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SPORTS ARCHIVES FOR 2000

2000

JANUARY, 2000

Record news for Jan. 6, 2000
• So, was Y2K a little over amped?
• Gates' long arm assists Modoc Library
• Arrowhead goes into escrow
• Modoc Railroad Academy hosts open house
• Music students selected for honors
• SNF residents have a sparkling celebration

So, was Y2K just a lit tle over amped?

The Year 2000 bug did not turn out to be the menace the government and others thought it could be, and people are breathing a collective sigh of relief nationally.

For Modoc, there were no major glitches because of Y2K and as of Wednesday everything in the county, city, local utilities and agencies were up and running normally.

The county's Y2K guru, Jerry Cook reported to the Board of Supervisors Tuesday that everything in the county was run ning well and its pretty much business as usual.

"There have been no reports of any problems and every thing transcended major problems," Cook said. "Any issue we've had has been very minor and easy to fix. Actually some of the precautions we took may have caused more prob lems than if we'd left them alone."

As an example, Cook said the network was shut down be fore New Year's Eve and when it was turned back on Monday, some computers were being cantankerous. Those problems have been dealt with; are no longer an issue and were not Y2K related.

Cook said he felt the whole Y2K issue was overblown, but also believes the manner in which the county prepared for the potential problem alleviated much worry and fear.

He told the board the county is considered Y2K compliant and is moving forward smoothly into the 21st Century.

Cary Baker, Alturas City Clerk, said the city also sailed through Y2K without any major malfunctions. The city had declared it was Y2K compliant and was only concerned about possible outside problems with utilities or so on.

"We've had no reports of anything going wrong and ev erything seems to have made the date switch fine," said Baker.

PacifiCorp has reported it did not experience any prob lems associated with the Year 2000 date change.

"We are pleased. and not at all surprised, at the ease with which our systems have handled the date rollover," said Alan Richardson, chief executive office for PacifiCorp. "I am delighted for our employees that the rollover went well as they have worked long and hard the past three years to pre pare our systems for this event."

There were also no problems with Surprise Valley Electrification, falling in line with Manager Dan Silveria's conclusion that the co-op had prepared for the Y2K situation. He expressed confidence in the system, which did not let the northwest down.

Both Alturas Chief of Police and Modoc County Sheriff Bruce Mix said there were no major problems because of the year 2000 change and Mix said the communication systems, the 911 system and the jail systems all rolled smoothly into the new year.

"We didn't expect any problems from Y2K because we had prepared for it," said Mix. "And we're happy to report there were no problems and everything's running well. And we're also pleased to report that the public was well behaved for the most part."

Pickett said New Year's Eve in Alturas was pretty quiet and the public acted in a very responsible manner. There was a pretty good show of fireworks from all over Alturas as the year 2,000 arrived at midnight. But, according to Pickett, there were no problems associated with the fireworks or the celebrations.

Gates' long arm helps out Modoc Libraries

Thanks to the hard work of Modoc County Librarian Cheryl Baker and staff and the generosity of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, local libraries are upgrading Internet access and equipment.

Baker told the Board of Supervisors Tuesday that the Libraries had just received a $34,135 grant from the Gates Foundation (Microsoft) that would fund two new computers, including software, providing Internet access at each branch in Alturas, Cedarville, Adin, Lookout, and Davis Creek.

In the outlying branches, one computer will be in English and one will be in Spanish. The two new computers at the Alturas branch will be in English.

Baker told the board the new computers and Internet will be available to the public, not staff, during business hours at each branch.

"One of the goals of this grant is to make information more accessible to people who do not have computers person ally," said Baker. "We're very pleased we were successful. The computers should be in and on line by summer."

This was not a long term grant writing issue. The appli cation for the grants arrived in Baker's office the last part of October and were submitted in November.

Initially, because of the criteria of the Gates foundation, it didn't appear the Cedarville Branch would be eligible. One of the criteria is that within a five miles radius of the branch, based upon the 1990 census, the poverty level of residents had to be at least 10 percent.

Based on the 1999 figures, the five miles (even though the Cedarville Branch serves all of Surprise Valley) only re flected a 9.2 percent poverty level. Baker did some research, using current figures from the state Department of Education and argued successfully that things had changed dramatically in the area over the past 10 years.

She explained in the grant application that there were more students qualified for free and reduced lunch programs now and a larger contingent of non-English speaking people had moved into the Cedarville area.

Baker said this new Internet access increases the avail able free services offered by the local libraries and is a valuable tool for the public.

Modoc Railroad Academy hosts open house

Want to know more about the Modoc Railroad Academy which will be opening first classes January 10? An open house is scheduled Friday from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Academy classrooms in the Dolby Building 1030 North Main Street.

The public is invited to view what will be offered, including a computerized training program and speak with administrators and staff. The public will get the chance to look into the textbooks and will be able to practice on the computer training programs. Refreshments will also be served.

The Academy is called the nation's first vocational railroad training school and will feature courses approved by the industry. It's curriculum, said Suzanne Berdall, executive director, has been approved by the Burlington Northern, Sante Fe, Union Pacific, Kansas City Southern, Norfolk Southern and Canadian Pacific. Its is a member of the Railroad Education Training Association, a professional group of 20 colleges, universi ties and railroads across the United States and Canada.

The school will begin staggered classes on Jan. 10, Feb. 10 and March 10. The first class will have 10 students and the academy expects to train 300 students each year. Each course is 12 weeks long.

For more information of the academy call 530-233-5515. In addition about getting into the academy or for assistance with tuition, contact VeAnn Ambers at 530-233-7710.

Music students selected for high honors

Karen Siegel "hit the ground running on Monday morning," following the hol iday break, when she was notified of several surprise announcements she was happy to make to several middle school and high school music department students, whom she teaches.

Six students from Modoc Middle School Choir and Band have been named to the Northern California Junior High Honor Band and Choir for grades seven through nine. Ninth grade Choir students Zeb Thorn, Kayla Harness and Karlie Bodmer and ninth grade band stu dents Christina Nardoni and Robert Flournoy and seventh grader Nat Futter man will travel to Cal State University, Chico for two days of rehearsals Jan. 13 and 14, culminating in a public performance at Lax son Auditorium on January 15. The local students audi tioned by cassette tape and choir students were selected by Siegel. All entries were submitted to be judged out side the Modoc area.

Modoc High Senior Jeran Brown learned that he will be on the road in February and March for several events including being a part of the Northern Califor nia High School Honor Choir with MHS senior Re bekah Richert, alto and Christina Crawford, so prano, for the Feb. 3 - 5 at Humboldt State University. They will combine their voices with a choir of 120 voices strong for a perfor mance in the Van Duzer Theater on Feb. 5, after two days of intensive re hearsals. Dr. William Hall, professor of choral music at Chapman Univer sity, will lead the choir. Modoc High was able to submit a quartet of their best singers, noted Siegel of the selection process.

Come March 8-11, Brown, will perform as a tenor, un der the direction of Dr. Paul Smith from Cal State Uni versity, Northridge, at Loy ola Marymount University in Westchester, Calif. The event encompasses the Western Division Ameri can Choral Directors Asso ciation High School Multi-cultural Honor Choir for which Jeran taped his pre pared audition solo accom panied by a written evalua tion by Siegel.

The Western Division choir includes vocalists from California, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Arizona.

"These are very signifi cant achievements for these students," offered Siegel.

Brown was also selected for the California All-State Honor Choir through live audition try-outs of scales, tonal memory, chords, sight reading and a prepared solo. Brown will perform at the California Music Educators Conference at the Sacra mento Convention Center on March 23-25, under the di rec tion of Rodney Eichen berger from Florida State Univer sity, Tallahassee, Florida. Singers from throughout the state will comprise the 120 person choir. Students will have three days of intensive re hearsal.

Both Rebekah Richert and Brown completed the Re gional Honor Choir com mitment at Consumnes River College, Sacramento Nov. 11-14. The two were members of the 152 member, mixed choir which sang seven songs, three in a for eign language and all but one a cappella, under the di rection of Dr. Donald Kendrick. Rehearsals were intensive up until the time of the performance. Their re quirements included memo rizing the songs within three weeks - a difficult task, stated a proud Siegel, who was working on travel ar rangements to be paid for by the school district.

SNF residents have a sparkling celebration

It was a night unlike any other that brought feelings of joy to staff and residents alike at Modoc Medical Center's Skill Nurs ing Fa cility. The staff had promised to help the resi dents celebrate the coming of the new millennium and the end of a century, in style.

The outcome was even "better than ex pected," shared organizer Sharon Raabe, who in her 17 years working with the hospital said, "In all my years here, it was the neatest thing. It was a blast; we (staff) had a great time and the residents were so happy."

By transforming the din ing room into a candlelight dinner atmosphere for New Year's Eve, everything from the menu to the atmosphere was just what the residents' council had hoped for. The staff wanted to provide a "beautiful evening out" and did just that for the 24 guests who were able to come to the dining room, dressed in their finery and all "dolled up."

Invitations had been sent out to each resi dent the Mon day after Christmas. "They didn't have to RSVP," said Raabe. "We'd planned this for quite a while, but then there was a lot of flu going around, so we weren't ex actly sure how many resi dents would be healthy and able to come down to the din ing room for the special evening. Fortunately, we had more than we antici pated," said the or ganizer. Guests arrived for dinner at 6:15 p.m. and stayed until about 7:20 p.m., linger ing and enjoying the evening.

"It really worked that night. It was beauti ful. The ladies came dressed up and wearing their pearls and those ladies who don't nor mally wear makeup, were all dolled up. Ev eryone was dressed up for New Year's. We figure to be 90 years old and make it to the year 2000, is really something," de scribed Raabe.

"We have several resi dents who will turn 100 this year (2000)," said Terri Sides. "One of our ladies, Susie Murphy, came to the dinner and she will turn 100 in July. She got the biggest kick out of those poppers that throw out the confetti. We'd put them on all the tables for them to have fun with." Sides helped shop for the decora tions and helped with plan ning.

For those unable to leave their rooms, the dinner matched the menu served in the din ing room, with prime rib and au jus and horseradish, baked potatoes with sour cream, butter and chives, green beans with ba con bits, French bread and a slice of both rhubarb and ap ple pie for each guest. In the dining room, tablecloths, silverware and taper can dles were used, and Cham pagne glasses were filled with sparkling apple cider. Blowers, noise makers and pop pers filled with confetti brought fun, first-time reac tions from several of the diners out for the New Year's Eve celebration. Fancy New Year's Eve napkins and confetti graced each setting at round ta bles seating four each.

Six staff members volun teered their time that night to act as dining room servers, so as not to use overtime hours. Sharon Raabe, Delinda Gover, Terri Sides, Tracy Sides, Juanita Wag ner and Ginger Preston were dressed in black slacks, crisp white shirts and black bow ties. They were joined by cook Maria Correa and assistant Renae Burgess. Andy Olsen, one of the younger residents, led the dining room guests in saying Grace be fore their dinner.

"It was superb," Raabe re called. "The res idents asked the cooks to come out of the kitchen at the end of dinner, so they could thank and ap plaud them. The prime rib was kept nice and tender with the au jus, so every one could enjoy it. It turned out wonderful."

The residents' council had asked specifi cally for prime rib and both rhubarb and ap ple pies, for the holi day meal. The council helps choose the holiday meals on a regular basis, notes Raabe.

SNF employee Opal Hammack was elected as the "pie maker for the holi days." Hammack made five of each, much to the ap preciation of the residents. For the past four years, Raabe has been the Dietary and Envi ronmental Ser vices Manager. Sixty-seven dinners were served with two prime ribs to taling 60 pounds this New Year's Eve. "Over at the hospital," the dining room was set up with table cloths to serve six pa tients who were able to go to the dining room for dinner. The rest were served in their rooms, where some family members had joined their loved ones for dinner.

Raabe said she worked the best deals she could to cut down the cost of the prime rib to serve that many people. The staff got a "good deal" having prime rib at the regu lar cost of $3 per meal.

Back in the SNF dining room, Raabe said it made her feel good to hear resi dents emo tionally exclaim, "Oh, this is so nice."

"We really want to thank the staff who were scheduled to be there that night. They were a big help in getting the residents to and from their rooms and working that night," admonished Raabe.

The leftovers didn't go to waste. Raabe said the kitchen crew was busy mak ing veg etable beef soup the next day.

 

Record news for January 13, 2000

 

Deadline for voter registration Feb. 7

The deadline for voter registration for the March 7, 2000 election is Feb. 7, according to Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison.

It's important, said Madison, that voters make sure they are registered under the correct name and current address. New registers are also encouraged. Madison pointed out that young people who will be age 18 by or on March 7 should reg ister to vote by Feb. 7.

Madison purged the Modoc voter registration list this last winter and the total registration took a dramatic drop, from 5,885 in the Nov. 1998 election to 5,218 now. That's a drop of 667 voters or over 11 percent.

Madison said she went back at least over the past four ma jor elections and purged anyone who had not voted in any of them. Those voters were sent a card saying their names would be removed if they did not respond.

The Republicans hold the majority of registered voters in the county at 2,421 and there are 2,102 registered Democrats. According to Madison the fastest growing area of registra tion is in Non Partisan where there are now 569 registered voters. The breakdown of other parties in Modoc is as fol lows: American Independent, 151; Libertarian, 26; Green, 14, Reform, 14, Natural Law, four, and miscellaneous, 18.

World traveler lands in Alturas as Assistant Superintendent

By Nora Russell

A man who has spent his life traveling the world has settled down in Alturas to be the Assistant Superintendent of the Modoc County Office of Education.

Steve Pine was born in an Air Force family and spent his youth in the Orient. He also lived in several differ ent states and graduated from high school in Japan.

After a short time in col lege proved unsuccessful for Pine he joined the Air Force and spent four years in Eu rope. Upon being dis charged, he returned to Ore gon; his father having re tired in Klamath Falls.

Pine attended and grad uated from Oregon College of Edu cation, which is now known as Western Oregon State College near Salem.

With a degree in Psychol ogy and German in hand Pine still had a difficult time finding employment, so he went back to school and did graduate work in Educa tion. His first job in the edu cation field was in Medford, Or. at McLaughlin High School in 1977.

A job with the Department of Defense in Alternative Education took Pine to Ger many and began a cycle of spending a few years in Eu rope and a few years in Ore gon. During different times when Pine was in Oregon he taught in Seattle and at the Oregon Institute of Technol ogy.

When Pine was working with the Department of De fense he had the opportunity to travel through Europe and at one point was offered a job in Romania in exchange for a pair of tennis shoes a month. On one return trip from Germany, Pine brought his wife, Jeni, with him.

In 1988 Steve and Jeni were in Alaska where he taught grades K-3 at a two teacher school in a village of 60 peo ple. Later, returning to Alaska in 97/98, he was the prin cipal of a school in Twin Hills. To his exciting and eclectic resumé Pine can now add that he spent the turn of the millennium in Alturas.

As Assistant Superinten dent, Pine is the Personnel Director. He deals with fa cilities, vehicles, curricu lum development and Re gional Occupation Pro grams.

As far as living in Al turas Pine says, "I love it; I love the small town nature. people who know people and the friendliness that comes with that. The surroundings, environment and climate are great, there is so much to do out here."

Pine's goal for his time in Alturas is to be come an ac tive community member to the advantage of the com munity.

Modoc Forest has big plans for Hackamore

The are big plans in the works for the Hackamore area of the Modoc National Forest on Devil's Garden, much aimed at increasing wildlife habitat and the public's access to share that habitat.

The Forest has prepared an Environmental Assessment for the Hackamore Ecosystem Watershed Restoration Project and public has 30 days to comment on its contents and plans.

According to forest officials, the plans are to develop ap proximately 1,265 acres of wetland habitat, install 10 guz zlers to provide additional wildlife water sources, and con struct a vehicle pull-off adjacent to Highway 139 for wildlife viewing and heritage resource interpretation at Henski Reservoir.

In addition, there are plans to thin approximately 16,500 acres of overstocked stands of pine over a five-to-seven-year period. This includes treatment within eight northern goshawk nest stands to accelerate stand development into late serial conditions and reduce the likelihood of wildfires.

The forest also intends to "top" approximately 2,000 exist ing snags to prevent blowdown and increase their longevity.

The project includes a plan to obliterate approximately 42 miles of unsurfaced roads and repair and stabilize one mile of the Bark Springs road, prescribe burn approximately 19,000 acres of pine over about a 10-year period, and about 500 acres of decadent brush fields to enhance deer forage.

The forest also plans to protect four bald eagle nests from fire and treat 2,830 acres of potential eagle nesting habitat with vegetative prescriptions designed to grow large diame ter while maintaining existing large trees.

For additional information on the project or for a copy of the Environmental Assessment, contact Curt Aarstad, Modoc National Forest, 800 W. 12th Street, Alturas, Ca., 96101. Interested individuals may also telephone at530-233-5811.

People may also comment on the project on the EA by sending comments to Bernie Weisgerber, District Ranger, P.O. Box 369, Tulelake, Ca. 96134, phone 530-667-2246. Comments must be received by the close of business Feb. 14, 2000.

What projects are on the table at the Modoc National Forest?

There are several projects in the works on the Modoc National Forest and all in are various stages of action.

Two controversial and important issues are the Telephone Flat Geothermal and Four Mile Hill Geothermal Plants Environmental Impact Statements. The final deci sion on both of those Medicine Lake area projects is pending and not expected before spring. The contact person is Randall Sharp at the U.S. Forest Service.

Sharp is also the contact person on the Unified Federal Water Rights Policy at 233-8748.

Public comments are due Feb. 3 on the Draft Directives for Managing Recreation Residents. The contact for comments is Jesse Berner, 233-8734.

Robert Haggard is lead person in Modoc for the Sierra Nevada Framework Environmental Impact Statement. The release of the draft EIS is expected in mid-February. Haggard can be contacted at 233-8740.

Public comments are due in the Special Use Permit Cost Recovery Regulations by Jan. 24, 2000. Contact Jayne Biggerstaff at 233-8740.

Public review of the Forest Service Road Policy is ex pected in mid-January. The contact person for that project is Haggard at 233-8740.

A project that is generating local concern is the Roadless Review EIS. The public scoping on that issue ended Dec. 23. Contact person is Curt Aarstad at 233-8745.

The Proposed Planning Regulations contact person is Haggard and the public comment period on that issue ends Feb. 3. Contact Haggard at 233-8740.

The Draft Strategic Plan 2000 Review is led by Nancy Gardner and public comments will be accepted until the end of January. Gardner's phone is 233-8713.

The Draft EIS on the Survey and Manage project has been released and a 90-day public comment period ends March 3, 2000. Allison Sanger, 233-8836, is the person to call on the is sue.

A draft document on the Warner Mountain Rangeland Porject is expected by mid-March. The lead person on that project is Edith Asrow, 279-6116.

Aarstad is the contact person for the Hackamore Project and a draft document is expected this month on the project. Aarstad can be contacted at 233-8745.

Scoping on the Long-Damon Plantation Release and Site Prep Project should begin this month. Contacts are Bob Carroll at 233-8807; or Anne Mileck at 233-8803.

For more information on any of these projects, please contact the Modoc National Forest or the listed individuals.

Computers still not meeting needs of students and staff

By Nora Russell

Twelve o'clock midnight December 31, 1999 the world sighed in relief as the new millennium began without the computer problems that were predicated all year.

The electricity stayed on, the ATMs dispensed money and computers booted up in 2000 in exactly the same as they had during 1999. Technology was not wiped out in one swipe of the hands of a clock and it seems to be here to stay. Not only in the way that it is familiar to us now, but growing by leaps and bounds. Often so fast that it appears to be rushing ahead of us; we learn one application just as a new one becomes available. This creates an atmosphere where educators are struggling to learn technology and teach it at the same time.

The schools in Alturas are facing these challenges along with the rest of the world of educators. Each school is han dling it in different ways, working to make their computer labs and classrooms as up-to-date and technology friendly as possible.

Alturas Elementary School

Alturas Elementary has a computer lab with 30 IBM com patible computers. Each classroom has at least one computer, in most cases there are two. One computer is for teacher use and one is for the students to use to take Accelerated Reading tests. "The Accelerated Reading programs aren't working well in the classrooms right now," said principal Randy Wise. "We bought upgrades of the Accelerated Reading disks, but they are not working with the old program and are saving files in the wrong directories. Also some of the com puters are being torn down for repairs."

Kindergartners have computer class in the lab once a week, first and second graders twice a week and fourth and fifth graders four times a week. The programs that are available to them now are Corel Word Perfect Suite 8, Typ ing to Learn and Slam Dunk, which is a more advanced typ ing program than Type to Learn.

During the 1998/99 school year the computer lab had many more programs available for the students, but an upgrade of the computers and network over the summer made those pro grams obsolete and unusable. When Susan Slinkard, Com puter Lab Aide, came back to school from summer vacation she was left with only typing and word-processing to teach the students.

Becoming frustrated with the lack of programs to teach with, Slinkard bought six copies of the Slam Dunk program with her own money and installed them on six of the com puter lab computers. "I needed some programs immediately so that the students would have new work to do, I'm going to lose their interest soon if they don't have more to learn on the computers." said Slinkard. Now when students complete as much as they can with the Type to Learn program, they can achieve a higher level of learning with the Slam Dunk Pro gram.

"I'm not sure why she bought programs with her own money," was Principal, Randy Wise's comment. "We do have funding for software and she can put in for reim bursement if she wants to. I don't think she should have put the programs on the computers herself."

"It's her job," said Bert Trevail, MJUSD Computer Tech nician. "As a computer teacher she should be able to main tain the computers and printer herself, I'm a computer teacher, I've been there."

"The printer in our computer lab hasn't been working for quiet awhile," Slinkard added. "Bert fixed it recently and it worked for a day and is not working again, some of the stu dents have been waiting weeks to print out their work."

When asked what Trevail's job description is he stated, "To take care of and repair computers, work on 3-com com ponents, run network, other jobs as assigned, teach people how to run computers."

Fifty new programs have been ordered that are compatible with the network, some of them had arrived before Christ mas vacation and Slinkard was hoping that they would have been installed on the network when the students came back to school on January 3.

They have not been installed and Slinkard has not been given an idea of when they might be. "Every program is unique and different," stated Trevail. "Each program could take from five minutes to five days to install."

Modoc Middle School

The computer lab in the library of Modoc Middle School has 16 computers in it, which teacher, Tim Prim uses to teach a semester long keyboarding class to the seventh and eighth graders.

Keyboarding is reminiscent of the typing classes that peo ple over 30 would have attended, except without the carbon pa per and White Out. In Keyboarding students learn docu ment processing, how to create, save and print documents, formatting and editing, and how to work with multi-page documents, columns, tables, graphics and text boxes. The program used is Corel Word Perfect Suite 8 which includes Quatro Pro 8, Paradox 8 and Presentations 8.

"When we have the Internet available, we will be able to do much more with research and multi-media presentations with the students." Prim said.

The Middle School was also affected by the upgrading of computers and network over the summer. They lost the abil ity to use the encyclopedia on CD and many other programs, which have not yet been replaced.

