Page C2 — REGISTER-PAJARONIAN, Tuesday, October 20, 2015
Tarmo Hannula/Register-Pajaronian
Richard Gurnee poses with a freeze-dried coyote at his Watsonville shop. Erik Chalhoub/Register-Pajaronian
Pajaro Valley Lock Shop owner Carroll Cameron works on one of the business' 19 key machines.
Everything locksmithing Pajaro Valley Lock Shop serving community since 1971 By ERIK CHALHOUB OF THE REGISTER-PAJARONIAN
WATSONVILLE — Pajaro Valley Lock Shop owner Carroll Cameron has been walking into work every day since he opened the business in 1971, not knowing what the day will bring him. And that is exactly how he likes it. “There’s new stuff every day, that’s what I like,” Cameron said. “I hate repetition.” Case in point, on a recent Tuesday, a customer had dropped off a spare tire for a 1932 Ford, seeking a lock for it. It’s not something Cameron sees every day, or in this case, ever. “I’ve never seen one before,” he said. “You’ve got to figure it out.” Figuring it out is what Cameron and his staff of five
employees do best. He has the art of key making down to a science, with 19 key machines lining a wall in the back of the shop. Most businesses that make keys have only one machine, which loses accuracy, he said, explaining that every time the machine’s jaw is rotated, accuracy is sacrificed. So, each of Cameron’s 19 machines is set in one position. If that doesn’t do the trick, he will buy another machine, he noted. One thing that is a constant in the business is helping people who have locked themselves out of their car, offering emergency service 24/7. On a recent morning, Cameron said Pajaro Valley Lock Shop had helped two people before 10 a.m. “It’s all day long, many times a day,” he said.
Cameron opened Pajaro Valley Lock Shop in 1971, at its same location on 1024 Freedom Blvd. in Watsonville. “I was working for a sporting goods store,” he said. “We had a little tiny locksmith corner and I fell in love with it. The boss sold the store, and I started my own hole in the wall.” Many of his employees have worked for the business for close to 30 years, some even more. In addition to auto services, Pajaro Valley Lock Shop also offers closed circuit television, residential and commercial services. The business is open Monday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. For information, call 722-6540 or visit www.pajarovalleylockshop. com.
Preserving his career Watsonville native designed well-known freeze-drying process for animals By TODD GUILD OF THE REGISTER-PAJARONIAN
WATSONVILLE — Behind the doors of Gurnee Freeze-Dri Taxidermy on East Lake Avenue sits a veritable menagerie, an assemblage of birds, mammals, reptiles and other animals whose poses and expressions are lively, realistic and frozen forever in time. They have all been freezedried through a unique process developed by Richard Gurnee 50 years ago. His is displayed in nature centers and museums across the country. Gurnee was born and raised in Watsonville and graduated from Watsonville High School in 1954. He started practicing basic taxidermy as a Boy Scout, when he taught himself the craft to earn a merit badge. He majored in zoology at Humboldt State, and as a graduate student at UC Berkeley was freezedrying tissue samples when he realized the process might be used for preserving whole animals. He began working at the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History,
where some of his preserved animals are still on display. He worked the museum for six years, and returned to Watsonville in 1965. He started his Watsonville business, and now earns a living preserving animals for museums, nature centers and educational institutions throughout the U.S., from Florida to Texas to Washington. He also works for individuals such as hunters who want animals preserved. “It makes me feel like I’ve really accomplished something,” he said. Gurnee’s process for preserving animals is vastly different from traditional taxidermy, in which the skin of the animal is removed and preserved, then placed over a synthetic frame. For Gurnee’s freeze-drying process, animals are placed in a giant vacuum, and the air is slowly removed. As pressure is allowed to return, the liquid essentially evaporates from the body and leaves behind the basic structure of the animal. One major advantage of the process, Gurnee said, is that he is able to preserve soft-bodied
animals such as slugs and insects. Gurnee has freeze-dried creatures ranging in size from a shrew to a 7-foot monitor lizard. The only animal Gurnee won’t do is family pets. “I don’t do members of the family,” he said. Gurnee begins the freezedrying process by using wires inserted in the animals’ limbs and neck to position then into a natural-looking state. “I wire them up, in other words,” he said. The eyes are the only artificial part of the animal, to give the animals their natural expressions. “The eyes are always critical,” he said. The freeze drying process can take three weeks for a quail and eight weeks for a mallard duck. He opens the tank every three weeks or so to check the weight. “When it stops losing weight, it’s finished,” he said. ••• Gurnee Freeze-Dri Taxidermy is located at 381 East Lake Ave. in Watsonville. For information, call 722-4715.
