Valley Voice Issue 72 (7 July, 2016)

Volume XXXVI No. 13 • 7 July, 2016

www.ourvalleyvoice.com

Plainview Opens New Park Through Aid of County, Other Local Agencies

Five-year-old Darlene slides down the new playground equipment at the Plainview Neighborhood Park grand opening in June.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you,” Domitila Lemus told Tulare County Supervisor Alan Ishida during the June grand opening of the Plainview Neighborhood Park. Lemus, who has lived in the unincorporated area of the county for 30 years, said the park is “a dream come true.”

The park has been one of the things on Ishida’s to-do list since he was first elected 11 years ago. It involved several agencies including the county, Plainview Water Mutual, El Quinto Sol de America and Self Help Enterprises.

“I think every community needs one of these,” Ishida said. “The communities can help to organize these.

The people in Plainview have come to all of our meetings [regarding the park] – that makes it very easy for us to help them.”

Regular meeting were held to bring the county and local residents together in anticipation of the park and other community projects. El Quinto Sol de America served as community outreach in finding out just what the community needed and wanted. The

Nancy Vigran

children played an integral part of the park development, laying out swatches (designed by the architects) throughout the park as to where everything should be placed.

The park cost approximately $320,000 which includes adjoining roadwork, electricity and fencing, said Eric Coyne of the county’s Economic Development Office. The property belongs to Plainview Water Mutual and most of the funding came through grant sources including the state’s Housing Reward Parks Program, Coyne said.

There was a 60-day time restriction to get the park built, once funding was awarded. Safety was a very important issue, Coyne said, and the park is ADA complaint. All agencies involved worked closely with the community to get the park done.

Included is covered playground equipment and a basketball court. The park has lighting for evening use and

PLAINVIEW continued on 4 »

Visalia Council OK’s Late Budget Hanford Council Denies Appeal Dave Adalian It took a special meeting ending in a 4-1 split vote, but the Visalia City Council passed the city’s annual budget just ahead of the June 30 deadline.

“Because of snafus getting the item on the agenda, we had to hold a special meeting just for the budget,” said Visalia Mayor Steve Nelsen.

The Council was originally scheduled to pass the budget at a regular meeting June 20. A clerical error delayed the vote by a week. There was no disturbance to the city’s normal operation, and those

involved in crafting the budget have described the city’s projected spending as conservative and the city’s financial outlook as solid.

$198M for 16/17

The city will spend just over $197.9 million in the next 12 months. Plans for FY 17/18 call for a budget of $196.7 million. Both budgets includes surpluses.

“I would say that when you look at the budget, you do have a surplus in 16/17 and a much smaller one in 17/18, and that’s a concern,” the Mayor said,

VISALIA BUDGET continued on 11 »

At the June 21 Hanford City Council meeting Hanford Environmental Action Team (HEAT) lost their appeal to protect a remnant of Mussel Slough.

The council voted 5 -0 to deny HEAT’s appeal of the Bajun American Properties’ site plan review for a multi-family apartment complex. The proposed project will be built on Centennial Drive and the future Millennium Way. The project site is located on 13.11 acres and includes two-storey buildings, 216 apartments, a recreation building and pool. There are seven open play areas throughout the development. The

Catherine Doe units include three-bedroom, two-bath units; two-bedroom, two-bath units and one-bedroom one -bath units. Each unit will have a single garage and a parking space, with the exception of the one bedroom units, which will each have a single garage.

The Community Development Department that signed off on the site plan review came to the conclusion that the apartment building would not have an adverse impact on the environment

HANFORD continued on 5 »

Kings County Crop Production Declines Over 18% in 2015 Steve Pastis After a record year in 2014, ag prices in Kings County took a beating last year, decreasing in value by more than 18%.

“A lot of that has to do with commodity prices,” explained Kings County Ag Commissioner Tim Niswander, who presented the 2015 Agricultural Crop Report to the county board of supervisors at its June 28 meeting.

“The gross value of all agricultural crops and products produced during 2015 in Kings County was $2,021,052,000,” he wrote in the introduction to the report. “This represents a decrease of $450,694,000 (18.2%) from the 2014 value.”

Livestock and poultry products had the biggest decrease in value (32.6%) as the result of lower milk prices. Livestock and poultry, however, showed the biggest increase last year, up 23.2% due to higher beef prices.

Apiary products increased in value last year by 43.3%, even though both

beeswax and honey decreased in production, because pollination for tree fruit, nuts and seed alfalfa all did well. Colony collapse disorder, which threatens the bee population and the many crops that depend on pollination to survive, may be responsible for these positive numbers.

“Probably what’s driving pollination (prices) up is the lower number of bees,” said Niswander. “It probably has a lot to do with why beeswax and honey might have declined.”

Other products showing an increase in value in 2015 included pasture range (182.75%), oat silage (130.47%), cherries (101.28%), and wheat grain

(37.91%). Most of these crops benefitted from an increase in acreage, although higher prices and an increase in rainfall were also factors.

Field crops declined by 20.3% to less than $99 million, due to lower prices for hay and pima cotton.

Although cotton hasn’t been Kings County’s top ag product since the mid-90s, the county is still the top cotton producer in the state, according to Niswander.

“Cotton prices being what they are, we’re seeing some growers plant crops like walnuts and almonds instead,” he said, adding that local cotton prices fluctuate because of world prices for cotton.

Other crops declining in value in 2015 included walnuts (-41.03%) and pistachios (-37.02%). Walnuts were hit by a price decrease of nearly 49%, while pistachio production was impacted by the lack of chilling hours.

Following the presentation, Supervisor Craig Pedersen asked Niswander about the affect the drought had on last year’s numbers.

“I would say the drought has impacted some of what has been grown in the county, but I don’t know that our county is impacted as much as Fresno County,” Niswander said.

A down year for ag is bad news for the rest of the county. The University of California at Davis conducted a study several years ago that attempted to determine how much ag affects the local economy.

“For everything except dairy, for every dollar growth in ag there is $3.50 in growth in the local economy,” said

CROP REPORT continued on 11 »

2 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016 From the Publisher’s desk

Hope Is a Strange Thing

is pleased to announce the association of

Brett Schroeder

Vice President/Investments

in our Visalia, California office.

(559) 622-1040 217 East Caldwell Visalia, California 93277 schroederb@stifel.com

Helping you pursue your financial goals.

Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated | Member SIPC & NYSE | www.stifel.com

I refuse to own a cell phone. If I did have one, people would call me.

And I certainly don’t want that. What a calamity!

Stacked up against my actual 53 years of life are--as represented by the ages of our five children--122 father-years. This makes for a life deficit of 69 years. I know I’ll never get them back, but I’ll be damned if more people will telephone asking, “What’s for dinner?” Or anything, in a similar vein, involving responsibilities on my part.

It was in this spirit that I drew a line in the sand--and defiantly unfurled my banner there--against keeping pets. But of course we’ve had more cats than I can count, a smattering of dogs, a turtle, two rats, and more fish won at the school carnival over the years than I could possibly have prevented. My wife remains the only person I’ve ever seen snag the brass ring on a carousel and peg it straight down the clown face’s gaping mouth in one smooth motion. This double-play type feat has been eclipsed in the family only by the uncanny fish-winning capability of our children.

All of which is to say that, while I’m not seeking to shirk any responsibilities, there does come a time in life when it seems optimal to streamline them. This time next year the Kid will have graduated high school. My wife and I will still have pets. Their pets.

So much for any hope of an empty nest!

But hope is a strange thing, gentle and defiant, persisting almost despite itself. This may well be the reason for the phrase “hoping against hope.”

My wife has commanded me to harbor hope where, in point of fact, I have abandoned it. I don’t believe, for example, that there will ever be adequate space, time or resources for my wife and I to travel--and this is a disappointment. I consider myself to be somewhat widely read, and I’ve always wanted to see for myself the things I’ve read about. Yet the last 30 years have lead me to doubt the possibility of this. Have I given up entirely? Not if I’m honest. I suppose this is the lengthy runway where Hope takes wing to become Dream.

I can tell you what I have let totally lapse: Catholicism, and any prayer that the Golden Bears will play in the Rose Bowl during my lifetime. I outgrew the former, having come long ago to believe that one does the right thing for its own sake, but the latter seems an impossibility. I hope never to hear “that’s the way the ball bounces” or anything referencing “next year” again.

There’s hope for you!

Then again, I’d lost any hope I had for the San Francisco Giants’ ever making it to the World Series--until 1989, that is, when they were swept

by Oakland. The first time the team appeared in the Series representing San Francisco, my birth city, was the year before I was born. And the Giants lost again, in 2002, to Anaheim. So I had given up hope that the Giants would ever win the World Series--until 2010, that is, 2012 and 2014.

And now--hope is a strange thing, indeed--I practically expect a victory.

At least in even years.

In election years, though, all bets are off. Not that I’m a betting man-to my mind, a bet is the most asinine hope there is. But voting, I think, is a marvelous kind of collective hope.

Except for the unfortunate fact that elections, of late, have become increasingly fractious. Still, I think we’re better, as a nation, than we have been recently. I think we always have been. We’re better than the ridiculous political depictions, character assassination and hatchetry we relish because we recognize free speech when we hear it. We’re better than divisiveness and electioneering because, at the end of the day--and especially when called upon--we remain the United States.

At least, I hope so.

— Joseph Oldenbourg

The Valley Voice is your newspaper Published by The Valley Voice, LLC.

Publisher/Editor: Joseph Oldenbourg (joseph@ourvalleyvoice.com) (559) 972-7778

Reporters:

Catherine Doe (catherine@ourvalleyvoice.com) Dave Adalian (dave@ourvalleyvoice.com) Stefan Barros — sports (stefan@ourvalleyvoice.com) Steve Pastis (steve@ourvalleyvoice.com)

200 Holiday Temp Production Jobs Coming Soon!!

Busy Season runs for 6 weeks from Oct 1 – November 15 Earn over $4,500 in 6 weeks! No Experience Necessary Seasonal Hiring starts 8/15/16

Production/Website: Tony Maldonado (tony@ourvalleyvoice.com)

Sales:

Nancy Vigran (nancy@ourvalleyvoice.com)

Contact us & share your opinion: www.ourvalleyvoice.com PO Box 44064 • Lemon Cove, CA 93244

7 July, 2016

Valley Voice • 3

Political Fix A Made for TV Presidential Election

The word chaos has become synonymous with Donald Trump.

Some headlines include, “Chaos and disaster in campaign manager’s firing.”

“Trump campaign - an organized circus of chaos.” “A Donald Trump presidency would be chaos.”

And being the Reality Television star that he is, every time I hear the word chaos it reminds me of the 1960’s sitcom, Get Smart. Forty years later I can still hear the theme song as Maxwell Smart intently walks through a line of automatic doors to his secret phone booth where in he answers his shoe.

The international organization for evil in Get Smart was called KAOS, a spoof on the Soviet Union’s KGB. It wasn’t an acronym for anything, just KAOS – kind of like Mr. Trump’s campaign.

Maxwell Smart and his side kick, Agent 99, worked for CONTROL, a spoof of the CIA – kind of like Secretary Clinton’s life and campaign.

Some could think CONTROL is a spoof on Ms. Clinton, considering she used a Blackberry and private server in her basement for sensitive diplomatic emails. On the other hand, CONTROL could describe her campaign as one watched Ms. Clinton neatly dispatch Bernie Sanders and stay on point during her speeches, winning the endorsements of the Democrat Super Delegates. She plans on campaigning with President Obama this week and Vice President Biden in the following weeks, both of whom plan on attending the Democratic convention.

Mr. Trump, on the other hand, has been the model of KAOS. He fired his campaign manager, has no money, and his potential presidency is described as a disaster waiting to happen. Fellow Republicans have said he does not have the temperament to be in charge of the country’s nuclear arsenal and military commanders have said they will not follow his orders. He can’t hide the fact that he doesn’t know what is going on around the world and, lastly, no one ever knows what will come out of his mouth-least of all himself.

The last two Republican presidents, George and George W. Bush, will not be attending the convention, nor will the last Republican nominee, Mitt Romney.

They don’t even plan on voting for him.

The Republican nominee in 2008, Senator John McCain, says he is voting for Mr. Trump, but can’t make it to the convention because “he is busy that week.”

So who is left to go to the Republican Convention besides Sara Palin, and who is willing to speak besides Chris Christie? Sounds like Republicans are experiencing some buyer’s remorse, a la Brexit.

Now that we know that the vice presidential picks might be Elizabeth Warren for Ms. Clinton and Newt Gingrich for Mr. Trump, the perfect sitcom now would be the Honeymooners. The Kramdens and the Nortons probably would have even been Trump supporters. Mr. Trump and Mr. Gingrich can campaign against each other on who gets to play Ralph Kramden, known for his very short temper and loud insults.

Catherine Doe

With Mr. Trump’s and Mr. Gingrich’s combined six wives and lousy record on women, it will be a tight race.

And who couldn’t imagine either of them shaking their fist and yelling, “To the moon Hilary!”

The Deck Is Stacked

More than ten years ago a group of Sequoia Union Elementary School parents, including myself, were tearing our hair out. A very divisive school board member had moved out of the district but would not give up his seat. The superintendent didn’t fix the problem and instead entered into a quid pro quo with the wayward trustee. The unspoken agreement was that the superintendent would cover up the board member’s new residence and the board member in turn voted to renew the superintendent’s contract.

A very nice arrangement indeed.

Concerned parents finally got the Grand Jury on the case, but the superintendent mislead the Grand Jury, and no follow up was done. Then someone told me about County Council, a group of lawyers hired just to work for the county.

I thought, “Yes! Now we’re cooking with gas.” So I called County Council and explained to them Sequoia Union’s situation and asked them to assign us a lawyer. The nice lady over the phone would not comment on our predicament except to say that County Council was there to defend county employees --not us. If they were to defend anyone, it would have been the director who moved out of the district, not the parents.

So who is supposed to defend us?

It’s been 12 years since I first asked that question, and I still don’t have an answer.

When facing a lawsuit, the county can use any of its 21 lawyers on paid staff, or contract out to any of the best and most expensive lawyers throughout the Valley. Hiring an expensive law firm goes against the said frugal reputation of the Tulare County Board of Supervisors. But when it comes to proving who is right, or sending out warning shots to anyone considering a “frivolous lawsuit,” no expense is too much. If the county loses the suit, that’s ok because it is part of an insurance pool that will help pay damages, and may even pay some of their legal costs. So no harm, no foul.

Every county and county employee needs to know that they will be defended against a lawsuit. But where is the pool of money to help the average Tulare County resident who has a legitimate grievance against a county agency or employee?

To make matters worse, if a resident does manage to take the county to court, the county can then turn around and charge the resident to pay the county’s legal expenses.

Case In Point...

I just sat through a three-week trial between the county and two former Tulare County Animal Control (TCAC) employees, manager Paul Grenseman and Adoption Coordinator, Julia Jimenez. The trial revolved around the fact that the two employees believed that they were unlawfully terminated. The county felt that the two had to be im-

mediately escorted off the premises with only their personal belongings and without explanation.

The only consistency during those three weeks was the fact that everyone’s testimony was inconsistent-- from the top of the totem pole to the bottom.

The number one in charge admitted she did not read the full report on why the two were fired. A personnel services officer admitted that an accusation of theft against Mr. Grenseman wasn’t true and was included in their report by error. The county investigator didn’t realize that the animal control officers and manger Grenseman were required to have extensive fire arms training and were in fact armed.

One of the animal control officers thought the outside kennels were air conditioned and one of the kennel workers thought Ms. Jimenez was hired as an additional kennel worker. A secretary for TCAC had discernible stalker qualities and kept handwritten notes in her desk about how Ms. Jimenez “parked too close to someone else’s car” and “wore a tank top or short pants.”

And finally, the county’s star witness, a kennel worker, admitted to drinking on the job, but didn’t really want to, and to taking the Animal Control truck on personal business and totaling it.

Ms. Jimenez and Mr. Grenseman gave about the same performance as the county witnesses. Mr. Grenseman couldn’t answer many of the defendants’ lawyer’s questions as a result of a heart attack he said he suffered because of the

stress of being fired. He was pretty lucid, though, when questioned by his own lawyer. Ms. Jimenez gave contrasting accounts between her deposition, the county’s investigation, and her testimony on the witness stand, casting doubt on her claims of being harassed and sexually assaulted.

After a pretty messy trial of contradicting facts the jury took just 45 minutes to come to a verdict. Except for the jury, no one else walking out of that court room could definitively say that the county was fully justified in firing Ms. Jimenez and Mr. Grenseman. Nor could anyone definitively say that Ms. Jimenez or Mr. Grensemen didn’t deserve to be fired. The county won its case, but not wholly on the evidence. That jury just wanted to get the hell out of Dodge.

After the trial the county wasn’t what you would call “good winners.”

Kathleen Bales-Lang, head of County Council, threatened to bill the plaintiffs for partial costs of the trial.

Tulare County Supervisor Mike Ennis said, “The County of Tulare is in the process of compiling a cost bill to be presented to plaintiffs for payment containing all costs associated with having to defend this meritless lawsuit.”

Ms. Bales-Lang chimed in, “We will aggressively pursue reimbursement for those costs to the extent possible….This litigation has cost the County in excess of $400,000.” She continued, “the County is forced to defend itself against meritless and frivolous lawsuits in order to save

POLITICAL FIX continued on 4 »

Monday, July 11 6-7 p.m.

Kaweah Delta Medical Center Acequia Wing Conference Room

4 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016

West Hills Lemoore Receives Grant to Create Degree Program with Open Resources Staff Reports

West Hills College Lemoore has received a grant to create a new degree program using high quality open educational resources (OER) in new degree programs. These resources consist of research and educational materials licensed for public use free of cost. The initiative, which involves 38 community colleges in 13 states, is designed to help remove financial roadblocks that can derail students’ progress and spur improvements that will increase the likelihood of degree and certificate completion. WHCL is one of only two colleges in California to receive a grant.

At West Hills College Lemoore, a new degree using cost free OER content in health science will be offered.

“West Hills College Lemoore is very proud to be one of only 38 colleges selected nationwide for the Achieving the Dream OER (Open Educational Resources) Degree Initiative grant,”

said Dr. Kristin Clark, WHCL President. “The high price of textbooks often creates barriers to access and completion, and this initiative will help us remove those barriers for our students.

Our pledge is to exponentially increase the use of free textbooks and resources in our courses, and this award will help us advance our OER initiatives.”

The annual costs of textbooks are about $1,300 per year for a fulltime community college student and amount to about a third of the cost of an Associate’s degree. This cost, research shows, is a significant barrier to college completion. Students who don’t complete college are over 50 percent more likely than those who graduated to cite textbook costs as a major financial barrier, according to a study by the research firm Public Agenda.