The library was unable to use the Accelerated Reading program provided at the beginning of the year. "The screen kept freezing in the middle of tests that students were taking and we couldn't figure out what the problem was. Bert told me to use the network to use the copy of the program that the High School uses, but there were copyright problems with that, so eventually we spent library funds to buy a new copy." said Lynette Sturgeon, Modoc Middle School Librarian.

The Science Lab has 15 computers in it which provides one computer to two students in each science class. "So far this year I have not used computers much in my class, simply be cause the curriculum I'm using hasn't called for it yet." said science teacher, Julie Sturgeon.

The computers will be used in conjunction with many ex periments and also dissection. Gone are the days when slic ing into frogs and worms left students queasy for the rest of the day. This is a new millenium when a teacher can per form a virtual dissection on her computer screen and the students can watch from their screens.

"When we do have the Internet I will be posting the stu dents Science Fair projects on a web page," said Sturgeon "The supplemental curriculum and research possibilities are amazing."

As of November, 1999 Kevin Pent has been leading the Gifted and Talented Education program. The program con sists of fourteen students who have been recommended by their teachers and have been evaluated by their Standard ized Intelligence Test scores. The program will provide tools and the environment for students to explore new areas using their strengths and interests.

The G.A.T.E. program has purchased five new comput ers, a printer and scanner. The students will use them, along with the Encyclopedia Britannica, Encarta Delux on CD ROM and the Internet to do research projects. For exam ple they will be asked to create a hypothesis about what the future will be like and find facts from the Internet to support it.

"We will also be creating a web page for the school," stated Pent. "It will have a working cover page, we'll use a panoramic picture of the school and the school emblem. The students will be interviewing the staff and putting their pic tures and information on the page."

Modoc High School

Computer Applications and Typing are taught by Dee Ferguson in a classroom equipped with 28 Pentium-2 Com puters, two laser printers, two color printers, one ink jet printer, two scanners, two digital cameras, an adapter that brings what is on a computer screen onto the T.V. screen for student viewing and a CD Writer. "I feel like a kid in a candy shop," stated Ferguson.

"The yearbook is put together on the computer and the CD Writer is going to be so helpful because in the past we put it all on floppy disks to send to the printer. It took up a lot of disks, with the CD Writer all of the information takes up a small space on the CD." she added. The classroom has In ternet access to one computer at this time which students use in reports where they are required to include Internet sources as part of the report.

"The Network is not where we would like it to be, but it is being refined all the time. Kids are learning how to use it because they have to learn the floppy drive, CD drive, hard drive and network drive." said Ferguson.

High School students who go to the library for research purposes will find five computers available with word-pro cessing programs for writing reports. Also available are Encyclopedia Britannica, Social Issues Recourse Series which includes 500 different periodicals, the entire National Geographic on CD, but no Internet access yet. The library is open and available to students before school, during student break and lunch break.

Students taking classes in the Agriculture Department have access to eight desktop computers and two laptops. They have been connected to the Internet for five or six years ac cording to teacher Mike Kraft. Students have access to the computers for writing reports and juniors and seniors use them projects in products and marketing and creating Pow erPoint multi-media presentations.

"When the network is up and running it is useful in sharing files, especially graphics. Graphic files are so large, they can be saved on the network and not take up room on the computers." stated Kraft.

Funding from the Natural Resource Academy has helped in providing computers to the high school. "With computers, printers and scanner, I would estimate that they've provided 35 pieces of equipment to the school. Most of those would be computers." stated Kraft.

Two common threads run through all three of the schools, the network is unreliable and often not working at all and the access to the Internet is not sufficient for all students who need to use it for research purposes.

Comments like "The network has a headache today," "It crashed again this week," "The network is so unreliable that I don't even bother to log on to it when I turn my computer on" are heard often within the school walls.

"It's going through growing pains," was Trevail's an swer to why the network is unreliable. "I know that you don't understand about computers (referring to reporter), so I won't really go into much, but there are 70 different compo nents to it and with so many components, some of them are bound to go out."

The satellite that will be the down-load and up-load link to the Internet was installed on January 11, 2000. Trevail did not want to give an estimate on when the Internet system would be available to the students, and as of press time calls to Don Demsure, MJUSD Superintendent for comment had not returned.

Minor injuries in roll-over

Minor injuries were re ported in a single vehicle ac cident Jan. 8, 4:40 p.m. on Highway 299 east of Canby.

The California Highway Patrol reports that Donna Drew, 63, Ft. Bidwell, was driving a 1997 Ford Aerostar southbound at about 45 m.p.h. when she apparently fell asleep at the wheel. The van drifted off the south side of the highway and down and em bankment where it over turned, coming to rest on its top. The vehicle sustained moderate damages.

Drew and a passenger Daniel Drew, age 35, sus tained minor injuries. The CHP credits seatbelt use for keeping injuries minor.

Ice on the road was the ap parent culprit of an accident Jan. 11, 2000, 7:15 p.m. on Highway 299 north of Adin. The CHP states that Karen Jean Gurule, 42, Adin was eastbound at an unknown speed and lost traction in her 1991 Toyota. The vehicle spun out of control, hit a fence and overturned. Gurule was seat belted and only sustained minor injuries. She was transported by ambulance to Mayers Memorial Hospital in Fall River Mills.

An apparent hit and run with property damage was re ported in Cedarville Jan. 11, 8 p.m.

The CHP reports that Leland Schmid, 34, was driv ing 1990 Ford Bronco and left the Cedarville Cafe. He al legedly struck a pickup and an adjacent fence. He fled the scene and was later located and arrested at his residence.

 

OBITUARIES

 

Walter Ernest Bailey

Walter Ernest Bailey was a "miracle" child who lived to be 50. Mr. Bailey passed away of natural causes at his home in Alturas, Calif. on January 1, 2000. He had been ill for the past few years.

The eldest child of Mary and Roy "Doug" Bailey, he was born on September 17, 1949, in Alturas, Calif. He lived all of his 50 years in Alturas.

"He was such a joy and so loving," recalls his sister Margaret. "He loved the hol idays and especially looked forward to Halloween and Christmas."

Walter also enjoyed watching wrestling on tele vision and loved listening to music, especially the music of Elvis Presley.

For a time in his life, Walter was a client of the Modoc Work Activity Center in Alturas.

He is survived by his father Roy "Doug" Bailey of Al turas; brother Ken Bailey and family of Pinedale, Wyoming; sister Margaret McCulley and family of Al turas. His mother, Mary Bailey, preceded him in death in 1987.

Mr. Bailey's cousin, Paul Bailey of Alturas, conducted services at graveside on Wednesday, Jan. 5 at 2 p.m. at the Alturas Cemetery.

Philo Gardner Winkel

Philo Gardner Winkel, 70, long-time U.S. Forest Service Ranger on the Modoc National Forest, died in Fresno, Calif. on Sunday, Dec. 19, 1999, after a long illness.

Mr. Winkel had many accomplishments during his 33-year tenure with the U.S. Forest Service. He was most proud of "being on the Modoc." The designing and building of the Blue Lake Campground, as it stands to day, is a tribute to Mr. Winkel.

He served with the Modoc National Forest from 1962 through 1969.

Mr. Winkel was born to a prominent Utah family in 1929 in Manti, Utah.

He was a graduate of Utah State University. He received a Bachelor of Science degree with multiple ma jors. He served in the U.S. Army during the Korean Con flict. He was recently honored as the last member of the Mounted Rangers of the High Sierras. Even after he retired in 1983, his services were utilized by the U.S. Forest Service as a consultant. His duties as a Fire Services Specialist and his experience uniquely qualified him not only as a writer, but as the editor of the environmental impact statement of the High Sierra Mountain Range.

He is survived by his wife of 17 years, Twilia Winkel of Clovis, Calif.; two children, a son Robert Gardner Winkel of Santa Fe, New Mexico; a daughter, the Reverend Karen Winkel of Bountiful, Utah, and their mother Helen Winkel of Clovis.

Graveside services will be conducted at a later time in Richfield, Utah. Arrangements are being handled by the Magleby's Funeral Home in Richfield, Utah.

Remembrances may be sent to the donor's favorite char ity.

Horace E. "Bud" Brown

One of the founding fathers of Modoc Little League, Ho race E. "Bud" Brown, passed away early on the morning of January 3, 2000 at Modoc Medical Center, Alturas, Calif., following a brief illness.

Bud, as he was affection ately known over the 62 years he made Modoc his home, had co-organized youth baseball in Alturas with Don Rachford and Lee Sides, that made the nu cleus for Little League when it was formed in Alturas in 1954.

For over a 44 year period, "Bud" Brown and his smile could be seen behind the meat market counters in Alturas grocery stores.

Born Horace Edward Brown on Dec. 26, 1916, in Big Pine, Calif., his father

died when he was 18 months old and his mother and two sib lings moved in with his grandparents in Bishop. The fam ily relocated to a 12-acre farm near Wood land when Bud was in the fifth grade. He was an outstand ing athlete at Woodland High School in the early 1930s, let tering in foot ball all three years as a guard and end and captain of the team in his senior year. He was also a three-year varsity starter on the baseball team as catcher and earned a letter in basketball the only year he tried out. He was elected as pres ident of the student body in his senior year. His love of sports continued throughout his life.

After graduating from Woodland High in 1935, he went to work as a truck driver, while the Depression was in full swing. His mother remarried and relocated to Cedarville. Bud came to Modoc in 1937 and had never seen a more beau tiful place than Surprise Valley. He decided right then that he would stay and was hired by Walt Hussa, Sr. In the summer of 1938, Hussa asked Bud to work in Alturas in the meat market with Arthadus Rachford at the old Lowell and Williams grocery store. Bud had been playing baseball for the Alturas Tigers since his arrival and he was a member of the Alturas town basketball team.

On January 8, 1940, Bud and Mina Alzada "Jo" Tripp of Surprise Valley, were married in Reno, Nev. A year later they purchased the home in which they have lived for 59 years.

When World War II started, Bud was leasing a meat market from the Gysins (where Walt's Market is today). After the war, nearing age 30 and with two children, he teamed with an old "Tigers" baseball buddy, Arn Hirony mous to purchase the Lowell and Williams store in Alturas. They aptly renamed it the A&B Market, with Bud running the meat department. By 1950, they sold out and Bud went to work for Lindgren and Burrell driving logging trucks. He also purchased a ranch on Shields Creek, but later sold the ranch. In years that followed, Bud was the head butcher at Bowman's Market, Cleo's, Better Buy and leased the meat department at Presty's, all in Alturas, until he retired in May of 1982.

He and wife Jo have always had a deep, mutual respect and love for one another, sharing 60 years of marriage and in rearing their three children. Bud once shared that their children have always been important to them and have brought them their happiest years and fondest memories. After their children were grown, Bud and Jo enjoyed being active in their grandchildren's lives. Bud always enjoyed working with kids and he enjoyed hunting and fishing.

He is survived by his wife Jo of Alturas; son Jim Brown of Elk Grove, Calif.; daughter Marian Davis of Burney; daughter Kathy Davis of Fremont; four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

The Rev. Doctor Ben Zandstra conducted a memorial service at the Federated Church in Alturas at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 5. Remembrances may be made to the charity of the donor's choice.

Lester Frank "Les" Killingbeck

Long-time Modoc resident Lester Frank "Les" Killing beck loved what he did and did what he loved during his lifetime. Mr. Killingbeck passed away in Alturas, Calif. on Monday, January 10, 2000. He had been receiving care at the Skilled Nursing Facility since Thanksgiving, due to his recent declining health. He was 89 at the time of his passing.

Born in Coburg, Oregon on October 14, 1910, he was one of 10 children born to Luther F. and Mary E. Killingbeck. He was raised in Oregon and Tucson, Ari zona as a young child. His family later moved to Tur lock, Calif., where Lester spent his teen years. He then met Lucy Claire Clayton and the two were married in Modesto, Calif. on February 8, 1933.

They began their married life in Turlock and their three children were born there. The family moved to Adin in 1940 and Lester worked for the U.S. Forest Service for several years. During his lifetime he had worked with the State De partment of Forestry, in ranching and in the logging busi ness in a sawmill. He began work for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1945 in Madeline, Calif. and moved his family to Likely in August of 1945. Lucy and Lester reared their children in Modoc County. When Lester retired from the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1971, he and Lucy moved to Alturas, where they have made their home ever since. He called Modoc home for 60 years.

Lester loved to hunt and fish and had many fishing friends whom he loved to be with. He and Lucy had shared almost 67 years of marriage. For many years, Lester was an active member of the Rabbit Growers Association and the Modoc Senior Citizens. Tall in stature, Mr. Killingbeck was also a personable and kind man who appreciated the surroundings of Modoc County and loved to be out enjoying all that nature had to offer in Modoc.

He is survived by his wife Lucy of Alturas; daughters Carol Minto, Gerlach, Nev.; Nora Intardonato, Merced, Calif.; son Merle Killingbeck of Alturas; sister Aretha Bishop of Anderson, Calif.; seven grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren and nine-great-great granchildren.

He was preceded in death by his mother and father, three sisters and five brothers.

No services will be held according to Mr. Killingbeck's wishes.

Memorial contributions may be made to the charity of the donor's choice.

 

 

Record news for January 20, 2000

 

• MJU nearing agreement on Drennan departure
• BLM will change plans on five grazing allotments
• Schwab manager in critical condition after wreck
• Modoc Jobless rate for December at 6.6%
• Voter registration deadline in February 7
• Sierra Business Council to brief Modoc

MJU nearing agreement on Drennan de parture

Following a closed session Tuesday night, the Modoc Joint Unified School District Board of Trustees, actually attorney John Kenny representing the board, announced they were nearing a separation agreement with former Superintendent Craig Drennan.

Drennan was convicted of felony eaves dropping charges by a Modoc jury in September, 1999 and has been on paid admin istrative leave since a hidden video camera was discovered in former Modoc High School Principal Duke Pasquini's office last May.

In the separation agreement, the board is stating that what Drennan did by ordering the hidden camera in Pasquini's office and viewing those tapes, was within the scope of his employment, "without malice" and "in good faith." The board's position is that there is no evidence to prove those things are not true.

The agreement has been forwarded to Drennan, who will consult with his legal counsel and tweak any language that he may disagree with and should come back to the board for ratification Jan. 24.

In addition to the above language, the school district is agreeing to pay Drennan $150,000, continue his benefits for 18 months and pay his criminal defense fees, not to ex ceed $25,000.

In exchange for the agreement, the district will receive Drennan's resignation as super intendent and as a credentialed teacher in the district foregoing his tenure.

Any inquiries for Drennan's future em ployment will be directed to the current super intendent of the district, who will provide the agreement as the answer to any questions.

Under Drennan's current contract with the district, there is a clause that it cannot be terminated without 18 months compensation. In his contract, there is no explicit termina tion clause for wrongdoing. The district's le gal counsel said the district had to adhere to conditions in Drennan's contract.

According to Superintendent Don Demsher, the district has filed a cross-com plaint with the legal firm of Stroup and de Goede, who allegedly gave Drennan advice on planting the video camera. Drennan has maintained that firm advised him the action was legal. They were not called as a defense witness in Drennan's trial.

In addition, said Demsher, Pasquini has filed a complaint against the district.

Modoc Superior Court Judge Larry Dier sentenced Drennan to three years formal probation, a $7,000 fine and 10 days in the county jail. That sentence will be stayed un til an appeal is final.

Drennan's attorney has filed an appeal of the eavesdropping conviction. That appeal is pending.

Drennan was originally charged with felony eavesdropping after a hidden video camera was discovered by Alturas Police in Pasquini's office.

The hidden camera was discovered and removed by the Alturas Police Department May 4 after its existence was re ported to them. Pasquini was not told the camera was in his office. It was in the ceiling and the lens was covered by a false smoke detector. The camera had been in operation for about six months.

School officials reported to police that the camera operated 24 hours per day, five days per week and was turned off in March.

According to Demsher, the state creden tialing board will probably address Drennan's administrative and teaching credentials if the appeal is denied.

BLM to change grazing plan on five allotments

There are some changes in the works this spring for five grazing allotments administered by the Bureau of Land Management's Surprise Valley Resource Area.

In many cases, the changes will mean less or no cattle or livestock grazing on portions of the allotments. Area Manager Susan Stokke, understands the changes will have an impact on the nine permittees who run livestock on those allotments.

"We are hoping to work with the ranchers to develop long term strategies," Stokke said. "But the public wants us to move forward on these issues. We are hoping to continue working with people and come up with solutions that will work for all sides."

Stokke pointed out that five of the livestock allotments un der the SV Resource area administration are not meeting at least one standard for rangeland health because of current livestock grazing.

She said current BLM regulations require that grazing management changes be made to enable the land to improve and those changes must be made before the start of the 2000 grazing season.

Stokke is quick to point out that the problems vary in each of the allotments and the problems are found in parts of al lotment, not all across the landscape. Many of the problem areas, she said, are in riparian (stream and streambank) and meadows.

She also understands the affected ranchers' frustration and impacts, but said the change has been coming and should not be a surprise to anyone.

"We want to allow grazing to continue in these areas at a level the land can sustain without damage," she said. "Changes proposed for next grazing season are short term in nature. We are addressing the problems on the ground to start the areas on a trend to recovery. We are working with the ranchers and others interested in the health of the land to put these changes in place, or find alternative solutions."

Stokke said BLM will likely begin to prepare environ mental assessments on the affected allotments, aimed at addressing the issues and developing long term manage ment strategies to improve range health.

Stokke said the management goals will be designed to provide for better habitat for wildlife and fish, produce more forage for livestock and provide quality recreation experi ences for a variety of visitors.

Some of the changes in management may include rest and rotation of certain areas, short term grazing or in some cases no grazing for this season.

The following summarizes concerns and proposed actions on the allotments, which are all in Nevada, east of Surprise Valley.

Home Camp: ending provisions for "stragglers" to graze in Hays Canyon (cattle left behind when livestock is taken off the public allotment); limiting cattle use to moderate in stream areas; hand cutting encroaching juniper on south slopes of Hays Canyon.

Duck Lake: nearly all perennial streams are function ing-at-risk with less than desirable riparian vegetation; active erosion, and poor habitat conditions for riparian-de pendent species; two actions are proposed, to end provisions for straggler grazing and to limit the maximum allowable livestock use to moderate in riparian areas.

Board Corral: because of heavy use by livestock of bitter brush, riparian vegetation, aspen as well as active cutting in the Cottonwood/ Bald Mountain areas, moderate grazing is proposed as well as more herding to improve cattle distri bution.

Bull Creek: herding has not been effective in keeping cattle out of the Willow Creek drainage. A riparian pasture is being considered for the area with no grazing this season. An option is to allow moderate use in Bull Creek and Willow Creek areas as the maximum allowable, with cattle removed when 40 percent of available forage has been eaten.

Wall Canyon East: the preferred action is no grazing for the 2000 season because of a lack of stream stability and de sirable riparian vegetation in Wall Canyon and Lower Cottonwood Creeks as well as the condition of scattered springs and ephemeral (short-term) drainages. Vegetation is less than desirable at the valley floor.

Schwab manager listed in critical condition after wreck that killed 2

The manager of the Les Schwab Tire Center in Alturas, Bill Allbee, remains in critical condition this week following a three-car accident Jan. 12 on U.S. 395 near Lakeview.

Two Lakeview residents, Wayne Ellsworth Grisel, age 75, and his grandson, Paul Wayne Grisel, 14, were killed in the ac cident.

According to Oregon State Police reports, Duane Umbarger, 52, of Lakeview was driv ing a pickup hauling a flatbed trailer north bound on US 395 about 6 p.m. and was at tempting to make a left turn into a private driveway.

A second pickup, driven by Grisel, was southbound and struck the flatbed. The Grisel vehicle became airborne and landed upside down on the highway. The driver's side of the vehicle took most of the impact. The Grisel vehicle rolled to its roof and was struck head on by a pickup driven by Allbee, age 42.

Umbarger and a passenger in his pickup were not injured.

It took the "Jaws of Life" to extract Allbee from his mangled pickup and he was taken to Lake District Hospital and then flown to St. Charles Medical Center in Bend where he is still listed in critical condition, but has shown improvement over the past few days.

According to Les Schwab Assistant Manager Mark Brown, who visited Allbee in the Bend Hospital, he will be in intensive care for two to four more weeks.

He is listed as having a broken nose and jaw and serious head injuries. He has re ceived a tracheotomy to assist his breathing and has bruised lungs. As of Wednesday, he had shown movement in his limbs and while not fully alert, was showing fairly remark able improvement.

"We are very hopeful," said Brown. "Bill seems to be doing better and healing quicker that most people who have these types of in juries, according to his doctors."

A trust fund has been set up for the Allbee family to cover miscellaneous expenses while he is hospitalized. People may donate to the Bill Allbee Trust Fund at Plumas Bank in Alturas.

A New Pine Creek Oregon man was ar rested alleging driving under the influence following a single vehicle accident Jan. 13, 9:10 p.m. on Highway 395 north of Lyneta Road.

The California Highway Patrol reports that Charles L. Harter, 50, was northbound and allowed the vehicle to drift onto the south bound lane and off the east shoulder. The ve hicle traveled down an embankment strik ing rocks and a barbed wire fence. The wreck caused minor damage to the front end of the 1988 International U-Haul truck.

There were no injuries in a single vehicle accident this week on CR 54 west of Cal Pines Boulevard.

The CHP reports that Brixhilda Daberdaku, 29, of Alturas was driving a 1999 Dodge Durango westbound on an ice-covered CR54 at about 30-35 m.p.h. when she lost control of he vehicle, left the road and struck a fence.

Occupants in the vehicle were properly restrained, which prevented injury.

Modoc jobless rate for Dec. at 6.6%

The December 1999 unemployment rate for Modoc County came in at 6.6 percent, up from November's 6.1 percent. The state's unemployment figure was 4.6 percent and nationally it was 3.7 percent.

Civilian unemployment has been inching up since October, from 200 people, to 240 in November and 60 in December. That's down significantly for December 1998 when the county's jobless rate was 10.8 percent and 420 people were without employment.

Deadline for voter registration Feb. 7

Don't forget the deadline for voter registration for the March 7 election is Feb. 7.

Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison asks voters to make sure they are registered under the correct name and current address. New reg isters are also encouraged. Madison pointed out that young people who will be age 18 by or on March 7 should reg ister to vote by Feb. 7.

The Republicans hold the majority of registered voters in the county at 2,421 and there are 2,102 regis tered Democrats. According to Madison the fastest growing area of reg istra tion is in Non Partisan where there are now 569 registered voters. The breakdown of other parties in Modoc is as fol lows: American Independent, 151; Libertarian, 26; Green, 14, Reform, 14, Natural Law, four, and miscellaneous, 18.

The Sierra Business Council briefs Modoc

The Sierra Business Council will make its first presenta tion ever to Modoc in an open meeting at the County Supervisor's Chambers January 27, 3 p.m.

Sierra Business Council is an association of businesses working together to secure the "economic and environmen tal health of the Sierra Nevada for this and future genera tions."

