T
TEMPEST
Does it really matter where you go to college? OPINION ON 2
Arty’s presentation hosted Sunday garners awards in theater FEATURES ON 4
Steve Reczkowski / Tempest
Solano College student and Vacaville mayoral candidate Rodney Harrison II hugs his grandfather, Darsey Varnedoe, after the City of Vacaville Mayor Candidate Forum Sept. 8, 2014, in Vacaville. See pg 6 for the story.
Falcons fly in middle of pack during Solano Classic SPORTS ON 7
• SEPT 17 - SEPT 30, 2014 • VOL. 31, NO. 2 • FAIRFIELD, CA • www.solanotempest.net •
Broken, but not forgotten Vietnam veteran to be remembered after broken plaque discovered Addi Simmons Opinion Editor lsimmons@solanotempest.net
Dagmar Kuta / Tempest
Joe Ramos cradles the broken plaque that once honored Lt. Gatlin “Jerry” Howell.
Retired SCC cop Joe Ramos was working the graveyard shift five years ago when he walked into the athletic building and found a plaque, honoring a Vietnam veteran, broken and thrown into the trash. “I’m sure it was an accident,” Ramos said. “I couldn’t imagine anyone doing this intentionally.” The plaque first caught Ramos’s attention because it was broken, but upon further inspection he realized that it had been awarded to Lt. Gatlin Jerryl Howell, who was killed in action during the Vietnam War. A veteran himself, Ramos said he couldn’t bear the thought that a hero’s sacrifice and achievements had been so disrespected. Lt. Howell was a former outstanding track and cross country runner. Every year, back when SCC still had a track team, the name of a “Most Inspirational” track or cross country athlete was added to the plaque in memory of Lt. Howell and his sacrifice.
“Maybe one day they’ll have a track team again or cross country and then they can resume all of this,” Ramos said. Ramos’s goal is to refurbish the plaque and either present it to a family member of Howell’s or have it placed at the Vallejo campus among the historic photographs and other memorabilia of Solano College’s early years. Lt. Howell was born in 1935 and died at the age of 31 during combat. He signed up to fight in the Vietnam War because “The government paid my way through college. I never really did anything for them. Now my debt is paid in full,” Howell said in an interview with The Associated Press in July of 1967, a week before his death. Howell attended Solano College, which at the time was called Vallejo Junior College, before getting a degree from San Francisco State University. He then went on to coach track and teach physical education at a junior high school in San Francisco. “Just looking at his picture I felt sort of a kinship,” Ramos said. “When I ran track back in the 60s, it was probably on the 8SEE PLAQUE, PAGE 6
Vallejo land purchase first step to expansion Salvador Torres Staff Writer storres@solanotempest.net
Solano College is taking its first steps toward improving its campuses, and Vallejo’s campus will be getting more parking and an athletics field. In September, the Solano Community College Governing Board approved the purchase of property at 1683-1699 North Ascot Parkway in Vallejo for $6.52 million. The purchase is the first move in a series of college facility improvements under Measure Q, a $348 million bond passed by voters in November 2012, to update and expand the campus. “I’m excited, it will be a great addition to our campus,” said Jerry Kea, the Dean of Solano’s
Vallejo Campus, in a phone interview. “[It] will provide athletic opportunities for our students, which is very important.” The Vallejo campus currently has 1,392 students. This project is the first of many to come from Measure Q, which funded 14 projects in total for Solano College. Projects contained in the Measure Q funding list include a new science and biotechnology building on the Vacaville campus, an auto tech building on the Vallejo center, and a science building on the Fairfield campus, according to Camille James, business operations coordinator for Measure Q. The theater on main campus will be renovated using part Measure Q funds and part state money starting in 2015.
Steve Reczkowksi / Tempest
A map of the area including and surrounding Vallejo’s satellite campus.
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK “Political language... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.” - George Orwell