el arquitecto es proporcionar una estimación preliminar de los costos. La cantidad presentada se basó en estimaciones anteriores aumentadas en función de los costos relacionados con la inflación.

“De manera preliminar, indicaron que no creen que estemos fuera de lugar, creen que podría ser un poco menos de hecho, pero creen que estamos en algún lugar cerca de lo esperado. Pero ese proceso se realizará en las próximas semanas y tendremos una mejor idea de lo que

They came running. I guess, seeing a familiar face, they were hugging me, and they were happy.”

The program’s objectives included fostering academic and personal development to prepare for college and future success. It also aimed to help students explore university life, strengthen their academic skills, develop social skills, and prepare for their future. “The Fresno State residency program was an amazing opportunity for our students, and I’m very

será.”

Según Craig, la ciudad todavía está esperando que los arquitectos terminen su proceso de revisión para proporcionar el monto total final. Los miembros del ayuntamiento de la ciudad expresaron su preocupación por el aumento de precio desde la última vez que vieron el centro para personas mayores en la agenda el 16 de Abril pasado. Desde esa reunión, el costo estimado para completar el centro ha aumentado en $500,000. El alcalde Bill Biasi preguntó si se incluían algunos de los otros costos, como la gestión y administración del proyecto, a lo que el administrador de la ciudad confirmó que era cierto.

La miembro del consejo municipal Carol Scianna pidió una aclaración sobre qué fuentes de financiación diferentes estaban contribuyendo. Brock identificó que una parte provendría de la subvención y otra del fondo de programación. Biasi dijo que, como agencia pública, la ciudad debe seguir pautas y procesos específicos que pueden aumentar los costos.

El miembro del consejo Richard Casavecchia expresó sus inquietudes sobre de dónde obtendría la ciudad los fondos para pagar el costo restante y pidió que el personal de la ciudad tenga un plan sobre cómo se gastará el dinero para cuando tengan que decir sí o no.

“Me preocupa que lleguemos al punto en que tengamos que gastar el dinero y no sepamos cómo vamos a encontrar otro millón de dólares,” dijo Casavecchia.

Craig dijo que pueden comenzar a explorar otras opciones de financiamiento una vez que obtengan el total estimado final.

“Todavía no podemos comenzar esa conversación porque no tengo una cifra que pedir,” dijo Craig.

happy that we had the opportunity to participate,” Garcia Espinoza said. “Winters was there, and the logo of the Winters school district was there, so we’re becoming, you know, not just local, but recognized at the state level.”

The Fresno State Program was one of two opportunites that sent Winters High School students to colleges this summer. The MyJTC program sent ninth-graders to spend four days at UCLA learn about and experience life at the university.

Orihuela abre su estudio al público en Winters

Especial para el Express

Local Rodolfo Orihuela, invita a los residentes de los Condados de Yolo y Solano a participar en el Festival de Estudios Abiertos (organizado por Verge Center for the Arts). El evento se llevará a cabo los días 14 y 15 de septiembre, de las 10am a las 5pm, en el estudio de Rodolfo Orihuela ubicado en el 854 W Main St. en Winters. Este evento es gratis. La entrada al estudio será por el callejón de la Niemann St. El arte será expuesto en el jardín y su estudio. Se servirán algunos aperitivos y bebidas.

Sus pinturas han sido inspiradas por la naturaleza que rodea a la ciudad de Winters y los extensos campos del Condado de Yolo. Rodolfo Orihuela nació en Cuernavaca, Mexico inmigrando a los Estados Unidos en 1975. En su juventud, Orihuela estudió arte en el Instituto de Bellas Artes en Cuernavaca, teniendo como profesor a Guillermo Monroy, uno de los jóvenes asistentes de Frida Kahlo. Posteriormente, en Arizona recibió su Bachillerato en Artes y su Credencial como maestro de Educación Bilingüe

de la Universidad de Arizona en Tucson. Orihuela, su esposa Kathy y sus hijos Joel y Carla se mudaron a Sacramento, California en 1986. En el año 2010 se jubila de C. K. McClatchy High School donde enseñó español por 18 años. Una vez jubilado, Orihuela decide retomar su pasión como artista tomando clases de arte en Sacramento City College. Y, con los años, ha desarrollado su estilo artístico capturando imágenes del campo, naturaleza muerta y, de vez en cuando, la imagen de una mascota.

La ciudad de Winters y Winters Comunidad Corazón PRESENTA

Entretenimiento gratuito para toda la familia. Presentación de Mariachis, Folklórico, Jimena Izquierdo y banda Los Covas 7:30pm-10:30pm • ¡Preventa de platos de Carnitas $20, $22 en la puerta!

Foto de cortesía

Artista local, Rodolfo Orihuela, invita a los residentes de los Condados de Yolo y Solano a participar en el Festival de Estudios Abiertos en 14 y 15 de septiembre.

What a difference from 40 years ago. This picture shows

Winters Public Safety Report logs

cident with injuries

~5:53 p.m., Jefferson Street, Good intent call – other

Aug. 14: 9:59 a.m., Eisenhower Way, EMS call – excluding vehicle accident with injury

~11:47 a.m., E. Main Street, EMS call – excluding vehicle accident with injury

~6:41 p.m., E. Baker Street, False alarm or false call – other

~8:36 p.m., Manzanita Way, EMS call – excluding vehicle accident with injury

~9:14 p.m., County Road 31, Motor vehicle accident with no injuries.

Aug. 15: 5:54 a.m., Jefferson Street, Medical assist – assist EMS crew

~11:31 a.m., Grant Avenue, EMS call –excluding vehicle accident with injury

~4:25 p.m., Grant Avenue, EMS call –excluding vehicle accident with injury

Aug. 16: 7:13 a.m., Hemenway Street, False alarm or false call – other

~9:25 a.m., Morgan Street, EMS call – excluding vehicle accident with injury

~11:23 a.m., Jefferson Street, EMS call – excluding vehicle accident with injury

~2:25 p.m., Highway 128, Motor vehicle ac-

Aug. 17: 5:32 a.m., Putah Creek Road, Outside rubbish fire – other

~6 a.m., W. Main Street, EMS call – excluding vehicle accident with injury

~11:29 a.m., Red Bud Lane, EMS call – excluding vehicle accident with injury

~11:56 a.m., County Road 90, Outside storage fire

~7 p.m., Russell Boulevard, False alarm or false call –other

~7:33 p.m., County Road 90, False alarm or false call – other

~8:17 p.m., County Road 90, False alarm or false call – other

~9:50 p.m., Russell Boulevard, False alarm or false call –other

~10:39 p.m., Russell Boulevard, False alarm or false call –other

~11:26 p.m., Russell Boulevard, False alarm or false call –other

Aug. 18: 9:22 a.m., W. Main Street, EMS call, excluding vehicle accident with injury

~12:54 p.m., County Road 90, False alarm or false call – other

~1:54 p.m., Hemen-

PO Box 520, Winters, CA 95694 530-795-4551

Se habla español. news@wintersexpress.com

YESTERYEAR

Lake levels down

The water level of Lake Berryessa dropped by 0.45 of a foot during the past week, with a decrease in the storage of 8,130 acre-feet of water, according to Ken Emigh, Solano Project Technician with the Solano Irrigation District. On the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 27, he reported the lake elevation was 431.74 feet above sea level, with water storage behind the Monticello Dam computed at 1,399,048 acre-feet of water. The SID is releasing 347 cubic feet per second of water in the Putah South Canal, with 58 cubic feet flowing into Putah Creek at the Diversion Dam. Evaporation on the lake averaged 206 acre-feet of water per day.

Adilia

Sara

way Street, EMS call, excluding vehicle accident with injury

~2:09 p.m., County Road 90, False alarm or false call – other

~6:57 p.m., County Road 90, Smoke or odor removal

~9:35 p.m., East Street, Smoke or odor removal

Aug. 19: 7 a.m., East Street, Smoke or odor removal

~8:29 a.m., Fredericks Drive, False alarm or false call –other

~2:56 p.m., Buckeye Road, EMS call – excluding vehicle accident with injury

~11:15 p.m., Morgan Street, False alarm or false call – other

Aug. 20: 11:16 a.m., Aviation Avenue, Dispatched and canceled en route

~1:46 a.m., Creekside Way, EMS call – excluding vehicle accident with injury

Police

Arrest Log

Aug. 14: Arellano, Jessie (Age 41); Charges: Battery on spouse/ex-spouse/ date/etc; Disposition: Transported to Yolo County Jail

Aug. 15: Campos, Maria L (Age 41); Charges: Solano County Warrant, Disposition: Transported to Yolo County Jail

Aug. 16: Six, Alexander George (Age 36); Charges: DUI, DUI with BAC over .08 percent; Disposition: Transported to Yolo County Jail

Aug. 17: Banuelos, Luis Alberto (Age 36); Charges: Petty Theft, Probation violation; Disposition: Trans-

ported to Yolo County Jail

Aug. 20: Canchola, Victor Manuel (Age 41); Charges: Two Winters PD Warrants, Possession of unlawful paraphernalia; Disposition: Released on Notice to Appear ~Duran Garcia, Salvador (Age 36), Charges: False Report of Crime, Disposition: Transported to Yolo County Jail

Aug. 21: Sherman, Korian Jumo (Age 47), Charges: Winters PD Warrant, Disposition: Released on Notice to Appear Report Log

Aug. 14: 3:52 a.m., 400th block of Abbey Street, Verbal Dispute

~5 p.m., 800th block of W. Main Street, Sex offenses

Aug. 16: 12:51 p.m., 100th block of E. Main Street, Fraud

Aug. 17: 5:05 a.m., 700th block of Dutton Street, Audible Alarm

Aug. 18: 3:41 a.m., 20th block of Main Street, Audible Alarm

~10:19 a.m., 100th block of Second Street, Public Intoxication

Aug. 19: 12:07 p.m., 300th block of East Street, Sex offenses

~2:25 p.m., 100th block of Grant Avenue, Rape Investigation

~7:41 a.m., 20th block of Main Street, Audible Alarm

For our editorial policy on crime log entries, see winters express.com/unpub lishing-policy.

Years Ago

95

Years Ago

August 30, 1929

Union School opens Monday, September 2nd with Mrs. Rose Beller as teacher. Cottonwood district school will open for the fall term on Tuesday, September 3rd, with Mrs. S. W. Jopes again as teacher. Mrs. T. R. Plesants announces that the Pleasants Valley School will open for the fall term on Monday, September 2nd. Walter B. Young and son, Bob, and Lester M. Ireland are spending this week at Coronado where they are attending a California State Life Insurance convention.