The college plans to roll out the new degree program throughout 2017, with the goal of using it as a template to create similar programs in the future.

“Honey, my car broke down again.”

Political Fix

the same cast of characters for the defendants as last trial. Makes you wonder.

the taxpayers’ money in the long run.”

Mr. Grenseman is retired and still suffering the effects of his heart attack, and Ms. Jimenez has gone through foreclosure, lost her car, and is in bankruptcy.

In what universe does paying a lawyer to squeeze blood from a stone save tax payer money? Also, before lawyers got involved, Mr. Grenseman and Ms. Jimenez would have accepted a settlement. Wouldn’t that had saved a ton of tax payer money?

Lastly, if Ms. Bales-Lang opts to hire the most expensive law firm in the Central Valley, which is exactly what she did, she hardly has a right to complain about the cost. Where is the accountability?

Ms. Jimenez and Mr. Grenseman have gone on with their lives, but the county is stuck in a scene from “Ground Hog Day.” Another suit has been filed against Tulare County Animal Control, this time in Federal Court. The complaint states the “County of Tulare is lacking and wanting any measure of checks and balances on their ‘due process’ jurisdiction actions especially for in-custody dogs.

Tulare County is a place where due process is just a word and ‘Official Record’ audio tapes go missing and so do in-custody dogs.”

And this Federal suit names almost

Residents are still left with the question, who is there to defend them? Well of course there is the Valley Voice, but now we also have a revitalized Grand Jury. In years past they have been impotent.

But, in the last few years, the Grand Jury has stepped up to the plate and has aggressively investigated public entities and defended the county’s residents.

Now that the Grand Jury is doing a bang-up job, what does it get for its trouble? Attacks by our friend Bruce Greene, the Los Angeles lawyer for Dr. Benny Benzeevi’s Healthcare Conglomerates Associates. (HCCA.) It was Mr. Greene who threatened to sink Valley Voice’s ship with legal bills.

“Damages would be measured by the hour,” he said when we broke the story about the Tulare Regional Medical Center board discharging their entire medical staff.

Now when the Grand Jury foreman, Chuck White, is interviewed about the situation unfolding at TRMC, Mr. Greene accuses him of breaking the law and of being “politically motivated.”

Isn’t it ironic that the person working diligently for the good of the community is being accused of wrong doing by a $500-an-hour lawyer fleecing the citizens of Tulare?

Plainview

of Supervisor Ishida’s first initiatives,” Coyne said. “He never said ‘no,’ he has supported this community all the way.”

Plainview is one of 81 unincorporated communities throughout Tulare County.

The county is working hard on developing quality-of-life improvements to them as it sees funding opportunities. Most of these improvements include water and sewer issues.

Plainview is also in need of sewer work.

The 220-properties in the community are on very old septic systems, some of which are failing and they lie very close to wells, as each property is quite small, Coyne said. The county is looking into the possibility of developing sewer infrastructure into one of the neighboring communities system.

This would mean that community is in agreement – the county is currently in discussions with the City of Lindsay. If done, Plainview residents may need to pay sewer fees to Lindsay, something that the community needs to agree upon. The county would seek grant funding to help pay for the sewer line between the two areas.

Other communities that have received recent work and community upgrades include Tipton, Terra Bella, Seville and Goshen.

Continued from p. 3

Continued from p. 1

safety, including the basketball court. Electrical upgrades were needed, which also helped many of the residences in the area.

And, while Plainview is generally a pretty quiet community, the Sheriff’s Department intends to increase patrols of the area, said Sargent Nathan Polk.

“This is great for the local community,” he said.

The park area will receive regular patrolling every eight to 10 hours and whenever a patrolman is in the area, he or she will also cruise by the park, Polk added.

Maintenance of the park is up to the community. It is the hope that Plainview will take great pride in the park, and keep it clean and free from graffiti.

“It’s a good feeling, there’s been hardly anything for the kids to do [in the area],” said Janie Hernandez, who lives just blocks from the park with her family and five children.

“It’s nice to have shade for the kids to play in.”

Despite the fact that the county is not in the business of building parks, “this was one

Just A Side Note...

GET SOLAR If you commute with CalVans, you’ll never worry about a breakdown.

If something happens to one of our vans, we send a replacement right away.

If only fixing your own car was that easy.

Design your system how you want it Solar Panels & Products Solar Installations Solar System Repair Energy Management

®

Public Vanpools Leading The Way

866-655-5444 CalVans.org

BEST PRICES IN THE VALLEY!

1434 E. Tulare Ave. Tulare, Ca 93274 Sales@altsyssolar.com

559.688.2544

www.tularesolar.com Contractor License #944549 C-46 Solar

7 July, 2016

Hanford Continued from p. 1

and prepared a negative declaration even though the parcel is almost completely surrounded by farmland. The appeal submitted by Richard Harriman, HEAT’s lawyer, alleges that a focused EIR must be done before the complex is built, especially in light of the fact that it was never resolved by whom, or why, a Mussel Slough remnant was filled in adjacent to the property.

Harriman also states in the appeal that storm water calculations should also be required as conditions of approval, and not be deferred mitigation. The city staff’s response to this allegation is that the 800 or so people living in the complex will have no impact on the city’s storm drainage facilities. Harriman claims that Hanford’s 2002 General plan is too outdated to use to approve large developments with simply an administrative review. The city staff claims that their General Plan has not been ruled legally inadequate.

Robin Mattos, a member of HEAT, stated during the public hearing that Mussel Slough is a natural resource the city should honor. Mussel Slough is a temporary waterway off of the Kings River that fills in wet years. It is also an invaluable recharge channel for a city that has no other source of water except for what comes from the ground.

From an aerial photo shown during the power point presentation, there is a clear walking path that runs directly along the south and western boundary of the proposed complex. A portion of Mus-

Valley Voice • 5 sel Slough follows the walking path and also borders the proposed apartments to the south west. Mattos presented a petition to the city council that held nine signatures of current walkway users which, according to Harriman, would qualify as a prescriptive easement.

The petition submitted by Mattos said, “We, the undersigned users of the existing unpaved pathway and trail located on the real property of the Applicant, Bajun American Properties, L.P., for the past eight (8) years, hereby exercise our rights under the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the Constitution of the United States and article 1, sections 3 and 7(a) of the Constitution of the State of California, to petition our elected representatives.”

The petition says that they have used the existing unpaved pathway to walk, ride bikes, or use other vehicles for access to shopping and dining. Mattos said that the path is a needed alternative to walking on busy 12th Avenue, and that many people walk along the existing waterway from 13th Avenue to Armona and then to the commercial area and to the hospital.

Mattos acknowledged that the developer will be putting money back into the community, but suggested it should not just be for the residents of the apartment complex but for everyone. According to Mattos, creating a walking path next to the complex and preserving the slough is something that all of Hanford can enjoy.

She said that paths should be part of a community connecting people where they live to where they shop and work.

What the community does not need, says HEAT, is one more remnant of Mussel Slough made into a drainage ditch

surrounded by a chain link fence like the unsightly hole behind Walmart.

Tom Lang, a resident of Fancher Creek in Fresno, reiterated Mattos sentiments. He said that Fresno had the foresight to put a trail along the creek even though a good part of the year it did not have water. “It became a beautiful part of the development,” he said. “It wasn’t The proposed site of Bajun’s multi-family apartment complex. mandated, it was a tion of approval of the site permit, a 15discretionary decision on the city coun- foot easement on the south side of the cil’s part.” boundary should be created along Mus“We have enough cement,” said sel Slough.

Lang. “A 15-foot easement would be Jeff Reed, attorney for the developer, enough to make a trail.” asked that the appeal be denied and statCraig Brian, of Visalia, has worked ed that there is no evidence submitted to for the Audubon Society for 20 years and the council that the proposed project is said that these pockets of urban open located on Mussel Slough. He also statspaces are wonderful for bird watching ed that there is no evidence of a trail and and that egret and herons love Mus- anyone who signed the petition are tressel Slough. passers who are breaking the law.

Richard Harriman, HEAT’s lawThe City of Hanford’s lawyer, Ty yer, stated that neither he nor HEAT is Mizote, said that “prescriptive easement” against the project, but reiterated that was just a fancy term for a group of peowhile the apartments will not be built on ple using someone else’s land. top of the slough, the development owns The appeal has now been denied by the property under the slough, which both the Hanford Planning Commission is a public trust. Because there is an ac- and the City Council. Harriman and his tively used path along the slough, Har- clients have not decided on their next riman said that there exists a prescriptive step and will be discussing their options easement. over the next few weeks.

HEAT’s position is that, as a condi-

AVAILABLE:

100% Leased/Central Park $940,000

FOOD, DRINKS, SPORTS, MUSIC.. AND FUN! Here’s what Yelp reviewers say: “The food is excellent. We have not had a bad meal, sushi or traditional. Everything has always been clean and the staff friendly and courteous. This is our go to night out place.”

“Great restaurant if you are looking for a sports atmosphere in Visalia, CA. Plus get this, normal sports bars have burgers, sandwiches etc... This place has sushi!!!

And awesome sushi!!”

3360 S. Fairway, Visalia Mon-Fri: 11am - 2am Sat-Sun: 9am - 2am 3360facebook.com/thefifthquartervisalia S. Fairway, Visalia (559) 741-0111

Northwood Plaza Retail Investment - 22,956± sq.ft. $2,500,000 (7.36 Cap) Industrial Lease 2,000±sq.ft Industrial 62,764±sf Strathmore $950,000 Industrial For Sale 80,323±sf $2,500,000/20± acres Land 2.17± acres Downtown Visalia $1,050,000 Land Retail 4.72± acres Dinuba $750,000 Land Retail 4.18± acres Tulare - Highway 99 $1,000,000 Land Ind Lots 1-21 acre Lots Tulare - $ Varies Land Ind 17.5± acres Tulare Highway 99 $1,908,750

Ask for Mike Porte, SIOR

(559)972-2421

BRE# 01075873

6 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016

Agriculture Farm Exporters Try to Gauge Impact of ‘Brexit’ Vote Ching Lee, CFBF With the United Kingdom’s vote to exit from the European Union, international trade experts say the most immediate concern for California agricultural exporters is related to currency valuations that could further raise the price of U.S. goods for customers abroad.

The European Union ranks as the top export market for California farm products, with a value of more than $3.7 billion in 2014, according to the University of California Agricultural Issues Center. The U.K. was the No. 3 export destination among the 28 EU members that year, with sales totaling more than $470 million.

Movement of both the British pound and the euro “are what people are watching in the short run,” said Dan Sumner, director of the AIC. A higher-value dollar against both currencies would make California farm exports less competitive in those markets, thereby reducing demand.

In the days following the “Brexit” vote, the pound-to-dollar exchange rate dropped to its lowest level in more than 30 years, while the euro also weakened.

“Clearly, the fact that the pound has now fallen in value dramatically against the dollar will make it more expensive for the Brits to buy any kind of goods and farm products from California,” said Jock O’Connell, a Sacramento-based international trade advisor for Beacon Economics.

If the pound recovers, trade relations between the Golden State and the U.K. could improve, he said, but the recent devaluation of the pound will “almost immediately start affecting demand” of goods shipped by California growers and food processors.

In the immediate future, though, the Brexit is unlikely to cause any major shifts in shipping logistics because the U.K. has not yet begun negotiating its withdrawal from the EU, a process that is expected to take at least two years, O’Connell said. Until then, the U.K. will continue to operate under EU trading rules and tariffs.

John McLaren, U.K. director for the Wine Institute, said while impact from the Brexit “is impossible to quantify at this stage,” shipping, tariffs and other trading procedures will remain unchanged for the time being, as the U.K. embarks on negotiations for new trading agreements with major nations and blocs.

Wine is the state’s No. 1 agricultural export to the U.K., worth more than $214 million in 2014 and accounting for 41.5 percent of all California wine shipments to the EU. Other top California farm exports to the U.K. include almonds, raisins, table grapes, walnuts and pistachios.

From a shipping standpoint, Sumner said the Brexit could put California on the same footing as other EU exporting countries that ship to the U.K, as they will all be treated as separate nations.

Kubota RTV X-Series

Do more with Kubota’s full line of powerful 4WD workhorses.

RTV-X900

• Kubota Diesel Engine – 21.6 HP* • Front and Extra Duty Independent Rear Suspension (IRS) • Available in General Purpose or Worksite Models

RTV-X1120D

• Kubota Diesel Engine – 24.8 HP* • Standard Hydraulic Bed Lift • Available in Kubota Orange or Realtree® AP Camouflage**

RTV-X1100C

• Kubota Diesel Engine – 24.8 HP* • Rugged Variable Hydro Transmission (VHT-X) • Premium Temperature-Controlled Grand Cab with AC/Heat/Defogging

RTV-X1140

• Kubota Diesel Engine – 24.8 HP* • Convertible Cargo Bed for More Seating or Additional Cargo Space • 1,300 lbs. Towing Capacity

LINDER EQUIPMENT COMPANY 311 E. KERN AVENUE TULARE, CA 93274 (559) 685-5000

www.kubota.com

*For complete warranty, safety and product information, consult your local Kubota dealer and the product operator’s manual. Power (HP/KW) and other specifications are based on various standards or recommended practices. **Realtree® is a registered trademark of Jordan Outdoor Enterprises, Ltd. Optional equipment may be shown. © Kubota Tractor Corporation, 2016

California shipped more than $470 million worth of agricultural products to the United Kingdom in 2014, according to the University of California Agricultural Issues Center, with wine and nuts among the top exports to the U.K. Observers say the sharp drop in the value of the British pound following the “Brexit” vote could reduce demand for California farm products among U.K. customers, as prices of these goods become more expensive. Graphic/Sarah Lee

Shipping from the EU to the U.K. may become harder, while shipping from California may remain the same.

Looking forward, Sumner said he is optimistic the U.S. will be able to reach a bilateral trade agreement with the U.K. “even if a trade deal with the rest of the EU proves to be almost impossible.”

“I think it’ll be a heck of a lot easier to deal with the British alone” than the EU as a whole, said Fred Klose, executive director of the California Agricultural Export Council.

Klose attended the London Produce Show last month, and described the U.K. market as offering “the most potential” for the state’s fresh produce compared to the other European markets. He said he sees the Brexit as an opportunity for the U.S. to strike new trade deals with Britain and “get out from underneath the European tariffs” that currently hinder movement of California farm products.

Klose pointed out that the U.K. already is a huge importer of food and does not grow many of the agricultural products that California produces, so there is no strong reason its government

would put tariff barriers on those items.

O’Connell said the future U.K. government “may decide it’s in their best interest to negotiate a treaty that enhances their diplomatic and national security links with the U.S.,” and in return, the U.S. may see some trade benefits—but that all remains to be seen.

“We’ll certainly have to work out a new regime for trading with the U.K. once they exit the EU,” he said.

For now, there is concern the Brexit could put the vitality of the EU at risk, O’Connell said, noting that stresses in the European economy, such as the debt crisis, already exist.

“We’ve seen a small dip in the value of the euro. That in itself could have an impact on trade,” he said.

He added that while exports to the EU will continue and remain substantial, growth prospects “aren’t particularly good.”

(Ching Lee is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. She may be contacted at clee@ cfbf.com.)

This article republished with the permission of the California Farm Bureau Federation.

In the world of federal agricultural policy, President Abraham Lincoln receives well-deserved credit for establishing the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

President Grover Cleveland raised USDA to a Cabinet-level department in 1889.

I would suggest that the most significant mark on agricultural policy in the 20th and 21st centuries comes in the form of the “farm bill,” which has become the primary source of federal authority and funding for farm and nutrition programs administered by USDA. In the advocacy world, going through the development of a farm bill is considered a badge of honor. It is common in Washington to hear seasoned agricultural policy staffers at the American Farm Bureau Federation, Capitol Hill staffers, agency staffers and others say, “I’ve been through four farm bills,” and so on. As I go into my third, I’ve come to appreciate those words, because writing a farm bill is a massive undertaking with many moving

Josh Rolph, CFBF

Commentary: It’s Time to Begin Working on a New Federal Farm Bill

parts—at both the policy level and the political level. I find its evolutionary growth during the last century fascinating.

Exactly 100 years ago this month, President Woodrow Wilson signed into law the Federal Farm Loan Act, which ultimately evolved into what became known as the “farm bill.” True, the 1916 law was not formally known as the farm bill; rather, it was the first federal law providing government-backed credit to farmers, the ancestor of the modern loan and credit system.

The 1916 law was revisited in 1923 with a small expansion. Later that decade, just four months prior to the stock market crash of 1929, Congress enacted the Agricultural Marketing Act. That law aimed to purchase surplus agricultural goods, as crop prices fell in a steady and worrisome

COMMENTARY continued on 7 »

7 July, 2016

Valley Voice • 7

Agriculture As Forests Decline, Observers Cite Mismanagement Kate Campbell, CFBF From state highways, foothill campgrounds and aerial surveys, it’s easy to see the catastrophic tree die-off in California forests. What isn’t as easily grasped is the scale of rapidly expanding tree mortality in the state’s 40 million acres of forestland— and what to do about it.

The U.S. Forest Service said in June that its survey showed more than 66 million trees, mostly pine species, have died in the southern Sierra Nevada alone, and more are dying. Forestry experts say the scale of the die-off is beyond anything ever observed. They attribute the tree mortality to four years of drought, bark beetle infestations, climate change and mismanagement.

“I’m afraid people are going to think the catastrophe we’re seeing in our forests today is just a natural cycle of drought and insect infestations, but there’s a lot more to this story,” Tuolumne County rancher Shaun Crook said. “What we have now is the culmination of 40 years of forest mismanagement that has led to these devastating conditions.”

Crook said if Sierra forests had been harvested in recent decades using sustainable-yield practices, they would not be as overgrown and would not be as vulnerable to drought, infestation and disease, which occur naturally.

Erin Huston, federal policy consultant for the California Farm Bureau Federation, said forests need to be actively managed for the multiple uses they were intended to serve.

“This includes active management at a pace and scale that keeps our forests re-

Commentary Continued from p. 6

decline. As farmers increased production to gain from the government buyout, Congress stepped in with the 1933 Agricultural Adjustment Act, which encouraged decreased production for certain crops. The 1933 bill is the act first referred to as “the farm bill.”

After the Supreme Court ruled the act unconstitutional in 1936, a 1938 act overcame the court’s objections and instituted permanency by requiring a reauthorization every five years. Parts of both the 1938 and 1949 acts remain the base law of the current farm bill. Should the current 2014 Farm Bill expire, those decades-old provisions would become the fallback law, resulting in a considerable hike in dairy and wheat prices. A spike in milk and bread prices has been a decent incentive for politicians to keep a farm bill from expiring.

