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SERVING TEMECULA , MURRIETA , L AKE E LSINOR E , M ENIFEE , WILDOMAR , H EMET, SAN JACINTO October 2 – 8, 2020

Local Riverside County moves into red tier, supervisors push for more

VISI T

T HE NEW

See the Anza Valley Outlook beginning on page AVO-1

AND THE SURROUNDING COMMUNITIES

myvalleynews.com

Volume 20, Issue 40

Peltzer Pumpkin Farm opens for the fall season

Jeff Pack STAFF WRITER

Riverside County moved into the red tier of the state’s reopening plan, Thursday, Sept. 24, which according to the county, paved the way for more businesses and community places to resume indoor operations, including personal care services such as nail salons, tattoo shops, massage, esthetician services and more. see page A-2

Local Menifee City Council allocates more CDBG money for homeless, food programs Tony Ault STAFF WRITER

Education TVUSD requires proof of enrollment for school meals after rush from outside district Will Fritz ASSOCIATE EDITOR

INDEX Anza Valley Outlook ......AVO-1 Business ............................... B-1 Business Directory............... C-8 Classiﬁeds ............................ C-6 Education ............................ C-3 Entertainment ..................... B-5 Faith ..................................... C-8 Health .................................. C-4 Local .................................... A-1 National News ...................... B-7 Opinion................................. C-7 Pets ..................................... C-6 Regional News ..................... B-6 Sports ................................... C-1

Guia Paez, 2, selects pumpkins at the Peltzer Pumpkin Farm as the autumn season begins, Monday, Sept. 28.

Valley News/Shane Gibson photo

Temecula tweaks process for some permit revocations, other sections of municipal code Will Fritz ASSOCIATE EDITOR

The Temecula City Council approved four changes to the city’s municipal code, Tuesday, Sept. 22, including processes for revoking land use permits. In a presentation to the city council before its vote on the matter, Brandon Rabidou, associate planner for Temecula, said staﬀ worked with the city attorney’s oﬃce to address “antiquated portions” of the municipal code. The city will now allow the director of Community Development to revoke temporary use permits and home occupation permits. Temporary use permits are issued for property uses of “special, unique or limited see COUNCIL, page A-2

Temecula City Council members vote on changes to the city’s municipal code, including processes for revoking some land use permits, at the council’s Sept. 22 meeting. Valley News/city of Temecula photo

Local nonproﬁts team up for support during evacuations Lexington Howe STAFF WRITER

With fires on the rise, Sale Ranch Animal Sanctuary in Temecula worked on a fire evacuation plan for their animals that includes support for surrounding communities. The nonprofit sanctuary works to provide homes for animals that have been abused, neglected or need medical care and has many different animals: horses, donkeys, goats, sheep, rescue dogs, pigs and turkeys, just to name a few. Jaime Lee Purinton, a board member and volunteer, helped to create the evacuation plan. She has worked with Sale Ranch Animal Sanctuary since 2016 and has lived in Fallbrook for 11 years. “Originally, the county fire department came out and said that we were perfect to shelter-inplace because we have so much clearance at the ranch,” Purinton said. “With the rise of fires lately, we’ve noticed they’re a lot bigger see EVACUATIONS, page A-6

Sale Ranch Animal Sanctuary has animals ranging from horses, to goats, sheep, rescue dogs and more.

Valley News/Courtesy photo

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Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

Local

Riverside County moves into red tier, supervisors push for more Jeff Pack STAFF WRITER

Riverside County moved into the red tier of the state’s reopening plan, as of Thursday, Sept. 24, which according to the county, paved the way for more businesses and community places to resume indoor operations. With the new orders, personal care services including nail salons, tattoo shops, massage and esthetician services could once again move indoors, joining hair salons and barber shops. Restaurants, churches, movie theaters, museums, zoos and aquariums were also permitted to resume indoor operations at 25% capacity, gyms at 10% and indoor shopping malls up to 50%.

COUNCIL from page A-1 duration” and home occupation permits allow the use of residences for business purposes. Previously, those permits could only be revoked by the planning commission or city council, although the director of community development is responsible for issuing them. Allowing the director to revoke them, Rabidou said, would streamline the process in case of any issues or complaints. “For example, if you’ve got a temporary use permit currently, they’re approved by the director and they typically last a few days, and if we do have an issue with the temporary use permit we do need the ability to revoke these permits,” Rabidou said. As an example in which a home occupation permit may need to be revoked, Rabidou said, “If someone started a dog walking business and it turned into a dog kennel, that is where that permit is no longer under that home occupation realm.” Appeals of decisions to revoke those kinds of permits would still come before the planning commission or city council. “This expedites the ability to deal with time sensitive issues, but any appeals would still come before the Planning Commission,” Rabidou said. The city will also now require an independent hearing oﬃcer to oversee revocation processes for conditional use permits, development plans and similar permits, rather than leaving the planning commission with that responsibility. “We would update the process to remove some of the highly technical requirements for the revocation

“Now that Riverside County is in the red tier, more of our local businesses that have been badly hurting throughout this pandemic can return indoors,” Karen Spiegel, vice chair of the Riverside County Board of Supervisors, said. “As we continue our focus to slow and contain this virus, we must also focus on the recovery of our whole community. Reaching the red tier is an important step toward getting there.” During the Tuesday, Sept. 22, meeting of the supervisors a proposal by Jeff Hewitt, 5th District supervisor, was approved by 3-2 vote to consider more options for reopening all businesses. The plan would push forward an accelerated public health deregulation plan to allow all process from the planning commission,” Rabidou said. He said the independent hearing officer would be an “experienced judge or retired hearing officer” who would preside over the initial revocation hearing. According to a city staff report, the “planning commission would then review the independent hearing officer’s determination to either revoke, modify or impose additional conditions on the permit, after holding a public hearing. The planning commission would be charged with deciding whether to confirm, modify or overturn the independent hearing officer’s decision. The city council would still maintain the ability to review any revocation appeals for conditional use permits, development plans and other entitlements.” The third change to the municipal code adds floor area to the description of major and minor modifications, which will require projects that add interior floor area – Rabidou gave mezzanines as an example – to go through the city’s modification process. “This is necessary to ensure that projects comply with various development standards, including, but not limited to, parking, floor area ratio, and outside agency requirements,” according to the city staff report. Lastly, areas of the municipal code referencing “secondary dwelling units” will be changed to “accessory dwelling units” to maintain consistency with a recently adopted accessory dwelling unit ordinance. The council unanimously approved the updates. Will Fritz can be reached by email at wfritz@reedermedia.com.

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Health care workers conduct tests at the state run COVID-19 testing location at the Grace Mellman Community Library in Temecula. Valley News/Shane Gibson photo

businesses, houses of worship and other entities in Riverside County to fully reopen over the next six weeks, holding off on immediate action to determine how the state will respond. “This is a way of saying we’re for the people of Riverside County,” Hewitt said of his plan. “We’re going to be operating in an economy that’s going to be crushed. We need to move forward on this and stop putting it off.” Kevin Jeffries, 1st District supervisor, and Spiegel both said they were behind Hewitt’s concept, but before a final vote, they requested input from the Riverside County Business Task Force and an in-depth assessment by the Executive Office of what funds Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration might withhold or demand to be returned to the state. County CEO George Johnson indicated that as much as $656 million could be in jeopardy, including $63 million in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act money recently distributed to the county, but he acknowledged that was a loose estimate. “Fear is a four-letter word. How dare you do this, George,” the supervisor said. “You think the governor is going to come and

reclaim the money? Every month we’re down, how much gross domestic product is this county losing? How many millions of dollars are families not bringing home? You think the governor is going to change his mind on a whim? We’re staying within his parameters anyway.” Chuck Washington, 3rd District supervisor, said he preferred a more cautious approach in line with the state’s system, and board chair V. Manuel Perez agreed, saying he preferred to “stay the course.” They cast dissenting votes in the motion to redraft and reconsider Hewitt’s plan Tuesday, Oct. 6. Valley News reached out to Washington for further comment, but he declined. On Friday, Riverside University Health System reported 295 new cases of COVID-19 and 10 new deaths throughout the county. In all, 58,178 have tested positive for the virus and 1,189 people have died since the county began recording data back in early March. There were 142 patients hospitalized countywide for treatment of the virus and 39 patients in intensive care units. The number of known active cases countywide is now 3,580

Pala Road in Wolf Valley to be resurfaced Joe Naiman WRITER

Pala Road between Pechanga Road and the San Diego County line will be resurfaced. The Riverside County Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 Tuesday, Sept. 22, to approve the plans and speciﬁcations for the construction, to authorize the project for bid and to ﬁnd the resurfacing categorically exempt from California Environmental Quality Review. The bid deadline is 2 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14. The resurfacing will improve

approximately 1.7 miles of Pala Road in unincorporated Temecula’s Wolf Valley area. Some portions of Pala Road are extremely deteriorated, and for those segments, the road will be completely excavated before being reconstructed to the existing grade with hot mix asphalt and a Class 2 aggregate base. The work for less deteriorated portions of the road will remove the existing asphalt concrete pavement and overlay it with hot mix asphalt. The road improvement project will also include placement of an asphalt concrete dike, construc-

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and the active count is derived by subtracting deaths and recoveries from the total number of cases according to the County Executive Office. The number of verified patient recoveries is now up to 53,409 countywide. There were 428 confirmed cases in county jails and another 2,284 cases recorded in state prisons within the county. According to the county, Friday, the current adjusted case rate was 6.7 and the positivity rate was 5.8%. Both numbers are provided by the state. Locally, Temecula has reported 1,078 confirmed cases, 14 deaths and 988 recoveries; Murrieta 1,225/21/1,111; Wildomar 561/14/515; Lake Elsinore 1,224/21/1,160; Canyon Lake 109/2/97; Menifee 1,494/34/1,328; Hemet 1,679/61/1,530; San Jacinto 1,129/25/1,049; Anza 14/0/13; East Hemet 345/7/313; French Valley 330/1/306; Lakeland Village 212/2/203; Valle Vista 228/5/218; and Winchester 20/0/19. For more Riverside County COVID-19 information, visit http:// www.rivcoph.org/coronavirus. Jeff Pack can be reached by email at jpack@reedermedia.com.

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tion of pavement safety edge and shoulder backing, replacement of an existing culvert, construction of asphalt concrete drains, guardrail installation, traffic striping, thermoplastic pavement markings, installation of traffic signs and other associated work. The estimated cost of the Pala Road resurfacing is $1,372,169. Senate Bill 1, which was signed by former Gov. Jerry Brown in April 2017, increased the gas tax by 12 cents a gallon effective November 2017 and increased vehicle registration fees between $25 and $175 based on vehicle value effective spring 2018. Revenue from what is known as the Road Repair and Accountability Act will fund the contract cost. The county’s Transportation Department will select a preferred contractor based on the lowest responsive and responsible bid, and that proposed contract will be brought to the board of supervisors for approval. The construction is expected to begin in January 2021. The work will be phased so that the roads can be kept open during construction as much as possible. The resurfacing is expected to be completed approximately two months after the start of construction. Joe Naiman can be reached by email at jnaiman@reedermedia. com.

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Local Murrieta/Wildomar Chamber of Commerce hosts Murrieta council forum Broadcast live on YouTube Tuesday, Sept. 22, the Murrieta/ Wildomar Chamber of Commerce held a Murrieta City Council candidate forum featuring all four of the candidates for two districts up for grabs. In District 3, Lisa Deforest and Steven Brown were present, and in District 4, Lori Stone and David Kolk logged in to the meeting. Hosted by Patrick Ellis, chamber president and CEO, the forum featured questions submitted to the chamber from the public and chamber members. To open the forum, each candidate had two minutes to give a candidate statement, Ellis asked each candidate to give voters a little background about their educational and work histories, and he asked them what inspired them to run for city council. Brown shared his vision for the city of Murrieta. “One of my platforms is the future belongs to Murrieta,” Brown said. “Right now, I think we all know that the immediate future is to address COVID-19 and the eﬀects of COVID-19. … That’s No. 1, the health of our citizens. “Going into the future what I’d like to see Murrieta be looking at is really the internet for all for free, solar generation for our city, and I’d like to see the Murrieta emblem put on the water tower,” he said. “I hope to see Murrieta develop into a mixture of rural, parks and small businesses that support a few of the anchor ﬁrms that we have here,” Kolk said, in response to the same question. “I’d like to look at Old Town, the possibility of

converting that to a no-auto zone, at least the Washington area. “I also want to do something about our traffic issue, which is continuing to get worse, and really look at what’s going to happen over there at (Interstate) 215 and Clinton Keith (Road) when Costco comes in. We cannot be bottlenecked by these new businesses,” he said. “My vision for Murrieta is a safe, beautiful community that we all want to thrive in,” Deforest answered. “We do that by maintaining local control of our police and fire and supporting them as many ways as we can. “We need to stabilize our economic development. We can do that by expanding our biotech and our innovation center. We can do this by attraction and retention and expansion of the businesses that are here,” she said. “First and foremost is to make sure that our city is financially stable,” Stone said. “We continue the quality of life, making sure that public safety, making sure that we do support our public safety. I would like to have an expansion of Old Town. “We are in recovery mode right now with COVID-19, so supporting our chamber of commerce, our businesses and the city staff is important right now,” she said. Ellis asked the candidates to give their top three things that they would like to accomplish if elected. “The first is implementing a response to the COVID-19,” Kolk said first. “Sorry, but I strongly disagree with Supervisor Hewitt; I think that he is out to lunch. Secondly, I’d like to address the traffic issues that we have. Creating what I will call priority streets, such as Washington, Clinton Keith,

Supervisors approve 229home Alberhill development Joe Naiman WRITER

The Riverside County Board of Supervisors approved a 229-home development in the Alberhill area of unincorporated Lake Elsinore. The supervisors’ 5-0 vote Tuesday, Sept. 22, approved a subdivision tract map, a rezone, a general plan amendment, a specific plan amendment and an addendum to the environmental mitigated negative declaration. The tract map for the 49-acre property creates 229 single-family lots, one 1.6-acre recreation lot with a park, one 3.8-acre lot with a trail and service road and one 6.2-acre open space lot, which will be a Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan sanctuary. The land owned by Sam Horsethief LLC is east of Glen Eden Road, west of Horsethief Canyon Road, south of De Palma Road and north of Broken Bit Circle. It is part of the Horsethief Canyon Ranch Specific Plan, which was adopted in 1982 and originally earmarked 1,884 dwelling units in the 801-acre plan area. The rezone modifies the boundaries of five of the planning areas and changes 1.6 acres from right of way to specific plan, and the general plan amendment for that area of vacated and quitclaimed right of way was given the CD:MHDR (Community Development: Medium High Densi-

ty Residential) land use designation. The general plan amendment changes also change land use designations for portions of the property from CD:VHDR (Community Development: Very High Density Residential) to CD:MHDR and from CD:MDR (Community Development: Medium Density Residential) to CD:MHDR. The land also has CH (Open Space: Conservation Habitat) and OS:R (Open Space: Rural) land use designations. The CD:MDR designation allows 5,000-square-foot lots. The CD:MHDR designation limits density to 6.6 dwelling units per acre. The CD:VHDR designation allows townhomes, and the general plan amendment converting that area to CD:MHDR will replace 210 planned townhomes with 126 singlefamily units. The total decrease with all general plan amendments is 96 dwelling units. The revised numbers for the entire Horsethief Canyon Ranch Speciﬁc Plan are now 2,211 dwelling units and 851.8 acres including 77.9 acres of open space. The overall planning area density is now 2.6 dwelling units per acre. The county’s planning commission considered the latest proposal July 15, and voted 4-0 to recommend approval. Joe Naiman can be reached by email at jnaiman@reedermedia. com.

Rancho California, Whitewood that would have minimal interruption from cross traffic. The third issue becomes more of how do we attract the right type of businesses that use the existing skills sets of people in Murrieta, rather than having to import the labor.” “I would like to see code enforcement revamped,” Deforest answered. “I would love to see our city a little more proactive instead of reactive with some of the things that are occurring on our streets. “Old Town is in my district; it’s part of District 3 and I want to see Old Town thrive. I want to have it be an area where we hang out in on the weekends and where we bring friends to. I will do my due diligence to help Old Town see its fruition. “I would like to support our police and fire, and I believe that we probably need a joint venture of a training facility for our fire and police so we can save money,” she said. “With regard to Old Town, we definitely have a water issue down there, and that is something that we need to address immediately if we’re going to allow additional development,” Stone said. “Sticking with development, we have an area called ‘the golden triangle’ that has

The Murrieta/Wildomar Chamber of Commerce hosted a virtual forum for Murrieta City Council candidates Tuesday, Sept. 22, on the business-focused organization’s YouTube channel. Valley News/Courtesy photo

been sitting empty. I truly believe that that is the last prime piece of property in Southern California, and regionally I would like to pass by the box and bring something that beneﬁts the entire region. “Public safety has to be a priority for us to have a quality of life that we have here in Murrieta to remain one of the safest cities in the nation,” she said. “The No. 1 going into 2021 is going to be COVID-19,” Brown said. “If anybody doesn’t think that’s going to be No. 1 on our list, I think they’re not really seeing what’s going on. The issues that are involved with COVID-19 not only

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involves the individual citizens of Murrieta, but businesses also. “The second priority is balancing the budget, of course. And then attracting businesses is the third priority that we need to ﬁgure out. Working with the various professionals, what can we do to help bring more businesses and manufacturing to Murrieta,” he said. To watch the virtual forum in its entirety, visit the chamber’s YouTube channel at https://www. youtube.com/channel/UCjnmds67mXbykH3zIb8FzhQ. Jeff Pack can be reached by email at jpack@reedermedia.com.

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Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

Local

Mayes challenges incumbent Moore for Wildomar’s District 4 seat Jeff Pack STAFF WRITER

For those who regularly attend – in person or virtually – Wildomar city council meetings, the two candidates vying to fill the District 4 city council seat after the consolidated general municipal election Tuesday, Nov. 3, are well known. Incumbent Bridgette Moore has served on the city council since 2008, and perhaps nearly as long, her challenger Kenneth “Kenny” Mayes has made consistent appearances during public comments at council meetings. Moore is a 22-year resident of the city, former mayor and currently serves as the chairwoman of the Riverside Transit Agency, is on a subcommittee with Lake Elsinore Unified School District and is part of the financing authority for Animal Friends of the Valley. Mayes is a veteran, serving in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Vietnam era, and has lived in Wildomar for 36 years, teaching a free exercise class for older adults at the Wildomar Library. Valley News posed the same series of questions to each candidate via email, and both candidates returned the questionnaire with their responses. What is your motivation for wishing to serve the community of Wildomar and more specifically, the district you serve? Mayes: The motivation for serving the community at large is the slow erosion of our rural lifestyle exacerbated by our elected officials ignoring the county general plan to moderate the growth of Wildomar. We’re well on our way to converting this rural community to high density residential apart-

Wildomar District 4 City Council incumbent Bridgette Moore is running to retain her seat on the council. Valley News/CrystalClear Photography

ments and condos with no plan on how we’re going to provide city services to this new population. Our elected leaders are also ignoring the needs of rural people. Many residents of District 4 live on large parcels connected by old paved or dirt roads. They pay taxes; property tax, gas tax, sales tax, excise tax, etc. Wildomar often refuses to take responsibility for these roads, and they are decaying from neglect. District 4 is home to two city parks. These parks have no marked soccer ﬁelds, no exercise equipment for older adults, no handball, racquetball or volleyball courts and no park programs at all, even though the people of Wildomar pay Measure Z taxes for parks and programs. Moore: My inspiration to run is that I’m not done making a diﬀerence in our community. My passion is to serve others. I do not call myself a politician but rather

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Valley News/City of Wildomar

a public servant. I have more ideas that I want to implement to improve our quality of life. In the upcoming term, what are your top three goals to address or accomplish for the city and/or your district? Mayes: My campaign platform is “Truth, Transparency and Fiscal Responsibility.” If elected to the city council, I pledge to tell the people of Wildomar the truth about the challenges we now face and my ideas on how we can overcome these challenges. Transparency is the principle of engaging in open discussion and debate with the people of Wildomar. Too often the city council makes decisions that affect the people without ever listening to them. We’re not asked what we need; we are told what we’re getting and that’s not transparent. Fiscal responsibility is the principal of spending taxpayer dollars wisely on the things that Wildomar needs. Budget overruns and fiscal wastes are a rampant problem in Wildomar. Hundreds of thousands of dollars are spent and borrowed on city projects that the people of Wildomar didn’t ask for and don’t need in my opinion. That needs to stop. Moore: The first goal is road maintenance. Wildomar has over 120 centerline miles of roads to maintain. Recently, we completed 11 streets under the City Pavement Management Program. As soon as these 11 streets were finished, we immediately started the process for

Wildomar resident Kenneth “Kenny” Mayes is running to replace incumbent Bridgette Moore on Wildomar’s District 4 city council seat. Valley News/Courtesy photo

the next batch of streets. Next is a Citywide Beautification Program. I have been picking up litter along our roadways on a weekly basis, and this action has spurred community involvement. I would like to create a Beautification Committee and receive input from our residents and expand participation. I would love to add some “art” to our community and have the utility boxes wrapped. This new committee could plan projects and seek possible sponsorships. The third is to increase economic development. It is vital to the health of our city. I will continue to provide support for our businesses to safely exit this terrible pandemic. What do you bring to the council that is lacking if any? Or what do you bring to the table that makes the council better or more wellrounded? Mayes: Attention to detail. As a private citizen I have pointed out flaws in staff reports and city policies for years that have saved the people of Wildomar tax money and time. I attend most city meetings, read staff reports, request public information, make notes and ask questions. I research issues and speak my mind on subjects that I feel are important to Wildomar without reservation. Moore: I feel that I bring compassion and willingness to act. I am blessed to have enough energy to be very responsive and able to address the community’s questions and issues quickly. What are the two biggest issues facing the city of Wildomar in the next four years that you hope to address? Mayes: Civic apathy and governmental neglect of ordinary people. Open and honest discussion is often met with complete silence. Questions are raised and never answered. People of Wildomar who speak an opinion that doesn’t match the city council are ignored or shouted down by a small group of politically connected special

NEWS for your city TEMECULA MURRIETA

interest groups. Years of this behavior have led many people of Wildomar to simply give up and move away or keep their mouth shut in public. I will not be silent, and the people of Wildomar should not be silent either. I don’t expect people to agree with everything I say. To the contrary, I expect my positions and opinions to be debated and discussed by all the people of Wildomar without fear of being ignored or personally derided. Wildomar belongs to the people and all people deserve to be heard. Moore: One of the issues facing our city is economic development. The council just approved a study to be completed by Kosmont. This study is an assessment of our community and what businesses would be a good fit here in our city and would complement the region. With this study and the addition of our first economic development director, Wildomar is positioned to attract new businesses, which in turn creates local jobs and increases the tax base. Also, since the beginning of cityhood, we have had a development impact fee to fund the addition of another fire station on the east side of our city. We, also, have included this new station in the visioning for a new 27-acre park on the east side. What qualifications or personality/intellectual traits do you have that make you appropriate or the right person for the job? Mayes: I am not a politician. My campaign is completely self-funded, and I am going to spend less than $2,000. I am an independent and active citizen of Wildomar with no special interest groups or campaign donors to answer to. I will answer only to the people of Wildomar. Moore: I am able to see all sides of an issue. I’m a team player, and I respect others. I will continue to avail myself to respond to resident’s ideas and issues and provide the support they need. Jeff Pack can be reached by email at jpack@reedermedia.com.

