Wednesday, May 20, 2009

HELLHOLE FRIENDS WANT YOU TO JOIN THE PARADE

The Friends of Hellhole Canyon are inviting you to join them aboard their western horse-drawn carriage for Valley Center's annual Western Days parade this coming Saturday, May 23.

Or, if you are a rider you are invited to bring your horse and march in their horse riding contingent.

Call 751-1443 for directions or more info.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Collecting Food

Scout Troop 4220 will be collecting canned food items for the local food pantry Thursday, May 21 at the VC Farmers Market, 3:30–5:30 p.m. Items will be donated to St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry. Contact Annie Brown at 742-2006 or 522-3046.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

GET READY FOR BARBECUE!

As Western Days approaches (May 22-24) I want to remind you about one of the best good eating deals you will find on that Saturday, the Homesteaders 4-H barbecue, which is held in VC Community Hall.

Fat Ivor's is making the beans for the 4-H'rs this year, and we know how good their beans are! You will see their meat smoker right at the top of the hill by the Community Center.

As usual the barbecue will begin immediately after the parade and will end at 6 p.m. or when they run out. This is a very good, sit-down barbecue meal indoors. It feels great in the cool downstairs dining area especially after being at the parade or out around the carnival.

The Homesteaders will be your servers and the meal includes beef or pork, beans, potato salad or coleslaw, a roll and a drink. The ticket prices for the entire meal are $9 for adults and $6 for children 11 and under. I've had this barbecue and can attest to how good it is.

Monday, May 11, 2009

NO "SWINE FLU" AT HIGH SCHOOL

I contacted school Supt. Lou Obermeyer to follow up on an anonymous report I had gotten today about there being two "Swine" flu cases at Valley Center High School.

The answer was "no."

"No, we thought we had one, but the mom took the child to the doctor, did a swab, and it was not the swine flu," Dr. Obermeyer told me.

PALA SEEKS COMMENTS ON MULTI-HAZARD PLAN

The Pala Band of Mission Indians has updated its Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan to ensure disaster preparedness and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) compliance. The Tribe is now looking for feedback from the Pala Reservation Community on the draft plan before submittal to FEMA.

The updated Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan will be available for public review between May 11th and May 18th. It is located conveniently in three places on the Reservation, at the reception areas of the Pala Administration Building, the Pala Fire House and the Pala Library. There are feedback forms available in these locations as well. The Tribe hopes that many members of the Pala Reservation Community will take the time to review the plan and provide feedback. All feedback will be reviewed by the Pala Emergency Response Committee (PERC) and included in the updated plan.

Public participation is a key element in mitigation planning and one that FEMA requires. The Tribe held a community meeting on March 12, 2009; they introduced the plan updates to the Pala Reservation Community. Additionally, a questionnaire was distributed to all participants at the meeting and to PERC members at their meeting held on the same day.

Questionnaire results indicate that the majority of people who completed the questionnaire have lived on the Reservation for twenty years or more. Their biggest priorities include protecting critical facilities and reducing damage to utilities. The Tribe has begun to bury power lines which will reduce the instances of loss of power due to high winds, wildfires or earthquakes. When asked to identify the greatest hazards to the Reservation, respondents identified, earthquakes, floods, wildfires, house fires and landslides in that order.

The updated Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan identifies nine critical facilities on the Pala Reservation, including the Pala Casino Spa Resort and the new Fire Station. It also examined natural hazards, technological hazards and lifelines. The highest risk hazards include flood, earthquake, landslides and wildfires.

The PERC has identified nineteen mitigation strategies to add to the twenty-four strategies from the original multi-hazard mitigation plan written in 2006. Since 2006, twenty of these strategies have been implemented or are underway.

Top priority strategies for the updated plan include:

1. Develop a Pala Reservation Community Emergency Response Plan. The plan should include an evacuation plan for employees as well as a recall plan for employees.
2. Form a Tribal Emergency Response Team (TERT).
3. Clear brush in outlying areas around the entire Reservation boundary.


The Pala Emergency Response Committee (PERC), which consists of the Tribal Chairman, Treasurer, Secretary, Pala Fire Chief, Battalion Chief, Security Chief, Assistant Security Chief, Business Manager, Environmental Director, GIS Specialist, Casino Director of Guest Safety and Surveillance, and Casino Director of Risk Management, has worked in conjunction with Jamie Caplan Consulting LLC on this draft plan.

The Pala Band of Mission Indians consists of 1,117 members with 650 living on the reservation along the Palomar Mountain range, located along 5,000 square miles of California’s desert and approximately 30 miles northeast of San Diego on Interstate 15. Pala Casino, a 185,000 square foot, $115 million casino, entertainment and dining complex owned by the Pala Band, opened in April 2001.
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QUICK WITH A HOE!

Max Mazzetti, an old-timer of long standing in Valley Center (he was last year’s Western Days parade grand marshal), an 87-year old gentleman who uses a can to help him get around.
But to Susan Sawyer he’s a hero.
Sunday night Sawyer, who lost a beloved dog a couple of weeks ago to a rattler bite, saw another of the slithery reptiles on the front porch at her home on Mazzetti Lane, north of the casino, near the hillside.
It was a 5-foot red diamond, a big one.
She screamed and Mazzetti came over in his stocking feet with a hoe and dispatched the snake before the firefighters arrived.
“I thought I’d better get over there before it gets away,” he told The Roadrunner. “I chopped it up.”
The fire department arrived shortly too.
“They are very good. They showed up real fast,” said Mazzetti.
Mazzetti has been taking care of rattlers for ages and it used to be a summer tradition at The Roadrunner for him to bring one of his latest trophies over to the paper office for a photo.
“Van Quackenbush [the publisher at that time] used to joke and tell me I was bringing over the same snake!”

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER

An annual tradition, the prayer at the flagpole, will be lead by Fifth District Supervisor Bill Horn tomorrow (Thursday, May 7) at the County Administration Center.

See details below:


Supervisor Horn and the Annual National Day of Prayer at the County Flagpole

Who: Fifth District County Supervisor Bill Horn

What:  Commemorating the Annual National Day of Prayer at the County Administration Center (CAC) Flagpole

Where: County Administration Center (CAC), 1600 Pacific Highway, San Diego (east side of building near fountains)

When: Thursday, May 7, 2009, 12:30 P.M. - 1 P.M.

Why: This year, as in past years, the Board of Supervisors has recognized the National Day of Prayer with a proclamation. In 1952, the United States Congress established an annual day of prayer and in 1988, that law was amended, designating the National Day of Prayer as the first Thursday in May.

Supervisor Horn is inviting people to commemorate the National Day of Prayer at the CAC flagpole. The theme for the 58th annual National Day of Prayer is “Prayer! America’s Hope.” The commemoration is a personal, not a government function and is for those who choose to participate during their own personal time.