Since the 1970s, the bill has evolved into what is known as an “omnibus bill,” or one that incorporates a large bundle of programs under one big tent, primarily administered by USDA. In former years, if a farmer grew “program crops,” or varieties of rice, wheat, corn or cotton covered directly by the bill, you were very familiar with the farm bill.

Today, the bill touches almost every farmer, either directly and indirectly.

In the direct-impact column, I would place the bill’s crop insurance products, marketing loans and conservation programs. Crop insurance became a pri-

silient,” Huston said. “We’d like to see federal legislation that improves the climate for fuels reduction, for salvage logging and grazing after fires, and for forest watershed management.”

Farm Bureau and other organizations also support legislation to develop a wildfire emergency funding process that provides more reliable funding without harming land management and fire-reduction activities. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said unless Congress acts rapidly to address how the Forest Service pays for firefighting, the agency will not have the resources necessary to fight wildfires, address the tree die-off and restore forests.

Historically, what forest managers have done to protect forest stands against drought and beetle infestations is to reduce the number of large trees and thin the stands, said Bill Stewart, co-director of the Center for Forestry at the University of California, Berkeley.

He talks about maintaining “thrifty” forests that are leaner and cleaner, that use far less water than current, overstocked stands and, through natural and vigorous growth, store more carbon dioxide emissions, which improves air quality.

At the same time, he said, healthy Sierra forests can continue to provide improved grazing, recreation and business opportunities.

“Unfortunately, 30 to 40 years ago the public said, ‘Keep all the trees in the forest.’ But now we’re finding out there just isn’t enough water in California to keep all those trees alive,” Stewart said.

Crook noted that when timber was thinned in the past, homeowners and small timberland owners also had markets

at nearby sawmills and biomass plants, where they could salvage some of the wood and recoup part of the removal costs.

“Now, there are no wood-processing facilities—or the few that remain are maxed out—again because of (forest) mismanagement,” he said. “The only way to get the processing infrastructure back is to provide a guaranteed supply of timber from federal lands, so it can be turned into useful consumer products.”

Although the southern Sierra has been hit the hardest by the current tree die-off, Brittany Covich of the Sierra Nevada Conservancy said the underlying conditions leading to the tree mortality exist throughout the Sierra.

“We rely on healthy Sierra forests to filter and store the water runoff that feeds the State Water Project and the Central Valley Project, which supply irrigation water for hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland,” Covich said. “The forests of the Sierra Nevada region play a critical role in maintaining a reliable water source for California, but current conditions in the Sierra place that role at risk.”

CFBF Director of Water Resources Danny Merkley said agencies need the resources to thin forests to maintain forest health, noting that only about 3 percent of new forest growth is being removed each year—leaving 97 percent of new growth to compound overstocked conditions.

On the longer term, he said, there’s a need for additional public awareness about what’s needed to maintain healthy, sustainable forests.

“Forests are a major part of our watersheds and directly impact our water supply,” Merkley said. “We need to rethink

how we manage our forests, in all their complexity, for resilient forests now and into the future.”

Last fall, Gov. Brown declared a state of emergency because of the tree die-off and formed a multidisciplinary tree mortality task force to help with safe removal of dead and dying trees. The task force includes more than 80 local, state and federal agencies, as well as utilities and other stakeholders, including groups representing ranching and grazing interests.

The state has purchased 10 air-curtain burners—20-foot long, metal blastsheet containers that can incinerate up to eight trees an hour, with low air emissions.

The purchase was part of a $5 million investment in equipment to address the tree-mortality epidemic.

The trees pose serious public safety risks beyond catastrophic wildfires. Vilsack said the Forest Service is reprioritizing $32 million in California to remove dead trees along roads, trails and recreation sites, where falling timber is likely to threaten people, powerlines and structures.

Forest Service scientists said they expect to see continued elevated levels of tree mortality through 2016 in dense forest stands with root diseases and high levels of bark beetle activity.

Additional surveys across California forestland will be conducted throughout the summer and fall, they said.

(Kate Campbell is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. She may be contacted at kcampbell@cfbf.com.)

mary focus when the 2014 bill repealed traditional program payments. As severe drought has loomed over California, and insurance has expanded to many more crops, this program has been of critical importance.

Indirect impact on farmers would include specialty crop block grants that aim to enhance the competitiveness of fruits and vegetables, and research programs that seek new scientific breakthroughs in agriculture.

There are many other initiatives within the 12 titles of the bill that affect farmers and ranchers, ranging from rural development programs to forestry to funding to counteract plant pests and diseases that threaten not only farms and ranches but public lands, parks and home gardens as well.

An example of the impact of the farm bill came last week from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, when the agency announced an opportunity for farmers and ranchers to secure funds through an air quality initiative (see story).

I can say unequivocally that this announcement would not have occurred without the hard work of former CFBF Federal Policy colleagues Rayne Thompson and Elisa Noble, who advocated tirelessly to retain the program in the 2014 Farm Bill.

That bill is set to expire in 2018. Because of the size and reach of the bill—it authorizes $100 billion in funding, 80 percent directed to nutrition programs—the process of rewriting it typically starts the year prior to expiration. This means that in early 2017, we expect the House and

Senate agriculture committees to begin deliberation of the bill, first with hearings on the current bill’s effectiveness, then on reform concepts, and subsequently the writing of each title.

For this reason, talks are underway to ensure full representation for California farmers and ranchers in the next iteration of the farm bill. I will participate on a panel at this week’s meeting of the State Board of Food and Agriculture, as the state Department of Food and Agriculture aims to develop its policy goals for the bill by taking input from stakeholders.

Farm Bureau members from around California discussed the farm bill during

Issue Advisory Committee meetings, and we will take an active part in AFBF discussions with other state Farm Bureaus.

As we develop our position on a variety of issues, I would appreciate hearing your experience with the farm bill—what works well for you and what doesn’t. If you are having a problem with a certain program or have an idea for reform, now is the time to make your voice heard.

(Josh Rolph is manager of federal policy for the California Farm Bureau Federation.

He may be contacted at jrolph@cfbf.com.)

This article reprinted with the permission of the California Farm Bureau Federation.

This article reprinted with the permission of the California Farm Bureau Federation.

JOHN DEERE 8430T

CHALLENGER MT845C

ATI MACHINERY AG EQUIPMENT RENTAL

Serving Farmers Since 1975

Call:

• Challenger MT865 – MT855 – MT845 – MT835 – MT765 • John Deere 9620T – 9520T – 8430T – 8520T – 8400T • John Deere MFWD Wheel Tractors – 275HP to 150HP • Cat Challenger 95-85-75 Rubber Belted Tractors • Case MX285 – MXM 175 Wheel Tractors • Cat D8K Direct Drive Mounted and Drawbar Tractors • Cat D6C – 3 & 5 Shank Rippers - Discs

1-888-461-0625

www.atimachinery.com

8 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016

PERSPECTIVE: DIRECTOR OF EVOLUTIONS FITNESS & WELLNESS CENTER

er t n e C lness

el W & s es n t i F s tion

th

wi n o i t a ers v n o c A

lu o v E f or o t c e r i the D

869 N. Cherry St • Tulare • CA • 93274 • 559.688.0821 • www.TEAMHCCA.com

7 July, 2016

Valley Voice • 9

How does Evolutions contribute to improving the health of the community?

Because we are a medically based fitness center, we know that 80 percent of health-care dollars are spent managing chronic diseases which are related specifically to lifestyle choices. All those diseases can be managed, if not cured, with exercise, proper nutrition and positive wellness choices. We offer more than 100 classes every week to help people improve their health and we are proud that Evolutions members pay more than 320,000 visits per year to our facility. Tulare Regional Medical Center takes care of you when you’re sick but Evolutions provides ways for you to stay healthy. For example, outpatient physical therapy is housed in our facility so that when people suffer an injury, they can come to us to rehabilitate. Because we share the same equipment, they can continue their exercise prescription when their sessions are up and become even healthier than they were to start. We’re part of the health-care continuum.

How can HCCA help Evolutions do even more?

Like health care, fitness is a constantly evolving area of study. As a partner with Tulare’s hospital, we’re always thinking of new ways to expand our services to reach more people in the community.

Because we share a common vision and goals, we can tailor our services to help keep patients healthy long after the visit to the doctor. And medical professionals know that we will do all we can to encourage their prescriptions for a healthier life.

What’s different now at Evolutions since HCCA came on board?

Because HCCA’s vision is to create an integrated health-care delivery system, they value what we do here to improve fitness and wellness. They get the importance of fitness and wellness to a community and to a person’s general well-being, and they demonstrate it by their involvement in their own health and wellness habits. We definitely feel just as valued here as any other department in the hospital. Much-needed repairs and improvements that were not necessarily visible to members have now been addressed and that shows all of us that this facility matters to HCCA.

“I not only feel empowered do my job, I also feel inspired to make the hospital successful.”

How do you keep the energy level so high among the staff?

What makes our staff different is they believe in fitness and wellness and they are passionate to share that knowledge with the community.

HCCA has allowed them to share their passion and commitment to fitness. Every one of them wants to be here because they know the positive impact it makes in everyday life.

People who exercise not only feel better feel better about themselves but, in our case, they feel better about where they work.

Talk about how your own perspective has evolved since HCCA came on board?

I have never been more proud to be a part of this hospital because HCCA leadership demonstrates what is possible and they lead by example. When we were giving out water to residents of Matheny Tract, they were there working right alongside us. With HCCA, I not only feel empowered do my job, I also feel inspired to make the hospital successful.

Jayne Presnell is Director of Evolutions Fitness & Wellness Center, a position she has held

since opening the facility in 2001. She has more than 40 years of experience in the fitness industry.

She currently is West Region Chair of the Medical Fitness Association where she oversees 12 states with medical-based fitness centers. She earned a bachelor’s degree in health and fitness from California State University, Fresno.

10 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016

Marijuana Laws Costing Farmers Money Dave Adalian Rick Trojan thinks marijuana has given cannabis a bad name it doesn’t deserve, so he’s launched a nationwide mission to repair its damaged reputation.

In June, his Hemp Road Tour stopped in Visalia between visits to major hemp manufacturers and meetings with legislators who can help change the way the plant is viewed by the law.

Industrial hemp, the variety of cannabis which doesn’t produce enough of the active ingredient THC to cause a high, is just as illegal as its intoxicating cousin. That, says Trojan, is a shame, because the plant could revolutionize agriculture and manufacturing. And there’s a lot of money to be made.

Trojan isn’t a run-of-the-mill cannabis advocate. He’s a partner in Colorado Cultivars, the nation’s largest industrial hemp grower. The company is farming 1,500 acres in Eaton, Colorado this season, and though it’s only the second crop, Colorado Cultivars will make a profit this year. The future, says Trojan, holds much promise.

“We did a yield, talking to farmers in Iowa, corn versus hemp, and if you just sold industrial hemp for the seed, the food side of it, you would make four to seven times more than they were making with corn,” he said. “And, that’s corn subsidized. Corn unsubsidized you would be actually losing money as a farmer, so hemp gives farmers, even small farmers, a real opportunity to make a real living.”

Along with the seed, hemp also produces a valuable fiber crop. Other food and fodder crops do not.

Following the Primaries

Hemp, Trojan says, has the potential save water, reduce pesticide use and revitalize the soil, but the nation’s drug laws are keeping this lucrative, beneficial crop out of the hands of growers. Despite the federal ban on growing it, hemp products are widely available in the United States. They are even manufactured here, but the easily and cheaply produced raw materials must be imported. Colorado Cultivars is able to do business because of that state’s legalization efforts.

That Byzantine twist of the law is what prompted Trojan to launch the Hemp Road Tour and follow the presidential primary election around the country. Trojan and his cohorts think it’s time to change the laws stifling their nascent industry.

“What really got me started is back in October we grew 300 acres of hemp for CBD (a hemp oil derivative with reported health benefits),” Trojan said. “I could make that CBD, then I couldn’t ship it outside the state line because of the federal classification as a drug. But, my buddy down the street could buy

that CBD from Denmark, put it in the exact same formulation and ship it nationwide.”

Changing the Law

Already the federal view on hemp is changing. In 2013, the federal government officially recognized a distinct difference between the kind of cannabis used as a drug and the hemp grown for fiber, food and other building and manufacturing materials.

“The Farm Act of 2013, it defined industrial hemp as 0.3% THC or less,” said Trojan. “It’s the same plant. There’s high-THC cannabis and low-THC cannabis.”

Lawmakers are now poised to change the law that has kept farmers from freely growing hemp. The Hemp Road Tour is intended to help push for support for that change.

“The Industrial Hemp Act has 14 sponsors on the Senate side and 69 on the House side,” Trojan said. “That’s our nearest bill to move forward, so that’s what we’re pushing for. I decided to buy a bus and go shake hands and follow the primaries and try to make it an issue.”

Booming Business

Trojan’s Hemp Road Tour only made a whistle-stop in Visalia between visits with legislators and the state’s largest hemp industry players from San Diego to the Bay Area. As a partner in Colorado Cultivars, Trojan represents the largest grower of industrial hemp in the nation. The company is currently farming in Eaton, Colorado, to produce seeds, oil and herd, the soft, woody internal tissue of the plant that has a variety of uses in manufacturing and construction.

The company also constructed its own processing plant to make CBD, and the partners plan to continue its expansion.

Finding a market is not a problem for Trojan’s company. A brokerage system is already in place to satisfy the large global markets for their products.

“

Hemp Road Tour organizer Rick Trojan, center, hands out information on industrial hemp to Cameron Chipchase and Doug Stark during a stop in Visalia. Chipchase, a Navy veteran who was injured during his service, and Stark have formulated a spray using CBD produced from hemp raised by Trojan’s company. The pain-relieving spray is available in Visalia at Sensations or by calling Hemp Sciences at (559) 799-9879. All the clothing Trojan is wearing is made from hemp. Dave Adalian/Valley Voice

tential to be a big moneymaker, it’s also extremely beneficial to the soil. As a phytoremediant, hemp removes contaminants from the soil as it grows. The plant drops a very deep tap root, aerating and tilling the soil naturally, thus avoiding carbon and nutrient loss. It also increases yields when used in crop rotation.

“What it does, particularly for California with the drought and those sort of things, I think it gives farmers an alternative,” Trojan said. “The drought’s a big issue. Cotton uses a lot more water than hemp, for example. The inputs are substantially lower for hemp.”

Hemp also returns more usable fiber per acre than cotton at that lower cost.

Humans have been growing cannabis for tens of thousands of years, and only within the last century has it developed its bad reputation, due in large part to the largely impotent and increasingly dysfunctional War on Drugs.

During that time, the plant has evolved to become extremely useful on the farm.

Studies have shown significant yield increases when hemp is used during the

It’s a phytoremediant, so if there’s a bunch of crap in the soil, it’ll suck all that crap out of the soil. So if you’ve got a bunch of Roundup or pesticide and you need to rejuvenate the soil, plant hemp.

”

Hemp Road Tour organizer Rick Trojan Hemp should soon take its place along with corn and pig bellies on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

“That infrastructure’s being established right now. There’s a couple different exchange entities out there,” Trojan said. “Eventually, it will go onto the same exchange as corn, wheat and barley.

It will be in Chicago.”

Benefits of Hemp

Not only does hemp have the po-

fallow season.

“The tap roots are thick. They go about 8 feet deep, so it aerates the soil,” Trojan said. “It increases corn yields 6% to 8%. It increases tobacco yields 25% to 30%. So, it’s a valuable crop just as a rotational, but if you just sell it purely for the seeds you’re going to make more money than with corn.”

Hemp is also being used to clean up radioactive contamination at the sites of

(559) 562-2522

111 W. Honolulu, Lindsay

Getting Past Old Thinking

Even with the evidence of hemp’s benefits on his side, Trojan is still running into roadblocks in the form of old, outdated ideas from lawmakers who should know better but don’t.

“We were talking to Sen. (Chuck) Grassley, who’s the Republican from Iowa,” Trojan recalled. “They weren’t very receptive, but one of his ag guys was, ‘Everyone’s telling me you can make all this money. Can you do it on an industrial scale?’ I said, ‘Absolutely. We’re doing it.’”

The ignorance isn’t limited to the plant. It extends to the business base that supports hemp farming. Trojan found a particularly striking and costly example in Iowa.

“John Deere makes a combine that Europeans use to harvest their hemp, Canadians use to harvest their hemp,” Trojan said. “That combine is made in Waterloo, Iowa. It’s made in Sen. Grassley’s district, and they had no idea.”

Everyone could be making money if the old guard would open its eyes and start cooperating, he said. Even stalwart icons of American manufacturing are suffering because of the negative perception of cannabis held by many of those born before the 1960s.

“John Deere is making (the hemp combine) and shipping it out of the country. We could just take it down the road and it could harvest hemp if they could just pull their stuff together,” Trojan said.

Our family serving yours since 1973

Pal mer Company Insurance HOME • AUTO • FARM COMMERCIAL • LIFE • HEALTH

the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear power plant meltdowns.

“It’s a phytoremediant, so if there’s a bunch of crap in the soil, it’ll suck all that crap out of the soil,” said Trojan.

“So if you’ve got a bunch of Roundup or pesticide and you need to rejuvenate the soil, plant hemp.”

Senior Care Home & Assisted Living IBA WEST

www.casagrandeseniorcarehomes.com

347 E. Walnut, Visalia

(559) 733-0233

7 July, 2016

Visalia Budget Continued from p. 1

adding that City Hall is bracing itself for a possible downturn in the economy following the presidential election in November. Regardless of how the economy fairs as a whole, Visalia should be well positioned financially, Nelsen said, and uncertainty is forcing its hand.

“There’s a lot of unknowns. It’s your best guess,” he said. “There’s one sector that says we’re going to go into recession after the election. It’s a wait-and-see. That’s why I appreciate our financial group is conservative.

It’s a fair budget. It’s a good look at the numbers.”

Aquatic Center for Visalia?

While longtime council member Greg Collins had no major beefs with the plan for spending in 16/17, he voted no at the June 27 special meeting, going against the other four members of the Council. At issue was whether the city should earmark money for a study on building an aquatics center.

“Over the last 25 years, we’ve lost two pools in the community of Visalia and we’ve built two community centers,” Collins, an avid swimmer, said.

“We don’t have our own pool. It’s very difficult for the city to run its own aquatics programs.”

During the Council’s closed-session budget talks, Collins called for a preliminary study on an aquatics center to gather a cost estimate. Although the city budgets two years ahead and the study would not be conducted during that period, it does plan six years ahead for large capital projects.

Collins wanted money for the study included there, leading to a no vote when he met resistance from three others on the Council.

