La Mesa Courier, January 29th, 2021

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VOLUME 11 ISSUE 1 Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

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Black History Month reads. Page 17

INSIDE

THIS ISSUE B NEWS Scrumptious safety

City Council responds to report on May riots

Singin’ the blues away

By KENDRA SITTON | La Mesa Courier

Girl Scouts adopt COVID measures for annual cookie sales. Page 4

B FOOD & DRINK Smoke on the water

Gary Burt, who performs under the moniker ‘The Frank Guy,’ has been holding regular concerts for neighbors during the pandemic. (Courtesy photo)

Local entertainer brightens neighborhood with weekly concerts

By JEFF CLEMETSON | La Mesa Courier

Gary Burt has weathered a particularly difficult storm during the pandemic. He lost a sister to COVID in October and

Smokey & The Brisket opens on Lake Murray Boulevard. Page 10

By ELAINE ALFARO | La Mesa Courier

A look back at Grossmont High School during the WWII era. Page 12

B ALSO INSIDE

Frank Guy.” But through all of that, Burt has maintained a really upbeat attitude by sharing his vocal talents with his neighbors SEE FRANK GUY, Page 3

Stay home orders disrupt local restaurants

B EDUCATION Forties Foothillers

Opinion Politics A&E Business Directory Classifieds

over the Christmas holiday his wife was sick with heart trouble and he couldn’t visit her. Also, he couldn’t work his usual gig of singing Frank Sinatra songs under his stage moniker “The

6 7 16 18 18

On Dec. 3 a statewide stay at home order was announced by Gov. Newsom.

It went into effect Dec. 6.

These restrictions have drastically impacted restaurant owners due to the closing of outdoor dining.

O n Ja n. 20, Sa n Diego County District 2 Supervisor Joel Anderson met with La Mesa restaurant and business owners in response to the Dec. 6 stay at home order that has

impacted businesses statewide. They advocated for restricted COVID-19 enforcement actions until scientific data proves their businesses’ activities pose a health risk. Anderson said this was to encourage the distinction between “political science, or medical science.”

Mary England, president and CEO of the La Mesa Chamber of Commerce, attended the meeting and said, “It’s easy to look at a SEE RESTAURANTS, Page 9

Even restaurants with outdoor patios like Curbside in the La Mesa Village were ordered closed from Dec. 6 to Jan. 25. (Photo by Jeff Clemetson)

At the La Mesa City Council meeting on Jan. 26, the firm Hillard Heintze presented their final after-action report based on the events of May 30, 2020.

The report was already made public but this was the first time the City Council had an opportunity to discuss it with the firm and La Mesa Police Department Acting Chief Matt Nicholass.

The report was made based on briefings with the City Council, staff, LMPD, Heartland Fire, citizens, business owners and Citizen Public Safety Oversight Task Force members. In addition, Hillard Heintze held a community listening session and viewed video files and listened to dispatch recordings from the night in which two banks and an architecture firm’s building were burnt down. In addition, resident Leslie Furcron lost an eye to a police beanbag round.

The report praised the police department for showing restraint during the protests and riots on the night of May 30 despite little training with crowd control. The citizens in charge of dispatch also received high acknowledgement for remaining calm while the windows near their desks were broken.

However, the report also had scathing indictments of the department’s policies, or lack thereof, and the communication breakdowns during SEE POLICE REPORT, Page 16

B CONTACT US Editorial (858) 270-3103 x130 jeff@sdnews.com Advertising (951) 296-7794 hfine@sdnews.com www.sdnews.com San Diego Community Newspaper Group

2/25/21

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NEWS City commemorates Fred Korematsu Day La Mesa vet turned George Takai, Korematsu’s daughter made guest presentations 101 on New Year’s Day Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa Courier

By KENDRA SITTON | La Mesa Courier

La Mesa joined other regional governments, including National City, the City of San Diego and County of San Diego in declaring Jan. 30 Fred Korematsu Day. The date would have been the 102nd birthday of Fred Korematsu who defied the executive order sending Japanese Americans to internment camps after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He took his case to the Supreme Court to challenge the order and eventually lost, although the Supreme Court later apologized decades later.

At the City Council meeting that resulted in the commemoration, major state and national figures came to speak about the importance of Korematsu’s legacy, including “Star Trek” actor and former internment prisoner George Takei.

“70 years ago, America was in chaos with fear and suspicion.

Panic laced with racial prejudice swept the nation... We were

Karen Korematsu addresses City Council via internet connection. (City of La Mesa)

sent to the swamps of Arkansas.

There was no trial. There were no charges. Fred Korematsu defied the executive order and took on the full might of the United States government because he held dearly the core principles of our democracy: rule of law, equal justice under the law and due process,” Takei said.

“Fred Korematsu took this all on and he challenged it all the way to the Supreme Court of the United States and in 1944 while the war was still raging, the highest court

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in the land ruled against him. This history is both a tribute to Fred Korematsu’s determination and faith in the ideals of democracy as well as the ultimate resilience of our principles of democracy.

Ultimately, they prevailed.”

Takei recently wrote a graphic novel titled “They Called Us Enemy” about his time in the internment camps that is a part of the One Book, One San Diego challenge through the library.

The City Council was enamored by the celebrity guest. Councilman Colin Parent wore a Star Trek pin on his lapel in Takei’s honor. Mayor Mark Arapostathis interrupted the proceedings to thank Takei for being the first person ever to

and Mission Healthcare nurse Shelly Duplaga-Gardella, RN (Photo courtesy Mission Healthcare)

Throughout his 101 years, Ollie Greyson endured life as a black man in Louisiana; serving in WWII (during which, he was shot in the eye and leg); and now continues to persevere through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Grayson currently lives with his daughter, Ashley, in La Mesa where he receives hospice care from local home health and hospice organization, Mission Healthcare.

For his birthday, and to honor him for his service, Mission Healthcare's veteran coordinator, Derrik Staples, presented

Grayson with a pinning ceremony and a framed certificate thanking him for his service.

He also celebrated with a drink of whisky and with his family, whom he says is his proudest accomplishment of his long life.

Grayson also shared some advice to those pursuing a long, fulfilling life: “Be a good person.” He added that his fondest memory from his military service was meeting and speaking with General Patton in Africa.

Staples remarked that Grayson is a kind, energetic, amazing man and “a real hero.”

SEE KOREMATSU DAY, Page 4

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FEATURE

sdnews.com

Frank Guy

La Mesa Courier

3

Why Homeowners Leave Thousands Behind When Selling Their Homes

CONTINUED FROM Page 1

on most Sundays throughout the pandemic.

Before the COVID crisis, Burt padded his pension from his years working in a power plant in St. Lois by working as professional entertainer at retirement facilities in the region, singing the Sinatra catalog.

“There’s a pretty steady market for that,” he said. “I wasn’t making a lot of money — a hundred bucks a pop — but even so, two or three of those a week and you’re retired that’s not too bad an income. Then about March all my gigs went poof.

This thing hit hard, they locked everybody down, but I needed to keep my chops up.”

Burt kept his chops up taking inspiration from a local opera singer who was entertaining neighbors in San Diego’s Hillcrest neighborhood. He decided to do his own shows “until the city runs me off or they tell me not to do it,” he quipped.

He put on weekly concerts nearly every Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. from his home near the corner of 71st Street and Stanford Avenue up until the summer.

“It got miserably hot so I kinda quit. I didn’t get out there when it’s 100 degrees. It’s too much,” he said. “But it started getting nice out and by November, I had all my Christmas stuff ready to go so I started doing my own Christmas show.”