Mrs. Fred Barker announces that the first meeting of Winters P.T.A. for the school year will be held in the schoolhouse Tuesday afternoon at 3 o’clock.

80 Years Ago

September 1, 1944

Lester S. Jackson who has been operating the Meyer blacksmith shop for almost a year, has sold his equipment to J. E. Roberts of Richmond.

At the meeting of the American Legion Post 242, the following officers were seated: Lester A. Thompson, commander: Sam H. Jiles, 1st vice commander; Oliver Stith, 2nd vice commander; G. M. Vasey, finance officer; C. S. Culton, chaplain; C. C. Croucher, Sgt. at arms; Joe G. Doll, historian; Henry D. Raver, adjutant, and Charles A. Graf, service officer.

Miss Rosemarie Armstrong left Mon-

day to be in attendance at the Presbyterian high school group conference, at Camp Lassen near Butte Meadows.

45 Years Ago

August 30, 1979

Mr. and Mrs. Relfe Ehret were guests at the 40th wedding anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. E. Stewart Naschke of Sacramento. A garden party was arranged by their children with over 100 friends present.

Mary Gale spent a week in San Ramon visiting with her daughter and son-inlaw, Elizabeth and Herb Struss. After returning home on Wednesday of last week, she entertained over the weekend Gene and Betty Gale and their daughter Wendy (her son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter) from Lake Almanor.

Among those who attended the Bob Hope show at the Music Circus last Friday were Dr. and Mrs. Corbin Young, Dolores Lopez, Irene George, Juanita Skaggs, Andrew Skaggs and his fiance Sara of Dixon, Anne Gertz, Janet Johnston, Bev Watkins and son Scot, Joe and Carmen Rubio and daughters Diana and Elaine, Newt and Ida Wallace, Mike Pizza, Denise Gertz and Christina Fernandez. Tutankhamun visited the community Saturday evening in a lively production at Wesley Hall. Sponsored by the Mentally Gifted Minor program, “Tall Tales from the Tombs of Tut” involved more than 40 students, teachers and parents in a summer-long production.

City of Winters

Picked by Charley Wallace File photo

Yolo County Library offers free online literary resources

Special to the Express

The Yolo County Library offers students and educators complimentary access to a vast array of online resources, including books, world music, theatrical productions, and Ken Burns documentaries, through platforms such as TumbleBooks and the Alexander Street Performing Arts collection. These resources, along with others, can be accessed at YoloCountyLibrary.org/Research. TumbleBooks is

FARMERS

Continued from Page 1

The third speaker on the panel was Marisa Alcorta, director of the California Farm Academy Apprenticeship Program at the Center for Land-Based Learning. Alcorta presented information about the new AgHire program, which offers Spanish-language training in digital literacy, leadership, and managerial skills.

“It’s a program to elevate managerial capacity in the farmworkers that the farmer may already employ by teaching them or giving them opportunities to learn skills that could be applied to elevating their positions of leadership authority in a business. So that was an inter-

CHIEF

Continued from Page 1

Jeremy Craig and the Winters Express received an anonymous letter making similar allegations. Snyder said in an interview that the concerns are a misunderstanding since the assessments for the Winters Fire Department required a public forum. However, the Winters Fire Protection District has a separate assessment affecting landowners in that service area and had different conversations that couldn’t be answered in a public forum based on the diverse needs of the properties, including farmland, and that many residents weren’t aware of the proposition at all.

“Everything was done transparently and the confusion of the two different assessments is unique,” Snyder told the Winters Express in an

designed for young learners aged 0 to 12. It is designed to support their development of foundational reading skills and foster a love for reading. It engages both enthusiastic and reluctant readers through animated books and musical elements, with content available in both English and Spanish.

The Performing Arts collection features performances from esteemed theater companies such as the National Theatre, L.A. Theatre Works, and the Royal Shakespeare Compa-

esting program that I think there was some interest in the room as to how you work with folks to enhance the skills they already have to become key pieces to a farming operation,” Muller said. The second panel, the Ag Program and Services Panel, discussed programs and services available to the agricultural industry. This panel featured a discussion with Gretchen Bennitt, executive director of the Yolo Solano Air Quality Management District, and Morgan Doran, advisor for Livestock and Natural Resources at the UC Cooperative Extension.

Lastly, the Farm Bureau and Yolo County Committee Update featured Board Member Garrett Driver, Yolo County Adminis-

interview last week. The chief stated he met with private landowners, but not for the city Prop 218 initiative. He continued that “there was some confusion” surrounding Proposition 218, so he met with residents served by the fire protection district, which contracts the fire department. Some landowners had open grazeland and other aspects to their property that made it “more complicated on that side than the city had.”

The hearing relates to the ballot proceeding that allows prop owners to decide whether an assessment would be approved to provide funding for improved fire suppression. The landowners were met with Snyder because their fire response is managed by the Winters Fire Protection District, a different entity with its own assessment.

ny. It also includes the BBC Landmark Video collection and recordings from the Smithsonian Folkways label, offering valuable educational content for learners of all ages.

Yolo County Library’s online resources are free and available to the entire community.

Yolo County Librarian Diana Lopez emphasizes, “We are your partner in education. Visit us online or in person for resources that support your learning goals.”

Parents and caregivers will enjoy explor-

trator Gerardo Pinedo, and Yolo County Agriculture/Weights and Measures Director Humberto Izquierdo. This panel discussed the ongoing collaborations be-

“It’s

ing these resources with their children, while educators will discover excellent materials to enhance their curriculum. For more information, visit YoloCountyLibrary. org/Research.

The TumbleBooks Library is supported by the Yolo County Library Foundation, and the Performing Arts collections are funded by the State of California, through the California State Library.

For further details, visit Yolo County Library’s website at YoloCountyLibrary.org.

them of a fair return,” Muller said. “There were some good questions about farmworker housing. And so I think the discussion ended with the supervisors thinking about

important to hear the

voices of farmers in the room in a direct conversation with them.”

Lucas Frerichs, supervisor

tween the Farm Bureau and Yolo County. “That was a general conversation about the reality of farming and some of the prices received and the economic choices, difficult choices farmers are making about what to produce and what’s going to assure

“There were a lot more in-depth questions coming out of those because people didn’t know about how it would apply to their land specifically,” he said.

creating a task force to look into ways that more affordable housing can be built for the farmworker community, specifically aiming at farmworkers. And there’s some talk about, they’re bringing the ideas from the roundtable forward to the board so that a task

the projected number of staff necessary to fight fires, Snyder told the council during the Aug. 6 meeting. Opposition to the assessment, such as Ron Karlen’s statement

“There were a lot more in-depth questions coming out of those because people didn’t know about how it would apply to their land specifically.”

Jack Snyder, fire chief

To discuss the assessment for the city, the Winters Fire Department hosted presentations and town halls to answer questions from the public this year. Snyder also invited the community and landowners to contact him directly with any questions or concerns. The assessment aims to add two engineers and another firefighter and bring the city closer to

(mentioned in an article from the Aug. 21 edition of the Express) who during the hearing, wants to avoid paying additional taxes.

The controversy surrounding the chief having such conversations reached the city council in the early August meeting where residents commented and asked questions regarding the measure while

Project Linus of Yolo next meets Sept. 11

Special to the Express

Join Project Linus of Yolo County to make blankets for children who are seriously ill, traumatized or otherwise in need.

The group is gathering at the Davis Senior Center (646 A St., Davis) on Wednesday, Sept. 11, from 1:30 to 3 p.m. to share ideas, patterns and lots of good conversation.

All are welcome to attend the meeting and help sew Linus labels on handmade blankets that will be given to

force might be formed to talk about this issue. And so that was a good discussion.”

“Living in an agricultural county, we recognize that the success of the agricultural sector is of benefit to all of Yolo County’s communities,” Supervisor Lucas Frerichs said.

Housing was a large discussion point of the meeting. Many farmers are concerned over the lack of affordable housing for farmworkers, which causes these workers to move farther from their work to other counties to find housing that is affordable to rent.

“Participants offered ideas to explore including encouraging the building of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) on ag property to house farm employees, ex-

ballots were collected and then counted. Since then, the city and Winters Express received an anonymous letter making similar allegations.

One audience member said, “Someone asked if any of the multi-voters were contacted by city staff.”

City Manager Jeremy Craig replied that public outreach was done to local groups such as The Rotary Club of Winters. Snyder added that three town halls were hosted for the community to attend.

“We did not meet with anyone specifically to talk about this Proposition 218,” the fire chief said. “Any information that was presented was just facts about the why and need of it all, but there were no major

Yolo County organizations that serve children in need. Project Linus members may take home fabrics and yarn each month to complete a blanket. Finished blankets can be brought to the next monthly gathering or to the Joann Fabric store in Woodland. Project Linus needs yarn donations. Upcoming meetings are Oct. 9, and Nov. 13, at the same time and place. Contact Deanne Meyer at yolocountyprojectlinus@gmail.

panding the migrant center operational months to be yearround or stay open for additional months to accommodate the longer growing season, and increasing public transit during farmworker hours in the harder-to-reach areas of the county,” Frerichs said. “It’s great that the county supervisors are creating an ag roundtable. It’s important to hear the voices of farmers in the room in a direct conversation with them.”

Supervisors Frerichs and Barajas hope to continue the roundtable meetings in the future to facilitate open communication between the agricultural community and the districts. Future meetings will alternate between Districts 5 and 2 loca-

landowners that were met with.”

The attendee persisted in asking the same question until Mayor Bill Biasi interjected and said with finality, “He stated what he did and I take his word for it.”

The Winters Express requested comment from two public members identified but did not receive a response by the time of publication. In all, Proposition 218 won the public’s majority vote in support of the assessment and all but one city council member, Richard Casevecchia, in favor. Each ballot was weighted by how much taxes the property owner currently pays. Property owners could be billed as early as October with the measure’s passage.

Senior News

Bayer Fund gives $10K to Meals on Wheels

Special to the Express Meals on Wheels

Yolo County announced Wednesday it received a grant for $10,000 from Bayer Fund, a philanthropic arm of Bayer in the U.S., to provide very low-income senior citizens in Yolo County with shelf-stable nutrition, to sustain them in between the organization’s weekday deliveries of prepared, hot meals.

“Food insecurity is impacting more Yolo County residents — especially seniors — than ever, due to the convergence of pandemic disruptions with extraordinary inflation,” Meals on Wheels executive director Joy Cohan said. “Many of the seniors who depend upon our program lack the resources to feel confident about having enough to eat on the weekends, when Meals on Wheels doesn’t deliver. Thanks to this renewal of Bayer Fund’s previous support for our ‘Weekend Food Project,’ we are confident in having the resources to make weekend mealtime more dependable and less stressful for these vulnerable aging adults.”

