In June 2011, the Menlo Park Police Department launched CrimeReports.com, an online mapping and analysis service provided by Public Engines, Inc. The website combines police data with Google-based mapping and an analytics module so that the public can view police data in map or summary descriptive format.

The newest feature on CrimeReports.com is the anonymous reporting of crimes. By hovering over an incident, this feature allows people to submit an anonymous tip to the Menlo Park Police Department. There is no tracking, and each tip is encrypted to protect the source identity.

The public can access the crime map online 24 hours a day directly or through the Menlo Park Police Department website. The service also lets local residents sign up for free customizable email alerts, so they can stay on top of crime in their neighborhoods. The alerts are available daily, weekly, or monthly.

Stated a MPPD email: “We believe that information is a very powerful tool and hope providing the community this information will help prevent crime in your neighborhoods… Members of the community are encouraged to continue partnering and problem-solving with the Menlo Park Police Department while using CrimeReports.com data toward shared police-community goals.”

When he played rugby in high school in his native Scotland and later at Cambridge University, Menlo Park resident Iain Watson had no idea what an “old boy” was, let alone that he’d become one, or for that matter still be competing at age 57. But that’s what he’s doing on Saturday (May 18) when the PAXO Old Blacks participate on the Bay Area Senior Games at Stanford’s Steuber Rugby Field.

“I attended Harvard Business School, which has both a team of current students and grads,” he explained. “The Old Boy team has played all over the world and I’ve gone on a lot of the trips. My wife and I were married in Ravello, Italy while on tour with the Old Boys on the Amalfi coast. One of the games we played there and won was against a team from the NATO base in Naples.”

Iain also played in an Old Boys league here in the Bay Area that was active throughout the 90s but then, he said, “kind of fell apart.”

An investor by profession, Iain said he’s always been more of a sprinter than a distance runner, and that was one reason he was attracted to rugby. “I still work out with a trainer one day a week, mainly so I don’t pull a hamstring or something,” he said. “At last year’s senior games, I competed in the 50 and 100 yard dash.”

As an Old Boy rugby player, Iain has watched the game evolve as teams have aged: “When the Harvard Old Boys played in Canada 10 years ago, they instituted a new rule that if you were over 50 you could wear red shorts, and guys could touch but not tackle you. Of course, I was a spry 47 then”

Asked how he’s prepared for Saturday’s competition, Iain said he hadn’t other than the weekly sessions with the trainer. “By the time you play in Old Boy’s games you don’t practice, you just show up.”

While this is the first time he’s played rugby for two years, it won’t be the last time he plays this year. “In October, the Harvard Old Boys are celebrating their 50th anniversary,” he said. “We’ll play the current HBS team. In the last 10 years or so, we’ve had to ask them to lighten up a bit. Most of them are in their late 20s.”

Such is the sporting life of an Old Boy.

A schedule of other Bay Area Senior Games event taking place this weekend is available online.

Photos by Scott R. Kline

So you want to make games for a living?  Zynga Lead Game Designer and Career Advisor Brice Morrison will talk about careers in the games industry:  how games are made, the jobs and people involved, and how you can learn to make your own games at home.  Brice will also be happy to take questions and speak with parents. This free youth event is scheduled for Saturday, May 18 at 12:00 pm at the Menlo Park Library.

Local equestrians brought home more than their fair share of blue ribbons and awards at last week’s United Professional Horseman’s Association Horse Show which was held at the Horse Park in Woodside. The event is the premier show for the western states and featured American Saddlebreds, Morgans and Hackney ponies.

There were over 170 entries and local riders competed against those who came from as far away as Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Arizona and Colorado. Spectators had the opportunity to watch at least 40 World Champions strut their stuff, both under saddle and in harness.

Ethan Feiber (top, right), 14-year-old son of Heather Buhr and Joh Feiber of Atherton won the blue ribbon and Championship in the Juvenile 5 Gaited Class on his horse, River Card. Also from Atherton, Katie Sinclair (bottom, right), daughter of Becky and Steve Sinclair, was the winner in the Walk/Trot Pleasure Class riding her pinto pony, Pretzel.

Other successful competitors were Allison Freeman of Menlo Park riding Today’s My Lucky Day, Nan Chapman of Woodside, driving her mare, A Day on the Town and Lexie Castaillac Seine, daughter of Judy and Jacques Castaillac of Atherton. All of these equestrians train and ride with Jennifer Dixon at the Menlo Circus Club Stables.

Proceeds from the horse show benefitted the non-profit Joanne Pang Foundation which is committed to increasing the number of umbilical cord blood units available for life saving transplants.

Photos by Susan Valley

Addiction had touched her family and that makes the topic close to DD McFarlane’s heart. But it was not something she was comfortable talking about with people outside the recovery support community.