Their objections, he said, centered on maintenance costs, as well as the complaint that operating an aquatics

Crop Report Continued from p. 1

Niswander. “If the numbers still have the same ratio as they did when the study was done, for every dollar growth in dairy, there is an increase of $10.50 in the local economy. That’s because there are so many more people involved with sustaining a dairy.”

With the record year of 2014 and the down year of 2015, Niswander was

Valley Voice • 11 center would not pay for itself. Collins countered that the city’s convention center and baseball park also lose money, but that both attract large events and benefit other city businesses.

Visalia’s Poverty Problem

Collins also noted City Hall will be taking a new approach to dealing with homelessness in Visalia. The move is a compromise. Collins asked for room in the budget to assign a position at City Hall to oversee the city’s response. He didn’t get it.

“We had quite a bit of discussion on the homeless issue,” he said. “I was suggesting we retain somebody to be the point person for the homeless issue, as well as setting aside money for the installation of port-a-potties around the community to resolve some of the problems we’re seeing everyday.”

He got neither, but the topic is at least now open for discussion.

“They’re going to come back with a report to deal with the homeless problem in a more efficient way,” Collins said. He hopes this will give satisfaction to voters who have contacted him about the issue.

“This is something that is on the minds of the public,” Collins said.

“We’re responsible for solving this problem, or at least starting to solve this problem.”

Overarching Goals

In presenting the budget to the Council, Finance Director Renee Nagel described a set of distinct goals for the current two-year funding cycle.

They include the gradual return of resources cut in reaction to the Great Recession’s onset in 2008, an increase in funding for capital improvement projects--such as the $8.6 million construction of Phase 5 of the Riverway Sports Park in the 17/18 budget cycle--funding new debt payment for the Visalia Emergency Communications Center, increased maintenance of city facilities, and replenishing the city’s emergency asked how 2016 is shaping up.

“I don’t think we have anymore acreage in production than last year,” he said. “We have more farmland but we don’t have enough water to go around.”

However, he noted that the weather so far this year has been helpful. “There were more chill hours than in the previous year,” he said.

The Kings County 2015 Agricultural Crop Report is accessible at www. countyofkings.com/home/showdocument?id=13237.

reserve fund.

“Every city during the Great Recession basically laid off employees, which (Visalia) did not do, but we did hold positions vacant,” Nagel said.

“We have been saying as each year goes we’ve been rebuilding by adding money. It’s not bringing back all the positions today. As we’re able to add positions, we’ll add positions.”

The city’s emergency fund should be at 17.2% by the end of the 16/17 budget cycle, with a smaller increase planned for the following year. Nagel said revenue projections for 17/18 have also been scaled back because of the possibility of another recession.

“We’re projecting a 3% growth for next year (16/17). We’ve been conservative for 17/18,” she said. “We went ahead and reduced our projection to 1.5% from the 3% we’ve been receiving. If there’s no recession, the council will have that. If there is a recession, at least we’re partly there.”

Building Big

The city has only two large projects planned for FY 16/17. Traffic lights will be upgraded at Goshen Avenue and Demaree Street, an already overburdened intersection that will soon be home of a new mini storage, and the Solid Waste Department is converting from the split-can collection system it uses now to a three-can scheme.

The following year, however, the city will finish the Riverway Sports Park to the tune of $8.6 million. That project will see the addition of four lighted softball fields with a concession stand, parking and a picnic area, as well as a new irrigation and pumping system.

To fund its business, the city relies mainly on sales and property taxes, as well as developers fees. It’s income is healthy and steady, Nagel reports.

“Development is occurring, so revenue is good,” she said. “The total capital for fiscal 2016 that’s being spent is $46.8 million, and then the second

year it’s $45.6 million.”

While much of this money will go toward vehicle replacement, road maintenance, park construction, and replacement of sewer main and waste water infrastructure, the majority of the General Fund will be spent on firefighting, police and similar services, according to Nagel.

“On the General Fund expenditures, I just want to point out 58% is for public safety,” she said. “I think it’s important to know we do spend a large amount of our General Fund dollars on public safety. It shows it’s a priority for Visalia.”

Staff at City Hall, with Council’s approval, would like voters to approve a 0.5% sales tax to fund that public safety spending. The tax revenue will also cover increased park maintenance spending and cover the cost of hiring a recreation coordinator, Nagel said.

Special revenue funds and enterprise funds--self-supporting services like solid waste, the city’s airport and its transit system--make up the remaineder of the budget.

Transparent Spending

For those who want more detail, Nagel suggests a visit to the city’s website, visalia.city.

“We’ll be posting the budget and all the capital projects on our webpage,” she said. “The capital will be there in detail with a description of each project.”

Expect to see a sensible plan hedging against possible disquiet in the financial future.

“I would rather be ready and planning for (economic downturn) than in an emergency trying to move positions,” Nagel said. “If it doesn’t happen, we can come back and program that money. We’ll know more when we get halfway through 16/17.”

Mayor Nelsen concurs with that sentiment.

“You wait six months to a year and see how you did,” he said.

Finally, high quality funeral services and affordable prices have arrived in Visalia at Hadley-Marcom Funeral Chapel.

COMPLETE FUNERAL SERVICE Including a Dignified 20­Gauge Steel Casket, Visitation, Register Book, Memorial Folders, Carnation Casket Spray and a Service in Our Chapel, Your Church or a Service at Any Local Cemetery.

Steven C. Marcom

$4,250*

Brad Miller

*Based upon purchase of a funeral package with this ad. Prices subject to change. Plus tax.

Traditional Service $3,395 • Direct Cremation $1,495 Basic Burial $2,395 • Caskets Starting at $595

Funeral services can be expensive, but NOT at Hadley-Marcom Funeral Chapel.

LOCALLY OWNED AND OPERATED

Recycle this paper: you decide how!

(559) 625-8900 1700W. Caldwell Ave., Visalia, CA 93277 • FD 2129

12 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016

Voices of the Valley

Bob and Brenda Burke: Visalia’s Coolest Teachers

Dave Adalian In 1976, a legacy began at Mt. Whitney High.

The year America celebrated its bicentennial was also the year Brenda Burke began teaching home economics parttime on the Visalia campus. Her husband Robert’s hard-to-get full-time teaching job at the city’s school for at-risk students, Sequoia High, had brought the freshly graduated newlyweds to town.

They had just finished earning preliminary teaching credentials at Humboldt State University. Robert had been a history major, and getting teaching jobs in that field was a near impossibility at the time. Luckily for the would-be bridegroom, his knowledge of seafood gave him an edge he’d need.

“I applied as far away as Nebraska. I wanted to get married, and I got an interview,” he recalled. “Don Grady, the Redwood (High School) principal, interviewed me. He went up to Humboldt. I think the reason I was a finalist was I told him where to get crab for 80 cents a pound.”

A Campus Fixture

The Burkes, who were childhood sweethearts, grew up in Long Beach, a fact that also helped Robert land the job he’d been told by a school counselor he’d never get. He could talk to Grady as an insider about a pair of brothers who’d also grown up in Long Beach and were now basketball stars at Fresno State.

“We talked basketball, that and crab, and I get a call saying I’m one of three finalists,” Bob, 62, said. “I couldn’t believe it.”

He landed the job at Sequoia, and joined his wife at MWHS in 1980. Brenda had by then moved to a full-time position. That notably made them the first married couple to teach on the same campus in the Visalia school system. Bob caught the brunt of the backlash.

“The HR person said, ‘Well, if you guys get divorced, you’re going first because she was there before you.’ And, I go, ‘OK,’” Bob remembered, causing laughter around the table.

“He had a lot of questions about ‘What if...?’ because we were both on the same campus,” Brenda, 61, added.

“Yeah,” Bob agreed, “but it worked.”

The couple spent their working lives together, a fixture on a campus that serves about 1,500 students each year, and they would eventually retire together. When they did, it was after a combined 70 years at Mt. Whitney. The school, which was constructed in 1952, was only 61 years old when Bob and Brenda Burke left it in 2013.

‘They Were Easygoing, Very Calm’

While there have been other teachers in Visalia whose careers ran as long as the Burkes’, few were as popular with their students. There’s nothing especially captivating about the subjects they taught-Brenda instructing students in sewing, balancing check books, cookery and child care, Bob covering social science, history and psych. It’s likely students sensed

something else the couple shares, something exemplified in stories they tell about their own education.

Brenda was born partially deaf. She excelled at sports and considered a career as a PE teacher, eventually deciding it meant too much time in the sun. She also had a penchant for numbers and problem-solving, but by her junior year in high school she’d taken the most advanced classes in mathematics her school offered.

“So then I had room for the ‘easy’ class,” she said. “I took a home-ec class, and all of a sudden the teachers there were unbelievable. They were easygoing, very calm, very concerned about you. They just really got involved in what you were doing in life and how you felt.”

Growing up in what she calls a “youalways-respect-your-elders type of family background,” she found the contrasting attitude not just refreshing, but eye-opening. Brenda switched her high-school major, making math a minor emphasis behind home economics, and her career was also decided.

“I said, ‘You know what, this is problem-solving, but this is problem-solving you can do every day in your life,’” she said. “I found myself becoming more relaxed because of the teachers, and I said, ‘I want to do this for somebody else.’”

The Bigger Jerk

Bob’s early education was also a study in contrast. He started his middle school instruction at a campus later experience taught him was a toxic environment, but he finished in a very different place. It was a story he related to students in his classroom when discussing motivation.

“I went to a junior high that academically I think it was fine, but it was run very poorly,” he said. “Basically, it was all run on negativity. ‘How can we ding you for chewing gum? How can we ding you for this? For that?’ Then the students, of course, responded in kind. The bigger jerk you were in class, the more popular you were.”

Burke had the response typical for a normal 13-year-old, and his grades suffered because of it. Then he changed schools, attending Hill Junior High.

There, academic performance was key to popularity. Again, Bob followed the pack.

His grades soared.

“Hill was run, basically, let me help you out. It kind of shaped me a little bit later on in teaching,” he said. “It was huge to me, because I looked at authority in a different way, in a more positive way, because, sure, they’re your principal, they’re your teacher, but they’re actually here to help you learn, as opposed to...” He gestures with a dismissive wave.

Bob was also cooler than most of his fellow teachers. He coached JV baseball, played basketball with students at lunch in the open gym, and sported a full beard and wore jeans and flannel shirts while the other teachers wore ties and coats. He also played Grateful Dead bootleg tapes before his classes, and a picture of the band’s guitarist and vocalist Jerry Garcia hung on the wall.

The attraction went both ways. Students like Bob, and he likes them.

“I discovered when I started student teaching how much I enjoyed be-

ing around kids,” he said. “I was attracted to the ones that were smart but didn’t see the value, didn’t see cause and effect, tried to turn that around, and the ones who were, you know, having a difficult time for reasons other than schooling. I was always drawn to the at-risk kids and the intelligent ones who didn’t Bob and Brenda Burke pose for a photo at their Three Rivers see the value and home. The couple, who both taught at Visalia’s Mt. Whitney High, what that could give spent a combined 70 years at the school before their retirement you down the road.” in 2013. Brenda Burke now runs her own small business, and Bob is penning novels. The couple celebrates their 40th wedding Bob knows Burke anniversary this month. Dave Adalian/Valley Voice that experience Brenda spends the time knitting. first-hand.

“So, I started a business called Road “I’ll just say I had a pretty dysfuncKnitting,” she said. “I have my purses in tional family, and it’s hard to see beyond just a couple stores here.” that when you’re living that kind of She collects yarn on their trips then life,” he said. uses it in her creations. Her pieces are also Bob was named the 2011 History-Soregular items at Three Rivers fundraisers. cial Studies Teacher of the Year by the San Much of Bob’s time on road not spent beJoaquin Valley Council for Social Studies. hind the wheel has been spent collecting research for his fiction.

Home Life From at least high school on, Brenda While spending their working lives said, Bob wanted to write a book. When in Visalia, the Burkes made their home in he finally began in 2004, he drew from his Three Rivers, where they still live today in college days for inspiration. Bob worked a house with a breathtaking view of the at a nursery in Eureka staffed by “ex-cons Mineral King Fork of the Kaweah. The and all the crazies” while at Humboldt, couple has two children, Katie and John, and his experiences there and the people and knowing they’d be able to spend he met form the core of his novel Through summer breaks with their family when the Redwood Curtain. The story explores they had one was one another reason the the culture clash between an increasingly Burkes found their way into teaching, less isolated community of conservative Brenda said. loggers and the influx of liberal college “That’s what attracted me to Bob too. students and escapees from the Bay Area’s Family’s very important to us,” she said. hippie scene in the early 1970s. It is avail“The advantage of being a teacher is you able through Amazon.com. get the time off with your kids.”

Bob is contemplating a second novThe Burkes celebrate 40 years of mar- el, one focused on the Long Beach of the riage this month. couple’s youth.

Now that he’s retired, Bob serves on “I want to write about post-War Long the board of directors of the Three Rivers Beach,” he said. “I want to write about all Historical Society and Museum. It’s far the vets coming back and how the city from his first stint in such a position. transformed with all the GI Bill housing, “When we got up here, I thought, because that’s what we all lived in.” you know this is a really unique place, and I have some close friends who feel like I Get Back Truckin’ On do (that) if you’re in a place, a small place When they’re not enjoying the smalllike this, you should be a part of it,” he town charm of Three Rivers they help presaid. “And, some things were just for fun. serve, the Burkes are navigating America’s I played softball for 27 years up here. It’s blue highways, those smaller, less traveled the reason my knee’s screwed up.” roads that run alongside the major thorBob also spent 21 years on local oughfares. They just finished a 2,000-mile school boards. He was elected to the trip to Washington, including the discovThree Rivers School District’s governing ery of another route they’d never traveled board in 1989, serving until 2002. He and may or may not ride again. Already was then elected to the Woodlake Union they’re planning the trip they’ll take to School District for a four-year term, after mark their 40th wedding anniversary. which he served again on the Three Rivers “Alaska was the first idea,” said Brenboard for another four-year term. da. “We’ll do that later. We’re really very “In a small town things get done if easygoing.” people are volunteering,” Bob said. “And, Bob, of course, agrees. it’s fun.”

“Our plans are really very simple,” he said. “We want to keep traveling. We alThrough the Redwood Curtain ways like going on new roads.”

The Burkes spend a lot of time on the Maui is off the table, but they’re road. Their busy calendar is peppered with still talking about a houseboat trip. And annual trips, including a yearly Father’s there’s always their annual summertime Day visit to the Arcata Bay Oyster Festi- boogie boarding trip to the Central Coast val. The nine-hour drive to the home of to consider. Bob’s skiing days are behind their alma mater is typical of the Burkes’ him, though, thanks to that bum knee. road trips. While Bob does the driving,

7 July, 2016

Valley Voice • 13

Measure I Campaign Heats up Tulare Tony Maldonado The campaigns surrounding Tulare Regional Medical Center’s Measure I show no sign of slowing down as the August mail-in election draws closer. Both sides of the campaign -- Yes on Measure I, the group supporting the measure, and Citizens for Hospital Accountability, the group opposing it -- have started campaigning and distributing lawn signs.

Both sides are also hitting the ground and the internet: Yes on Measure I recently opened a Tulare office at 205 North K. Street in Tulare, and both campaigns have advertised on Facebook, seeking to sway public opinion.

Organizing via social media site should prove fruitful for both camps: much of the discussion and organization against Visalia’s Measure H, floated to support Kaweah Delta Hospital, was done through a major Visalia Facebook group and a local No on H Facebook page.

The political machinations have created discussions of the hospital’s future, of the performance of the current Tulare Local Healthcare District (TLHCD) Board of Directors, and of the past $80m bond measure.

Debate Over Hospital’s Future and Stewardship HealthCare Conglomerate Associates, the company that the TLHCD Board has contracted the hospital’s operations to, the Yes on I camp, and board members both draw a clear link between Measure I and the future of the hospital.

“If Measure I fails, the [tower] project will die and the hospital will be forced to close,” the Yes on I campaign stated in a recent Facebook post.

“This is for the entire population.. particularly on the west side, the poor people of our town, whose only hospital... There is no jet waiting for them, there’s no SUV with a driver taking them to another hospital, they have to come to our hospital,” TLHCD Board member Dr. Parmod Kumar said. “So for them, we need to keep the hospital there.”

Critics of the hospital and its board point to the recent Measure H failure as an example of a bond that failed without the hospital closing.

“Don’t be fooled by the Board and management who threaten us with scare

tactics by saying the hospital will close— that’s ludicrous,” the Citizens for Hospital Accountability group states. “The Board and HCCA claim they are doing well, turning a profit and have money in the bank. So why are they not sharing the cost and burden for construction?”

Citizens for Hospital Accountability also takes issue with the hospital’s governance, citing the contracts the board entered into with HCCA as proof the TLHCD board has lost control and oversight of the hospital. Seeking to influence the future of the hospital past the Measure I election, the group has raised the possibility of backing candidates to replace Chairwoman Sherrie Bell and Laura Gadke, two members up for election.

Debate on Oversight Dr. Benny Benzeevi, CEO of HCCA, proposed a multifaceted “bond oversight community” program for the upcoming bond so taxpayers can directly ensure compliance and completion of the tower project.

The Board of Directors endorsed the idea, originally eschewing the idea of a formal committee, before recently approving the addition of a traditional bond oversight committee.

The bond oversight community plan, as described by Benzeevi, would create public-facing websites for construction plans, work schedules, and money draw schedules. It would also appoint outside monitors to ensure that work is done efficiently, on-budget and on-schedule.

The Measure I resolution text, as signed and filed by the Board of Directors, does not legally bind HCCA or TLHCD to any oversight other than a yearly report, to be filed by hospital officials no later than five months after the end of each fiscal year.

“Has there been a cost analysis on the expenses of [Dr. Benzeevi’s proposed oversight] plan? A public website, a construction website, a financial oversight group who will be experts,” Michele Moore asked at the June 22 board meeting, “to look at monies only, and a leadership committee that would meet monthly. With all of this, where does the board’s duties fall?”

The bond oversight community idea would make the project more transparent than any other “in the history of Tulare

County,” the Yes on I campaign states.

The recent “Tower of Shame” grand jury report found that the board was not fully cooperative with the last Bond Oversight Committee, which the current board denies, stating that it has been fully cooperative; board member Linda Wilbourn, who previously served on the oversight committee, had said that the bond oversight community plan was a “better way of doing it,” and would place an oversight responsibility with the whole community.

The grand jury also recommended disbanding the current Bond Oversight Committee, created to oversee the fully-expended $80m bond; in the board’s response, dated May 26, the board said it would vote to disband the committee in its next scheduled meeting. The item did not make the June 22 agenda.