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Rachel Brown is a local Temecula resident with 13 years experience working with Medicare plans. Rachel began her career as an Administrative Assistant to an executive in a startup Medicare Advantage Plan. Rachel was involved in contracting, provider relations, compliance, and member services. She understands how Medicare Advantage plan benefits work from the inside out. She now heads a team of agents and brings their clients her knowledge and support. Rachel is a member of the National Association of Health Underwriters (NAHU) and has earned the special designation of being “Medicare Certified”. Rachel is the only NAHU Medicare Certified agent within a 40 mile radius of Temecula, CA. Rachel is currently working toward earning her next NAHU certification

of “Medicare, Medicare Advantage, & Compliance Requirements”. NAHU members agree to abide by the Code of Ethics, which requires them to always make health care coverage recommendations with the customer’s best interest in mind. Rachel spends an average of 80 hours annually on her Continuing Education units and certification for each years’ plan benefit options. Rachel currently enrolls for 12 Medicare Advantage Plan carriers and offers even more with Part D plans and MediGap Supplements. Rachel and her team will always put your needs first and look forward to becoming your benefits advisor and patient advocate year after year.

¿Tiene preguntas de Medicare?

Usted sabe que hay más de 47 planes de Medicare Advantage que puede escoger? Además, si usted tiene MediCal o está considerando un Suplemento, hay muchos más planes por cual escoger! Cesar Garcia es un broker independiente local que se especializa en ayudar a gente con Medicare. Los servicios que yo ofrezco a mis clientes: 1

Mantengo una licencia del estado de California que me da la oportunidad de examinar todas las opciones de los planes de seguro.Yo le ayudare a surtir esas opciones y encontrar el plan correcto para usted.

Estoy preparado para ayudarle aun en los tiempos de COVID. Podemos trabajar juntos por medio de teléfono, correo electrónico, o en persona con máscara y guantes si usted lo desea.

Yo soy su vecino. Yo vivo en el condado de Riverside y estoy familiarizado con los doctores locales, los hospitales, planes de seguro y recursos adicionales para ayudarle a usted. No hay cobro por mis servicios. Mi prioridad es responder sus preguntas, presentarle todas las opciones que se ofrecen, y ayudarle a inscribirse al plan correcto para usted.

Por favor llameme con sus preguntas de Medicare. Apreciaría la oportunidad de ayudarle y yo seguiré ofreciendo mi ayuda durante todo el año.

Cesar Garcia CA Lic #0M07490

(951) 440-9242

email: cesar.abins@gmail.com Al llamar el número previsto usted será dirigido a un agente de seguros con licencia. Medicare no ha revisado o avalado esta información.

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Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

Local

Menifee City Council allocates more CDBG money for homeless, food programs Tony Ault STAFF WRITER

The Menifee City Council, seeing the city’s homeless population in need of more help, resolved to make a “substantial amendment” to its 2019-2020 annual action plan and provide additional funding for public food services and homeless outreach services provided by the nonproﬁt Social Work Action Group. SWAG has a professional services agreement with the Menifee Community Services Department to address homeless issues impacting the community. A greater need to help the homeless in the city was identified by the new Menifee Police Department after the department took over the city’s law enforcement from the Riverside County Sheriﬀ’s Department in July. Since the city received $307,232 in Community Development Block Grant funds from the federal Housing and Urban Development for overcoming some of issues facing the city’s low-to-medium income

residents due to the coronavirus pandemic, a 2019-2020 action plan was needed to be referred to HUD. The plan was amended to include more help for the homeless population and older adults in the city. At their Wednesday, Sept. 16, meeting, the council moved to use the $307,232 in CDBG funds to cover the food service needs and help the homeless along with money to provide a computer lab program for their use. The council designated $162,754 to the public service food activities, $50,000 for the public services computer lab program, $33,032 for the SWAG group and $61,446 needed by city staﬀ to administer the program. A public hearing was conducted on the amendment with no objections were noted. The council also held a public hearing on a related issue that ended with the approval of the 2019-2020 Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report with the amendment for the city’s CDBG program that will be submitted to HUD. Councilmember Lesa Sobek

commended the staff for amending the CDBG to provide the homeless more help through the cooperative SWAG group and other members thanking the new police department for bringing the idea to the council. The CDBG is not connected to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act funding being provided to the city, according to staff. The council also decided to maintain its Model Home Complex Signage Standards and the Building Industry Kiosk Program but add a new homes website for the Menifee. The discussion came up after a major homebuilder asked them to put more signs up throughout the community to advertise their new home offers, because what they were allowed was not helping the public’s inquiries and home sales. While determining the city would not change the standards, the council was favorable to placing a new link on its website providing potential new homeowners interested in moving to the city to

quickly find the new and growing housing developments available with the touch of finger. The website would provide many details for each of the new homes for sale and their locations. Staff was asked to develop the new website with the help of the Building Industry Association and local developers. “It saves them (the potential home buyers) gas driving around town looking for the homes they might be most interested in,” one councilmember said. The city manager and staff were asked by the council if they were ready to implement the new “Red Tier” coronavirus when it changes, now possible within the week. City manager Armando Villa said the staff already had those contingency plans in place, but they were going to move cautiously in opening up the city hall to the public on a limited basis. As of last week, Riverside County and its cities remained in the state mandated purple tier of the “Blueprint for a Safer Economy,” the state four-color coded

tier system to determine what businesses and other public facilities can move to limited reopenings, depending upon the new coronavirus cases, their hospitalization and death rates. The counties in the purple tier region are the most serious for the spread of the deadly virus. Moving to the red tier allows the county coronavirus spread risk to be considered “substantial” rather than “widespread” and will permit churches, gyms, nail salons, restaurants and other businesses which were previously called “unessential,” to reopen inside their establishments taking due precautions and continuing to follow the 6-foot space, mask wearing and smaller crowd numbers. The Riverside County Board of Supervisors at their ﬁrst October meeting may consider a fullopening of all businesses in the county with the basic coronavirus restrictions still in place. If the action is taken, it may be in direct conﬂict with the governor’s tier level opening plan. Tony Ault can be reached by email at tault@reedermedia.com.

Mayes backs out of chamber’s Wildomar District 4 council forum Jeff Pack STAFF WRITER

Wildomar District 4 city council candidate Kenneth “Kenny” Mayes declined to participate in a Murrieta/Wildomar Chamber of Commerce virtual forum broadcast live on YouTube Thursday, Sept. 24. Forum host Patrick Ellis, president and chief executive oﬃcer of the chamber, read an email submitted to him before the live event. “After careful consideration, I’ve decided not to participate in the Murrieta chamber forum,” Ellis said, reading Mayes’ email. “My reasoning is the longtime relationship with the Murrieta Chamber of Commerce and my opponent creates a conflict of interest that denies impartiality. For this reason, I feel that the Murrieta Chamber of Commerce is

unqualified to host a fair debate for the people of Wildomar. I’m looking forward to the opportunity to debate moderated by an impartial organization.” Ellis said he responded to Mayes via email. “I did email him and assure him that we do not run debates,” he said. “We have never run debates. We only run candidate forums, which offers an equal opportunity and an equal playing field for all of the candidates.” That decision left incumbent District 4 council member Bridgette Moore as the only participant in the forum that featured questions submitted to the chamber from the public and chamber members. First, Moore was afforded the opportunity to give a candidate statement. “My family and I have lived

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and helped assist and make Wildomar into a city. Not many people can say that they’ve helped make a city,” Moore said. Ellis asked Moore what inspired her to run for her council seat again. “Well, I’m not done making a diﬀerence,” she said. “I am not a talker; I am a doer, and I just think that there are still things that we need to get done, and I still want to be a part of those things. I support all residents of Wildomar from our youth, our Little League, Boy Scouts, Girl Scout projects, all the way to our senior citizens. I volunteer. I’ve put on projects that are at the Wildomar senior center, and I just want to continue to serve our community to improve the quality of life for all our residents. “For roads, because I know that’s a big issue right now. We just ﬁnished paving 11 roads in

our community, and we’re not done. As soon as that project was done, we started working on the next batch of roads and we’re not going to stop,” Moore said. Ellis asked, “Do you see Wildomar heading in the right direction or the wrong direction and why?” “We are heading in the right direction,” Moore said. “We’ve overcome obstacle after obstacle, but now, the passage of Measure AA, the hiring of economic development director for the first time, we are headed in the right direction.” To watch the virtual forum in its entirety, visit the chamber’s YouTube channel at https:// www.youtube.com/channel/UCjnmds67mXbykH3zIb8FzhQ. Jeff Pack can be reached by email at jpack@reedermedia.com.

EVACUATIONS from page A-1

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(951) 330-1698

in Wildomar since 1998,” she said. “We moved here when my son, Jake, was a year old. Having moved a lot in my childhood, I really wanted to ﬁnd a home and where I could put down roots and living in Wildomar has done that. “The house we purchased was near a park, and I love taking my son down in the stroller to the park. Well, the next year the park closed. We weren’t a city then, and so I started attending the municipal advisory council meetings and asking how can the parks get reopened? Well, if you start asking questions, you’re going to be put on a committee. Myself and other residents fought to bring parks back to Wildomar. And in 2007, the parks were reopened. “Meanwhile, Murrieta was trying to annex a portion of us. I started volunteering for the Wildomar Incorporation Now committee

AUTHORIZED DEALER

and they’re just a lot scarier, so we went back to the fire department again this year and they said you’re still probably good to shelter-inplace but have an evacuation plan just in case.” One of the things they talked about while creating the plan was that they were surrounded by quite a few other ranches, she said. “Those people were on our volunteer list for evacuation, but we came to realize that they probably are going to be evacuating their own animals, so that’s kind of why we’re reaching out to other areas,” Purinton said. “You’ve got Fallbrook, De Luz, people in Murrieta, people in Winchester, that we can call on to come out and help if the fire’s local to us, hopefully they’ll be safe so that they can leave their animals to come help us.” They put together a full fire evacuation plan. “The list itself is pretty detailed,” Purinton said. “We have the person’s name; their contact information; where they live; what kind of vehicle and trailer they have; whether they have a two-horse trailer or a three-horse trailer or a stock trailer; if they have a place that we can bring animals to.” The sanctuary is fundraising to purchase some equipment. “We want to be able to not only get ourselves out, but let’s say there’s a fire in Fallbrook and we can help ranches here,” Purinton said. “So we have a fundraiser to buy another trailer, and we’re trying to get another farm truck donated and more portable pens as well, so that people from Fallbrook, if they need a place to go, they can come to the ranch and we can set up portable stalls for their animals.” When it comes to loading, Purinton said they would try to load the easier animals first. “The horses, the donkeys, they’re all trained. We practice with them, so in an emergency, we know that they’re gonna load,”

Sale Ranch Animal Sanctuary rescues animals that have been discarded and also oﬀers care to senior horses and those with medical Valley News/Courtesy photo needs.

Purinton said. “The other animals like the cows and the full-size pigs, the farm pigs, they’re a little bit tougher so they would probably be the second to load.” There’s also a lot of smaller animals, she said. “All the goats and sheep and chickens and dogs and everything, we have crates for all of them, and everybody’s been practicing with getting them in the crates,” Purinton said. “They’ve been pretty much raised since babies, really hands on so they’re not scared of people or anything so they should be able to just load right into the crates.” Alisa Layton said she’s known Purinton since high school and runs EQUU8 Horsemanship and Therapeutic Riding in Temecula, which is now on Sale Ranch Animal Sanctuary’s emergency evacuation contact list. “I’m one of EQUU8’s board members, so it’s kind of fun cause it’s like that whole nonproﬁt con-

nection and animal connection and all that,” Layton said. “All of our horses, our equines are 100% ready to hop in a trailer at a moment’s notice,” she said. “We also have some goats and pigs – they would probably take a little more assistance.” Layton said that they have a three-horse trailer. “Basically, if they ever need us in an emergency situation or even like a warning evacuation type of situation for ﬁre, anything like that going on, then we would be able to go out there and support them and help them pick up animals.” Layton said that it was nice to be partnering with others in the area. “If we got stuck in a situation on this side of town where we had to evacuate,” Layton said. “We would put in the call to them for some help also.” Lexington Howe can be reached by email at lhowe@reedermedia. com.

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Local Protesters bring attention to 2016 shooting death of Temecula teen at demonstration in Perris Will Fritz ASSOCIATE EDITOR

A couple dozen protesters spent much of the afternoon Friday, Sept. 25, at the intersection of Nuevo Road and Perris Boulevard, a heavily traveled intersection just under a mile north of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department’s Perris Station, where a sheriff’s deputy who shot 18-year-old Matthew Tucker in 2016, now works. Meesha Moghaddam, one of the protesters in Perris, said the first time she heard Tucker’s name was at a vigil for George Floyd in front of Temecula City Hall at the end of May, where she heard a woman reciting a poem about Tucker and his story. “When she was reading that poem, I looked up his story, and I couldn’t find anything,” Moghaddam said. “There were no news articles – there were a couple with very vague information, but it wasn’t a big story.” Protesters involved in weeks of Black Lives Matter demonstrations that took place over the summer at the Temecula Duck Pond began circulating a petition calling for the immediate firing of Michael Hamilton, the deputy who shot Tucker. Moghaddan said she and many of the other protesters were demonstrating in Perris “to let the people of Perris know who Michael Hamilton is and know that Michael Hamilton works for them, because these people don’t know. It’s big news in Temecula now, but the people of Perris have no idea. They have no idea that the guy who killed Matthew Tucker works for them.” According to media reports from a lawsuit filed against the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department over Tucker’s death. Riverside County Sheriff’s deputies Michael Hamilton and Rosa Calderon re-

sponded to a call May 4, 2016, that Tucker was depressed and suicidal. When the officers arrived, Courthouse News reported in 2018, Matthew’s mother Jenny Tucker told them her son was depressed, had a knife and was seeking “suicide by cop.” While contacting Tucker, some sort of altercation ensued, and Hamilton fired his weapon. Hamilton said during the civil suit trial that Tucker did not respond to commands to drop his knife and lunged at officers. The Tuckers’ attorney argued that officers should have tried to get a handle on the situation using nonlethal methods and that deadly force should’ve been “the last option,” especially because they were already aware Matthew Tucker was suicidal. A federal jury later cleared both Hamilton and Calderon of any wrongdoing during the civil suit trial. Tucker’s brother said in an op-ed in The Washington Post in June that his family was forced to pay the sheriff’s department’s legal fees. “The system also punished my family by ordering my parents to pay almost $18,000 in legal costs,” Tucker’s brother said in his op-ed. Protesters at the Perris demonstration said it was unconscionable that no one involved in Tucker’s death should face any consequences. “The cop is still out in the streets, living his best life, and there’s no justice,” Ashley Kampf, a protester, said. “So no justice, no peace.” Kampf said she knew Tucker and drove all the way from Phoenix to show her support. She said while it was good to see newfound attention for Tucker’s case, the reason behind it is far less than ideal. “It’s really sad that it keeps happening,” Kampf said. “When

A demonstration is held Friday, Sept. 25, in Perris near the Riverside County sheriﬀ’s station where Michael Hamilton, the deputy who shot Temecula resident Matthew Tucker while responding to a mental health call in 2016, now works. Valley News/Will Fritz photo

it happened to him, it wasn’t on the news a lot and stuff, not a lot of people knew about it.” Amir Hassan Gates, one of the protest organizers, said while he hoped to see more people show up than the 20 or so who were present around 3 p.m., he was happy to be giving attention to Tucker’s case. “We’re hoping for a bigger turnout, but it doesn’t matter if it’s two or five (people), if it’s just our group out here,” Gates said. Josh Crawford, a protester from Temecula, said he was there because “I’m just so sick of cops getting away with murder.” “I’m here for the change,” he said. “I’m here for my brothers and sisters here, and we’re just here to make a difference, make a change, and people just need to be educated why we’re saying Black lives matter. Y’all want to

talk about get used to Trump, but the thing is, you better get used to us being here, and we’ve had enough, and we’re gonna vote him out, and we’re gonna vote for the people who can’t vote. We’re gonna do this for Breonna Taylor. We’re gonna do this for Matthew Tucker, Elijah McClain, Andres Guardado, George Floyd, the list goes on and on.” Reached for comment, the Riverside County Sheriﬀ’s Department provided the following statement: “The Riverside County Sheriﬀ’s Department always wants to avoid the use of deadly force.

Take a look at some of this election’s ballot measures Will Fritz STAFF WRITER

Californians will vote on a dozen statewide ballot measures this fall. Here’s a quick look at some of the most contentious measures. Proposition 15 This proposition would increase funding for K-12 schools, community colleges and local governments by reassessing and taxing commercial and industrial property at current market value every three years. It exempts residential and agricultural properties, as well as owners of commercial and industrial properties with combined value under $3 million. The tax increase for some owners will begin in 2022, with the property of smaller businesses to be reassessed beginning in 2025. While Proposition 15 has been characterized by some as rescinding 1978’s Proposition 13, that is not entirely true as homeowners and most smaller property owners would be exempt. Proposition 17 This proposition would aﬀord voting rights to those with felony convictions who have been released from prison, but remain on parole. It would give an estimated 40,000 people the right to vote. Currently, those convicted of felonies can only vote after completing parole. Opponents argue that parole is part of one’s sentence and allows for additional rehabilitation before full rights are restored. Proposition 20 This proposition will expand the list of oﬀenses that disqualify an inmate from parole programs – adding several crimes to the designation of violent felonies and turning back some reforms enacted between 2011 and 2016 that were enacted with the intention of reducing the state prison population. It will also authorize felony charges for some theft crimes that are currently only chargeable as misdemeanors, including some charges for thefts between $250 and $950. Perhaps most notably, it would require those convicted of some misdemeanors to submit DNA samples into a state database. Proposition 21 This proposition would allow

local governments to establish rent control on residential properties more than 15 years old – and it’s important to note that it would only allow rent control, not require it. Rent increases on rent-controlled properties would be allowed up to 15% over three years from previous tenant’s rent in addition to any increase allowed by local ordinance. The proposition exempts individuals who own no more than two homes from new rent-control policies. Opponents are concerned that Proposition 21 will discourage improvements to property and generally make rental property less available. It’s opposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Proposition 22 This proposition would allow rideshare drivers for companies like Uber and Lyft to remain classified as independent contractors rather than employees – dealing a major blow to Assembly Bill 5. At the heart of the issue is the fact that independent contractors are not entitled to some protections that are afforded to employees, such as minimum wage, overtime, unemployment insurance and workers’ compensation. Under Proposition 22, companies would be required to provide alternative benefits like minimum compensation and health care subsidies based on driving time, while allowing individuals the freedom to choose work as an independent contractor. Proposition 25 This proposition is perhaps the most significant change to California’s criminal justice system that has come before the voters. It will eliminate cash bail and allow judges to determine whether a defendant should be released before trial using a system based on flight risk. Proponents said the proposition would go a long way toward reducing the amount to which the justice system favors the wealthy – those with the means are often released on bail while

And, it is especially sad when we have a case like we saw back in 2016 with Matthew Keith Tucker. Tucker, who was dealing with a mental health crisis according to his family, repeatedly lunged at two deputies with a large knife and they discharged their service weapons in self-defense when he charged at a female deputy and nearly stabbed her. A jury heard the case, evaluated the evidence and found the deputies acted properly.” Will Fritz can be reached by email at wfritz@reedermedia.com.

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lower-income arrestees may be forced to stay behind bars until their trial, regardless of their innocence. But opponents say it could leave too much power in the hands of judges in terms of determining public safety and whether persons arrested are likely to return for trial. Because this is a referendum on Senate Bill 10, a “no” vote essentially vetoes the bill and retains the cash bail system. Will Fritz can be reached by email at wfritz@reedermedia.com.

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Volume 20, Issue 40

‘Together, We rise’ is theme of Temecula Chamber’s virtual Women in Business conference Will Fritz ASSOCIATE EDITOR

The Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce held its Women in Business conference online for the ﬁrst time Tuesday, Sept. 22, due to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. With a theme of “Together, We rise,” the conference’s keynote speakers were Tina Wells, founder and CEO of Buzz Marketing Group, and Celeste Ducharme, vice president of self-storage development at The Rancon Group. Stephanie Howells Scoville of dōTERRA Blue Diamond and Annamaria Loven of Lululemon also led workshops on “Leading a Team Through Uncertain Times” and “The Practice of Possibility,” respectively. Wells is a business strategist, adviser, author and founder of RLVNT Media, which is “a multimedia content venture serving entrepreneurs, tweens and culturists with authentic representation,” according to the Chamber of Commerce, and has been recognized by Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative People in Business and other publications. Wells shared some of the ways she has been supported and helped by other women – going with the “Together, We rise” theme – during her career, giving her publicist as one example. “I still remember the day Katie gave me a call and she said ‘I’m going to tell you something right now that is going to change your life,’ and I thought, ‘OK, that’s a little dramatic. What could Katie possibly tell me that’s gonna change my life?’” Wells said. “And she proceeded to tell me that I was going to be in a cover story for O Magazine on entrepreneurs that they love, and I thought at that moment, ‘OK, this is deﬁnitely a life changing experience,’ and I was very, very fortunate to have Katie advocating for me to have her telling my story and to have her really coordinate what really became one of the most important

Tina Wells, founder and CEO of Buzz Marketing Group, speaks virtually to viewers of the Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce’s Women in Business conference. Valley News/Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce photo

business moments of my life.” Wells discussed not only the ways she had been helped by other women, but also the ways in which she said she has tried to give back during her career. One impactful experience for Wells, she said, was visiting Uganda on behalf of the United Nations Global Entrepreneurs Council. She and her group visited a remote island there, where a group of women entrepreneurs wanted business advice. “I can’t tell you how humbling that was for me,” Well said. “You know, here I am thinking I have challenges as an entrepreneur, thinking all the complicated things I have to think about back at home, but I have running water. I have electricity. And I am humbled and awestruck. And here are women who had created businesses that are sending their children to private school, that were creating a huge impact on their economy and their environment, and they were asking for advice about scaling their businesses.” Wells said a second big moment for her was deciding to launch Elevation Tribe, a platform she

said she started two years ago “to help women launch, grow and lead companies.” “And my real focus there is on women of color,” Well said. “You know, I obviously, as a woman of color, a Black woman who started in marketing and advertising over 25 years ago, I recently read a statistic I’m glad I didn’t know at the time – less than 10% of executives working in marketing communications and advertising are women of color, Black women.” She said in her early career she had not understood the impact she was making just by being a Black woman in business. “I didn’t understand, at the time, the impact that my career was having for other women who would open magazines like Essence and read my story and really learn about what I was doing,” Well said. “I was just doing this thing that I loved to do, this thing that I had been passionate about since I was a teenager, but I didn’t really understand yet this idea around representation.” She said she watched a few years ago as more networks and organizing groups popped up for

women to assist each other in business and noticed that women of color were a missing piece. “What was really missing for me was women who looked like me,” Well said. “And I thought if I couldn’t see that, maybe there were other women who couldn’t see it as well.” She said Black women have unique challenges that she wanted to help other Black women overcome. “If I needed that kind of community, if I needed that kind of tribe, maybe other women did as well,” Wells said. Ducharme, while keeping in the same theme, focused her speech on challenges she has overcome and her advice to others to do the same. Ducharme, according to the chamber, has spent more than 30 years “building businesses and managing teams within several high-proﬁle companies such as Nordstrom, Dennis Uniform Company, The Rancon Group and Ranch RV & Self-Storage.” She also is a co-author of the book “Turn Possibilities into Realities” and will be appearing in

the Netflix documentary “Beyond the Game.” Ducharme said whatever her successes are now: “Ladies, life hasn’t always been this way. Yes, I’ve had to go from frazzled to fabulous time and time again.” She said while she knew her parents loved her and each other, she struggled with self-esteem issues in her preteen and teenage years, in particular because of a relative in Los Angeles who she visited during her summers. “Her comments about the clothes I loved to wear, the makeup, they were harsh, they cut through like a knife,” Ducharme said. One moment that stood out to her was a birthday present she received one year from that relative. “I opened the first present. I ripped off the wrapping paper; I opened the box, and it was as though time had stood still. I was numb,” Ducharme said. “It was a gift certificate to lose 10 pounds at a nutrition program. Not the feeling a little girl would expect to have on her birthday.” Ducharme said when her parents divorced as she began high school, it added to the pain. “I turned to some things for comfort,” Ducharme said. “Maybe you can relate during this time of COVID-19. This pain, this pandemic, where food, alcohol, and yes, sometimes substances, seem to take away the pain.” Ducharme said she does wonder how she survived her teenage years, but she did have one positive thing to put her energy into. “I had one huge thing going for me; I loved sports. I was talented at what I did,” Ducharme said. Success at the things she is good at, Ducharme said, is what has always kept her going. “One of the biggest things I want you to walk away with today is find something that feeds your heart and soul, that gives you strength to overcome,” she said. Will Fritz can be reached by email at wfritz@reedermedia. com.