Besides singing for his neighbors, Burt also entertained them by playing Santa Claus over the holidays.

“I began reading ‘The Night Before Christmas’ for the little kids out there and acted it out. They had a good time. I took my grandson with me and he was my elf because he was on to me last year,” he said.

Burt literally grew into the role of St. Nick because he decided to not cut his normally wellcoifed hair after his wife shaved it off at the very beginning of the

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa – A new report has just been released which reveals 7 costly mistakes that most homeowners make when selling their home, and a 9 Step System that can help you sell your home fast and the most amount of money.

Gary Burt sporting the long hair and beard he’s been growing since the beginning of the pandemic. (Courtesy photo)

pandemic. He set a goal of growing out his hair and beard until he either gets both his vaccination shots or April Fools’ Day, whichever comes first.

“I tell you what, I made a terrific Santa Claus. I looked the part. I cloned him, I really did,” he said.

Burt also put out a box for food donations to a homeless shelter during his shows and has collected enough donations to feed a family for a month.

“So I feel pretty good about that,” he said.

Since he began his free concerts, Burt said he has gained a little following on Facebook and coupled with time away from regular gigs, the new notoriety has prompted him to begin working on new material and begin recording an album. But he points out, recognition is not the main motivation that drives him to perform his weekly concerts.

“If there’s only one person, I don’t care. One or none — I’m still out there singing. I’ve had some big crowds and I’ve had some small crowds. Every week it changes,” he said.

What is important to Burt are the connections his shows are creating in his neighborhood.

“I know who my neighbors are now. They come by and we talk.

People used to walk up and down the street and they didn’t know who each other were. When I’m

out there singing, they’re stopping and listening, I’m getting to know them and they’re getting to know their other neighbors,” he said.

The community building that his shows has brought to himself and his neighbors was especially important to him over the holidays when his wife was in the hospital recovering from heart complications.

“I was still out here singing because I couldn’t go to the hospital. I was feeling pretty glum,” he said. “But I got out here singing and people found out my wife was in the hospital and they’d come by and they reassured me.”

Burt started singing in high school when a teacher told him he had a natural baritone voice.

He began studying with a vocal coach who encouraged him to sing Sinatra. Singing took a backseat when he started his family, but he still recorded “here and there” over the years solo or in gospel groups.

In the 1980s, Burt dove into the karaoke craze in St. Lois, where he gained a following singing the large catalog of Sinatra that karaoke made available to singers.

“That’s the thing: How do you become a Frank Sinatra singer?

Think about it, if you don’t have a big band, how are you going to do that from scratch? Well, karaoke made it possible for me to sing with a big band because it’s all recorded,” he said.

When the COVID crisis is past him, Burt said he looks forward to returning to entertaining beyond his front yard and also sharing his new album, which he views as another silver lining for him in an otherwise cloudy period of time.

For more information about Gary “The Frank Guy” Burt, visit thefrankguy.com.

This industry report shows clearly how the traditional ways of selling homes have become increasingly less and less effective in today’s market. The fact of this matter is that fully three quarters of homesellers don’t get what they want for their homes and become disillusioned and worse financially disadvantaged when they put their homes on the market.

As this report uncovers, most homesellers make 7 deadly mistakes that cost them literally thousands of dollars. The good news is that each and every one of these mistakes is entirely preventable. In answer to this issue, industry insiders have prepared a free special report entitles “The 9 Step System to Get your Home Sold Fast and For Top Dollar”. To order your FREE copy of this report, call toll-free 1-800-270-1494 and enter 1000. You can call anytime, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

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—Reach editor Jeff Clemetson at jeff@sdnews.com.

The Frank Guy mobile (Courtesy photos)

Community garden receives grant The San Diego Foundation recently awarded a $30,000 AgeFriendly Community grant to the La Mesa Park and Recreation Foundation towards the La Mesa Community Garden. The AgeFriendly Communities Program promotes systems-level change to prioritize age-friendly initiatives in transportation, housing,

outdoor spaces and buildings, community support and health services, respect and social inclusion, communication and information, and civic participation, and employment. The City of La Mesa is recognized as a global Age-Friendly Community and in 2019 adopted the Livable La Mesa Age Friendly Action Plan with

technical support from The San Diego Foundation.

This grant will help fund the remaining infrastructure needed for the first public community garden in the City of La Mesa, located at MacArthur Park, centrally located close to La Mesa’s historic SEE GARDEN, Page 11

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NEWS Girl Scouts adopt COVID safety for cookie sales

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa Courier

55

By MARY DOYLE

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As a Girl Scout living in Clairemont and Santee, young Nicole Ries enjoyed the rituals of the cookie program: ringing doorbells, setting up a card table at her church, and making a personal pitch to employees at her parents’ workplaces. Years later, when she discovered she was pregnant with the first of her two daughters, Nicole began investigating Girl Scout volunteer opportunities. Now she leads Troop 5909, a group based at Clay Elementary in La Mesa and includes her daughters, Lily and Rosie, and their troopmates in grades K-2.

Last year, Lily topped the La Mesa Service Unit in number of cookie packages marketed by a Daisy Girl Scout. During cookie season, she insisted on wearing her sash everywhere and stocking the car with inventory at all times because — as she explained to her mother — encountering potential customers without have cookies available would be “rude!” This year, as an 8-year-old Brownie Girl Scout, the young entrepreneur is hoping to set a new personal best.

To ensure the safety of Girl Scouts and cookie buyers alike, troops are following the county health guidelines established to help reduce COVID-19 transmissions. Therefore, Lily and other Girl Scouts are approaching the cookie program a bit differently this year, using both time-honored and innovative techniques in a socially-distanced manner to provide a contactless cookie experience.

Girls are dropping flyers and door-hangers outside homes in

A masked Thin Mint symbolizes the Scouts’ commitment to safety.

Korematsu Day CONTINUED FROM Page 2

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pronounce his name correctly with the proper Greek dialect.

Korematsu’s daughter, Karen Korematsu, who helped champion the State of California declaring Jan. 30 Fred Korematsu Day alongside San Diego then-Assembly member Marty Block 10 years ago, also spoke.

“We feel now especially we need to teach about American history so it leads to civic participation that is meaningful,” the younger Korematsu said.

The holiday is meant to promote historical education as well as advocating for preserving civil

(l to r) Rosie and Lily Ries (Photos courtesy Girl Scouts)

their neighborhoods, a classic way to market their wares. They are also putting their tech badge skills to good use with digital marketing, ordering, and payment acceptance. Digital Cookie is an order taking website and app that helps Girl Scouts safely and effectively manage their cookie businesses online. Customers can opt for direct delivery by FedEx or USPS. In some cases, girls will provide contactless delivery by dropping off orders at doorsteps or creating a safe pick-up point.

Cookie fans who know a Girl Scout can ask her for an invitation to her secure and personalized Digital Cookie site. Otherwise, they can visit sdgirlscouts.org/cookies where, beginning Feb. 1, they can download a Cookie Finder app.

Nicole Ries says that La Mesa residents “are very welcoming and supportive of Girl Scouts. Surfrider Pizza, the Joann store, and many other fantastic businesses graciously host cookie booths for our local troops.” Booth sales are not permitted at this time, as the county is in the purple risk level.