Sean Curtis, of the Modoc Land Use Committee, said since the U.S. Forest Service is including Modoc in the Sierra Nevada Famework proposal, the group was invited to share its wisdom and insight. He stresses the meeting is open to anyone interested.

The Council was established in 1994 and is led by a Board of Directors of business leaders representing a spectrum of large and small enterprises from throughout the region. The board oversees the council's work which includes research, policy analysis, public education and leadership develop ment.

"Several of our local folks have heard their presentations and were very impressed," said Curtis. "We don't know what their approach will be in Modoc, but we're certainly anxious to listen."

According to the council's literature, it seeks to provide leadership in a time of transition in the Sierra Nevada. It is working to "define an economic vision of our region that is attractive, achievable, profitable and ecologically sustain able."

"We explicitly reject the notion that our communities must choose between economic and environmental health. On the contrary, we believe that environmental quality is the cornerstone of economic well being," the council said.

The council's approach is decidedly pro-active and stresses the need for private initiative. The vision is long term and aimed region-wide.

The council defines economic and environmental health broadly. "A healthy economy is stable and resilient, rooted in local businesses that support our communities and recog nizes the need to support and invest in the public's education and physical well-being," the council states. "Finally, a healthy economy honors and preserves historical and cul tural resources, enriching its citizens with cultural ride and an awareness of the forebears."

Additionally, it states: "A healthy environment protects its unique natural features for the enjoyment of present and future generations . . . ensures the viability and vitality of indigenous species and recognizes their essential impor tance to the web of life. A healthy environment celebrates the glory and wonder of our streams, forests, meadows and mountains and takes care not to encroach upon areas that are still wild and unspoiled . . . provides peace and solace for the human spirit and refuge from the stresses of modern life."

Membership in the council is open to businesses operating in the Sierra who support the mission of the council and its val ues.

 

Record news for January 27, 2000

 

• Drennan accepts offer from district
• March primary has plenty of questions
• Natural gas finally coming to Alturas?

OBITUARIES:

 

• Walter E. Liston
• Eileen L. Pitsor Cody

Drennan accepts district's offer

Former Modoc Joint Unified School District Superintendent Craig Drennan has agreed to a buyout of his contract, which was ratified by the Board of Trustees Monday.

 

Drennan, who was convicted of felony eavesdropping last September will receive $150,000, plus a continuance of his benefit package for 18 months. The district also agreed to pay his criminal defense fees, not to ex ceed $25,000.

 

Drennan has been on paid administrative leave since last May when Alturas Police discovered a hidden video camera in Modoc High School Principal Dewey "Duke" Pasquini's office. Pasquini had no idea the camera was there or that Drennan had ordered its placement.

 

In exchange for the agreement, the district will received Drennan's resignation as super intendent and as a creden tialed teacher in the district.

In addition to ratifying the buyout of Drennan's contract, the board also authorized the start of a search for a perma nent replacement.

 

Interim Superintendent Don Demsher, who has been steering the district in Drennan's absence, said the search should take a few months. He is hoping the board can wrap everything up and have a new superintendent on board by July.

 

According to Demsher, the board will be seeking advice and input from the community during the search process.

 

March 7 primary will have plenty of decisions

The March 7 primary elections will have plenty of deci sions and plenty of questions to be answered by local voters.

 

Locally, there are races for County Supervisor in District Four between incumbent Ron McIntyre and challenger Willy Hagge. In District Two, incumbent Joe Colt is facing a challenge from Mike Dunn. District Three Supervisor Pat Cantrall is unopposed.

 

City voters will also decide three City Council seats. Incumbents Kerry Merwin, Jack Ochs and George Andreasen are seeking re-election. They are facing a chal lenge from Colin Jameson. Each council term is for a four-year period.

 

The City Clerk, Cary Baker, has also taken out pa pers for re-election. She is going unchallenged for another four-year term.

 

A recall election in the California Pines Community Services District against Directors Marvin Kitchen, Robert LaGabed and John Schneider will be on the ballot.

 

The federal portion of the ballot will contain the primary for President and federal offices. The state ballot will in clude state officers and Propositions 1A, and 12 through 31.

 

According to Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison, while the presidential primary is open to all parties, each party voter will receive a ballot by party. The voter may still vote for whomever he wants. The political parties in the state wanted the party ballots to track how members of each party voted, especially those who vote outside of party lines. While the parties will not be able to tell how an individual votes, they will be able to chart where their party voters strayed.

 

The propositions on the March ballot include Indian gam ing, library construction, safe drinking water, crime lab construction, Veterans bonds, allowing lotteries and chari table raffles, death sentence for murder involving kidnap ping, arson or lying in wait, enhancing sentences for sec ond degree murder of California State University and Bay Area Regional Transit officers, requiring 50 percent of in creases in lottery revenues to go to school textbooks and instruc tional materials, increases punishment for juvenile gang-related felonies, requiring only marriages between a man and woman be recognized in the state, allowing a "none-of-the-above" selection on a ballot, campaign spend ing limits, require simple majority for local school bond elections, changing term limits for Congressional candi dates, repealing the Prop. 10 tax on cigarettes, approving or rejecting a state Indian gaming compact with 11 tribes, ap proving or rejecting third party lawsuits against insurance companies.

Proposition 24 was taken off the ballot by order of the state Supreme Court, citing it as unconstitutional.

 

The final day to reg ister to vote in the March 7 election is February 7. It's important, said Madison, that voters reside in proper district. If voters have changed anything, includ ing name or residence since the last election, they need to contact the Clerk for a change. As of this week, the county had 5,227 registered voters, down from the last election.

 

Natural gas finally coming to Alturas?

Natural gas service may be coming to Alturas as early as this summer, according to Rock Creek Energy's Ken Teague.

Teague told the Alturas City Council Tuesday night that his company is anticipat ing building the gas line from the Tuscarora main line two miles south of Alturas into Carlos Street and east. Initially, the company plans service to a few large customers.

 

In the beginning stages, the City of Alturas may act as the lead agency for the natural gas service while Rock Creek maneuvers its way through the California Public Utilities Commission.

 

Teague told the council Tuesday night the CPUC hadn't dealt with a new natural gas utility company issue in 70 years. Just how long the approval process will take is un known.

 

Teague said Rock Creek has a goal of bringing natural gas service into Alturas, eventually available to all consumers. He is projecting a price of about 80 percent of propane or heating oil for the same amount of heat output. Heating oil and wood are the primary heating sources in Alturas, with oil's share increasing at a steady rate. New propane stoves are also very popular.

 

Rock Creek has put the construction of the Alturas line in to its budget for this year and fully expects to get it built. The two to two-and-a-quarter mile pipeline from the Tuscarora line will have four "bores" to get it across the forks of the Pit River and under the railroad line.

The council also went ahead on a sewer plant improvement project by requesting quotes from engineers concerning a im provements that will bring the plant into compliance with the state.

 

Funding for the improvements, estimated at from between $250,000 to $500,000 will come through either low interest loans or grants. The city will factor in an increase in sewer rates to offset a loan repayment.

 

Initially estimates to improve the sewer plant ranged in the $2 to $2.5 million level, but that scope of work has been lessened fol lowing consultations with engineers and the state.

 

Some councilmembers feel there is no rush to get the job done as long as the city is moving ahead, while others feel that delay ing it unnecessarily could trigger state im posed fines.

 

OBITUARIES:

 

Walter E. Liston

Surprise Valley native Walter E. Liston of Ventura, Calif. passed away Jan. 14, 2000, at the age of 94.

Mr. Liston was born March 3, 1905, in Cedarville, Calif. to Isaac Newton Liston and Julia Ett Lusk. He graduated from Selma Union High School in 1923, and served in the United States Army in the 47th Engineers Construction Bat talion, Asiatic Pacific Campaign. Mr. Liston was employed for many years by McKenzie Trucking Co. and Foster Sign Co. and retired from the Blue Diamond Gypsum Co. in Las Vegas.

He leaves his nieces Audrey Davis of Sonoma, Calif., Loni Liston of Angwin, Calif. and Barbara Stuart of Om aha, Neb.; and nephew John Hartley of Ventura.

Burial will be in the family plot at the Selma Cemetery in Selma, Calif. Arrangements were under the direction of Charles Carroll Funeral Home.

Eileen L. Pitsor Cody

Former Likely resident Eileen L. Pitsor Cody, 56, died of cancer on January 15, 2000 at Physicians' Hospital for Ex tended Care in Reno, Nevada.

A native of South Dakota, she was born November 2, 1943, to Ralph and Doris (Jeffries) Pitsor. She lived in Modoc County for five years, until she relocated to Reno due to health reasons. Mrs. Cody worked as a cook for the Mc Garva and HC Ranches in Likely. She had also worked as a maid and a bartender in the gaming industry. She loved spending time with her friends in Likely and was fond of horses.

Her husband William Lance Cody preceded her in death in 1979 as did her brother Larry Pitsor in April of 1999 and her mother.

She is survived by her father Ralph Pitsor of Merced, Calif.; son James Brown of Corning, Calif.; daughters Jes sica Cates of Reno and Surette King of Alturas. Two of her eight grandchildren, N'Kea Charter and William Charter are both of Alturas. She also leaves her com panion Doug Clark of Likely.

No services will be held. Cremation was at Sierra Crema tory, under the direction of Northern Nevada Memorial Cremation and Burial Society.

 

 

 

February, 2000

 

Record news for Feb. 3, 2000

 

• County wants Forest planning rule withdrawn
• State issues report card for local schools
• Supervisors approve building projects
• Nor-Cal gets tentative OK for PP&L
• Sage Stage contracts with MV Transportation
• Davis Creek has groundhog dinner fun
• Academic Decathlon in full swing

OBITURARIES:

• Barbara Maud Lazaris
• Mildred Parsons Spomer
• Phyllis A. Pollard
• Dorothea Alice Youngblood

County wants Forest planning rule withdrawn

Modoc County is asking the U.S. Forest Service to drop its proposed planning rule, calling it "the absolute worst pro posal we have ever seen."

Sean Curtis, of the Modoc Land Use Committee, who pre pared comments for the Board of Supervisors on the rule, told supervisors Tuesday that the proposal is not "fixable" through the public comment process and should be with drawn in its entirety. Those comments will be forwarded to the Forest Service.

Curtis told the board if the rule is implemented as drawn up, it could void the multiple use concept of management, would ignore successes in resource management, curtail cutting juniper for firewood, remove much of the public's comment and appeal rights and make the overriding con cept of management environmental-ecological sustain ability.

He also called the proposed rule "cleverly crafted" so that if some parts of it were removed or changed, other areas re mained to get the same desired results.

"The rule would cause great harm to local communities and to the environment," Curtis said. "It would turn the Forest Service into a planning agency with no time or money available for on-the-ground work. It furthers the ef fort to place more and more land in the no-management (preservation) designation, which is harmful long term to most forest land. It greatly reduces currently mandated pub lic involvement and places all collaboration at the discre tion of the Forest Service."

Curtis also said the reduction in appeal rights would lead to more litigation, placing forest management more in the hands of the courts and lawyers.

Curtis' says the rule changes the mission of the Forest Service from multiple-use sustained yield to managing for ecological sustainability. The definition of ecological sus tainablity also creates a problem, said Curtis.

"The rule establishes the ecosystem integrity standard as the estimated pre-European settlement conditions," Curtis argues. "This is unacceptable. These conditions are at best a poor guess. In light if the landscape of much of the unpopu lated west, this is an expensive, unachievable goal."

The county is also arguing the rule would destroy the bal ance between planning and on-the-ground accomplish ments, leaning heavily to research and planning with little money left for projects.

Modoc, which is a "designated planning county" cur rently is ultimately concerned that its input will be negated under the new rules. Currently, the Forest Service is re quired to involve the county in its planning processes and decision making. Curtis said the new rule fully ignores the record of success that "has always followed full cooperation between the Service and local government."

Curtis also said the new rule leans more toward having science stop projects rather than allow projects to move for ward.

"Scientists are well known for never having enough in formation," said Curtis. "At some point, common sense re garding funding and existing data must rule. . . In light of the constant reference to peer-reviewed science, it should be mandatory that the Committee of Scientists report that this Rule is based on or be peer reviewed."

The county believes the new rule will simply put the final nail in the coffin of timber production and stop the removal of juniper for firewood because of the concept of ecological sustainability.

"The most successful, cost efficient program the Service runs, the removal of the invasive, environmentally harm ful western juniper as firewood by the general public will cease," the county says. "By defining fuelwood as timber and preventing timber harvest on lands unsuitable for tim ber production (which by its nature is where juniper grows), the rule prevents the ecologically and socially beneficial removal of millions of board feet of an invasive weed (juniper)."

Curtis told the board one of the major concerns is the new rule allows for more discretion by the local Forest Supervisor and has a chilling effect of limiting public com ment or input on issues. He contends that's opposite of what the rule implies it is intended to accomplish.

Comments on the proposed rule had to be in to the Forest Service today.

State issues report card for local schools

Governor Gray Davis has declared this the 'era of ac countability' for Californi a's public school system.

The first step of that ac countability came in the form of the state's first-ever academic ranking of its nearly 7,000 elementary, middle and high schools. The 1999 Academic Perfor mance Index (API) Report was released on January 25, 2000, and is designed to measure each school's aca demic performance and pro vide a target for school progress in the future.

The API is based solely on the results of the Stanford 9 basic skill test, which was given to approximately 4.3 million public school stu dents last spring. The in terim statewide API perfor mance target is 800, with a possible score of between 200 and 1,000. This will serve as the statewide performance target until the State Board adopts state performance standards.

Alturas Elementary School has an API score of 753, placing them in the top 80% of the statewide rank, Modoc Middle School's API score is 610, placing them at 50% of the statewide rank and Modoc High School has an API score of 620 which places them at 60% of the statewide rank.

Surprise Valley Elemen tary School's API score is 657, placing them at 60-70% of the statewide rank. Sur prise Valley High School was not given a rank be cause it has fewer than 100 pupils.

It was not statistically possible to rate small schools, county-adminis tered schools, community day schools, alternative schools, continuation schools and independent study schools at this time. An alternative accountabil ity system is to be developed for these schools by July 1, 2000.

The API scores are then ranked statewide in 10 groups of equal size from 1 to 10. Schools are separated by type; elementary, middle and high schools and ranked within those cate gories. This is called the Similar Schools Ranking, and it gives each school a rank of 1 to 10 with 10 being the highest and 1 being the lowest.

Alturas Elementary has a similar schools ranking of 10, Modoc Middle School has a ranking of 1 and Modoc High School has a ranking of 1. Surprise Valley Ele-mentary's simi lar school ranking is 8.

Each school is given a target growth rate of 5% of the difference between the 1999 API and the interim Statewide Performance Tar-get of 800. California schools that make the pre scribed amount of progress will be eligible for financial rewards. Schools that fail to meet improvement targets could have remedies forced on them and, in extreme cases, face takeover by the state.

The Public School Ac countability Act also pro vides incentives and re wards for schools who achieve and maintain high academic standards. Stu dents will also benefit in the form of scholarships offered for high achievement.

"The test scores for Al turas Elementary are really pretty impressive," said Don Demsher, Modoc Joint Uni fied District Superintendent. "Modoc Middle School and the high school did have lower scores. I think that maybe the test-takers (students) haven't taken the test seriously enough, I can't think of another reason for the disparity in the numbers for a high performing school system like ours."

Because there are so many variables that may have been reported incor rectly and could affect the outcome of the scores; educa tors across the state have been reluctant to accept them as a definitive measurement of the academic achievement of their students.

"The test is new and may not be 100% re liable right now, I'm sure it will be in the future as it is fine tuned," stated Demsher.

"I think we received an excellent ranking for the first go-round," said Henry Bietz, Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District Su perintendent. "It reflects what we've done with the reading program here and by having the Saxon Math program in place for the last few years."

"I'm really happy with the job the students have done and the commitment the staff has made to quality ed ucation. We will easily meet the 5% target growth set for spring," he added.

Supervisors approve construction projects

Modoc Supervisors approved a bid Tuesday that will add space and improve the Social Services building on Main Street in Alturas.

The bid of $412,000 was approved from David Hallman Construction of Anderson. The project includes renovation and prepara tion of the second floor of the Belli Building.

According to Social Services' Fiscal Officer Pauline Cravens, the expansion pro ject will include 11 more offices, add an ele vator, conference room and reception area.

The renovation will be designed much the same as the downstairs offices and will alle viate some seriously overcrowded situations. The fiscal offices and Child Protective Services will move upstairs, making more room for eligibility staff downstairs. Work on the project is expected to start this month and should be finished by June.

The board also passed resolutions approv ing three state-funded highway projects in the county. The $4.8 million overlay projects include all of County Road 87 (the Adin-Lookout Road), the northern part of CR 91 (the Lookout-Hackamore Road) and County Road One in Surprise Valley from Cedarville to Lake City.

County Road Commissioner Tom Tracy said the target start date for that paving pro ject is April, but weather will be the determin ing factor. He doesn't expect the projects to take long once they get started and both are state funded.

Supervisors approved resolutions Tuesday that earmark monies from the Tobacco Company Settlement Funds be directed to a reduction of the Modoc Medical Center cash deficit.

County Administrative Officer Mike Maxwell said the funds are under the control of the board and a paydown of the hospital debt was approved by the board, keeping the funds in a health-related arena.

Over the next 20 years the county is ex pected to receive $3.6 million from the Tobacco settlement. The nation's tobacco companies settled in lawsuits with several states, including California, resulting in these funds becoming available.

According to Maxwell, the county will re ceive about $146,000 this year, $129,000 in 2001, $155,000 in 2002, $157,000 in 2003, $131,000 in 2004-2005 and $133,000 from 2008 to 2017. The settlement amounts are, in part, determined by cigarette sales.

Nor-Cal receives tentative okay for PP&L

In a tentative decision re leased Friday, the Honor able William W. Pangman, a Superior court judge of Sierra County, stated that the Nor-Cal Electric Authority has legal power to acquire, own and fi nance electric transmission and distribu tion facilities necessary to provide service in Pacifi Corp's Northern California ser vice area.

Pangman was assigned to decide the matter by mu tual agreement of the Siskiyou County Counsel and Nor-Cal's attorneys.

The Sierra County judge answered 14 questions. In particular, Siskiyou and Modoc counties asked whether the Nor-Cal Joint Powers Authority can legally pur chase, finance and operate PacifiCorp's service territory, which in cludes Del Norte, Siskiyou and portions of Modoc and Shasta counties.

Although he concluded that cities are authorized to operate retail electric sys tems, Pangman ruled that counties lack this authority. The judge then outlined a course of action Nor-Cal might pursue in order to complete the transaction.

"We still have a lot of work to do, but overall we are extremely pleased by the judge's decision," said Nor-Cal Chair man Clyde Eller. "Many of Siskiyou and Modoc County's questions have now been answered and we would like once again to encourage them to join us. Becoming a member of the Authority will help in sure that there will be no loss of tax revenue or franchise fees to the counties and their res idents."

The City of Yreka and the County of Del Norte formed the JPA in November 1998. Alturas, Montague, Dorris, Tulelake, Ft. Jones, Dun smuir and Weed also have voted to be come members. In all, nine of the 15 cities and counties in cluded in the ter ritory have voted to join the JPA.

PacifiCorp signed a letter of intent to sell its Northern California service area to Nor-Cal on April 9, 1999 and a definitive purchase agree ment was signed by the two entities on July 15, 1999. The California Public Utili ties Commission has com pleted two public hearings in the service territory and is now considering approval of the sale. Nor-Cal will be a public utility operated on a non-profit basis and will not be subject to federal taxation. Nor-Cal's improvements to its electric system will qual ify for tax-exempt financ ing. The purchase is ex pected to be completed this spring.

For more information about the Nor-Cal Electric Authority visit their website at www.norcalelectric.com or call General Manager Don ald Dubay at (707) 464-4667.

Sage Stage contracts with MV Transportation

This week marked two special events for Sage Stage; cele brating it's first annivesary and awarding a contract to MV Transporta tion, Inc. of Fairfield, CA to manage and operate ser vices and to maintain vehi cles through June, 2002.

Founded in 1975, MV cur rently operates twelve loca tions in three states. They provide over 2.9 million pas senger trips annually and employ nearly 1,000 people locally. Ben Bergfelt will provice project management from the MV corpo rate of fices while Site Coordinator, Robert Dolan and drivers, Jack Montgomery and Char lie Young maintain the Al turas Sage Stage operation.

Currently, Sage Stage provides three public transit ser vices: Intercity Routes between Alturas-Susanville every Tuesday and Thurs day (two round trips, one morning and one evening), and one round trip between Alturas-Klamath Falls ev ery Wednesday and Friday (morning departure, af ter noon return).

Community Connections between Alturas-Adin on Tues days, Alturas-Cal Pines-Canby on Tuesdays and Fridays, Alturas-Ced-arville on Wednesdays and Fridays, and Al turas-Davis Creek on Thursdays.

Extended City Loops are available on Tuesdays and Fri days, linking multiple stops in Alturas with Cal Pines and Canby communi ties. General fares are $10 intercity, $4-$6 community; and $4 city per one-way trip. Children, students with school ID, elderly (60 years and older) and qualified disabled persons pay half fare, or $5 intercity, $2-$3 commu nity and $2 city.

In Susanville, Sage Stage connects with Mt. Lassen Cab & Shuttle (530) 257-5187 with daily service to/from Reno, Nevada.

In Klamath Falls connec tions are available to the re gional airport, Greyhound and Amtrak stations, Merle West Medi cal Center, local doctor offices and Klamath Mall.

Because of funding limi tations and low demand Sage Stage operates demand-response service. Customers can make advance reserva tions by calling (530) 233-3883. Per sonal assistance and help with trip planning is available between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays. If it is necessary to call after busi ness hours, leaving a recorded message with name, request and phone number will ensure a prompt return call during business hours.

To better serve the com munity, the MTA plans to change the Sage Stage fixed-route loops into a dial-a-ride service within the next few weeks. Please send written comments and specific re quests for this planned ser vice to the MTA/Sage Stage, 202 West 4th Street, Alturas. Special public meetings will be held in February and March to receive oral com ments; these will be adver tised.

Sage Stage is adminis tered by the Modoc Trans portation Agency (MTA). The MTA Board of Directors includes three representa tives from both the County of Modoc and City of Al turas. Representing the County are Ron McIntyre, Chairman and County Supervisor Dis trict IV; Joe Colt, Vice Chairman and County Su pervisor District II; and Cit izen Bill Madison. Repre senting the City of Alturas are: George Andreasen, Kerry Merwin and citizen, Jim Porter. Larry Picket and Terry Williams serve as alternates for the City and County. The MTA meets monthly on the third Tues day in the City Hall Council Chambers.

Davis Creek has groundhog dinner fun

The Davis Creek Ground Hog Supper al ways brings about a good time for all ages, with good food and plenty of visiting. That opportunity will come on Saturday, Feb. 5.