Prevent the pandemic from spoiling your retirement Albert Lalonde SPECIAL TO VALLEY NEWS

The coronavirus pandemic has brought the possibility that some older workers will have to retire sooner than they planned. One factor is that people 65 and above are considered to be among the highest-risk groups for severe illness from COVID-19. Thus, as the economy opens back up, baby boomers in particular are thinking twice about returning to office environments that could expose them to an increased risk of contracting the disease. And while in some cases retirement decisions will be voluntary, retirement may be essentially decided for some older workers due to jobs being eliminated as struggling companies restructure. One report showed retirements of people from 50 to 65 and over have surged because of the pandemic. Medicare eligibility starting at age 65 and full Social Security benefits soon thereafter become economic incentives. But as people know, it takes a lot more than government aid to get through the retirement years. And for older workers who planned to work long enough to collect full Social Security benefits but instead retired earlier, that could have permanent financial consequences. Filing at the earliest age of 62 will get the retiree only 75% of their annual full benefit. Whereas every year they delay filing for Social Security past full retirement age brings an additional 8% until they turn 70. People often keep working as long as they can so they can

continue to add to their retirement savings while also benefiting from employer-subsidized health insurance. Many older workers from the 40s on up think they will need to work longer because of the current economic crisis. But due to the pandemic, people seem to have less control over length-of-career considerations than ever before. And because of that, it ups the ante on taking care of their retirement funds in advance of retirement and knowing ways to grow them and balance the risk to them. When trying to figure out how to protect a retirement portfolio in the uncertain months ahead, remember that sometimes, trying to protect against future market volatility can result in major investing mistakes. Here are some examples to avoid during this recession. Being too conservative Finding a foothold for financial stability is on many people’s minds given these nervous times, but stability can be taken a bit too far. For example, focusing almost exclusively on fixed-income investments limits growth potential. They won’t match the growth of equities when the economy rebounds. One rule of thumb: the majority of those not yet retired should put at least half of their portfolios in equities, and the younger one is, the higher the percentage of equities. You can reduce risk and achieve stability by improving the quality of your equities, such as those with wellregarded management and consistent customers and those that have paid dividends over a long period.

Adobestock/Cozine photo

Ceasing to invest While some companies have paused matching employee 401(k) programs due to the pandemic, it’s not out of the question that they’ll one day resume when a recovery ensues. But no saving plus no investing equals putting themselves much further behind for retirement. If they can aﬀord to contribute to an individual retirement account or 401(k) during the recession, do it. Suspending investing because of concerns that their positions will lose value is a backsliding strategy that can bite them later. As the economy climbs back, share prices increase, but

if an investor sat on cash while waiting for a recovery, they won’t benefit from the upswing. And later on, they’ll pay higher prices for those shares, when they could have gotten them for less. Trying to time the market Basing investment decisions on current market conditions is tricky. Some people are making those kinds of decisions, such as selling oﬀ or pausing contributions, to protect themselves from future market declines. But for example, when deciding to liquidate, they later may have to decide when to reinvest. Will that timing always

be good? No. Even professional fund managers have difficulty timing the market. So it’s better to remember that an investor got into the stock market in the ﬁrst place because, over long periods, history shows it often trends up. Don’t react to what’s happening today. Stick to a consistent schedule of investing. And remember: long-term growth helps fund retirements. Albert Lalonde, a financial planner and investment adviser representative, is the founder of Kaizen Financial Group. For more information, visit http://www. kaizenﬁnancialgroup.com.

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Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

Business

Keeping your career goals on track, even in a remote world VILLA PARK – Is remote work and a lack of face-to-face time with the boss derailing career advancement for ambitious employees? Possibly, but even when working from home, savvy individuals can ﬁnd ways to demonstrate they possess what it takes to move up in the organization, Kimberly Roush, founder of All-Star Executive Coaching and co-author of “Who Are You… When You Are Big?” said. “We’re living in a world in which fear and doubt are on the rise, and while staying positive can be a challenge these days, it’s still the route to success,” Roush said. “When we are in a state of positive emotions, we are more creative and resourceful. Even when you are working remotely, there are ways to bring your creativity and resourcefulness into play.” She oﬀered a few tips on how to put your best foot forward despite

the fact you, your colleagues and your bosses are working miles apart. Make the most of virtual meetings. Even when working remotely, employees will have interactions with their supervisors and co-workers through Zoom, email, phone calls or text messages. “Your attitude during those interactions can make a big diﬀerence in how your boss views you,” Roush said. “Do you come oﬀ as an upbeat problem solver? Are you someone who always comes up with the ideas, or are you someone who squelches them?” Don’t let the stress show. The pandemic has taken its toll on nearly everyone, but be careful about letting others know how much the stress is getting to you, Roush said. “You want to be seen as someone who handles stress well, not someone who freaks out when times get tough,” she said. “CO-

VID-19 isn’t going to be the last crisis your company faces, and career advancement is more likely to happen for those who can show they handle diﬃculties well.” Meanwhile, she said, one way to reduce your stress is to do things that make you happy, such as listening to a favorite song, playing with your dogs or taking a walk around the neighborhood. Be a leader even when you aren’t a leader. Anyone who wants to be promoted into a leadership position would do well to take time during this remote-working period to study how good leaders perform, Roush said. “People want to be around the best leaders because they release a positive energy that spreads to others,” she said. “They establish a company culture in which that energy thrives and where employees certainly feel comfortable to be themselves. People want to feel that they make things happen of their own volition, and powerful

leaders have the gift of encouragement. They are servant leaders who are clear about what they stand for – they have led themselves first – and now they are interested in fostering the greatness in those whom they lead.” Be aware of who influences you. As you keep in touch with friends and co-workers while you stay home, be careful about who you let into your remote inner circle, Roush said. “If you have naysayers around you telling you, ‘No, you can’t,’ then they can hamper that spirit of boldness, the voice of the champion who says, ‘Yes, you can,’” she said. “If you aspire to move into a leadership position, or move further up the leadership chain, you must pay attention to who influences you. “Even in today’s remote world, the way you think about things greatly affects what you can accomplish and the opportunities you will encounter,” Roush said.

Kimberly Roush is the founder of All-Star Executive Coaching which specializes in coaching C-level and VP-level executives from Fortune 100 companies to solo entrepreneurs. She also is coauthor of “Who Are You… When You Are Big?” Roush, a former national partner with a “Big 4” public accounting firm, brings more than 30 years of business experience to her coaching including extensive work with C-suite executives, boards of directors and audit committees. She recently launched a program called “Back In the Game,” which is a threemonth group coaching program for executives in transition. Roush also is a keynote speaker and leadership facilitator, and is a charter member of ForbesSpeakers. For more information, visit http:// www.allstarexecutivecoaching. com.

EVMWD approves CFD amendment for Westlake Joe Naiman WRITER

The Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District board approved an amendment to the Joint Community Facilities Agreement for Pardee Homes’ Westlake development. The 4-0 vote Thursday, Sept. 10, with Harvey Ryan not able to participate in the vote, amended an August 2019 agreement between Pardee Homes, the water district

and the city of Lake Elsinore to add a new water transmission line for the project. Pardee Homes is developing 163 single-family homes near the intersection of Grand Avenue and Riverside Drive. The Aug. 22, 2019, EVMWD board meeting approved the original Joint Community Facilities Agreement. The creation of a community facilities district allows bonds for infrastructure to be repaid through

assessments on property. These are sometimes known as mello-roos taxes due to the state legislators who created the option for services on new development to be funded by an annual assessment. An assessment must be approved by a majority of property owners, although a developer who owns a project before it is subdivided can cast the sole vote in favor of a community facilities district. The community facilities dis-

trict may ﬁnance water and sewer facilities included in the district’s sewer capacity and connection fees which are paid to acquire capacity into the existing system. Expansion, modiﬁcation, rehabilitation or other improvements to existing facilities are also allowed to be funded by the community facilities district including engineering, planning, design and construction management costs as well as the construction expense itself.

The August 2019 agreement called for 1,650 feet of an 8-inch water transmission line on Grand Avenue east of Machado Street. The amendment added approximately 800 feet of an 8-inch water transmission line on Riverside Drive from Grand Avenue to Laguna Avenue. Joe Naiman can be reached by email at jnaiman@reedermedia. com.

5 ways older adults can safeguard against cyber criminals stealing their identity FALMOUTH, Maine – As the use of personal computers and cell phones has grown over the last two decades, identity theft has surged. One study found that over 14 million consumers were victims of identity fraud in 2018, and that their out-of-pocket costs totaled $1.7 billion. Older adults have been particularly vulnerable in recent years to online scams and telemarketing tricks. Unfortunately, another negative eﬀect of COVID-19 has been scammers targeting older adults by developing coronavirus hoaxes that prey on fears of the virus. The growing problem of identity theft for all age groups makes it vital for consumers to develop a strategy to protect their devices, and those of their loved ones, although no system is perfect, Chris Orestis, a senior care advocate known as the “Retirement Genius” and president of LifeCare Xchange, said. At a minimum, no one should give out their Social Security number to a stranger and should never click a link in an email from an

unknown source. But cyberthieves have many ways to steal identities, invade computers or raid bank accounts and credit cards. What should older adults do to protect themselves from these scam artists and criminals? “First, it’s important to understand that identity-theft protection services don’t actually stop identity theft,” Orestis said. “There is no fool-proof way to stop identity theft from happening; there are just too many different types of valuable information and avenues for cyber thieves to hack them. “The Federal Trade Commission actually prohibits identity-theft services from using the word ‘prevention,’ and if a company is promoting that as part of their service they should not be trusted. But regardless of any service you might use, no one can be disengaged from protecting their own identity. It’s important to take care of your identity and credit health with smart and regular maintenance, just like you do with your physical health,” he said. Orestis offered a five-step plan to help older adults protect their

identity. Register for fraud alerts. “You want these alerts on credit cards and bank accounts so you can be notified quickly of any suspicious activity on your accounts,” Orestis said. “With fraud alerts, data security companies and ﬁnancial services will text, email or phone you if there is a suspected security breach, or if they detect spending on a card or account that doesn’t align with your spending habits or your location.” Review accounts regularly. Vigilance of their identity protection means older adults should go over their monthly bank and credit card statements and review online account activity weekly. “Immediately notify your bank or credit companies if you detect fraudulent activity,” Orestis said. “Either freeze your account or cancel your card. If you believe there could be a problem with your credit, you can place a credit freeze by phone with each credit agency’s customer service line.” Monitor your credit reports. Orestis said monitoring credit reports from Experian, Equifax

and TransUnion is another way to find discrepancies that may indicate fraud. Don’t leave a paper trail. “It’s a good idea to get rid of physical private records and statements that include personal or ﬁnancial data,” Orestis said. “Identity thieves get into mailboxes and trash. They can use receipts to piece together your personal data, so it’s smart to shred those and avoid any kind of paper trail.” Create strong passwords. Orestis suggested mixing uppercase and lowercase letters with numbers and symbols, and to avoid using the same password for every account. “Not having a strong password on your smartphone or computer is like leaving your house with the front door wide-open,” Orestis said. “Identity thieves are counting on people to use the same or similar passwords for their electronic devices and ﬁnancial accounts. Mix up your passwords, and change them whenever you suspect an account has been compromised. “Identity theft and cybersecurity

are a very real threat in today’s internet-connected world,” Orestis said. “We all live online and are exposed to a lot of risk if we don’t do the right things to protect ourselves.” Chris Orestis, known as the “Retirement Genius,” is president of LifeCare Xchange and a nationally recognized health care expert and senior advocate. He has 25 years of experience in the insurance and long-term care industries, and is credited with pioneering the Long-Term Care Life Settlement over a decade ago. He is a frequent columnist for Broker World, ThinkAdvisor, IRIS and NewsMax Finance, has been a featured guest on over 50 radio programs and has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, CNBC, NBC News, FOX News, USA Today, Kiplinger’s, Investor’s Business Daily, Public Broadcasting Service and numerous other media outlets. For more information, visit http://www. retirementgenius.com.

Factors to consider before buying an essential business during the coronavirus pandemic HICKORY, N.C. – The shutdowns and rollbacks of businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic continue to play havoc with the U.S. economy. But the leastaffected businesses during the crisis, for the most part, have been those deemed “essential” by state and local governments, allowing those companies to remain fully operational or close to it. Meanwhile, while the idea that essential businesses can be recession-proof and even boom during a public crisis, buying one is becoming a more attractive prospect for some people, Chris

Buitron, president of Mosquito Authority, said. “Our current economic challenges as a nation are showing that owning an essential business can be a solid ﬁnancial strategy for an individual,” Buitron said. “They are practical purchases. They are not often glamorous businesses, but they make sense largely because they oﬀer services that are currently in demand, and as such they can weather economic downturns. “Some essential businesses, such as ours, are busier than ever as people are trying to maintain so-

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cial distance by staying home and not taking many vacations. People consider protection from mosquito bites and the diseases they carry as a high priority for their family’s health and outdoor enjoyment. Like other essential businesses, our franchisees provide measures of security and comfort, allowing people to enjoy being in their yards at a time so many are cooped up inside due to the pandemic. “And at the same time, all kinds of essential businesses provide ownership opportunities while millions of unemployed people are looking for new opportunities or new career tracks. Perhaps they’re looking to be their own boss and to have more control over their ﬁnancial future,” he said. Buitron suggested considering the following when weighing whether to buy an essential business. Focus on successful types of essential businesses. Among the essential businesses that have the potential to succeed even during diﬃcult economic times are: delivery services, grocery stores, convenience stores, e-commerce, gas stations, cleaning services, liquor stores, auto repair, lawn care, pest control, mailing/shipping services and contracting. “The pandemic may be with us

for a while,” Buitron said. “People will be home more often, and businesses that can service their needs while home will gain customers.” Consider franchises as ownership opportunities. While some franchises are struggling during the pandemic, others are in a better position, Buitron said. “For franchises in general, much of the industry will be entering a buyer’s market, and those with the means will find some good opportunities,” he said. “People need jobs, and franchises annually employ 9 million people in the U.S. One beneﬁt of buying a franchise is having an organizational and management team already in place to train you and help guide you. Reach out to other franchise owners to get a sense of the company’s commitment and support.” Know a bargain versus a bad investment. A relatively low sale price tempts some people into making a poor buying decision on a business. Buitron said it’s important to pore over the business’ ﬁnancial numbers that it recorded before the pandemic and do all the research possible – especially of the market where the business is located – to determine if it was on a growth track and what the competition is like. “Two questions you need to

ask yourself as a potential buyer of an essential business are: What can you bring new to the business to make it more successful, and why was or wasn’t it proﬁtable?” he said. Be sure you’re up to owning a business. “There are no guarantees with owning an essential business,” Buitron said. “The pandemic has put a spotlight on their importance, but they take lots of work and organizational skills to run. If you are someone who can’t deal well with uncertainty, buying a business any time, let alone during the most uncertain time in our history, isn’t the right choice. Buying a business and committing to it requires thorough research, a passion for the business, a solid ﬁnancial foundation and a leap of faith. “Owning an essential business brings with it the satisfaction of providing necessary services for people,” Buitron said. “In these times especially, that’s a noble pursuit.” Chris Buitron is president of Mosquito Authority, a nationwide leader in mosquito control with franchises serving communities across the U.S. and Canada. For more information, visit http://www. mosquito-authority.com.

October 2, 2020 • www.myvalleynews.com • Valley News

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Hemet skate park takes a step closer to reality with grant application submitted California Drought, Water, Parks, Climate, Coastal Protection and Outdoor Access for All Act of 2018, Proposition 68, June 5, 2018. The Statewide Park Program is a competitive grant that oﬀers agencies funding of up to $8.5 million per park for projects that

create, expand or renovate at least one recreation feature in a severely underserved community. The funding oﬀers 100% reimbursement of project costs for severely disadvantaged communities, and Hemet qualiﬁes. The grant performance period

calls for completion of construction of any awarded project by March 2025 and requires that grantees ensure operation and maintenance of the project site for 30 years. Tony Ault can be reached by email at tault@reedermedia.com.

The Hemet City Council continues its pursuit of creating a skate park on the north end of Hemet’s Gibbel Park at Florida Avenue and Kirby Street, approving two resolutions moving to project forward at the Valley News/Tony Ault photo Sept. 8 council meeting.

Tony Ault STAFF WRITER

The Hemet City Council approved two resolutions to bring a skate park to the community during its Sept. 8, meeting. The skate park has been long sought by city skateboarders and was spearheaded by former city councilmember Bonnie Wright. In 2018, at the public’s request, the city council approved a feasibility study with Stantec Consulting to work directly with community members to understand their vision for the skate park plaza proposed in the north end of Gibbel Park. The city council approved an allocation of $68,500 to complete the community outreach process, finalize the skate plaza design scheme and develop detailed construction drawings. The council also approved the city’s application for grant funding to fund the entire project. “We are grateful for the community’s collaborative involvement to bring the skate park to Hemet. The ad hoc committee and staﬀ have been diligent in keeping the momentum, and we are eager to see this project move forward as it will provide exciting new recreational opportunities for our community,” Mayor Russ Brown said. The initial design presented a skate plaza at Gibbel Park where residents could skate with their peers in a safe environment. The park may include skate amenities such as a snake run, bowl and quarter pipes and would cover between 12,000 and 15,000 square feet at the park.

The next stages of development will include additional conversations with the Hemet community to settle on a final vision for the plaza, as well as finalizing the application to the Statewide Park Development and Community Revitalization Program for a $1.95 million grant to construct the skate plaza. Should the city receive the funding needed in partnership with the California Department of Parks and Recreation, the city will receive 100% reimbursement of all costs expended and the skate park could be completed by March 2025. “The city of Hemet is excited about the opportunity to bring a skate park to the community, and we are working hard to see that this comes to fruition,” Chris Lopez, city manager of Hemet, said. “With the approval of council, our teams are moving quickly to complete our application as well as bringing a complete design to the community.” In previous meetings, council members praised Wright for her work to form the ad hoc committee, which is made up of residents and city officials, to study the skate park’s feasibility. The grant application is due Dec. 14, and the city will receive notification by summer 2021. The Statewide Park Development and Community Revitalization Program Grant Program is funded under Proposition 68 and will distribute $395.3 million for eligible parks projects during the fourth round of funding. The grant funding was first envisioned when California voters passed the C

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Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

Business 73% of California’s employees believe that returning to the workplace should be optional, study reveals

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TEMECULA – Since the start of the pandemic, millions of Americans have been working from home instead of going into their usual place of work. As the economy slowly reopens, many workers in public-facing jobs, like shops, bars and restaurants, have already gone back to their workplace. Office workers are among those who could soon be asked to do the same, and the question on many people’s minds is – can their job force them to go back to work? Gomez Trial Attorneys, which has an office at 27720 Jefferson Ave. in Temecula, conducted a survey of 5,650 workers ages 18 and above which found that 73% of California employees believe that returning to the workplace should be optional. Understandably, many employees remain nervous about their health, and in particular if their fellow colleagues follow safety protocols properly and if their employers provide a safe working environment. The survey also revealed that 72% of employees would report a colleague for not following COVID-19 health protocols. Two main concerns regarding mental health have surfaced since so many people have begun to work from home: isolation and burnout, according to a Forbes article, March 17, 2020, from Garen Staglin, “When home becomes the workplace: mental health and remote work.” Moreover, as so many families – parents and children – are working and studying under the same roof due to social distancing regulations, the lines between personal and work life are blurred, making it difficult to separate the two. Over one in three, or 34%, em-

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ployees believe the mental health benefits of returning to the workplace in the company of colleagues outweigh the risks of contracting the coronavirus. Because their daily interactions with other humans usually serve to reinforce a sense of belonging and wellbeing in a community setting, without them over an extended period of time, feelings of loneliness can become consuming. Additionally, a separate study found that 52% of employees reported working longer hours when working from home as compared to those working in an office, according to a Dice article, July 23, 2019, by Nate Swanner, “Working from home doesn’t automatically solve burnout,” and 40% felt the need to contribute more than their in-office colleagues, meaning an increased risk of burnout. With many businesses unable to open at full capacity, some may be debating whether or not to implement a staggered reintroduction of employees back into the workplace. It could mean businesses allowing employees of a certain demographic, such as age, to return in stages based on their likely risk of contracting the virus. However, this appears to be a contentious debate as half of respondents believe this concept of staggered reintroduction of employees into the workplace is discriminatory. Gomez Trial Attorneys, a personal injury firm, represents clients throughout the Temecula area. The firm offers free case evaluations and can be reached by calling 619-237-3490. Submitted by Gomez Trial Attorneys.

October 2, 2020 • www.myvalleynews.com • Valley News

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Entertainment

Oct. 2-8: Lots of spooktacular events coming your way Lexington Howe STAFF WRITER

2020 Season Fall Preview The Vineyard 1924 in Fallbrook is hosting a fall preview before their grand opening of their pumpkin patch Friday, Oct. 2, from 3-7 p.m. For more information, visit http://thevineyard1924.com/. Jack and Sally Date Nite On Friday, Oct. 2, from 7-9:30 p.m., The Craft House in Temecula is hosting Jack and Sally Date Nite, a paint class workshop that includes two 16-inch by 20-inch canvases, where instructors will teach everyone step-by-step to create their own Jack and Sally from “The Nightmare Before Christmas.” For tickets or more information, visit http://www.thecrafthousetemecula.as.me/jackandsally. If you can’t make it Oct. 2, they will be having the same class again Saturday, Oct. 10. Native Plant Sale Dr. Gordon Pratt’s annual native plant sale will take place at Vail Headquarters Saturday, Oct. 3, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. This event is to help the local butterﬂy population. For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/ events/3428488497244381.

