The Triplicate

Official wins top honor in state

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:22:39 +0100

Pelican Bay State Prison’s Lt. Christopher Acosta has been named public information officer of the year by the California State Information Officers Council. All government communications employees are eligible for the statewide award. Acosta was recognized for his efforts over the past year after two hunger strikes in 2011 led by inmates housed in Pelican Bay’s Security Housing Unit caused an outpouring of media requests for prison tours. “I didn’t do this by myself,” said Acosta after receiving his award last week. “We all did this together.” His primary function as public information officer is scheduling tours for media, universities, legislators and other law enforcement agencies. He must coordinate with various prison departments to ensure a smooth visit from attaining gate passes to having inmates pulled for interviews, all while maintaining the safety of the visitors. Acosta has spent 21 of his 23 years with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation at Pelican Bay, and was a correctional officer for 15 years. “I spent a lot of time as a correctional officer,” said Acosta. “I always say those guys are where the rubber meets the road. They’re in the trenches.” That’s where he learned the inner workings of the prison and gained a solid foundation of historical knowledge, he said. “I stayed an officer for 15 years working pretty much everywhere,” said Acosta.

Big day for area’s leaders

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:13:32 +0100

Three of the main governing bodies in Del Norte County will meet on the same day at nearly the same time today. The Del Norte County Board of Supervisors and the Crescent City Council will discuss the future of the Solid Waste Management Authority at a joint meeting. Council members and supervisors will also discuss a proposed “social host” ordinance that targets homeowners who allow underage drinking to occur on their property, and a memorandum of understanding between the city and county for sharing resources. According to the county’s staff report, the joint meeting will focus on a request of the Solid Waste Management Authority Board to conduct an independent analysis of privatization of the authority. The joint meeting will take place at 5 p.m. at the Flynn Center at 981 H St. An agenda is available at www.crescentcity.org. Meetings are streamed live at media.co.del-norte.ca.us.

Help sought in search for missing woman

Wed, 22 May 2013 11:07:54 +0100

Authorities are seeking the public's help in finding an “at risk” missing person who was last seen Monday. Jennifer Evert was last in communication with her husband, Barry Evert, around 10:30 a.m. Monday. He said she left the house with a gun and their 1999 two-door silver Chevrolet Tahoe. Anyone who sees her or her vehicle should call 911 or the Sheriff’s Office at 464-4191.

Keeping nutritional education afloat

Wed, 22 May 2013 11:02:04 +0100

The school district’s nutrition program may be ending soon, but its representatives continue to search for other ways to teach Del Norte’s youngsters how to make healthy food choices. A $550,000 Network for a Healthy California grant, which funded Del Norte County Unified School District’s Nutrition Project, is set to end in September. Former Nutrition Project Coordinator Deborah Kravitz and 11 other staff members received layoff notices following the School Board’s April 25 meeting. But Kravitz will continue to work for the district as its director of food services starting in July. She replaces retiring director Judy Wangerin. In her new position, Kravitz said she will use her decade of experience on the Nutrition Project to bring back its core programs, especially Harvest of the Month and garden-enhanced nutrition education. She said she is also working with the University of California’s Cooperative Extension program, as well as Del Norte County’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, to make sure local youths continue to receive nutrition education. The county’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) had also received state funding to conduct nutrition education and obesity prevention, Kravitz said. Del Norte County currently shares about $250,000 in funding with Siskiyou and Trinity counties to do similar work. “I will continually be on the lookout for ways we might be able to be funded by different grants,” Kravitz said. “Network (money) funded the school district’s Harvest of the Month program, where we had 125 classrooms participating and over 4,000 kids. That goes away unless we can find another funding source.”

Death Notice: Harold Lloyd Martin

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:56:58 +0100

Harold Lloyd Martin, 82, died May 17, in Vancouver, Wash. He was born Oct. 13, 1930, in Orofino, Idaho, and was a 56-year resident of Del Norte County. Funeral services will be held at Wier’s Mortuary Chapel on Saturday at 11 a.m., with interment to follow at the Del Norte County Veteran’s Cemetery. Sign the family’s online guestbook at wiersmortuary.com. Arrangements by Wier’s Mortuary Chapel.