Initiated several years ago, the “Weekend Food Project” provides delivery twice a month of fresh produce and shelf-stable foods to 200 very low-income seniors among the

nearly 500 nourished regularly by Meals on Wheels Yolo County’s home-delivery and congregate meal options. This is a 100% increase in service in the last six months.

Food insecurity due to lack of funds, lack of transportation, and/or physical inability to stand and move to prepare full meals on the weekends is relieved by this program. Foods are assembled with simple preparation and easy access in mind, so that these seniors can maintain their health despite challenging circumstances.

“Throughout the years, the grants given through Bayer Fund have helped strengthen our communities across the United States,” Al Mitchell, president of Bayer Fund, said. “We’re proud to be able to provide support to develop programs like Meals on Wheels Yolo County’s ‘Weekend Food Project,’ that help to combat the critical issue of food insecurity and ultimately ensure that even more Yolo County seniors have access to healthy, nutritious food.”

Bayer Fund, a philanthropic arm of Bayer, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening the communities where Bayer customers and employees live and work by providing funding for food and nutrition, education,

and community development projects.

In 2021, Bayer Fund awarded more than $13.1 million to more than 3,400 charitable and nonprofit organizations to help address essential needs in Food and Nutrition, STEM Education and Health and Wellness. Over the past five years, nonprofit organizations across the U.S. have received more than $75 million. To learn more about Bayer Fund visit https:// www.fund.bayer.us.

Meals on Wheels Yolo County provides nutrition and social contact to senior citizens age 60+ and other mobility-challenged adults, focused upon thrice-weekly home deliveries of five hot and frozen meals. Congregate dining also is active again every Wednesday at the Woodland Senior Center site. Currently, nearly 500 food-insecure adults receive 2,500 meals each week from Meals on Wheels Yolo County’s programs. With a rich, nearly 47-year history of nourishing older adults both at their doorsteps and in congregant settings, Meals on Wheels thrives thanks to donations of funds and time from the community. To connect with services or to offer support, please visit https:// mowyolo.org or call 530-662-7035.

If you need medical supplies or have questions about how to navigate difficult conversations regarding

Home interior renovations for aging homeowners

Metro Special to the Express

Home is where the heart is. That sentiment may be especially true for seniors who have spent decades living in their homes. A lot of hard work goes into home ownership, and seniors who have lived in the same space for a while undoubtedly have countless memories within the walls of their homes.

A lifetime of experiences in a home can make it hard to leave, but many seniors experience diminished mobility as they age. Mobility issues can make it hard for seniors to traverse their homes, but aging homeowners can make various renovations to make a home more accessible.

Revamp entryways and staircases. A 2020 study of 1,000 adults in the United Kingdom found that 28 percent of individuals age 65 and older who don’t exercise regularly struggle with activities like walking up stairs. The study, commissioned by Total Fitness, also found that 14 percent of men and women over 65 who regularly engage in moderate exercise still find it challenging to climb up and down a flight of stairs. Seniors facing similar challenges can install

a ramp at their home’s entryway so they can comfortably go in and out. Inside, a chair lift can ensure seniors are not struggling to move from one floor to another. Raise the outlets throughout the home. They’re easily overlooked, but outlets, particularly those outside the kitchen, tend to be close to the floor. AARP notes that’s no accident, as outlets are generally placed at a height equal to the length of a hammer to save time with measuring when buildings are being constructed. Outlets close to the floor can be difficult for seniors with mobility issues to reach. Relocating the outlets a little higher off the floor is not an expensive renovation, but it can make a home more accessible for seniors who have difficulty bending down or getting down on one knee. Install door knob extensions. Verywell Health notes that nearly half of all people age 65 and older have arthritis or another rheumatic condition. Arthritis can make it difficult for seniors to grip and turn door knobs. Door knob extensions can make it easier for seniors with arthritis to open the doors in their homes. Such extensions are roughly five-

inch levers that can be installed over an existing door knob, making it easier to grab and pull down. Extensions save seniors the hassle of turning the knob, which some may find painful and almost impossible. Renovate the bathroom. Bathroom renovation projects can be costly, but seniors with mobility issues should know that bathrooms can pose a particularly dangerous threat. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that roughly three million older adults are treated for fall injuries in emergency departments each year. A 2019 analysis published in The Journals of Gerontology noted that 22 percent of in-home falls resulted in a change in the person’s walking ability. Replacing a step-over shower with a zero-step alternative can make it easier for seniors with mobility issues to get in and out of the shower, thus reducing their risk for falls. Grab bars along shower walls and a chair inside the shower can make it easier to bathe and towel off safely.

Seniors with mobility issues can make their homes more accommodating through an assortment of simple, yet effective renovations.

Aphasia and its side effects

Metro Special to the Express

Film fans were shocked to learn recently of the health struggles of beloved action movie star Bruce Willis. Willis’s health issues were made public in 2022, and since then the star has largely retreated from the public eye. Willis was initially diagnosed with aphasia, a disorder that affects a person’s ability to communicate. Aphasia affects speech , how people write and their comprehension of spoken and written language, according to the Mayo Clinic. For Willis, aphasia ultimately proved to be only one component of what was later diagnosed as frontotemporal dementia.

The Cleveland Clinic says aphasia can be a byproduct of illness, like dementia or injury, or a complication of a stroke or traumatic brain injury. When

blood fails to supply cells in the brain with oxygen, those cells die and can produce deficits. Aphasia also may result from conditions that disrupt how the brain works, and those conditions may be temporary, like migraine headaches. While aphasia predominantly affects adults, it can affect children, too.

The National Aphasia Association says nearly 180,000 Americans develop aphasia each year. Families may feel that something is not right when a loved one has trouble finding words, reading or communicating effectively. There are different types of aphasia, and each kind can impact a different component of speech or understanding.

Doctors may discover aphasia when they are treating patients for traumatic brain injuries or by looking at images of the brain. If a physician suspects

a patient has aphasia, the doctor may recommend a consultation with a speech-language pathologist, who can perform comprehensive examinations and testing. Sometimes aphasia symptoms can start to resolve on their own without treatment. Others may need help regaining the ability to communicate through various methods, says Johns Hopkins Medicine. These can include:

• speech-language therapy

• nonverbal communication therapies, such as computers or pictures

• group therapy for patients and family members

• simplifying language by using short, simple sentences and repeating words or phrases as needed

For those who are left with some loss of language skills, therapy may help to address those deficits.

Courtesy photo

Grab bars in bathrooms can make homes safer for seniors with limited mobility.

Courtesy photo

Local Bayer Crop Science employees Nick Roncoroni (left) and Erin Plank-Ryan (right)

prepare Weekend Food Project care packages as part of Bayer Fund’s commitment to advancing senior nutrition and food security in Yolo County.

Google cuts a deal to pay news outlets, avoids legislation

By Jeanne Kuang CalMatters

California lawmakers are abandoning an ambitious proposal to force Google to pay news companies for using their content, opting instead for a deal in which the tech giant has agreed to pay $122.5 million to support local media outlets and start an artificial intelligence program.

The first-in-thenation agreement, announced today, promises $175 million for local journalism across California over the next five years, but represents a significant departure from the bill pushed by news publishers and media employee unions earlier this year. Instead of Google and Meta being forced to negotiate usage fees with news outlets directly, Google would deposit $55 million over five years into a new fund administered by UC Berkeley to be distributed to local newsrooms — and the state would provide $70 million over five years. Google would also continue paying $10 million each year in existing grants to newsrooms.

The Legislature and the governor would still need to approve the state money each year; the source isn’t specified yet. Google would also contribute at least $17.5 million toward an artificial intelligence “accelerator” program, raising labor advocates’ anxieties about the threat of job losses.

Publishers who initially pushed for the proposal forcing Google to pay them said the deal was still a win.

“This is a first step toward what we hope will become a comprehensive program to sustain local news in the long term, and we will push to see it grow in future years,” Julie Makinen, board chairperson of the California News Publishers Association, said in a statement.

In an interview, Makinen said that the deal was “not what we had hoped for when set out, but it is a start and it will begin to provide some help to newsrooms across the state.”

“Sometimes, the political realities, they are what they are,” she said. “And there’s many of them in this state and in this election year.”

Unions representing media workers accused the news compa-

nies and lawmakers of settling for too little.

The agreement replaces two bills lawmakers had pursued the last two years as they tried to secure a cut of tech money to prop up California’s struggling local news industry. Following a nationwide trend, media companies have hemorrhaged jobs over the past two decades as advertisers fled print media for the internet and technological advancements reshaped how readers consume news.

To try to keep their readers, publications increasingly rely on social media and online search. Google controls the lion’s share of search in a way the U.S. Justice Department and one federal judge have said violates antitrust law.

The proposals to impose fees on Google’s use of news content in its search results prompted a flurry of tech company lobbying. In 2023, for instance, Google spent more than $2.1 million lobbying lawmakers against those bills and others — more than double what it spent in the Legislature two years prior, according to a CalMatters review.

The first bill, introduced in February 2023 by Oakland Democratic Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks, would have required platforms such as Google and Meta to either pay a fee or negotiate with news outlets for using their news content.

It was sponsored by the news publishers association, whose members include major newspapers including the San Francisco Chronicle and the Los Angeles Times. Australia and Canada both passed similar measures in recent years. The bill passed the Assembly last year, but Wicks paused it to try to bridge a split among media companies over how the money would be divvied up.

news partnerships, Jaffer Zaidi, called the proposal “profoundly unconstitutional and problematic” since it could compel platforms to show content that they were forced to pay for.

The second bill, introduced this February by Orinda Democratic Sen. Steve Glazer, would have imposed a fee on major tech platforms to provide news outlets a tax credit to employ lo-

the government has estimated Google is paying $73 million a year to news outlets under its new journalism industry law, but proponents of California’s deal say the money has been slow to be distributed.

Another factor: Some proponents said it was unlikely Gov. Gavin Newsom, who pledged no tax increases this year, would sign Wicks’ bill, which could be seen as a tax on tech

publishing innovation fund” when publishers there pushed for regulations.

Wicks, in a statement announcing the deal, called it “a cross-sector commitment to supporting a free and vibrant press.”

“This is dramatically worse than what Australia and Canada got … I don’t know of any journalist that asked for this.”

Matt Pearce, media guild president

cal journalists.

In response to the Wicks bill, Google temporarily removed links to California news websites from its search results and in response to the Glazer bill, Google said it might stop funding nonprofit newsrooms nationwide. At the time, Senate Democratic leader Mike McGuire called the threats “an abuse of power.”

Glazer shelved his bill in May, after failing to scrounge up the two-thirds majority he needed, and said he would focus on trying to improve the Wicks bill.