Zero Painting The Craft House in Temecula is hosting a step-by-step class painting Zero from “The Nightmare Before Christmas” Sunday, Oct. 4, 4-6 p.m. For tickets or more information, visit http://www.thecrafthousetemecula.as.me/zero. Old Town Blues Club Bill Magee Blues is live at Old Town Blues Club Sunday, Oct. 4, at 1:30 p.m. For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/oldtownbluesclubmusic. Virtual Anniversary Concert The city of Temecula is celebrating 15 years by hosting a free virtual concert available to the public Sunday, Oct. 4. The concert will feature Hawaii’s top-selling female vocalist Amy Hānaiali’i at 2 p.m. As a singer-songwriter, she’s had ﬁve Grammy nominations for Best Hawaiian Music Album. To stream the concert on Facebook, visit https://www.facebook. com/TemeculaTheater. World of Gin Devilicious Eatery is hosting a World of Gin class Tuesday, Oct. 6, from 6-8:30 p.m., in which guests will learn that no two gins are the same. It’s an outdoor tasting of diﬀerent gins across the globe. It is an event for those 21 and older. For tickets or more informa-

The Craft House in Temecula is hosting paint nights where attendees can learn to paint Jack and Sally from Valley News/Courtesy photo the movie, “The Nightmare Before Christmas.”

tion, visit www.eventbrite.com/o/ apparition-room-20222749218. 4th annual Free Halloween Home Decorating Contest Beginning Oct. 1, the city of Temecula is collaborating with the city of Murrieta in hosting a Halloween Home Decorating Contest. Residents will enter the contest

in their city, and homes will be judged based on the category they choose: scariest, most humorous, most original and best theme. You can also enter as an individual residence or neighborhood. The public will choose one overall winner from each city and will be declared the King of Hal-

loween. To register, visit http://www. temeculaCA.gov/register. The deadline to register is Monday, Oct. 26. Decorations will be judged upon the front yard only. Lexington Howe can be reached by email at lhowe@reedermedia. com.

MSJC Foundation, Menifee launch drive-in movies in October

The Mt. San Jacinto College Foundation and Menifee are partnering to launch the Cruz-In at the College Campus drive-in movie series, which is showing “Grease, Oct. 3, at the college’s Menifee Valley campus. Valley News/Mt. San Jacinto College photo

SAN JACINTO – The Mt. San Jacinto College Foundation and Menifee are partnering to launch the Cruz-In at the College Campus drive-in movie series in October at the college’s Menifee Valley campus. Tickets are required, but the community is welcome to enjoy these ﬁlms – some nostalgic and some educational. Three of the films cost $25 per vehicle, and three of the movies are free. Each showing will be limited to 80 vehicles. The movie lineup is: “My Family/Mi Familia,” Friday, Oct. 2, for free; “Grease,” Saturday, Oct. 3; “Milk,” Tuesday, Oct. 6, for free; “The Goonies,” Friday, Oct. 16;

“The Sandlot,” Saturday, Oct. 17, and “Nightmare Before Christmas,” Friday, Oct. 30, for free. All films will begin at dusk. The parking lot will open at 6 p.m. for all showings. All attendees will be required to practice safe social distancing to avoid the spread of COVID-19. Attendees must wear masks when they’re outside of their vehicles. All profits benefit the Pledge for Success, a basic-needs initiative that removes some of the barriers to student success inside and outside of the classroom by providing students funding, food, books and supplies, clothing and basic, essential hygienic items. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and reces-

sion, the needs are extremely high this year and all financial help is much appreciated for this important cause. The MSJC Foundation provides financial assistance to support student success and MSJC initiatives. The nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c) (3) corporation provides scholarships and mini grants to MSJC students and faculty and offers assistance through programs such as the Pledge for Success with funds raised from the private and public sectors. Since 1983, the foundation has been comprised of community leaders who volunteer to work with college staff to support MSJC’s specific needs. Submitted by MSJC Foundation.

Registration is open for Temecula Presents’ free student-led musical theater internship TEMECULA – Temecula invites middle and high school students, ages 13-18, who are interested in auditioning for an opportunity to perform and produce a musical to sign up for the third session of the Student-Led Arts Education Internship program that allows students to gain experience in the theater industry at no charge. Interviews and auditions are scheduled for Thursday through Saturday, Nov. 12, 13 and 14. Students who are interested in acting, directing, choreography, musical direction and other backstage positions can register to audition for a role in the cast or interview for a production team position. Temecula’s free arts education program provides youth access to three months of mentorship from professional artists and expert advisers. The program encourages dynamic, innovative community building and learning through youth-focused arts and cultural projects. Participants cast will attend classes via Zoom and/or socially distanced in person each week that will teach valuable theatrical skills and provide collaborative production experience. Rehearsals will begin Wednesday, Dec. 2,

at the Old Town Temecula Community Theater’s rehearsal room. Zak Schwank, city council member and president of the Temecula Community Services District, said, “Student participation increased by 26% and attendance increased 115% from the initial pilot program to the second session. Temecula’s StudentLed Arts Education Internship program continues to receive a generous amount of positive feedback from the community. This program plays a part in inspiring a new generation of theater lovers and exempliﬁes Temecula’s commitment to inclusion, diversity, equity and access.” This year, the program will present Roald Dahl’s “James and the Giant Peach.” The fantastical tale of a boy, his insect friends and their journey across the ocean on a giant piece of fruit features a wickedly tuneful score by the Oscar, Grammy, Tony and Golden Globe Award-winning songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul of “Dogﬁght;” “A Christmas Story;” “Dear Evan Hansen;” “La La Land” and “The Greatest Showman,” and a curiously quirky book by Timothy Allen McDonald of Roald Dahl’s “Willy Wonka” and “The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley.” Critics said that

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“James and the Giant Peach” is a “masterpeach.” Pending state health and safety guidelines, there may be four public, ticketed performances presented Friday through Sunday, Feb. 26, 27 and 28, 2021, on the Old Town Temecula Community Theater’s main stage at the end of the three-month program. Maryann Edwards, mayor pro

tem of Temecula, said, “Funding for the original program in 2018-2019 was supported by the California Arts Council’s Youth Arts Action Grant, in addition to Temecula Presents’ ongoing commitment to providing meaningful arts education opportunities. We continue to grow this outstanding, student-led program to provide access for youth to engage in

musical theater productions and experience public performances in a professional facility regardless of ﬁnancial means.” For more details on times and locations, visit http://TemeculaCA.gov/TCSD, or call the Temecula Community Services Department at 951-694-6480. Submitted by city of Temecula.

Crossword puzzle by Myles Mellor Across 1. Chinese food additive 4. They’re rigged 9. Crazy 13. “Look here!” 14. Tip oﬀ 15. “Mash” setting 16. Raiding grp. 17. Dull and tasteless 18. Duck 19. Erodes 21. Laughing dogs of Africa 22. Mother’s cooking favorites 23. H+, e.g. 24. Ellington’s famous train 25. Uncover 29. Formerly, USSR 32. Charge 34. ___ Sark 36. Shrek is one 40. False front 41. Elephant mover 42. Record company 43. Green mineral 44. Niagara source 48. Predecessor of rock steady 50. “No kidding” 51. Chiseled 54. Spot for a cabin 57. Necklace item 58. Green stretches 59. Nothing 60. Invigorate 61. Take care of 62. Garden outcast 63. Environmental menace 64. Unsmooth 65. Small speck Down 1. Fair to middling 2. Dagger cover 3. Buﬀalo Bill trademark 4. Song thrush 5. One of the men on “Two and a Half Men” 6. Fall month 7. Singing group

8. Avg. 9. Knitted together 10. Clothes presser 11. Sci-ﬁ princess 12. June honorees 15. Knock out 20. Groups of bees 21. Cool 25. Stratosphere streaker 26. Dominant idea 27. Type of gun for a trooper 28. The __ and Scratchy show 29. Tech executive 30. OJ judge 31. Dictionary abbr. 33. Emirates, for short 34. Vineyard in France 35. Says 36. It can be tender

37. Book before Deut. 38. 3 in Roman letters 39. Huﬃngton Post owner 43. Naughty 45. Devastated 46. They sang with Streisand 47. Shoe part 48. Shoulder movement 49. Cold-water seaweed 50. Cantankerous 51. Omar in Hollywood 52. Abound 53. Note-changing guitar device 54. Superman’s mother 55. Blows away 56. Small hill summit 58. Paper size Answers on page C-7

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Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

Regional News

California to pause unemployment claims for 2 weeks The Associated Press SPECIAL TO VALLEY NEWS

In this Sept. 20, 2013, file photo, visitors use the Unemployment Insurance phone bank at the California Employment Development Department office in Sacramento. The EDD office will not accept new unemployment claims until Monday, Oct. 5, as the state works to prevent fraud and reduce a backlog as more than 2 million people are out of work statewide during the coronavirus pandemic, officials said AP photo/Rich Pedroncelli, file photo late Saturday, Sept. 19.

California will not accept new unemployment claims until Monday, Oct. 5, as the state works to prevent fraud and reduce a backlog as more than 2 million people are out of work statewide during the coronavirus pandemic, officials said Saturday, Sept. 19. Nearly 600,000 Californians are part of a backlog where their unemployment claims have not been processed by the state’s Employment Development Department for more than 21 days, the state said in a news release. There are also 1 million cases where residents received payments but are awaiting a resolution to their modiﬁed claims. The Employment Development Department has been hampered throughout the pandemic by outdated technology at a time when California is seeing an unprec-

edented wave of unemployment claims. While the department estimates that about 2.1 million residents were out of work statewide last month, California’s unemployment rate fell to 11.4% in August, down from 13.5% in July. Anyone who files new claims until Oct. 5 will be asked to provide contact information so the Employment Development Department can reach out after the two weeks is over. Californians who are already in the unemployment system are not expected to see an interruption in their payments during the two-week period. The state has 1.6 million pending unemployment claims that still need eligibility verification, according to the Sacramento Bee. Officials do not expect that to be resolved until late January. The state plans to implement a new online identity verification tool during the two-week period

that would reduce the number of claims needed to be processed by hand and potentially reduce suspected fraud. “New claimants should not see a delay in beneﬁt payments, and in fact many of them will actually get their payments faster as they avoid the older time-intensive ID Veriﬁcation process,” Sharon Hilliard, director of Employment Development Department, said in a letter dated Sept. 19, to California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Hilliard’s actions, including the two-week pause on new claims, stem from recommendations made by an unemployment “strike team” that was appointed by Newsom in July. The governor wanted the team to address the current unemployment issues from the pandemic, as well as consider long-term solutions to get the department better suited for future economic downturns.

Hundreds of activists join California Dems to remember Justice Ginsburg during the Vote 2020 Day of Action SACRAMENTO – The California Democratic Party launched the Vote 2020 Day of Action, Sunday, Sept. 20, mobilizing voters from across the state and nation to prepare for Nov. 3. Nearly 700 activists gathered virtually to hear from Congressmember Barbara Lee, California Secretary of State Alex Padilla, CADEM Chair Rusty Hicks, AntiRecidivism Coalition executive director Sam Lewis and Candelaria Vargas, school board trustee for Stockton Uniﬁed School District. The speakers highlighted the importance of voting during the 2020 election season while paying

tribute to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. “Our country mourns the loss of a giant, an icon and a warrior for democracy, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. In her nearly three decades of service on our nation’s highest court, she fundamentally changed life for women in America, and changed our entire nation for the better,” Lee said. “Justice Ginsburg was a pioneer for reproductive rights, civil rights and equal protection under the law. Without her leadership and conviction, the world would be a diﬀerent place for women, people of color and other marginalized communi-

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ties. Her tenacious ﬁght for gender equality in the face of powerful opposition, and her historic opinions and dissents on the bench, bent the arc of history toward justice. As courageous as she was intelligent, her decency, her legal brilliance and her commitment to a democracy that serves all, rather than the few, make her a model for the next Supreme Court Associate Justice and for all justices that will follow her.” “California Democrats are saddened by the passing of Justice Ginsburg,” Hicks said. “As we reﬂect on her life, we are determined to continue the march toward progress. We will honor the legacy of Justice Ginsburg by making our voices heard in the halls of power, in the streets of our communities and at the ballot box on Nov. 3.” Vargas, a school board trustee in Stockton, led the event in remembering Ginsburg. “As a Latina, former foster kid, survivor of a household of domestic violence and sexual abuse and

RIVERSIDE COUNTY – Approximately 1,179,959 voter information guides started going out to Riverside County voters Thursday, Sept. 24, for the presidential general election Tuesday, Nov. 3. Material in the voter information guide will help voters make informed choices. Voters may mark their selections on the voter information guide and use it to help them complete their oﬃcial ballot. The Registrar of Voters recommended that voters review the materials before casting an official ballot. If voters do not receive an information guide in the mail, it will be available online at http://www.voteinfo.net starting Monday, Oct. 5. Voters also may call the registrar’s oﬃce at 951486-7200 or 800-773-8683 to request a mailed copy. The Nov. 3 election is a countywide election. Registered voters in all areas of the county are eligible to cast votes in this election. For questions about voting eligibility, contact the registrar’s office at 951-486-7200.

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their campus is closed. There is no time to rest – keep registering voters.” “Almost every aspect of our lives has something to do with voting,” Lewis said. “People have fought and died for us to be able to vote freely. They’ve literally sacriﬁced their lives so that our voices could be heard, so that we would have a voice in the democratic process in our cities, counties, states and country.” During the event, CADEM encouraged all of Californians to get involved. The volunteers will share information about voting in 2020 and vote-by-mail as well as provide resources to community members through the voter protection hotline, which is scheduled to open up Oct. 20, until the polls close Nov. 3. For more information, visit https://cadem.org/vote/voterand-vote-by-mail/. Submitted by California Democratic Party.

County voter information guides on the way for Nov. 3 presidential general election

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mother of two brilliant little brown girls, I wanted to share what RBG meant to me,” Vargas said. “Her life was a revolution that paved the way for young women to be seen, heard, believed and valued. Justice Bader Ginsburg spent her life rising above – despite adversity. She fought against gender discrimination, unified women across the world and stood ﬁrmly against patriarchy and sexism.” During the event, California leaders applauded the recordbreaking number of registered voters in the Golden State. “Voters are ﬁred up and ready,” Padilla said. “We have over 21 million registered voters in California. Nearly 85% are registered to vote – a rate we have not seen in nearly 70 years. But that means there are still 4 million unregistered and eligible. And there are an unknown number of voters who need to update their registration – they moved, been displaced by fires or maybe they’re college students back at their parent’s house since

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Voter assistance centers and ballot drop-off locations are printed in the voter information guide. A Spanish-language version of the guide will be available at http:// www.voteinfo.net and a copy can be mailed upon request. Deadlines for the Nov. 3 election include Oct. 5 – first day of early voting in the Registrar of Voters’ office and first day the registrar will mail vote-by-mail ballots to voters and Oct. 19 – last day to register to vote or change political party preference for the Nov. 3 election. The last day the registrar may accept mailed requests for voteby-mail ballots is Oct. 27. After that date, voters must go to the registrar’s office to request and pick up a vote-by-mail ballot. Voters who have requested but not received a vote-by-mail ballot by Oct. 27 should contact the registrar’s office at 951-486-7200. The first day of voting at voter assistance centers is Oct. 31, and Election Day is Nov. 3. Vote-by-mail ballots must be

received by the elections oﬃcial, no later than the close of the polls on Election Day or be postmarked on or before Election Day and received no later than 17 days after Election Day to be counted. If you want to register, update your address or change your political party preference, you must complete a voter registration application and submit it by Oct. 19. Register online at http:// registertovote.ca.gov or request a paper application by calling 951486-7200. Eﬀective Jan. 1, 2017, conditional voter registration is available to eligible voters in California pursuant to Election Codes 2170 through 2173. Conditional voter registration extends the existing 15-day registration deadline to eligible voters, allowing them to register and vote 14 days before an election through Election Day. An eligible voter would need to register directly at any voter assistance center, to conditionally register to vote and vote a provisional ballot. Submitted by Riverside County.

Memorial service honors Big Bear Interagency Hotshot SAN BERNARDINO – The memorial service for fallen U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service firefighter Charles Edward Morton was held Friday, Sept. 25, at 11 a.m. at The Rock Church at 2345 S. Waterman Ave. in San Bernardino. The service included an Honor Cordon outside the church, the Posting of Colors, the Hotshot Prayer, a Bell Ceremony, presentations to the family and Charlie’s “Last Call,” a tradition that honors a firefighter who has fallen in the line of duty with a final radio call, recognizing the end of his watch. Attendance to the service was limited to invited guests due to space and social distancing guidelines. The public was encouraged

to attend the service virtually on livestreams posted to The Rock Church website and YouTube channel and to the Facebook page for San Bernardino National Forest. Morton, a Big Bear Interagency Hotshot squad boss, died while engaged in ﬁre suppression operations on the El Dorado Fire Thursday, Sept. 17, 2020. He began his career with the Forest Service in 2006. Cards and condolences may be sent to the Morton family at: P.O. Box 63564, Irvine, CA 92602. For FedEx and/or UPS: 1 League No. 63564, Irvine, CA 92602 in care of “Support for Charlie.” Submitted by U.S. Forest Service.

October 2, 2020 • www.myvalleynews.com • Valley News

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National News

Trump taps ‘eminently qualified’ Barrett for Supreme Court

In this May 19, 2018, ﬁle photo, Amy Coney Barrett, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit judge, speaks during the University of Notre Dame’s Law School commencement ceremony at the university in South Bend, Indiana.

South Bend Tribune via AP, ﬁle photo/Robert Franklin photo

Zeke Miller, Lisa Mascaro and Mary Clare Jalonick THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

President Donald Trump nominated Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court Saturday, Sept. 26, capping a dramatic reshaping of the federal judiciary that will resonate for a generation and that he hopes will provide a needed boost to his reelection effort. Barrett, a former clerk to the late Justice Antonin Scalia, said she was “truly humbled” by the nomination and quickly aligned herself with Scalia’s conservative approach to the law, saying his “judicial philosophy is mine, too.” Barrett, 48, was joined in the Rose Garden by her husband and seven children. If confirmed by the Senate, she would fill the seat vacated by liberal icon Ruth Bader Ginsburg. It would be the sharpest ideological swing since Clarence Thomas replaced Justice Thurgood Marshall nearly three decades ago. She would be the sixth justice on the nine-member court to be appointed by a Republican president and the third of Trump’s first term in office. Trump hailed Barrett as “a woman of remarkable intellect and character,” saying he had studied her record closely before making the pick. Republican senators are lining up for a swift confirmation of Barrett ahead of the Nov. 3 election, as they aim to lock in conservative gains in the federal judiciary before a po-

tential transition of power. Trump, meanwhile, is hoping the nomination will galvanize his supporters as he looks to fend off Democrat Joe Biden. For Trump, whose 2016 victory hinged in large part on reluctant support from White evangelicals on the promise of filling Scalia’s seat with a conservative, the latest nomination in some ways brings his first term full circle. Even before Ginsburg’s death, Trump was running on having confirmed in excess of 200 federal judges, fulfilling a generational aim of conservative legal activists. Trump joked that the confirmation process ahead “should be easy” and “extremely noncontroversial,” though it is likely to be anything but. No court nominee has been considered so close to a presidential election before, with early voting already underway. He encouraged legislators to take up her nomination swiftly and asked Democrats to “refrain from personal and partisan attacks.” In 2016, Republicans blocked Obama’s nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court to fill the election-year vacancy, saying voters should have a say in the lifetime appointment. Senate Republicans said they will move ahead this time, arguing the circumstances are different now that the White House and Senate are controlled by the same party. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the Senate will vote “in the weeks ahead” on Barrett’s

confirmation. Barrett is expected to make her first appearance Tuesday, Sept. 28, on Capitol Hill, where she will meet with McConnell; Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, the chair of the Judiciary Committee, and others. Hearings are set to begin Oct. 12, and Graham said he hoped to have Barrett’s nomination out of the committee by Oct. 26. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi warned that a vote to confirm Barrett to the high court would be a vote to strike down the Affordable Care Act. Schumer added that the president was once again putting “Americans’ health care in the crosshairs” even while the coronavirus pandemic rages. Biden took that route of criticism, as well, framing Trump’s choice as another move in Republicans’ effort to scrap the 2010 health care law passed by his former President Barack Obama. The court is expected to take up a case against it this fall. The set design at the Rose Garden, with large American flags hung between the colonnades, appeared to be modeled on the way the White House was decorated when former President Bill Clinton nominated Ginsburg in 1993. Barrett, recognizing that flags were still lowered in recognition of Ginsburg’s death, said she would be “mindful of who came before me.” Although they have different judicial philosophies, Barrett praised Ginsburg as a trailblazer for women and for her friendship with Scalia, saying, “She has won the admiration of women across the country and indeed all across the world.” Within hours of Ginsburg’s death, Trump made clear he would nominate a woman for the seat. Barrett was the early favorite and the only one to meet with Trump. Barrett has been a judge since 2017, when Trump nominated her to the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. But as a longtime University of Notre Dame law professor, she had already established herself as a reliable conservative in the mold of Scalia, for whom she clerked in the late 1990s. She would be the only justice on the current court not to have received her law degree from an Ivy League school. The eight current justices all attended either Harvard or Yale. The staunch conservative had become known to Trump in large

part after her bitter 2017 appeals court confirmation included allegations that Democrats were attacking her Catholic faith. The president also interviewed her in 2018 for the vacancy created by the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy, but Trump ultimately chose Brett Kavanaugh. Trump and his political allies are itching for another fight over Barrett’s faith, seeing it as a political windfall that would backfire on Democrats. Catholic voters in Pennsylvania, in particular, are viewed as a pivotal demographic in the swing state that Biden, also Catholic, is trying to recapture. While Democrats appear powerless to stop Barrett’s confirmation in the Republican-controlled Senate, they are seeking to use the process to weaken Trump’s reelection chances. Barrett’s nomination could become a reckoning over abortion, an issue that has divided many Americans so bitterly for almost half a century. The idea of overturning or gutting Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 decision that legalized abortion, has animated activists in both parties for decades. Now, with the seemingly decisive shift in the court’s ideological makeup, Democrats hope their voters will turn out in droves because of their frustration with the Barrett pick. “Justice Ginsburg must be turning over in her grave up in heaven, to see that the person they chose seems to be intent on undoing all the things that Ginsburg did,” Schumer said. Trump has also increasingly embraced the high court – on which he will have had an outsize hand in reshaping – as an insurance policy in a close election. “We don’t have to do it before, but I think this will be done before the election,” Trump told reporters Saturday. “I think it’ll send a great signal to a lot of people.” Increases in mail, absentee and early voting brought about by the coronavirus pandemic have already led to a flurry of election litigation, and both Trump and Biden have assembled armies of lawyers to continue the fight once vote-counting begins. Trump has been open about tying his push to name a third justice to the court to a potentially drawn-out court fight to determine who will be sworn in Jan. 20, 2021. “I think this will end up in the Su-