Customers have a brand-new option this year. A national partnership that begins in February will allow people to order and pay for cookies through Grubhub’s website or app. Girl Scouts will gain hands-on experience, “learning and utilizing e-commerce technology as they use Grubhub’s back-end technology to track orders and manage inventory,” said Carol M. Dedrich, chief executive officer of Girl Scouts San Diego. liberties and upholding the constitution even in times of terror.

The proclamation was brought forward by La Mesa’s newest City Councilman Jack Shu who is Asian American.

“History is not just dates, times and names. History is a tool — the story of Fred Korematsu to help us deal with racial tensions in our community, to look at how we can improve government, how we can move ahead and not just deal with hate and fear in our community. This is our start to move our communities forward from all the commotion we had this last year,” Shu said.

“It ultimately seems fitting that tonight the City of La Mesa, with an Asian-American City

In addition to raising operating revenue, the cookie program also helps Girl Scouts develop these five skills essential to their own leadership and success in life: setting goals, decision-making, money management, people skills and business ethics.

All net cookie proceeds stay in San Diego to fund local programs, activities, and the financial assistance that helps all girls participate. Troops fund activities like field trips, summer camps, membership dues, and service projects with cookie money. Lily and her troopmates who became Brownies this year are proud that their new uniforms were purchased with a portion of their 2020 cookie money.

Many San Diegans opt to donate cookies through ‘Operation Thin Mint,’ a program that sends “a taste of home and a note to show we care” to deployed U.S. service members and local veterans. Since it originated 20 years ago, military personnel serving our country in places like Iraq, Korea, Diego Garcia, and the Arctic Circle have received over 3.25 million packages of America’s favorite cookies.

Nicole noted that La Mesans are particularly generous about donating Operation Thin Mint cookies.

Girls ages 5-17 are welcome to join Girl Scouts at any time. For information, visit sdgirlscouts. org or email customercare@sdgirlscouts.org.

—Mary Doyle writes on behalf of Girl Scouts San Diego.

George Takai (Photo by Gage Skidmore, courtesy Wikimedia Commons)

Councilman, will declare Jan. 30 as Fred Korematsu Day,” Takei said.

—Reach contributing editor Kendra Sitton at kendra@sdnews.com.

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

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OPINION

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa Courier

Guest Editorials 1621 Grand Ave., Suite C San Diego, CA 92109 (858) 270-3103 LaMesaCourier.com Twitter: @LaMesaCourier

EDITOR

CONTRIBUTORS

Jeff Clemetson x130 jeff@sdnews.com

Connie Baer Lynn Baer Robin Dohrn-Simpson Jennifer Osborn Bonnie Owen Sean Quintal Jamesa Selleck Dr. Jonathan Spero, M.D. Simone Valanciute Julie White Haley Zamora

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Kendra Sitton x136 Tom Melville x131 Dave Schwab x132

EDITRIAL INTERN Elaine Alfaro

WEB & SOCIAL MEDIA Jeff Clemetson

PRODUCTION MANAGER Chris Baker x107 chris@sdnews.com

ADVERTISING CONSULTANT Heather Fine x 118

BUSINESS CONSULTANT David Mannis

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Julie Main, x106 julie@sdnews.com

OPINIONS/LETTERS: La Mesa Courier encourages letters to the editor and guest editorials. Please email submissions to jeff@sdnews.com and include your phone number and address for verification. We reserve the right to edit letters for brevity and accuracy. Letters and guest editorials do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher or staff.

SUBMISSIONS/NEWS TIPS: Send press releases, tips, photos or story ideas to jeff@sdnews.com.

For breaking news and investigative story ideas contact the editor by phone or email.

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COPYRIGHT 2021. All rights reserved.

COVID-19 vaccine is here, older adults should still take precautions

By SHARP HEATLH NEWS TEAM and SIMONE VALANCIUTE

Less than a year after the novel coronavirus appeared in the U.S., we now have two safe vaccines against COVID-19 approved by the FDA for emergency use—the fastest major vaccine development ever seen. The previous record-holder was the mumps vaccine, which still took four years to create. While this is an amazing accomplishment, the pandemic is far from over. Even though older adults are in the first priority group to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, they still need to take precautions to keep themselves and their families safe.

Here are some answers to the top questions seniors may have as states begin to distribute the COVID-19 vaccine.

HOW DO THE COVID-19 VACCINES WORK? ARE THEY SAFE? Both the vaccines currently being given, from Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna, are mRNA vaccines, which mean they contain genetic material from the novel coronavirus. When someone gets an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, their body’s cells basically get instructions on how to create the proteins unique to the virus—and because those cells recognize that the virus shouldn’t be there, they produce antibodies that help them fight off infection if they’re ever exposed to the virus again.

Both vaccines were tested in clinical trials according to rigorous safety standards established by the FDA. The makers of both vaccines have reported a 94-95 percent efficacy rate in preventing severe illness. Learn more about the COVID-19 vaccine in this article by Sharp HealthCare. To find out how, when and where you can get the vaccine please visit the San Diego County COVID-19 Web page.

WHAT CAN I DO IF I’M VACCINATED?

LA JOLLA

If you’re older than 75, or older than 65 with certain health conditions, you will likely be vaccinated before many of your family members and even some friends.

This means that until most of the population is vaccinated, your lives probably shouldn’t change much.

Certain things will be safer for you to do, though, such as going to the grocery store and running other errands. However, you will still need to take precautions against COVID-19 until most of the U.S. population is vaccinated. This includes wearing a mask around others, physically distancing from others, avoiding crowded indoor gatherings, frequently washing your hands and refraining from touching your face. The CDC has

more detailed guidelines for how to protect yourself and your family.

HOW LONG WILL I NEED TO WEAR A MASK AND PHYSICALLY DISTANCE? Vaccinated people should still wear masks around others, and avoid crowded indoor gatherings, for at least the next several months.

This is because scientists are still trying to figure out whether people who have been vaccinated can still spread the virus to others, even if their risk of getting sick is now much lower.

WHEN CAN I VISIT MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS? You should wait until at least two weeks after your last shot with either vaccine. However, most public health experts strongly advise against resuming visits with family and friends until all of them are vaccinated.

WILL WE EVER GO BACK TO “NORMAL”?

The novel coronavirus will likely continue to spread until a large majority of the population (at least 70 percent) is vaccinated or has developed natural immunity after surviving infection. The vaccines will not be an immediate ticket back to the way life was in 2019. Many experts agree that it’s better to think about how we “move forward” instead of “getting back to normal.”

In the meantime, it’s important for all of us, but especially older adults, to continue taking care of ourselves and staying safely engaged with the world around us, even if we’re isolating at home. Seek out virtual volunteer opportunities, such as tutoring or phone banking, and stay in contact with family members through phone calls and video chats.

Additionally, learning new skills and meeting new people keeps you cognitively sharp and is good for your mental health. Many organizations, including San Diego Oasis, offer free or low-cost online classes in a variety of topics, from dance and fitness to art and technology.

We’ve all been challenged in 2020. Continuing to take all necessary precautions as we wait for most of the population to get vaccinated will take more patience, but it’s how we will move forward to the other side of this pandemic—and hopefully, to healthier, more balanced lives in the years ahead.

—Simona Valanciute is the President and CEO of San Diego Oasis, an award-winning nonprofit organization serving people age 50 and better, who pursue healthy aging through lifelong learning, active lifestyles, and community service. Learn more at sandiegooasis.org. To learn more about Sharp, visit sharp.com/health-news.

Can schools finish the year normally?

By DR. JONATHAN SPERO, M.D.