The annual d commu nity effort and will be hosted by the Davis Creek 4-H Club on Feb. 5 at the Davis Creek Grange Hall.

Serving freshly grilled sausage patties, mashed pota toes, green salad, green beans, and more, the dinner will be served to the public from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tickets will be available at the door, $6 for adults; $4 for children, ages six to 12 years old; under five years served free.

The hall is set with long ta bles, seating all who come for the event. Bingo games are of fered during the evening as is an auction and cake auction.

The small group of 4-H members receive assistance from family members and their community to make the event possible as a fund-raiser for the maintenance of the com munity hall as well as 4-H. For further in formation please contact Linda Le Neave.

The Davis Creek Grange Hall is located within the Davis Creek town limits. The Groundhog Dinner is a com munity tradi tion, which draws folks from throughout Modoc County to enjoy the event.

Academic Decathlon in full swing

Modoc County Office of Education will present the Super Quiz and awards at the 13th annual Modoc County Academic Decathlon today, Feb. 3 in Shirley Oxley Hall at Modoc High School.

Selected student teams from Tulelake, Modoc and Surprise Valley High Schools are participating.

Students were tested on Wednesday, Feb. 2 in the ar eas of Math, Economics, So cial Science, Language and Literature, Art and Music. The decathlon reward aca demic excellence by moti vating and preparing stu dents to achieve through competitive events. Three levels of competition are based on grade point aver age and are called Honor, Scholastic and Varsity, making it possible for any student to compete. The final event is the Super Quiz, where parents and commu nity members ac tively pro vide team support and en couragement.

Teams from Modoc High School have been work ing with Coach Donna Jean Wilson and include stu dents Jodi Averett, Melisa Burgess, David Coombs, Christina Craw ford, April Dorton, Tammy Drennan, Rafael Erdmann, Ryan Hagge, Jonathan Richert and Joshua Velasco.

Surprise Valley High School Coach Mike Ray has a team of Dan Clark, Ashley Cockrell, Cassie Cockrell, Megan Farschon, Scherane John son, Mitch Small, Cait lyn Wimer, Christina Wor ley and Jodie Jones-Zand stra.

Tulelake High School Coach Martha Hurlburt is working with students Nancy Bell, Brianna Byrne, David Campbell, Luke Du Val, Brad Frey, Jimmy Havlina, Kevin Marcusson, Jessica Perez, Allen Scott, Mark Thomson and James VanAcker.

Today's event schedule is as follows: Feb. 3, 2:30-4:30 p.m. Speech/interview and demonstrations; 4:30-5:15 p.m. break/dinner; 5:30 -6:30 p.m. Super Quiz; 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. award presenta tion and closure in Oxley Hall at Modoc High.

A host of approximately 50 volunteers are helping to make the event possible by par ticipating as speech, es say, and interview judges, essay and test proctors, super quiz readers and graders, timers, test graders and award pre senters.

 

OBITURARIES:

 

Barbara Maud Lazaris

Former California Pines resident Barbara Maud Lazaris passed away on January 8, 2000 in Olympia, Wash ington, where the Lazaris family had relocated. Mrs. Lazaris had been ill for a number of years.

Mrs. Lazaris, wife of former California Pines Project Director Paul Lazaris, had made Modoc her home during the mid 1960s and 1970s while her husband worked on the Cali fornia Pines development project. The family had relocated from Southern California to California Pines. Mrs. Lazaris was a talented artist, mother of four and homemaker.

She was born August 3, 1928 in Tacoma, Washington.

Family members officiated graveside services and in urnment at the Eatonville Cemetery in Eatonville, Wash ington on Friday, Jan. 14.

She is survived by her husband Paul of Olympia, Wash. and their four children Carson, Chris, Julie and Laura.

Condolences may be sent to Paul Lazaris, 407 Olympic Way SW, Olympia, Washington 98502.

 

Mildred Parsons Spomer

 

Mildred Florence Parsons Spomer, former Tulelake res ident and nurse, died on Thursday, January 27, 2000 at the Glendive Medical Center in Glendive, Montana. She was age 89 and had been a resident of Glendive.

Graveside services with interment will be held on Fri day, Feb. 4 at 1:00 p.m. in the Klamath Memorial Cemetery in Klamath Falls, Ore. Silvernale-Silha Funeral Home of Glendive is entrusted with arrangements.

Mildred was born on June 1, 1910 in Santa Rosa, Calif., the daughter of Charles and Lola (Mendenhall) Parsons. She was educated in the La Sierra Academy in La Sierra, Calif. She attended Loma Linda University in Loma Linda, Calif., and had also attended Walla Walla College in Walla Walla, Washington.

On June 10, 1940, Mildred married Isaac Spomer in Las Vegas, Nev. They settled in Tulelake, Calif., where they practiced together - Isaac as a family practitioner and Mil dred as a nurse. Mildred retired from nursing following her husband's death in 1965. In 1968, she moved to Grants Pass, Oregon and in 1993, moved to Glendive to be with her daughter.

Mildred loved horses, gardening and she enjoyed nature. She had been a 4-H leader and had a quick wit and a sense of humor. Mildred had been a member of the Seventh-day Ad ventist Church and had a strong faith in Jesus.

Mildred was a preceded in death by her parents, her hus band and a brother Raymond Parsons.

She is survived by her daughter Sandy Eickmann and her husband Tim of Glendive; her son Chuck Spomer of Pendleton, Ore.; six grandchildren and four great-grand children.

 

Phyllis A. Pollard

Former Alturas resident Phyllis A. Pollard, 85, of Yreka, Calif., passed away January 21, 2000 at the Madrone Hospice Home in Yreka, after a short illness.

Mrs. Pollard was born November 23, 1914 in Santa Bar bara, Calif. She worked for Caltrans for 44 years, 31 of those years at the Alturas office, and the last eight years in the Red Bluff office. Mrs. Pollard retired from Caltrans in 1981 and moved in February 1990 to Yreka.

Survivors include her son and daughter-in-law, Donald and Deborah Pollard of Yreka; four grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

At Mrs. Pollard's request, no funeral services will be held.

 

 

Dorothea Alice Youngblood

 

Dorothea Alice Young blood, a long-time Ea gleville and Davis Creek resident, passed away in her sleep January 27, 2000, at the Surprise Valley Community Hospital in Cedarville, Calif. She was 81 years of age.

Funeral services were held at graveside on Satur day, Jan. 29 at the Eagleville Cemetery. Bob Reeves con ducted the service.

Dorothea was born to Pete and Edna (Bethel) Blurton on May 19, 1918 at Fall River Mills, Calif. Her early years were spent in Davis Creek, Calif., where she attended grade school. She started high school in McArthur, Calif. and spent half her freshman year at Fall River Mills. On week ends she would come home to Davis Creek with a friend Juanita Gardner and help on the family ranch. She stayed in Fall River Mills with relatives during the week. It was during the Depression and she had to quit school half way through the year in order to help on the home ranch.

She started cooking for different people for hay crews and apple picking crews. In between jobs, she helped on her par ents' ranch. In 1934, she got a job helping cook for a 35-per son hay crew at the Lakeshore Ranch in Davis Creek. That is where she met Leo Youngblood. There were married September 30, 1936 in Reno, Nev. They worked in Hilder brant, Oregon the first winter they were married, then moved back to Davis Creek where they worked on ranches.

The Youngbloods always had big gardens and apple or chards and Dorothea canned all they needed and they sold the rest.

Three of their four children were born while they lived at Davis Creek. They moved to Eagleville in 1955 and one son was born there.

Dorothea was a homemaker and loved to grow all kinds of flowers. She always had a big garden shared with family and neighbors. In 1970 she cooked for the Bare Ranch for six months. She always kept a nice yard and flowers until her health prevented her from taking care of it. She also enjoyed making craft items.

Her husband of 50 years preceded her in death in 1986 and her brother Jess Blurton in 1996. Her parents also preceded her in death.

She is survived by her daughter Florence Bordwell of Cedarville; sons Jim of Minden, Nev., Charles of Crane, Ore., Norman of Christmas Valley, Ore.; a brother Charles Blurton of Redding; eight grandchildren, Bill Bordwell, Donna Roberts, Julie Bordwell, Jayne Youngblood, Creig Youngblood, Christie Kendell, Cassie Youngblood, Colleen Youngblood and five great-grandchildren.

Memorial donations may be made to the Surprise Valley Hospital or to the charity of your choice.

 

Record news for Feb. 10, 2000

 

• BLM, ranchers at odds over grazing restrictions
• Modoc disputes Nor-Cal's version of court ruling
• Condition of tennis courts not luv-able
• Modoc High takes top place in decathlon
• Artist brings spirit out of wood

Obituaries:

• Charles Fred Heart
• Phyllis A. Pollard
• David Holloway

BLM, ranchers at odds over grazing resitrictions

Some Surprise Valley ranchers are at odds over Bureau of Land Management proposed grazing restrictions and have formed an organization, North Washoe Unit, to air their concerns.

One of the spokesmen for the new organization, Bill Benner, said local ranchers "are fighting for their very sur vival" and need to have a unified voice.

According to Benner, about 70 people attended a meeting in Cedarville February 4, following an earlier meeting in Nevada which attracted about half that number.

"The purpose of the meeting and organization was to pro duce a united voice to dispute recent BLM decisions that threaten the viability of several Surprise Valley ranches," Benner said. "New criteria for range utilization was dis cussed by ranchers from California, Oregon and Nevada with a general consensus being that the current trend of ever-increasing government restrictions will eventually affect all ranches with public land grazing permits."

According to Benner, one rancher predicted the end of grazing on the Warner Mountains (a separate issue under the U.S. Forest Service) and many felt the new criteria was unrealistic and designed to drive the cattlemen from the range.

Surprise Valley BLM Resource Area Manager Susie Stokke said she understands the concerns, but stresses there is no underlying effort to permanently remove cattle or livestock from the public lands.

She's hoping to address the facts on the issue at Modoc-Washoe Experimental Stewardship Committee meeting in Cedarville February 24, 1 p.m. The North Washoe Unit is also asking people to show up at that meeting and express their concerns. The meeting will be held in the Cedarville Community Hall.

Stokke pointed out that only five of the 24 livestock allot ments assessed un der the SV Resource area administration are not meeting at least one standard for rangeland health because of current livestock grazing. The grazing stan dards under question went into effect in April, 1997, and have been under discussion with permittees since then. In fact, said Stokke, many of the issues now being addressed have been discussed for the past several years.

She said there are 52 allotments in the SV Resource area and the remaining 28 will be assessed in the near future.

"I do not anticipate huge problems in the other allotments as we assess," said Stokke. "One of the things we're really wanting to do is sustain ranching into the future. We need to be smart enough to address the resource issues and make tangible change to show the world that we know how to man age grazing. This place needs to be a showcase to prove that we can manage grazing and sustain ranching while maintaining healthy habitat, especially in the riparian ar eas."

She said current BLM regulations require that grazing management changes be made to enable the land to improve and those changes must be made before the start of the 2000 grazing season.

"What we're talking about is discreet pieces of the land scape, not entire allotments," said Stokke. "The ranchers are not to blame, science has changed what we know about the range and we need to fix what we know about the land scape. We want to find a way to make it work, but it takes people working together. We've had some great successes over the past five years."

She also understands the affected ranchers' frustration and impacts, but said the change has been coming and should not be a surprise to anyone.

"We want to allow grazing to continue in these areas at a level the land can sustain without damage," she said. "Changes proposed for next grazing season are short term in nature. We are addressing the problems on the ground to start the areas on a trend to recovery. We are working with the ranchers and others interested in the health of the land to put these changes in place, or find alternative solutions."

Stokke said BLM will likely begin to prepare environ mental assessments on the affected allotments, aimed at addressing the issues and developing long term manage ment strategies to improve range health.

Stokke said the management goals will be designed to provide for better habitat for wildlife and fish, produce more forage for livestock and provide quality recreation experi ences for a variety of visitors.

Some of the changes in management may include rest and rotation of certain areas, short term grazing or in some cases no grazing for this season.

The following summarizes concerns and proposed ac tions on the allotments, which are all in Nevada, east of Surprise Valley.

Home Camp: ending provisions for "stragglers" to graze in Hays Canyon (cattle left behind when livestock is taken off the public allotment); limiting cattle use to moderate in stream areas; hand cutting encroaching juniper on south slopes of Hays Canyon.

Duck Lake: nearly all perennial streams are function ing-at-risk with less than desirable riparian vegetation; active erosion, and poor habitat conditions for riparian-de pendent species; two actions are proposed, to end provisions for straggler grazing and to limit the maximum allowable livestock use to moderate in riparian areas.

Board Corral: because of heavy use by livestock of bitter brush, riparian vegetation, aspen as well as active cutting in the Cottonwood/Bald Mountain areas, moderate grazing is proposed as well as more herding to improve cattle distri bu tion.

Bull Creek: herding has not been effective in keeping cattle out of the Willow Creek drainage. A riparian pasture is being considered for the area with no grazing this season. An option is to allow moderate use in Bull Creek and Willow Creek areas as the maximum allowable, with cattle removed when 40 percent of available forage has been eaten.

Wall Canyon East: the preferred action is no grazing for the 2000 season because of a lack of stream stability and de sirable riparian vegetation in Wall Canyon and Lower Cottonwood Creeks as well as the condition of scattered springs and ephemeral (short-term) drainages. Vegetation is less than desirable at the valley floor.

In addition to the concerns over the BLM's change in grazing on the five allotments in question, the North Washoe Unit is expressing serious concern over other pro posals coming down from the Federal Government.

A major fear is the proposed National Conservation Area, NCA, to be established north of Gerlach and east of Surprise Valley. John Estill, a Likely rancher and owner of Soldiers Meadow Ranch, which is located in the proposed NCA said that up to 1.6 million acres will be affected.

He said the establishment of an NCA could mean the ces sation for approximately 10,000 cattle. Stokke said the cur rent legislation would leave the NCA in multiple use and al low cattle grazing. In addition, he said Nevada has spon sored a bill to set aside $5 million for geothermal explo ration in the west and eight of the "most promising sites" are in the proposed NCA.

According to Benner and Estill, a Public Lands Access Network (PLAN) enumerated many of the negative impacts of the NCA including the possible cessation of mining, graz ing, motorized vehicle use, hunting, fishing, and many other activities now allowed under multiple use. They also fear private property owners surrounded or adjacent to the new NCA would see a drop in property values and face new regulations in the management of their own property.

Benner states that Donna Potter, environmental coordi nator of Empire Group, of Empire Nevada, says support for the NCA consists of the Sierra Club, Wilderness Society and Friends of Nevada Wilderness, but that opposition is in creasing in numbers and intensity.

The list of those on record of opposing the NCA as of Monday, February 7, is as follows; 11 county government agencies from California, Nevada and Oregon, 28 busi nesses, three mines, 20 ranches, six sportsman's organiza tions, 11 off-highway organizations, 21 individuals, Modoc County CattleWomen, Nevada Cattlemen's Association, Nevada Farm Bureau, Nevada People for the USA, Walker River Chapter of People for the USA, and Range Magazine.

Estill is requesting that a copy of all correspondence to the state and federal office holders concerning the NCA be sent to Public Lands Access Net, High Desert Coalition, P.O. Box 1742, Dayton, Nv., 89403 or e-mailed to www.high-desert.org.

Modoc disputes Nor-Cal version of court decision on purchase

Modoc County is disputing Nor-Cal Electric Authority's version of a court decision issued by Siskiyou County Superior Court Judge William Pangman January 25.

Nor-Cal stated the decision gave it the legal power to ac quire, own and finance electric transmission and distribu tions facilities necessary to provide service in PacifiCorps northern California Service area.

Modoc County District Attorney Tom Buckwalter said he believes the decision states that counties cannot operate the system and as such places the entire plan in jeopardy.

Nor-Cal Electric is a Joint Powers Authority, JPA, formed by the City of Yreka and County of Del Norte in 1998 for the purpose of purchasing and operating PacifiCorps northern California operations. Modoc County and Siskiyou County he questioned Nor-Cal's ability to legally purchase, finance and operate the electric service.

"Modoc County's position is that the court ruled the JPA as presently configured cannot operate the facilities and sell retail electric power," said Buckwalter. He said that has been the county's original stance and that the courts upheld Modoc's concerns.

Nor-Cal stated last week in a news release that while Judge Pangman ruled that counties cannot operate retail electric facilities, he outlined a course of action Nor-Cal might pursue.

Buckwalter points to the decision, which states: "The Court finds that the County of Del Norte lacks the common power with the City of Yreka to sell electrical power at the retail level. Accordingly, Nor-Cal, as a Joint Powers Authority, does not have the authority to operate the system . . . At this point, resolution of the remaining issues is techni cally moot in light of the Court's ruling on the defective sta tus of the Joint Powers."

Nor-Cal General Manager Donald Dubay contends Judge Pangman left a "roadmap" on how to proceed with the situa tion. Dubay said Nor-Cal will probably have to create a sec ond JPA of only cities to actually operate the facilities, under the owning JPA, Nor-Cal's existing structure.

The court's decision, said Dubay, will cause a delay in the action at the California Public Utilities Commission since it's probable an amended application will have to be pre pared.

Neither Modoc nor Siskiyou Counties have joined the JPA. Nine of the 15 cities and counties included in the terri tory have joined the JPA, including Alturas, Montague, Dorris, Tulelake, Ft. Jones, Dunsmuir and Weed.

PacifiCorp singed a letter of intent to sell its northern California service to Nor-Cal April 9, 1999 and a definitive purchase agreement was signed by the two entities July 15, 1999. The California Public Utilities Commission has com pleted two public hearings in the service territory and is now considering approval of the sale.

Nor-Cal is designed to be a public utility operated on a non-profit basis and will not be subject to federal taxation. Nor-Cal's improvements to its electric system will qualify for tax-exempt financing and Nor-Cal expects the purchase to be completed this year. Whether the court decision mud dies the agreement should be borne out in the near future.

Condition of tennis court not luv-able

The weather has been so agreeable lately that it has been possible to participate in sports not usually associated with winter-time, such as tennis.

Conditions at the Alturas tennis courts have not been as welcoming to tennis play ers as the weather has been.

Years without any kind of maintenance at all have left the courts in disrepair and in barely playable condi tion.

"The courts had some sort of top-coat resurfacing done on them ten years ago, and we painted the back boards six or seven years ago, but since then, there hasn't been any mainte nance done on the courts," explained Public Works Di rector, Stacy Chase.

Cracks have formed in the surface of the court and the net has been vandalized. The lights have been broken and often trash has to be cleaned from the court before players can use it.

"The city really doesn't have park and rec. money," said Chase. "What recre ation money we do have goes to keeping the swimming pool open. By the time we support the pool, which gen erally operates at a deficit, there isn't any money left."

Jim Parker is an avid ten nis player and would like to see the courts in better con di tion so that they could be used more by the commu nity. "Tennis is a great form of ex ercise," he said. "You don't have to be a pro to enjoy the game and it does n't take a whole team to play a game, just two people."

Parker approached the city council about improving the condition of the courts and was told that he should circu late a petition and bring it back to them. Any one inter ested in signing the petition or in playing or learning tennis should contact Parker at 233-3632.

"There are many people who would enjoy playing ten nis on the courts," Parker added. "I know it would be used more if it were main tained; we are also thinking of having a tour nament in the spring with a double elimina tion."

Modoc High School takes top place in student Academic Decathlon rewards

The Academic Decathlon team from Modoc High School in Alturas will com pete in the California Aca demic Decathlon State Fi nals on March 17-19, 2000 at the Los Angeles Airport Marriott Hotel, Loyola Marymount University and Westchester High School.

The nine-member team, comprised of three "A" (Honor), three "B" (Scholastic) and three "C" (Varsity) students, won their county/district level Aca demic Decathlon in Alturas on Feb. 3 against Tulelake High and Surprise Valley High student teams.

Modoc High's team coached by Donna Jean Wil son, scored 29,655 points out of a possible 60,000, and will go against the best schools from 43 teams throughout California. Tule lake's team, coached by Martha Hurlburt had a total score of 28,667; and Surprise Val ley's team, coached by Mike Ray, scored 23,244.

The California State Championship team will compete in the United States Academic Decathlon in San Antonio, Texas in April.

Each team member par ticipates in ten grueling events in the Academic De cathlon, including eco nomics, mathematics, mu sic, art, language and litera ture and social science. In addition, the contestants per form prepared and im promptu speeches, write es says on a give topic and are interviewed by a panel of judges.

The final event, the Super Quiz, an academic relay, is held before a crowd and was won by Modoc High with Tulelake, second and Sur prise Valley in third place. This year's Super Quiz topic is "A Sustainable Earth."

April Dorton, Modoc High, was the highest scor ing student overall with 5,868 which edged out Bri anna Byrne of Tulelake High with 5,488 and Jodie Jones-Zandstra, Surprise Valley High with 4,527.

Donna Jean Wilson, math teacher at Modoc High took over her first year of Decathlon coaching with the year 2000 Academic De cathlon, after Dick Cartner relinquished his coaching duties with the Modoc High teams after 13 years of De cathlons. Cartner was on hand to witness and the spe cial occasion and cheer the students' successes.

Modoc County Office of Education presented awards at the 13th annual Modoc County Academic Decathlon Feb. 3 in Shirley Oxley Hall at Modoc High School.

The Modoc High School team included stu dents: Jodi Averett, Melisa Burgess, David Coombs, Christina Craw ford, April Dorton, Tammy Drennan, Rafael Erdmann, Ryan Hagge and Joshua Velasco.

Surprise Valley High School team: Dan Clark, Cassie Cockrell, Megan Farschon, Scherane John son, Mitch Small, Christina Wor ley and Jodie Jones-Zand stra.

Tulelake High School team: Nancy Bell, Brianna Byrne, David Campbell, Brad Frey, Jimmy Havlina, Kevin Marcusson, Allen Scott, Mark Thomson and James VanAcker.

Gold, silver and bronze medals were awarded in each event in each of the di visions.

Artist brings spirit out in wood

There is a majestic eight foot tall American Indian medicine man standing in the foyer of the Oklahoma Health Science Library.

He has a traditional white buffalo head dress and is holding a medicine staff in one hand and raising the other to the sky, offering healing to the residents of Oklahoma City.

The Medicine Man is a statue carved by Lakeview, OR. resident, Billy Gerber. The glass encased statue stands on a base that is a piece of the federal building that was torn apart in the bomb blast. The foyer where he stands is approximately 150 feet from the federal building.

The journey of the medicine man from Lake view to Oklahoma City started with a heartfelt wish to do something meaningful for the people effected by the bombing, from a man who was there when it happened.

Dr. Bonenger, who is a doctor in Lakeview, was in Oklahoma City to give a speech at the university. He felt the tremors from the bomb explosion and was one of the first doctors at the scene.

"It really emotion ally effected him and he came home with a desire to do something special for the people who had lost loved ones in the tragedy," ex plained Gerber.