Negotiations

companies. Newsom in a press release today praised the deal, though his spokesperson Alex Stack on Tuesday denied the governor was involved or had taken a position on the bill.

“This agreement represents a major breakthrough in ensuring the survival of newsrooms and bolstering local journalism across California — leveraging substantial tech industry resources without imposing new taxes on Californians,” Newsom said in a statement.

By committing to pay into the new UC Berkeley fund, tech companies

“This agreement represents a major breakthrough in ensuring the survival of newsrooms and bolstering local journalism across California — leveraging substantial tech industry resources without imposing new taxes on Californians.”

Gov. Gavin Newsom

ramped up over the summer.

Google has argued the bill would unfairly force it to pay for sending free traffic to news sites, and disadvantage smaller sites. In a legislative hearing in June, the company’s vice president of global

Tech companies doubled down on threats to stop linking to news sites in California if Wicks’ bill passed, and publishers had an incentive to support an agreement that would give them the money quicker. In Canada,

succeeded in killing the bill they opposed while appeasing both legacy print media and some digital-only news outlets with five years of support. The agreement is similar to a deal Google cut in France more than a decade ago, creating a “digital

But the Media Guild of the West, which represents newspaper reporters in Southern California, slammed the agreement and accused publishers and lawmakers of folding to Google’s threats.

“Google won, a monopoly won,” said Matt Pearce, the group’s president. “This is dramatically worse than what Australia and Canada got … I don’t know of any journalist that asked for this.”

The guild said it was particularly concerned the deal involved a program promoting artificial intelligence technology, which it saw as a concession to the tech industry that could result in a further loss of reporting jobs.

The AI program appears to only be partly related to journalism: In its announcement, Wicks’ office said the program will give businesses, nonprofits and researchers “financial resources and other support to experiment with AI to assist them in their work” addressing challenges such as environmental issues and racial inequities. OpenAI will contribute tech services, said former lawmaker Bob Hertzberg, who helped negotiate the deal, and proponents expect other tech companies to join in.

The AI accelerator would also create “new tools

to help journalists access and analyze public information.” Makinen, of the news publishers association, said more details of the program “need to be made public as soon as possible,” and said she wants to see “more of those resources directed toward publishers.”

Others, including an association of mostly smaller, digital news outlets, said the threat of tech platforms refusing to link to news articles would have been devastating.

Chris Krewson, president of Local Independent Online News Publishers, pointed to Canada, where Facebook no longer links to Canadian media in response to the new law there. That caused readership and ad revenue to plummet for small news outlets, Krewson said.

The organization gets significant grant funding from Google and Meta; CalMatters CEO Neil Chase, an association board member, last weekend urged member publications to support the deal.

“I just don’t know that this industry should be in the position of saying no to any help it can get,” Krewson said. “And I don’t think it makes us more or less reliant (on tech platforms) than we already have been.”

— CalMatters data reporter Jeremia Kimelman contributed to this story. CalMatters CEO Neil Chase has been involved in the deal as a board member for Local Independent Online News Publishers. His views do not necessarily reflect those of the organization, newsroom or its staff. The CalMatters staff is represented by the Pacific Media Workers Guild, which is separate from the Media Guild of the West and says it has not been involved.

Fred Greaves/CalMatters photo

Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks played a key role in negotiating a deal between media outlets and tech companies. She speaks during a committee hearing in the Capitol Annex Swing Space in Sacramento on Aug. 15.

Yolo County opens annual survey for Rural Community Investment Program

Special to the Express

The Yolo County Department of Community Services’ Natural Resources Division is pleased to announce the launch of its annual survey for the Rural Community Investment Program (formerly known as the Rural Initiative Program). Available in both English and Spanish, the survey will remain open until Sept. 14. It is a vital tool for guiding the allocation of funds to address the infrastructure needs of rural areas within Yolo County.

The Rural Community Investment Program intends to bolster economic development, health, and safety in rural Yolo County. Each fiscal year, the Natural Resources Division, in collaboration with various departments and community members, evaluates and prioritizes potential projects. These projects are then pre-

sented to the Board of Supervisors for consideration, potentially receiving support through grant research or partial funding to address the unique needs of rural communities effectively.

District 5 Supervisor Angel Barajas underscored the importance of community involvement, stating, “The feedback we receive from this survey is invaluable. It helps us to make informed decisions and prioritize projects that truly reflect the needs and aspirations of our rural residents. We encourage everyone to participate and have their voices heard.”

The Rural Infrastructure Investment Plan is designed to align infrastructure investments with the Board’s Strategic Plan objectives. The American Society of Civil Engineers reports a national infrastructure gap exceeding $2 trillion, with rural

areas like Northern California’s Central Valley experiencing even greater disparities. This gap impacts rural communities significantly, affecting employment opportunities, quality of life, public safety, healthcare access and overall economic competitiveness.

The scope of infrastructure includes essential systems such as roads, railways, bridges, water supply, sewer systems, electrical grids and telecommunications. The Rural Community Investment Program is committed to exploring innovative funding models and fostering partnerships across public, private and nonprofit sectors to address these critical needs.

Recent community engagement and survey results have highlighted several key areas of focus for this year. These include the need for road improvements to

enhance local transportation, increased law enforcement presence to improve safety, and initiatives to support health equity through the Wellness and Prevention Fund and a dedicated health program coordinator. Additionally, addressing power supply reliability and expanding high-speed internet and broadband are essential for boosting economic competitiveness and quality of life in rural areas.

Residents of rural Yolo County are encouraged to complete the survey and help shape the future of their communities. For more information about the Rural Community Investment Program and to access the survey, please visit www.YoloCounty. gov/RIISurvey. For information in Spanish and to access the Spanish-language survey, please visit www. YoloCounty.gov/RIIEncuesta.

Kaiser offering flu shots, screenings at free event

Special to the Express Kaiser Permanente Vacaville is hosting a free health fair on Sept. 7 that includes health screenings and other educational resources. The health fair is open for everyone and is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Kaiser Permanente Vacaville Medical Center, 1 Quality Dr., in Vacaville.

The event also will include a blood drive. Register at donors. vitalant.org and search Vacaville.

Community screenings and health resources include:

• Flu shots.

• Blood pressure screenings.

• Mental health and relaxation resources.

• Physical therapy screenings.

• Healthy eating demonstrations

• Safe and sober driving education.

• Narcan education.

If you are a Kaiser Permanente member, you are also eligible for:

• Sports physicals. Call 707-6243043 to schedule an appointment in advance.

• Baseline concussion testing for athletes ages 11 and older.

• Immunization and eye appointments available

• Same-day mammograms, cervical cancers screenings and diabetic retinal screening. You can also schedule an appointment for other preventive screenings.

5 advantages local business have over the competition

Special to the Express

Small local family, businesses and big box chains have been competing for consumers’ attention for decades.

Historians say that big box stores were born in the early 1960s when Wal-Mart, Target and Kmart entered the retail landscape. It’s been more than 60 years since these chains arrived and they certainly have garnered their share of devotees. Big box businesses have size, inventory and often price on their side. However, when consumers look beyond those factors, it’s easy to see all of the benefits small businesses offer that behemoths cannot. Especially

when you take a look at Winters business owners and the intention and care they give to their patrons and community.

1. Passionate owners and operators

Walk into a big box store or other business and you may find a handful of dedicated employees, but not quite at the level of small businesses.

Small business owners prioritize the customer experience because they know they need to work hard to retain customers. This translates into knowing the products well, and sharing as much knowledge as possible with customers. Big box businesses vulnerable to heavy staff turnover often do not have a vested interest in the brand.

2. Work the local niche

What makes big box retailers so familiar to shoppers is one can stop in a store in the middle of Nebraska and likely find the same items as a store in Hawaii, with only a few subtle differences between the locations. Big box companies work with the same suppliers and ship the same products all over the world. Customers seeking personalized items and services for their particular regions are better off utilizing local small businesses that can bring in regional vendors more readily.

3. Better shopping experience

Big box stores draw customers during

peak times when they’re home from school or off from work. That often translates to long lines both at checkout and at customer service or return counters. By contrast, there may be no apparent rhyme or reason to when shoppers visit small businesses, meaning there likely will not be crowds. It’s much more pleasant to browse wares without having to contend with shopping cart traffic and people blocking aisles.

4. Advanced technology

Big box companies have invested millions of dollars into their point-of-service systems and other technologies, which means it can be a very

slow transition to new options as times change. Small businesses generally can shift to newer, better technology more readily because they do not have to do so on the same scale as their larger competitors.

5. General agility

Changing technology on a dime is not the only ways small businesses excel. They can experiment in other ways, such as a home contractor offering a special price deal for a certain period of time, or a clothing store experimenting with new in-store decor. Big chains cannot pivot that quickly, and any changes must be approved by corporate and implemented across all centers. Although small

businesses may have a tough time beating big box retailers on overall price, there are many other advantages such enterprises have over the competition.

The Winters District Chamber of Commerce and the Discover Yolo websites provide listings of local businesses and happenings. Winters businesses owners also collaborate for multiple downtown, community events like the annual Harvest Festival and Spring Open. To learn more or see what is available in Winters, visit https:// www.winterschamber. com or https://www. discoverwinters.com.

Wednesdays

Eat Well Yolo Drive – Through Food Distribution Wednesdays, 3:30 p.m. As supplies last, Winters High student parking lot, off Railroad Avenue

Thursdays

Eat Well Yolo Food Distribution, first and third Thursdays, 10 a.m. As supplies last, RISE, Inc., 417 Haven St., 530-668-0690

Sunday, September 1

Winters Farmers Market

9 a.m. – 1 p.m., Downtown Main Street, discoverwinters.com/farmers-market

Tuesday, September 3

Winters City Council Meeting, 6:30 p.m., Council chamber (318 First St.), Zoom Meeting info, check www.cityofwinters.org/ city-council-meetings_/

Upcoming Events

Thursday, September 5

Winters JUSD School Board Meeting, 6 p.m., School District Office, Zoom Meeting info, check https://wintersjusd.diligent.community

Monday, September 9

Winters Community Blood Drive, 2 –5 p.m., Winters Community Center (201 Railroad Ave.), Register at Vitalant.org or call 877-258-4825 with code 'SMFM164'

Winters Climate Action Commission Meeting, 6:30 p.m., City Hall Large Conference Room (Abbey Street entrance), Check cityofwinters. org/182/Climate-Action-Commission

Library Services

Winters Library Open to Public (School in Session), Winters Community Library, Mon/Wed: 8 a.m.–6 p.m., Tue/Thu: 8 a.m.–8 p.m., Fri: 8 a.m.–5 p.m. , Sat: 1–5 p.m. Teen Tuesday (ages 12-18), Second Tuesdays, 2 p.m., Winters Community Library

Bilingual Storytime (ages 0-5), Wednesdays, 10:30 a.m., Winters Community Library

Virtual English Conversation Group, Tuesdays, 2-3 p.m., One time registration required: Contact Nancy Pacheco 530-666-8019 or nancy.pacheco@ yolocounty.org

Mangonada Monday (ages 6-12), fourth Monday, 3:30 p.m. Tech Thursdays, Thursdays, 2-7:30 p.m., call 530-6668005 to schedule an appointment. Bilingual sessions available upon request. Saturday Matinee, First Saturday, 2 p.m., Winters Community Library

All You Need is Love Romance Book Club, Second Saturday, 4 p.m., Hooby’s Brewing

Older Adult Programs

Winters Senior Foundation Chair Yoga Class for Seniors, Wednesdays, 9:30-11 a.m., St. Anthony Parish Hall (511 W. Main St.)

