Plight of trapped miners featured B-1
VFW Post celebrates 75 years C-1
Opening Day of girls softball D-1
Village News Fallbrook & Bonsall
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March 3, 2016
Fallbrook not exempt from human trafficking
D e L u z , R a i n b ow , C a m p P e ndl e t o n , Pa l a ,
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Volume 20, Issue 9
Community rallies around family with boy battling cancer
‘Parker’s Carnival’ slated for March 13
Tom Ferrall Special to the Village News
You might think a quaint town like Fallbrook would be exempt from human trafficking and prostitution, but you’d be wrong. That point was hammered home at a seminar that attracted a capacity crowd to the Fallbrook Library on the night of Feb. 24. The Fallbrook Citizens’ Crime Prevention Committee hosted the seminar entitled “Human Trafficking – Is It Happening In Your Neighborhood?” The guest speaker was Danny Santiago, commander of the San Diego Human Trafficking Task Force,
see TRAFFICKING, page A-6
Home prices return to 2003-2004 values Debbie Ramsey Managing Editor
Home values are continuing to rise in Fallbrook, and based on the final statistics for 2015, they have now returned to the levels seen in 2003 and 2004. Chris Hasvold of Coldwell Banker Village Properties provided a snapshot into the past, “Prices shot up dramatically in 2013 after three years of stagnation. The good news was that many of the homes that were “underwater” (owners owed more on their home than
see PRICES, page A-6
Firefighter John Choi, left, talks with brain cancer patient Parker Landis, 5, when North County Fire staffers came to the boy’s neighborhood, outfitted him in turnouts, and “trained” him in firefighting techniques. Debbie Ramsey Managing Editor Mark and Jennifer Landis of Fallbrook are going through a time that no parent should have to, living with the knowledge that one of their children is terminally ill. The couple learned on January 17 that five-year-old son Parker has a rare and aggressive form of brain cancer, specifically Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG). “It’s completely devastating; no child in the world deserves this,” Mark Landis said in an interview
“We are still almost speechless; it’s just unbelievable,” – Mark Landis with the Village News. Parker’s diagnosis came about after his mother took him, along with little sister Taylor, to the doctor for what they thought were common maladies. “When we picked Parker up from school (Bonsall Elementary) the day before, we were told he was asleep, which was odd,”
said Mark. “The next morning he was feverish and one eye wasn’t opening completely, and at the same time our daughter appeared to have an ear infection, so my wife took them both in together.” It was thought at first that Parker may have contracted strep throat, but it ended up leading to a worse discovery.
thisweek Celebrating the VFW Post’s 75th anniversary Announcements �������������������������A-2 Business ���������������������������������������B-6 Classifieds ������������������������������������D-6 Dining & Food ������������������������������B-3 Education ��������������������������������������D-5 Entertainment ������������������������������B-4 Health & Fitness ��������������������������B-2 Home & Garden �������������������������C-2 Legals.............................................D-7 Obituaries �������������������������������������D-5 Opinion �����������������������������������������A-5 Real Estate �����������������������������������C-2 Sports.............................................D-1
Courtesy photo
Parker was sent to Palomar Hospital for tests, then to Rady Children’s Hospital. “It took me a while to sort it all out when the doctor talked to us,” Mark said. “Even when they found the mass (in his brain), it didn’t make any sense to me. The thought of cancer did not even occur to me.” Mark said when the news “sank in” with understanding, he began to research treatments. “Even radiation is considered palliative care; it’s not considered
see CARNIVAL, page A-6
FUHSD gives four percent raises to SEIU
Village News
Andrea Verdin Special to The Village News
Ken Seals photo World War II veterans John Quier, left, and Dode Martin met for the first time at Fallbrook VFW Post 1924’s 75th anniversary celebration on Feb. 27. Quier is a U.S. Navy veteran and Pearl Harbor survivor and Martin is a U.S. Army veteran of the Battle of the Bulge. See more coverage of this event on page C-1.
Fallbrook Union High School District (FUHSD) recently approved a collective bargaining agreement with Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 221. As part of the agreement, classified salaries will increase by four percent, which will match an increase recently negotiated with the teachers’ association. According to the meeting agenda, the current collective bargaining agreement between SEIU Local 221 and the district expired on June 30, 2014. The district held a public hearing to sunshine negotiation topics and the board approved the sunshine on May 12, 2014. The district and SEIU representatives met numerous times during 2014 and 2015 to discuss and negotiate the opened articles. During that time, SEIU was represented by Tasha Iglesias (San Diego office), Rose Peralta, Janet Lambert, Angela Appel, Angie Reiman and Troy Drake. Representing the district were Dr. Hugo Pedroza, Dr. Jose Iniguez, Wilson Hatcher, and Dan Cappello. On Nov. 12, 2014, the two sides made a tentative agreement with changes to several sections in the contract. The compensation agreement includes a 4.0 percent
see RAISE, page A-4