COVID-19 cases are surging across the U.S., a harsh reality that students, parents, teachers and staff feared would happen when many schools opened for fall sessions. As a result, schools throughout the nation have closed and shifted to remote learning in recent weeks.

What will it take to return kids to the classroom and keep schools open? Though vaccines have been approved, it may be months before children, their families, and school personnel are vaccinated. Until then, implementing a plan that includes processes for virus detection and response is paramount.

The problem that schools are facing is there is still a significant prevalence of COVID in many communities. Schools need to do everything they can to prevent student outbreaks; otherwise it’s going to continue shutting down schools.

But on top of that you have to deal with a tremendous amount of anxiety. The students, parents, faculty, and staff are all on pins and needles because they are feeling insecure about their health. The only way to address all of this is through a comprehensive health security strategy that can work when so many variables are in play.

In my capacity as an expert on pandemic preparedness and experience delivering COVID-19 testing to K-12 schools in New York City through my company InHouse Physicians (inhousephysicians.com), I offers these suggestions to safely open schools while navigating the continuing COVID-19 crisis: • Daily temperature checks. They’re not a foolproof way to see if someone has COVID. A significant number are asymptomatic, but fever is a common symptom, and because it is, temperature checks should be a fundamental daily procedure. I suggests two ways to organize the temperature-checking process at schools: 1. Designate some staff members, who can each scan 200-300 students an hour; and 2. use thermal scanners, a device that can scan 400600 per hour.

• Screening for symptoms and close contacts.

This starts at home, where parents can help prevent the spread at schools by keeping children home who are showing COVID-like symptoms or have been in close contact with someone with COVID. At schools, everyone returning should be screened on a range of symptoms. Those with symptoms should be sent home and referred for testing.

• COVID surveillance testing. Though this is rarely being done in K-12 schools, frequent asymptomatic testing of the student population is a very effective way to limit the spread of the virus in the school. Positive test results necessitate the immediate need to perform contact tracing with the goal of identifying everyone who was in close contact with the infected student.

• Daily prevention protocols. Prevention measures include mask-wearing by all students and staff throughout the school day, frequent disinfection of surfaces, the availability of hand sanitizers in classrooms, frequent reminders to wash hands, and as much social distancing as possible in classrooms.

Positivity rates in the community need to be held to a reasonable level for schools in an area to be open. And when they are open, there are a lot of moving parts for school officials to deal with in order to avoid an outbreak. But if they’re not dealt with, ultimately your school could be closing again.

—Dr. Jonathan Spero (inhousephysicians.com) is a physician and an expert on pandemic preparedness and employee health. For over 30 years he has been the CEO of InHouse Physicians, which is dedicated to protecting the health and well-being of employees and meeting attendees around the world. InHouse Physicians regularly supports some of the highest-profile corporate sales, incentive, and executive programs in the world, including the Olympic Games and World Cup. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Spero and InHouse Physicians have been delivering employee health services to critical infrastructure corporations, offering medical care and COVID testing. Dr. Spero completed his medical training at the University of California.

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021 POLITICS La Mesa Courier 7 GOP lies incite domestic terrorism, as Dems prepare to govern

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Call to action and reflection

By JAMESA SELLECK

T h e N a v a j o C a nyo n Republican Women of California (NCRWC) will continue to meet on Zoom and return to our in-person meetings as soon as possible.

NCRWC CALL TO ACTION

Our first duty is to purge the voter rolls. No more dead people voting.

It is also our task to actively pursue more members and associates, and add to our chapter.

We need to care more about local government than federal. Our best opportunity to effect change is to act on a local level.

REFLECTION

January brought shock and disbelief.

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction” — Ronald Reagan We are looking socialism in the eye and stunned to realize it is our fault. It is the GOP’s fault.

Now it is time for reflection.

Time to look at things a different way. It’s time for honest introspection and an unvarnished

examination of what we did or didn’t do that brought us to this dangerous moment in history.

The genesis? We can all produce significant policies, politicians, and events that ushered in socialism.

Painful as it is to admit, we were asleep, spineless, and indolent. We either preferred ignorance or excused self-dealing and corruption.

When faced with shameful, harmful policies and fiscal pork from leftists, we readily lie down. For some unknown reason, we are deficient with words and messages. We play by the Marquis of Queensbury rules and wonder why leftists batter conservatives into the dirt.

Enough! This is a different time!

We have been bloodied and it’s our charge to rise and take back the America we love.

The GOP needs an internal assessment. Where have we failed throughout the decades? What made us impotent? What are our specifics for a stronger, more strategic, effective conservative movement? We must produce actionable items.

—Jamesa Selleck writes on behalf of the Navajo Canyon Republican Women of California.

By SEAN QUINTAL

Jan. 6, 2021, will appear in American history books for generations, alongside dates like Dec. 7, 1941 and April 14, 1865 — days that become seared into our national psyche by events that both inflame the conscience and encumber the heart.

On Jan. 6, the world watched in horrified disbelief as a sitting U.S. president incited a mob of followers to attack the hallowed home of our democracy. Scores of mostly white people stormed the U.S. Capitol building, charging beneath flags that bore the sigil and surname of the object of their nihilistic idolatry. The sinister motivation of the riotous rabble was literal sedition: conspiring to interfere with the constitutionally required democratic process being conducted at that moment in the chambers of Congress.

What ensued was a sordid spectacle of vandalism, desecration, mayhem and murder.

Throughout, Trump refused to seriously condemn the marauders, or to ask them to desist. And he could not have done so authentically, since the paroxysm

of anti-patriotism was the logical conclusion of his years-long campaign of self-serving lies, and calumnious conspiracy theories.

But Trump’s lies alone would have been insufficient fuel for that treasonous fire to burn. The conflagration drew its oxygen from the cynical enabling of Republican senators and congresspersons. For months, GOP officeholders either expressly endorsed Trump’s ridiculous claims of election fraud, or coyly muttered limp ambiguities, never expressly condemning the lies.

Thus, on Jan. 6, a ceremonial recording of votes became a vehicle for political preening by the wretched likes of Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley; both former clerks for U.S. Supreme Court justices, they knew that the outcome of the vote counting was not changeable. But they knowingly lied to Trump’s frothing supporters to fundraise, and to burnish their credentials for the lunatic vote in the 2024 presidential contest. The frothing Trump supporters heard affirmation of their demagogue’s lies, and unleashed mob violence to intentionally subvert both the Constitution and democracy itself.

Even after the insurrectionists were cleared from the Capitol, and the vote counting resumed, Hawley, Cruz and five other

Republican senators, were joined by more than 100 GOP representatives in the House to object to accepting the votes of the American people. Lawmakers who hours before had cowered on the floor, fearing for their lives, still voted to dishonor the will of the American voters.

For all of them, may their names always be remembered for this sin against our nation. May their reputations be forever lashed with an iron cord to Trump’s repulsive legacy. And may history’s judgment of them be harsh and unforgiving.

Their disgrace and ignominy will be well deserved.

Jan. 6 was momentous for another, more hopeful reason. That day the nation learned that Jon Osoff and Raphael Warnock had won both of Georgia’s U.S. Senate seats. Critically, this gives the Democrats majority control, with Vice President Harris’ tie-breaking vote of the Senate. This provides the Biden administration the opportunity to achieve important legislation for all Americans.

First priorities will be to correct the failures and underfunding of Trump’s COVID vaccine distribution, to provide much needed stimulus money to American workers and small businesses, SEE LMFDC, Page 18

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Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

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NEWS

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Restaurants CONTINUED FROM Page 1

newspaper or look at the statistics, but until you actually hold hands and personally know a businessperson who has been affected by the restrictions… that’s when it really hits home.”