Winters Senior Foundation Social Gathering

Thurdays, 1-3:30 p.m., St. Anthony Parish Hall (511 W. Main St.)

Ongoing

Winters Friends of the Library meeting, first Monday, 7 p.m., Winters Community Library, Margaret Parsons Room, wfol.org

Winters Fortnightly meeting, second Tuesdays (September through April), 1 p.m., St. Anthony Parish Hall (511 W. Main St.)

Rotary Club of Winters meeting, Thursdays, Noon, The Buckhorn Winters Museum public hours, Thursday thru Sunday, 1-5 p.m., 13 Russell St.

Winters Open Mic, third Thursday of the month, 6 p.m. (sign-ups begin at 5:30 p.m.), Paseo Park, Main Street.

12-Step Bonfire meeting, third Friday, 6:30 p.m. fellowship, 7 p.m. meeting, LuNita Ranch, 8189 Olive School Ln, Winters, Bring a camp chair.

Kiwanis Club of Winters meeting, fourth Wednesday, 6 p.m., Turkovich Family Wines - Boss Lounge, kiwanisclubofwinters@gmail.com

Democracy Winters meeting, third Saturdays, 10 a.m.Noon, Meeting details in newsletter, contact info@ democracywinters.org

Walking Meditation, third Sunday, 8:30 to 9:30 a.m., Meet behind the Winters Community Center, 201 Railroad Ave.

Alcoholics Anonymous meetings:

» St. Anthony Parish Hall, 511 Main St. (back entrance) Tuesdays, 7-8 a.m. and Fridays, 7-8 a.m.

» Yolo Housing office building, 62 Shams Way: Thursdays, 7-8 p.m. and Sundays, 9 a.m.

Newest Solano open space park tied to Patwin heritage

By Todd R. Hansen McNaughton Media

“The land understands the language.”

Leland Kinter, the treasurer of the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation Tribal Council, uttered the words just before delivering a blessing, in the Patwin language, for the newly christened 1,500-acre Patwino Worrtla Kodoi Dihi Open Space Park along Rockville Road.

The park’s name is pronounced Put.win. no War.klaw Kaw. doy De.he and means “Southern Rock Home of the Patwin People.”

Kinter, in an interview Friday, said much of the language is from the environment from which the Patwin people evolved. A quail or woodpecker, he said, have names associated with the sounds they make.

“So the language that we are using is tied to the land for so long,” Kinter said.

While the Solano Land Trust is using

By Wally Pearce

Winters Elder Day Council

Barbara Cody, 90, was born on March 20, 1934, in Portland, Oregon.

She has lived in Winters for over 45 years.

Barbara said her dad was a salesman for a local papermill, selling one of the most essential types of paper, toilet paper. Her mother was a homemaker.

Growing up

Barbara said she was raised in a wellkept blue-collar neighborhood and at around 3- or 4-yearsold, she would often play in a vacant lot with her dog. She also explored the woods around her home.

In the second grade, in 1941, World War II profoundly changed Barbara’s life. She said partly because she had a hard time getting chocolate bars and bananas. While in high school, Barbara’s first job was working at an insurance company. She also picked strawberries and beans to make money. Barbara said she made enough money picking strawberries that she was able to purchase three

signs and other means to emphasize the park’s connection to the native people who undoubtedly hunted and gathered food and used other seasonal resources from the land, the handful of artifacts and other physical evidence of those Patwin people are purposefully “hidden” in the open spaces.

“We have found artifacts like flints and evidence connected with grinding stones,” said Steve Chung, a

Land Trust docent and California naturalist.

Kinter said there are other places only the Patwin descendants know about, places of worship and other significant rites around rock croppings and water habitat.

He dismisses the idea that because there is not much in the way of archeological evidence that the assumption is people did not live there.

“My grandmother knew people from the area,” Kinter said.

“It is a prime oak woodlands property. It is an extension of the Sonoma Volcanics,” Chung said. Sonoma Volcanics dates back to the Pliocene, which dates back to 2.6 and 5.3 million years ago.

Patwino Worrtla Kodoi Dihi Open Space Park, while dry for much of the hot summer, does have a striking water culture during the wet seasons, with a running

cashmere sweaters. Growing up, Barbara’s hobbies consisted of tennis and the piano. She said she loved to play the piano and still has one in her home today. Barbara said she learned how to drive “as soon as I could.” Her father was her driving coach and he taught her how to drive a stick shift and parallel par. She said she loved

math, biology and other science fields. She decided to study at Standford University, where she graduated with a BA in Biology and became a medical technologist. Barbara also went to a junior college to learn how to be a landscape designer.

Notable thoughts

Barbara’s bedroom was on the second story and had green wall-

paper with big red roses. The bedroom had a large closet and she said she would sneak in and eat candy. When asked what her favorite age is, she said likes where she is today. Barbara believes that life seems to fall into place then and time challenges have become manageable and peaceful.

Getting older for Barbara has been a life adjustment. Barbara said she is a bit slower in accomplishing her daily tasks but overall, she’s adjusted well to this time in her life.

Barbara said she is most proud of graduating from high school because it allowed her the opportunity to explore life to its fullest. She has had several mentors in her life and is honored to have learned from them. For most of Barbar’s life she has had pets, both dogs and cats. She said her dog is very smart. If he doesn’t want to go walking, he’ll hide. Barbara said her typical day consists of fixing breakfast and then walking with her dog. She also looks at See CODY, Page 6

Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation Tribal Treasurer Leland Kinter (center) meets with visitors at

Patwino Worrtla Kodoi Dihi Open Space Park in Fairfield, Aug. 21

Aaron Rosenblatt/ McNaughton Media

Aaron Rosenblatt/McNaughton Media

Tribal Council At-Large Seth Lowell, Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation Tribal Treasurer Leland Kinter and Tribal Council At-Large Yvonne Perkins stand in front of an oak tree at Patwino Worrtla Kodoi Dihi Open Space Park

See PATWIN, Page 6

Celebrating Barbara Cody, Elder Day honoree

Woody Fridae/Courtesy photo

Barbara Cody is a 2024 Winters Elder Day honorees.

Understanding loan options when preparing to buy a home

Homewise

Special to the Express

Navigating the array of financing options available to homebuyers can be challenging. Especially for those who are trying to buy a home for the first time or who need to obtain financial assistance.

Understanding the differences between conventional loans, FHA loans, and VA loans can help you make an informed decision.

Conventional loans

Conventional loans are the most common type of mortgage and are not insured by the federal government. They typically require a higher credit score and a larger down payment compared to govern-

ment-backed loans. However, they offer more flexibility in terms of property types and loan terms. Conventional loans can be either fixedrate, where the interest rate remains the same throughout the loan term, or adjustable-rate, where the rate can change after an initial fixed period. FHA loans

Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans are designed to help first-time homebuyers and those with lower credit scores or limited down payment funds.

These loans require a minimum down payment of 3.5 percent and are more forgiving of credit score issues.

FHA loans are insured by the govern-

Contact a professional to help you learn about the differences between loan options to help you make an informed decision.

ment, which protects lenders and allows them to offer more favorable terms. However, borrowers must pay mortgage insurance premiums (MIP) for the life of the loan.

VA loans

Jumbo loans

Jumbo loans are used to finance high-value properties that exceed the conforming loan limits set by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).

These loans typically require a higher credit score, a larger down payment and more stringent income and asset verification.

ments and obtain a Certificate of Eligibility (COE).

USDA loans

Jumbo loans are available in both fixed and adjustable-rate options and can offer competitive rates for well-qualified borrowers.

Closing costs

Veterans Affairs (VA) loans are available to active-duty service members, veterans and eligible surviving spouses.

VA loans offer several benefits, including no down payment requirement and no private mortgage insurance (PMI). These loans are backed by the Department of Veterans Affairs, which allows lenders to provide competitive interest rates and favorable terms. To qualify, borrowers must meet specific service require-

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers loans to low- and moderate-income buyers in eligible rural and suburban areas.

USDA loans require no down payment and have lower mortgage insurance costs compared to FHA loans. To qualify, borrowers must meet income eligibility requirements, and the property must be located in a designated rural area.

Closing costs are fees and expenses paid by the buyer and seller when finalizing a real estate transaction.

These costs can include loan origination fees, title insurance, escrow fees and property taxes. Typically, closing costs amount to 2 to 5 percent of the home’s purchase price and are settled at the closing meeting.

Adobe stock/Courtesy photo

Express Yourself

Life is hectic for someone who is supposedly retired

Let me start by saying that I have a great life. I keep busy, have a place to go every day, I have purpose in my life and I have a loving family. But, sometimes I wonder about my priorities. I don’t ride my motorcycle enough and sometimes I need to put a battery charger on it to make sure it starts. I know that is a problem that a lot of people would like to have.

A few friends and I try to ride somewhere for lunch once a month. I knew there was a ride coming up, so I started the bike, rode to Berryessa Sporting Goods to add fuel and checked the oil level. The next day I drove over to meet two other riders, turned off the bike, and then it wouldn’t start. I had a dead battery. We hooked it up to a trickle charger, but that didn’t do it. I had to go back home to get a set of jumper cables and that did the trick.

We took back roads along the Sacramento River and ended up at the Virgin Sturgeon. I was a little worried about the bike starting so I had the jumper ca-

“That is still cheaper than the embarrassment of a dead battery.”

bles in my saddlebags. Luckily I didn’t need to use them. While we were eating lunch, Manny ordered a battery tender for me. He drove by my house the next day and handed it to me and told me to hook it up every time I park the bike. I thought that for $32, and I was good to go. Turns out Harleys have a different connector than other bikes, so Amazon is delivering an adaptor for $17 sometime this week. That is still cheaper than the embarrassment of a dead battery.