News of Record May 3-9, 2013

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:55:57 +0100

Del Norte County Superior Court felony and misdemeanor sentencings for the week of May 3-9 include: • Paul Lawrence Fisher, 29, Smith River, was sentenced to 270 days in County Jail, three years probation and fined $350 for obstructing/resisting an officer • Cara Lynn Baker, 45, Crescent City, was sentenced to 30 days in County Jail for a probation violation • Destinie Wettengel, 19, Crescent City, was fined $400 for disturbing the peace • Donald Ira Baker, 45, Crescent City, was sentenced to three years probation and fined $661 for theft/larceny • Jonathon Ray Vinje, 25, Crescent City, was sentenced to three years probation and fined $1,030 for obstructing/resisting a police officer • Damian Travis Allen, 20, Crescent City, was sentenced to 180 days in County Jail for a probation violation • Jerry Lynn Pennington, 57, Crescent City, was sentenced to 30 days in County Jail, three years probation and fined $620 for a felony failure to appear • Seth Harlan Bauer, 29, Crescent City, was sentenced to one day in County Jail, three years probation and fined $620 for resisting arrest

Letters to the Editor May 21, 2013

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:54:09 +0100

Why spend more on question that's answered? There is movement afoot to dissolve the Del Norte Solid Waste Management Authority despite public sentiment in favor of the agency and despite county officials being unable to find any substantial way to improve the agency after two years of searching. The authority is a local public entity created to monitor the local landfill (now closed, and for good reason) and to handle the county’s trash flow. It is highly efficient, keeping much of our garbage from ever reaching a landfill in the first place. Run by living-wage employees under public scrutiny at no cost to the taxpayer, the authority contributes to the economic development of the county, contracting with multiple local businesses. Personally, I am grateful for their good work. The endless waste of our consumer society is a serious environmental problem, affecting water quality and hence, public health. The best way to manage public health is through public oversight and the authority does that well. Business owners producing large volumes of rubbish feel burdened by fees. But frankly, so does everyone else. That’s the point! People should have to pay to pollute and, despite the formality that it’s legal, dumping in a landfill is still pollution. Commercial pickup rates proportionate to volume will create the incentive to reduce, reuse, and recycle. Consequently, businesses that provide their services with minimal waste will be rewarded. Who wouldn’t want that?

Coastal Voices: Waste Authority not a problem

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:52:39 +0100

I applaud the intentions of anyone who wants to come up with ideas to save the city and county money by doing things differently. But dissolving the Solid Waste Management Authority (SWMA) would not be one of those ideas. There is a long list of reasons to keep it in place, as well as some fears to dispel. The state of California mandated the closure of the Crescent City landfill because it was not in compliance with environmental regulations. It also mandated that waste be reduced by 50 percent. The SWMA was formed to monitor the old landfill site (to prevent future fines) and build a transfer station. What do proponents of dissolving the SWMA mean when they say they want to privatize waste? It already has been privatized. Recology does trash collection, Julindra does recycling, and Hambro runs the transfer station. And since Recology and Hambro had to do a lot of initial capital investment to purchase equipment, they have relatively long-term contracts. What’s more, the SWMA’s budget is paid for by these three organizations in the form of fees at the transfer station and a franchise fee that the SWMA charges Recology and Julindra. The SWMA is funded by the partners, not by taxpayers. Rates tend to “jump” because once a new contract is negotiated, the contracted partners have limited power to raise rates, while the cost of doing business continues to rise. So by the time the next contract is negotiated, the partners sometimes need to make market corrections.