To give La Mesa citizens a better understanding of the “hit home effect” England spoke of, three restaurant owners vocalized the reality of the situation due to the second round of restrictions from the stay at home order.

Gy Kirk, owner of Sheldon’s Service Station, spoke about his business hardships.

“My experiences through the last year have impacted my business with loss of revenue on a daily basis,” he said. “We haven’t changed the [business] model from the initial hit. We have a strong positive following that keeps our hopes alive. Our time is spent on staying viable, while still being consistent to standards.”

The common thread among restaurant owners is this daily conflict to just maintain their services without sacrificing the dining experience. However, the dining experience has indeed changed with the stay at home order. Outdoor seating was shut down.

“Trying to figure out ways of doing takeout even without the patio, cut down a lot of business, not only for us, but a lot of other people in the industry,” said Aaron Henderson, owner of Public Square Coffee House, in a social media Instagram update.

“Right now unless you’re doing drive through, unless you’re doing

delivery, you’re having a really hard time.”

Public Square Coffee House temporarily closed for some of these reasons.

Brenda Leek, general manager of Curbside Eatery and Brewery, shared the same frustrations.

“We do everything right and yet we are falling in this catastrophic tier of closure,” she said. “I asked the city, I have asked the county, ‘Come out to look at my property.’

The entire Curbside restaurant is made to be COVID-19 friendly. I am still condemned, threatened with fines. The fines they are talking about are substantial and we can’t afford it. We can’t afford it.”

As far as the future for these businesses and the solutions to the problems business and restaurant owners shared, Kirk offered some suggestions.

“The city has been supportive and can only do so much since their model has also been impacted by pandemia. I believe the City Council is putting forth efforts to lock in rates for third party delivery services. That is very helpful,” he said and added that there is a need to lock rates. “Delivery is a tough thing. If we’re working with some of these bigger companies like Uber Eats and Yelp, they take up to 30% of a cut from the bill, which, as you can imagine, makes it nearly not profitable at all.”

Bottom line, according to Kirk, is that the rules have become too complex for small businesses to weather.

“The solutions to facilitate business and growth for small businesses is a Ph.D. dissertation,” he said. “I can say, having been in hospitality for over 30 years,

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa Courier

success is hard, hard, work on a daily basis. The most Mount Everest of challenges has been communication of information to the public. There is no proverbial playbook for the pandemic.”

Leek advocated for keeping some of the relaxed rules on outdoor tables even after the pandemic crisis in passed.

“If there’s anything I want to come of this, it is to be able to have permanent sidewalk seating,” she said. “Let everyone see we’re responsible as businesses. La Mesa is a great little community. I am fortunate that my business is here.”

La Mesa Village Association chair Teri Favro also noted the difficulty restaurants in the Village have been going through.

"It’s been a difficult year for our restaurants, cafes and bars in Downtown La Mesa with the constant changes in COVID guidelines ranging from in person/ outdoor dining to takeout/delivery only,” she stated in an email.

“While some venues are not able to remain open, we commend the efforts of those who are able to provide dining to our La Mesa Village community while keeping safety a top pri-ority in order to stay viable. We can only hope that all of our restaurants will be able to reopen once it is deemed possible to do so."

Just five days after the meeting with District Two Supervisor Anderson, the state-wide stay at home order and it’s restrictions were lifted on Jan. 25.

Despite the return to outdoor dining opetions for area restaurants, Leek remained skeptical of how long it might last.

“We’re hours off of another reopening. While I am excited, I am

9

La Mesa business represnetatives and Supervisor Joel Anderson present a plan to curb business closures at a press conference on Jan. 20. (l to r) East County Chamber of Commerce finance chair Brian Shull, La Mesa Chamber of Commerce president Mary England, Mattress Makers co-owner Pablo Hernandez, District 2 County Supervisor Joel Anderson and La Mesa Chamber of Commerce board member Brain Sack. (Photo by Jeff Clemetson)

also reluctant to get too excited and to jump the gun. We’ve been on this road so many times,” she said. “What people might not realize, especially our elected government officials, is what it takes for a restaurant to open and close.

Restaurants have seven agencies that we have to stay in compliance with and everything changes at the beginning of the year. I don’t just open a restaurant. I mean I am excited, but it’s an insult to the industry. You think it’s that easy to open up? There are so many rules and restraints for us to follow.”

When asked how La Mesa citizens can do their part in helping local businesses upon reopening, Leek said, “The general public has already been overwhelmingly supportive. For Curbside or other restaurants, just be patient.

We’re all starting over again. Give us a minute. It’s not just my staff but overall everyone. There are a lot of components in service.

Everything is brand new.”

—Editorial intern Elaine Alfaro is a student at Point Loma Nazarene University.

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FOOD & DRINK New BBQ joint on Lake Murray Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa Courier

By ROBIN DORHN-SIMPSON

Why open a new restaurant in the middle of a pandemic? Because we need comfort. Comfort food calms the soul.

We have all been driving by this restaurant for months wondering what is going on behind the canvas walls. Now we know! Smokey & The Brisket has moved into the neighborhood and we are lucky.

Smokey & The Brisket exterior (Courtesy photos)

BBQ is an art form and art takes time. No one knows that better than a pit boss. Smokey’s pit boss works around the clock for our enjoyment. He is busy smoking all the traditional meats and some unique sausages. Chef/ owner Alberto Morreale, from the Farmer’s Table and Farmer’s Bottega, is all about feeding La Mesa residents good food.

Designers have been busy too, creating a clever motorcycle and automotive theme. The front counter is made of the red toolboxes that all of you gear heads have in your garage. Also, a 1960’s Dodge A100 van with the top cut off has been converted into a bar.

The beer taps resemble motorcycle gas tanks. Booths and chairs have

Interior of Smokey & The Brisket with motor sports theme

racing stripes and the armrests have illuminated taillights, and of course, an old gas pump and a motorcycle grace the dining area.

On the menu, you will find the full range of meats that everyone knows and loves brisket, pulled

pork, rotisserie chicken, both pork and beef spare ribs and Texas smoked sausage links. If you just can’t live without a hamburger, you’re in luck — and it is good.

SEE SMOKEY & BRISKET, Page 11

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Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021 FOOD & DRINK / NEWS La Mesa Courier FRENCH ONION SOUP Garden

sdnews.com

• Salt and pepper to taste • 2 quarts beef broth • 2 tablespoons flour • 2 tablespoons dry Sherry or

red wine • Croutons and 1 cup grated Gruyere cheese to melt on finished soup

DIRECTIONS

By JULIE WHITE The Dodge van bar (Courtesy photo)

Smokey & Brisket CONTINUED FROM Page 10

If you want a whole or half chicken, they have three different options: herb, habanero and Alabama chicken with a white Alabama BBQ sauce.

Lest you think the menu is all meat, there is a nice selection of salads such as Burnt Carrots and Cauliflower Salad with Arugula, goat cheese and cilantro-lime vinaigrette and a Smoked Pulled Chicken Salad topped with Fritos.

The menu also includes an “Ooey Gooey” jalapeno mac ‘n cheese featuring brisket burnt ends. Try some of the delicious side dishes like Brussels sprouts, cowboy caviar, mashed potatoes and cornbread. They offer four different flatbreads with handcrafted 48-hour rising dough.