Acts and Attitudes Amidst the vigorous debate from both sides, the Yes on I office found itself in the spotlight shortly after its opening for a slightly less political reason: its office was vandalized over the 4th of July weekend.

Stuart Pfeifer, a contracted spokesman for both the Yes on I campaign and HCCA, told the Visalia Times-Delta that he believes the vandalism was a targeted act.

Both sides have also said they’ve had yard signs stolen: one person even posted security camera photos of the suspected thief from their security system in the Citizens for Hospital Accountability Facebook group.

At the last regular TLHCD meeting, both sides spoke about what they perceived as negativity during the campaign process.

“If someone makes a comment and then has to leave the area, I don’t think that you should talk badly about them, as you did at the last board meeting,” Moore said. “That just didn’t sit well with me.”

Dr. Kumar and Dr. Benzeevi both took time to respond to what they felt was negativity from those opposing Measure I. “The majority, by far, the overwhelming majority of our citizens that live within the district, and even others, really understand and appreciate what is going on here,” Benzeevi said later in the

meeting. “They don’t buy into the negativity of a handful of a few that have hate in their heart.”

Dr. Parmod Kumar spoke about the last conversation he had with Mark Watte, a recently deceased former Tulare City Councilmember, after Dr. Benzeevi presented a video Watte had participated in supporting HCCA and TRMC. “Mark, these people come to the board meeting, they have such venom -- they just viscerally tear us apart. I’m tired of it,” Kumar said, relating his conversation with Watte to the board and audience. “The board has worked hard.

They talk about all the negativity in spite of this cinderella story, which they refuse to accept.”

“What is your advice? I’m getting discouraged. [These were his] last words [to me]: he said, Parmod, these naysayers are going to be naysayers,” Kumar said.

“They are not going to come around.

Stop pleasing them, ignore them when they speak, give them their time because this is a public meeting...but tell the employees of the hospital, and your Board, and Dr. Benzeevi, and the administration that Measure I will pass. It is important, we just have to go forward.”

“No matter how many presentations you do, how much data you present, they are not going to change their minds because they have hatred in their bones,” Kumar recounted Watte as saying.

The Yes on Measure I office is open from noon to 8pm during weekdays, and Saturday from 10am to 4pm.

The campaign is available online at www.tularemeasurei.com and its Facebook page is accessible at www.facebook. com/YesOnMeasureI. Supporters seeking to volunteer or pick up yard signs are encouraged to make an in-person visit.

Citizens for Hospital Accountability is available online at www.hospitalaccountability.com and on Facebook at http://tinyurl.com/jzdk6ng. Supporters seeking yard signs are encouraged to contact the campaign via Facebook.

To read the text of the bond measure, listen to past board meetings, and learn more about the issues surrounding the Measure I bond measure, visit the Valley Voice’s dedicated documents page at www.ourvalleyvoice.com/tlhcdhcca-documents/.

Letter: “In the Good Old Summertime” Todd Oto, Ed.D., Superintendent The traditional school calendar is established to provide an educational program that allows all students to receive an education that leads to a diploma and opportunities to take a good first step into a productive adult life upon graduation from high school. The program in Visalia Unified certainly fits into that mold-our students can make the transition from public school student to productive adult as smoothly as any other traditionally educated student. This is a time of incredible change in education, and our programs are changing to reflect new approaches to the business of educating kids.

In Visalia Unified, our traditional summer program focuses on experiences at the high school level. This program addresses the needs of students in two categories: (1) students who need to re-take classes that they struggled in or failed and (2) students who wish to take required

courses early to open up space in schedules for the following year. Both of these are important things for students to have access to, and demand for this traditional program has steadily increased over the years. We had nearly 3,200 students enrolled in our traditional high school summer program this year. Visalia Charter Independent Study (VCIS), our independent study school, operated a summer program that served over 200 of its students and also provided opportunities for 330 traditional high school kids to take online courses that helped students with credit recovery or schedule flexibility. This is a very powerful resource that has been in place for the past five years.

Our newest programs are aimed at middle and elementary school students.

We piloted a number of new approaches at those levels this summer, in anticipation of developing deeper summer programs for students for the following year. For middle school students, we created Summer

University at Green Acres Middle School.

It was open to 100 incoming 8th graders from across the district; this five-week program focused on enrichment and reducing summertime learning loss. Summer University offered experiences through five themed academies: Health and Nutrition, Criminal Justice, Science-Technology-Engineering-Math, Service-learning, and College & Career. Students engaged in project-based learning experiences that incorporated connections with local businesses and organizations.

For elementary students, we had four schools that piloted programs that were aimed at developing reading and other skills while also eliminating summer-learning loss. These programs took one of three forms: (1) a summer program for the weeks immediately following the end of the school year to extend existing learning, (2) a summer program that maintains weekly contact with students throughout the summer to limit learning loss, or (3)

a program focusing on the weeks immediately prior to the opening of the new school year to jump start learning. Each of these pilot programs included enrichment as well as academic core content. We are looking forward to assessing the effectiveness of each of these approaches so that we may consider any—or all—approaches for broader implementation for next summer.

For many kids, summer is a time to take a break from school and to take on other experiences. What has become very clear over the past decade, however, is that increasing numbers of students and their parents are interested in formal summer learning experiences and in greater flexibility in how to approach summer school.

Research bears out the value to students of extending learning opportunities of all types through the summer. We are excited about these new approaches and look forward to finding new ways to help more kids take advantage of the summer months in productive ways.

14 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016

Comments & Letters Veteran’s Corner

Veterans Employment Committee is Looking for New Members Scott Holwell

The Kings County Veterans Employment Committee (VEC) is comprised of both public and private sector members who are interested in the employment issues of our local veterans’ community. The VEC promotes the importance and advantages of hiring, training, and retraining highly qualified veterans. Veterans have the proven ability to quickly learn new skills and concepts.

They possess identifiable and transferable skills proven to achieve success. They understand practical ways to manage and achieve goals even in the most trying circumstances. They are trained to lead by example as well as through direction, delegation, motivation and inspiration.

Objectives of the VEC include providing a “clearinghouse” for questions, concerns, and recommendations concerning the effectiveness of employment services that are provided by EDD/OneStop and available to veterans in our community. The VEC confers regularly with EDD/One-Stop staff on policy matters and recommendations to improve and expand the services provided to veterans.

The VEC is currently looking for new members who are committed to improving employment and training opportunities for veterans, as well as sharing and receiving updated information on issues that affect employment of veterans.

The VEC is specifically looking for new members from NAS Lemoore and the local business community.

The VEC meets monthly on the 3rd Wednesday at 3:00 pm at the Veterans Hall in downtown Hanford. If you are interested in becoming a member of the VEC please contact Scott Holwell at 852-2661.

The Kings County Veterans Service Office can complete the DMV Veteran Status Verification Form for the new California Veteran Designation on your driver’s license and also issues Veteran I.D. cards to honorably discharged veterans. Contact Scott Holwell if you would like to receive periodic veteran’s information by email. There are many state and federal benefits and programs available to veterans and their dependents. To determine if you are eligible for any of these benefits, visit or call our office. We can and will assist you in completing all required application forms. You can get information on the Web from the Kings County Veterans Service Office webpage at www.countyofkings.com/vets.

Scott Holwell, retired Navy Master Chief Petty Officer, is the Deputy Veterans Service Officer for Kings County. Send your questions to the Veterans Service Office, 1400 W. Lacey Blvd, Hanford, CA 93230; call (559)852-2669; or e-mail scott.holwell@co.kings.ca.us.

Letter: Devon Mathis’ Disgruntled Tenant Responds

I’m writing in regard to the article you published regarding Devon Mathis getting a letter from the FCPP. (http:// www.ourvalleyvoice.com/2016/06/01/ fppc-issues-warning-letter-assemblyman-devon-mathis/) I wanted to clear up some factual issues as we were renters of the home in question. The home is at 3944 W Fairhaven Ave. First and foremost, because this may have implications for my own FPPC filing as a government employee, I did not, and never would, work for Devon Mathis. We have no values in common and I have no desire to ever align myself with him. If the neighbors had ever bothered to talk to me, which at no point they did, they’d know that I formerly worked for Tulare County.

My husband and I moved back to the Bay Area, where I am from, to take a new position and to get out of dealing with frustrating situations like the one we encountered with the Mathises, not to Sacramento. At no point did we ever host a political meeting of any sort, or a meeting with Devon Mathis or anyone who works for him in a political capacity. I’d have preferred Mr. Mathis never entered my home. He only entered, with my husband’s permission, in order to inspect the property so they could put it on the market.

We rented through The Equity

Group, not from the Mathises directly.

We did not know who owned the house.

We had never met the Mathises. Later we were told by an Equity employee that Equity only took him on as a client because of his political connections.

We lived in the home on Fairhaven for four months when the Mathises quite suddenly decided to put the home on the market, when we had a year long contract.

After several confusing, discouraging, and legally invalid comments from Mrs. Mathis, we eventually worked with Equity exclusively. We did our best to accommodate the Mathises’ constant requests to show the house to prospective buyers, usually at inconvenient times for us and on short notice, and accommodated the noisy and disruptive work they did on it pre-sale.

Despite being good and considerate tenants who did everything in our power and went above and beyond in showing the house on their behalf, without any compensation or consideration, we were charged a cleaning fee when we left. While this was in the scope of our contract, since they had gone out of our way to terminate it early, I had the not unreasonable expectation that they would perhaps be more considerate of all that we did on their behalf, which was NOT required of us. I was wrong.

I, personally, do not find the Mathises to be good or ethical people and am very glad to have no further dealings with them. I wish we had never become even remotely entangled with them. Equity can verify that we had an application with them and no connection to the Mathises prior to renting. To think we got any benefit from renting from the Mathises is BEYOND laughable. To further suggest we were somehow in league with the Mathises, based on the neighbors’ own machinations and no facts, is an insult.

They couldn’t be more mistaken.

I don’t believe I have any reason to need to clear up anything with the FPPC, but I would like it very much on the record that we were an unconnected party who had no connection to the Mathises.

I filled out my FPPC forms with all the pertinent information needed and paid a fair market value rent for the property.

That Mr. Mathis and his wife would somehow not know how to properly fill out these forms (which come with ample instructions) is at the very least ignorant and at the most malicious. The people of the 26th Assembly District deserve better and I sincerely hope they look to their options when voting in November.

Lisa Tennenbaum

“There is a chance to save our hospital through Measure I” After 22-plus years in health-care administration, I retired and was asked to come work for HCCA to assist in building an integrated health-care system that would provide quality care and seamless access to healthcare for all. I have been here for well over a year and have had the pleasure of meeting remarkable individuals both within the community and those that I work with.

With that said, I am dismayed over the rhetoric over the last few months regarding Measure I. There has been finger-pointing, name-calling and accusations that I don’t believe is a true reflection of the character of Tulareans.

There is no doubt that health-care administration is complex and ever-changing, but what hasn’t changed in this landscape is that every community should have access to care in the neighborhood in which they live. Recently, many communities have not been lucky in that regard: Colusa Regional Medical Center was closed on April 22, 2016, and the community was described as being “blindsided” (Fox 40 News, April 1) in news reports. Other stories described the closure as a “disaster for the community” (KCRA, April 2); with “anger and frustration in the community” (Appeal-Democrat, April

12); as well as the inevitable decision “Adventist takes the clinics and Hospital is shuttered” (Appeal-Democrat, April 20).

Saddleback Memorial Hospital closed May 31, 2016 and the community sprang into action. “Hundreds rally to save hospital from closure” (CBS-LA, Dec. 20, 2015), and “Community pleading its case to Orange County Board of Supervisors (Orange County Register, May 9, 2016), but the result was unchanged with “194 layoffs” (Physciannetwork.com).

Folks, these communities did not have an opportunity for a bond measure, but they absolutely understood the impact of the closures.

In Tulare, there is a chance to save our hospital through Measure I. There is overwhelming support for the bond in the community – and the reasons are clear.

Tulare needs a hospital with an emergency room. It needs a hospital to treat our children, our parents, our grandparents.

The city’s economy benefits from the 500+ jobs that the hospital provides.

Primary care and specialty physician recruitment and retention should be an imperative for Tulare County, not just for The Tulare Local Health Care District. The Central Valley is well below the national average for physicians per capita and the

aging of our local physicians is apparent.

More than 30% of physicians are over age 60 in California and in Tulare alone we surpass that, according to the California Health Care Foundation (2014). We collectively must look beyond the tower to understand future impacts without a hospital. Newly graduated physicians will not look to re-locate in Tulare if they do not believe the community values healthcare.

I live in a community that closed the county hospital 18 years ago and, although promises were made that there was capacity to absorb all the patients, it has not come to pass.

Emergency departments in the remaining hospitals are on diversion several times a year and that compromises patient care.

I implore this community to put aside their personal biases and work together to assure Tulare Regional Medical Center continues to provide local care to local residents who deserve the very best.

Rarely do we have such a clear cut choice as we have now.

Simply stated, voting YES on Measure I means voting YES on continuing to have a hospital in Tulare. Please vote YES on Measure I. Samantha Phillips-Bland

Kaweah Delta Board: An open letter to our community We thank all those who supported our community’s need to replace Kaweah Delta’s 50 year old Mineral King Wing by voting yes on Measure H. Your support was greatly appreciated. We honor all who were engaged in this process and voted. The earthquake standards remain the law in California and will need to be addressed to ensure that our community’s future health care needs are met.

The fact that Measure H did not pass is an indication that many in our community have questions and concerns that must be

fully addressed if we are to move forward.

Our challenge is to develop, with the community, a well understood and supported plan to fund and develop healthcare facilities that will be responsive not only to the requirements of law but to the needs of those cared for at Kaweah Delta.

We will begin by carefully listening.

We need to fully understand and address the various questions and concerns that have been posed by members of this community. This will require a community dialogue and planning process that will need

your involvement. We are now developing this process. It will involve many members of our community, including both those who supported and opposed Measure H. Remember, Kaweah Delta is owned by the community. We are confident that we can forge a bright future for healthcare in our community as we work together in this planning process. Please join us.

Kaweah Delta Health Care District Board of Directors

7 July, 2016

Valley Voice • 15

Comments & Letters Yes on Measure I

No on Measure I

Tulare’s community -- city leaders, educators, business owners, doctors, nurses, fathers, mothers, grandparents – has come together to support Measure I, which will save Tulare’s public hospital.

Our current hospital, built shortly after World War II, not only fails to meet state earthquake safety laws, it’s woefully inadequate for our needs. It was built for the Tulare of 1951, not the Tulare of today.

That’s why the community is standing together behind Measure I, which will raise the money to finish our new hospital. If we don’t finish the new building, Tulare’s hospital will close.

The closure is not a threat. If construction of the hospital stops for more than two weeks, we’ll lose our construction permit and the project will die.

The attached list of individuals are just some of the people who have associated themselves with Citizens for Hospital Accountability in Opposition to Measure I (CFHA).

Let us be clear, CFHA will do whatever is reasonably possible to preserve and improve our public hospital, including the completion of the tower. However, we will not stand by and allow our tax money to go to a hospital, whose Board of Directors refuses to account for the mismanagement of the previous bond and that has now turned over its control of our public hospital to a private entity that refuses to provide the citizen of this District vital information, including, who they are, how the amount of the bond was fixed and how it will be spent.

We are strong and growing.

The names below are a small sampling of people in our community urging you to Vote Yes on Measure I: Joanne Watte Richard Torrez, Board of Directors, Brian Watte Tulare Local Health Care District Greg Watte Linda Wilbourn, Board of DirecManuel Mancebo Jr. tors, Tulare Local Health Care District Skip Barwick Laura Gadke, Board of Directors, Mary Jane Barwick Tulare Local Health Care District Sue Shannon Fateh Entabi, MD Kim Taylor Tom Evans, MD Tony Taylor Parul Gupta, MD Ben Brubaker Jon Y. Miyakawa, MD Steve Faria Joshua Trujillo, MD David Macedo, Mayor, City of Tulare Kendall L. Wong, MD Maritsa Castellanoz, City Council Brian Woo, MD Member, City of Tulare Rebecca A. Zulim, MD Pete Vander Poel III, Supervisor, Brian Bell, DDS District 2, Tulare County Board of Robert E. Bell, DDS Supervisors Teresa Berbereia, RN Phil Plascencia, President, Tulare Andrea Coito-Moore, RN City School District Board of Trustees Charlene Dawson, RN, BSN Sherrie Bell, Chairman, Board Kassie Goncalves, RN of Directors, Tulare Local Health Angie Graziano, RN, MSN Care District Lionel Machado, RCP, RRT Parmod Kumar, MD, Vice ChairKathleen Johnson man, Board of Directors, Tulare Local Kerri Bell Health Care District Trish Hitlin, RN

The names below are a small sampling of people in our community urging you to Vote No on Measure I: Alberto Aguilar John Leal Barbara R. Birch Joseph Soares Bill Hall Kathy Beck Bill Postlewaite Ken Nunes Cara Denney Kevin Northcraft Clinton D. Lacock Linda Nichols Daniel Allain Manuel Espinola Danny Warner Mary Sepeda Dean Thompson Michelle Moore Deanne Martin-Soares Mike Nichols Dennis Beck Nancy Koroviles Dennis Mederos Ned Kehrli Doug McNearney Pamella Beck Dr Lonnie Smith Pat Drilling Dr. Edward Henry Pat Hillman Dr. Galen S. Grant Paualette Carpenter Dr. Tom Drilling Ray Fonseca Edward Borges Ray Machado Janet Boyle Robert Bender Jeff Denney Scot Hilman Jennifer Burcham Tami Warner Joey Airoso Wayne Hinman John Beck Xavier Avila

Letter: “Stop using scare tactics on the public” I read with interest Ms. Berbereia’s letter to the editor of the Visalia Times Delta dated June 28th. In her letter she states...”our new hospital tower will have a helipad.” I am quite sure the local pigeon and crow populations will enjoy their new roost. Ms. Berbereia also stated ...”One day someone you know may need that emergency lift-off.” Lift-off is the operative word not landing. What this statement says is that if a helicopter lands at TRMC it will be for the purpose of transporting a TRMC patient to a facility where they can receive specialized care. This statement in no way reflects on the skilled and dedicated employees

of the TRMC that have always put patients above everything else. This falls directly on the shoulders of this current board and the previous and current out of town managers they hired and their inability to recruit and retain qualified and certified medical specialist.

The TRMC and this board should be aware of the following document.

The Central California Emergency Medical Services, Policy 547, Patient Destination which was revised on 03/06/2016.