House of Representatives passes Fallen Journalists Memorial Act WASHINGTON – The Fallen Journalists Memorial Foundation, News Media Alliance, National Newspaper Association and National Association of Broadcasters commended the U.S. House of Representatives, Tuesday, Sept. 22, on passing bipartisan legislation authorizing the FJM Foundation to establish a national memorial that honors the many reporters, editors, photographers and broadcasters who have lost their lives reporting the news. “Washington has many monuments honoring those who have sacrificed their lives to protect our freedoms ⁠– yet, there is no memorial on public land to recognize the journalists who have made the same sacrifice,” Barbara Cochran, president of FJM Foundation, said. “Such a memorial will demonstrate to citizens and visitors from around the world that our country values a free press, honors the sacrifices of journalists and supports the families, friends and colleagues of the fallen.” The Fallen Journalists Memorial Act, H.R. 3465, was sponsored by Reps. Grace Napolitano, D-California, and Tom Cole, ROklahoma. Similar legislation, S. 1969, was introduced in the Senate by Sens. Ben Cardin, D-Maryland, and Rob Portman, R-Ohio. “I am grateful to my former colleagues in Congress for approving this legislation and recognizing the

sacriﬁces of those journalists who have been attacked, imprisoned and murdered around the world,” David Dreier, former chair of Tribune Publishing, said. “This memorial will be a testament to our commitment as a nation to the freedom of the press and an enduring symbol of freedom.” “Over our nation’s history, hundreds of U.S. journalists have lost their lives while bringing critical news and information to Americans,” David Chavern, president and CEO of News Media Alliance, said. “We applaud members of the House of Representatives for voting to approve the Fallen Journalists Memorial Act, which recognizes the ultimate sacrifice that these journalists have made to bring high-quality journalism to the public and to shine a light on domestic and world events. We also commend Representatives Raul Grijalva, D-Arizona; Grace Napolitano, D-California, and Tom Cole, R-Oklahoma, for their leadership in championing the legislation.” “Journalists put their lives on the line for the American public whenever they go out into the world to cover conﬂict,” Matthew Adelman, president of the National Newspaper Association and publisher of the Douglas (Wyoming) Budget, said. “They do it because they believe in the public’s right to know. But they cannot always do their jobs safely. We recognize their valor and com-

mitment in the plans to establish a memorial to fallen journalists and hope the lessons of their contributions will help to inform future generations about the importance of journalism in our democracy.” “A free press plays an indelible role in American democracy by reporting the facts to keep communities engaged and informed,” Gordon H. Smith, president and CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters, said. “Sadly, hundreds of journalists have lost their lives throughout our history performing this invaluable public service. NAB, local radio and TV stations and our broadcast network partners thank the House of Representatives for passing the Fallen Journalists Memorial Act to honor their memory, and we strongly support the establishment of this monument to their ultimate sacriﬁce.” The legislation authorized the FJM Foundation to establish a memorial on federal land in Washington to commemorate America’s commitment to a free press by honoring those journalists who sacriﬁced their lives in service to that cause. It precludes the building of such a memorial on what is known as the “Reserve,” the area of the Mall in Washington, where new commemorative works are prohibited. The measure also prohibited the use of federal funds. It required the FJM Foundation, which operates

under the auspices of the National Press Club Journalism Institute, to follow a particular process to ensure that the memorial is appropriately designed, constructed and located and that sufficient private funds are provided to the National Park Service to maintain the memorial. Other organizations supporting the legislation include the Military Reporters and Editors Association, National Federation of Press Women, Committee to Protect Journalists, Freedom Forum, News Leaders Association and Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and the Radio Television Digital News Association. The FJM Foundation was established to support the enactment of the Fallen Journalists Memorial Act and, once enacted, to lead the eﬀort to raise funds to design, develop, construct and maintain a memorial that will be an enduring tribute to the reporters, photojournalists, producers, editors and others who have died while performing their jobs as journalists. The FJM Foundation operates under the auspices of the National Press Club Journalism Institute, which is the nonprofit educational aﬃliate of the National Press Club. Additional information about the FJM Foundation can be found at http://www.fallenjournalists.org. Submitted by National Newspaper Association.

Thousands of people packed the National Mall in downtown Washington Saturday, Sept. 26, to pray and show their support for President Donald Trump.

The march, which stretched from the Lincoln Memorial to the U.S. Capitol, was held just hours before Trump was set to announce he was nominating a conservative judge for the Supreme Court. Few in the crowd wore masks. Some sported red caps with the

words “Let’s Make America Godly Again,” a play on Trump’s signature MAGA caps. Vice President Mike Pence, speaking from the steps of the memorial, said he came to extend Trump’s “greetings and gratitude” and asked them to pray for the new

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Thousands march in Washington to pray and show Trump support The Associated Press SPECIAL TO VALLEY NEWS

preme Court,” Trump said Wednesday, Sept. 23, of the election. “And I think it’s very important that we have nine justices.” No Democratic senators are expected to vote to confirm Barrett before the election, even though some did support her in 2017. Two Democrats still serving in the Senate who voted to confirm Barrett in 2017, Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia and Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, now say it’s too close to the election to consider her nomination. Meanwhile, outside conservative groups are planning to spend more than $25 million to support Trump and his nominee. The Judicial Crisis Network has organized a coalition that includes American First Policies, the Susan B. Anthony List, the Club for Growth and the group Catholic Vote to help confirm Barrett. The Republican National Committee has launched a $10 million digital campaign of its own, in conjunction with Trump’s reelection campaign.

Supreme Court nominee. The march was organized by the Rev. Franklin Graham, a prominent conservative evangelical and Trump supporter. Many in the crowd appeared to be students of Liberty University in Virginia.

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Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

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Section

SPORTS October 2 – 8, 2020

www.myvalleynews.com

Volume 20, Issue 40

Local UFC fighter prepares for Abu Dhabi, readies himself for Fight Island match

Wisconsin based UFC ﬁghter, Sam Alvey, who lives in Lake Elsinore, will face Da Un Jung Saturday, Oct. 25, at UFC 254. Valley News/Courtesy photo

JP Raineri SPORTS EDITOR

It is no secret that the Temecula Valley has seen its fair share of professional fighters set up shop, especially when it comes to the UFC. One of the most prolific fighters to settle down in the area is Dan Henderson, who is one of the godfathers of the mixed martial arts world. At the time of his retirement after UFC 204, he was the oldest fighter on the UFC roster. Henderson is an owner of the Team Quest Fitness Gym located in Temecula, where on any given day you will almost certainly run into another great local UFC fighter, “Smile’n” Sam Alvey. Alvey is an American professional mixed martial artist, currently competing in the light heavyweight division of the UFC. A professional MMA competitor since 2008, Alvey has also formerly competed for Bellator, King of the Cage, the MFC, and was a contestant on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Carwin versus Team Nelson. The name “Smile’n” Sam, well that comes from the fact that he is always smiling, he said. “It’s just one of those things that stuck with my since I was kid,” Alvey said. Originally from Waterford, Wisconsin, Alvey competed in football and wrestling at Waterford Union High School and was a musician. He played trumpet in the school’s marching band and went on to Lakeland College to play the trumpet semi-professionally. In college, Alvey began competing in pankration before eventually transitioning into a career in mixed martial arts.

In June 2014, it was announced that Alvey had signed with the UFC. He made his debut Aug. 16, 2014, against Tom Watson at UFC Fight Night 47. He lost the backand-forth fight via unanimous decision. Alvey was expected to return to action against Khalil Rountree Jr. March 28, at UFC on ESPN: Ngannou versus Rozenstruik, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was postponed. Once UFC owner Dane White stood his ground and kept his business flourishing on TV, at the height of the pandemic, Alvey jumped in and faced Ryan Spann Saturday, May 9, at UFC 249. He lost the fight via split decision. Now boasting a 33-15-0 record, Alvey is scheduled to face Da Un Jung Saturday, Oct. 25, at UFC 254. For the past six weeks, Alvey has undergone intense camp training and said he feels great with less than a month to go before his match. “My schedule is very dialed in thanks to my trainers at Dynamic Fitness and Dan Henderson’s Team Quest facility,” Alvey said. Though he and his family reside in Lake Elsinore, Alvey spends most of his day training in Temecula, before hanging out with his family. He has five children with his wife McKey Sullivan, who was winner of the 11th cycle of “America’s Next Top Model,” and the day starts early for his squad, usually around 6:30 a.m., he said. “We are up early getting ready for the day so they can get their schooling started, and then they help me or my wife out with daily duties,” Alvey said. “I am usually at my workouts at 9 a.m., then team workouts at 10:30 a.m. Once

Boasting a 33-15-0 record, “Smile’n” Sam Alvey, who has undergone intense camp training locally, is scheduled to ﬁght at UFC 254 Saturday, Oct. 25. Valley News/JP Raineri photo

I get home in the afternoon I like to take as much time off from getting beat up all day.” The afternoons in the Alvey household consist of piano lessons, trumpet lessons, ukulele and guitar lessons and homework. He said he hopes that one day his family will carry on his musical traits and who knows, maybe even form their own orchestra. As for his upcoming fight, Alvey is looking forward to the trip to Abu Dhabi, which he will make with his wife. She serves as his manager too. “He is just about four weeks out, and Sam is stronger and leaner than last camp,” Kevin Duenas, co-owner of Dynamic Fitness HPK, said. “He is healthy and feeling good and right on track for Fight Island.” “We will fly to Vegas and quarantine for two days, then take the 16-hour flight to ‘Fight Island’ where we will quarantine again for another two days,” Alvey said. “I plan to relax as much as possible before training out there.” It is the second time around for fighters to hit Fight Island, beginning with UFC 253, Sept. 26, for a five-week stint in Abu Dhabi, including Alvey who will

“Smile’n” Sam Alvey, seen during a workout at Dynamic Fitness in Temecula, is a professional mixed martial artist, currently competing in the Light Heavyweight division of the UFC. Valley News/JP Raineri photo

ﬁght at UFC 254. The couple said they learned a lot about the UFC’s operations on the ﬁrst trip and can anticipate how things will go as the UFC hosts another interna-

tional event during the coronavirus pandemic. JP Raineri can be reached by email at sports@reedermedia. com.

Soboba golf tournament benefits local nonprofits Mike Hiles SPECIAL TO VALLEY NEWS

The eighth annual Soboba Foundation and Soboba Casino Resort Charity Golf Tournament was scheduled for April, but when COVID-19 precautions set in, it was postponed until the end of August. The postponement did not affect the enthusiasm of the 360 golfers who took to the Soboba Springs Golf Course, Aug. 30 through Sept. 1. Ensuring golfers’ safety, they were spaced out with only 30 foursomes playing each day. Ten local nonprofits were chosen to receive $10,000 for their respective programs, including Boxing for Christ, Cops 4 Kids & Communities, Friends of ValleyWide Foundation, Grandfathers for Golf, Historic Hemet Theatre Foundation, Hemet Unified School District’s SAILS ATP Program, Natives in Recovery, Ramona Humane Society, San Jacinto Unified School District and T.H.E. Center Inc. “It was great hearing from everyone that they were glad we

found a way to have the tournament,” Isaiah Vivanco, tournament director and chairman of the Soboba Tribal Council, said. “We know these organizations need these funds now more than ever before, so we were happy to be able to find a way to make it work, even if it was a little different this year.” In the past, volunteers from the tournament’s beneficiaries helped with all aspects of the event. This year, most volunteers were tribal members and their families. Also, the tournament employed a contactless drive-thru registration process as well as curbside pickup of raffle prizes. Winners of each drawing were notified via an app that was developed specifically for the event. It also provided constant contact between players and event organizers. Face masks were required to be worn and prepackaged breakfast and lunch to-go meals were provided to all players. Since there was no end-of-play see SOBOBA, page C-2

Soboba Foundation members get ready to tee oﬀ during the ﬁrst day of the Soboba Foundation and Soboba Casino Resort eighth annual Charity Golf Tournament at the Soboba Springs Golf Course, Aug. 30, including from left, president Dondi Silvas, member-at-large Sally Moreno-Ortiz, member-at-large and tournament director Isaiah Vivanco, member-at-large Monica Herrera and secretary Michelle Modesto. They removed their face coverings for the photo. Valley News/Carlos Puma/Puma Images photo

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Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

Sports

NCAA suspends all Division 1 on and off-campus recruiting activity through Jan. 1, 2021 JP Raineri SPORTS EDITOR

The NCAA lifted their Division 1 suspension of in-person recruiting earlier in September, but after careful consideration, they have once again suspended all activity, including all face-to-face contacts on and off college campuses through Jan. 1, 2021. They have also recommended college coaches cancel any scheduled official and unofficial visits. The NCAA has also loosened their eligibility standards. Student-athletes enrolling in a D1 or D2 program full time during the 2021-2022 academic year will not be required to take the ACT or SAT. With little debate, Division II institutions approved legislation that will ease recruiting restrictions on multiple fronts. To make better use of new technology and to put athletes on a more level playing field with nonathletic recruits, colleges supported a number of changes. D-II coaches can now visit with players as many times as they want beginning June 15, following the prospect’s sophomore year in school. D-II coaches can now send

unlimited correspondence and make unlimited phone calls beginning June 15, following the prospect’s sophomore year in school. D-II coaches can now send unlimited instant messages and text messages beginning June 15, following the prospect’s sophomore year in school. As long as the correspondence is private, a Division II coach can send a recruit a direct message on Facebook, but they cannot write on the recruit’s “wall.” Coaches in Division III can now use unlimited text messaging to communicate with recruits, which will ease communication with students who increasingly prefer texting to email or phone calls. While recent developments surrounding the coronavirus pandemic impact more than just sports and recruiting, the Valley News sports department will remain dedicated to helping student-athletes and their families navigate the changing landscape of recruiting during this time. One thing 2021 recruits can do to stay on top of their recruiting is make phone calls to recruiting coordinators. Be sure to create a plan and prepare questions before picking up the phone to ensure

Mark Emmert, president of NCAA, speaks at a news conference about recent changes in the recruiting Valley News/AP ﬁle photo process.

the conversation is productive for both parties. Email is also a great way to start the recruiting conversation and continue a dialogue between coaches and recruits. Finally, since college coaches are unable to recruit in

person, with no sports in eﬀect at the time, make sure that highlight video is up to par with the most recent clips available. Ask current coaches to help in the process as well. The Valley News will continue

to provide routine updates surrounding college recruiting, youth sports and breaking news as it develops. JP Raineri can be reached by email at sports@reedermedia. com.

Journey at Pechanga instructor receives second consecutive golf education award TEMECULA – Randy Chang, PGA director of instruction at Journey at Pechanga, received the Teacher of the Year Award from the Southern California PGA. It is the second consecutive year that Chang has earned the award for his dedication to golf education. Eleven of 1,700 golf professionals in the Southern California section have received an SCPGA award. The Southern California Section of the PGA of America promotes the enjoyment and involvement in the game of golf and contributes to its growth by providing services to golf professionals and the golf industry. Chang oﬀers programs such as Pechanga’s Tiny Tees lessons, Journey Golf Academy and Golf for Girls seasonal golf clinics, which go hand in hand with SCPGA’s mission. Chang said he is dedicated to early golf education and believes that encouraging youth’s positive habits by way of golf sets a precedent for a healthy lifestyle in the future. “I am so humbled to be one

of the very few who received a SCPGA award, and what I am even more grateful for is that the award recognized what I’m most proud of in my career… teaching,” Chang said. “My No. 1 mission in the golf industry is to spread my passion for the sport to our youth to not only inspire them to adopt healthy lifestyles, but to also teach them proper form when they’re young so that it carries on throughout whatever golf career they may have.” Chang has more than 35 years of professional golf experience and has been recognized by the PGA and golf industry with several prestigious awards. In addition to his commitment to educating youth and adults at Journey at Pechanga and Randy Chang Golf Schools, he is also one of the Golf Channel’s Golf Academy instructors in Southern California, as well as the founder of the Aloha Academy of Golf in Hawaii. Journey at Pechanga’s championship golf course is consistently

rated among the top public courses in California. The par-72, 18-hole golf course winds across 7,219 yards. A challenging and rewarding course, it presents a range of topography – canyons, ravines, open fairways and a tee shot with a 175-foot drop. It is currently open to the public with restrictions and limited use to maintain the health and safety of guests, team members and the community. For more information on golf instruction with Chang or Pechanga’s other golf professionals, or to learn more about Journey at Pechanga’s COVID-19 safety policies, call 951-770-8210 or visit http://www.pechanga.com. Submitted by Pechanga Resort and Casino.

Earlier in September, Randy Chang, PGA director of instruction at Journey at Pechanga, receives the Teacher of the Year Award from the Southern California PGA. Valley News/Courtesy photo

V TE

Howard Feigenbaum Treasurer, City of Hemet

I Stand For:

Experienced:

• Safety and Liquidity • 31 years Registered Financial • Experience & Service Principal • Realizing City of Hemet Goals • 40 years in Financial Industry As an elected official, my responsibility is to the people. I believe the Treasurer can provide an independent voice in measuring the City’s financial status. As Treasurer, I will advocate for having the City explore sources of additional revenue that are not dependent on taxpayer increases to meet budgetary needs.

howard-feigenbaum-for-city-of-hemet-treasurer-2020.com

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Sonia Ramos, founder and CEO of Boxing for Christ and coach Jack Flores display the $10,000 check they received as one of 10 beneﬁciaries of this year’s charity golf tournament, with Soboba Foundation members who are socially distanced behind them from left, vice president Jacob Briones, president Dondi Silvas and membersat-large Sally Moreno-Ortiz, Monica Herrera and Isaiah Vivanco. Valley News/Carlos Puma/Puma Images photo

SOBOBA from page C-1 banquet held for all participants as in the past, organizations were asked to send one or two representatives to the Soboba Foundation’s board meeting, Sept. 14, to receive their checks. Visits were scheduled in 10-minute intervals to allow for social distancing. Jeff Penn, executive director of Cops 4 Kids & Communities, said his group was honored and grateful to be among those selected this year. “My guess is most nonprofit organizations globally have been negatively impacted by COVID-19. Unfortunately, we are no different from them,” he said. “One of the main challenges is the financial health of our organization that has been significantly impacted due to not being able to have our fundraising events (Battle of the Badges, etc.) with COVID-19 looming around every corner. As always, the incredible Soboba Foundation is there to help our community, especially in these uncertain times.” As a first-time recipient of funding made possible by the charity

golf tournament, Penn said that the gift will make a difference for his organization. “Simply put, without the kindness and generosity of the Soboba Foundation, we would be in a world of hurt,” Penn said. “During this turbulent and uncertain time, I am absolutely humbled by the compassion and generosity of the Soboba Foundation and all of their members. Because of the amazing people at Soboba, we are and will remain strong.” Dawn Lawrence, coordinator of San Jacinto Unified School District’s communications and emergency preparedness, said her district has implemented gamechanging programs as a result of being beneficiaries of past tournaments. This year, the funds will be used to purchase Native American literature for every school library in the district. The idea was inspired by Joseph Ontiveros, tribal historic preservation officer at the Soboba Cultural Resource Department, when he presented to SJUSD teachers and administrators at the January 2020 Equity Conference. “Now with the new school year underway, albeit distance learning

only, school library media technicians and the district librarian will start planning for library additions with the help of the American Indian school, family and community liaison before October,” Lawrence said. Boxing for Christ was chosen as a beneﬁciary at past tournaments and said the gift made a diﬀerence for their year-round program. Some of this year’s money will be used to buy gym equipment. With new restrictions in place due to COVID-19 requirements and the fact they can only meet outdoors and not inside their gym, there was a great need for equipment geared for outdoor use. “Soboba Foundation has helped us get to national tournaments, where we have brought home national champs. Because of Soboba Foundation’s help, we have a boxer that made it to the 2020 Olympics as an alternate,” Sonia Ramos, founder and CEO of Boxing for Christ, said. “It takes a whole community to raise these at-risk youth and Soboba Foundation has shown that they care about the youth.”

October 2, 2020 • www.myvalleynews.com • Valley News

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Education

TVUSD requires proof of enrollment for grab-and-go meals after rush from outside district Will Fritz ASSOCIATE EDITOR

The Temecula Valley Unified School District has made some adjustments to its grab-and-go meal distribution after it was overwhelmed with demand in September, a problem district officials said was exacerbated by families from outside the district driving in to receive food from TVUSD campuses. As of Monday, Sept. 21, families can collect free meals from all six TVUSD middle school campuses for all students enrolled in the district and their siblings under the age of 18, as long as proof of enrollment is shown. Enrolled students do not have to be present to receive meals, but non-enrolled siblings must be, according to TVUSD. Meal collection is only available Mondays between 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; families receive five days’ worth of breakfast and lunch for the week. The week before, no identification or proof of enrollment was required – and that’s what district officials said created the problem. TVUSD, which has about 28,000 enrolled students, began Monday-only food distribution at some school sites, Sept. 14. That day, the district prepared about 40,000 meals, expecting that to be sufficient for the student population. But the district quickly found demand outstripped supply, Lori Ordway-Peck, TVUSD assistant superintendent for business support services, told the district’s board of education later that week. “We had no idea we would have that kind of demand, and if you are familiar with the enrollment in our district 40,000 meals should have been more than enough,” Ordway-

Nutrition Services employees from Temecula Valley Uniﬁed School District transport school lunch meals for families with students enrolled in TVUSD to a drive-up lunch meal distribution operation. Valley News/Shane Gibson ﬁle photo

Peck said. “What we learned is that word got out throughout the southwestern portion of our county and even into northern San Diego County that we were not checking ID.” The district knows that was the case because those individuals told the district, Ordway-Peck said. “We know that because people have called and complained and said things like, ‘I drove all the way from Menifee and you ran out of food,’” Ordway-Peck said. “We know this because we have seen social postings that commented on the wonderful quality of food from people who live in Murrieta. We know this from a number of sources, including neighbors telling on neighbors.”

Ordway-Peck said that left some TVUSD families unable to receive food, Sept. 14. “The behavior was unfortunate,” she said. “We had people actually driving from school to school. We had people calling us up who resided in other districts calling and scolding us because we ran out of food, and they aren’t even residents of our district. There was really kind of unfortunate behavior from people and at the detriment to our own students.” Boss said when the district offered a similar program with no ID requirement in the spring, it did not experience the run on services it saw Sept. 14, and it’s not entirely clear why. “Any reasons why at this time

would be speculation and assumptions that in the spring it was early and families possibly weren’t as significantly impacted financially,” Boss told Valley News. “Additionally, most surrounding school districts were offering similar services of having free, no ID programs in place in the spring. That is not the case at the current time. Many have remained an ID program.” The district’s solution was to require families seeking to collect meals to show proof of enrollment, although it meant that only families with at least one enrolled TVUSD student can receive meals. Parents may also show the student barcodes that were distributed during the first weeks of meals

service to receive meals. “If your student is enrolled and you do not have the barcode, you may ask our staﬀ at any of the middle schools for this card,” according to TVUSD’s website. Boss said while the district was averaging 12,000 meals distributed before the rush Sept. 14, after the new proof-of-enrollment restriction, the district still distributed more than 32,000 meals, Sept. 21. “This is a big increase over previous weeks so we are deﬁnitely seeing a dramatic increase and need within our own TVUSD community,” Boss said. “We were able to feed everyone who showed up for food.” Five days’ worth of meals will continue to be provided free of charge and can be collected from 11 a.m to 1 p.m. Mondays at the following locations: Bella Vista Middle School, 31650 Browning St. in Murrieta; James L. Day Middle School, 40775 Camino Campos Verde, in Temecula; Erle Stanley Gardner Middle School, 45125 Via Del Coronado, in Temecula; Margarita Middle School, 30600 Margarita Road, in Temecula; Temecula Middle School, 42075 Meadows Parkway, in Temecula and Vail Ranch Middle School, 33340 Camino Piedra Rojo, in Temecula. If Monday is a holiday, the district will provide four-day packs of meals at the same time Tuesdays, TVUSD said. According to the district, meal packs will include breakfasts and lunches for the week, a variety of fruits and vegetables, a half-gallon of 1% white milk and a half-gallon of juice. Will Fritz can be reached by email at wfritz@reedermedia.com.