Kids love BBQ too and they are not forgotten with cheeseburgers,

chicken tenders, and other sandwiches with fries.

If you are feeding an army, they offer a meal for four to six and another for 12 to 14.

Currently all orders are to go, but you can sit on the patio and eat your food. When we are able to eat indoors again, you can enjoy televised motorsports such as NASCAR, motocross and monster truck events.

Smokey & The Brisket is open for lunch and dinner, Tuesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. or sold out, whichever comes first. Don’t delay in ordering as they sell out quickly.

You will find them at 5465 Lake Murray Blvd. Call to order food for pick up 619-439-6544. Check out their menu and order online at smokeyandthebrisketsd.com.

—Robin Dohrn-Simpson is a San Diego-based freelance travel and food writer.

On a winter night, this onion soup really is satisfying. It’s not hard to make, just a bit time consuming. Recently I made the soup with homemade broth that my friend at the pool I swim at gave me. It made the soup fantastic!

INGREDIENTS • 1 stick butter or 1/2 cup • 4 sweet onions, sliced thin • Pinch of Thyme

Melt butter in large, deep pan.

Add the onions and cook till soft and golden. This could take up to 30 minutes.

Add salt and pepper, Thyme and flour. Coat onions and then add broth.

Cook for 10 minutes or so, then ladle into oven proof bowls.

Put oven on broil. Top with the cheese and croutons and broil for five minutes in the oven.

Enjoy!

“Be the reason someone believes in the goodness of people.”

French onion soup (Image by Rita E, courtesy Pixabay)

Stay Healthy with Us!

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CONTINUED FROM Page 3

downtown, targeted to open in spring 2021.

The space allocated for the garden was a putting green and clubhouse of a former golf course that the city reallocated as park open space that has been assigned to the La Mesa Park and Recreation Foundation under a no cost operating agreement. The garden will create an intergenerational space that will enhance the park’s amenities, encourage social participation, and improve access to healthy eating, exercise and active living.

Applications for a lottery for the leasing of inaugural garden beds are expected to be published in the next month.

In addition to The San Diego Foundation grant, the garden project has received a $5,000 grant from the San Diego Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects and $5,000 founder level sponsorships from EDCO, The Cushman Foundation, La Mesa Sunrise Rotary, and Laurie MacDonald of Coldwell Banker West.

The La Mesa Park and Recreation Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that facilitates quality projects and programs to provide activities that strengthen community and family bonds and foster pride in La Mesa and its parks. For additional information about the garden, contact LaMesaCG@gmail. com or visit lamesaparks.org.

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EDUCATION A look back at Foothiller life in the ‘40s Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa Courier

Foothiller Footsteps

By CONNIE and LYNN BAER

Throughout the 1940s, articles in the Grossmont High School news[a[er Foothill Echoes reveal the shifting emotions of 1945 View of GHS by William Bledsoe, Class of 1940 Edited Foothillers as they faced never to the ultra-modern “Platter Nearly every noon in the Quad. seen before challenges.

Sept. 10, 1940, in the column Dances” —dance a la phono- Let’s keep it up.”

“Pick-Ups” by Ben, the students’ graph. Boy what a line up! Kay Reality becomes inescapable in lightheartedness is expressed in Kyser, Glenn Miller, Artie Shaw, the Jan. 21, 1942 column “I Saw jokes such as this one: Freddy Martin, Benny Goodman, Pearl Harbor Bombed; Gael Keene Coach Mashin, “Have any of you Tommy Dorsey … where dancers Tells of Oahu Escape.” boys taken a shower?” sway with Sammy Kaye. Yessir!

Gael Keene, a newly enrolled Jerry Kibbey student at Grossmont, (Freshman), “No, is who had recently moved from Oahu, there one missing?”

A year later, the stated: Oct. 14, 1941 col“I was there when the umn “Letting off Japanese bombed Pearl Steam” by the editor Harbor. The crash of Bob Nichols headbombs, the screaming of planes fighting high lined “It’s a Record” in the sky, the rolling begins, “Grossmont is keeping right in roar of heavy artillery, the swing this year. and the wail of the fire Not only winning its sirens rudely awakened football games and me on that memorakeeping astride with ble Sunday morning… the latest fashions, Rushing from the house, the school has taken 1947 Bobby Sock Girls (Photos courtesy GHS Museum) I gazed down on a once

1948 Auto Shop Students

peaceful Pearl Harbor. The bay was now almost hidden from view by the thick clouds of billowing smoke from the flaming USS Arizona.”

The article mentions that, “Killed in action in the Pearl Harbor raid of Sunday Dec. 7, were Howard Carter, Class of ‘36; Frank Remick, class of 37; Edward Estrada and Rowland Smith, class of ’39.” In a later issue of Echoes, Estrada was noted to be “still alive and kicking. ‘Lemme at ‘em’ is the commentary of this pseudo ghost.”

Foothillers’ wartime patriotism was shown on the Jan. 20, 1943 front page with a large drawing of Uncle Sam rolling up his sleeves and the headline, “We’ve been in business since 1776 an’ we intend to stay!” The article begins: “For 166 years free Americans have lived together … during this

time, we have established traditions and ideals that have grown with us, and become imbedded in the very soil of our America.

“Now we are fighting to preserve these beliefs that are fundamental to the nature of freedom loving people of every nation and creed. To back up this statement the Foothill Echoes editorial staff, in conjunction with the Bond Selling committee, is making plans for a revolutionary Bond Campaign.”

A subsequent issue publicizes one fundraising effort — a new bond and stamp campaign “Be a ‘Bombardier” with the minimum goal of every student selling or buying at least one war bond with honorary military titles given to students according to their bond selling success.

SEE FOOTHILLER LIFE, Page 13

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021 EDUCATION La Mesa Courier 13 sdnews.com PART OF OUR HISTORIC CAMPUS Helix application process announced Foothiller life BECOME

Helix Highlights

By JENNIFER OSBORN

Helix staff members are busy preparing for the beginning of the 2021-22 school year. The enrollment process is in full swing and it is important for families to be aware of the details if they are interested in sending their child to Helix next school year.

All new students wishing to attend Helix next year need to participate in the lottery process.

All incoming freshmen who apply by the deadline of March 5 will have a chance to be offered one of 670 spots with the class of 2025. Students for other grades also need to apply to the lottery – openings at those grade levels vary.

Due to the restrictions on holding gatherings, the administration has made available a recorded meeting designed to meet the Class of 2025 Grade Level Team and discuss important topics such as Helix Charter High School’s mission and vision of the 5 A’s: Academics, Athletics, Arts, Activities, and Attitude; and an overview of the application process/priority enrollment.

Interested families are required to attend the virtual meeting. The recording can be accessed by emailing helix2025@ helixcharter.net, and stating that you would like to start the application process for the 2021-22 school year. The team will email you a link to the recording. After viewing the recording, email the team for further instructions.

The Grade Level Team members will also host a question and answer session on Tues, Feb. 2 at 6 p.m. for those who have viewed the recording and still have questions.

Those wishing to attend the Q&A can register at helixcharter.net.

HELIX HIGH SCHOOL FOUNDATION NEWS The Helix High School Foundation is pleased to announce the return of the Highlander Open Golf Tournament. The tournament will take place on Saturday, May 22 at Carlton Oaks Country Club. This tournament is the Foundation’s biggest fundraiser, helping to fund approximately $50,000 in scholarships each year for graduating Helix seniors.

Sponsorship opportunities are available for as low as $100.