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REGISTER-PAJARONIAN, Tuesday, October 20, 2015 — Page C3
Soroptimist International of Watsonville CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE
Register-Pajaronian file
Harbor High School student Jenny Rodriguez (in white), 18, talks with Yvonne Martinez, admissions counselor at Grand Canyon University, about her options at Cabrillo College and Career Night 2011.
Cabrillo College hosts annual College and Career Night CONTRIBUTED ARTICLE
APTOS — Cabrillo College announces that its Annual College and Career Night 2015 will be held this year on Monday, Nov. 2, from 6-8 p.m. at the Cabrillo College Aptos campus, 6500 Soquel Drive, Aptos. “During College and Career Night, we expect more than 3,000 students and parents to visit with Cabrillo and other college representatives from around the country,” said Leslie De Rose, Cabrillo outreach coordinator. “It represents a unique opportunity to explore multiple college options and career pathways at a single event.” College and Career Night is the culminating event of College Awareness Week, which runs from Oct. 25–Nov. 2 and is a countywide declared week of events designed to help students understand the choices and challenges of college. During
the week, schools, business groups, and community organizations will have college-themed activities throughout Santa Cruz County In the Robert E. Swenson Library and the Cabrillo College Cafeteria, college-bound, Santa Cruz County students and their parents can attend the annual Cabrillo College Open House to learn about programs and Financial Aid offered at Cabrillo. Cabrillo College instructors, program representatives, financial aid advisors and counselors will also be available to speak with students and parents. Spanish language translation will be provided. In the Cabrillo College Gymnasium, students and their parents can meet with representatives from more than 60 public, private, and out-of-state colleges and universities, as
well as attend workshops about transferring from Cabrillo College to a four-year university. New this year in the Cabrillo College Library (Room 1054), students can learn about Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs, including the new San Francisco Bay Regional NetLab hosted at Cabrillo College, as well as Cabrillo’s Welding Program, Allied Health Programs, and other rewarding careers for which Cabrillo College provides training. Cabrillo’s Annual College and Career Night is open to the public and is free of charge. Students and parents who want to get a head start on college and career planning are encouraged to attend. Last year more than 3,000 people participated. Free parking is available in all student lots. For information, call 4796560.
Members of Soroptimist International of Watsonville are busy getting ready for their annual “Fall Fantasy,” the club’s major fundraiser. This year’s theme is “Putting on the Ritz” and is sure to be another fun-filled event. It will be held on Saturday, Nov. 14 from 5-9 p.m. at the Watsonville Woman’s Club and will include delicious food and drinks, a silent and live auction, raffles, and live entertainment. A particular raffle favorite is the beautiful quilt created and donated by club member Jan Mitchell. For more details about the event, please see the accompanying ad. This year, the Watsonville Soroptimist club celebrates its 87th anniversary of service to the community. Though service projects have changed over the years as the needs of the community have changed, the Soroptimist mission to improve the lives of women and girls continues to be the underlying theme, and has evolved to emphasize the importance of educational opportunities and access for local women and girls. This year, the Watsonville club again gave over $30,000 in scholarships to local high school graduates and $4,500 to local women who have returned to school to improve their career opportunities and the lives of their families. The club also continued its ongoing support of Pajaro Valley Shelter Services and CASA along with other local organizations. This past summer, a brand new federation-wide program brought Soroptimist clubs around the Monterey Bay together to work with girls in local secondary schools including Pajaro Valley High School. “Dream It, Be It” was a one-day intensive program which provided the 70-plus attendees with a curriculum of career exploration, setting and achieving goals, overcoming obstacles to success, and how to move forward after setbacks or failures. Presenters and attendees alike provided good feedback for this first-time effort,
Contributed