"The dedication cere mony for the statue was held on the one year anniversary of the bombing. Members of most of the local Indian tribes were present and I had the opportunity to meet the great-great granddaughter of Quanah Parker," Gerber said. "One of my first carv ings was of Quanah and I had studied his face so much while I was working on it that when I saw her, I imme diately had a sense that I knew her."

Quanah Parker was a Comanche war chief whose mother was Cynthia Anne Parker and father was Peta. Cynthia had been captured by the Comanche as a child when her family was moving from Illinois to Texas. She later mar ried Peta and had three chil dren with him.

"Quanah was a warrior and leader of the Quanaclies before surrendering. He later became wealthy work ing with cattle ranchers in Texas and became a Co manche chief," Gerber added. "He was a great chief and an interesting subject to carve."

Gerber has deep family roots in both Fort Bidwell and Lakeview. His great-grandparents owned the Fort Bidwell Hotel in the early 1900's before moving to Lakeview and opening a boarding house there. "I can remember them babysitting me," Gerber smiled. "And getting to run around and play in the boarding house."

After completing college with a degree for teaching art, Ger ber realized that teaching wasn't what he wanted to do.

He worked as a carpenter and did foundry part time. "I didn't have the money to start a foundry," he said. "So I started working with wood, I started with pine first but now I work mostly with juniper."

The carvings that Gerber most often does are of Native Americans; both male and female, owls, eagles, big horned sheep and deer.

He uses a variety of natural el ements in making the stat ues. "I use leather, bones that I find in the wilderness and shed deer antlers," Gerber explained. "The bone facing can be carved just like ivory and I make feathers from them."

Gerber began using the antlers in his art about 10 years ago. After awhile he was left with the end pieces of a lot of antlers. He began carving eagles and deer on them and creating handles for knives. He now receives many orders for the unique knives.

"I also found a way to use the dust from the antlers. I mix it with resin to create a carving compound that I use in sculpting the fine hairs around a Coyote's or Big Horned Sheep's mouth," Gerber said. "No part of the antler goes to waste. It's cool to find new ways to use things in my art, when I get myself in a corner, I create something that will fix it."

Art Galleries buy Ger ber's art wholesale and he also takes special orders from private collectors. One of his Indian Chiefs is in the Library at the University of Oregon, a Big Horned Sheep is in Harvey's Hotel & Casino in Colorado and a mermaid is gracing the poolside of a woman in New York.

Private collectors who have a specific place in mind for one of Gerber's statues send him photos of where the carving will be and he will custom make it for the space. He recently finished a statue of an In dian whose headdress of feathers reached all the way to it's feet for a client with a home on the rim of Lake Tahoe.

"They were very specific about how the head should be tilted and how it should look," Gerber explained. "I went to Lake Tahoe to set the statue up and it was placed on a lazy-susan type pedestal in a room where all you could see from the windows was the lake and moun tains. When it's turned just right, it really looks as if the statue is gazing out on the lake. It was amazing."

While creating a piece Gerber works several layers of linseed oil into the wood which seals it and prevents any cracks in the wood from growing. "You'll always have small cracks in the wood, that's just part of the wood, but the linseed oil will stop them from expanding." he said. A finished piece is coated with a mixture of lin seed oil and Penetrol.

"I tell people to treat them just like furniture, dust them sometimes and polish them sometimes," Gerber added.

For outdoor pieces, like the statue of three goundhogs that he carved for the new Fort Bidwell Community Center, Gerber works an ex terior stain into the wood to help preserve it.

"Juniper wood doesn't rot, but pine will as time goes by," Gerber explained. "That's why I put posts in that statue to lift it off the ground. I'll go back to Ft. Bidwell to maintain it and coat it with linsead oil and Penetrol when it needs it."

A piece of art created by Gerber is made to be enjoyed for a very long time.

 

Obituaries:

Charles Fred Heart

 

Retired California Highway Patrol Officer Charles Fred Heart, who at one time worked in Modoc County, died Wednesday, February 2, 2000 in Baker City, Oregon. He was 66 years of age.

Mr. Heart was born in Cologne, Germany and moved to the United States at age five. He graduated from San Fran cisco State University and later received a master's degree from California State University, Chico. During the Korean Conflict, Mr. Heart served in the U.S. Air Force.

He joined the California Highway Patrol in 1957 and served in Indio, Corte Madera, Susanville, and Alturas. He retired in 1986 from Alturas with the CHP, and moved to Baker County, Ore. permanently.

He is survived by his wife, Jacquie Heart of Baker City, Ore.; son Leigh Heart of Baker City; daughter Torie Heart; son-in-law William Kline; grandson Carson Kline of An chorage and sister Lilli Heart of Larkspur, Calif. He was preceded in death by his parents Ilse and Curtis Heart of San Francisco.

Mr. Heart enjoyed hunting, fishing, building and travel ing to visit family and friends.

Memorial contributions may be made to St. Elizabeth Hospital Auxiliary, 3325 Pocahontas Road, Baker City, OR 97814, or a charity of your choice.

 

David Holloway

A memorial service for William David Holloway, age 40, who died at his Alturas home the morning of February 9, 2000 will be held February 12, 2 p.m. at the Elks Lodge in Alturas.

Holloway, a nearly life-long resident of Modoc County, is survived by a daughter, Darcy, age 11, of Alturas, brothers Tim Holloway of Alturas and Leroy "Doc" Holloway of Redding, sisters Nona Vance of Alturas and Marlene Blevins of Klamath Falls, aunt and uncle Ruth and Charlie Holloway of Alturas, numerous cousins, nieces and nephews.

Holloway worked in construction the greater part of his life. A complete obituary will be published in next week's newspaper. Donations can be made to the David Holloway Memorial Fund at P.O. Box 153, Alturas, CA 96101 in care of Tim Holloway.

For information on the services please contact Kerr Mortuary in Alturas at 530-233-5797.

 

Phyllis A. Pollard

 

Former Alturas resident Phyllis A. Pollard, 85, of Yreka, Calif., passed away January 21, 2000 at the Madrone Hospice Home in Yreka, after a short illness.

Mrs. Pollard was born November 23, 1914 in Santa Bar bara, Calif. She worked for Caltrans for 44 years, 31 of those years at the Alturas office, and the last eight years in the Red Bluff office. Mrs. Pollard retired from Caltrans in 1981 and moved in February 1990 to Yreka.

Survivors include her son and daughter-in-law, Donald and Deborah Pollard of Yreka; four grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

At Mrs. Pollard's request, no funeral services will be held.

 

Record news for Feb. 17, 2000

 

• Bids for geothermal well at AES keep options open
• County says FS strategic plan is premature
• County candidates set to respond
• Arrowhead Golf Course now under new ownership
• Country jam
• 'The Insider' explais opening books on tobacco industry

Bids for geothermal well at AES keep options open

By Nora Russell

The regular meeting of the Modoc Joint Unified School District's School Board ran smoothly, with hardly a disruption in the motions, discussions and votes.

Until item number 5 was addressed. It called for ap proval to proceed with the Request for Proposals for the geothermal injection well.

The geothermal injection well in question will be lo cated north of the middle school and west of the ele mentary school.

Drilling is planned in close proximity to the 1,935 foot geothermal well that was drilled in September and October of 1991.

Hopes for the 1991 well were high when a six-foot-deep resource was hit at 1,825 feet and a 10 foot pool at 1,831 feet.

It was thought that the well would be able to provide enough geothermal heat for the Modoc Middle School, Modoc Joint Unified School District offices and Alturas Elementary School.

If enough resource was discov ered it was thought that it could be used to heat the Al turas swimming pool and the proposed Western Event Center.

Now, in the year 2000, the board is looking back on a well that turned out not to be a vi able heat source for any thing and is considering taking a risk on a drilling another well.

Superintendent Don Dem-sher, and three mem bers of the board advocate giving the process another try. A $250,000 grant from the De partment of Energy will match school funds to help pay for the project.

"The total project may cost $800,000," Demsher said. "But you have to look at how much en ergy that would buy on the open market. As oil and en ergy prices go up, geother mal energy looks more at tractive. We're look ing at about 20 years for amortiza tion."

Two members of the board, Jeff Bushey and Cindy Culp had concerns about whether another drill-ing would produce a vi able well. Also about the length of time that the bid process has already gone on. This is the third time that bids have been sought for the well.

"The first two times the bids came in too high, D.O.E. wouldn't have cov ered it and the school district would have had to pay 2/3 of the cost," Demsher ex plained. "If the bids con tinue to come in too high this time around, the board has every right to reject them. In that case we'll return the D.O.E. grant and transfer the money that the school has set aside for the project back into the school budget."

The Board voted to accept new bids for the geothermal well 3-2.

Advertising for and ac cepting bids will be the next step. On March 25 the bids will be considered and the lowest ones will be reviewed by the board.

"Accepting these bids will either shut the window on this new well, or open it up," added Demsher.

 

County says FS strategic plan is premature

Modoc County issued comments Tuesday stating the U.S. Forest Service's Draft Strategic Plan is premature since its based upon other proposals that have yet to be fully adopted.

"The county believes this planning document should not be basing decisions on proposals that are themselves only in public review status," the county said. "On many occasions the plan references the Proposed Rule as the justification for an anticipated action or the definition of a term. The Proposed Rule is undergoing intensive scrutiny by the pub lic and clearly its final form is unknown. This is equally true of the Committee of Scientific Report on which the Proposed Rules is based."

In essence, the county is arguing that the strategic plan is difficult to comment on since the other issues out for com ment now have not been brought to fruition or through the public comment period. Some of those items include the pro posed Planning Rule and current Roadless Review.

The county is stating the plan needs to address local gov ernment and community input and coordination, which the county contends is downplayed.

"The county is concerned that there appears to be more emphasis being placed on international concerns than on those of citizens directly addicted by National Forest man agement," the county comments. "The heavy reliance on proposals still in the public arena for comment is not an ap propriate foundation for building a strategic plan. The county urges the service to set their objectives based upon their current mandated responsibilities before aiming for loftier goals."

The county is concerned about changes in rangeland def inition and management, basing planning decisions on predominately ecological sustainability, non-collaboration with local government, reducing land in multiple use in cluding recreation and grazing, wildfire prevention mea sures and placing more emphasis on listing endangered species.

Land Use Committee's Sean Curtis, told the board to expect more public land use issues requiring public comment from now until the end of the year and he hopes the committee will be able to address the issues and get comments to the Board of Supervisors in a timely fashion.

The county also agree to send comment on the proposed listing of the Cowhead Tui Chub that stresses support of the conservation agreement signed by the Fish and Wildlife and the users of the area that is designed to protect the fish and prevent its listing.

County candidates set to respond

The four candidates running for two Modoc County Supervisor seats have been sent questions from the Modoc Record and the answers to those questions will be published in the Feb. 24 issue.

The county election is in conjunction with the state's pri mary election on March 7. District four incumbent Ron McIntyre is challenged by rancher Willy Hagge and District two's Joe Colt is challenged again by Mike Dunn.

In addition the county election, four people are running for three seats on the Alturas City Council. They are incum bents Kerry Merwin, Jack Ochs and George Andreasen and challenger Colin Jameson.

A recall election in the California Pines Community Services District against Directors Marvin Kitchen, Robert LaGabed and John Schneider will be on the ballot.

Challenging Kitchen is Charles Green and Wayne Milliron will opt to unseat Kitchen. Two candidates have filed against Schneider, Henry "Hank" Drury and William "Bill" Roland.

There are two questions on the recall ballot. The first asks whether each director should be recalled and the second asks to vote for a replacement. If there is not a majority vot ing in favor of recall, the second question is moot.

The federal portion of the ballot will contain the primary for President and federal offices. The state ballot will in clude state officers and Propositions 1A, and 12 through 31. Prop. 24 was taken off the ballot by the state Supreme Court.

According to Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison, while the presidential primary is open to all parties, each party voter will receive a ballot by party. The voter may still vote for whomever he wants. The political parties in the state wanted the party ballots to track how members of each party voted, especially those who vote outside of party lines. While the parties will not be able to tell how an individual votes, they will be able to chart where their party voters strayed.

Alturas golf course goes under new ownership

With the city's sale of Arrowhead Golf Course now com plete, it is scheduled to open under private ownership in the next few days.

One of the new owners, Ann Logan, of Lakeview, said the course will be run initially without any major changes and on the same level as the Lakeview course, which the Logans, Ann and Frank also own. The Alturas course will be man aged by co-owners Monica and Jamie Fisher.

Logan would not release the new costs of green fees, sin gle or family memberships to the newspaper. She said the current members of Arrowhead will receive a letter in the next few days detailing the new costs, which will also in clude costs of cart storage and locker rental. Logan said the prices will be the same as the Lakeview course.

Escrow on the sale closed Tuesday. According to City Clerk Cary Baker, the sales price was $330,000. The terms were $80,000 down, $40,000 at open of escrow and $40,000 in June, with the city carrying the contract at 7.5 percent over the next 20 years.

Baker said the contract includes a provision that the fa cility must remain a golf course open to public play.

Baker said the city will be refunding unused portions of current city membership fees, cart storage and locker rental fees to golf course members in the very near future. None of those memberships were transferred to the new ownership.

'The Insider' explains opening books on the tobacco industry

Modoc County students and residents will get the chance to listen to and talk with one of the real gutsy people in the battle to expose the tobacco industry's way of doing business.

This Friday, Dr. Jeffrey Wigand, the man upon whose life the 1999 movie "The Insider" was based will speak to Modoc Middle School students from 1:20 to 2:02 p.m. and with Modoc High School students from 2:25 to 3:05 p.m. He will also speak to a com bined meeting of Modoc Rotary Clubs during a cocktail-dinner session at the Brass Rail which begins at 6 p.m. with the talk sched uled for 7:30 p.m.

Wigand, who was a top research scientist at Brown and Williamson, gained national attention when he went on "60 Minutes" in 1995 as an effort to expose the inner workings of the tobacco industry and the addictive na ture of nicotine.

The movie chronicles Wigand's con frontation with the tobacco giant and the tac tics used to intimidate and discredit Wigand's comments from his "60 minutes" interview. Wigand's life turned into the in credible journey during the period, when CBS hired bodyguards to protect him, and Brown and Williamson went into a suppression of valuable health information. He was a cen tral witness in numerous states' lawsuits against the tobacco industry.

The movie has been nominated for Best Picture in this year's Academy Awards, was named Best Picture by the Los Angeles Film Critics, received five Golden Globe nomina tions. Russell Crowe's portrayal of Wigand earned him a Best Actor nomination. The movie starred Al Pacino.

"Modoc County residents will have the once in a lifetime opportunity to learn what it's like to work for one of the most secretive and destructive industries this country has ever seen," said Modoc Tobacco Education Program Coordinator Karen Kahusi. "It will be an honor to have this health hero in our community."

Wigand will meet with members of the Tobacco Education Coalition during a noon luncheon session at the Modoc County Office of Education and a press conference will be held Friday, 4 p.m. at the Office of Education.

Kahusi points out that Phillip Morris Tobacco Company is currently running ad vertisements pointing to a better tomorrow and safer products. She said Wigand's experience will point to a more accurate por trayal of the tobacco industry.

"It will be a vivid reminder for everyone in attendance that the tobacco industry can't be trusted with the health of Modoc County's residents," said Debbie Mason, chairperson of the local coalition.

Wigand was hired by Brown and Williamson in 1988 as vice-president of re search and development, to develop a safer cigarette. His career was cut short when he took issue with the company's policy to con tinue using a controversial additive.

He is currently the president and founder of Smoke-Free Kids, a non-profit organiza tion dedicated to preventing the effects of childhood use of tobacco products.

 

OBITUARIES:

 

Marjory Elenor Branson

Marjory Elenor Branson, 76, of Idaho Falls, Idaho and a former Eagleville native, died of natural causes February 15, 2000, at Life Care Center in Idaho Falls.

She was born July 25, 1923, in Eagleville, Calif. to Willis Grant Warren and Dorthy Elenor Hotchkiss. She grew up in Eagleville on the family ranch and at tended grammar school in Eagleville and high school in Cedarville. She married Oscar Ervin Branson of Ea gleville on November 16, 1939.

Marjory and her husband were avid square dancers and enjoyed traveling to many dance get-togethers throughout California and the western states. Together, they also en joyed fishing and other outdoor activities.

She enjoyed gardening and took special delight in wild flowers and other wildlife wherever she and her family were. Mrs. Branson was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Mrs. Branson had also lived in Chico, Calif. before mov ing to Idaho Falls. She was preceded in death by Oscar, her husband of 53 years; two brothers Harold and Willis; a sis ter Gertrude and her parents.

She is survived by her two sons Grant and wife Cass Branson of Chico; Gary and wife Cindy Branson of Idaho Falls, Idaho; daughter Connie and husband Jim McVey of Oroville; sister Gloria Ward of Cedarville; eight grand children and eight great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday in Idaho Falls with graveside services set for Saturday, Feb. 19 at 1:00 p.m. at Eagleville Cemetery in Eagleville, Calif.

 

Susan Server Canterbury

Modoc native Susan Lee Server Canterbury died Febru ary 10, 2000 in Washoe Medical Center as a result of compli cations to cancer. Services will be held at Freda's Funeral Home in Yerington, Nev. on Friday, Feb. 18 at 1:00 p.m.

Susan was born August 18, 1946 in Alturas, Calif. to Maude and E.R. "Buck" Server. She was six years old when she contracted polio in 1952. She graduated with the class of 1964 from Modoc High School, Alturas.

Susan was an accom plished artist, like to crochet, read and use the Internet chat rooms.

She was preceded in death by her father E.R. "Buck" Server in 1990, her mother Maude Server in 1971 and her brother Johnny Server in 1997.

She is survived by her husband Bill Canterbury of Yer ington, Nev.; sons Greg Canterbury of Sacramento, Leland Canterbury of Washington, and William "Billy" Canter bury of Germany; daughter Jolene Halgraimson of Yering ton; brothers Kenneth Server, Prescott City, Ariz. and Micky Server of Alturas. She also leaves six grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Washoe Med ical Center Oncology Section, 77 Pringle Way, Reno, Nv 89509 or a charity of your choice.

 

John Harvey Crabtree

John Harvey Crabtree, a former Alturas business owner and barber, who had been ill over a period of years, passed away at the Veterans' Hospital in Reno, Nev. on February 12, 2000 at the age of 64.

A barber for 35 years, Mr. Crabtree owned and operated John's Barber Shop on Main Street, Alturas, where he worked solo for most of those years.

Relatives describe Mr. Crabtree as a straight-for ward, "said what he felt," kind of person.

A native of Modoc County, John was one of six boys born to Ruby (Howard) and Leo Crabtree on March 7, 1935, in Likely, Calif. His parents had moved to the Ravendale-Madeline Plains area ranch in 1928. His father died in 1934, before John's birth. The family relocated to Davis Creek in 1940.

John graduated from Modoc High with the class of 1954 and chose to work in the railroad industry in Modoc County and then moved to work in Sacramento for several years, be fore entering the U.S. Army on April 9, 1957.

On January 30, 1964, he retired from the Army and en tered barber school at Molar Barber College in Sacramento. He began his trade first in Sacramento and then moved to Susanville and eventually to Alturas where he remained barbering until his retirement in 1998.

John and Gloria Nolan of Alturas were married in 1972. The marriage was cut short after four years when Gloria passed away in March of 1976.

John was an avid music lover and enjoyed listening to all kinds of music including Cajun music, recalls his brother Loren "Shorty" Crabtree of Alturas. He could also play the accordion. Although reared on a ranch, John chose a different path and according to family members, John was the only family member who chose not to go into the ranch ing business.

Mr. Crabtree was a member of the Alturas Elks Lodge 1756 and Disabled American Veterans.

He was preceded in death by two brothers Howard and Gordon and his parents.

He is survived by his brothers Neil Crabtree of Anderson; Leo Crabtree of Alturas; Loren Crabtree of Alturas; Clarence Crabtree of Willows; nephews Carl Crabtree of Grangeville, Idaho; Laurence Crabtree of Austin, Nev.; Ray Crabtree of Nampa, Idaho; John Crabtree of Fernley, Nev.; Bob Crabtree of Susanville; nieces Arline Huhtala of Cot tonwood and Gail Green of Willows.

The family suggests any memorial donations be directed to the Disabled American Veterans.

Veterans groups of Alturas conducted services at grave side on Wednesday, Feb. 16 at 10 a.m. at the Alturas Ceme tery.

 

William David Holloway

William David Holloway was born in Alturas, Calif. on November 18, 1959 and resided in Alturas until 1972, when he moved to Fernley, Nev. to live with family members fol lowing the death of his father Theron Holloway.

David moved back to the Alturas area in 1976, com pleting his high school edu cation in 1978 and began his career in the construction industry. Although he worked the majority of his time locally, his trade car ried him throughout North ern California, Oregon and Nevada, and even led him to Alaska for several years, until his return to Alturas in the mid 1980s.

Upon recovering from a bout of cancer in 1993, David studied for and obtained his California General Contractors License, continuing his occupation in construction until he died. He passed away in his sleep Feb. 9, 2000 at his home in Alturas, Calif. He was 40 years of age.

David enjoyed his times with his family and friends, of which there were many. "He was absolutely nuts when it came to fishing," shared his brother Tim.

He is survived by his daughter Darcy, age 11, of Alturas, his brothers Tim Holloway of Alturas, Leroy "Doc" Hol loway of Redding, Dennis Sanders of San Francisco and Terry Sanders of Redding; sisters Nona Vance of Alturas and Marlene Blevins of Klamath Falls, uncle Charlie and aunt Ruth Holloway of Alturas and uncle Adrian and aunt Irene Holloway of Yreka, as well as numerous cousins, nieces and nephews. He was also preceded in death by his mother Eljalou Holloway.

The family attended a graveside service, officiated by David Wroe on Saturday, Feb. 12 at 10 a.m. at the Alturas Cemetery. A memorial service was held at 2 p.m. at the Al turas Elks Lodge with the Holloway Family officiating.

Memorial contributions may be made to the David Hol loway Memorial Fund, c/o Tim Holloway, P.O. Box 153, Alturas, CA 96101 or directly to the Alturas Branch of Plumas Bank, 510 North Main Street, Alturas, CA 96101.

 

 

Record news for Feb. 24, 2000

 

• Modoc lose voters for March election
• Alturas supports plan for new pool
• Snow survey has interesting results
• City has support of Props. 12 and 13
• MJUSD ups ante on 'F' grades

Modoc loses voters for March election

Where have all the voters gone? Modoc's voter registra tion has dropped from a high in November, 1996 of 6,004 to 5,309 for the election March 7, a loss of 695.

Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison said some of the loss, but by all means not all, is attributed to a purge of the voters list. Madison purged the list by taking off voters who had not participated in the past four major elections. Those voters were mailed cards asking if they wanted to continue their registration.

In November, 1998 Modoc had 5,885 voters and on June 1998, there were 5,958. Interestingly, the number of voters in the City of Alturas dropped from 1,889 in 1998 to 1,575 now.

According to Madison, the breakdown of voters by party is as follows: Republican 2,465; Democrat 2,023; non-partisan 580; American Independent 161; Libertarian 29; Green 15; Natural Law 5, Reform 14 and miscellaneous 17.

