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C ali forn ia’s Olde st Ne w spaper
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Volume 172 • Issue 132 | $1.00
Tree crushes STAR patrol; three volunteers injured A Sheriff’s Team of Active Retirees SUV was struck by a tree Nov. 15 while on a security patrol in south county.
News release Three volunteers with the Sheriff ’s Team of Active Retirees were injured Wednesday when their patrol vehicle was struck by a falling tree in the area of Grizzly Flat and Sweeney roads in Somerset, according to information from El Dorado County Sheriff ’s Office Sgt. Kyle Parker. Residents nearby jumped to action, using their chainsaws to cut the fallen pine
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Photo courtesy of the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office
n See stars, page A8
Mountain Democrat graphic
A rendering shows what a Christmas tree placed next to the Bell Tower in downtown Placerville might look like.
Pictured in 2017 is George Wheeldon with a 7,000-pound piece of snowflake obsidian found south of the Mono-Inyo craters that he brought home from a field trip.
Main Street Christmas tree Bell Tower bound Odin Rasco Staff writer
Mountain Democrat file photo by Mark Studyvin
Geologist George Wheeldon was a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ guy Odin Rasco Staff writer
G
eorge Wheeldon, a legendary figure in El Dorado County education who taught science to generations of students, died Oct. 20 following a lengthy illness. “Very few people you meet are once-in-a-lifetime individuals, and that’s precisely what George was,” said Fred Ott, a friend of Wheeldon’s and five-time former president of the El Dorado County Mineral and Gem Society. Wheeldon was born in Sioux Falls, S.D., and grew up there until his family moved to Salinas
when his father was stationed at Fort Ord. He was an accomplished musician and football player in high school; he was even offered a scholarship to the University of the Pacific for his musicianship. After high school Wheeldon began to study at Hartnell Junior College, where two major milestones in his life took place. One was a moment he was proud of his whole life; the school football team he played on won the national championship and went on to play at the Junior Rose Bowl. “George loved to tell stories and the one about n See Wheeldon, page A9
“Why is it so hard to have Christmas in this town?” Placerville City Council member John Clerici asked the question Tuesday evening, as the council was called to consider alternate locations to the original alternate location for the temporary replacement Christmas tree to be used in this year’s Nov. 24 tree-lighting ceremony. After the large coastal redwood that has served as the town’s traditional Christmas tree for decades was damaged by the severe storms that soaked the state last New Year’s Eve and early this year, the City Council and city staff decided in May to explore alternatives. Looking for workable solutions for where to place a temporary replacement tree, city staff originally identified the ground in front of the El Dorado County Superior Courthouse near the intersection of Bedford Avenue and Main Street as an ideal location. As the courthouse is state property, City Manager Cleve Morris pursued written consent for permission to place a tree in front of the building, but had not heard a final decision by Tuesday night. The 20- to 25-foot-tall tree donated by Sierra Pacific Industries is scheduled to arrive in town for setup Saturday morning; cautious of the possibility permission to set up in front of the courthouse may not come in time, the City Council was presented n See tree, page A8
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