This is the policy which governs Fresno, Kings, Madera and Tulare counties that determines which facility patients will be transported to by ambulance or he-

licopter based on the trauma destination chart. Heart attack, burns, penetrating injuries, falls, orthopedic injuries and one mentioned by Laura Gadke in her June 18th letter, including stroke, all will go to KDMC, RMC, SAMC or VCH. I am tired of people telling me that HCCA has said that if the Measure I does not pass TRMC will close. Egos are too big to let that happen and besides KDMC’s bond failed and their doors are still open. Stop using scare tactics on the public telling them that they would never survive an ambulance transport to another hospital. We have outstanding ambulance providers and paramedics

in this county that exceed the required standards for patient care. So, if you call 9-1-1 for an ambulance you will be taken to the facility that can best insure your survivability. Also, within the policy are provisions for Patient’s Choice and Closest Appropriate Hospital defined as “the closest emergency department equipped, staffed, and prepared to administer care appropriate to the needs of the patient.”

If you choose to travel by personal vehicle to the hospital they always have the helipad to lift you off to a facility where you can receive specialized care.

Stephen C. Harrell

Letter: “Too much money with too many unanswered questions” There’s an old saying that goes, “reasonable minds may differ”. So before you call those opposed to Measure I, ‘haters”, “full of venom” or ‘a handful of people wanting to close the hospital’, step back and at least acknowledge our concerns. I am not asking you to agree, but at least give us credit for bringing a logical argument to the table. Let’s start with the past.

Although they say past mismanagement is the past and of no concern, I say it is. As stewards of public money, doesn’t the Board have a fiduciary duty

to find out where the $85 million went, especially since the Grand Jury asked that same question?

What about the present? I have not seen or heard how the $55 million amount was calculated or how it will be spent. Instead, at a bond presentation, I heard Dr. Benzeevi, of HCCA, state they will hire “the best and brightest” to figure out what will be needed to finish the tower and who would perform the work.

But shouldn’t that have already been done? And what about the “community oversight committee” to be created

by HCCA? Should a private company be given this power? Why did the board delegate this to HCCA? Who controls the future? HCCA’s agreement is for 15 years, with an option of another 10 years.

They also have an option to purchase. Yes the Board can cancel the contract, but the District would have to pay HCCA $8 million. And yes the hospital can’t be sold without voter approval, but is it that inconceivable that they would once again threaten closure if not approved?

Supporters of Measure I point to HCCA’s claims of record success, justifying giving them $55 million. But we are paying them over $3 million a year, shouldn’t we expect success?

Too much money with too many unanswered questions. A reasonable mind says, let’s not be in such a rush to give our money away to a private company without answers.

Joseph F. Soares Attorney at Law

Comment and send letters at ourvalleyvoice.com

16 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016

Santa Fe Aggregates Hits A Road Block on Expanding Mining Catherine Doe What was expected to be a routine vote to amend a mining permit on the border of Woodlake and Lemon Cove turned into heated public hearing at the June 22 Tulare County Planning Commission meeting. The commission voted 5-4 not to approve the modification of the Kaweah River Rock mining permit. The commission voted to continue the public hearing 30 days, to the July 27 meeting. The mine is currently owned and operated by Santa Fe Aggregates.

Chuck Przybylski, Project Planner for Tulare County Resource Management Agency (RMA) made the presentation to the commission. He said that Santa Fe Aggregates was asking for a minor modification of their permit in order to mine 20 acres currently used to store heavy equipment and gravel. The 20 acres are contiguous with the current mine and included in the reclamation plan. The parcel is scheduled to be returned to irrigated pasture during the reclamation process.

The company’s motivation for adding the acreage was to extend the life of the mine. Doug Reynolds, general manager of Santa Fe Aggregates, said that they could mine for three to five more years if the modification was approved.

Mike Washam, Tulare County Economic Development Manager, said that these minor modifications are normally signed off by the director of RMA, but a notice was sent out as courtesy because mines are controversial. Washam said that RMA wants to “provide the most transparency as possible toward the public.”

During public comment, some of the planning commissioners and RMA staff were demonstrably frustrated that the

speakers brought up all the old problems at the Stillwell and Lemon Cove Facility, both operated by CEMEX. The county reminded the speakers, who live close to the mine, that they are completely separate permits and companies.

The residents explained that, separate or not, the county is in charge of monitoring all mines and ensuring that companies adhere to its permits. Also, Santa Fe Aggregates borders the Lemon Cove Facility, and even though it might be a different permit number, the company will be digging in the same underground aquifer.

Karen Callahan, whose orange grove borders CEMEX’ Lemon Cove Facility and is kitty corner to Santa Fe Aggregates, reminded the planning commission that CEMEX violated their permit many times and that the county did nothing about it.

These violations resulted in domestic and agriculture wells going dry at Stillwell and nearly dry at the Lemon Cove Facility. She repeated a refrain often said by the Tulare County Supervisors, “no water, no farming.”

RMA did finally do something about Stillwell late in 2014, but not until nine months after the residents lost their water--and after lawyers got involved. Ray Carlsen, a water lawyer who represented the residents next to the Stillwell mine, said that digging in the aquifer is a bad idea.

He said that nature made the river basins perfect underground filters where the water can easily flow.

“The problem is that the planning commission puts together all these conditions for the use permit, then just puts it on a shelf and forgets about them. No one is enforcing them.”

The neighbors of Santa Fe Aggregates want to know why they should trust the

county this time in monitoring the mine.

“We don’t want to get into that position again where our wells have no water,” said Callahan.

A Damaged Aquifer The applicants draft addendum for Santa Fe Aggregates states, “mining plans have been designed so that mining activities will not intercept or impact the groundwater table.” Frank Callahan, Karen’s husband, said that the water level in that area is at 15 feet, so a 30 foot pit would theoretically impact the aquifer.

Reynolds said that’s not possible because there is a 45-foot pit on the original section of his mine that is dry. Callahan suggested that CEMEX’ mining activities in the area have so adversely affected the underground aquifer that the water either drains away from the mine or is dammed up. To the west, Santa Fe Aggregates borders the Lemon Cove Facility where two 50-foot ponds created by CEMEX’ mining activity suck up the water. Directly north of Santa Fe Aggregates is a botched reclamation project. CEMEX filled a former gravel pit with a sandy material and it dammed up the aquifer, damaging the Callahans’ and other residents’ wells.

A new Condition of Approval has been added to the addendum to allow mining the 20 acres. “Mining depth shall be monitored to stay above the static groundwater table.” Ironically, because CEMEX’ mining activities have so adversely affected the groundwater table, the county will have no trouble monitoring this new condition.

History of Kaweah River Rock According to a report included with the application, mining started at the site 48 years ago on about 40 acres. Permits to

expand the mine were approved in 1963 and 1966. After the adoption of the Surface Mining and Reclamation Act (SMARA) the next mining permit in 1979 could only be approved with a reclamation plan.

In 2001 Kaweah River rock got an amendment to Reclamation Plan PMR 79-04 to add 20 acres for storage of heavy equipment and overburden. The 20 acres were contiguous with the existing mine, but also bordered farm land and homes and the residents threatened to appeal.

According to Frank Callahan, Kaweah River Rock and the neighbors came to a gentleman’s agreement that the 20 acres would never be mined. Because Kaweah River Rock promised not to mine the parcel, the farmers and residents dropped their objections to the new permit.

Not a Minor Modification Karen Callahan disagrees with RMA referring to creating a 30-foot-deep pit and extracting one million tons of aggregate as a “minor modification.” Callahan took issue with the vagueness of the addendum which states “plus or minus 20 acres” and also states that digging will be either be at 30 or 35 feet.

Julie Bigham, of Woodlake, suggested that the scale of the project should require a completely new permit.

Reynolds said that Santa Fe Aggregates has tried to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to working with environmentalists and running an environmentally responsible gravel mine. He objected to Santa Fe Aggregates’ being painted with the wide brush of everything that other mining companies have done wrong over the years.

“Everything we have is either grown or mined so what are you going to do?” said Reynolds.

Valley Scene

7 July, 2016

Fan Favorites Creedence Clearwater Revisited to Play Eagle Mountain July 22 Staff Reports When was the last time you attended a concert in which you knew every song and spent about 90% of the performance on your feet dancing and grinning? Is such a thing even possible in today’s day and age of disposable pop songs? Legendary artists tour sporadically and that iconic group continues to get smaller. Live music fans deserve the opportunity to see a non-stop feel good show that is fun for multi-generations and they find this with CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVISITED. Creedence Clearwater Revisited will be playing the Eagle Mountain Casino Event Tent on July 22. For tickets and more information, visit https://tix.extremetix.com/webtix/2317/event/66451 Parents, children and even grandchildren join together to enjoy the spirited concerts filled with classic songs from Creedence Clearwater Revisited.

The backbone of the group is Stu Cook and Doug “Cosmo” Clifford who are the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame rhythm section (bass and drums respectively) from the legendary group Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR). Cook and Clifford started the Revisited project in 1995 when a friend wanted to promote a few concerts. They didn’t realize at the time what a tremendous gap their performances would fill in the live music circuit and that they would wind up playing close to 100 shows a year in the United States, Canada and abroad.

“We never really had any intention of playing for the public,” says Stu. “We got talked into it, but didn’t know how it would go over.”

The great music of Creedence has appeared in numerous films and television (The Big Lebowski, Forrest Gump amongst others) and the songs continue to be a staple of classic rock and oldies FM radio. Yet this music was always meant to be performed live for the people. The band’s tremendous passion and genuine love of their craft transfers to the crowd, creating an electric atmosphere.

“In the beginning Cosmo and I decided that if we could find the musicians that could capture the sound and recre-

ate what the music was about, we’d do it,” recalls Stu. Every single song performed is a classic and the multi-generational family friendly audiences are treated to this night after night, around the country and now the world. The band’s appeal has spread internationally as they have performed for thousands of fans in Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, Chile, Brazil, Europe and Asia.

Since the group’s inception in the mid Nineties, the reaction to Creedence Clearwater Revisited’s concerts has been astounding, and driven in part by a generation of kids who, as Cosmo says, “weren’t even born when the music came out.” Likewise, the release of a double‑live CD on Universal’s Hip-O Records label, which features passionate, authoritative version of 22 classic hits ‑ was the result of public demand. “It was generated by requests of the people who came to the shows,” Stu acknowledges.

“Over and over they would ask, “‘do you guys have a CD?’” Creedence Clearwater Revisited’sRecollection has proven so popular that in 2008 the RIAA certified it Platinum.

The band’s 2015 lineup includes lead guitarist Kurt Griffey. Griffey has recorded and toured with musicians including members of the Eagles, Foreigner, the Moody Blues, Wings, Lynyrd Skynryd, Santana, and Journey. The band is rounded out by powerhouse lead singer/ rhythm guitar player John Tristao (who rose to prominence as lead singer for the band People when their hit “I Love You” bulleted into the Top Ten) and talented multi‑instrumentalist Steve Gunner. As Cosmo puts it, “Gun provides live all the overdubs that were on the records. He plays keyboard, acoustic guitar, percussion, and harmonica and sings the high harmonies.”

With this lineup, Stu and Cosmo and their band Creedence Clearwater Revisited add a new chapter to their legacy with vibrant and exhilarating energy and pure American spirit.

Don’t miss this unique opportunity to relive all the beloved songs that we grew up with, timeless tracks performed with panache and gusto.

Creedence Clearwater Revisited in 2011. Courtesy/Adele Gannaway

The Fifth Quarter has 35 flat-screen TVs. Julia Jimenez/Valley Voice

Fifth Quarter Offers Cool Place to Enjoy 2016 Summer Olympic Games The Fifth Quarter sports bar and restaurant is looking forward to its first Central Valley summer by offering a fun respite from the heat for local families.

With 10,000 square feet there is always a table to enjoy a meal, beer and your favorite sporting event.

The Fifth Quarter, open since last October, has 35 flat screen TVs and offers every sporting channel available so patrons never have to miss a Giants, Dodgers, A’s or Angels game this summer.

The restaurant bar also plans showing full coverage of the Summer Olympics, starting with the opening ceremonies on Friday afternoon of Augusts 5th.

For big events such as the Olympics, boxing matches and the World Series, the owners project them onto their 135inch screen.

Besides having a full bar, the Fifth Quarter has four chefs serving up a traditional menu along with a sushi bar available from 11am to 10pm. Street style tacos are served after 10:00pm.

On Friday and Saturdays they have a DJ and dancing from 10pm – 2am and karaoke by New Image Entertainment on Wednesdays 8:00 – 12:00. The bar has 24 beers on tap and a happy “hour”

Staff Reports that lasts from 11am to 7pm.

As with all new bars, the Fifth Quarter is going through growing pains.

“New bars attract a lot of people.

We are in the process of defining the people we want to serve,” Seng Saephan, the owner, said.

When a new eating/bar establishment in downtown Visalia first opens there is always an increase in service calls as they weed out the undesirables.

The Fifth Quarter never, nor has it ever allowed gang affiliation or inappropriate behavior in its establishment, he added.

To counteract any trouble, the Fifth Quarter has installed one of the most sophisticated surveillance systems available and has two fulltime security guards. For major events they employ eight.

The Fifth Quarter is a family owned and run business.

Saephan, along with another employee, took a year to remodel the old Moose Lodge from the ground up. Their goal was to “create a place for couples and families to eat, drink and play with everything all in one place.”

Visalia Awarded 2017 All Star Game The Visalia Rawhide has been awarded the 2017 California League All Star Game.

The two-day summertime classic (June 19-20, 2017) will culminate with the California League All Star Game the evening of Tuesday, June 20th, 2017, 28 years to the day after the last (and only) time Visalia hosted the All Star Game. The full slate of events will be announced at a later date, but will include the popular Home Run Derby and other fan-friendly activities.

The California League will return to its roots as a single-league All Star Game. In recent years, the California League All Stars have played the Carolina League All Stars, with the game alternating between East and West coasts. Returning to the original

formula will allow the All Star Game to be played in California League cities every year, and feature more top prospects from the MLB teams in California and the west coast who are affiliated with the California League.

“We are honored to be chosen as the host for the 2017 All Star Game. We work hard to improve the ballpark and family-friendly fan experience each year, and being chosen to host the California League’s Crown Jewel Event says a lot about how far we’ve come in recent years. I’m looking forward to being able to showcase our City and our community to the elite players, executives, fans and families who will be attending this event,” commented Rawhide General Manager, Jennifer Pendergraft.

18 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016

Education Ruiz 4 Kids Awards $375,000 in Student Scholarships, Including 64 in Visalia/Tulare Ruiz 4 Kids is celebrating two milestones in 2016: • 25 year anniversary supporting the educational needs of area youth • a 27% increase in scholarships over 2015, distributed to high school seniors in the Dinuba, CA, Denison, TX, and Florence, SC areas Specifically, in the Ruiz 4 Kids Central Valley area, the 2016 increase in scholarships distributed over last year is 11% — awarding $220,000 to area high school and college students — the largest amount ever awarded!

A total of 220 Central Valley students are recipients of the 2016 Ruiz 4 Kids Scholarships.

“We are thrilled to assist in the continued education of local high school and college students,” said Blanca Santana, Community Relations for Ruiz 4 Kids. “We could not be more excited at our ability to award such a large amount to our community and help them achieve their dream of higher education.

Ruiz 4 Kids looks forward to witnessing their achievements.”

All scholarship dollars are raised via the Louis F. Ruiz Golf Invitational.

Since 1985, Ruiz 4 Kids has awarded over $2M in scholarships.

About Ruiz 4 Kids Ruiz 4 Kids is a non-profit organization founded in 1990 when employees of Ruiz Food Products, Inc. approached Founder Fred Ruiz asking him to help them explore ways to assist families with children in need. Today, Ruiz 4 Kids works to fund two children/education programs: scholarships to high school seniors and the MiniGrants for Teachers program.

About Ruiz Food Products, Inc. Ruiz Foods is a privately owned corporation with corporate offices in Dinuba, California. Kim Ruiz Beck, the elder daughter of Co-Founder and Chairman Emeritus, Fred Ruiz, is Chairman. Rachel Cullen is the President and CEO. Ruiz Foods is dedicated to premium quality, authentically prepared frozen foods selling to all channels of distribution: retail, convenience store, clubs, vending, industrial and foodservice. The El Monterey® brand is the #1 frozen Mexican food brand in the U.S. Tornados®, the company’s snack brand is the #1 roller grill item across the nation.

Ruiz Foods employs over 3,000 Team Members in California, Texas and South Carolina. For more information, please visit www.ElMonterey.com or www.myTornados.com.

HORSE CORRAL PACK STATION

Horseback Riding - Camping & Fishing Spot Trips - Extended Trips - All-Expense Trips

Beowulf: An Elegy for Ages Past Evening falls, and everyone gathers inside a warmly lit hall. But outside the world lies in darkness, and in the woods lurk monsters that are the stuff of nightmares. And you know that in the night, a carnivorous beast will break in and carry away dozens of your friends and family for dinner.

No, this isn’t the plot of a B horror movie; it is the world of the Anglo-Saxon epic poem, Beowulf, a world in which violence is everywhere, human beings are locked in perpetual combat with darkness, and loyalty and honor to your clan are the highest values.

Beowulf is the oldest long poem in Old English. It was written down around AD 1000, though it circulated orally long before that. The narrator is an Anglo-Saxon monk in England who looks back at his pagan ancestors in Europe—the Danes, the Swedes, the Geats, and the Jutes. The tale begins with the funeral of a great Danish king, Shield Sheafson, who had “courage and greatness” because he conquered neighboring tribes and forced them to pay tribute.

We are then told of the most famous of the Danish kings, Hrothgar, who built a glorious mead-hall (a symbol of community and safety) called Heorot.

But Heorot is attacked every night

by Grendel, a “powerful demon, a prowler through the dark,” a spawn of the biblical Cain who butchers and eats Hrothgar’s men by the bushel. The young hero Beowulf, a Geat warrior from the north, comes to the aid of Hrothgar. Beowulf fights Grendel and rips off his arm, displaying it as a trophy in Heorot. But Beowulf isn’t finished yet. He then takes a squad of Danes and Geats to find Grendel’s lair not only to finish off Grendel, but to kill Grendel’s mother, who has attacked Heorot in retribution. There in the bogs of northern Europe, Beowulf battles underwater with Grendel’s mother, a hideous and evil creature hell-bent on death. After Beowulf kills her, he is feted by Hrothgar, adopted as a son, and given hoards of treasure. Beowulf returns to Geatland a heroic warrior.

The narrative then jumps ahead 50 years. Beowulf is now an old man and king of the Geats. We learn that a dragon has been terrorizing Geatland, burning entire villages. In one last combat, one with apocalyptic undertones, Be-

Joseph R. Teller owulf fights the dragon with a faithful warrior, Wiglaf. Beowulf kills the dragon, but dies from his own wounds and burns. As he dies, he laments, “Fate has swept [our people] away, / sent my whole brave highborn clan / to their final doom. / Now I must follow them.”