Donations for auction items and prizes are also needed. For more information on participating as a golfer or a sponsor, visit the Foundation website at helixhighschoolfoundation.com.

STUDENT ACHIEVEMENTS

Eight of the top competitors on the Helix Speech & Debate team were invited to represent Helix at one of the top competitions in the country, the MLK Invitational, hosted by James Logan High School in the Bay Area. Many of the top teams in California were there and several from other states. The students did very well. Results were as follows: • Ruby Anderson – Fourth place in Dramatic Interpretation (73 competitors) • R u b y A n d e r s o n – Semif inalist in Humorous Interpretation (68 competitors) • O wen Da h l ka mp – Semif inalist in Dramatic Interpretation (73 competitors) • L a i l a D e l R i o – Quarterfinalist in Program Oral Interpretation (53 competitors) • Stone Eastman – Fifth place in Original Prose Poetry (42 competitors) • Lucas Osborn – Tenth place in Student Congress (83 competitors) • R a c h a e l S h a r p – Quarterfinalist in Oratorical Interpretation (73 competitors) • R a c h a e l S h a r p – Semifinalist in Original Prose Poetry (42 competitors) —Jennifer Osborn writes on behalf of Helix Charter High School.

CONTINUED FROM Page 12

The April 2, 1945 Echoes sports section headline proclaims “Grossmont 23, Ohio State 21, In Rose Bowl Game.” It continues, “Roaring Crowd Witnesses Thriller As Grossmont Scores in Last Second.” The team finished the season undefeated after playing opponents such as Washington, Navy, Alabama, U.S.C., and Army.

The article ends, “Hundreds of loyal Grossmont students carried four fearless Foothillers off of the gridiron after their heroic efforts during the game.” Yes, it is an April Fool’s Day column.

The March 2, 1948 column “Your Opinion!” begins: “The crowded conditions of Grossmont’s halls tend to make them very noisy, as most of you realize.

Therefore, this week we are asking, ‘What can be done to alleviate this situation?’ (A school built for 800, now has over 2,000 students.)”

As you might imagine, humor pervaded the responses: Mickey McGuire (Junior): “Have a seven-day weekend.”

Marvin Goodman (Senior): “Kick the freshmen out!”

Charles Banks (Junior): “Walk down the halls carrying a pitchfork.”

The GHS Museum’s collection of bound newspapers is a priceless “treasure trove” of memories and of history. We sincerely thank the newspaper advisors who had the foresight to preserve them as documents of Foothiller life.

In honor of our historic 100 Years of Excellence Celebration, the GHS Educational Foundation is sponsoring a scholarship fundraising program. “$100 for 100 Years” donors will have their names, their families’, or their businesses’ names engraved on 2-by-4-inch gray tiles, which will be displayed on a wall near the front of the school.

To order your tile, visit donationbricks.com/ghs100yearscholarships. Or write a check payable to GHS Educational Foundation and mail to Connie and Lynn Baer, 5990 Avenorra Dr., La Mesa, CA 91942. On the check memo, please indicate “scholarship fund” and include the text of your tile with your check (up to three lines, 20 spaces each).

Also, if you would like to order a GHS 100th Anniversary commemorative ornament, face mask, T-shirt, hoodie, and more, please visit foothillerfoundation. com and download the 100th Anniversary Newsletter on the home page and make your purchases.

Due to the coronavirus restrictions, the GHS Museum is currently closed, but we are checking our emails at ghsmuseum@ guhsd.net and our phone messages at 619-668-6140.

—Connie and Lynn Baer write on behalf of the Grossmont High School Museum

14

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa Courier

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Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021 NEWS La Mesa Courier 15 sdnews.com Council adopts climate change emergency resolution

By KENDRA SITTON | La Mesa Courier

La Mesa City Council newcomer Jack Shu is already working to meet his campaign promise of improving the city’s Climate Action Plan. At his very first meeting as a city councilman on Jan. 12, Shu brought forward a resolution to declare climate change an emergency.

The proposed resolution was approved by all five members of the City Council, so city staff and relevant commissions will review it ahead of the Feb. 23 City Council meeting. At the next meeting, Shu and supporters hope the draft resolution will be approved. In order to speed the approval along, the Council created a sub-committee with Shu and Council member Bill Baber to move the resolution forward.

The goal of the resolution is to ensure all city departments and commissions are treating climate change as a dire crisis the city’s decisions affect.

“I really see it as a way to move our city forward together,” said Shu. “All elements of the city need to work together to make sure we meet out climate action goals.”

He explained many actions are already taking place. This would elevate the emergency of it and make sure all parts of the city are helping implement the Climate Action Plan.

Over 20 people called or wrote into the City Council to share their opinion about the resolution.

Several members of the La Mesa First United Methodist Church gave public comment in favor of the resolution.

“Our faith-based organization calls for sound stewardship of the earth and environmentally-friendly lifestyles that preserve creation for present and future generations. We applaud the whole resolution and especially item three to commit to ensure environmental, economic and judicial justice,” said Lois Norton

of the United Methodist Women of La Mesa First UMC. Norton is referencing a passage in the resolution that calls for environmental justice to be at the heart of the climate action plan being implemented, including by consulting race-based organizations about future steps. This is due to climate change adversely impacting marginalized neighborhoods.

All but one public commenter, former City Council candidate Laura Lothian, were in favor of the measure.

“The real emergency facing La Mesa is reopening La Mesa, not taking action to combat climate change,” Lothian said.

While the official proposal’s adoption could face delays, the Council, spearheaded by Shu’s efforts, is aiming to have the next draft on the Feb. 23 agenda of the City Council.

—Reach contributing editor Kendra Sitton at kendra@sdnews.com.

The City of La Mesa’s plan to implement the Climate Action Plan can be found at cityoflamesa.us/1488/Climate-Action-Plan. (Courtesy City of La Mesa)

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NEWS / A & E

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa Courier

Police report CONTINUED FROM Page 1

the night of the riot. The firm noted that LMPD had no First Amendment clause, which is a best practice, and the crowd control plan was only a few pages long. By August when there was another protest in the city, that policy expanded to fill a few three-ring binders. In addition, the firm found LMPD does not have robust written policies and strategies directly related to community policing, community engagement and biased policing.

“We are forming our oversight committee and it’s very clear our protocols and procedures are outdated and definitely need to be reviewed and brought up to standard,” Council member Dr. Akilah Weber said. “One of the things I am disappointed about is the fact that the use of force policy and the community policing policies were not up to standards. They were out of date. This was something I had addressed previously when I had addressed the incident that happened at Helix High and I asked the chief at that time about updating the use of force policy and I was told then that it was going to happen.”

In addition, the firm found that there was no clear central command on the night of the riot and people doing intelligence gathering did not have someone clear to report to. The firm found there was a lack of communication to rank and file police officers as well as the City Council. The command post that did exist was inside the police department building

despite that building being the target of the protests. When other agencies came with mutual aid, radio communication was also disrupted.

Council member Bill Baber took issue with the lack of central command being blamed on a lieutenant left in charge for the night. He said someone of higher rank should have been in charge, especially the police chief who on May 30 was spending his time trying to be a diplomat between the agencies.

Acting Police Chief Nicholass said that is being addressed by naming a Public Information Officer and having an officer in charge of logistics during a similar event so the chief can be in command.

Council member Colin Parent praised the department for already improving ahead of the August protest. He was bothered by the San Diego Sheriff’s Office, who took command of the riot response after midnight on May 30, not cooperating with Hillard Heintze’s investigation. The department refused to hold interviews and eventually responded to a few written questions, unlike the more robust response from LMPD. “I’m troubled that we haven’t had full participation from our partners at the Sheriff’s Department,” Parent said.