The race for County Supervisor has District Four incum bent Ron McIntyre challenged by rancher Willy Hagge and District Two's Joe Colt is challenged again by Mike Dunn.

In addition to the county election, four people are running for three seats on the Alturas City Council. They are incum bents Kerry Merwin, Jack Ochs and George Andreasen and challenger Colin Jameson.

A recall election in the California Pines Community Services District against Directors Marvin Kitchen, Robert LaGabed and John Schneider will be on the ballot.

Challenging Kitchen is Charles Green and Wayne Milliron will opt to unseat LaGabed. Two candidates have filed against Schneider, Henry "Hank" Drury and William "Bill" Roland.

There are two questions on the recall ballot. The first asks whether each director should be recalled and the second asks to vote for a replacement. If there is not a majority vot ing in favor of recall, the second question is moot.

The federal portion of the ballot will contain the primary for President and federal offices. The state ballot will in clude state officers and Propositions 1A, and 12 through 31. Prop. 24 was taken off the ballot by the state Supreme Court.

According to Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison, while the presidential primary is open to all parties, each party voter will receive a ballot by party. The voter may still vote for whomever he wants. The political parties in the state wanted the party ballots to track how members of each party voted, especially those who vote outside of party lines. While the parties will not be able to tell how an individual votes, they will be able to chart where their party voters strayed.

Madison stresses the final day to make application for absentee ballots is Feb. 29 and all ballots, absentee and mail must be in to her office by close of polls March 7, 8 p.m. To insure those ballots get to the clerk's office on time for counting, Madison suggests mailing them early.

All registered voters should have received sample ballots and election information by now. If not, contact Madison at 233-6201.

Alturas supports plan for new pool

The Alturas City Council expressed seri ous interest Tuesday night in helping on a committee to investigate the feasibility of building a recreation, health and fitness center in Alturas.

At the center of the complex would be an indoor heated swimming pool, used for recreation, competitive swimming and ther apy.

Spearheading the effort to get the center built is Modoc Medical Center's Physical Therapist Gavin Kleiman. He feels the cen ter is needed for his patients, as well as the entire county.

Kleiman told the council Tuesday night that he envi sions a health and fitness center that could accommo date a variety of activi ties, from swimming, to therapy, to a gym for workouts, racquet ball court or even a com mu nity gym for basketball.

Kleiman is currently inviting agencies and indi viduals to form a committee and as sess the viability of the project and the proba bility of funding. Grants are viewed as the prime funding source.

An organizational meet ing for the project is scheduled March 9, 7 p.m. at the Modoc County Office of Education on Henderson Street in Alturas.

Kleiman told the council that a pool con struction firm from Redding had given him a ballpark estimate of between $400,000 to $500,000 for con struction. He cautioned that was a loose estimate. He also said the YMCA regional di rector has volunteered to help with the project, although not in terms of funding.

Kleiman suggested that people who would like to see what type of facility the city could have check out the YMCA in Klamath Falls. Whether the existing Alturas Pool will be a part of the com plex or refurbished is one of the questions that will be ad dressed.

The city will send repre sentatives to that organiza tional meeting and Mayor Dick Steyer said Kleiman could expect enthusias tic sup port from the city.

Kleiman is hoping to get all agencies and organiza tions involved in a coopera tive ef fort on the project to see it through to fruition.

In other business Tuesday night the City agreed to sup port the Alturas Community Theater, Inc. (ACT) with $2,500 from the Business en hancement fund and $2,500 from the Community Projects Fund.

ACT is a non-profit corpo ration that owns and operates the Niles Theater on Main Street.

ACT Board member Russ Milton ex plained to the coun cil that ACT was running on a very slim budget and needed the funds for repairs, operation and upgrades to the theater building.

Snow survey shows interest ing results

The January 2000 snow surveys came in with some inter esting results, varying in different areas with some highs and some lows.

Ken Romberger, of the Big Valley Ranger District mea sured the snow at Sweagart Flat at 34.2 inches containing 9.6 inches of water. That's above the overall average of 28.77 inches of snow and 8.53 inches of water.

He said the total precipitation between July 1, 1999 and January 31, 2000, at Big Valley is 7.97 inches. According to Romberger, the av erage for his same period is 8.59 inches, showing the current situation to be 93 percent of average.

Sue Becker, Modoc National Forest Hydrologist in Alturas, reported the total pre cipitation for 1999 in Alturas was 9.76 inches, compared to a major wet year in 1998 of 20.89 inches. The precipitation in January, 2000, was 2.10 inches, in from January, 1999's 1.47 inches.

Cedar Pass had 35.2 inches of snow this January, con taining 8.8 inches of water. Last year, the same area had 35.4 inches of snow with 10.7 inches of water. The 10-year average for the area is 35.6 inches with 11.2 inches of water.

The Blue Lake area has 25.3 inches of snow containing 5.3 inches of water. Last year the same spot had 26.5 inches snow and 8.1 inches of water. The 10-year average is 26.8 inches of snow and 7.5 inches of water.

Mt. Bidwell has 60 inches of snow contain ing 16.4 inches of water. In January, 1999, that area had 48.9 inches of snow and 16.3 inches of water. The 10-year average is 50.2 inches of snow and 16.4 inches of water.

Hays Canyon has a 10-year average of 13 inches of snow containing 3.2 inches of water and this January was higher at 15.4 inches of snow with 2.8 inches of water. Last year, the area had 10.8 inches of snow containing 2.8 inches of water.

The snow survey at 49 Mountain also had a surprise. The 10-year average for that area is 15 inches of snow and 4.1 inches of water. This January it measured 20 inches of snow and 3.6 inches of water.

Barber Creek measured 35.1 inches of snow in January containing 7.3 inches of water. The 10-year average is 28.7 inches of snow and 8.2 inches of water. Last year the area had 28.5 inches of snow and 8.2 inches of water.

Cooperative surveys are done in the Warner Mountain and the Hays Range of Nevada by the U.S. Forest Service's Jake Coffey and Doug Schultz and Natural Resources Conservation Service's Tom Hill.

The measurements show fairly high east of the Warners and less to the west of the mountain range. According to Schultz, the snow depth was 153 percent of all year aver age and water content at 104 percent. Schultz explained that the survey was conducted right after a fresh storm and the snow had not yet compacted.

The snow surveys are taken at the follow ing locations: Blue Lake, 6,800 feet; Cedar Pass, 7,100 feet; Mt. Bidwell, 7,200 feet; 49 Mountain 6,000 feet; Hays Canyon, 6,400 feet and Barber Creek, (south of Eagleville) 6,500 feet.

City asks support of Props. 12 and 13

The City of Alturas is asking for local voter support of Propositions 12 and 13 on the March 7 primary election ballot.

Mayor Dick Steyer said the council voted to support both of those initiatives at a meeting February 2 and sees a positive potential if they pass.

"Approval of Prop. 12, the Park, Water and Coastal Protection Act, will provide the city with a per capita grant of $30,0000 and the county with a grant of $150,000," said Steyer. "In addition, this measure will provide for competitive grants that could be used for such things as the Alturas Railroad Museum, improvements around the wetlands west of the airport as a park and others projects."

Steyer said Prop. 12, the Safe Drinking Water, Clean Water, Watershed Protection and Flood Protection Act, will provide grants and loans for making improvements to wastewater treatment plants, watersheds and flood protection.

"We believe that this might be a source of funding for some future improvements at the city's wastewater treatment plant and possibly some flood control measures within the city."

Improvements to the city sewer plant has been on the drawing board for years and a project is now underway that could use additional funding if it becomes available.

MJUSD ups the ante on 'F' grades

The Modoc Joint Uni fied School District upped the ante on "F" grades during its February 15 meeting.

The highlights of the meeting include the unani mous approval of final adoption of the Appropriate Student Placement, Promo tion/Acceleration/Retention/Supplemental Assistance policy.

"This policy sets the bar for success and not failure," stated Steve Iverson, princi pal of Modoc Middle School.

These changes will effect how many F's a student will be allowed to have and still be promoted to the next grade level.

This school year a student can have three F's during each semester grad ing pe riod, regardless of whether the F's are in core classes or not.

Next year, with the im plementation of the new pol icy, a student will only be al lowed to receive two F's per semester grading period with one of them being in a core subject.

Reading is being added to the list of core subjects which include; math, english, sci ence and social studies.

The board unanimously approved the hiring of the California Education Legal Authority.

In a memoran dum to the Board of Trustees from Don Demsher, Interim Superin tendent of MJUSD, it states that "There is no doubt that with impending issues such as negotiations, per sonnel and normal legal questions which must be an swered, the District's costs could be at least the amount we would be paying to the California Ed ucation Legal Authority."

It was unanimously agreed by the board to employ assistance in selecting a Su perintendent through the consultant of the Small School District's Association (SSDA).

SSDA will agree to recruit qualified candidates for the position, to collect and pro cess applications and com municate with persons ap plying for the position.

They will also assist the board in preparing for can didate interviews (for exam ple, developing questions, scheduling candidates for interviews, etc.) And they will represent the district in negotiating a contract with the selected superintendent.

The district will agree to pay $2,000 upon the execution of the agreement by both par ties. The remaining portion of the fee and expenses will be due and payable by the district to SSDA for an amount not to exceed $5,000.

An emergency authoriza tion was approved by the board so that a $72,000 tempo rary building could be bought and set up within the next four to six weeks for the Community Day School.

A search for a state ap proved building to rent had been done, but none were found. At the present time the Day School has three stu dents en rolled.

 

 

 

OBITUARIES:

Ethel Izerna Dark

Ft. Bidwell resident Ethel Izerna Dark passed away of natural causes at the age of 85 years on Feb. 9, 2000 in Cedarville, Calif. Friends who knew Mrs. Dark called her the "sweetest person you'd ever want to meet and a very tal ented person."

Pastor Craig Klatt of the Seventh-day Adventist Church conducted a graveside service at the Fort Bidwell Cemetery at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 23.

She was born to Ethel and Ray Kirk in San Jose, Calif. on Monday, Feb. 1, 1915. Af ter she graduated from high school in Campbell, Calif., she was employed in food service with the Stockton Unified School District for three years. On December 18, 1935, Ethel married Leslie Irving Dark in Stockton, where they made their home until 1943, when they moved to Cedarville. Irving became a dairyman and also raised turkeys for a time.

They later returned to Stockton until 1972, when they re tired and moved to Ft. Bidwell.

Mrs. Dark worked most of life as a homemaker and de veloped her artistic talents through the "Famous Artists" correspondence art courses with such painters as Norman Rockwell, at the time. She enjoyed painting landscapes with oils and using charcoals for drawing as well as painting with watercolors. She also wrote poetry and "her yard looked like a park with lots of flowers," recall her family and friends. She enjoyed cooking, baking pies, knitting, cro cheting and sewing and loved reading the Bible and Bible study. She was a member of the Surprise Valley Seventh-day Adventist Church and both of her sons are veterans.

She is survived by her husband of 64 years, Irving Dark of Ft. Bidwell; son and daughter-in-law Hudson Irving and Arline Dark of Stockton; son Robert L. and daughter-in-law Jerilyn Dark of Cherry Valley, Calif.; daughter Gayle Ar line and son-in-law Grover C. Smith of Ft. Bidwell.

O'Hair & Riggs Funeral Chapel in Klamath Falls was in charge of arrangements. Cremation was by Klamath Cremation Service.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests any memorial do nations be directed to the Surprise Valley Community Hospi tal, Cedarville.

Floyd Delbert Gooch

Cedarville native Delbert Gooch passed away January 22, 2000 at his Santa Rosa, Calif. home.

Known as "Deb," he was born July 18, 1917 in Cedarville to Catherine and Frank Gooch. he was the youngest of a family of six. After graduating from high school, his trav els included Los Angeles, where he was accepted as an ap prentice at Walt Disney Studios.

In the meantime, he was a dental technician and a some time singer at small gatherings. The Army interrupted his plans in 1941. His service took him to Ireland, France and England where he met his wife of 56 years, Maureen.

When Deb and Maureen returned to the states in 1945, they settled in San Francisco, where they lived for 11 years before settling in Santa Rosa in 1956. While in San Fran cisco, Deb began a career in construction which continued until 1976. He also did a term as welding instructor at Sonoma State College.

After retiring, he concentrated on his artwork, jewelry making and his favorite pastime, fishing.

He is survived by his wife Maureen; daughters Caroline Archuleta and Suzanne Gooch, and a son Donn Gooch. He was preceded in death by his brothers and sisters, Clyde and William Gooch, Emma Beckman, Frankie Facer, and Kay Hussa.

He will be fondly remembered as an avid participant in the community flea markets and as a member of the Ma sonic Lodge and the Rock and Gem Society. Although he lived in Santa Rosa, he always enjoyed coming to Surprise Valley to visit, hunt, fish and referred to the valley as "home." At his request, there were no services.

Virgie Elschene Vaughn

Long-time Surprise Valley resident Virgie Elschene Franklin Vaughn passed away at Surprise Valley Commu nity Hospital in Cedarville, Calif. on Tuesday, February 15, 2000. She was 92.

Dr. Ben Zandstra conducted services at the Surprise Val ley Community Church at 2 p.m. on Friday, February 18.

Virgie Elschene Franklin was born in Eagleville, Calif. on December 28, 1907 to Delia Augusta Hanks and John William Franklin. Her early childhood was spent in Lake City. After marrying Clifford Vaughn in 1925, they lived in Surprise Valley, Idaho, Washington and returned to Ce carville, where Mrs. Vaughn lived her remaining years.

In earlier years, Mrs. Vaughn was quite active in Se niors Citizens and the hospital auxiliary and served in the various offices in both organizations.

She loved to do crafts, crocheting, embroidery, cloth paint ing and raise house plants. After her eye sight failed, she was unable to enjoy doing crafts and most of the joy went out of her life, say family members, but she retained her love for her family, kindness to others and her sense of humor. She will be missed by those who knew and loved her.

She was preceded in death by her husband of 55 years, Clifford; four brothers, four sisters and most of her contem poraries.

She leaves to grieve her, one son Delbert Vaughn, who cared for her many years; five daughters, Arlene Newman and Arthada Schoonover, both of Anderson; Lois Cain of Alturas; Carol Jochim and Jean Stimson of Likely; numer ous nieces and nephews, grandchildren, great-grandchil dren, great-great-grandchildren and step-grandchildren.

 

 

 

 

March 2000

 

Record news for March 2, 2000

 

• Clerk expects good turnout for March 7 election
• BLM, ranchers meet on grazing issues
• Jobless rate is up in Modoc
• Black Bear Diner on way to Alturas
• Art show has some new ideas
• Daffodil Days a prediction of hope

 

Clerk predicts good turnout for March 7

 

Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison expects between 60 and 65 percent of the voters to turnout for the March 7 primary election, down from 1996 when 73 percent turned out.

In fairness, the 1996 primary had a very heated race for Modoc Superior Court Judge and other issues that brought people to the polls, said Madison.

The race for County Supervisor has District Four incum bent Ron McIntyre challenged by rancher Willy Hagge and District Two's Joe Colt is challenged again by Mike Dunn.

In addition to the county election, four people are running for three seats on the Alturas City Council. They are incum bents Kerry Merwin, Jack Ochs and George Andreasen and challenger Colin Jameson.

A recall election is being held in the California Pines Community Services District. Directors Marvin Kitchen, Robert LaGabed and John Schneider will be on the ballot.

Challenging Kitchen is Charles Green. Wayne Milliron will opt to unseat LaGabed. Two candidates have filed against Schneider, Henry "Hank" Drury and William "Bill" Roland.

There are two questions on the recall ballot. The first asks whether each director should be recalled and the second asks to vote for a replacement. If there is not a majority vot ing in favor of recall, the second question is moot.

The federal portion of the ballot will contain the primary for President and federal offices. The state ballot will in clude state officers and Propositions 1A, and 12 through 31. Prop. 24 was taken off the ballot by the state Supreme Court.

According to Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison, while the presidential primary is open to all parties, each party voter will receive a ballot by party. The voter may still vote for whomever he wants. The political parties in the state wanted the party ballots to track how members of each party voted, especially those who vote outside of party lines. While the parties will not be able to tell how an individual votes, they will be able to chart where their party voters strayed.

Absentee and mail ballots must be in to the clerk's office by close of polls March 7, 8 p.m. To insure those ballots get to the clerk's office on time for counting, Madison suggests mailing them early.

According to Madison, the breakdown of voters by party is as follows: Republican 2,465; Democrat 2,023; non-partisan 580; American Independent 161; Libertarian 29; Green 15; Natural Law 5, Reform 14 and miscellaneous 17.

 

BLM, ranchers discuss grazing issues

 

About 35 ranchers and lo cal residents attended last Thursday's meeting of the Modoc/Washoe Experimen tal Stewardship Steering Committee in Cedarville.

Changes proposed by the Bureau of Land Manage men t's Surprise Field Office for five northwest Nevada public land grazing allot ments with rangeland health issues were key topics of interest.

"We appreciate the high level of concern about the pro posed grazing decisions, and the interest shown by folks who want to work with us to find workable solutions to the identified issues," said Susie Stokke, manager of the BLM's Surprise Field Of fice. "I appreciated the oppor tu nity to fully discuss range land health needs for each al lotment. I believe every one left the meeting with a better understanding of the nature of these resource health is sues, and BLM's commitment to work with everyone in terested to cor rect the problems."

Stokke said grazing management changes will affect five of the 24 grazing allotments assessed since 1998 for resource health con ditions. Problems were found on parts of riparian (streamside) areas, and grazing manage ment chan-ges will primarily re quire movement of live stock when 40 to 60 percent of the avail able plants have been con sumed. Other changes will require more fre quent herd ing of livestock, and elimi nation of "strag gler" per mits which allowed some cattle to remain on some al lotments after the end of the grazing season.

"The problems we are ad dressing are found on small parts of the landscape. Be cause these areas are impor tant for all range users, in cluding wildlife, is it our re sponsi bility to keep them healthy," Stokke said. "Maintaining healthy pub lic ranges is important for sustaining public lands grazing into the future."

The BLM staff from Cedarville has completed a series of meetings with af fected ranchers, members of public lands interest groups, and elected officials, in which the proposed decisions and alternate proposals were dis cussed. Under the BLM's Healthy Rangeland Regula tions, adopted in 1997, all BLM offices are required to as sess rangeland health and make changes if current graz ing management is al lowing resource damage to occur. Decisions for the Sur prise Field Office will be is sued soon.

In northeastern Califor nia, the Surprise Field Of fice will complete the as sessment process during the next three years on the re mainder of the 52 grazing allotments it administers. Stokke said her staff does not expect to find widespread livestock related problems.

The BLM's Eagle Lake and Alturas field offices have also been at work on rangeland health assess ments and will be working on proposed grazing man agement changes where grazing use is impacting range health.

Management changes proposed for Surprise Field Of fice allotments are in tended to be short term - in place for the next grazing season - while the BLM works with ranchers and interests to develop long-term strategies.

The Modoc-Washoe Ex perimental Stewardship steer ing committee will be helping with the long-term plan ning through its Tech nical Review Team (TRT) process. Last week the com mittee agreed to name TRTs (groups of technical experts representing a broad range of interests) to begin develop ing proposals for the Wall Canyon East and Home Camp allotments. Long-term courses of action have also been outlined for the Bull Creek, Duck Lake and Board Corral areas.

Additional information on the rangeland health as sessment process and other aspects of public rangeland management is available from BLM offices in Cedarville, Alturas and Su sanville.

 

Jobless rate up in January

 

The unemployment rate for Modoc County in January, 2000 went up to 11.1 percent, from December, 1999's rate of 7.7 percent, but remains lower than a year ago when January showed a rate of 13.1 percent.

Higher unemployment rates during Modoc's winter months are not unusual because of unpredictable weather patterns. The county's unemployment rate climbed from November, 1999 at 6.2 percent.

The state unemployment rate for January, 2000 was 5.3 percent and the jobless rate nationally was 4.5 percent.

Modoc ranked 41st out of 58 counties in the state for highest unemployment rate in January. Lassen County had a jobless rate of 9.4 percent, ranking it 37th and Siskiyou showed a rate of 13.4 percent, ranking it 49th.

 

Black Bear Diner moving to Alturas

 

By Nora Russell

Jerry's Restaurant man ager, Russell Oliver, re cently returned from Jerry's corporate offices in Sparks, NV, where plans tor trans form Jerry's in Alturas to the Black Bear Diner had been finalized.

The original Black Bear Diner is located in Mt. Shasta. "There's a whole story about the owner being at tacked by a Black Bear and that's why he named the diner he was opening the Black Bear Diner," Oliver said.

Homestyle cooking and an emphasis on community outreach made the diner a huge success. The owners opened two more diners before selling the licens ing rights to Jerry's for use of the Black Bear Diner name.

The original owners maintain creative control so that the unique qualities of the first diner will be pre served through the future ones.

"It's good for both par ties," Oliver offered. "It helps them to expand and it helps us get a fresh, new con cept."

Jerry's will close on April 3 for remodeling and redec orating and will reopen as the Black Bear Diner on April 12.

Steve Andrews from Palo Cedro, CA is the contractor who will be overseeing the renovation.

"He has already done a couple of these change-overs," stated Oliver. "So he knows what it takes to get it done. They're going to be in and out of here in 10 days."

The outside of the restau rant will get a new roof and a fresh coat of paint.

"I'm not sure what they'll be do ing about landscap ing," Oliver said. "But the sign will change and there will be wooden black bears in the front."

On the inside of the restaurant, some walls will be torn out and others put up.

A gift shop will be added to the front of the restaurant where mugs, shirts and hats will be offered; and bear carvings can be special or dered.

The kitchen will be more enclosed than it has been and a baking area will be built. New equipment will be added to accommodate the expanded menu, including freshly baked cobblers and pies.

New carpeting will be put down and the decor will change to reflect the Black Bear Diner atmosphere.

Oliver will be returning to Sparks to receive four weeks of training. He will learn all of the details that go into changing the diner from Jerry's to the Black Bear; from cooking new dishes to running the new cash register.

When the Black Bear Diner opens on April 12, their hours will be 6:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. "During the hunting season we may de cide to open earlier," added Oliver.

The diner will employ between 30 and 40 people, up from the 18 now employed by Jerry's.

"Black Bear Diner is re ally oriented toward pleas ing the customer," Oliver said. "Making the meal a home made experience with large portions and reason able prices."

Art show has some new ideas

A number of years ago artists Kay Minto of Eagleville and Michael Giampaoli of Su sanville pulled off a very suc cessful first-time fine arts show featuring their work in re mote Eagleville. It was a show that brought in over 300 to view their works of sculpture and painting.

The duo will combine their talents for an other one-of-a-kind show this Friday night, March 3, with the opening of their month-long "Reflections on Vanity" art show at the Art Center, 317 So. Main St., Alturas.

A public reception will open at 5:30 p.m. Friday and Gi ampaoli will give a talk at 6:00 p.m., about his work, the symbology and meaning, vanity and mythology in art his tory and the theme. Everyone is welcome and admission is free.