Football begins anew at Del Norte

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:50:21 +0100

Warriors push the pace in practice and push each other as August 30 opener looms Don’t adjust your eyeballs. That really is the Del Norte High football team sprinting from one drill to the next, lining up for a play and snapping the ball and executing the play and running to the next spot. Warriors head coach Ray Rook and his staff are taking cues from the University of Oregon and Southern Oregon University football programs and drawing up spring practices, which began Thursday at Del Norte High School, with an eye on speed. The returning players have to digest revamped offensive and defensive playbooks amid a character-testing tempo. “We threw a ton of things at them,” Rook said in an interview Friday. “I couldn’t be happier with the kids and the way they came together. I was happy to see the coaches actively getting involved.” The Del Norte coaches spent the offseason changing up the playbook. The Warriors, in Rook’s estimate, did not run the ball downhill well enough during last year’s 2-9 campaign (1-6 Humboldt-Del Norte Big 5 League). That will change.

Junior bowling league struggling with participation

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:39:40 +0100

For Del Norte kids, Tsunami Lanes ‘a dating scene on Saturday nights’ An institution within Del Norte County’s bowling community is in danger of dissolution. The Tsunami Juniors Bowling League, a weekly bowling league for children up to age 19, has suffered from dwindling participation numbers. The Tsunami Lanes bowling alley in Crescent City may decline to sponsor the league if it continues to attract few youth bowlers. “The highest (participation) was probably eight to 10 teams with three people each,” said Janet Lynch, the Tsunami Juniors league coordinator. “Last year, we had seven kids. Total.” Junior league bowlers converge on Tsunami Lanes at 11 a.m. every Saturday during the season, which runs from September to April. Bowlers pay $5.75 per week toward the use of Tsunami Lanes and 75 cents per week toward miscellany such as trophies or tournaments, according to Lynch. “I know with money being tight, people don’t want to spend money on their kids to bowl on Saturdays,” Lynch said. “It’s a very big commitment.” Fewer and fewer children — and their parents — are willing to make that commitment for what Lynch believes are a variety of reasons. Cost and the time slot reserved for league activity are two of them. Exposure is another — Lynch is not sure that posted announcements and other recruitment efforts at Del Norte County schools have been effective. How kids view bowling as an activity may be another deterrent. Tsunami Lanes supervisor Pitrea Martinson noted that most bowlers ages 19 and younger come to the alley during weekend evenings for cosmic bowling, under the blacklights.

Costello, Rowe, DN relays advance

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:29:41 +0100

Two individuals and two relay teams from the Del Norte High track and field team placed in the top eight of the California Interscholastic Federation North Coast Section Redwood Empire Area Track and Field Championships, held Saturday at Santa Rosa High School in Santa Rosa. Sophomore Kayla Costello finished in fourth place in the 300-meter hurdles (47.08 seconds), the highest of any Warrior individual. Senior Katelynn Rowe took sixth place at 400 meters (1:00.39). Both Rowe and Costello will advance in their respective events to the NCS Meet of Champions, held at Edwards Stadium at the University of California, Berkeley, on Saturday, May 25. The Del Norte girls’ 4x100-meter relay team of Rowe, Costello, Rachel Rowe and Maddie Critz qualified for the Meet of Champions with a sixth-place finish at Redwood Empire, in 51.11. Katelynn Rowe, Rachel Rowe, Costello and Joely Tynes combined on a seventh-place finish in the 4x400-meter relay (4:11.66). “We’re definitely pleased with everyone’s performances,” Warriors head coach Samuel Escobar said. “Saddened by some, but pleased with overall performances. It was a tough day.” Katelynn Rowe also captured ninth place in the 300 hurdles (48.12), and junior Kaitlyn Clemann’s high jump of 4 feet, 10 inches was good for ninth place; Clemann, Rowe and Costello were the only Warriors with top-10 individual finishes.