Hemet San Jacinto Valley honors high school seniors HEMET – The Hemet San Jacinto Student of the Month program began its eighth year of recognizing local seniors for demonstrating character, integrity, love of learning, involvement in school activities, athletics and community service. Students are nominated by teachers or other school personnel for making a difference in their home, school and community. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic’s limitations regarding public gatherings, the event was held virtually Thursday, Sept. 10. More than 50 participants logged in to the Zoom meeting where students shared their stories and sponsors and administrators offered their support. Program founder and meeting host Karena Zermeno also represented Altura Credit Union, one of the sponsors. Seven students were introduced after the Pledge of Allegiance was led by San Jacinto Unified School District’s Vincent Record and an opening prayer was given by Jeff Johnson, pastor of San Jacinto Assembly of God church. Johnson said circumstances were forcing people to become more creative and develop things they wouldn’t normally have, and the honored students were no exception. Hemet Unified School District schools honored Aurora Thomson, Alyssa Hamlett, Krishna Koka, Drake Colice and Vanessa Hinojosa Contreras. San Jacinto Unified recognized Kayla Walton and Priscella Ahumada. Thomson from the Academy of

Innovation was cited for her positive attitude, hard work on her studies and her dedication to others as Associated Student Body president. Hamilton High School principal Jeff Franks said his school’s honoree, Hamlett, doesn’t let anything stand in her way. She feels her biggest contribution at home is assisting her U.S. Marine Corps veteran father with his daily living needs due to injuries he suffered in an overseas tour of duty and also tutoring her younger brother in math. “A significant life lesson I’ve learned is to adapt and overcome,” Hamlett said. Hemet High School’s Koka was singled out for the honor by his teacher and coach, James Walsh. After the death of his grandmother in his junior year, Koka said it reaffirmed his desire to become a doctor and to return to the community to serve after he completes medical school. Mountain View High School honoree Walton was nominated by her English teacher, Tia Gaither. “I love caring for the earth,” Walton said. “Although I’m only one person I know I can contribute. Just because something is tough, it doesn’t mean you can’t get through it.” Ahumada was this month’s honoree from San Jacinto High School. She said that growing up surrounded by her father’s passion for art and seeing the beauty of his work attracted her to it. She hopes to inspire others like her father did for her as she pursues an entrepre-

Temecula school receives National Blue Ribbon honors City News Service SPECIAL TO VALLEY NEWS

Two schools in Riverside County, including Pauba Valley Elementary in Temecula, were named National Blue Ribbon Schools Thursday, Sept. 24, an honor bestowed on campuses based on their overall academic achievement or success in closing achievement gaps among group of students. Nearly 370 schools earned the recognition nationally, including 36 in California. The honor “affirms the hard work of educators, families and communities in creating safe and

welcoming schools where students master challenging and engaging content,” according to the U.S. Department of Education, which presents the honors. Honorees are normally recognized during a ceremony in Washington, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s event will be held virtually Nov. 12-13. The Riverside County honorees include Pauba Valley Elementary School from Temecula Valley Unified School District and James Monroe Elementary School from Desert Sands Unified School District.

The students honored in September’s Hemet San Jacinto Student of the Month program give their acceptance speeches via Zoom, Thursday, Sept. 10. Creative Industries Media Group/John P. Hess photo

neurial career in the entertainment industry. Tahquitz High School recognized Colice who was described as “a natural conversationalist and wise beyond his years” according to assistant principal Matthew Centofranchi. Formerly in foster care, Colice said that experience helped him become resilient. “I want to prove to myself that I can be whatever I want, despite my past,” he said. Contreras plans to attend the University of California Riverside after she graduates from West Val-

ley High School in Hemet. She is an active member of National FFA Organization, Advancement Via Individual Determination and is on her school’s volleyball team. She also serves as Associated Student Body president. She plans to return to the district as a teacher once she completes her higher education. After all the students ﬁnished their acceptance speeches, Heather Perry, ﬁeld representative for Sen. Mike Morrell, added some words of encouragement for them. She chose a quote from Helen Keller: “The struggle of life is one of

our greatest blessings…It teaches us that although the world is full of suﬀering, it is also full of the overcoming of it,” she said. Christi Barrett, superintendent of HUSD, expressed her feelings to the students by telling them that “our interactions with you always ﬁll our cup and remind us of why we became educators.” For more information, visit http://www.studentofthemonth.net. Submitted by Hemet San Jacinto Student of the Month.

LEUSD shares what comes next for the district now that the county is in the red tier LAKE ELSINORE – The Riverside County COVID-19 risk tier was changed from the purple tier to the red tier Tuesday, Sept. 22. Lake Elsinore Unified School District shared anticipated actions by the district that will affect students and staff as the county moves forward. Every county in California was assigned to a tier based on its test positivity and adjusted case rate. Riverside County’s COVID-19 risk tier was moved from purple tier 1 – widespread to red tier 2 – substantial based on data from Sept. 12. The state updates risk tiers every Tuesday. In the red tier, schools are eligible to reopen by following modified inperson schedules and rigorous health and safety guidelines from the California Department of Public Health. Schools must follow guidelines for a phased reopening in consultation

with local health authorities. Concurrently with the move to the red tier, a wait period of 14 days is required to determine whether or not COVID-19 case and positivity rates are sufficiently stable for schools and other sectors of the economy to reopen. For parents who indicated a preference for 100% distance learning when surveyed last summer, a follow-up survey was sent Tuesday, Sept. 22, to ask if they want to continue distance learning for the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year. The LEUSD board of trustees and executive staﬀ have been working in unison with the Lake Elsinore Teachers Association and California School Employees Association and its Chapter 598 to develop plans to safely and eﬀectively reopen schools during the 2020-2021 school year.

LEUSD will present its draft 20202021 School Reopening Plan and timelines to the board of trustees at the regular board meeting Thursday, Oct. 8. Safety measures under the reopening plan include facilities modifications for maintaining social distancing and cohorts; controls for movement within the school; implementing health screening for students and staff; compliance with facial coverings requirements and personal protective equipment; daily sanitizing and disinfection protocol; reporting exposure to COVID-19 and outbreak notification; staff training and family education, hygiene practices and communication plans. The district said parents can watch for upcoming news and information via ParentSquare. Submitted by Lake Elsinore Unified School District.

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Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

Health

Susan G. Komen Inland Empire 2nd annual More Than Pink Walk is going virtual for 2020 RIVERSIDE – Susan G. Komen Inland Empire’s second annual More Than Pink Walk will be held virtually Sunday, Oct. 11. The decision to conduct its signature fundraising event virtually this year was made in the interest of protecting the health and safety of its participants from COVID-19, many of which are breast cancer survivors and those living with the disease. Registration is $15 for all participants, and participants are encouraged to form teams and fundraise and join a community of virtual walkers. Leading up to event day, the Komen Inland Empire aﬃliate will curate a virtual community experience that will engage participants, motivate and incentivize fundraising through supported local Facebook groups; a national mobile app, participant challenges and participant generated content. The virtual opening ceremony on Walk Day will honor survivors and those living with metastatic breast cancer, celebration of participants and inspiring stories of resilience and more. The impact of COVID-19, including rising unemployment, quarantines and an overburdened health care system are causing the perfect storm for breast cancer patients who have questions or need care. Funds raised through the virtual More Than Pink Walk will address urgent needs in the local breast cancer community, including: patient navigation to reduce systemic, programmatic and social barriers to breast care and services, resulting in improved outcomes for women and men in Riverside and San Bernardino counties; ﬁnancial assistance for cost of living expenses for those in active treatment; advocacy for transformative health policies and

The Komen Inland Empire More Than Pink Walk honors survivors and those living with metastatic breast cancer at the 2019 walk, celebrating participants and inspiring stories of resilience and more. Valley News/Courtesy photo

improved access to affordable, high-quality breast health and cancer care services and breast cancer screening for uninsured or underinsured women in need. The funds will also provide for virtual educational experiences facilitated by experts to provide critical, timely information related to breast health and COVID-19 and addressing questions and concerns on how to cope with stress and anxiety; research and clinical trials to discover new treatments and operational support in partnership with local breast health organizations to help meet higher demands they are seeing during the COVID-19 pandemic. “This year 2,300 women living in Riverside and San Bernardino counties will be diagnosed with

breast cancer. With the current pandemic and economic climate, we are all facing, coupled with the barriers to care that impact so many women and men in our communities, our work is more important than ever,” Jill Eaton, executive director at Susan G. Komen Inland Empire, said. “The decision to go virtual allows us to care for those that are immunocompromised and/or currently living with breast cancer. This transition does come with some big changes, but our goals remain the same – to raise critically important funds to support research, access to care and advocacy and to one day see a world without breast cancer.” Gearing up for the new virtual edition of the More Than Pink

Walk, Komen Inland Empire began hosting the “Ten Days of Pink” Thursday, Oct. 1, with Murrieta City Hall turning pink. On Sunday, Oct. 4, Komen Inland Empire will host a car parade at BMW of Murrieta. Inviting all the Virtual More Than Pink Walk registered participants and highlighting survivors and those living with metastatic breast cancer, participants of the car parade will stay in their cars as they enjoy a drive behind the scene tour of BMW of Murrieta. Awards will be given for the most spirited car. The car parade will be livestreamed on the Susan G. Komen Inland Empire Facebook page. Komen Inland Empire supports local patients, caregivers and survivors with resources includ-

ing patient navigation, research, transportation, diagnostics services, education and financial assistance. Community members are encouraged to register for $15 to participate in the 2020 Komen Inland Empire Virtual More Than Pink Walk as individuals or teams. For more information on this event, visit http://www.komenie. org/morethanpinkwalk. The 2020 Komen Inland Empire More Than Pink Walk is presented by Bank of America and Walgreens, with sponsors including Abbott, Pechanga Resort & Casino, Bank of America Inland Empire, Milgard Windows and Doors, The Teamsters Local 1932, BMW of Murrieta, City of Murrieta, The Camp Transformation Centers, Sam’s Club of Corona, New Day Solar, Corinthian Title and Escrow, Riverside Sunrise Rotary, Reeder Media, Katy Radio and Borrego Health. Susan G. Komen is the world’s largest breast cancer organization, funding more breast cancer research than any other nonproﬁt while providing real-time help to those facing the disease. Komen was founded in 1982 by Nancy G. Brinker, who promised her sister, Susan G. Komen, that she would end the disease that claimed Suzy’s life. Komen Inland Empire is working to better the lives of those that face breast cancer in the local community. Through events like the Komen Inland Empire More Than Pink Walk, Komen Inland Empire has invested more than $6.5 million in community breast health programs and has contributed more than $2.5 million in groundbreaking research. For more information, visit https:// komenie.org/. Submitted by Komen Inland Empire.

Defensive driving courses offers 5 benefits TEMECULA – Millions of cars travel the roads each year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicated that nearly 1.5 million people are killed in road crashes each year and approximately 3,700 people die each day in accidents around the world. The World Health

Organization said motor vehicle accidents are a leading cause of death for children and young people in various countries. Such deaths are preventable, and defensive driving strategies can greatly reduce the risk of motor vehicle accidents. Defensive driving is driving in

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a way that utilizes safe driving strategies to enable motorists to address hazards in a predictable manner, according to SafeMotorist. com. These strategies go above and beyond following basic traffic laws and procedures. Defensive driving courses can help new or seasoned drivers improve their driving skills and reduce accident risk by teaching them to anticipate certain scenarios and make well-informed decisions. Defensive driving strategies can help reduce the risk of being in an accident, and there are other benefits to these courses as well. Reduce automotive insurance premiums. Depending on where they live, drivers’ insurance premiums can be reduced by as much as 10% for completing a defensive driving course. This benefit can add up, particularly for those who have teenagers on the policy. It’s worth a call to the insurance agency to see which type of course they require. Reduce fines. Traffic courts may reduce fines for those who are ticketed and agree to enroll in defensive driving courses. Drivers looking to reduce fines should confirm that a course is recognized in the state where they live before enrolling.

Defensive driving courses can help reduce the risk of accidents and much more. Valley News/Courtesy photo

Remove ﬁnes or reduce points. Driving violations come with some consequences, namely tickets and sometimes points on a license. Too many points can lead to a suspended license. Completing a defensive driving course may remove points or tickets from your driving record. Be sure to verify the law with a court clerk or the local motor vehicle commission. Relearn the rules of the road. It may have been some time since you contemplated the rules of the road. Defensive driving courses often review information on driving laws and regulations, helping to make for more conﬁdent, lawabiding drivers.

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Learn preventative techniques. The main goal of the course is to help drivers learn the common causes of accidents and how to avoid them. Courses may teach drivers that 40% of crashes occur at intersections and that passing another vehicle within 100 feet of a bridge, tunnel or railroad crossing dramatically increases the chances of being involved in an accident, according to DriveSafe Online. There’s always room for improvement, and defensive driving courses can help drivers get better behind the wheel. Investing in a defensive driving course can improve skills, potentially save lives and even save drivers money.

October 2, 2020 • www.myvalleynews.com • Valley News

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Health The Jason Foundation offers mental health training for first responders HENDERSONVILLE, Tenn. – The Jason Foundation Inc., a nationally recognized leader in youth and young adult suicide awareness and prevention, announced a new training focused on supporting and educating first responders, who are more likely to die by suicide than in the line of duty. Police officers, firefighters and emergency medical services workers are more likely to suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder than the general public. Researchers found that elevated levels of post-

traumatic stress disorder were associated with a higher likelihood of thinking about suicide and/or having a history of suicide attempts. The Jason Foundation’s new training is titled, “First Responders Training Module: Addressing Suicide with Youth in the Community and within the Profession.” The goal of this training is to provide ﬁrst responders with the knowledge, skills and resources to enable them to be better able to recognize the signs of concern and elevated

risk factors for suicidal ideation in youth within their community, as well as in co-workers and fellow ﬁrst responders. Suicide currently ranks as the second leading cause of death for ages 10-45 in our nation. In the state of California, suicide is listed as the second leading cause for youth ages 10-24, with 26.6% of youth stating that they have seriously considered suicide in the past 12 months. During this pandemic, our ﬁrst responders have been working

around the clock to ensure that our loved ones have the care they need. Especially now, it is imperative that we provide them with the resources necessary to care for themselves, as well. To access the training, visit The Jason Foundation’s website and look for “First Responders” under the “How to Get Involved Tab.” The module was designed for both individual study and group training. As with all trainings oﬀered by The Jason Foundation, there is no charge for this educational

module. The Jason Foundation is a nonproﬁt organization dedicated to ﬁghting the “silent epidemic” of youth and young adult suicide through educational programs for young people, educators, parents and other community groups. Visit The Jason Foundation’s website for more information at http:// www.jasonfoundation.com. Submitted by The Jason Foundation.

Canyon Lake clubs partner with American More people resort to Red Cross to host community blood drives drinking alcohol to cope CANYON LAKE – American Red Cross Blood Drive is hosting a blood drive Monday, Oct. 12, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Canyon Lake Golf and Country Club, 32001 Railroad Canyon Drive, in the Magnolia Room. The drive is sponsored by Canyon Lake Womens Golf Club, Canyon Lake 9ers Golf Club and the Canyon Lake Ski Club. For more information or to make an appointment online, visit http://www.redcrossblood.org with sponsor code CLGCC. “We are committed to strengthening our community and helping meet hospital and patient needs

through blood donations,” Travis Montgomery, one of the drive organizers, said. “This blood drive is our way of giving our neighbors and friends the opportunity to help save lives.” Blood is a perishable product that can only come from volunteer blood donors. With someone in the United States needing blood every two seconds, blood products must be constantly replenished, according to the Red Cross. “We urge community members to donate blood and help ensure that patients in local hospitals have a supply of blood ready and waiting before an emergency oc-

with COVID-19

curs. There’s no better feeling than knowing that your blood donation may give someone a second chance at life,” he said. According to the Red Cross, donors with all blood types are needed, especially those with types O negative, A negative and B negative. The Canyon Lake Property Owners Association, incorporated in 1968, as a California not for proﬁt corporation, is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the common areas within Canyon Lake. Submitted by Canyon Lake Property Owners Association.

PASADENA – As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to aﬀect the lives of people across America, many resort to drinking alcohol in an attempt to ease the mental anguish they are experiencing, and that habit can result in serious health issues, a health oﬃcial warned. According to a Nielsen report, sales of at-home alcohol have grown by nearly 27% since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, suggesting people are using alcohol in an attempt to cope with a crisis that the coronavirus pandemic has on people’s lives both at home and globally. Dr. Kimberly Petrick, a family practice physician with Kaiser Permanente Southern California, warned against using alcohol for temporary relief, noting a person’s mental state may actually worsen after the buzz has faded. “If you attempt to use alcohol to dampen emotional sadness, you’re likely to feel worse once the buzz is gone, and that will likely motivate you to drink again,” she said. “Drinking is not solution that is safe or lasting for any mental health strains many people are experiencing today because of the pandemic.” Petrick said that excessive alcohol use is linked to liver damage,

Elizabeth Hospice offers Partner-Loss Support Group for parents of young children ESCONDIDO – Feelings of loneliness after the death of a spouse can be debilitating. These emotions are often heightened when there are young children in the family. While providing support to the children during this diﬃcult time, the surviving parent must also address their own grief. Partner-Loss Support Group is oﬀered free of charge from The Elizabeth Hospice for people who are grieving the death of a husband, wife or partner while raising children and teens. Partici-

pants will meet Tuesdays, Oct. 6, 13 and 20, from noon to 1:30 p.m. via Zoom. Space is limited, and attendees are required to register with Michelle Brown, licensed marriage and family therapist, at Michelle.Brown@ehospice.org or call 833-349-2054. “Support group participants will gain a better understanding of their own grief and loss,” Brown said. “They will learn new ways to enhance the well-being of their children who are also grieving and receive resources to support them

and their family.” The Elizabeth Hospice’s grief support services are available to everyone in San Diego County and southwest Riverside County, including families who do not have a patient aﬃliation with the organization. Counseling services are available for individuals, couples, families and children. For more information about grief counseling and support groups, visit http:// www.elizabethhospice.org or call 800-797-2050. Submitted by Elizabeth Hospice.

as well as liver, breast and colon cancer. “Excessive drinking can also damage your immune system, leaving you more susceptible to COVID-19 and can cause other health complications,” Petrick said. The World Health Organization said that alcohol consumption contributes to more than 3 million deaths worldwide each year. U.S. dietary guidelines recommend no more than one drink a day for women and two for men. Petrick recommended that people do other activities when feeling down, especially when feeling isolated. “Step outdoors, go for a walk and get some fresh air,” she said. “Also, it’s important to eat a healthy diet and turn oﬀ the news, your laptop and social media from time to time to take a break and relieve some of that anxiety or stress you may be experiencing.” Petrick urged anyone experiencing severe depression or other mental health issues to contact their health care provider. “Good mental health is critically important for your body to function properly,” she said. “But, drinking alcohol to soothe your mind is deﬁnitely not recommended.” Submitted by Kaiser Permanente.

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Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

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Living Free Animal Sanctuary Hi! I’m Kova, 5-year-old male Labrador Retriever/Terrier mix. My passion in life is chasing a tennis ball, and nothing makes me happier than chasing a ball that has been thrown into the dog pond. Spend some time getting to know me, and I know we’ll be great friends and go on plenty of adventures together. Let’s meet!

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Neesha, left, and Sheena are best of friends. Valley News Cindy Langlois photo

Cindy Langlois SPECIAL TO VALLEY NEWS

When I was staying in New Mexico for a short time, a friend of mine showed up with a little ﬂuﬀ ball of soft red fur. It was a 6-week-old puppy from the local animal shelter, this little puppy looked more like a bear than a dog and was as cute as can be. The challenge was going to be for my 7-year-old newly rescued longhaired German Shepherd to accept this little bundle of joy. It took about a week of my sitting between the two dogs, using a rolled-up newspaper and slapping it against my hand, to stop the already adult Sheena from swallowing the newcomer whole. It wasn’t long before they were as tight as could be and really inseparable. The new puppy needed a name, what could this cute little dog be called, something special, something to create a sisterhood between the two females. Sheena was rescued from a family who neglected her and would forget to give her water on the hottest of days in Los Angeles, left her outside by herself and the children would feed her, when they remembered. This treatment of Sheena was unacceptable and recognized by relatives of this family, who loved animals. Luckily, I was casually asking people at the restaurant I worked at if they knew of anyone who had a dog who needed a good home. I had just lost my 15-year-old German Shepherd Bear to old age and found myself sitting at the table

each night, missing my old buddy. When I asked this one couple, Cindy and Jim, if they knew of anyone who might have a dog, they both sat straight up and looked at each other and said, “Yes!” It was fantastic news, as the dog they knew of was a German Shepherd, 7 years old and ready for a new home. Sheena was brought to my condo by the same couple that week. They were concerned that maybe I wouldn’t like the dog they were bringing to me. I let them know that as long as Sheena didn’t take a bite out of me when we met that we would be fine, and I would love the dog and provide her the best possible home forever. On that memorable day, the doorbell rang, and I had set myself up in a chair with my back to the door, so as to take the pressure off the dog. I said, “Come on in!” I could hear them open the door and come in behind me. I felt a fluffy dog sit beside me, and she gently touched the back of my hand with her cold wet nose and never moved. We were a match made in heaven. This dog was going to imprint my heart like no other pet would. Well, I sat and thought about the best name for this new puppy and decided that by using all of the letters in “Sheena” and mixing them up, a new name for the fluffy pup could be, “Neesha.” Neesha was strong-willed and loved to take herself on walks within the fenced property in New Mexico. She always came back with her stories of adventure, some-

times she would take oﬀ by herself, and Sheena would round her up and guide her back home. One of her favorite things to do was to take the toilet paper directly from the holder in the bathroom and weave it through every room in the house. It was like getting toilet papered by a bunch of teenagers. To this day, I am sure I saw a smile on that puppy’s face after she bombarded the house in style. My New Mexico visit was at an end after a few weeks, and there was absolutely no way that I was going to head back to California with just one dog. Neesha and Sheena jumped into my car, and away we went and headed home. Not too long after we were back in California, Neesha developed a little limp on her left hind leg. We went to the veterinarian and after x-rays and specialists, it was determined that my little red headed dog would need leg surgery. The cost was staggering to me at the time, and even though Neesha recovered fully from her leg surgery, she went on to have three leg surgeries by the time she was 15 years old. She never complained and always healed beautifully. These three surgeries seemed to be about the same price as the Mercedes I never purchased, thus Neesha was nicknamed “My Little Mercedes.” Life was great with these fantastic pets. I took them everywhere with me, and we even took a couple of cross-country road trips. When we visited my family on the East Coast, my mother referred to them as “mutts.” “Don’t let those mutts in the house,” she said. “Your mutts are barking. Can’t you leave those mutts at your brother’s house?” Oh, it went on, and by the end of our visit, my “mutts” had names and she called them, “good dogs.” Neesha lived until she was 15, and Sheena made it to 14 years old. They were and still are dear to my heart and irreplaceable. Would I change anything about them? Maybe stronger legs for Neesha; maybe a longer life for both. Our pets are a gift, a gift to help us learn about love, joy, loyalty and trust, and sadly they also teach us a lesson about loss. Reﬂecting back on those great pets and all of our adventures, it’s hard not to feel a pretty sharp pain, shooting right through my heart. Just for the record, I will always choose a four-legged Mercedes over one with four tires.