We still celebrate Friday the 13ths at the museum. There are two more this year, one in September and one in December. My father started celebrating Friday the 13ths after he took out his wedding license on

See QUICK, Page 4

Horoscopes

ARIES (Mar 21/Apr 20),

You may have a renewed sense of energy and motivation right now, Aries. Capitalize on that to tackle a laundry list of projects that have been sitting on the back burner.

TAURUS (Apr 21/May 21),

Taurus, your sense of humor and quirky personality could get you a few extra chuckles from friends this week, but try not to take it too far. Factor in time for serious pursuits.

GEMINI (May 22/Jun 21),

Gemini, when focusing on your health this week, remember that stress reduction is an important component of getting healthy. Aim for activities that focus on relaxation.

CANCER (Jun 22/Jul 22),

Everyone’s heads are seemingly in the clouds right now, Cancer. It may feel like you are the only person with your feet on the ground ready to get down to business.

LEO (Jul 23/Aug 23),

Leo, people have been gravitating in your direction for some time seeking advice. You can open up conversations to other topics that are important to you with such a captive audience.

VIRGO (Aug 24/Sept 22),

Strong emotions could be drummed up this week and may cause you to be distracted more so than usual. Try to get a break so you can make some time sort things out.

LIBRA (Sept 23/Oct 23),

Libra, being honest with yourself is important as you confront a notable challenge. Accept a self-assessment and devise a plan to make the most of this opportunity.

SCORPIO (Oct 24/Nov 22),

You have to develop a strategy before making your next move, Scorpio. Whether it is a business proposal or something with a friend or family member, don’t be too hasty.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23/Dec 21), Sagittarius, you may notice that people are very sensitive to what you are saying, so you may have to change your approach if you want your message to be well-received.

CAPRICORN (Dec 22/Jan 20),

Something could be brewing but you can’t identify what it is just yet, Capricorn. This could lead you to feeling restless and out of sorts. Give it some time and it will work out.

AQUARIUS (Jan 21/Feb 18),

Others’ words are meaningful to you right now, Aquarius. Consider these opinions and spend time figuring out how to incorporate this advice.

PISCES (Feb 19/Mar 20), Pisces, often it can be challenging to take the high road But that’s just what you have to do right now. Others will recognize your willingness to set a good example.

Express Yourself

Letters

Regarding Charley’s opinion column Fire does not respect political boundaries. Fire goes where water flows. Fire goes where the wind blows. Winters is not immune to the threat of catastrophic fires. The borders of Winters are the WUI, the Wildland Urban Interface. Fuel mitigation efforts by government agencies such as CalFIRE and Yolo County. Private rural landowners such as Las Positas and Golden Bear work tirelessly to reduce fuels that would allow fires to rage out of control. The WFD is teaching Winters residents how to do their part to harden their homes against wildfire. How long would people in life-threatening circumstances outside the 2.9 square

miles of Winters have to wait for assistance if the WFD did not respond? Kayakers, hikers, boaters, campers, and birders are drawn to the beauty of our area. They support the local economy through purchases made in Winters. The chamber of commerce advertises and downtown business association market to them because they appreciate their support.

I am nearly speechless regarding Charley’s comments on medical calls. The most vulnerable residents deserve to be served. Winters would not be Winters if it turned its back on them. I hope that Measure S passes so the question of funding services such as this is addressed. Thank you.

REVALEE HEMKEN Resident of unincoRpoRated WinteRs

Letters Policy

The Winters Express encourages readers to submit letters of general interest to the Winters community. Letters contribute to community discussion. See the Express Letters to the Editor guidelines: Letters should not exceed 350 words. Anonymous letters will not be accepted. We accept “thank you” letters naming local individuals and businesses only. Non-local names will be edited out. “Thank you” notices containing non-local individuals or businesses must be published as paid advertising to: ads@wintersexpress.com.

We reserve the right to edit letters for brevity or clarity, or to reject any letter. Letters must be legibly signed by the writer. We reserve the right to determine legitimacy.

Mail letters to: The Winters Express, PO Box 520, Winters, CA 95694, submit online at https://tinyurl.com/ syzevywd or visit wintersexpress.com.

QUICK

from Page 3

a Friday the 13th. He used the occasion to show merchants how the newspaper was produced followed by dinner at the Buckhorn. The after-party dinners stopped when too many people showed up at the office and it became more of a potluck. The parties are now fundraisers for the Winters Museum and run from 5 to

Why you should vote yes on something I voted no on

By Richard Casavecchia Special to the Express

At the June 28 City Council Meeting, the Council voted to place a measure on the November Ballot to give you, the residents, the ability to approve a city sales tax. The vote was 4-1, I was the one no vote.

Bottom line up front: the city is running on empty financially. Going into Fiscal Year 2025, we need approximately $330,000 more than we will bring in just to maintain the same level of staff and services, and another $300,000 to keep our reserve fund at the necessary responsible amount.

The rising costs we all feel every day are affecting the city as well. For example, some of the equipment we need to replace is 20 percent more expensive than it was pre-pandemic.

A local sales tax would shift more of the cost to run the city onto non residents who already visit our town.

My no vote in June was not because I do not think this is necessary, it was the timing. I wanted us to do this deliberately next year with enough time to run a proper campaign.

My concern was and is that we started this process too late. We haven’t done the necessary work to inform the residents of how dire the city’s financial situation and future is before putting

this item on the ballot. Not starting this process earlier given that this is an election year is our fault and is a byproduct of not having a comprehensive, forward looking, strategic financial plan to proactively guide us. I know I will learn from this and do my best to prevent a lack of vision from placing us in a similar situation again.

We voted the day before the deadline for ballot measures to be delivered to the county. That gives us just a few months before ballots go out to put together a campaign and spread the word to convince all of you that this is necessary as part of a long term strategic financial plan. Doing this next year would have cost the city close to $280,000 for a special election, but if we knew it was going to pass this measure would pay for itself. So, I saw little financial risk there.

My fear is this won’t pass and we won’t have another chance at this for 4 to 6 years. If that happens, we will be up to $7.2 Million worse off than we otherwise would be, which is nearly a full year’s worth of general fund expenses.

The ballot measure is for a 1 percent sales tax which would bring the total sales tax in town to 8.25 percent. Most of us are already paying that rate by shopping in Vacaville/ Davis according to our sales tax analysis. But at 8.25 percent, Winters would still be

lower than most surrounding cities, all of whom are also putting a 1 percent tax measure on their ballots.

The real benefit of the 1 percent tax on the ballot is ALL of it comes to the city. Currently, we miss out on vehicle and online sales and the county takes that money.

The existing 7.25 percent sales tax in Winters breaks down as follows:

• 3.9375 percent to the State General Fund

• 0.5 percent to the County Public Safety Fund

• 0.5 percent for County Health and Social Services

• 1.0625 percent Misc County Funds

• 0.25 percent for County Transportation Funds

• 1 percent to the City/County Operations Pool. The full 1 percent goes to the city for most purchases and 0.004 percent of online and vehicle sales is sent to the city from the county.

If you approve this tax measure, the city will receive an additional $0.01 for every $1 spent in town. This 1 percent local tax is estimated to be worth $1.2 Million in potential annual revenue for the city and applies to local, vehicle, and online purchases. That is almost a 15 percent increase in our general fund which pays for our public works equipment, police and firefighter salaries, pool upkeep, city staff salaries, road repair, park

maintenance, public facility renovations, and everything that isn’t water and sewer.

The general fund also subsidizes a number of our other funds that pay for maintenance around the city. This tax will hopefully give us the capacity to offer more competitive salaries and benefits to fill the empty positions we have at the city, and keep the employees we already have.

It pains me to say we need this, but we do.

Now, our commitment to you: if you pass this, we will do the work necessary to develop a long-term strategic financial plan to attempt to grow the tax base for this new tax. That will be in the form of I made a point to ask that we discuss at a future council meeting, a complete strategic financial plan, and the entire council agreed. That should be happening in September.

It is our job to create an environment of opportunity for people to capitalize on by best using the tools you give us.

This 1 percent tax is worth $1.2 Million now, but if we can bring in more businesses and jobs, that same 1 percent will be worth more to you all in the future while still being paid primarily by visitors and tourists.

So, in November, I am asking you to vote Yes on S and give us a new tool to stabilize the city’s financial future.

Spending more holidays away from home

T7 p.m. They are still hosted by the Wallace brothers and you don’t need to bring anything, just show up and support the museum while enjoying a beverage of your choice. There is a running joke that the only time I clean up the office is when we throw a party. I have two weeks to create a miracle, but I’m trying to do more than move piles of junk from one room to another. Have a good week.

LIKE

A GOOD NEIGHBOR, STATE FARM IS THERE.®

hese are two of a series of letters that my uncle, Russell Fox Taylor sent home to his wife Lilla from the battlefields in France, Belgian and Germany. At the time of this writing his unit, the 38th Calvary Reconnaissance Squadron, had battled from the beaches of Normandy France, through Belgium and they had breached the Siegfried Line located on Belgian-German border.

—Respectfully submitted by Winters resident Gerald Taylor in memory and honor to all of the brave men who fought gallantly to defeat the tyranny of Nazism.

Germany

November 16, 1944

It has now been more than a year since leaving the USA — It seems like 10 years. The weather here has been very nasty and disagreeable lately and I have had some wet and cold. We have had snow for a

couple of weeks now and it appears like it’s here to stay for the winter. My sincerest hope is that I’m not here to stay with it.

This will be the third holiday season I’ve been away from home, and the second one on the wrong side of the world. From what you say of the number of packages on the way it shouldn’t be the worst Christmas for me, but I think the greatest joy is to be with your loved ones and partake of the spirit that warms the heart and brings happiness.

It’s time now for chow so must hurry if I expect to eat and I’m also hungry as a bear.

—Russell

Somewhere in Germany

November 21, 1944

The last three letters have been written on kraut paper. I didn’t buy the paper either. It was obligingly left behind by some kraut who no doubt was in too big a hurry to arrive in Berlin to gather up all his belongings.

Jess (Russ’ brother who is assigned to a different military unit) fixed me up with a pair of overshoes and until recently I’ve had to boobie-trap them every time I took them off. Now all the boys have some and I’m no longer a plutocrat and can ease up my vigilance on my won. For a few days I have been an uninvited “guest” in a kraut house. Of course the owners don’t happen to be around and why let a good warm house go to waste in weather like this. We keep fires going and are staying

dry. I even have a bed to sleep on, well almost a bed. There’s no Simmons Beauty Rest to sink into — in fact there’s no mattress at all — so I just spread a blanket and sink into the springs. Not exactly all the comforts of home but it beats living in a muddy fox-hole by quite a few degrees. We have electric lights most of the time and are really in solid. Comparatively speaking we are, for the time at least, living in the lap of luxury. I hope we can stay awhile or until something better or as-good-as, comes along. Don’t ever think I feel comfortable enough to want to stay here permanently. I came across an old “TIME” magazine of September 11 which is realistic and typical of stuff we have to contend with and while not an everyday occurrence it has and does happen. The article is captioned “Dusk in the Rhine Valley.” I should also say that it is not my unit either. I hope, too, that that entire particular brand of Hell is over with.