First-graders take flight

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:28:06 +0100

Symbolism hard to miss as caterpillars turn into butterflies At a Rotary Club meeting about a year ago, I listened with interest as Bonnie Finley told our group about a program she’s involved in through United Way called Schools of Hope. Bonnie stood at the podium asking for volunteers to tutor first-graders in reading. As someone who has spent an entire career dependent on people who want to read, it seemed only natural to put my name on Bonnie’s sign-up sheet. She was asking for only one lunch hour a week to help a child learn to read. Surely I could do that. After fingerprinting, a background check and a brief orientation, I was dispatched to Joe Hamilton School with a name tag, a packet of paperwork and some suggested assignments. A few days prior, as instructed, I had e-mailed a first-grade teacher introducing myself and she replied with the names of the two students I’d be tutoring. It had been many years since I walked into an elementary school office to sign in. On that first Wednesday afternoon last fall I was nervous and, I’ll admit, coping with some feelings of regret about volunteering so hastily for this commitment. What was I thinking? I found Room 9 where Mrs. Walsworth’s class was beginning story time after lunch. Mrs. Walsworth seemed relaxed in a rocking chair while her students sat on a carpet at her feet waiting for her to show them the page of the book she was reading out loud. She introduced me to the class and to the two students I’d be working with. In a designated reading room around the corner, I spent the first 20 minutes with the little girl and the last with the boy.

Human orca

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:22:22 +0100

More than 550 students and staff members of Crescent Elk Middle School created the shape of an orca April 25. At practically the same time, two orcas were seen visiting Crescent City Harbor. This was the fourth Art For The Sky project performed by the school with artist Daniel Dancer. A project video can be seen on Facebook at ArtfortheSky.

Around Del Norte: County fair mementos are sought

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:20:18 +0100

The origins of the Del Norte County Fair go back a long way -— 120 years to be exact — and organizers want to capture those days of yesteryear with a special memorabilia display for this year’s fair, which runs from Aug. 1 through 4 at the Del Norte County Fairgrounds. Kim Floyd, a fairgrounds employee who is assisting with the display, says they’re looking for “anything and everything.” “What we would like is for people to bring in the oldest fair photo or memory that they have or one that has been passed down in their family,” said Kim. “Any type of memorabilia — awards, stories, photos — even from (fairs held at) our current location; we’re just trying to find really old stuff.” According to Kim, the first fair in 1893 was held at Reservation Ranch in Smith River, owned by the Westbrook family. It was staged in a pasture area off Sarina Road. In 1901 the fair was relocated to the Wakefield Ranch on Old Mill Road. Twenty years later, it was moved to its current location. “We have a photo of the fair in 1893,” said Kim, “and a ticket to the sixth annual 41st District Grand Ball, which was held in the Brookings Hall in Smith River.” Kim said they have all the “premium books” or exhibitor’s handbooks from 1953 on. “The fair used to be big into horse racing,” said Kim, “and a Grand Ball was something they did back then. It’s pretty neat to see Fair Board members, a procession list and what dances they were going to do. They’re pretty fun to look at. It’s interesting to see how things have changed.” She says she’d love to find someone with one of the old carts used for the horse and buggy racing events.

Wedding: Hatter, Williams

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:17:18 +0100

CheyAnne Hatter and Thomas Williams of Crescent City were married April 6, 2013, at the Lake Earl Grange. CheyAnne is the daughter of Gary and Crystal Hatter Jr. of Crescent City. She is a 2010 graduate of Castle Rock High School. Thomas, also a 2010 Castle Rock graduate, is the son of Phillip and Londa Williams of Crescent City. Wedding attendants included maid of honor Che-Shup Hatter, bridesmaid KayDee Lassle, best man Brian Long Jr. and groomsman Santee Martin. Garry Hatter Jr. performed the ceremony.

Student Spotlight

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:12:01 +0100

Margaret Keating School • Students of the Month (April): Kayley Rhodes, Jackson Bowen, Kee-Puen Carr, Josephyne Swain, Silas Tiedeman, Jordan Jones • Reading Super Stars: Evan Woodruff and Jordan Mendoza • Perfect Attendance (with an early release): Jacob Campbell, Destiny Thompson, Jordan Mendoza • Perfect Attendance (all day, every day): Aleaha Aguilar, Mer-mery Bates, Nik-Wec Bates, Naquel Benites, Kee-Puen Carr, Julian DeLillo, Havana Hernandez, Mercedes Hernandez, Jordan Jones, Noah Mattz, Cassidy Sallee, Eyan D. Ujcich-Smith, Anastasia Thompson • Music Stars: Maggie Petersen and Riliey Henry • Bus Riders of the Month: Leita Lawrence and Segep Bates • Fifth Grade Perfect Attendance on STAR Testing: Ramiro Hernandez, Jordan Jones, Richard Nelson, Angelina Thompson