The epic ends with Beowulf ’s funeral (much as it opened with Sheafson’s funeral, thus reinforcing the epic’s elegiac tone). As “The Geat women [sing] out in grief,” we are warned that the Geats will eventually be conquered by the Swedes, and like the fumes of Beowulf ’s funeral pyre, “heaven [will] swallow the smoke” of their ineluctable destruction.

Read one way, the poem embodies the cultural tensions between early English Christian values and the pagan values that had passed away by the tenth century. While many of the characters pray to the Christian God and attribute the goodness of creation to him, it is also clear that the world of Beowulf is one in which honor, violence, and clannish loyalty carry the day, where “Fate goes ever as fate must.” Yet the Christian poet neither purely condemns nor canonizes his hero: it is clear that the poet reveres his ancestors even as he laments their faults and sings of their passing away into the dark past.

As we read this haunting work, we might reflect on how it illuminates our attitudes toward our own culture: what do we value as a people, and how do such values compare with those of our ancestors? How have our own stories and myths developed over the centuries, and what do such changes reveal about our cultural identities? What do we value in our heroes, and why? And what do we hope is left of our society to future generations, when our own culture is nothing but ashes and smoke ascending to an indifferent sky?

Dr. Joseph R. Teller is Professor of English at COS. Email him at josepht@cos.edu.

West Hills College Lemoore Aims to Help Ease Transfer for Students with Disabilities

Hour Rides $40 2-hour rides $75 Spot Pack Trips: Horse & Mules per day $125 Packer & Horse, per day $225 (Prices subject to change)

P.O. Box 546 Woodlake, CA 93286 www.hcpacker.com Summer phone

(559) 565-3404

Winter-Cell (559) 679-3573

Recreational Service Partners - Sequoia National Forest - Big Meadows Road Giant Sequoia National Monument

This summer, West Hills College Lemoore will pilot a new program intended to help smooth the transition from high school to college for students with disabilities. Applications are being accepted now for the free program, which will be held from July 25 to Aug. 4 on the WHCL campus.

During the two week Access Learn Progress Succeed (A.L.P.S) academy, students will learn skills essential for college success including time management, how to advocate and how to identify assistive technology that best meets their needs.

“Often, students have to navigate the college environment in addition to finding services that will benefit them and help them reach degree completion

and this is sometimes difficult for this population,” said Lataria Hall, Associate Dean of Categorical Programs. “ALPS will increase access to college, reduce barriers once they get here, create a successful transition plan, and increase their opportunity to succeed while being a student.”

The cost for attendance is free and lunch will be provided. There are only 20 spots available and the deadline to register is June 30th. All students participating will receive a SMART Pen. They will also learn what the WHCL Educational Access and Learning Support program can do for them as a student.

To reserve a spot, contact Maria Gonzalez at (559) 925-3244 or mariadelaluzgonzalez@whccd.edu.

7 July, 2016

Valley Voice • 19

Visalia Grocery Outlet Kicks Off 6th Annual ‘Independence from Hunger’ Campaign

Characters Mary Lennox and her cousin, Colin Cravens, discover the magic of The Secret Garden. Mary is played by Golden West High School’s Chloe Hunt; Colin is played by Redwood High School’s Josh Peters. Courtesy/TCOE

The Secret Garden Blooms Again on July 22 This month, the Theatre Company will reprise its 2006 production of The Secret Garden, a Tony Award-winning musical with a cast of over 40 Tulare County students. The Secret Garden is based on a classic 1911 children’s book

by Frances Hodgson Burnett.

The story centers on 10-year-old Mary Lennox, an unhappy and difficult English girl living in India with her selfish, disinterested parents. Chloe Hunt, a future freshman at Golden West High School and veteran of Theatre Company productions including Peter Pan and 101 Dalmatians, plays the demanding Mary Lennox. “It’s been tough to play a character who is so mean to others,” said Chloe. “But I’ve liked that Mary is strong-willed – a trait that I believe comes from her tragic childhood and from being left alone so much.”

In India, Mary’s only delight comes from gardening. When a cholera epidemic ravages the Indian village where she lives and kills both her parents and the Indian servant who cares for her, Mary is sent to live with an uncle she has never met in a gloomy mansion on the

edge of the English moors.

Once Mary arrives at her uncle’s manor, she becomes active and interested in the world around her, discovering a local country boy named Dickon Sowerby and her frail, obstinate cousin, Colin Craven. Josh Peters, a future freshman at Redwood High School plays Colin. Josh is a veteran of Theatre Company productions including Peter Pan and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

“Playing Colin is a challenge because of all the tantrums, screaming and crying,” he said. “As difficult as he is, I’ve loved working with everyone and watching the production come together.”

No longer isolated, Mary discovers a neglected, walled garden her uncle locked following the death of his wife, Colin’s mother. Once she gains access to the garden and begins to restore it, she transforms not only the garden, but the lives of everyone at the manor.

“When choosing the show to do this summer, The Secret Garden rose to the top of the list because it is such remarkable material and we have such a

GARDEN continued on 23 »

EXETER

420 N. Kaweah Ave.

HANFORD

1675 W. Lacey Blvd.

1113 10th Ave.

TULARE

133 North J St.

VISALIA

301 S. Willis St. 2611 S Mooney Blvd.

2124 W. Riggins Ave

2-piece $4.99 3-piece $5.99

Each basket includes fries and coleslaw, and features New Thai Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce.

Grocery Outlet has launched its 6th Annual Independence From Hunger® Food Drive today to donate food throughout the month of July. In 2015, this company wide drive raised nearly $500,000 for over 250 food assistance agencies.

McGregor Read, co-CEO of Grocery Outlet Inc., said, “We are so proud of all our stores teaming up with their communities to help collect food and donations to help those in need.”

Visalia Grocery Outlet is teaming up with Visalia Rescue Mission once again and will be collecting donations throughout the entire month of July, which will go directly to their Community Kitchen, which serves an average of 300 meals every day.

“Because of businesses like Grocery Outlet, service organizations like us been able to keep our guests independent from hunger,” said Ken Matney, VRM’s Food Services Manager. “We served over 100,000 meals last year, and that wouldn’t be possible without these very generous donations and campaigns.”

The Visalia Grocery Outlet store is independently owned and operated by Stephen and Ashley Spelman who are committed to giving back to the local community. “We

interact daily with individuals who need the services of Visalia Rescue Mission, more than they need a quick handout from a concerned citizen. For us, this campaign really hits home and allows us to be part of a better solution, on a bigger level.”

Customers can make a difference by visiting Grocery Outlet at 2323 S. Mooney Blvd. here in Visalia and participate in one of these easy steps: - Look for specially-marked food items.

These are items that each local food agency has identified as “high-need” items. Purchase these products and then place in the collection bin at the front of the store.

- Pick up a pre-made bag that is filled with an assortment of the groceries that have been identified as needed.

- Tell your cashier you want to make a cash donation at the register. Donations will go directly to the Visalia Rescue Mission.

Donate $1, $5, or any denomination desired.

- Pickup information at a Grocery Outlet store about hunger, food insecurity and local/national resources for people in need.

Be informed and willing to help.

- Join the events at the Visalia Grocery Outlet to support the Independence from Hunger® food drive.

Calendar Sunday Nights: Barmageddon Tulareous Open Mic, 9pm12:30am Our weekly open mic has a great selection of local comedians and musicians. Comedians will have approximately 10 mins of stage time and musicians get three songs. Sign ups start at 9 PM, Show starts at 9:30 PM, Ends around 12:30 AM. No Cover.

to the Valley Oak SPCA. For more information, call 651-1111.

3rd Tuesday, Monthly: League of Women Voters Meeting, 11:45am At Sue Sa’s Club House, 699 W. Center in Visalia. Reservations are required and the public is welcome.

Contact Newellgb@hotmail.com or call 732-1251.

Wednesday Nights: Barmageddon Game Night Mondays: Bridge Club, 9:30am- Come blow off some steam at our 2pm game night. Enjoy complimentary 210 W Center Street Visalia, gaming on all consoles, TCG’s, CA 93291. Admission is free. For Table top & board games. Happy additional information call: Joan hour will be from 6 PM- 8 PM. Dinwiddie @ 732-0855 1st Thursday Monthly through Mondays: Knitters, 10amOctober: Diabetes Support 12:30pm Group, 5:30-7pm 210 W Center Street Visalia, Kaweah Delta Health Care District CA 93291. Everyone is welcome. will offer a free diabetes support Monday Nights: Monday Karagroup through October from on the first Thursday of the month at oke at Barmageddon, 9pm-1am Get on stage and sing your favorite the Kaweah Delta Chronic Disease tunes on our one of a kind sound Management Center, 325 Willis St., system. New Image has a vast se- Visalia. Information: 624-2416. lection of songs to choose, ranging 1st Thursday, Monthly: Veterans from 70’s classic rock to modern Support Group, 5:30-7pm pop. Karaoke Jockey Miss Sammi Free support group for global war will be hosting from 9 PM - 1 AM. on terrorism & post 9-11 (Veterans No Cover.

Only) at the Tulare Public Library,

475 North M Street in Tulare. Facilitated by: Dr. Lance Zimmerman, Ph.D of veterans Counseling Clinic. “The transition from serving in a combat zone to civilian life can be a difficult one. Combat veterSaturdays: Cup of Jazz, 10amans commonly experience feelings Noon At Cafe 210, at 210 Center street, of depression, isolation, alienation, Visalia. Free. Led by Richard Ga- guilt, anxiety, and anger following roogian. Call 559.730.0910 for their service. If you’re experiencing these or any other emotional probmore information. lems after serving in a combat zone, Tuesday Nights: Barmageddon it’s vital to seek professional help. “ Trivia Thunderdome, 9pm-1am -Veterans Counseling Clinic.

Challenge your friends to the ultimate trivia throw down. Earn some 3rd Thursday Monthly through bragging rights in categories rang- October: Diabetes Support ing from Saturday morning car- Group, 5:30-7pm toons, classic video games, and pop Kaweah Delta Health Care Disculture films. Teams of 4 or solo trict will offer a free diabetes supplayers compete each round for the port group through October on best scores. Winners of every two the third Thursday of the month at rounds will square off in the Trivia Woodlake Manor Apartments, 200 Thunderdome for great prizes. Free E. Sierra Avenue, Woodlake. Information: 624-2416. sign ups at 9:30 PM. 3rd Thursday, Monthly: Gather2nd Tuesday, Monthly: Yappy ing At the Oval, 12:30-1pm Hour, 5-9pm Well-mannered, leashed pets are Lifting up the needs and concerns welcome on the patio at the Plan- of Visalia through individual prayer ing Mill Artisan Pizzeria, 514 East and meditation at Oval Park, 808 Main Street, Suite A, in Visalia. A North Court Street in Visalia. For portion of the proceeds is donated more information, call 967-4065.

Fridays: Women’s Morning Bible Study, 9am-Noon 210 W Center Street Visalia, CA 93291. For additional information call: 739-9010

July 2016 Lunch M Lunch served 12-1 pm

$4.0

Please call 713-4481. Reservations m Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Sweet treats or fruit Sweet treats or fruit will be served daily.

Chicken Caesar Salad is Chicken Caesar Salad is availabledaily Dailyand andmay may available beserved servedas asaameal meal rebe replacement!! placement entree

will be served daily.

Items on areare Items onMenu Menu subject totochange. subject change

4

Thu

5

6

7

Grilled Vegetable lasagna, Caesar salad, fruit and garlic bread

Baked Meatloaf with mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes, fresh veggies and a roll

Italia pepp hoag stron fruit

11 Tomato, Mozza-

12

13

14 Tu

rella, Eggplant and zucchini panini (grilled sandwich) with Italian wedding sup with pasta and meatballs

Chili Verde Pork with corn tortillas, Mexican rice, beans and a salad

Chicken Milanese sandwich (panko breaded chicken breast) Caesar salad and fruit

cass egg & mu crea gree

18

19

20 Albondigas

21

Classic Spaghetti with red meat sauce, garden salad, garlic bread and fruit

Glazed Ham slice, scalloped potatoes, green bean casserole and a roll

(meatball soup) with two tostadas with beans, lettuce, cheese & pico de galo

Chic crois crea basi fresh

25

26

27

28

Parmesan Chicken breast, rice pilaf, fresh veggies and roll

Chicken Noodle soup with turkey & provolone sub, tomatoes, lettuce and fruit

Baked Meatloaf with mushroom gravy, mashed potatoes, fresh veggies & a roll

BBQ Sand sala

CLOSED!!

Happy 4th!!

3rd Thursday, Monthly: Board Game Night, 6-7:45pm For ages 10+ at the Visalia Branch Library, 200 West Oak Street. Signups are not required. For more information, call 713-2703.

3rd Thursday, Monthly: Ladies’ Night, 6-10pm At the Clay Cafe in Visalia, 1018 E. Mineral King Ave. $10 studio fee with ceramic purchase. Includes complimentary margarita, dinner and dessert. Door prizes too! Reservations required: 733-2022

Creek Apartments, 41020 Rd. 124, Orosi. Information: 624-2416.

Lemon Cove Women’s Club Accepting Donations for Yard Sale Lemon Cove Women’s Club is preparing for their annual yard sale on Saturday, October 6th at the historic Pogue Hotel at 32792 Sierra Dr. across from the post office. To donate to the sale call Mona Wyatt at 359-4465 or Karen Callahan at 564-2096. Donations of furniture will be accepted the morning of the sale. Please do not donate any electronics and only gently used clothes will be accepted. All funds go to the maintenance and restoration of the hotel and museum.

1st and 3rd Thursdays, Monthly: Central Valley Tea Party Meetings, 6pm 819 West Visalia Road, FarmersFridays: Dinuba Farmers’ Market ville.

Last Thursday Monthly through Grand Opening, 6-9pm Market will take place from 6-9 October: Diabetes Support p.m. and began Friday, June 10.

Group, 5:30-7pm Kaweah Delta Health Care Dis- It is located at 289 S. L Street in trict will offer a free diabetes sup- downtown Dinuba, in effort to port group through October on the fight an epidemic of obesity and last Thursday of the month at Sand its life-threatening complications in Tulare County. The market will

Menu / Visalia Senior Center

00 Dine In

or Takeout & under 55 yrs:

$5.00

must be made one business day in advance by 12 PM.

ursday

Friday 1 July 4th Lunch!

Cheeseburger, macaroni salad, fresh fruit

8

an Sausage, per and onion gie with Minene soup and t

BBQ Chicken quarters with BBQ sauce, coleslaw, chips and fruit

una Noodle serole, classic noodles, peas ushrooms in a am sauce with en salad & fruit

15

Fully loaded pizza with salami, pepperoni, black olives, bell pepper and mushrooms with mozzarella, green salad & fruit

22

cken Salad ssant with am of Tomatoil soup and h fruit

Fish & Chips, breaded white fish with oven roasted potato wedges, coleslaw and fruit

29

Q Pulled Pork dwich, potato ad and fruit

Fish Tacos with cabbage and pico de gallo, spiced black beans, and Mexican rice

Weekly Salad Option:

Chef Salad - with diced

cheeses, black olives, ham, tomato and hard boiled eggs with ranch dressing

Spring Salad — Fresh spring

mix, romaine, dried cranberries applies, feta cheese, glazed walnuts, grilled chicken and balsamic vinaigrette

Asian Bay Shrimp Salad

With bay shrimp with misoginger vinaigrette, cucumber red onion, mandarin oranges

Cobb Salad

With Chicken, tomato, avocado, lettuce and bacon bits with ranch and feta cheese

Taco Salad

In a tortilla bowl with greens, black beans, corn, shredded cheese, chicken and pico de gallo

take place on Fridays and will run for eight weeks, with the exception of Friday, July 1. Information: 6245985.

July 15, the City will present Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and on July 22, visitors can expect to see Avengers: Age of Ultron.

JULY

July 9: Three Rivers Museum Hot Dog Festival, 10am-4pm The Three Rivers Historical Museum at 42268 Sierra Drive will host the annual Hot Dog Festival, including hot dogs, polish dogs, veggie dogs, corn on the cob, and the A&W Floatmobile will be serving Root Beer Floats. A “Full Meal Deal” is available for $8. The event will support the Three Rivers Volunteer Firefighters and the Three Rivers Historical Museum. Fire equipment and trucks will be on display as well. For more information, contact Tom Marshall at 559561-2707.

July 8, 15, 23: Summer Night Lights, 7:30pm The City of Porterville will host Summer Night Lights on July 8 at Veterans’ Park with a movie and late skate. July 15’s Summer Night Lights will take place at Fallen Heroes Park with a movie and activity night. July 23’s event will take place at Centennial Park for the ‘Day of the Cowboy.’ Check out the City of Porterville website or stop by City Hall or the Heritage Center to pick up a complete schedule.

July 8, 15, 22: Movies in the Park, 8-10pm The City of Visalia is hosting Movies in the Park at the Riverway Sports Park. On July 8, the City will show Mockingjay, Part 2. On

lights and sounds all set up. Glow and dance with the best sounds.

Glow items, sodas, water, food, photo booth, and more. VIP tickets are also available, and include no waiting in line, goodie bag, a private room with refreshments, and hanging out with DJ OnBlast. For more information or to purchase tickets call or visit the Hanford Carnegie Museum, 109 E. 8th Street, Hanford. 559-584-1367.

July 12th – August 16th (Every Tuesday for 6 weeks 10am – 12:30pm) October 4th – November 8th (Every Tuesday for 6 weeks 10am – 12:30pm) If you would like to learn how to better manage your health, sign up for a free six-week workshop presented

by Kaweah Delta Health Care District. The workshop is designed to help people with ongoing health problems such as diabetes, arthritis, heart disease, asthma, or any other chronic condition. Class size is typically around 12-18 participants.

Each session lasts 2 ½ hours. Topics that are covered include: dealing with difficult emotions, managing symptoms, goal setting, problem solving, nutrition, understanding medications, making informed treatment decisions, and increasing strength and stamina through better fitness. Participants demonstrate significant improvements in the areas covered. They also report fewer hospitalizations and outpatient visits. The Empowerment for Better Living CDSMP workshops will be offered on a quarterly basis at the newly opened Chronic Disease Management Center located at 325 Willis Street in Visalia.