—Russell

Express Yourself

As inflation keeps hitting

pocketbooks, California politicians scramble to respond

By Dan Walters CalMatters

Thirty-two years ago, as then-Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton was trying to unseat President H.W. Bush, Clinton strategist James Carville summarized the campaign in four immortal words: “It’s the economy, stupid.”

Clinton successfully portrayed Bush as someone out of touch with the angst voters felt as they stretched their incomes to cover living costs and debts.

If anything, the economic discomfort is even higher in this election year, particularly from high inflation in recent years. And politicians from the White House level downward are paying attention to a potentially decisive factor.

It explains, for instance, why Vice President Kamala Harris is promising a price-gouging ban on food costs if she wins the presidency.

“It’s an attempt to tack-

le a clear vulnerability of Harris’ head-on,” according to an analysis by the Associated Press. “Under the Biden-Harris administration, grocery prices have shot up 21 percent, part of an inflation surge that has raised overall costs by about 19 percent and soured many Americans on the economy, even as unemployment fell to historic lows.”

Residents of Harris’ home state are certainly not immune.

“Food prices are up 27 percent compared to April 2019, and gasoline is up 29 percent,” the Public Policy Institute of California noted in a May report.

“While expenditures on these goods and services make up large portions of most household budgets, lower-income households spend almost all of their resources (83 percent) on food, housing, transportation (including gasoline), and health care.”

The California Center for Jobs and the Economy

reports that Californians are now paying the nation’s highest rates for household, commercial and industrial electrical power and gasoline.

The California Public Utilities Commission’s consumer advocate reports that over the last decade, electricity rates have increased 110 percent for Pacific Gas and Electric customers and only slightly less for ratepayers in other investor-owned utilities.

California housing costs are notoriously among the nation’s highest. Its median home price of $793,600 is the highest of any state and almost exactly twice as high as the national median according to a recent Bankrate report. Its median rent for a two-bedroom apartment, $1,903 a month, is also the nation’s highest, according to a survey by Consumer Affairs, a consumer research site.

California is fundamentally a one-party state

and dominant Democrats needn’t worry about losing offices due to inflation. However, they must at least feign sympathy for their constituents who struggle to pay for the necessities of life.

Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has been preoccupied with building his national political image, is apparently planning to seek approval of an electric power relief plan in the final days of the current legislative session.

The Sacramento Bee reports that Newsom wants to commit roughly a billion dollars to lowering power bills, but doesn’t want to tap the state’s deficit-ridden budget. Rather, he would divert money now being spent on some ancillary programs, and attach it to a measure aimed at speeding up non-polluting energy projects, such as offshore wind, that’s being drafted for passage before adjourning Aug. 31. As word of Newsom’s plan circulates in the Capitol, it’s drawing fire from advo-

cates for the programs that would be axed, such as air conditioning for schools, improving power reliability in poor communities and installing solar power panels on low-income housing projects.

Acoalition of renewable energy, environmental and groups this week sent a letter to Newsom and legislative leaders opposing any diversions.

“Cutting them would provide negligible reductions on energy bills in the short-term while sacrificing the long-term climate and affordability benefits they provide,” the coalition said.

It shapes up as a yeasty confrontation between competing causes in the session’s final days.

—CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters. For more stories by Dan Walters, go to Commentary.

California risked millions in homelessness funds due to poor anti-fraud protections

By Marisa Kendall CalMatters

California put hundreds of millions of homelessness dollars at risk because of its “disorganized” and “chaotic” anti-fraud policies, according to a critical federal audit released Aug. 6.

The audit analyzed California’s Department of Housing and Community Development, which oversees the state’s homelessness programs. It gave the California agency its lowest possible ranking, finding that it lacked adequate policies to prevent, detect and respond to fraud.

As a result, the audit found, the state agency failed to properly protect $319.5 million in federal homelessness funds, which were distributed during the COVID-19 pandemic, from the possibility of misuse.

The audit did not uncover any new instances of fraud.

“Fraud poses a significant risk to the integrity of federal programs and erodes public trust in government,” Inspector General Rae Oliver Davis, with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, said in a news release. “Enhancing its robust antifraud program will help the California Department of Housing and Community Development ensure that its pandemic grant funds, and future homelessness assistance funds, are safeguarded from fraud.”

With the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the federal government poured $4 billion into its Emergency Solutions Grant program, which was intended to help people struggling with homelessness. California’s share of that pot was $319.5 million — a 2,505 percent increase from its typical annual allotment. With that huge influx of money also came an increased risk

that bad actors would attempt to use those funds for nefarious purposes. But California failed to adequately step up its anti-fraud measures, according to the federal housing department.

In a response, the state housing department said it will take steps to implement the feds’ recommendations and improve its anti-fraud measures.

“HCD is committed to a systematic and comprehensive approach to the management of risks, including fraud risk, as an integral part of its strategy formulation and implementation,” Director Gustavo Velasquez wrote in a letter to the federal housing department.

In a statement to CalMatters, the state housing agency said that work has already begun. “Since the audit, HCD has worked with HUD to address all…audit recommendations to ensure that the framework strengthens fraud risk detection and reflects leading industry standards and best practices,” the agency said in an email.

The audit found California failed to prioritize fraud prevention in its administration of homelessness funds. The state didn’t perform regular fraud risk assessments, develop a plan to identify and swiftly address potential fraud, or have a process in place to evaluate the effectiveness of its anti-fraud poli-

cies, according to the audit. Those failures run counter to best practices the federal housing department expects all recipients of federal homelessness funds to follow.

When the state did uncover alleged fraud, it dropped the ball in its response, according to the audit.

In March 2022, the state housing department found out a local law enforcement agency was investigating potential fraud and misuse of Emergency Solutions Grant funding. The state agency did not report that allegation in the proper channels because, in part, officials worried doing so could create a publicity risk, according to the audit. The agency finally reported the incident nearly a year and a half later — and only after federal auditors started asking questions, according to the audit.

In assessing the state housing department’s response to the potential fraud, the audit found that the department did not re-assess its exposure to suspected fraud, “repeat its internal control processes” to work against fraud, or develop written policy “to convey expectations of senior leaders to manage fraud risks.”

“HCD and (the Division of Federal Financial Assistance) did not have an antifraud strategy to respond to fraud risks specific to the department,” the audit states.

Neither the feds nor the state housing department provided additional details about that alleged fraud. Because the case was under active investigation, the state housing department refrained from further documentation or public discussion of the case, the state housing department told CalMatters.

The audit’s results weren’t surprising to Sen. Dave Cortese, a Democrat from Santa Clara County who recently backed a separate audit of the state’s homelessness programs. That audit, which came out last month, found the state fails to track what it’s spending on homelessness, and which programs are working.

The newer federal audit seems to underscore a broader lack of accountability in the homelessness sector, he said.

“The biggest reason of all that it’s frustrating is these are public sector dollars, they’re taxpayer dollars,” Cortese said. “It’s disrespectful to the taxpayers to say, ‘Gee, we don’t really know what happened here to your money.’”

Assemblymember Josh Hoover, a Republican from Folsom who co-authored the request for the ear-

lier statewide audit, agreed.

“Once again, California is failing to meet the mark on homelessness,” he said in an emailed statement. “If we truly want to solve homelessness, we have to start by holding our own bureaucracies accountable.”

Despite finding multiple holes in the California agency’s anti-fraud practices, the feds provided no evidence that fraud actually was rampant in the agency. Aside from the March 2022 case, the Federal Housing Department stopped short of calling out any specific instances of suspected fraud.

But that could come later: The feds recently launched a second audit looking into improper payments of Emergency Solutions Grants, which could include fraud. That report is expected sometime next year.

The federal housing department also is auditing the agencies

that administered Emergency Solutions Grants in Honolulu and New York City. Those results have not yet been published.

Fraud allegations have already surfaced in other programs overseen by California’s housing department. Earlier this year, the state agency sued a Los Angeles developer that received $114 million to develop homeless housing through the state’s Homekey program. Though the majority of the COVID-era Emergency Solutions Grant funds have been distributed, California’s lack of fraud protections could continue to put future programs in jeopardy, the auditors wrote. —Marisa Kendall covers California’s homelessness crisis for CalMatters. CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters.

Sports

WHS Athletics announces cashless gate policy

Express staff

On Monday, the Winters High School athletics department announced a new cashless gate policy starting with fall sports of the 2024–25 school year.

Tickets to WHS athletic events will exclusively be available through the GoFan App. GoFan is the official online ticketing platform of the CIF and the NSCIF and starting this year, the Sacramento Valley League has mandated it will be used for all of its sports contests.

“Therefore, we will not be accepting cash at any of our home games this year,” stated the WHS athletics social post. “I know that change can be frustrating but we rolled this program out last year with great success and I am very excited about

creek and waterfalls and pools of water that form atop of volcanic base.

Chung said the entire landscape is dependent on the seasons, with animals migrating in and out to their advantage, and a mix of plant uprisings depending on the time of the year.

One such plant is the very rare Hermonia, with this specific plant found in only one other area. The Land Trust has named one of its trails after the plant, a pathway into the shrub’s springtime domain.

There are more than 14 miles of trails in the park.

Kinter said the seasonal life cycles also would have been true for the Patwin people, who may have lived in those foothills parttime. However, it was likely someone would have lived there yearround as a kind of caretaker.

Certainly, the Patwin people were in Solano County when the Spanish arrived.

the future. It is highly recommended that all WHS sports fans download the GoFan app and purchase tickets through the app. For those that are not able to do that, we will be accepting card payments at the gate as well.”

Tickets for volleyball and football games or an all-sport season pass are available this season on the WHS GoFan page. All-season pass holders can access all WHS sporting events this school year. QR codes will also be displayed along the fence line for attendees who need to purchase tickets onsite. Access the WHS GoFan page at https:// gofan.co/app/school/ CA8082.

Questions can be sent to Daniel Ward at dward@wintersjusd. org.

A number of their village sites have kept the interpretive, phonetic names such as Putah, Suisun and Ulatis.

Some family tribal names, however, have been bastardized.