Soroptimist members pause to pose after a weekly meeting. and the clubs will look at ways to expand outreach to more girls in our communities. Currently, the Watsonville club is recruiting applicants for the “Live Your Dream: Education & Training Awards for Women” program and will be giving two cash awards. An applicant needs to be a female who provides the primary financial support for her family and has returned to college or a vocational training program in order to advance her employment prospects. For more information about the program criteria or to request and application, please email siwatsonville@ aol.com. On Monday, Nov. 2, the club’s 87th Anniversary celebration luncheon will be held. A special program is being planned and will include several distinguished guests. Community members who would like to meet club members and learn more about the Soroptimist club are invited to attend. Reservations are required. Please email siwatsonville@soroptimist. net for more information. At Holiday time, Annieglass has again graciously invited the club to sell delicious home baked goods and preserves at the annual “Holiday Factory Sale,” scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 5. Annieglass will be featuring beautifully hand-crafted glass “art for the table.” Soroptimists will be selling delicious holiday
goodies along with their recentlypublished cookbook. Stop by to finish your holiday shopping, find some beautiful gifts, and support your local Soroptimists. This year, the Watsonville Soroptimist Club has also enjoyed an influx of vibrant new members, women who are looking for meaningful ways to serve their community, enjoy the comraderie and friendship of other women, share their expertise and talents, and hone their leadership skills. Amidst the many opportunities to work together, Soroptimists always make sure to have fun along the way, through special outings, programs, potlucks, and mixers, just to name a few. To accomplish its mission, the Watsonville Soroptimist club welcomes interested women to join as members or to attend an informational meeting or activity. To learn more about the club, its meetings and events, please meet us on our Facebook page “Soroptimist International of Watsonville” and email us at siwatsonville@soroptimist.net. We thank you, our community members, for your continued support. Soroptimist International of Watsonville is a 501(c)3, allvolunteer organization whose mission is to improve the lives of women and girls through programs leading to social and economic empowerment.
College & Career Night 2015 Monday, November 2 from 6pm-8pm
Soroptimist Int’l. of Watsonville P.O. Box 442, Watsonville, CA 95077
Page C4 — REGISTER-PAJARONIAN, Tuesday, October 20, 2015
Doctor’s care is trifold
Dr. Jeff Lester serving community since 1987 By BEK PHILLIPS OF THE REGISTER-PAJARONIAN
WATSONVILLE — Since 1987 Dr. Jeff Lester has been serving the Watsonville community and Santa Cruz County as a family physician. The fourth generation of osteopathic physicians in Watsonville, Lester combines Western medicine with a comprehensive holistic approach that focuses on the person with their condition, not just the disease itself. “I try to offer a natural option to people to help them with their condition rather than always opting for a drug approach alone. I often combine more than one medical system, often from another country, to create an effective treatment plan that is also safe and effective,” he said. Caring for patients that range from babies to the elderly, Lester said his practice gives people more hope than is offered from a Western medical approach alone. “I like to instill hope back into patients so that we can get them healthy naturally first,” he said. “Then we treat them with medication later, depending on the severity, to stabilize their condition, like diabetes or heart disease.” Lester offers a wide range of integrative medicine services and programs, with the most popular one being his “Lean To Wellness” medical weight management program. People now often lose between 30 to 60 pounds or more using his system he developed in 2011. “I’m getting more known for helping people lose weight than my other medical services that we have offered for the past 30 years,” Lester said. “People get really excited about changing their
bodies by eating better and losing weight. The program is centered around learning and practicing how to eat healthier both in and out of the home by making better choices. We also use natural injections and weight loss supplements to help increase fat loss. Reducing fat in the body is key to improving health. Excess fat deposits in the body and clogs things up, often creating diabetes and heart disease.” Other holistic services include classical homeopathic m e d i c i n e f r o m G e r m a n y, acupuncture and Oriental medicine from China and the new functional medi cine and cardiometabolic medicine recently developed in the United States. While acknowledging that some patients gets concerned or wary about integrating a nonWestern medical approach to their health, Lester said that his initial training in standard medicine in osteopathic medical school at New York Institute of Technology has given him the knowledge and experience to handle even serious medical problems. Lester joined Dr. Fritz Smith in 1987. Smith had first brought acupuncture to Watsonville and was also an osteopath. “I wanted to begin my practice in a community with people who were more easy going, cooperative and patient than those he initially began his practice with in San Francisco,” Lester said. “I love the home town feel and the down-to-earth people here.” Lester overcame the concerns of his patients and his success now has included the opening of a third office, one in Santa Cruz on 41st Avenue and one in San Jose in Campbell. The three