July 11-15: Valley Oak SPCA Critter Camp For children ages 5-7. Valley Oak SPCA is taking registration for Critter Camp: summer fun for youth ages 5-12 featuring guest speakers, arts and crafts, puppies, kittens, reptiles and so much more. $85 per week or $150 for two weeks. Includes daily snack, t-shirt and group photo. Download Registration form at: http://vospJuly 9: Techno Party, 8pm-11pm ca.org/wp-content/uploads/CritThe Hanford Carnegie Museum ter-Camp-2016-registration-form. and Tourist Information Center pdf Questions: 651-1111 ext. 3 will be hosting a Techno Party for July 14: Valley Oak Quilt Guild teenages 13 to 18 years of age. This Meeting, 10am is a sober event. DJ OnBlast has his Valley Oak Quilt Guild www.val-

leyoakqg.org will meet Thursday, July 14, at Tulare Community Church, 1820 N Gem, in Tulare at 10:00 AM. The program will be “Christmas in July”. Call for information on what to bring: Nanette at 559-625-2541 July 16: Saturday Night Fever, 8pm-midnight The Hanford Carnegie Museum and Tourist Information Center will be hosting a 1970s Disco Party for those 21 and over. Dust off those bellbottoms, tye-dye shirts, and platform shoes and groove the night away with us and DJ OnBlast!

Festivities will include a groove dance contest, best 70’s dressed contest, photo booth, adult beverages, refreshments, prizes, food and more! VIP tickets are available for $40 and include: no waiting in line, goodie bag, a private room to relax in with refreshments (excl. alcohol), and more. VIP tickets are limited to 16 tickets. Advance tickets are $20, door tickets are $25. Call for more information: 559-584-1367.

July 17: Happy Together Tour 2016 at the Visalia Fox Theater A night of 60s and 70s hits starring The Turtles featuring Flo and Eddie, Chuck Negron (formerly of Three Dog Night), Mark Lindsay (former lead singer of Paul Revere and the Raiders), Gary Puckett & the Union Gap, The Cowsills and The Spencer Davis Group.

July 22, 23, 28, 29, 30: TCOE Theatre Company Presents The Secret Garden Tickets are available for $15 for general admission seating and $25 for VIP seating at either Tulare County Office of Education facility in Visalia: 6200 S. Mooney Blvd. or 7000 Doe Ave. (north of Goshen Avenue on Shirk). Tickets may also be purchased at the door. Evening shows at 7:30 pm on July 22, 23, 28, 29 and 30, and 2pm matinee shows on July 23 and 30.

Send your calendar items to: editor@ourvalleyvoice.com

22 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016

Sports All-Star Talent on Visalia Rawhide want to go out and win the second half.”

Jeter feels like the experience of beThe Visalia Rawhide had some rep- ing an all-star was very useful, and enresentation in the CAL League/Carolina joyed connecting with players he hasn’t played with before.

League All-Star game. Two all“I was a late add, but it was stars were the Rawhide’s own an honor to be selected. There Relief Pitcher, Bud Jeter, and were a lot of guys deserving.

Infielder Dawel Lugo.

Playing with guys that I play Jeter is a returning Rawagainst was a lot of fun. We hide player, having spent the shared war stories about life in 2015 season in Visalia. Jeter the minor leagues. It was also believes that having another fun getting to catch up with year of experience has given guys from the other league.” him the comfort to be more Making the all-star team wasn’t successful in 2016.

Bud Jeter a goal of Jeter’s coming into “It’s just another year of the season. He just wanted to experience, and now knowing that this is a hitter-friendly league. So do his best.

“I didn’t set the goal of being an now I’m able to keep the ball down, and get ground balls, and keep the ball out all-star. Just wanted to the best I can, and only control what I can control. of the air.”

Jeter is happy with his play so far Do my job.”

For the rest of the season, Jeter just this year, but he is also pleased with the way the team has played through half wants to keep doing what he’s been doing this first half. the season.

“I want to be consistent. The season “I feel good with where we’re at. We won the first half of the season. We just can run hot and cold, I just want to keep Stefan Barros

doing what I have been doing, and hope I’ve just been enjoying the season.”

Becoming an all-star won’t change a it all works out.”

The other Rawhide all-star, infielder thing for Lugo, who just wants to stay Dawel Lugo, didn’t just play in the all- consistent with his play. star game--he also participated “It hasn’t changed anything. Just want to stay humin the CAL League/Carolina ble, and do the same things League Homerun Derby. at the plate. I don’t want to The derby took place on change anything.” an aircraft carrier on the Port Lugo doesn’t want to worof San Diego. It was definitery about whether or not he ly a different experience for gets called up to another level Lugo, who spoke through this season. It’s not a goal he’s translator and Assistant Coach focused on at this point.

Javier Colina.

“Of course you’d wish to “It was something unique.

Dawel Lugo get called up. But you can’t It was something new. I had a control what happens with really good time with it. Growing up watching the home run derby that. I just want to get better, play well, you’re used to watching it on a field, not and advance. If that happens, then I’ll be happy.” on a boat, so it was different.”

With the Rawhide winning the first When the season started, Lugo didn’t expect to be an all-star or even have the half title in the California League, the success he is currently having, but he team is guaranteed a spot in the playoffs. still wanted put in the work, and get the They will have home-field advantage in the first round. If they were to win the numbers that could make it possible.

“I never expected it. I just worked second half as well, Visalia would have hard, but my numbers were there, and home-field throughout the playoffs.

Athletic Camps in Full Swing this Summer at West Hills College Lemoore Summer hasn’t slowed down West Hills College Lemoore Athletics, with several camps for K-12 and college students being held throughout June and July.

Camps being offered at West Hills College Lemoore include the 2016 Youth Soccer Camp from July 25 to 29,

and basketball camps for youth and high school students in June and July and men’s soccer ID camp on July 25.

The Youth Soccer Camp will be offered for three age groups: 4 to 5, 6 to 12 and children born from 2002 to 2007.

Sessions will run each day of the camp for each group and will focus on dribbling,

shooting, defending, communication and individual skill development. Registration fees are $40 to $100 depending on the age group and registration is available at http://tiny.cc/soccercamp.

Basketball camps for 4th to 8th graders will be offered for $65 per session from June 28 to June 30 and from July 18 to July 21. A similar camp for high school students will run from July 18 to 20 for $80 per session. Registration for

the co-ed camp is available at http://tiny. cc/basketballcamps.

A men’s soccer ID camp will be held on July 25 for Golden Eagle Soccer players and high school players. It’s recommended for any high school seniors interested in playing for WHCL soccer.

The cost of camp is $10. Registration is available at http://tiny.cc/mensoccer.

For more information, call (559) 934-2100.

WHCC Rodeo’s Brant Grisedale Places Sixth in Bronc Riding at National Finals Rodeo West Hills College Coalinga rodeo had a strong showing at this year’s College National Finals Rodeo, which was held from June 12 to June 18 in Casper, Wyoming.

Brant Grisedale, who competed in saddle bronc riding, finished sixth in the nation in the event and won the championship round.

Three other students also attended the national competition and competed against over 400 competitors from 11 other regions and more than 100 universities and colleges.

“Overall, the CNFR was a great experience for our student athletes and it embedded the drive and desire to make it back there next year,” said Justin Hampton, WHCC rodeo coach.

Grisedale made it to the finals after placing 3rd at the West Coast Region finals in May. The four other students who attended the national finals were Cassidy Barnes, J.T. Prather, and Wyatt Cox. They competed in goat tying and team roping, respectively. All had placed in the top three of their events at the state finals.

“There are only a few California Community Colleges that have a Rodeo program,” said Dr. Carole Goldsmith, president of West Hills College Coalinga. “To have these students compete at the national level and have this level of success is a testament to our coach, our athletic department and our students’ drive to be the best they can be. We are proud of them.”

Valley Voice • 23

7 July, 2016

Visalia Chamber Announces Winners Staff Reports Each year the Visalia Chamber of Commerce honors those businesses and individuals who consistently go above and beyond to support our community. This year is no exception - dozens of businesses were nominated for these prestigious awards which date back to 1952 when C.T. Buckman received the first Man of the Year award.

This year’s esteemed winners include: Man of the Year – Tom Johnson Tom’s healthcare career spanned 46 years, beginning with his work as an orderly at the University of Minnesota Hospital in 1963 to his final position as Secretary of Veterans Affairs for California where he oversaw 1,400 veterans in 3 State Veterans Homes. He was the CEO of three community hospitals, most notably, Kaweah Delta District Hospital in Visalia where he served for 29 years; 21 as the CEO. He was instrumental in the creation of the Lifestyle Center and Quail Park. One of his proudest moments was when Kaweah Delta was recognized with the Foster McGaw Prize for excellence in community service in 2000. Tom has served on many local boards, commissions and committees including Visalia YMCA, Boys and Girls Club, Visalia Public Cemetery Board and more. He is a family man through and through and loves to be active with his wife and children and enjoys; cycling, skiing, fishing and running.

Woman of the Year – Rita Crandall Rita Crandall is a retired special education teacher who spent her career working with children and mentoring other teachers throughout Visalia and Fresno Counties. Rita is tireless in her volunteer service and is an exemplary ambassador for every organization in which she serves.

Rita has a special place in her heart for children and the arts, and makes an effort to help children who are at-risk or low income to have opportunities to participate in local programs that broaden their horizons. Rita is active in her church and currently participates in CLIPArts a free after school performing arts program for children. As a founding Board Member, Rita has helped start My Father’s House a ministry that provides housing and counseling for the homeless and those just out of jail. Moved by the tragic events of September 11th, Rita began giving her time and talent as a volunteer with the Central California Blood Center, where she greets and serves donors who directly impact the lives of residents in the Central Valley.

Emerging Leader – JR Shannon JR Shannon is a 5th generation family farmer who helps to manage the family’s many diverse crops including citrus, wine grapes, almonds, walnuts, row crops along with beef cattle. He plays a key role in the family’s commercial development company and is beginning to invest in his own development projects. His entrepreneurial spirit has lead him to develop his own personal farming business, growing citrus and kiwis in Tulare and Fresno Counties.

JR is passionate about helping the youth of our community succeed and has been a member of the El Diamante Agricultural Advisor Committee for six years, participates in the Mr. Whitney career day and is a Foundation Charter member of the Tulare County Fair Foundation where he helps gather donations which ensure that children are able to show their animals and projects at the fair. JR is actively involved in Rotary and currently sits on the Board of Directors for the California As-

sociation of Wine Grape Growers and the Foundation Board for Valley Children’s Hospital.

Small Business of the Year – El Rosal El Rosal is a family owned and operated restaurant with two locations in Visalia, CA. This family friendly restaurant is customer focused and works hard daily to provide delicious food, a family friendly atmosphere and great customer service.

From soups and salads, quesadillas, enchiladas, burritos and more every dish is made with love. Outside of the regular donations that the company makes publicly, El Rosal is a strong supporter of youth activities and quietly makes contributions to youth initiatives including sport teams like the Galaxy Soccer league and has hosted fundraising events at the restaurant to help raise money to travel to tournaments.

Medium Business of the Year – Giant Chevrolet & Cadillac The mission of Giant Chevrolet & Cadillac is to strive provide the best service to their clients while being a great example in the community and to their employees. Whether buying a car, getting a vehicle repaired or purchasing a part, they want their customers to know how much they are appreciated. Giant realizes that it is only thanks to the past, present, and future customers that they have been able to become such a great company. They are very generous to the community making donations to more than a dozen non-profits, school athletic teams and golf tournaments, all while encouraging their employees to get engaged in the community.

Large Business of the Year – KRC Safety One of the programs that KRC Safety has implemented to accomplish their community mission is the “KRC Cares” program. This program identifies local volunteer opportunities and encourages the employees and their families to participate and give back to those in the community that are less fortunate. The goal is to cultivate and grow the culture of giving back and allows the children of employees the chance to get more involved. They want to give back to the community while showing the KRC family how rewarding it is to give back and encourage employees to make service a part of their lives. Annually, KRC Safety donates 1% of their gross receipts annually through donations of services, cash, materials, rental equipment and time.

Non-Profit of the Year – Bethlehem Center Providing food and clothing to those in need in an atmosphere of dignity and respect is the mission of the Bethlehem Center. The Center took over the current facility from the Catholic Charities in 2011. They serve hot meals daily, provide food boxes, clothing, hygiene kits and resources for community members in need.

The priority is to ensure that no one goes hungry, that they have clothes and the necessities to meet their challenges. With the support of the Visalia community, the Bethlehem Center has been able to provide a place of hope, with nourishment for the body and heart, a kind smile and a “God Bless You” to hundreds of residents.

In 2015 the Bethlehem Center served of 80,000 hot meals to hungry family and individuals. Meals are served 365 days a year with Holiday meals for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Winners were chosen by a committee of past winners and judged on a point system.

Garden

SCHEDULE OF PERFORMANCES L.J. Williams Theater, 1001 West Main Street, Visalia

remarkable group of students who are passionate about musical theatre,” said Theatre Company Director Brian Roberts. “This production has presented us with some unique challenges. The material and, in particular, the music in The Secret Garden is very demanding and requires sustaining a mood unlike most other musical theatre projects. Our cast has taken on these additional challenges with passion, joy and commitment. This performance is a tribute to their creativity, hard work and collaborative spirit.”

Seven performances of The Secret Garden will be held at the L.J. Williams Theater in Visalia — two matinee performances at 2:00 p.m. July 23 and 30, and five evening performances at 7:30 p.m. on July 22, 23, 28, 29 and 30.

The production of The Secret Garden is the nineteenth annual summer musical performed by the Theatre Company since its creation by Tulare County Superintendent of Schools Jim Vidak. “I’m sure the production will delight fans of the book,” said Mr. Vidak. “Our hope is that it will also inspire parents and grandparents to share this wonderful story with the young readers in their lives.” Tickets are available for $15 for general admission seating and $25 for VIP seating at either Tulare County Office of Education facility in Visalia: 6200 S. Mooney Blvd. or 7000 Doe Ave. (north of Goshen Avenue on Shirk). Tickets may also be purchased at the door.

Show Times Evening Show (7:30 p.m.): July 22, 23, 28, 29 and 30 Matinee Shows (2:00 p.m.): July 23 and 30

Continued from p. 19

Show Ticket Information $15 general admission / $25 VIP tickets, available at Visalia TCOE locations: 6200 S. Mooney Blvd. and 7000 Doe Ave. Monday through Friday during normal business hours. Cash or check only.

Tickets may also be purchased at the door.

Principal Characters • Dr. Neville Craven played by Tristan Beck • Dickon Sowerby played by Andrew Cantelmi • Martha Sowerby played by Carly Caviglia • Rose Lennox played by Carissa Gonzalez • Mary Lennox played by Chloe Hunt • Mrs. Medlock played by Alyssa Lotenero • Lily Craven played by Kaley McConnaughey • Archibald Craven played by Jack O’Leary • Ben Weatherstaff played by Gilbert Ortiz • Colin Craven played by Josh Peters • Albert Lennox played by Owen Webb For information, call the Theatre Company at (559) 651-1482.

24 • Valley Voice

7 July, 2016

Networking for Women Hosts Dianne Dooley Catherine Doe Networking for Women (NFW) recently hosted Dianne Dooley, the current Secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency for its June 23rd luncheon meeting at the Vintage Press.

Dooley talked about “Health in an Age of Change” for California.

Dooley was raised in Hanford and lived and worked many years as a lawyer in Visalia. She now lives in Sacramento as the Secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency and leads 13 state departments within the Agency which includes chairing Covered California.

She was appointed in 2010 by Governor Brown to her current position.

Dooley’s first professional opportunity was in 1974 with the then newly elected Governor Brown appointed her as Legislative Secretary and Special Assistant. Dooley regaled the women’s group with stories of life as a young professional woman in Sacramento working for what everyone in Tulare County saw as a thoroughly outrageous governor. She was only 24, and Brown knick-named her Hanford Hanna. She told him whenever this “hayseed” didn’t understand something just set her straight.

She was scared that at such a young age she couldn’t do the job but got some good advice from a friend. “Never set limits for yourself because the limits will find you.” She has always followed that advice when starting a new challenging career, and though she wasn’t always fully qual-

ified for the positions to which she was assigned, she kept going forward, working hard, and was successful.

At the end of Gov. Brown’s first administration in 1982, she moved to Visalia with her husband, Dan Dooley. She expected to find a job fairly easily given her experience. What she found was one of three situations: The potential employer said that she could not have done what she did because she was a woman and too young. Dooley explained that in every position she held in Sacramento, she was the first woman to have held it.

The next scenario was that she would get bored with the job to which she was applying, and lastly the prospective employer wasn’t interested in her because they hated Jerry Brown.

That’s when she decided to start her own company, and dove into Public Relations. Dooley said that you can’t be have your own business if you don’t get involved with your community. It was during that time that she joined NFW in its infancy.

She added that when she started her own company women could not join Rotary.

At 41 she decided to get her law degree and her public relations company is now owned by Nancy Lockwood.

After receiving her law degree she was hired by Valley Children’s Hospital.

This was the beginning of her professional work in healthcare and the reason why the newly elected Brown tapped her to handle Covered California.

Dooley said that Covered California has been a challenge in solving problems

collectively while trying to implement the new health law. She said the mindset of the health industry of “fee for service” needed to change to coordinated care by the health givers to keep people healthy.

She also added that the Federal Government has given California $20 billion to set up the new system. Under California Care hundreds of thousands of previously uninsured now have insurance and no one is refused because of pre-existing conditions. Dooley also pointed out that while those on individual plans may pay higher deductibles, there is a cap on those deductibles unlike the old system. Under California Care no one will go bankrupt over a catastrophic illness.

Dooley said the only resistance to signing up has come from those families who do not want medical because they don’t want public assistance. “When people begin to understand that healthcare is a right and not a privilege they will accept medical.”

One of the attendees asked when California was going to start drug testing those people on public assistance. Dooley said it was already done in Florida, with results proving that very few participants were using illegal drugs and the people most likely to engage in fraud were the vendors, not the recipients.

NFW, the first formal networking organization for women in Tulare County, was formed in the late 1970’s by a group of women who shared a goal of providing a forum for women to engage each other in a personal and professional manner. The

organization is overseen by a nine member board of directors.

N e w members are welcomed into the organization by member Diane Dooley. Courtesy/Laura sponsor Florez-McCusker who also serves as a mentor for the new member.

Each month a speaker presentation or networking exercise entertains and informs members on topics that are appealing to a broad spectrum of members. Two After Hours socials are held annually, strictly for socializing and networking.

According to Beth Bruegman, Programs Chair, “NFW, like most of life’s endeavors, returns to us what we put into it.

The greatest benefit comes when members reach out and engage with other members.

NFW provides opportunities for members to meet together, but it is the individual efforts of members that spark the connections that make networking so valuable.”

Their motto is, “First, we make friends, and then we do business together.” Anyone interested in joining NFW can get the information from their website networkingforwomen.org.