October 2, 2020 • www.myvalleynews.com • Valley News

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Opinion Editor’s Note: Opinions do not necessarily reﬂect the views of the Valley News staff. We invite opinions on all sides of an issue. If you have an opinion, please send it as an e-mail to valleyeditor@reedermedia.com, or fax us at (760) 723-9606. Maximum word count 500. All letters must include the author’s name, address and phone number. The Valley News reserves the right to edit letters as necessary to ﬁt the publication’s format.

Ideas have consequences

Julie Reeder PUBLISHER

I’m sure someone is reading and thinking, “Another piece on critical race theory?” We will do at least two more. I’ve had many people comment or message me saying they appreciate that I’m talking about it because it’s helped them to understand what’s going on. I’m sure many people hadn’t heard of it until the president banned it from federal agencies.

I’m also being contacted by people who are immigrants or who travel extensively. They are shaking their heads trying to figure out why in a country that is considered one of the least racist and the freest in the world, people are protesting, rioting, looting and killing over racism. CRT is the answer. I covered Marxism, which is foundational to the movement. Last week, Valley News had a piece outlining how the ideology of divisiveness and shutting down discussion can only make things worse – not better. People have to be willing to offend others, or be offended themselves, if they are going to have a substantive discussion. Call the discussion mean, racist, unintelligent, oppressive or whatever you choose. Free speech is how the nation has continually made things better since its founding. If someone is a racist, let them speak. Then everyone will know exactly where they stand and be able to reason for themselves. Let’s allow alternative or even offensive

thoughts to be heard. Also, don’t be quiet, because of name calling. Have the discussion. Don’t avoid it. If it seems wrong to you, say so. When I was young, it was OK to drink and drive. How would people have ever changed that if they weren’t allowed to talk about it? Cigarettes and tobacco used to be considered good for your health. It took a cultural shift and political rigorous debate that probably hurt some feelings but was necessary to bring change. I’m sure the people on the front lines were considered “mean.” Isn’t racism an even more important debate? Ellen Krause made the point recently that CRT creates divisiveness and shuts down debate, which is not productive. CRT, derived from Marxism and the Frankfurt School, does not really seek equality or justice. It just categorizes everyone as oppressor or oppressed depending on their race, gender, sexual orientation, and it marginalizes individuals and their opinion, if this system determines the individual is part of

the oppressor group, as is outlined in “White Fragility,” a bestselling book by Robin DiAngelo. With CRT, all societal structures are believed to be racist, including political, math, science, engineering, religion, business, history, education, law, etc. Freedom and liberation only come when all existing societal structures are overthrown. History proves that authoritarianism, not utopia, follows revolution, and people need look no further than Cuba, Iran and Venezuela as examples. Revolution only served those in power. And power is the point. Not truth, not justice. Have you seen the rioters injure and kill police oﬃcers? Have you seen bands of thugs assaulting innocent diners and trying to force them to raise their ﬁst or chant? Have you heard about the veteran who defended himself and his father from attackers and was indicted and committed suicide? That was after two tours of duty in Iraq. His hope was gone. The problem is our universities

have been teaching critical race theory for decades and people didn’t know it, or at least I didn’t know it. Now the ideas are being taught to young children starting in ﬁrst grade. They are erasing and rewriting history, tearing down our culture and our small businesses, our freedoms, our laws, our churches, our schools, etc. “Every record has been destroyed or falsiﬁed, every book rewritten, every picture ... every statue and street building has been renamed, every date has been altered. ... History has stopped. Nothing exists except an endless present in which the Party is always right,” George Orwell said in “1984.” Critical race theory gives a false hope for salvation that is attained when the oppressed are liberated, but what happens when the oppressed becomes the oppressors? Julie Reeder can be reached by email at jreeder@reedermedia. com.

how the game came to the result it did. Tommy Football Fan thinks the newspaper’s account of the game should include that critical analysis and complains and writes a letter to the editor for publication in said newspaper. Is Tommy Football Fan wrong in his viewpoint? Likely not. But what Tommy Football Fan is seemingly uneducated about is the role of the journalist covering the game. Their job is to report the facts of the game. That person is ethically restricted from critically analyzing the game. Tommy Football Fan has no such responsibility toward maintaining ethics. When the visiting team’s head coach said, “I think our quarterback played a great game today,” the reporter writes that. And Tommy Football Fan can take a critical stance in saying, “Obviously the coach would say that, he wants to keep his player’s conﬁdence high, but clearly the quarterback’s play was terrible.” Is he right? Probably not. His viewpoint is personal, emotional and – here it comes – biased. As the quarterback made his passes to his receivers, could it be, might it be, that the defensive players that intercepted the passes

made outstanding plays to come up with the interception? Could be, right? But how would Tommy Football Fan see it that way? He can’t. And here we are. When a national figure is quoted, verbatim, about an issue of national significance, that is an accurate report by the journalist covering the story. Whatever, whatever, whatever comes next in the written piece, televised broadcast or radio broadcast will go one of two ways: It will present an opposing view from someone with a differing view of the issue or context in an effort to present a true representation of what was said or it will present critical analysis, spin or opinion of the quote. That’s how you know whether a story is being reported or a story is being opined on. The likes of Sean Hannity, Rachel Maddow, Rush Limbaugh and Anderson Cooper are political pundits. They are not reporters or journalists when they are sitting in a punditry position. It is their job to be entertaining and present a program that will be entertaining to their viewers or listener base. It is their job to take a quote from a political leader and inject their opinion of what the leader was saying.

That’s bias. That’s opinion. That’s not reporting. That’s not news; it’s opinion. Unfortunately, the invent of blogs and stated bias agenda “reporting” has further muddied the waters. The phrase, “consider the source” is a good example of this idea. For instance, the Heritage Foundation, which has a mission statement that leads with, “The mission of The Heritage Foundation is to formulate and promote conservative public policies…” owns the Daily Signal which purports to be a “news” organization. That’s bias in their approach to each and every story. There is a stated end goal. Ultimately, each person has a responsibility to delineate between a report and an opinion. The readers, the viewers must be able to take the facts as presented and determine for themselves their own stance on what was said. Allowing others to decipher or explain what the quote means leaves you open to inﬂuence and bias. Of course, you can choose to absorb information that way, but please don’t present those opinions as fact or a report without sharing the bias that lies in the background of your presentation. That’s how misinformation is spread.

closures. Other legislation requires insurers to provide psychiatric consultation to primary care physicians providing mental health care for children and mothers. Laura’s Law, authorizing court-ordered assisted outpatient treatment for mentally ill individuals in participating counties will now become permanent and all counties will be required to participate, unless they formally opt out. The growing problem of homelessness, heavily impacted by substance abuse and mental illness, will be addressed through creation of a new cabinet position to coordinate and consolidate programs throughout the state. Legislation expanding the ability of nurse practitioners to treat patients, including the mentally ill, along

with a bill creating a grant program expanding community-based responses to crisis situations, frequently caused by mentally ill individuals, all now await the governor’s signature. Should each of these bills become law, the result will be some of the most signiﬁcant changes to California’s mental health policies in decades. Assembly Republican Leader Marie Waldron, R-Escondido, represents the 75th Assembly District in the California Legislature, which includes the communities of Bonsall, Escondido, Fallbrook, Hidden Meadows, Pala, Palomar Mountain, Pauma Valley, Rainbow, San Marcos, Temecula, Valley Center and Vista.

This is an opinion piece

Jeff Pack STAFF WRITER

This is an opinion piece, a written expression of the opinions I hold as an independently thinking human being who lives in the community in which this newspaper is published and promoted. This is not a news report. I repeat, this is not a report of an event that has taken place. However, in this opinion piece, I may utilize news reports to form my personal opinion and subsequently express those opinions here in this collection of thought. I write this clariﬁcation because there seems to be some confusion on the subject of opinion versus reporting, and for me at least, it is a major issue in our society.

What people hear and see on cable television “news” (quotes intended) channels is often misconstrued and has – I am not sure if you’ve noticed – become a bit of an issue when it comes to delineating between what is a report and what is opinion, spin or punditry. Here is where I think it’s all gone wrong. There’s a football game happening at a local high school. The game ends in a 34-24 win for the home team. The newspaper reports the score, who scored, quotes from the players and coaches of the winning team. All things included in the report of the game are accurate, down to the last yard, down the quotes that came out of the mouths of the coaches and players. All accurate. But Tommy Football Fan sitting in the stands saw the game diﬀerently. From where he was sitting, the home team didn’t so much win the game as the visiting team lost the game. You see, the visiting team’s quarterback threw three interceptions, two in the fourth quarter and the visiting team’s defense didn’t do enough to stop the home team from scoring. Tommy Football Fan was rooting for the visiting squad. And Tommy Football Fan has a vested interest in espousing his view of

Historic mental health advances Assemblymember Marie Waldron SPECIAL TO VALLEY NEWS

This session, I am honored to be recognized as a “Mental Health Super Hero” by the Steinberg Institute because of my work on mental health policy, advancing mental health parity to physical health and working to expand access to care. In addition, I supported nine bipartisan bills, which were all forwarded to the Governor for his signature. I co-wrote three of these bills, signed by the governor Friday, Sept. 25. Senate Bill 855, writ-

ten by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, expands Californians’ ability to obtain treatment for substance abuse and mental health

A rebuttal to ‘Misinformation is toxic’ I’m responding to the Sept. 2 opinion piece by Jeﬀ Pack, “Misinformation is ‘toxic.’” The letter presents the Orwellian idea that only certain information should be allowed. What constitutes misinformation depends upon who is making the decisions. In Orwell’s book “1984” he predicted the idea of thought police. We see these thought police represented in the supposedly independent and unbiased “fact-checkers” on social media who have been caught thousands of times spinning data with a political bias. The author is endorsing the same mindset where ideas he disagrees with are classiﬁed as misinformation, deemed toxic and removed from the public square. These are ideas put into practice by totalitarian regimes throughout history. I do not want the author silenced. I’m perfectly capable of engaging his ideas in the public square and demonstrating that fallacious reasoning and incongruent worldview they represent. He considers the medical doctors

who promoted hydroxychloroquine to be “cranks” then misrepresents what they said and fouls it up with a bald assertion that “…scientific studies have overwhelmingly proved to be ineffective and dangerous…” Anyone willing to do their own research will know that it is not what the studies showed. In the scientific method, a hypothesis is given, such as “Hydroxychloroquine is a good prophylactic against COVID-19 and helps with healing.” Then studies are done – typically doubleblind studies – to test that hypothesis. It is very common in science to get conflicting results between studies. That conflict requires further testing to verify or falsify the hypothesis. Once a hypothesis is verified enough times, it becomes a theory. In science, they are nowhere near the theory level when it comes to hydroxychloroquine’s effectiveness as either a prophylactic or a cure for COVID-19, but the author has already decided that anyone who disagrees with his position is a crank

disorders by requiring insurers to pay for medically necessary treatments on parity with physical health. Senate Bill 803, written by Sen. Jim Beall, D-San Jose, creates a certification process for peer support specialists to help persons going through mental health challenges and Assembly Bill 2112, written by Assemblymember James Ramos, D-Highland, supports regional and local eﬀorts to address suicide prevention. I also joined a bipartisan majority to support legislation requiring board-and-care homes serving those with severe mental illness to notify counties of any planned

and spreading misinformation. This move is the danger with his worldview. Whoever is in power gets to decide what is “misinformation” and shut it down. The author also believes that people are “misinformed” who think being forced to wear masks which are easily demonstrated to be ineﬀective as a prophylactic for uninfected people, but are fairly eﬀective in controlling the spread from infected people, but the science absolutely refutes his position. In this article, he is spreading misinformation, while calling others misinformed. Who is to decide what is and is not misinformation? In a free society, all ideas are free to be aired. No idea is to be shut down as misinformation. It is only those who fear their ideas can’t compete in the public forum who endorse the idea that ideas they consider misinformation are toxic and need to be stopped. Bill Donahue Sage resident

Answers for puzzle on page B-5

C-8

Valley News • www.myvalleynews.com • October 2, 2020

Faith

Sukkot is a great holiday whether you’re Jewish or not

Hefsiba “Jen” Cohen SPECIAL TO VALLEY NEWS

I love the essence of lemons and oranges mingled with the aroma of the cloves that embellish their skins, as my family decorates our sukkah with them. A sukkah is a booth or festive temporary holiday hut. We make paper chain decorations, and my husband helps secure the s’chach or roof together in a way that still allows the stars to be seen clearly through it. We string it with little lights, and the sight is breathtaking. For a week, we get to eat in it and sleep in it – like camping, but better, because we made the whole booth ourselves in our backyard in celebration of Sukkot. What is this holiday and why is it still signiﬁcant? Sukkot began as a commandment in Leviticus to commemorate a special time for ancient Israel. “You shall dwell in booths seven days... that your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God,”

in Leviticus 23:42-3. Originally instituted as a memorial of our reliance upon God, who liberated us as a people and provided for us the wilderness, this holiday as we know it today also has roots in the agricultural world. Often named, Hag HaAsif, or literally “harvest festival,” it was also a time of thanksgiving in an agricultural community where the outcome of a crops could make or break a nation. This festival became even more popular during King Josiah’s reign, c. 640-609 BCE, onward. Most religious oﬀerings in Judaism cannot be made without a temple, but the wave oﬀering of Sukkot is one of the exceptions. The arba minim, or the “four species,” consists traditionally of branches of willow, palm and myrtle accompanied by a citron fruit, or etrog, symbolizing the Jewish people. In a nutshell, the offering shows that we are all different yet united. A blessing is said, and they are waved in all directions, reminding us that God is in all places. More popular in ancient times, water libations also highlighted the day. This holiday was not just for Israel, however. In ancient times, 70 bulls were offered for the welfare and well-being of the 70 known nations of the world, denoting that the other nations of the world were also under God’s sovereignty. Thus, Sukkot has a universal theme. Non-Jewish nations were in mind when, after King Solomon moved the ark of the covenant

Roger Cohen poses for a photo with his daughter Koa and dachshund Olie in the backyard sukkah in 2019.

to the temple during Sukkot, he oﬀered a prayer of dedication mentioning the foreigners who will come pray at the temple, asking speciﬁcally for God to “hear and grant all that the foreigner asks,” in I Kings 8:43. Perhaps it is why people of various nations still come to Jerusalem during Sukkot. The prophet Zechariah told of a time in the future when other nations will come to Israel during Sukkot in the age of

peace, and we all look forward to such a time, in Zechariah 14:16. This year, Sukkot begins during sundown Friday, Oct. 2, and continues until sundown Friday, Oct. 9. Enjoy Sukkot, Z’man Simchateinu, the “season of our joy.” Whether you are Jewish or not, and whether you have a sukkah or not, take a pause to escape the materialism that dominates our modern world and dwell instead on gratitude to our creator while sur-

Valley News/Courtesy photo

rounded by the simple and sweet aspects of life such as time with family and friends. Congregation B’nai Chaim is located at 29500 Via Princesa in Murrieta. For more information, visit www.bnaichaim.com or https://www.facebook.com/CongregationBnaiChaim/. Hefsiba “Jen” Cohen is an adult educator and student rabbi.

Three questions to ask before you judge someone

Zachary Elliott SPECIAL TO VALLEY NEWS

My nana lives in an assisted care facility. You would think that since she lives with other people her age, who have to live in the same building and eat every meal together, she wouldn’t struggle to make friends. Sadly, that’s not always the case. Recently, Martha, one of the ladies she spent time with, came into

her room and declared, “I can’t be friends with you anymore.” Somewhat shocked my nana asked, “Oh, why is that?” “Well, Ethyl from down the hall said I shouldn’t spend time with you anymore because you’re not a good inﬂuence,” her friend said. “And do you believe them?” asked my nana. “Well, I don’t know. But that’s what she said, so I guess I better do it.” Martha said and left the room. I probably should mention that both of these ladies are in their 80s, and I’ve never seen my nana be a bad inﬂuence on anyone. Isn’t it shocking to think that even at that age, people can still be judgmental? I guess some people never grow out of it. No one likes to be judged, but sadly some people love to judge others. Thankfully, Jesus had a lot to say

about not judging others. Here are three questions you should ask before you judge someone. Do I want to be judged this way? People often judge others way more harshly than they do themselves. They need to keep in mind that the standard they use is the standard they get. Here’s how Jesus put it. “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged,” in Matthew 7:1-2. Before you cast the stone on someone’s imperfections, ask yourself, “Do I want this same stone thrown back at me?” Is there a tree growing out of my eye?

Too often, people focus on the smallest imperfection in someone else’s life when they have a significant flaw in their own. In dealing with this issue, Jesus asked, “Why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite!” in Matthew 7:3-5. A hypocrite tells other people about their problems while at the same time pretending that they don’t have any. It’s always wise to do a self-evaluation before you make a judgment. Should I deal with my issues first? The short answer to is, yes. It’s precisely what Jesus told us

to do when he said, “First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye,” in Matthew 7:5. Jesus didn’t say you have to be perfect before you can help a friend. He was simply saying that people should work on our issue before they go delving into everyone else’s. When people work on their own sin, they eat some humble pie and grow their spiritual maturity. Then when they have a friend in need, they have experienced what it means to come out of failure into the grace of God. Zachary Elliott is the lead pastor of Fusion Christian Church in Temecula. For more information, visit https://www.fusionchristianchurch. com, https://fourminutefaithbuilder. com or ﬁnd them on Instagram.

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Local

Supervisors to hold listening sessions on funding priorities

Volume 20, Issue 40

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Anza Community Hall gives Dollar General update

RIVERSIDE COUNTY – The Riverside County Board of Supervisors will hold listening sessions, Tuesday, Oct. 6, from 5:30-8 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 24, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the County Administrative Center, 4080 Lemon St., in Riverside for the community on county services and budget priorities, including public safety, behavioral health and social services. see page AVO-3

Local

F.U.N. Group disperses food donation Diane Sieker STAFF WRITER

The Friends Uniting Neighbors Group recently dispersed about 100 pallets of food, donated by a nearby school district. With less than 24-hours notice, the F.U.N. Group sprang into action to accept the donation and plan the logistics of transporting the food from the warehouse to the Anza community. see page AVO-5

Noel Donahue, left, Dan Robinson, Mike Patke, Birdie Kopp and Barbara Ann Keller listen to an update on the Dollar General store from Bill Donahue at the Anza Community Hall meeting Thursday, Sept. 24. Anza Valley Outlook/Diane Sieker photo

Diane Sieker STAFF WRITER

The Anza Community Hall board of directors hosted an open meeting Thursday, Sept. 24, where

Bill Donahue gave an update on the Dollar General store construction. Board members Noel Donahue, Dan Robinson, Mike Patke, Birdie Kopp and Barbara Ann Keller

were present. “The property next to the Community Hall was supposed to close escrow with the developer for Dollar General in early July. As the date to close approached,

see UPDATE, page AVO-3

McGowan Family Farm oﬀers fresh produce

Local

AEC holds 69th annual meeting

Diane Sieker STAFF WRITER

The McGowan Family Farm is sharing their harvest with residents of the Anza Valley at their farm stand on the corner of Tule Valley and Bradford roads in Aguanga. “All of the fruit, vegetable, and ﬂower items are homegrown by our dad, Brian McGowan, here at our property in Aguanga,” MaryRose McGowen said. The family sells pumpkins, apples, tomatoes, bell peppers, corn, zucchini, sunﬂowers, honey, homemade strawberry raspberry jam and iced cold lemonade. “Our dad has quite the green thumb, and each year his garden has grown bigger and bigger,” McGowan said. “We recognized that this year we were going to have a bountiful harvest and my mom and sister Katie came up with the idea to set up a small stand at the corner of our property so that we could share our fresh organic produce with our neighbors at

Diane Sieker STAFF WRITER

PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID HEMET, CA PERMIT #234

see page AVO-5

ANZA VALLEY OUTLOOK

The McGowan Family Farm vegetable stand is open most Saturday mornings in Aguanga. Anza Valley Outlook/Courtesy photo

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they noticed that the 1 acre parcel they are buying had never been separated from the 9-acre lot it is part of,” Donahue said. “There was

see MCGOWAN, page AVO-4

Women repaint road signs Diane Sieker STAFF WRITER

Hand-painted road signs, which were originally donated by Susan Eyer-Anderson in 2017, are getting maintenance and care, thanks to a trio of local women. Shannon Edmondson, Michelle Aarvig and Carletta GordonStokes have adopted the unique boards. They began work on the Cary Road sign Saturday, Sept. 19, touching up the images and sealing the paint against the coming winter weather. “We wanted to maintain the beautiful artwork that Susan EyerAnderson donated to our little town of Anza,” Edmondson said. “We decided to adopt a sign.” Eyer-Anderson was well known as the “Anza Phantom Artist” that created and secretly installed signs all over Anza in 2017. The signs see SIGNS, page AVO-5

Michelle Aarvig, left, Shannon Edmundson and Carletta Gordon-Stokes take a break from touching up and Anza Valley Outlook/Courtesy photo sealing the Susan Eyer-Anderson Cary road sign Saturday, Sept. 19.