Bek Phillips/Register-Pajaronian
The staff at Triology Medical Centers for Integrative Medicine include Patty Lester (from left), Jessica Candelario, Beatriz Manville, Alicia Rameno, Diana Picazo, Dr. Jeff Lester, Rosie Chavez and Maria Treuge. offices are now called Trilogy Medical and Weight Loss and offer the same three medical services in each office. He also trains medical providers in his methods. Lester went into medicine because he said that even as a boy he liked fixing things and figuring out how things worked. He loves preserving the quality of things and also preserving the quality of people’s health. “There is an important balance between the use of needed medication and the focus on natural health care. We are careful not to over medicate people.” Lester said he has worked with a wide variety of medical problems over the years, from diabetes and heart disease prevention to autoimmune disease and infertility. His practice works to health various conditions that include: migraines, fibromyalgia, chronic back pain, gastrointestinal issues,
hormonal issues and childhood illnesses among others. He often works on cases in conjunction with Stanford and UCSF medical centers. “I always ask, ‘why did the person get sick and why aren’t they getting better?’” Lester said. “We use a patient centered approach by looking at all aspects of a person’s life. This considers the whole situation in a person with their illness. This produces a more successful outcome, such as five women that came to him last year for infertility, one even up to 43 years old. With the combination of healthy nutrition, weight loss and homeopathic medicine all five became pregnant and had children. Some had even been infertile for up to 6 years and had failed at in-vitro fertilization.” Testimonials from patients are glowingly positive. He is also now the new medical director of the Guadalupe Pregnancy Crisis Center opening on East Lake Avenue in Watsonville.
Bek Phillips/Register-Pajaronian
Dr. Jeff Lester works in his office recently. In addition to offering healthbased services to the public, Lester said that since he is a California state licensed physician, many of his services are well covered by most insurance companies,
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REGISTER-PAJARONIAN, Tuesday, October 20, 2015 — Page C5
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Account Manager Carlos Paredes stands next to an AmeriGas truck that runs on propane. Tarmo Hannula/Register-Pajaronian
Auggie Ramirez, who is general manager across six Ace Hardware locations, has been with the company since 1996.
Customer service sets Ace Hardware apart By ERIK CHALHOUB OF THE REGISTER-PAJARONIAN
WATSONVILLE — At Ace Hardware, it’s all about customer service, said owner Manuel Rodrigues. “Our motto is ‘customer service, customer service, and when everything else fails, customer service,’” he said. With three locations in Watsonville (451 Main St., 1820 Freedom Blvd., and 1056 East Lake Ave.), Rodrigues said the neighborhood hardware stores are a place where customers are greeted by employees as they walk in, and receive help finding whatever item they are looking for. This type of service is a dying breed in the era of big box hardware stores, Rodrigues said, and it is this service that
Tarmo Hannula/Register-Pajaronian
Ace Hardware is known for its wide selection of goods. sets Ace apart. Rodrigues and his brother started the business in 1988. In addition to three stores in Watsonville, Ace also has locations in Marina, Salinas and
Gilroy. “The core belief of ours is that our customers deserve 100 percent of our attention when they walk through our doors,” he said. The employees, on average, have a half decade of experience, Rodrigues said. Auggie Ramirez, who is general manager across all six Ace locations, has been with the company since 1996. “I like the hardware business,” he said, adding that he used to work with his grandfather in the industry. Among its varied selection of goods, Rodrigues said four of the stores have locally grown plants, including many hard to find, drought-resistant succulents, which are popular with customers. “People comment on that all the time,” he said.