"Michael shares his good sense of humor and we both share art as a form of communi cation," offered Minto. "Art has been a mir ror for me in my life and I have worked in a serious series "Self Confrontation" for quite a while. I needed some comic relief and we all need humor to keep us balanced, so the works I will show in this new show, are whimsical and serve as counter balance to the serious work. The birds and beasts the public will see, strut, preen and unashamedly proclaim their self-confi dence. Is this van ity? or is it beauty?" queries Minto. "The lava animals have an attitude we can identify with and students and kids re ally enjoy this art form."

One such work, Minto's "Lava Dude," will take center stage in all his glory, dreadlocks, sunglasses and all, standing over five feet, created with molten lava rock and molten TIG-welded aluminum, colored with a rain bow of metal dyes; the dyes are a new twist for Minto.

"This is not sofa art," she describes. "Michael uses a lot of satire and has a unique way of painting."

Minto hails originally from Oklahoma and is currently building her studio in Ea gleville. Giampaoli hails from Cloverdale, Sonoma County, Calif. and earned his Studio Arts and Art History degrees from Univer sity of California, Berkeley. As art instruc tor at Lassen College, Susanville since 1983, he also taught art for a year at the California Cor rectional Center there. Now a resident of Janesville, Gi ampaoli once gave wine tours in the wine country in which he was reared.

"I have always felt that painting is more than a means of decorating walls; it is a method of expressing ideas," he says.

Of the latest series on which he and Minto have collabo rated, he has painted fifteen works, one inspired, he says by the Jimi Hendrix song "Room Full of Mirrors" and another inspired by the "Venus of Willen dorf," among the earliest works of art done by humans.

"Two pieces incorporate actual mirrors. Some are seri ous, provoking thought, and some are humorous, eliciting laughter," he describes.

Minto, known as the creator of the beauti ful and thought provoking "Nike of Mastec tomy" sculpture displayed upon the opening of the San Francisco Main Library "Art.Rage.Us" show and for the "Healing Legacies" exhibi tion in Washington, D.C. and throughout the U.S. and Canada, says she has enjoyed doing the whimsical pieces.

Her latest thoughts are turning toward a whimsical piece for someone special.

A recent meeting with Patch Adams in Reno, has moved Minto to envision creating a sculpture of a whimsical, tall, long-legged bird, complete with what she calls Patch Adams' looks: a broad, bold tie, glasses and a long mustache.

It was at a speaking engagement that Minto attended on short notice that she had opportunity to hear Patch Adams speak. The doctor for whom the movie of the same name was based, operates his hospital in West Vir ginia, which takes no money for services provided.

"He thought it would take him five years to be where he wanted with his hospital, but it has taken him 20 years," said Minto. "I waited to talk with him after he had finished his program and slide show and found him to be such an inspi ration. I think he would re ally get a kick out of a Patch Adams bird. He is so off the wall and has such an amazing sense of humor."

Minto is in the midst of constructing her new art studio in Eagleville.

Daffodil Days a prediction of hope

Beautiful cobalt blue glass vases and bright, cheery yel low daffodils are the Ameri can Cancer Society's way of heralding hope for cancer patients and the hope of Spring's renewal of life.

Modoc residents can give the floral "Gift of Hope" to anyone they please by plac ing an order between now and March 10 with Cancer Society volunteers in the area.

Whether it's any one of the four differently sized vases available this year from the small vase to the large corporate-sized vase, with or without flowers, the cost of the gift delivery bene fits the American Cancer Society and the Modoc Unit of the American Cancer So ciety.

Delivery date is March 27 and Jeanne Cain is grateful to her returning volunteers who will be taking orders and making deliveries this year.

Prices: bouquet (10 flow ers), $10; bouquet with small vase, $15; Vision bouquet, two bouquets with an artistic glass vase, $30; Corporate arrangements range from $55 to $110. The order forms depict color photographs of the vases and flowers ar rangements. Several order forms are available at the Modoc Record.

Orders may be placed with the following Daffodil Days representatives in Modoc:

Alturas: Jeanne Cain, 233-4492, Pioneer Auto Body; Mi chon Kessler at Kaleidoscope Family Hair Salon, 233-4321; Val Flournoy, 233-3111, TEACH, Inc.; Nikki Seev ers, 233-6508, Social Ser vices; Dottie Houghtby, 233-5131, Modoc Medical Center; Hazel Looper, 233-2288 at Steven's Parkview Health care; Terri Tvrdevich, 233-4281 at Alturas Elementary; Diana McCulley, 233-6200 at Modoc County Clerk's office

Surprise Valley: Angie Benner, 279-6146, Cedarville.

Likely: Shirley Flournoy, 233-4748

Davis Creek: Jerry and Bev Palmer, 233-3758, Davis Creek Mercantile

 

OBITUARIES:

James W. Barrington

Former Alturas resident James W. Barrington, 51, of Burney, passed away Feb. 8, 2000 at Mayers Memorial Hos pital in Fall River Mills, Calif., following a short illness.

He was born Feb. 13, 1948 in Lakeview, Ore. and moved to Burney in 1954, from Alturas, Calif.

He was a communication technician for PG&E in Bur ney for 31 yeas.

He was a member of the Burney and Fall River Boosters, a Little League coach, Trustee on the Fall River Joint Uni fied School District Board, Mountain Cruisers Car Club, and 4-H leader and trustee on the Mosquito Abatement District in Burney.

Survivors include his wife M. Casey Barrington of Bur ney; daughters April Thompson of Burney, Faith Hailin of San Diego, Noel Barrington of Hawaii, Katie Ellis of Bur ney; brother Norman of Winston, Or.; sister Glenda Hal yard of southern California; parents Jim and Edna Bar rington of Red Bluff; three grandchildren, Isaiah, Jessica and Zachary.

Memorial contributions may be made to Mountain Jewel Ranch, 527-960 Little Valley Road, McArthur, CA 96056. Ar rangements were handled by McDonald's Burney Chapel.

 

Kenneth Wayne "Ken" Goslin

Former Alturas Creamery owner Kenneth Wayne Goslin of Alturas, journeyed home to be with Jesus after a long battle with cancer on Friday, February 25, 2000 in Lakeview, Ore.

A celebration of life was held at the Christian Life Assem bly of God Church in Alturas at 2 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 28, with Pastor Jerry D. Chilson officiating. Concluding grave side services were held at the Alturas Cemetery with mili tary honors. Desert Rose Funeral Chapel of Lakeview was in charge of arrangements.

Mr. Goslin was born to Theodore and Lollette (Smith) Goslin at High Rolls, New Mexico on July 5, 1929. He grew up in New Mexico, where he graduated from Alamagordo High School. Shortly after graduating, he enlisted in the Navy and served four years. During his military term, he served aboard the U.S.S. Valley Forge and honored his country in the Korean Conflict.

He fell in love with Rose Marie Fisher and wed shortly after on June 12, 1954. They celebrated each of the 46 years they were blessed to spend together.

Mr. Goslin worked at Foremost Dairies for 19 years be fore purchasing the Alturas Creamery. He operated the Creamery for 24 years. After his many years of hard work, he and Rose retired.

Mr. and Mrs. Goslin were blessed with four loyal sons, that were the joy of his life.

Ken loved to garden with his wife, and enjoyed watching their garden flourish throughout the summer. He found pleasure in attending church on Sundays and listening to Pastor Jerry Chilson's sermons. Above all, he loved his family. His passion was spending time with them and watching the kids and grandkids grow. He pleasured in watching them experience life, and learning to live it to the fullest.

Loved ones left behind include his wife, Rose and family, Mike and Tuesday, Dan and Sue, Gary and Scot; grand children Justin, Nick, Malanie, Christopher, Lacey, Ky and Cedar Goslin. He is also survived by brother and sister-in-law Roy and Tressie Goslin; sister-in-law Jenny Weed and special friends Michelle, Brad, Brandon, Lacey, Jason, Christy and Alex.

 

Robert Nelson

Robert Nelson, former Alturas Postmaster, City Coun cilman and Alturas Mayor passed away February 24, 2000 at the Modoc Medical Center Skilled Nursing Facility in Al turas, Calif., where he had been a resident for a number of years.

He was born September 18, 1921 in Haines, Ore. and graduated from Modoc High School and Western School of Business in Sacramento. He served in the U.S. Army dur ing World War II and was discharged in December 1945. He had worked as a bookkeeper at Superior Lumber, South ern Pacific Railroad and Alturas Building. He married Jeanne Hanssen in Grand View, Idaho on May 18, 1971. She survives him. Mr. Nelson was a life member of the Veter ans of Foreign Wars. Interment was at the Alturas Ceme tery Feb. 24. A complete obituary will be published next week.

 

Record new for March 9, 2000

 

• Bad Tuesday for incumbents in county, city, Cal Pines
• Modoc hospitals join the future of telemedicine
• Niles Theater gets help for city chamber
• Plan out to stop land grab
• Get on board for Duck Race

Bad Tuesday for incumbents in Modoc County

It was a black Tuesday for incumbents in Modoc County as voters chose to elect chal len a recall in the California Pines Community Services District.

Modoc County Supervisor incumbents were unseated by large margins. In District Two, Mike Dunn picked up 446 votes to in cumbent Joe Colt's 282, for a 60.8 percent to 38.4 percent win.

By Precinct, Davis Creek voted 42-23 in favor of Colt; Willow ranch went 36-11 to Dunn; North Fork went 158-97 for Dunn; Alturas C went for Dunn 159-82.

District Three's Ron McIntyre was de feated by chal lenger Willy Hagge, 461 votes (61.1 percent) to 292 votes (38.7 percent).

Hagge won Canby by a 60-53 margin, Hot Spring favored Hagge 117 to 42; Cal Pines came in 71 Hagge and 60 McIntyre; and Alturas B went to Hagge 92-70.

County supervisors will take their seats January 2, 2001 and city councilmen on March 14, 2000.

The three city council positions were filled by Jack Ochs, with 623 votes, George Andreasen with 611 votes and Colin Jameson with 502 votes. Incumbent councilman Kerry Merwin was unseated, getting 413 votes.

In the recall of the embattled directors at the California Pines CSD, incumbents Marvin Kitchen, Robert LaGabed and John Schneider were all removed from office by voters.

Kitchen was recalled by a margin of 106 to 48, 68.8 per cent; LaGabed was removed by a 112 to 43 vote margin, 72.3 percent; and Schneider was removed by a 95 to 61 vote mar gin or 60.9 percent.

In the only contested race to replace a di rector, Schneider, Bill Roland narrowly won 49-47, 50 percent of the vote. Wayne Milliron will replace LaGabed and Charles Green will replace Kitchen.

Modoc voters favored George W. Bush in the presidential primary, giving him 1,409 votes. John McCain picked up 951 votes, Al Gore had 494 and Bill Bradley finished with 224. Other candidates in the race did as fol lows: Alan Keyes, 82; Ralph Nader, 25, Steve Forbes, 15; Orrin Hatch 11, Donald Trump 13; Harry Browne 19; Howard Phillips 7; Charles Collins 2; Robert Bowman 3; George Weber 2, Lyndon LaRouche 5; L. Neil Smith 2; Larry Hines 3; John Hagelin 4; Dave Lynn Hollist 2; Joel Kovel 1; Gary Bauer 7; John Anderson 1.

Overall voter turnout was down at 63.1 percent and only 47.6 percent of city voters went to the polls.

On the state Proposition ballots, Modoc agreed and dis agreed with state voters on the issues. The following is how the county voted and how the issues did statewide.

Prop. 1A, Indian gambling, slot ma chines: In Modoc, yes, 1757 and 1,467, no. Statewide it passed 4,295,280 (64.4 percent) to 2,359,478, (35.4 percent).

Prop. 12. Parks bonds: in Modoc it failed by a margin of 2,260 (70.5 percent) to 947 (29.5 percent). Statewide it passed by a large mar gin, 4,197,188 (63.2 percent) to 2,453, 032 (36.8 percent).

Prop. 13, safe drinking water, flood con trol: the issue was not supported by Modoc vot ers 2,113 (66.6 percent) to 1,059 (33.4 percent); but it passed statewide by 4,280,481 (64.8 per cent) to 2,328,656 (35.2 percent).

Prop. 14, California library construction: it failed Modoc's test 2,086 (67.2 percent) to 1,020, (32.8 percent). Statewide voters favored it by a margin of 3,874,107 (59 per cent) to 2,697,320 (41 percent).

Prop. 15, police crime lab upgrades: Modoc voters said no by a 2,332 to 725 margin and it failed statewide by 3,396,654 (53.6 percent) to 2,946,673 (46.4 percent).

Prop. 16, veterans bond act: passed in Modoc by 1,866 to 1,234 and in the state by 3,978,616 (62.5 percent) to 2,397,619 (39.5 per cent).

Prop. 17, legalizing raffles: passed in Modoc by 1,761 to 1,339 and passed statewide by 3,702,053 (58.6 percent) to 2,617,334 (41.4 percent).

Prop. 18, murder in special circum stances: favored by Modoc 2,553 to 605 and passed statewide 4,594,813 (78.4 per cent) to 1,670,892 (26.5 percent).

Prop. 19, murder of BART, college offi cers: favored in Modoc 2,357 to 768 and passed statewide by 4,613,078 (73.5 per cent) to 1,670,862 (26.5 percent).

Prop. 20, lottery funds for textbooks: failed in Modoc 1,707 to 1,414 but passed by state vot ers 3,356,341 (53.1 percent) to 2,973,399 (46.9 percent).

Prop. 21, juvenile crime increases: passed in Modoc by 2,467 to 721 and at the state level 4,040,544 (62 percent) to 3,478,824 (38 percent).

Prop. 22, limit on marriages: favored by Modoc 2,520 to 602 and passed statewide by 4,160,706 (61.4 percent) to 2,617,838 (38.6 per cent).

Prop. 23, none of the above: failed in Modoc by 1,895 to 938 and statewide 3,734,489 (63.5 percent) to 2,151,839 (36.5 per cent).

Prop. 25, campaign reform: Modoc said no by a 2,150 to 845 margin while statewide it failed by 4,091,783 (64.6 percent) to 2,249,266 (35.4 percent).

Prop. 26, the school construction bond vote change to a ma jority vote: it failed in Modoc by 2,006 to 1,064 and at the state level 3,332,361 (51.2 percent) to 3,178,036 (48.8 percent).

Prop. 27, voluntary term limits: Modoc voted against by 1,866 to 1,168 while the state rejected it 3,617,129 (59.3 percent) to 2,490,747 (40.7 percent).

Prop. 28, repeal of tobacco tax: Modoc vot ers said no by a 1,771 to 1,381 margin while the state rejected the issue by 4,646,272 (71.2 percent) to 1,882,280 (28.8 percent).

Prop. 29, Indian gaming compacts: passed in Modoc by 1,553 to 1,507 and by the state by 3,293,597 (53 percent) to 2,921,789 (47 percent).

Prop. 30, insurance lawsuits: Modoc said no by 2,442 to 666 while the state voters re jected it 4,314,564 (67.6 percent) to 2,070,661 (33.4 percent).

Prop. 31, insurance claims practices: Modoc voted no 2,396 to 558 yes and the state rejected it 4,368,274 (70.3 percent) to 1,849,529 (29.7 percent).

Modoc hospitals joins future of telemedicine

 

By Nora Russell

Telemedicine is the wave of the future in the medical field and has become avail able to rural areas through the cooperation of Blue Cross of California, U.C. Davis Medical Center in Sacra mento and MediCal.

Blue Cross received a $1.8 million grant from Medi-Cal to fund a study in telemedicine. The grant will be used to train and equip health care providers in more than 20 locations with the capability to com municate with medical spe cialists at four "specialist hubs" across the state.

Telemedicine will enable a patient to have an appoint ment with a specialist from U.C. Davis Medical Center, Redding or any of the "specialist hubs" without the inconvenience of driving to those distant loca tions.

During the appointment either the patient's local physician or a health care provider will accompany him in the examining room.

A computer, camera and mi crophone at both locations al low the specialist and pa tient to view and communi cate with each other.

Any medical records or pertinent updates on the pa tient will have been faxed to the specialist for review prior to the appointment.

"This type of appointment is especially helpful for a heart patient who may need to see his specialist once a week after heart surgery," said Virginia Hassler, family nurse practitioner. "By using this technology, he will be spared from long drives that can be so wearing."

According to Hassler most major insurance carriers cover the cost of this type of high tech doctor appointment, including Medicare, MediCal and Blue Cross.

The referring phys cian will bill the insurance for a regular office visit and the specialist will bill the in surance for a specialist's visit.

The teleconferencing ca pabilities of the technology provides more options. "It will be used for educational purposes as well as medical," stated Marty Shaffer, telemedicine coordinator for Modoc Medical Center.

Doctors and nurses will be able to take continuing education courses without traveling long distances.

Time and money will be saved when information can be given to all six medical facilities in the Northern Sierra Rural Health Net work at the same time.

The Northern Sierra Ru ral Health Network was formed by the medical fa cili ties in Cedarville, Al turas, Canby, Bieber, Su sanville and Fall River Mills.

The network banded to gether to write a grant re questing funds for the equipment and training that would bring telemedicine to the northeast corner of Cali fornia.

"In the beginning the technology wasn't available here," said Hassler. "There wasn't enough bandwidth to transmit. Then the network met with Citizen's Tele-commu nications and a dedicated T-1 line was put in."

The technology for telemedicine has been on line at Modoc Medical Cen ter since the first part of Jan uary. It has not been used for appointments yet because Redding Medical Center is still forming a network of specialist consultants.

When a recent poll of spe cialists in the Redding area was conducted, 80 doctors re sponded that they were inter ested in participating in telemedicine.

Surprise Valley Commu nity Hospital is also equipped and trained to use their telemedicine equip ment. "We haven't had a case to refer to a specialist yet," stated Danette DePaul. "We're ready to use this when the situation arises." Surprise Valley will make use of the U.C. Davis spe cialist hub.

The U.C. Davis Tele-medicine Program of fers specialist consultations in the areas of Psy chiatry/ Psychology, Der matology, Endocrinology, Gastroenter-ology, Infectious Disease, Nutrition, Pain Manage-ment, Ortho paedic/Sports Medicine and more.

As the saying goes, "We have seen the future, and the future is now."

Niles Theater gets help for city, chamber

The Niles Theater got some much needed finan cial help from the City of Alturas and the Alturas Chamber of Commerce last month, but is not yet out of the woods.

The Alturas City Council approved a dona tion of $5,000 split evenly between business en hancement and commu nity projects funds. The Chamber of Commerce added $2,500 to aid for im provements and operation of the facility.

The Niles Theater is owned and operated by a non-profit corporation, Alturas Community Theater, Inc., (ACT).

"To say that we operate as a non-profit is probably an understatement," said Rick Holloway, of ACT and the Niles. "The fund ing from the City and Chamber pulled us out of the pit a little and we'll be out seeking more help, through fund-raisers throughout the year."

In addition to the City and Chamber, the Modoc Performing Arts Theater (MPAT) donated nearly $800 to cover one of the build ing's monthly pay ments.

MPAT is the popular lo cal live perfor mance the ater group which uses the Niles as its home base. While MPAT and ACT are not connected officially, they are working on an ef fort currently to work more cooperatively for the benefit of both entities.

"One of the big reasons our group pur chased the Niles Theater in the first place was to give MPAT a home and to keep the movie theater open for our youth and the pub lic," said Holloway. "We're manag ing to stay afloat. We sin cerely appreciate the City, Chamber and MPAT's do nations."

The Niles Theater shows movies most weekends. Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. It has been fortunate to obtain movies that are on the top of the movie lists nation ally in good time. The theater also hosts sev eral perfor mances by MPAT, the Modoc County Arts Council and musical produc tions from the schools.

MPAT's next perfor mance is Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe, a mu sical satire, set for March 23, 24, 25, 31 and April 1 at 7:30 p.m. and special Sunday matinees March 26 and April 2 at 3 p.m. Tickets for the perfor mance are $8.50 for adults and $6 for students and se niors.

"We consider the Niles Theater a real cultural center for Alturas and Modoc County," said Holloway. "It is also a big part of downtown Alturas that we certainly do not want to see vacant."

A couple of new fund-raisers will be get ting un derway in the next few days. The first, which will be ongoing, will be the Niles' Penny Collection. The community will have the opportunity to donate its pennies to the theater by simply dropping them in the jar at the theater or at businesses around the city. All the funds raised through the Penny Collection will go into the operation and ren ovation of the theater.

Pizza and Pasta Place is also holding a Beer Fest which will be a fund raiser for the Niles Theater this month.

"We also have a large group people who continu ally support the theater and we are very appreciative of their support," said Holloway. "Many of them purchased seats initially and their names are on the seat plaques. We'll be try ing to provide a variety of performances this year that will serve both as enter tainment and as a fund-raiser. We are expecting a good year and will be work ing hard to garner addi tional support, while mak ing sure we recognize and thank those folks who have been the mainstay the whole time."

The Board of Directors of ACT includes Holloway, Russ Milton, Seab McDonald, Chip Massie, Fritz Barclay, Ken Franklin and Karen Hays. The manager of the Niles Theater is Sharon Lee Carey.

The public is invited to call any director or Carey with suggestions, ideas or to volunteer to help.

Plan out to stop land grab

By Bill Benner

Representatives from Public Lands Ac cess Net work (PLAN), North Washoe Unit, Steens Moun tain Oregon ranchers, and a wide spectrum of other con cerned citizens met in De nio, Nevada on February 26 to dis cuss combining their efforts in opposition to what was termed as the "Federal Land Grab".

Among the participants numbering about 80 were county commissioners from Oregon and Nevada, a col lege professor from Ore gon Institute of Technology, a Harney County Oregon judge, and active and re tired ranchers from California, Oregon, Idaho and Nevada.

Chairman of PLAN, Tibeau Piquet, out lined the various actions currently be ing undertaken by the fed eral agencies. Be sides the proposed Black Rock Na tional Conservation Area (NCA) which may elim inate as much as 1.1 million acres from public use, the USFWS wants to double the size of the Sheldon Game Refuge which will border the NCA and cover additional thou sands of acres. Combined, these two areas would eliminate most multi-use activities from a huge area with exten sive impact on the region. Piquet then went through a litany of ongoing govern ment activities that together paint a bleak picture for all with interests in public lands.

The Chairman stressed the need for all those con cerned with access to public lands to join together in op position to the mis guided and destructive policies now being pushed at an accelerat ing pace by the Clin ton ad ministration. The Conser vation and Reinvestment Act (CARA), soon to be before Congress, was singled out as potentially more destructive than any other law or reg ula tion in existence. CARA contains bil lions for land acquisitions and our current land use rights will "vapor ize" if it passes according to Piquet. All present were urged to call their legislators and express their op position to the CARA proposal. An other topic of concern was the apparent intent to list the sage grouse as a threatened or endangered species. In either case, the additional limi tations on land use were seen as inevitable.