Birth: Daivisha Mitul Patel

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:11:19 +0100

Daivisha Mitul Patel was born May 5, 2013, at Sutter Coast Hospital. She weighed 6 pounds, 9 ounces and measured 20 ½ inches. Her parents are Mitul and Amruta Patel of Crescent City. Her grandparents are Bharatbhai and Rekha Patel of Sacramento, and Nareshbhai and Daxaben Patel of Crescent City. Her great-grandparents are Vitalbhai and Jethiben Patel of Sacramento, and Maganbhai and Lalitaben Patel of India.

Victims’ advocates receive awards

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:10:02 +0100

Pelican Bay State Prison recently hosted the “New Challenges, New Solutions” crime victims’ advocates luncheon. The luncheon acknowledged advocates, volunteers and county employees who have been instrumental in counseling, supporting and advocating for those who have fallen victim to crimes within Del Norte’s community. Those who were honored included: • Officer Jennifer Owen, by the Crescent City Police Department. • Nico Mavris and Kay Parrott, by Del Norte Victim/Witness Office. • District Attorney Jon Alexander and Probation Officer Annreta Donaldson, by the Probation Department. • Leslie Duncan and David Gibbs, by Court Appointed Special Advocates of Del Norte.

Tradition on the Tally Ho II

Mon, 20 May 2013 17:49:21 +0100

Tally Ho Sportfishing is hands down the best ocean fishing charter boat in Crescent City. In fact, it’s the only one. The weight of being the sole charter boat on this stretch of the sea is in good hands, however, as Craig and Bonnie Strickhouser, who are in their second year of owning the Tally Ho II fishing vessel, have a passion for sharing the ample fishing opportunities the North Coast has to offer. “This is one of the only places in California you can fish on the ocean with this light of tackle,” Craig Strickhouser said on a recent bottom fishing trip. His clients were using 20-pound test monofilament line and medium-action Ugly Stick rods to catch 20-pound, prehistoric-looking lingcod and a wide array of brightly colored rockfish from depths of more than 100 feet. Although the slow pace of jigging a lure or bait off the sea floor inherent to bottom fishing can feel flat, light tackle and big fish make for interesting angling, especially when Tally Ho puts its clients on the fish, as Strickhouser frequently does. Back-to-back hook-ups and several people fighting fish simultaneously are common occurrences. A big part of that excitement comes with the territory. The North Coast’s abundance of bottom fish provides much better opportunity than other parts of fished-out California, Strickhouser said, and local California Department Fish and Wildlife officers he has spoken to agree.

Another close-in cougar incident

Mon, 20 May 2013 17:39:57 +0100

Bicyclist, 13, reports he saw mountain lion on road A teenager riding his bike said he came across a mountain lion on Sandmann Road off Parkway Drive on Thursday evening — the second reported human-cougar encounter near Crescent City in two weeks. 13-year-old Richie England was riding his bike around 8 p.m. when a mountain lion stepped out of a wooded area onto the road about 40 yards ahead, walking away from him, said Rich England Sr., Richie’s father, who was on his bike about 60 yards behind his son. England’s wife and daughter were walking behind him. “I heard him yelling and screaming,” said England, a counselor for Crescent Elk Middle School. “He’s standing there on his bike with his hands in the air.” England recalled his son yelled back toward him, “Dad, there’s a mountain lion. It’s right there.” His son estimated the animal was 7 feet long, England said. Richie England said Friday night he wasn’t too worried about an attack, but the animal had his attention. “It scared me, but I know that there’s not very many attacks,” said Richie, a Redwood Elementary School student.