He requested the city manager send on the after-action report to the Sheriff’s Department in case it could inform their policy as well.

Council member Shu, the only council member who was elected after the protests, said he thought the report should have taken into account the Helix High School incident

Featured artist: Debbie Atkinson

and at the very least the trolley incident with Amaurie Johnson that led to the protests. He also noted that the perspective of the report was limited, something Mayor Mark Arapostathis later agreed with.

“This is a very good, credible report through the eyes of law enforcement.

Hillard Heintze is an organization made up of law enforcement experts and their perspective. They reviewed through the lens of law enforcement.

There's really nothing wrong with that and I welcome that but that is very limited,” Shu said. “This incident included lots of people. What would this report look like if we went to the fire department and asked them? What would it look like … through the eyes of business ... the faith community? I think it would look quite different.”

Mayor A rapostath is sa id, “Although this was new to all of us, everything could have been done better.

I think that communication is key.”

He noted in the future that he wanted to be better about releasing information when it was available and openly admitting when the city staff did not know something. He also called for another listening session so the community can respond to the report’s findings.

Acting Chief Nicholass said, “We are taking the recommendations seriously and we will use this report as a guide for our efforts in the future. we are committed to serving this community and we will strive for improvement as we move forward.”

By BONNIE OWEN

Debbie Atkinson has been named the Featured Artist for the Foothills Art Association for the month of February 2021.

Atkinson began her art career in 2005 after “retiring” from her job in the computer software industry.

She had always wanted to try painting in watercolors.

Marilyn Grame, who shares Atkinson’s love of wildlife, mentored her as she explored painting.

Eventually Atkinson expanded into oil, colored pencil, and scratchboard mediums. Her award-winning

—Reach contributing editor Kendra Sitton at kendra@sdnews.com.

“First Steps” by Debbie Atkinson (Courtesy image)

art has been shown in galleries and at art shows across San Diego County.

Atkinson has always loved to travel, exploring all seven continents and visiting over 75 countries with her husband Lee, over their 45 years of marriage. She applies her close attention to detail and keen eye for color and composition to artistically capture the memories of her travels. Her artwork highlights nature from locations worldwide.

Atkinson’s art expresses the feelings she experienced as a visitor among nature’s animals and natural beauty. The unique expressions, colors, and natural environment of her subjects are each carefully recreated in her art, providing us a visual reminder of the humbling experience we all have amidst nature’s true art.

Vie Atkinson’s art at foothillsartassociation.com.

—Bonnie Owen is editor of Footnotes, the monthly newsletter of the Foothills Art Association.

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BOOKS sdnews.com Memoirs for Black History Month

throughout the book. Laymon lays bare the abuse he suffered in childhood at the hands of his brilliant and troubled single mother and by others in her absence. Through the lens of his experiences, he considers what it is to be Black, male and

overweight in America. Through his struggles with obesity, addiction and mental health, and his hard-won rise in academia, he seeks to meet the high expectations of his mother and exceed the low expectations set by society.

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Jones is admittedly young to write a memoir but don't let that stop you from reading this short outstanding book – it will leave you wanting more.

For the latest news on the San Diego County Library visit sdcl.org or follow the La Mesa Library on Facebook, @lamesalibrary.

Visit sdcl.org or call us at 619469-2151 to order books, movies, and CDs, and we will contact you when they are ready for pick-up.

—Haley Zamora is a librarian at the La Mesa branch of the San Diego County Library.

La Mesa Courier

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2020

Celebrate Black History Month with the San Diego County Library! Check out these award-winning, honest and beautifully written memoirs that highlight the complex nature of identity and the diversity of the Black experience. All of these books are available upon request at sdcl.org and in eBooks at sdcl.overdrive.com.

“Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, Love & So Much More” by writer, editor, director and activist Janet Mock gives readers an unflinching account of her life as a Black, Hawaiian and Trans woman. From her earliest memories, Mock is confident in her gender identity and she gives the reader a raw and candid account of life with her dysfunctional-yet-loving family, the abuse she endured, and the poverty and racism that were pervasive in her life. She acknowledges that she is one of the lucky ones: achieving an advanced degree, belonging to a family that eventually accepts and loves her, and finding her own voice and the man of her dreams. Mock’s story is a difficult but affirming account of what we can accomplish when we are unapologetic and fully accept who we are.

“Survival of the Thickest” by comedienne, actress and writer Michelle Buteau is a hilarious and heartfelt series of essays about growing up Black, Caribbean, Catholic and thick in New Jersey.

She gives dating advice gleaned from her own — sometimes horrifying — experiences and gives the reader insight about what it takes to make it in the male-dominated world of comedy. Buteau talks openly about the challenges of her interracial and transcontinental relationship, her heartbreaking struggles with infertility and the importance of supportive

Are You the One? Volunteer positions open at Alvarado Hospital.

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By HALEY ZAMORA

friendships. You will walk away from this book wishing that Buteau was your bff.

Winning multiple literary awards, “Heavy: An American Memoir” by Kiese Laymon is ultimately a letter to his mother who appears as the ubiquitous “you”

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

If you are reliable, responsible, and looking for a way to serve your community, we may have positions for you!

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1/26/2021 2:18:00 PM

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BUSINESS & SERVICES / CLASSIFIEDS / POLITICS

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

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CONTINUED FROM Page 7

and to rescue state and local governments which are being crushed by the enormous burden of spending, coupled with lost revenues due to the pandemic. Those victories also make starkly clear what a failure Donald Trump has been. In his four years as President, the Republicans have lost the House, the Senate and the Presidency.

Just as national Democrats are gearing up to legislate, local Democratic officeholders are also assuming the reins of government.

Two of those leaders joined us for our January meeting. Nathan Fletcher, Chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, described the Board’s “Framework for the Future,” emphasizing reordered governing priorities now that Democrats have a majority of the Board. These include a focus on racism as a public health crisis; making progress on coordinated local policies to confront climate change; and fashioning a science and data driven approach to COVID vaccinations and mitigation. Raul Campillo, newly elected San Diego City Councilman for District 7, explained that the Council’s new 8-1 majority would reflect Democratic values. These include small business relief; creation of good-paying union and green jobs; substantial infrastructure investment, as well as municipal worker protections.

Campillo was also happy to report that funding for the long-promised San Carlos branch library is already in his proposed budget.

First hand information from local and national political leaders is a regular feature of our club’s monthly meetings. If you would like to stay abreast of local and national political developments, or if you would like to become more involved in local matters, you are welcome to join our monthly meetings. The first Wednesday of every month we meet on Zoom at 6:30 p.m., with the formal meeting commencing at 7 p.m.

To join us, you may find the Zoom links at lmfdems.com.

—Sean Quintal writes on behalf of the La Mesa Foothills Democratic Club.

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa Courier

sdnews.com

19

Southern Caregiver Resource Center Caring for those who care for others

Are you caring for someone with memory loss, dementia, or Alzheimer's? Then the REACH2CAREGIVERS program is for you! This series is offered FREE and virtually to family caregivers to better understand memory loss, develop communication skills, learn stress management techniques and how to better care for yourself and your loved one. You don't have to do caregiving alone! Sign up today for our REACH2CAREGIVERS online class at https://bit.ly/REACHprogram.

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20

Jan. 29 – Feb. 25, 2021

La Mesa Courier

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