Becoming a leader in green technology AmeriGas providing clean-burning fuel to residents, businesses By ERIK CHALHOUB OF THE REGISTER-PAJARONIAN
ROYAL OAKS — AmeriGas is making strides to not only promote the abundance of green technology available locally, but is also working to make itself greener as well. District General Manager Rick Lee said he was recently brought on board to the company to help implement and develop green fuels and technology. “I have a personal interest in that and a commitment to that,” he said. “There are some great opportunities happening in this valley that nobody’s really talking about.” Lee pointed to Agron Bioenergy, which is producing about 30,000 gallons of biofuel a day at a facility in Watsonville. He plans on converting AmeriGas’ truck fleet to use fuel from Toro Petroleum, which is 80 percent diesel and 20 percent biofuel
produced by Agron. AmeriGas’ propane that it supplies to its customers is also a clean-burning fuel, he said. “We are trying to make in effort to help educate and at the same time serve large agricultural businesses, growers and producers with using green technology as opposed to other technologies that are dirtier, like diesel fuel,” Lee said. In a first step, AmeriGas has a pickup truck that runs entirely on propane, which it uses for service calls and promotion, among other things. It’s all part of a push to not only become a leader in green technology, but to encourage other businesses as well. “Every person who has some influence in our business world can take a step towards being green,” Lee said. “The cumulative effort of all these business leaders will make a significant impact.”
AmeriGas Account Manager Carlos Paredes said the company’s AutoGas alternative fuel is becoming increasingly popular with bus companies, commercial fleets and more, converting these vehicles to running clean-burning propane. According to AmeriGas, 300,000 vehicles in the United States are propane powered, in addition to more than 17 million globally. “Santa Cruz County is well known for AutoGas,” Paredes said. Paredes, who began his career at AmeriGas as a truck driver, said he worked his way up because he is committed to providing stellar customer service while also promoting the company’s green initiatives. “I’ve helped this business and industry grow, and I’m continuing to do that,” he said. For information, call 4383400 or visit www.amerigas. com.
Locally Owned & Locally Operated! 451 Main Street Watsonville, CA 95076
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1820 Freedom Blvd.
Royal Oaks, CA 95076
Phone: (831) 724-4749 Freedom, CA 95019
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East Lake Shopping Center Watsonville, CA 95076
Phone: (831) 761-4795
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Page C6 — REGISTER-PAJARONIAN, Tuesday, October 20, 2015
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Alex Ocampo paints several car body parts inside a spray booth.
A body of work Sons running father’s business By TODD GUILD OF THE REGISTER-PAJARONIAN
WATSONVILLE — Before he died in 2000, Joe Rodriguez told his sons he wanted them to take over his auto body shop. And so it was that a 20-yearold Jaime Rodriguez went to the City of Watsonville to transfer the title for Joe’s Auto Body to his own name. But a perplexed clerk told him, to his surprise, that his father had already transferred it. The business was already his. “He must have really wanted me to have it,” said Jaime Rodriguez, who now runs JBS Auto Body out of its new location at 317 East Beach St. His brother Joe Jr. works full-time in the body shop, while several other relatives help occasionally. Rodriguez’s career in the auto body business began when he was still in elementary school, when he would go after school to his father’s shop. After he finished his homework, his father never allowed him to merely sit around. “He said, ‘grab a piece of sandpaper and get to work,’” Rodriguez said. That was his introduction to the auto body business, and as he got older he learned the other aspects of the profession.