But then she saw the yet-to-be-released, feature-length documentary film, The Anonymous People, about the 23.5 million Americans living in long-term recovery from alcohol and other drug addiction. It shows how a new public recovery movement is aiming to transform public opinion. The subject matter kept tugging at her.

“The film asks the question ‘why isn’t addiction treated like any other disease in this country?’” she said. “It features powerful stories about people in recovery.”

In DD’s mind, it needed a broader audience than a screening in her living room could provide. Learning about the Menlo-Atherton High School Parent Education Series, she turned to her alma mater to provide a venue.

“I thought it was important that the film get a West Coast screening with the largest audience possible,” she said. “I wanted to get the subject matter in front of the community to get the word out, so that people could learn about this disease without the myths and stigma.

“My hope is that it serves as a catalyst to start more conversations because that’s what needs to happen. As I’ve become more open about how addiction has touched my family, I’ve had so many people come to me asking for help.”

The exclusive West Coast film preview of The Anonymous People, with filmmaker Greg Williams — himself 10 years in recovery — in attendance, will screen on Tuesday, May 28, at 7:00 pm at the M-A Center for Performing Arts. A Q & A with the filmmaker will follow at at 8:30 pm. Admission is free, but organizers ask that people interested in attending download tickets in advance at the Event Brite website.

One of the event sponsors, the Esther Ting Foundation, is funding a brochure called The Learning Curve, which will be available at the event. “Over the years, I’ve put together all the resources that have helped me — books, websites, treatment centers. I’m hoping that having it all in one place will help people who are just starting to navigate the addiction and recovery journey.”

An eight-minute trailer for the documentary is below.

The Anonymous People – Successful KickStarter Video from Greg Williams on Vimeo.

The City of Menlo Park and Peninsula Volunteers, Inc. have partnered  to place a pharmaceutical drop box at the Little House Activity Center located at Nealon Park (800 Middle Avenue). Residents can place any unused or unwanted legal drugs into the receptacle and they will be properly disposed of. Little House’s hours of operation are Mondays through Thursdays from 8:00 am to 9:00 pm and Fridays 8:00 am to 5:00 pm.

“Many residents know that they cannot flush or throw away their old medications because it can negatively impact water and soil quality, causing problems for people and wildlife, however, there was not a local location in Menlo Park to take these medications,” said Rebecca Fotu, Environmental Programs Manager for the City.

When improperly discarded, pharmaceuticals can seep into the water stream and create an environmental hazard. The drop box at Little House makes it easier for residents to dispose of their presciption drugs safely.

“The box has only been here for a week and a half and it’s already almost full,” said Little House Director Peter Olson.

From the east to the west, public agencies in Menlo Park today participated in the Countywide Disaster Exercise known as the Golden Guardian Exercise 2013 in mock simulations of emergency response activities following a catastrophic earthquake, making the city a ground zero of preparedness training.

The Menlo Park Fire Protection District in partnership with the town Atherton and the cities of Menlo Park and East Palo Alto were hunkered down at the California Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 3 on Willow Rd,  which is designated as the Multi-Agency Coordination Center between all three jurisdictions. The  assembled municipalities practiced sharing resources, prioritizing calls, and activating their city emergency operation plans. Menlo Park Police Sergeant Sharon Kaufman, pictured, served as the Operations Manager in today’s exerice.

Citing the benefits to local residents following a disaster, Ryan Zollicoffer, MPFPD Disaster Response Manager said, ”Working in a multi-agency coordination center will definitely give the City of Menlo Park and the Fire Protection District an advantage as the resource pool goes well beyond their own agencies emergency capabilities,.”

The Menlo firefighters also took part in mass evacuation precipitated by some partially collapsed buildings at SLAC on Sand Hill Rd. in far west Menlo Park.  ”This is the field simulation component to the disaster exercise,” said Zollicoffer.  ”The firefighters also screened for potential radiological particles at the site.”

First implemented by former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2004, Golden Guardian, California’s Annual Statewide Exercise Series, has become the most comprehensive state-level exercise series program in the country. The goal of Golden Guardian is to exercise and assess emergency operations plans, policies, and procedures for all-hazards/catastrophic incidents at the local, regional, and state levels. Last year’s efforts focused on a Southern California earthquake while prior years simulated response to a major flood and a terrorist attack on a port.

Earlier this week, St. Raymond School practiced safety drills under the watchful eye of members of the Menlo Park Police Department. “The safety and well being of students, staff, and community members is our number one priority during an emergency,” a MPPD spokesperson said in an email. “St. Raymond School has done a tremendous job preparing everyone in knowing their specific role and responsibility in the event of an emergency. We were able to observe four different emergency drills and both the students and the staff were organized, extremely efficient, and knowledgeable about the various protocols. If we were to give them a grade, it would be an A+! Congratulations to Principal Rolle and staff for being so proactive in preparing your school for emergencies.”