“Our family name is Lorenzo. And so your name was given to you from the first name of your captor,” Kinter said. “I don’t know if that happened everywhere, but it happened in our family.”

“The county derives its name indirectly from that of the Franciscan missionary, Father Francisco Solano, whose name was given in baptism to the chief of one of the Indian tribes of the region. Before receiving the name Solano, the chief was called Sem Yeto, which signifies ‘brave or fierce hand.’

At the request of General Vallejo, the county was named for Chief Solano, who at one time ruled over most of the land and tribes between the Petaluma Creek and the Sacramento River,” a short history on the Solano County website states.

For Kinter and his

Partnership program extended

The WHS Athletics Department extended the last day to apply for its 2024–25 athletic partnership program to Sept. 1.

Since its launch in 2021, the athletic partnership program has been the only fundraiser that the athletic department does the entire school year, and all funds raised go directly back to benefit student-athletes.

Funding from the WHS Athletic Partnership Program will go toward safety equipment, game equipment, referees, uniforms, and field and gym maintenance.

Ward said one of the WHS Athletic program’s biggest costs is to pay for referees.

For more information or to sign up, send an email to dward@ wintersjusd.org

older sister, Yvonne Perkins, it takes little or no imagination to see the children who would have been running and playing among the oak trees and volcanic rock at the new park. It would not be un-

SAVE THE DATE - Capstone Gold Out game

Winters High School athlete Robert Maggenti Jr. is hosting a Gold Out game for his Senior Capstone Project on Sept. 6 where the Warriors will take on the Rio Vista Rams.

CODY Continued from Page 1

NASA materials and will occasionally do puzzles.

Life reflections

Barbara said she met her husband, Bill Cody, at a singles party, and they were later married. They were together for nearly two decades.

Today, Barbara trusts a few family members and friends. She has a very tight network.

Barbara has four children, one boy and three girls. She also has four grandchildren, two boys and

there was respect for the land.

“You don’t go out stomping and yelling. You go up humble,” said Perkins, even to the point of being careful not to have shiny objects that might disturb the

“It was great for me to hear people speak our language. It was something that would have never happened when I was a teenager.”

Leland Kinter, Tribal Council

like their childhoods on the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation lands in Brooks, or where they visited family often at the nearby Kletsel Dehe rancheria west of Williams — except they had cardboard on which to slide down the hills. Perkins remembers making their fishing rods. She remembers camping trips when the boys would go out hunting for rabbits, and the girls would gather firewood and fetch water.

But at all times,

two girls. Today, Barbara’s daughter and grandson live in a separate home on her property.

If Barbara could do something different in her life, she said she would have studied genetics, which would have given her a different career path.

She advises young people to study hard and to be careful.

Barbara said she would like to be remembered as someone who was nice and who made a positive difference.

The Winters Express is featuring all

and over and over (the stories),” Kinter said.

The central figure was Mary Mae (Wright) Norton, their grandmother. She was just 5 feet, 2 inches tall and carried traditional Patwin traits to her looks.

Kinter still laughs a bit at her big earlobes.

“But she could command a room,” Kinter said.

A black and white photo of her still hangs in the state Capitol from when she advocated for Indian rights.

land.

Being one of the older children, she took care of the younger kids, and those memories are some of her favorites. She would wake them and take them off for various activities.

Another part of their life growing up, however, was when they would be brought into a room and repeatedly taught the history of their ancestors and their lands.

“My family had 17 aunts and uncles ... and they would go over

Kinter remembers that while he was serving as chairman of the Tribal Council, he had occasions to meet with Gov. Jerry Brown, who sometimes would just show up for a kind of social visit.

Brown, too, has ties to the Williams area.

His grandmother is buried in the local cemetery.

Every time, Kinter said, Brown asked about Mary Mae Norton.

Like many native children, Norton was taken from her home and placed in a boarding school. Hers was

eight 2024 Elder Day honorees. To see the full list of honorees, visit https://bit.ly/ 3XYdVeM. Nominate elders To recommend a community elder be honored at the 2025 Winters Elder Day event, they must be 90 years old or turning 90 by Dec. 31, 2025. Contact Wally Pearce at 707-2497975 or email denropro@gmail.com. Members of the Spanish-speaking community should contact Ramon Altamirano at 916-600-6707 or email ramon.altamirano@ aol.com.

the Stewart Indian School in Stewart, Nevada, where she excelled in math and other subjects, but all the while, held deeply to the values she learned from her parents and grandparents.

What Kinter and Perkins know follows the same oral lines of history.

They know the Patwin people lived and worked and played in the place now called Patwino Worrtla Kodoi Dihi Open Space Park, and he knows the land knows them.

“We were never gone, we were always here,” Kinter said. Kinter said he was very moved when the group that gathered for the ribbon-cutting and dedication on Wednesday learned to pronounce the name of the park.

“It was great for me to hear people speak our language. It was something that would have never happened when I was a teenager,” Kinter said.

“That gave me a physical response.”

PATWIN

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Arts & Entertainment

Happening in Winters

Express staff

Class of 2027

Car Wash

The Winters High School Class of 2027 is hosting a carwash fundraiser on Sunday, Sept. 8, at the WHS student parking lot from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Donations will be accepted.

Community blood drive

The Winters Fortnightly Club is seeking local community members to register to donate blood at the upcoming September Winters Community Blood Drive, to help them reach the goal of 24 appointments.

The Fortnightly Club and Vitalant are hosting a Winters community blood drive on Monday, Sept. 9, from 2 to 5:45 p.m. at the Winters Community Center (201 Rail-

road Ave., Winters). Register today at https://bit.ly/3Svm7jz or donors.vitalant.org and choose “Advanced Search” then “Blood Drive Code.” To register for the Winters blood drive, use blood drive code SMFM164 or call Vitalant at 877-2584825 and mention the blood drive code.

New business opening

Mark your calendars for Sept. 12. The Winters District Chamber of Commerce officially welcomes FineEye Gallery with a ribbon-cutting event. The celebration will begin at 5:30 p.m. at 14 Main St. The ribbon-cutting ceremony will be at 6 p.m. Light snacks and beverages will be part of the celebration.

The Californios take the stage for Odd Fellows Thursday Live! show

Special to the Express

The Davis Odd Fellows Thursday Live! concert on Sept. 5 features Mike Blanchard & The Californios. Thursday Live! is a continuing concert series at the Odd Fellows Hall, 415 Second St. in downtown Davis. Shows are held on the first Thursday of most months; admission is free but donations for the musicians are encouraged.

Doors open at 7 p.m. and the show starts at 7:30 p.m. The bar will be open for sales of beer, wine and sodas. After years of wan-

dering the highways playing gigs and watching the internet transform the music industry, Blanchard decided that it was time to get back to the source and bring down the stage volume. Lucky for us, he came off the road and put together a band of some of the best musicians around who are also his friends. A good combo. Based around Blanchard’s singing and songwriting, the Californios play in the traditional country and Americana genres. Heavily influenced by Merle

Haggard and 70s California country bands like Crosby, Stills and Nash; Commander Cody and the Flying Burrito Brothers; the songs, originals and select covers, feature soaring four-part harmonies over a tight rhythm section. The songs take you down dusty roads, up into Laurel Canyon and out onto the beach at sunset.

Joining the Californios on acoustic guitar is Vince Montoya who, along with Blanchard, was the heart of the award-winning northern California twang rock band Tattooed

Love Dogs. On both standup and electric bass is Rob Meyer, a veteran of the Sacramento music scene. Roger Kunkel, on electric guitar, was the lead guitarist for Thin White Rope. Drummer Rusi Gustafson is the newest member of the band and has been playing locally for years. Thursday Live! is sponsored by the Davis Odd Fellows concert committee with the support of KDRT Radio. To learn about future events at the Odd Fellows Hall, email Juelie Roggli at juelrog@gmail.com.

Yolo Classic Car and Truck Show announces winners

Special to the Express

Despite an early morning drizzle and an afternoon downpour, over 800 attendees enjoyed the seventh annual “Cruisin’ into the Next Chapter” Classic Car and Truck Show on Saturday, Aug. 24, in Yolo. This family-friendly event was presented by the Friends of the Yolo Branch Library and the Yolo County Library. The event featured more than 120 classic cars and trucks. Michael Sandoval

received the Best of Show award for his 1956 Ford Country Sedan. David Arriaga’s 1959 Chevrolet El Camino was honored with the Fire Chiefs’ Hot Pick award, selected by representatives from local fire departments. Additionally, twelve other awards were presented in the following categories:

Stock Car 1900-1959: Stanley Borba, 1959 Bianchina Trasformabile

Stock Car 1960-1999: Ken & Scott Price, 1966 Pontiac GTO

Modified Truck 1960-1999: Tom Barrios, 1971 GMC 1500 Super Custom Rat Rod 1900-1999: Clint Wolff, 1930 Ford

Model A

Best Upholstery: David Arriaga, 1963

Chevrolet Impala SS Convertible

Best Motor: William Hardisty, 1965 Ford

Mustang

Best Paint Job: Dana Rounds, 1956 Ford F100

Best Chrome: Chris Morris, 1953 Chevrolet Pickup

– Alex Solorzano, age 10, Knights Landing Best 20” Stock Lowrider Bike: 1st Place – Emiliano Solorzano, age 12, Knights Landing; 2nd Place – Dominic Quezada, age 15, Robbins Best 20” Street Lowrider Bike: 1st & 2nd Places – Jorge Alvarado, age 16, Woodland Best 26” Lowrider Bike: 1st Place – Salvador Solorzano, age 15, Knights Landing

WINTERS, CA 95694 For information contact www.winterscorazon.org or Jesse@winterscorazon@gmail.com City of Winters and Winters Community Corazón

Modified Car 19001959: George Corbin, 1947 Lincoln Continental Convertible

Modified Car 19601999: William Hardisty, 1965 Ford Mustang

Stock Truck 19001999: David Arriaga, 1959 Chevrolet El Camino

Modified Truck 1900-1959: Rudy Rodriguez, 1957 Chevrolet Truck

This year’s event also included a Youth Lowrider Bike Show. Among the six entries, Dominic Quezada, age 15 from Robbins, was awarded the Yolo County Sheriff’s Office Pick, while Jorge Alvendo, age 16 from Woodland, received the Librarian’s Choice. An additional six awards were given in the following categories: Best 16” Street Lowrider Bike: 1st Place

All proceeds from the event will benefit the Friends of the Yolo Branch Library, supporting library programs and services for the communities of Yolo, Zamora, Dunnigan, and surrounding areas. For more information about the Friends of the Yolo Branch Library, visit www. friendsofyololibrary. org or connect with them at Facebook. com/FriendsofYoloLibrary.