Soon, he was ready to learn one of the more difficult parts of auto restoration, even if he was reluctant at first. “I was 17 when I painted my first car,” he said. That started when his father told him to grab a sprayer and get to work, a request he initially balked at. After some cajoling, his first attempt predictably left streaks running down the sides of the vehicle, Rodriguez said. “I said, ‘I don’t want to finish, because I keep messing up,’” he said. His father’s response? “He said, ‘you know what you’re going to do? You’re going to sand it down tomorrow and do it again,’” Rodriguez said. This time, however, it was at his father’s side that he learned the finesse it takes to paint a car by hand. That experience cemented his love for the profession, he said. “After that, I wanted to be a painter,” he said. Within a few years, Joe Rodriguez had taught both his sons, Jaime and Joe Rodriguez, Jr., everything there was to know about the business. “He taught me and my brother everything he knew,” he said. After his father’s death Jaime was left bewildered by having
Author brings message to Watsonville REGISTER-PAJARONIAN STAFF REPORT
WATSONVILLE — The Pajaro Valley Unified School District will welcome author Luis Alberto Urrea, a Pulitzer Prize finalist, for the 10th annual On the Same Page community reads program. Urrea will give a presentation and sign copies of his book, “Into the Beautiful North,” on Oct. 21 at 6:30 p.m. at the Henry J. Mello Center, 250 East Beach St. in Watsonville. The event celebrates a decade of bringing the work of California authors and their award-winning stories to the community. This program is spearheaded by the Pajaro Valley Unified School District’s Extended Learning Program Family Literacy Project together with the Migrant Education Department and On the Same Page founder George Ow Jr. Urrea, a 2005 Pulitzer Prize finalist for nonfiction and member of the Latino Literature Hall of Fame, is an acclaimed writer who uses his dual-culture life experiences to explore themes of love, loss and triumph. Born in Tijuana, Mexico to a Mexican father and an American mother, Urrea has published extensively in all the major genres. The critically acclaimed and best-selling author of 13 books, Urrea has won numerous awards for his poetry, fiction and essays. Urrea will share his story from his beginnings on a dirt street in Tijuana to Pulitzer Prize finalist and storyteller. Though recognized as a writer who concentrates on the border regions of the Southwestern United States, Urrea says, “Borders don’t interest me. I’m really in the business of building bridges.” The featured book is “Into the Beautiful North,” Urrea’s national best seller which earned a citation of excellence from the American Library Association Rainbow’s Project. It is one of only three new novels added to the nation’s The Big Read Library, joining such classics as “To
Contributed
Luis Alberto Urrea Kill A Mockingbird.” Urrea’s most recent novel imagines a small town in Mexico where all the men have immigrated to the U.S. A group of young people, after pondering the fate of their town and seeing the film “The Magnificent Seven,” decide to follow the men north and persuade them to return to their village. On the Same Page was originally founded by George Ow Jr. who, together with a group of leaders in business, education, and the community, was committed to bringing inspiring authors to the Pájaro Valley. Each year student classroom curriculum is developed for the selected book then adapted for parent book clubs. Previous On the Same Page books remain part of district curriculum. Prizewinning books and authors from previous years include “Burro Genius” by Victor Villaseñor, “The Circuit” by Dr. Francisco Jimenez, “Zoot Suit” by Luis Valdez, “Across a Hundred Mountains” by Reyna Grande, “SeedFolks” by Paul Fleischman, “Thunderweavers” by Juan Felipe Herrera, “Enrique’s Journey” by Sonia Nazario and “Always Running” by Luis J. Rodriguez. Free tickets for the event are available at the Watsonville, Freedom and Pajaro libraries, as well as Crossroads Books, 1935 Main St. in Watsonville.
Tarmo Hannula/Register-Pajaronian
Jaime Rodriguez talks about running his business, JBS Collision Repair, at his West Beach shop. to take over managing the business, and he soon realized he had to move it from its original Grove Street location. After two moves to Freedom and Pajaro, and working at two other auto body shops, Rodriguez discovered the West Beach Street site, which offers a shop, a painting area and a space for detailing work. “What I like is getting a vehicle that needs work and giving it back to the customer in perfect condition,” Rodriguez said. “I want to give the best I can to my customers. That means a lot to me.” ••• JBS Auto Body is a fullservice business that offers all manner of restoration work and collision repair, custom body work, paint and pin striping and offers a full detailing service. It is located at 317 West Beach St. in Watsonville. For information, or to make an appointment, call 786-6912.
Tarmo Hannula/Register-Pajaronian
Joe Rodriguez Jr. pulls apart the front end of a pickup that was heavily damaged in a collision.