AVO-2

Anza Valley Outlook • www.anzavalleyoutlook.com • October 2, 2020

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information, contact the AEC office at 951-763-4333. Regular Happenings Hamilton High School – Find out what is happening using Hamilton’s online calendar at http:// www.hamiltonbobcats.net/apps/ events/calendar/. Hamilton Museum – 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Open Wednesdays and Saturdays at 39991 Contreras Road in Anza. For more information, call 951-763-1350 or visit http://www.hamiltonmuseum. org. Find them on Facebook at “Hamilton-Museum-and-RanchFoundation.” Health, exercise, resources and recovery meetings Narcotics Anonymous Meeting – 6 p.m. Every Tuesday at Shepherd Of The Valley Church, 56095 Pena Road, in Anza. Open participation. Veterans’ Gathering Mondays – 9-11 a.m., The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 39075 Contreras Road, in Anza. Men and women veterans come to share and help each other deal with post-traumatic stress disorder and other difficulties. Call John Sheehan at 951-923-6153. If you need an advocate to help with VA benefits, call Ronnie Imel at 951-659-9884. The Most Excellent Way – Christ-centered recovery program for all kinds of addiction meets Fridays from 7-8:30 p.m. and Tuesdays from 8-10 a.m. Program is court approved; child care is provided. Transportation help is available. The group meets at 58050 Highway 371; the cross street is Kirby Road in Anza. AA Men’s Meeting – 7 p.m. Meetings take place Thursdays at 39551 Kirby Road in Anza, south of Highway 371. Alcoholics Anonymous – 8 p.m. Wednesday evenings at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, 56095 Pena Road in Anza. For more information, call 951-763-4226. Bereaved Parents of the USA – The Aguanga-Anza Chapter of BPUSA will hold its meetings 6 p.m. on the first and third Wednesday of each month at 49109 Lakeshore Blvd. in Aguanga. For more information, contact chapter leader Linda Hardee at 951-551-2826. Fit after 50 – Free “Fit after 50” exercise class takes place every Tuesday and Friday, 10:3011:30 a.m., at Anza Community Hall. Chair aerobics helps with coordination, balance and increased muscle tone. No jumping required; wear gym shoes and bring water. For more information, call leader Teresa Hoehn at 951-751-1462. Free Mobile Health Clinic – Open every third Wednesday of the month from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. No appointment is needed. Uninsured may only be seen in the Anza Community Hall’s parking lot or inside the hall. Medication Assistance and Treatment for Opioid Dependence – Get treatment for heroin addiction. Transportation to the clinic is provided. For more information, contact Borrego Health’s

Anza Community Health Center, 58581 Route 371, in Anza. For more information, call 951-7634759. Food ministries F.U.N. Group weekly food ministry – Deliveries arrive noon Thursdays at the Anza Community Hall. To order a paid box and help feed those who can’t afford to pay, drop off payment and cash donations by Thursday at 1:30 p.m., to ERA Excel Realty, 56070 Highway 371, in Anza. Pay inside or drop off during the day in the red box outside. To drop it off, put name and request on an envelope with payment inside. A $30 box has about $100 worth of food and feeds six people. Half boxes are available for $15. Food is delivered once a week to those who cannot find a ride. For more information, call Bill Donahue at 951-288-0903. Living Hope Christian Fellowship Community Dinner – 1 p.m. Dinners are held the last Sunday of the month at the Anza Community Hall. All are welcome. Donations of time, money, etc. are always welcome. Food for the Faithful – 8 a.m. The food bank hands out food the last Friday of the month until the food is gone. The clothes closet will be open too. Emergency food handed out as needed at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. FFF is a non-denominational nonprofit. All in need are welcome; call Esther Barragan at 951-763-5636. Bible Studies The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Anza – Sunday Sacrament is held 10 a.m.; Sunday School is 11 a.m. Priesthood/Relief Society meets noon; Wednesday Boy Scouts gathers 6 p.m. and Youth Night is 7 p.m. For more information, call Ruiz at 951-445-7180 or Nathan at 760-399-0727. The Wednesday Genealogy/Family History Class, 5-8 p.m., is open to the public at 39075 Contreras Road in Anza. Native Lighthouse Fellowship – 10 a.m. The group meets the first Saturday of the month, and breakfast is served. All are welcome to fellowship together at the “Tribal Hall” below the casino in Anza. For more information, call Nella Heredia at 951-763-0856. Living Hope Bible Study – 8-10 a.m. Tuesdays at Living Hope Christian Fellowship, 58050 Highway 371, in Anza. All are welcome. For more information, call Pastor Kevin at 951-763-1111. Anza RV Clubhouse – 7 p.m., the second Wednesday of the Month, Pastor Kevin officiates at 41560 Terwilliger Road in Anza. Monthly Christian Men’s Breakfast – 9 a.m. Breakfast takes place the fourth Saturday of each month and rotates to different locations. Contact Jeff Crawley at 951-763-1257 for more information. Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church – 10 a.m. Weekly Wednesday Bible study takes place at 56095 Pena Road in Anza. Call 951-763-4226 for more information. Valley Gospel Chapel – 7

a.m. Saturday Men’s Study meets weekly with breakfast usually served at 43275 Chapman Road in the Terwilliger area of Anza. For more information, call 951763-4622. Anza First Southern Baptist Church – 9 a.m. The church offers Sunday school for all ages with a 10:30 a.m. worship service and 6 p.m. for prayer and Bible study. Youth ministry meets Mondays from 6-8 p.m. The women’s Bible study meets Thursdays at 10 a.m., but it is on hiatus through the summer. Celebrate Recovery meets Fridays; doors open at 5:30 p.m. with large group meeting, 6-7 p.m.; small group share, 7-8 p.m. and Cross Talk Cafe, 8-8:30 p.m. Church is located at 39200 Rolling Hills Road in Anza. For more information, contact at 951763-4937, anzabptistchurch@ gmail.com or http://www.anzabaptistchurch.com. Clubs TOPS Meeting – Take Off Pounds Sensibly support group meets Wednesdays weekly. Weigh in at 8:30 a.m., meeting at 8:45 a.m. at Thompson Hall at the Anza Baptist Church, 39200 Rolling Hills Road, in Anza. For more information, visit http:// www.TOPS.org. High Country Recreation – Second Monday of the month attend committee meetings at ERA Excel Realty in Anza. For more information, call Albert Rodriguez at 951-492-1624 or Robyn Garrison at 805-312-0369. HCR Bingo fundraisers – 6:30-9:30 p.m. second and fourth Fridays at Anza Community Hall. Anza Valley VFW Post 1873 – Capt. John Francis Drivick III Post, the Ladies’ and Men’s Auxiliaries are located at 59011 Bailey Road in Anza. Mail P.O. Box 390433. Request monthly newsletter and or weekly menu by email at vfw1873anzaca@ gmail.com. For more information, call 951-763-4439 or visit http:// vfw1873.org. High Country 4-H Club – 6:30 p.m. Meetings are on the third Wednesday of the month, except February, at Anza Community Hall. 4-H Club is for youth 5 to 19 years old offering a variety of projects. High Country 4-H Club is open to children living in the Anza, Aguanga and surrounding areas. For more information, call Allison Renck at 951-663-5452. Anza Valley Artists Meetings – 1 p.m. Meetings are third Saturday of each month at various locations. Share art, ideas and participate in shows. Guests speakers are always needed. For more information, call president Rosie Grindle at 951-928-1248. Find helpful art tips at http:// www.facebook.com/AnzaValleyArtists/. Anza Quilter’s Club – 9:30 a.m. to noon. Meets the first and third Tuesday of each month at the Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, 56095 Pena Road, in Anza. Anza Valley Lions Club – The Anza Valley Lions Club is open to all men and women who want to work together for the betterment of the community. Guest meetings with dinner are held 7 p.m. on the first Monday of each month at Anza Valley VFW Post 1873, 59011 Bailey Road, in Anza. Meetings and events are posted on the Anza Lions Club website, http://www.anzalionsclub.org. For more information, call president Michele Brown at 760-637-9173. Boy Scouts Troop 319 – Cub Scouts meet 6 p.m. every Tuesday, and Boy Scouts meet 7 p.m. every Wednesday at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day

Saints on Contreras Road, south of state Route 371, in Anza. For more information, call Richard Hotchkiss at 951-551-3154. Boys Scouts Troop 371 – Boy Scouts meet at Lake Riverside Estates. For more information, call Ginny Kinser at 909-702-7902. Civil Air Patrol – Squadron 59 is looking for new members of all ages. For more information, call squadron commander Maj. Dennis Sheehan from the Anza area at 951-403-4940. To learn more and see the club’s meeting schedule, visit http://www.squadron59.org. Fire Explorer Program – 6 p.m. The program meets every second, third and fourth Tuesday of the month at Fire Station 29 on state Route 371 in Anza. Call 951-763-5611 for information. Redshank Riders – 7 p.m. Backcountry horsemen meet at the Little Red Schoolhouse in Anza, the second Thursday of each month. Visit http://www. redshankriders.com or call Carol Schmuhl for membership information at 951-663-6763. Anza Thimble Club – The club meets the first Thursday of the month at Valley Gospel Chapel, 43275 Chapman Road in Anza. The social hour is 11:30 a.m., and lunch is served at noon. Contact Carol Wright at 951-7632884 for more information. Organizations Terwilliger Community Association – 6 p.m. Second Monday of the month at VFW Post 1873, 59011 Bailey Road, in Anza. Potluck dinner open to all. For more information, call Tonie Ford at 951-763-4560. From the Heart Christian Women’s Ministries – Noon. Monthly luncheon and guest speaker are held the second Saturday of each month. The $5 charge covers lunch at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church, 56095 Pena Road, in Anza. From the Heart helps the area’s neediest children and invites all women and men to join in their mission. Donate or help with the rummage sales twice a year to raise funds for the cause or other events. For more information, call president Christi James at 951-595-2400. Anza Community Hall – 7 p.m. General membership meetings are held the fourth Thursday of the month. Memberships cost $20 per person or $35 per business, and both get one vote. No government funds are allocated for the Hall, which pays its bills through memberships and swap meets. Voting members receive discounts oﬀ hall rentals, swap meet booths and save on propane gas from Farrell Gas. Mail membership to: Anza Community Building Inc. at P.O. Box 390091, Anza, CA 92539. The hall is located at 56630 Highway 371 in Anza. Swap meet held each Saturday of the month, weather permitting, early morning to 1 p.m. Vendors wanted. For more information, call 951-282-4267. Anza Valley Municipal Advisory Council – 7 p.m. Second Wednesday of each odd month at Anza Community Hall. Group serves as local liaisons to the county from the community. For more information, call 951-8056800. Anza Civic Improvement League – 9 a.m. meets the ﬁrst Saturday of each month at the Little Red Schoolhouse. The league maintains Minor Park and Little Red School House, which are both available to rent for events. No government funds are allowed; the membership pays the bills – $10 a person, $18 family or $35 business membership. For more information, visit http:// www.anzacivic.org.

Anza Valley Outlook and Valley News Published weekly Mail to Corporate Oﬃce 111 W. Alvarado St. Fallbrook, CA 92028 (951) 763-5510 FAX (760) 723-9606 Corporate Oﬃce: (760) 723-7319 OUR E-MAIL ADDRESSES: anzaeditor@reedermedia.com info@reedermedia.com sales@reedermedia.com circulation@reedermedia.com

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October 2, 2020 • www.anzavalleyoutlook.com • Anza Valley Outlook

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Anza Local

County supervisors to hold listening sessions on county funding priorities RIVERSIDE COUNTY – The Riverside County Board of Supervisors will hold listening sessions, Tuesday, Oct. 6, from 5:30-8 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 24, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the County Administrative Center, 4080 Lemon St., in Riverside for the community on county services and budget priorities, including public safety, behavioral health and social services. The listening sessions will also be livestreamed from the clerk of the board’s Facebook page and at https://livestream.com/rivcolive. The events will provide an opportunity for residents to share

UPDATE from page AVO-1 was a scramble all summer trying to complete the process of the lot split. They thought it would be completed and set a new tentative closing date for Sept. 17. That date passed without the lot split being completed. This week the parcel maps ﬁnally went out to the owners for signatures. We were informed that it can take up to a month after those documents are signed to complete the process. We are now hoping to see that close of escrow in late October or early November.” The developer agreed to make major upgrades to the Community Hall’s well and water system, as well as removing the existing, undersized bathroom septic system and the temporary holding tank for the kitchen drain. They will design and install a new, properly sized, combined septic system including a grease interceptor and new leach ﬁeld. Once that work is completed, the Community Hall will use grant funds to complete the Americans with Disabilities Act compliant upgrades to accessible parking and entry ramps. “We hope to see those improvements started near the end of 2020 or very early in 2021. We have a hard date to complete all the improvements by June 2021,”

impacts and diﬃculties resulting from the coronavirus pandemic, ranging from loss of employment to in-person school closures, as well as lived experiences with systemic racism and social injustice that impacts healthy communities. “We have heard from the public loud and clear that they seek to have a voice in the county’s budgeting process, including how to further fund social services,” V. Manuel Perez, board chair and 4th District supervisor, said. “We have also heard loud and clear that the public seeks to have a voice in how our county will ﬁght against

systemic racism. The listening sessions will allow for an inclusionary process and that is why I wholeheartedly agree.” The county is partnering with the School of Public Policy at the University of California Riverside to prepare a report identifying and discussing the main, recurring themes and topics emerging from the listening sessions. The report will inform county oﬃcials as they shape the county’s organization, budget and services for the next year and beyond. “Our school is excited to work with the county of Riverside on

Donahue said. Patke introduced bylaws changes for a vote of the board and membership, including a change in membership renewal dates, member benefits and discounts, the creation of lifetime and sustaining business memberships and the elimination of term limits. Board members nominated each other for the available positions up for a vote. The vote proceeded, and the five directors were reelected. There are nine available positions on the Community Hall board, but only five are filled. No one from the membership came forward to be nominated and voted on to the board. Barbara Ann Keller was designated treasurer, Birdie Kopp as secretary, Noel Donahue as president, Dan Robinson as vice president and Mike Patke as membership director. It was announced that the Inland Empire Community Foundation recently awarded the Anza Community Building Inc. a $7,500 grant. To date, grants and large business donations obtained by Noel Donahue include a 2015 Community Development Block Grant of $162,246, an Anza Electric Cooperation donation of $2,000, 2017 CDBG of $70,000, 2019 CDBG of $100,000, 2020 COVID-19 CDBG

of $15,000, 2020 Inland Empire Community Foundation grant of $7,500, subtotaling $356,746. The Dollar General Developer grant is $150,000. The Anza Community Hall is available to rent for special occasions such as weddings, quinceaneras, parties and more. The Anza swap meet takes place in the Community Hall’s parking lot. In times of emergencies, such as power outages and ﬁres, the Hall is a meeting place for people to obtain information and supplies. The Friends Uniting Neighbors Group and Fishes and Loaves ministries use the Hall to distribute free food and meals. Community Hall Board meetings are open to the public and everyone is encouraged to attend. The next open meeting will be held Thursday, Oct. 29, at 7 p.m. Anyone interested in becoming a member of the Anza Community Building Inc. can call 951428-0901. Cash and checks are accepted. For more information, visit the Hall on Facebook at h t t p : / / w w w. f a c e b o o k . c o m / groups/337754646415866/ or on the web at http://www.anzacommunitybuilding.org/. Diane Sieker can be reached by email at dsieker@reedermedia. com.

this important and timely initiative,” Anil Deolalikar, founding dean of the University of California Riverside School of Public Policy, said. “Our public policy faculty and students, who already partner extensively with county agencies on several policy initiatives, look forward to further engagement as the county develops informed policy solutions to the multiple crises now confronting our region.” The board will discuss the next steps following the listening ses-

sions Tuesday, Nov. 10, during its regularly scheduled board meeting. The board unanimously approved the series of listening sessions Aug. 4, the same day it approved a resolution declaring racism a public health crisis. Parking is available in the public parking structure in front of the building for a fee. Additional street parking or in-structure parking is available in the downtown area for posted fees. Submitted by Riverside County.

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Anza Valley Outlook • www.anzavalleyoutlook.com • October 2, 2020

Anza Local MCGOWAN from page AVO-1 reasonable prices.” The McGowan Family Farm is a family-run business. From tilling and prepping the land, planting the seeds and tending to the garden, the whole family is involved. “Always plant extra because you’ll truly have to share with the local wildlife,” McGowan said. The stand is open based on time and crop availability. It is generally open Saturday mornings between 7:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. Times are posted on the local community Facebook pages when the family plans to be open. Visitors are oﬀered a free glass of lemonade. “What fun it has been to work together as a family,” McGowan said. “We have truly enjoyed getting to visit with our friends and meet new neighbors over the past couple of months. Thank you to our community for supporting McGowan Family Farm.” Diane Sieker can be reached by email at dsieker@reedermedia. com. Pumpkins are in season at the McGowan Family Farm stand in Aguanga. Anza Valley Outlook/Courtesy photos

Garden staples like tomatoes and green sweet peppers are popular at the McGowan Family Farm stand in Aguanga.

Sheriff’s department leads marijuana sweeps in Anza Diane Sieker STAFF WRITER

A multi-agency law enforcement deployment served search warrants on 38 properties suspected of illegal marijuana cultivation in Anza and Aguanga. Hemet Station’s Detective Bureau led the “El Pequeno” Marijuana Enforcement Sweep activities Wednesday, Sept. 23. Twenty tons of marijuana consisting of 31,878 plants, and 4,165 pounds of processed cannabis were discovered and eradicated. Seven handguns, six shotguns and 12 rifles were collected for evidence, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said. Law enforcement discovered $46,221 in currency that was collected for asset forfeiture proceedings, a stolen trailer and a butane hash oil lab, along with 10 jars of concentrated honey oil. Carbofuran, a toxic pesticide banned in the United States, was found at one location. Additionally, seven people were arrested, the department said. The following suspects were arrested for marijuana cultivation: 68-year-old Anza resident Edward Lugo who was cited and released; 49-year-old Rowland Heights resident Guansheng Zheng; 42-year-old Anza resident Mai Yang; 56-year-old Anza resident Neng Yang; 82-year-old Anza resident Larry Bosell who was cited and released; 30-yearold Anza resident Huber Avalos and 44-year-old Anza resident Douglas Bailey who was cited and released. State law has allowed the cultivation and use of cannabis as a medicine since 1996. Recently, Proposition 64 legalized limited recreational use and cultivation. But local ordinances conflict with the more lenient state laws. Riverside County Ordinance 925 prohibits the cultivation of cannabis in unincorporated Riverside County, with some exceptions. Medical patients may grow 12 plants per prescription on a permitted parcel, with a limit of two prescriptions per property for a total of 24 plants allowed.

Recreational users – as per Proposition 64, the Adult Use of Marijuana Act – may grow six plants per person 21 years of age or older, but only six plants per permitted property, no matter how many people living there are over 21. Any other activity is illegal in unincorporated Riverside County communities such as Anza and Aguanga. Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Riverside County District Attorney’s Office, Hemet Police Department, Riverside Police Department, Murrieta Police Department, Palm Springs Police Department, Bureau of Land Management, California Water Board, Riverside County Animal Control, Cal Fire, American Medical Response, Tactical Emergency Medical Services and Riverside County Code Enforcement coordinated in the sweeps. “I heard someone shout over a PA, ‘Sheriff’s Department! Open up!’” one witness said. “Then boom! Boom! Crash! As they rammed down a door! It was very exciting and scary at the same time.” The California Department of Justice Campaign Against Marijuana Planting helicopter circled above many of the locations. Most of the marijuana plants seized were mature and ready for harvest. The huge shrubs were cut down and loaded into trailers for transport to the landfill, officers said. The sheriff’s department said it is committed to eradicating illegal marijuana grows in the county and will continue their efforts throughout the year. The sheriff’s department has a zero-tolerance policy for these offenses. If you suspect drug activity in your area, contact the local sheriff’s station. The Hemet Sheriff’s Station can be reached at 951-791-3400. Criminal activity can also be reported through the We Tip crime reporting hotline at 909-987-5005 or http://wetip.com. Diane Sieker can be reached by email at dsieker@reedermedia. com.

Law enforcement vehicles stand ready for deployment during the “El Pequeno” Marijuana Enforcement Sweep Wednesday, Sept. 23, in Anza and Aguanga. Anza Valley Outlook/Diane Sieker photos

Sheriﬀ’s deputies enter a property on Anza Road during the “El Pequeno” Marijuana Enforcement Sweep in Anza and Aguanga.

Read and comment on stories ONLINE! www.anzavalleyoutlook.com

The California Department of Justice Campaign Against Marijuana Planting oﬃcers ﬂies their 1978 Hughes 369D Rotorcraft to assist in marijuana eradication activities during the “El Pequeno” Marijuana Enforcement Sweep in Anza and Aguanga.

October 2, 2020 • www.anzavalleyoutlook.com • Anza Valley Outlook

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Anza Local

F.U.N. Group disperses food donation Diane Sieker STAFF WRITER

The Friends Uniting Neighbors Group dispersed about 100 pallets of food, recently donated by a nearby school district. With less than 24-hours notice, the F.U.N. Group sprang into action to accept the donation and plan the logistics of transporting the food from the warehouse to the Anza community. Louis Ippolito and his partner arranged payment for the trucks, drivers and fuel to make sure the cargo reached recipients in Anza. When a pair of semi trucks arrived, it became apparent that the cargo manifests did not match the food within the trailers. Instead of drinks, condiment packages, chicken nuggets, sweet barbecue bites, hotdogs, pork patties and chili, there were pallets packed high with boxes of chips. “Louis and Caesar were incredibly generous, and I know ﬁnding only chips in the trucks was a kick in the gut for them as well,” Bill Donahue said. “Had we received the food that was promised, we could have helped a lot of people, not just in Anza. We thought this was going to be a food giveaway of epic proportions.” Crowds of people helped unload, distribute and pack up the boxes, and not one complaint was heard, he said. “This helped me remember where this food ministry came from,” Donahue said. “Nine years ago we were sorting through food, where often more than half of it was being thrown in the trash, trying to ﬁnd enough good food

for human consumption. Back then had someone brought us two truckloads of chips, I would have been thanking God for the amazing blessing. I appreciate the blessing we received. People were promised food. They waited for hours but after getting only chips, there was no complaining. That reaction both shocked and blessed me.” The next day, Louis Ippolito, Bettina Geissler, Christy and Victor Foster brought up another trailer of food with cheese, hash browns, salsa and much more. These items were dispersed for free at the Community Hall, with meats being held over for the usual food boxes given away Thursdays. Joanna Crombie said, “The chips are great, but it’s not only about the food. I saw a community getting together, smiling and laughing and talking. Deﬁnitely the best party in town. Love living on the hill.” The F.U.N. Group provides weekly food boxes at an event at the Community Hall. The organization was established as a collection of like-minded people that joined together to beneﬁt the community. Members from multiple area churches, civic organizations and other groups come together as friends and neighbors united for the good of the community. To learn more about the F.U.N. Group, visit them on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ groups/128592854205460/. Diane Sieker can be reached by email at dsieker@reedermedia. com.

Two semi truck trailers full of chips donated to the Friends Uniting Neighbors Group arrive at the Anza Community Hall Monday, Sept. 21. Anza Valley Outlook/Diane Sieker photos

Frank Shaﬀer operates a tractor to unload the boxes of chips donated to the Friends Uniting Neighbors Group at the Anza Community Hall.

Mike Patke and helper Freedom Wassgren help unload food boxes donated to the Friends Uniting Neighbors Group at the Anza Community Hall.

Pastor Kevin Watson helps unload boxes of chips donated to the Friends Uniting Neighbors Group at the Anza Community Hall.

SIGNS from page AVO-1 featured the town and street names, complete with horse, sunset and patriotic images. A professional artist, she shows her ﬁne acrylic Western-themed canvases and signed prints at shows all over Southern California and beyond. Eyer-Anderson, a longtime Anza resident, moved from the valley in August and relocated to Big Bear with her husband Dave and their menagerie of parrots and horses. “You have no idea what it means

to me to have these wonderful ladies do this for the signs,” she said. “This is a very special community that deserves love and attention during these times of turmoil. These ladies rock.” Gordon-Stokes said that the exterior grade paint was purchased and mixed at the True Value hardware store in Anza. “We touched up with black paint and then coated with a clear gloss of Minwax,” she said. “Susan posted on social media some weeks ago saying she hoped someone would coat the paintings with

Boxes and boxes of chips are unloaded and given away at the Friends Uniting Neighbors food giveaway at the Anza Community Hall.

Minwax periodically. I responded to say I was interested in helping. Shannon saw my response and reached out to me. She and Michelle saw how bad the paint was chipping on the Cary Road painting, we decided to touch up the black paint before sealing it.” The women received hundreds of well wishes on social media as they worked. Plans to tackle the remaining signs are in the works. Diane Sieker can be reached by email at dsieker@reedermedia. com.

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