The struggle of the Steens Mountain ranchers with Secretary of the Interior, Bruce Babbitt, was discussed with the gen eral consensus that some sort of federal des ignation of the area would be imposed in spite of the fact that cooperative manage ment has worked well. Bab bitt said he was concerned for the future and therefore sup ported some sort of fed eral designation.

Bob Skinner of the Oregon Cattleman's Assn. briefed the gathering on the ongoing problem in the Owyhee River area where 27,000 AUM's are in jeopardy. BLM banned cattle from 18 miles of the Owyhee River corridor even though the 1988 Wild and Scenic Rivers Act specifi cally allowed grazing. Ac cording to Skinner there are only a few places were cattle can descend the canyon wall to the river and the problem could be eliminated by a minimal amount of fencing which the ranchers are will ing to build. BLM, in a classic catch 22 situation however, will not allow fences in the area.

Having just returned from a two-day session in a Portland District Court where he was trying to help resolve the Owyhee grazing issue, the much beleaguered Mr. Skinner expressed shock and amazement at the blatant underhanded tactics of the en vironmentalists' lawyers who tried playing one rancher off against an other and seemed to operate unencumbered by ethical or moral restraints.

Stu Brown, a past presi dent of the Cali fornia Cat tleman's Assn. and a rancher who has operated in California, Oregon, and Nevada, expressed deep con cern for the future of public lands access in the west. Mr. Brown named the Wild lands Project, which has as its ultimate goal the setting aside of 50% of the area of the United States into reserve wilderness areas, as partic u larly radical and danger ous. A good exam ple of the trend toward radicalism in our federal agencies was the appointment of Dave Fore man, who was convicted of blow ing up a power line in Arizona, to head the Re gional Biodiversity Center in Tucson, Mr. Foreman was author of instructional pamphlets on monkey-wrenching, tree spiking, and various other sabotage tech niques. Brown went on to say that regional coali tions under the Public Lands Access Network could spread throughout the coun try which he felt would go a long way in combating gov ernment usurpations in the west. Angry and deter mined, he said, "We have drawn a line in the sand." He further stated that a large scale demonstration was planned in Reno toward the end of March to show opposi tion to the Black Rock NCA.

Get on board for the year 2000 Duck Race

Anyone who would like to help with the Alturas Rotary Clubs' Great Pit River Duck Race can get on board, but jump on in the near future.

"We need local business help," said Bill Madison, Co-chairman of the event with Mike Mason. "There are two ways in which you may contribute to this year's Duck Race. You may elect to put a coupon in the book or donate a major prize."

The annual Duck race has been the major fundraiser for the Rotary Youth Park on Fourth Street in Alturas. The top prize in the race is a new vehicle. The Youth Park houses baseball, softball and basketball courts. It may also be used for soccer. The fields may be playable this summer. Each year the Duck Race has netted over $30,000. Plans this year are to fund the purchase of bleachers and the construction of restrooms.

"If you submit a coupon idea, we ask that you give careful consideration based upon value, usability and ex piration date," said Madison. "The Duck Race Committee will then select the prizes and coupons. We are extremely grateful to the businesses who have supported this project, that participation has been an essential element of our success. The community's generosity has always been amazing when it comes to our youth."

The Duck Race is held the Saturday of Fandango Days in July each year. The Rubber Duck tickets go on sale April 15, and are limited to 3,000 at $25 each. The 3,000 ducks have sold out prior to the race each year.

Anyone interested in continuing your support or be coming a new supporter of this community effort should contact Madison at 530-233-3432 or mail your coupon or prize suggestion to Madison at Modoc Insurance, 326 N. Main Street in Alturas

 

OBITUARIES:

 

Robert S. Nelson

Robert S. Nelson, former Alturas Postmaster, City Coun cilman and Alturas Mayor, passed away February 24, 2000 at the Modoc Medical Center Skilled Nursing Facility in Al turas, Calif., where he had been a resident for over 14 years. Graveside services, with military honors conducted by the Veterans Group, were held on February 28.

Mr. Nelson was born to Benjamin and Winnie (Simon) Nelson on Septem ber 15, 1918 in Haines, Ore. He moved with his family to Alturas in 1931, and gradu ated from Modoc Union High School in 1936. Di rectly thereafter, he headed for Western School of Busi ness in Sacramento, where he studied bookkeeping and accounting for two years.

Upon returning to Alturas, he worked as bookkeeper for Superior Lumber Company for two years, followed by three and a half years as roundhouse clerk for Southern Pacific Railroad. In January 1943, he was inducted into the U.S. Army, and as an Amphibian Engineer served two years in the South Pacific and one year in the states until his dis charge in December 1945. He received numerous medals for serving his country during World War II.

When Mr. Nelson returned home, he went back to work for the railroad for a year and a half, and was then offered a job at Alturas Building Materials, where he worked the next nineteen and a half years. He also served on the City Coun cil from April 1950 to 1954, and as Mayor of the City of Al turas from 1952 to 1954.

In March 1966, Mr. Nelson was hired as Acting Postmas ter of the Alturas office, and a year later was officially ap pointed as Alturas Postmaster by then President Lyndon Johnson. He performed his duties with dedication and pride, and was well-known in the community for his thoughtful and caring ways. He retired in September 1983.

Bob Nelson was a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and a member of International Order of Oddfellows for over 25 years. Although he had no children of his own, he believed in the importance of instilling solid moral princi ples in our youth, and was therefore a strong supporter of the local Boy Scout program. Bob was also known for his kind ness to the older residents and homebound of the community, going out of his way to help them whenever necessary. If one of the came in to the post office and needed help with writing a letter, Bob would get the information from them, type up the letter on the spot, and give it back to them to be reviewed and mailed.

Even though Bob was not a member of the Catholic Church, he counted "Father Mike," the former priest of the Alturas Parish, as one of his closest friends. Since the priest did not drive a car, Bob took him wherever he needed to go, whether it was on occasional trips out of town, or over to Surprise Val ley every Sunday for services. He performed this service of love every week for many years.

Bob enjoyed collecting stamps, coins and exploring for arrowheads. He also went on trips in search of antique lamps, bottles, often trading with other collectors. An avid rockhound, he spent many satisfying hours gathering and cutting stones to create lovely tables and other objects as gifts for his family and friends. He was well-loved by his brother Reid's family, and shared many happy times with them in years past.

Survivors include his wife Jeanne (Hanssen) Nelson of Alturas; sister-in-law Lorraine Nelson of Alturas; nephew Mike Nelson and wife Marlys of Great Falls, Montana and their children Kindee, Torre and wife Michelle, and Megan; nephew Monte "Toot" Nelson and wife Karoline of Alturas and children Jeff, Randy and wife Annette, Misty, and Jennifer.

Donations in his memory may be made to Alzheimer's prevention; please call 233-2229 for more information.

Richard Verle Pratt

A memorial service for Richard Verle Pratt of Alturas will be held on Saturday, March 11 at 2 p.m. at Christian Life Assembly in Alturas. A native of Alturas, Richard passed away March 4, 2000 of liver failure at the age of 49 in Alturas, Calif.

The popular member of Modoc High School's class of 1968, was born to Ed and Dolly Pratt on October 6, 1950 in Alturas. He attended Shasta College in Redding for a year and liked most all sports. He participated in bull riding, team roping, saddle bronc riding in rodeos throughout the west.

He was a member of the Likely Roping Club and at one time owned a plumbing business in Modoc County called Pratt's Plumbing.

He is survived by his mother and father Dolly and Ed Pratt of Alturas; sister Betty Johnson of Philomath, Ore.; brother Jim Pratt and wife Michele of Val Verde, Calif.; two step-children Shawna Richardson of New Plymouth, Idaho; Donny Richardson of Ridgecrest, Calif.; aunts and uncles Frank and Joyce Perkins of Waldport, Ore.; aunt Vickie Savage, Susanville; Charles and Sharon Vadnais, Ham mer, Idaho; uncle Frank Pratt of Elk Grove; uncle Marion Campbell of Al turas and numerous cousins and friends.

The Rev. Dr. Ben Zandstra will conduct the memorial service. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a charity of the donor's choice.

 

Record news for March 16, 2000

 

• DFG expresses concern over gravel quarry
• County in good shape at mid-year review
• Steyer to serve new term as mayor
• Census count will bring needed funds to Modoc
• Unemployment rate at 11.6%
• Iolanthe filled with 'rich humor

DFG expresses concern over gravel quarry

The Department of Fish and Game is expressing serious concern over a new proposed Fitch Sand and Gravel, Inc. gravel pit on Cedar Pass.

The Modoc County Environmental Review Committee agreed to continue its meeting last week, to give proponent Tony Cruse, of Fitch Sand and Gravel, time to discuss the project and mitigation efforts with the DFG. That meeting is scheduled next week in Redding.

The proposed Hogsback Quarry gravel pit site is located about nine miles east of Alturas, going up Cedar Pass just south of SR 299. What's planned on the site includes hard rock mining, sand and gravel extraction, on a year-round basis, weather permitting. It is anticipated that about 100,000 cubic yards of material will be removed annually. In the future, asphalt processing and other operations may be moved to the site.

According to Fitch's application the mining and process ing operation will not be visible from the highway, but the Environmental Review Committee wanted more informa tion.

The real concern comes from the DFG. The site is in a long-identified critical wildlife habitat for antelope and deer, which the DFG says the Fitch application does not fully ad dress. The DFG stresses an Environmental Impact Report should be required for the project.

On Wednesday, Cruse said he hopes the meeting with DFG officials next week will help mitigate some of the wildlife issues and allow the pit to move forward without having to do a full, and expensive, EIR. Cruse said Fitch Sand and Gravel has hired a professional biologist to ad dress the issues and try to supply DFG with additional and current information.

Cruse sincerely believes that the county planning de partment is treating him unfairly as compared to other gravel pit applications and operators in the county. He said he's being asked to "jump through more hoops" than other op erators on similar applications.

County Planning Director Scott Kessler said the Fitch ap plication is being treated fairly and according to current re quirements and regulations. Kessler said the DFG has ex pressed serious concern about impacts to wildlife. Those concerns, he said, were not major issues in the other applica tions.

"We believe what we're planning at this pit will be a bene fit to wildlife and the information our biologist is supplying will increase the DFG's knowledge," said Cruse. "Our goal is to work with DFG and take some measures that don't im pact wildlife. We're looking to find a common middle ground. We think our evidence will be helpful."

The DFG is concerned about impacts to the habitat, pri marily of antelope and mule deer.

"The Likely Tables antelope herd is the largest in California with the current number estimated at 1,500 to 2,000 animals," the DFG's Regional Manager Donald Koch stated in a letter to the county planning department. "A ma jor portion of this herd makes a biannual migration through the project site to summer range on the Devil's Garden and returning to winter range on the Likely Tables. A high po tential exists for this project to adversely impact migrating antelope. Maintaining unrestricted functional migration corridors to seasonal ranges is critical to the survival and reproductive success of antelope."

The DFG states that to reduce the negative impacts on mi grating antelope the mining operations should be avoided from November 1 to December 15 and from March 1 to April 30 each year.

"Antelope kidding grounds occur on the site and could be disturbed by mining operations and removal of preferred vegetation," said the DFG. "The kidding period is critical to the reproductive success of antelope and disturbances from this project may reduce antelope survival and population productivity. Vegetation found on the project site including low sage, bitterbrush, forbs, perennial and annual grasses are important to the reproductive success of antelope. These species provide highly nutritious vegetation of lactating fe males and hiding cover for kids."

The DFG states the impacts to kidding cycles can be re duced by avoiding all mining activity between April 15 and June 30.

In addition to the impacts on the antelope, the DFG said there could be a serious impact to mule deer winter range. The removal of high value vegetative species used for forage and thermal cover include bitterbrush, sagebrush and ju niper through mining will greatly impact the wintering mule deer, said the DFG. To reduce those impacts, they rec ommend all mining activities be avoided from November 1 through April 15.

"The reclamation phase of this project is important for re ducing impacts to wildlife by providing minimal distur bances and reseeding disturbed soil," Koch stipulates. "Mined areas should be held to five acres annually with reclamation of these areas immediately following the cessa tion of mining and before the next year's operation begins."

The DFG further stresses the need to avoid impacts to bit terbrush and not to clear-cut junipers.

"The above recommendations will reduce but not fully mitigate the potentially significant impacts of the project," wrote Koch. "This project will contribute to the reduction of wildlife populations and habitats in Modoc County."

Cruse said DFG mitigation measures would only allow for about a four month operation per year and that is just not economically feasible or realistic. He's hoping his company and DFG will be able to come to terms on the required miti gation measures.

County in good shape mid year

Modoc County's fiscal health is good at the mid-point of this year's budget year.

County Administrative Officer Mike Maxwell told the Board of Supervisors Tuesday that results of the mid-year budget review showed no red flags and the county's rev enues and expenditures were within projections.

"There were no surprises," said Maxwell. "Overall, we're in pretty good shape and the departments are manag ing well. Expenditures are actually lower in some cases. The review went well."

Chairwoman Nancy Huffman complimented the de partment heads for the day-to-day awareness of their bud gets.

Also at Tuesday's meeting the board discussed the skate boarders at Veteran's Park and opted to draft a letter to the City Police and County Sheriff to help make sure those ac tivities do not result in excess trash or litter.

The county did not want to ban skateboarding or rollerblading at the park, but was concerned that current skaters are using the picnic tables and other equipment as take off points. In addition, said Rick Hironymous, of Public Works, they are bring ing old plywood and ramps into the park and not remov ing them.

The board discussed the situation and simply will try to get the skaters to clean up and not leave their litter or old wood around the park, They are also being asked to stay off the tables and not to hang on the basketball rims.

The board also approved Librarian Cheryl Baker's re quest to spend the $34,135 of a Gates Foundation Grant on the computer equipment and related work at each library site. Baker was successful last fall in the grant applica tion to the Gates Foundation. The new computers go into all five li brary sites for use by the public.

Modoc Medical Center Administrator Teresa Jacques told the board the hos pital collection rate was im proving un der the new billing system and that more than $700,000 was collected in February. She expects the new billing process to vastly im prove the payments.

The county agreed to hire a controller at the facility and to pay for a mammography training technician to help the fa cility pass its certification.

Steyer to serve another term as Mayor of Alturas

 

By Nora Russell

During the Alturas City Council meeting held on the evening of March 14, 2000 Richard Steyer was nomi nated and elected as the Mayor of Alturas.

John Kerr was nominated and elected as the Mayor Pro-Tem. of Alturas.

A resolution was adopted declaring the results of March 7, 2000 Consoli dated General Municipal Elec tion.

The Deputy City Clerk administered Oath of Office to Cary Baker, City Clerk and George Andreasen, Jack Ochs and Colin Jame son, City Councilmembers.

A short speech was given by Kerry Merwin thanking the councilmembers and City of Alturas for the oppor tunity to serve as coun cilmember and Mayor Pro-Tem.

A request was made of the council by Rod Gately and Brad Server, former man agers of Arrowhead Golf Course, for reimbursement for the $4,100 balance of bank loans incurred during their contracted tenure as man agers.

"Since we were required by the city to start a business (Pro-shop and restaurant) and the city caused the busi ness to shut down with the sale of the golf course, we feel that we should be reim bursed for the balance of the loans that we had to take out to start the business," Gately stated. "We got the loan to fulfill the contract that the city required of us."

"Both of you willingly entered into a contract that you knew could be canceled with a 30 day notice," Kerry Merwin said. "Only you made the decision to borrow the money, it was not a city council action that put you into debt."

The council voted unan imously to deny reimburse ment to Gately and Server for the balance of their loan.

Census count will bring needed funds to Modoc

 

By Nora Russell

It's census taking time again; time for every resi dent of the United States to stand up and be counted.

Census questionnaires will be arriving in the mail to all homes in Modoc County and around the country. The difference between this piece of mail and junk mail that is idly tossed into the trash can be found printed on the out side of the envelope, "Your response is required by law".

In rural areas every other person will receive the long form, which asks 53 questions of the head of household and fewer questions of other members of the household. The other half of the rural population will receive a short form which asks eight questions of the head of household and six questions of other members.

The United States gov ernment is spending more money on this census than it has spent on any other peace time project.

Aside from doing a head count of the population of the country, what is the purpose of the census?

The results of the census count are necessary because the number of seats in the House of Representatives are evenly divided based on state population. The figures are also used to distribute ap proximately $200 billion per year in federal funds to sup port schools, employment services, housing assis tance, highway construction, hospital ser vices, programs for children and elderly and more.

According to the Census Bureau the census informa tion is used by: The federal government to plan federal programs for housing, transportation, education, and job training. Federal dollars are allocated based on census numbers.

State, local, and tribal governments use the num bers to plan programs for jobs, housing, schools, transportation, etc.

Citizen groups and local organizations use them to plan work, identify needed facilities, and measure our area's problems and progress.

Business and industry to locate new markets and build new factories, housing, hotels, shopping centers, etc.

With all of this sharing of information going on, are the answers given by indi viduals who fill out the cen sus form confidential?

Yes, the census question naire is seen only by Census Bureau employees, who are sworn to keep information confidential. The census in formation may only be used for statistical purposes. The personal information will be held by the Census Bureau and will not be seen by any one else for 72 years after it is collected. During those 72 years no one will have ac cess to that information, in cluding the IRS, FBI, Wel fare, Immigration or any other agency of the federal government.

In an effort to make sure that all residents of the United States are counted in the census, the forms are printed in 12 languages, with assistance guides printed in 37 differ ent lan guages.

Official Census 2000 Question Assistance Centers have been opened to assist with the filling out of the question naires. There is one located in Alturas at New Directions, 802 N. East Street. A Census 2000 em ployee will be avail able Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to noon and 1:00 p.m. to 5 p.m. until April 15 to assist with filling out the forms. No appoint ment is needed and confi dentiality is guaranteed by law.

While some questions like "occupation" may seem straight forward and the an swer of "nurse" seem appropriate, the Census Bureau is looking for more specific an swers such as: registered nurse, nursemaid, practical nurse, vocational nurse, nursing aide, etc.

The census employee at the Assistance Center is trained to help answer any of the questions on the form. There is also a large print copy of the form available and envelopes if the original envelope is lost. If a census form is not received by April 1, forms can be obtained at the As sistance Center.

Unemployment rate at 11.6%

Modoc's unemployment rate for the month of February stood at 11.6 percent, up slightly from January's level of 11.2 percent. The jobless rate is down from February, 1999's 14 percent.

Modoc ranked 43rd out of the state's 58 counties in highest unemployment. Lassen County had an unemployment rate of 9.5 percent, ranking it 37th and Siskiyou's jobless rate was 12.5 percent ranking it 47th.

Iolanthe filled with 'rich humor

The Modoc Performing Arts Theater's latest musi cal is going into the final weeks of production, and it looks as if MPAT will have another hit on its hands.

The Gilbert and Sullivan comedy classic, Iolanthe, is the offering this year, and the rich humor, memorable songs and a plot full of sur prises will make for an en joyable evening.

"Gilbert and Sullivan plays have always been pop ular with our audience," says Stage Director Sandy Boldon. "MPAT has pro duced Gilbert and Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance, The Mikado and H.M.S. Pinafore, and I've heard people say they were our best shows. Iolanthe will be no exception. Even during the cast's first read-through of the script back in January, the room was filled with laughter. It's a great show."

The play takes place in England and involves a ro mance between a shepherd, Strephon, and Phyllis, a ward of the Chancellor of Parliament. The Lord Chancellor doesn't see a shepherd as being a fit per son to marry one of his ward, and to make things worse, Strephon is unable to reveal his parentage because he is the result of a marriage be tween a mortal man and a fairy. When the Lord Chan cellor sets his sights on Phyllis for himself, Strephon takes action and calls in the Queen of the Fairies and her court for help. When the fairies show up in the House of Lords, the English Government will never be the same.

The cast includes Bill Tierney as the Lord Chan cellor, Sally Clark as Queen of the Fairies, Rebekah Richert as Iolanthe (Strephon's Mom), Heather Gregory as Phyllis, David Ash as Strephon, Kevin Pent as Sergeant Willis, Larry Shippen and Dee Green as two Lords who are also vying for Phyllis' affection, and Kerry Davis, Karen Hays and Eleanor Dorton as lead fairies. The chorus of fairies also includes Midge Dier, Mary Bauer, April Dorton, Caitlin Kraft, Marya Gates, Scherane Johnson and Jodie Jones. The House of Lords will be represented by Steve Johnson, Gary Bell, David Cohen, Landon Flournoy, Ryan Hagge, Raphael Erd man and Jeran Brown.

The production team is headed by Nancy North-Gates, Musical Director; Sandy Boldon, Stage Direc tor and Jodee Roberts, Assis tant Director.

Iolanthe opens Thursday, March 23 and will run March 24, 25, 26 and March 31, April 1 and 2. Show times are 7:30 p.m. and the Sunday matinees will begin at 3:00 p.m. Tickets are $8.50 for adults; $6 for students and senior citizens and will be available at Pizza and Pasta Place or at the door at the A.C.T. Niles Theater, So. Main Street, Alturas.

 

OBITURARIES:

 

William Stuart "Bill" Kloepfer

Fort Bidwell resident William S. "Bill" Kloepfer, 78, died Thursday, March 9, 2000 at the Surprise Valley Community Hospital in Cedarville, Calif. A memorial mass was cele brated at the Fort Bidwell Peoples' Church building on Mon day, March 13 with Father Salvador Brinngas officiating. Private inurnment was at the Fort Bidwell Cemetery.

Bill was born to Harold and Jesse (Stuart) Kloepfer at Pueblo, Colorado on January 16, 1922. He grew up on a ranch between Florescent and Cripple Creek, Colorado and grad uated from Cripple Creek High School in 1940. He enlisted with the Army Air Corps and served during World War II as a B-24 pilot. He was honorably discharged in 1946 and moved to Pittsburg, Calif. where he met and later married the love of his life, Beverly Dally, on August 31, 1947 in Oak ley, Calif.

He worked as a machinist in a paper mill in Antioch un til he moved to Sacramento as a machinist with Aerojet. He later transferred to Hillsboro, Ore. and worked for Techtron Instrument Company until 1969, when he moved to Montana to fly for the U.S. Forest Service until he retired in 1979 and moved to Fort Bidwell where he became the local appliance repairman.

His greatest source of enjoyment was flying. He was a member of St. James Catholic Church and the Fort Bidwell Volunteer Fire Department.

He is survived by his wife Beverly of Fort Bidwell; sons Mark of Hillsboro and Harold of Yuma, Ariz.; daughters Ivy Stadleman of North Pains, Ore. and Zoeann Cook of Aloha, Ore.; brother Robert Kloepfer of Gustine, Calif.; eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. He was pre ceded in death by a brother Jim and sister Patricia Benner.

Those wishing to honor the memory of Mr. Kloepfer may do so by sending a donation to the Surprise Valley Hospital, P.O. Box 246, Cedarville, Calif. 96104 or to a charity of the donor's choice. Desert Rose Funeral Chapel of Lakeview was in charge of arrangements.

Ellen Rachel Tandy

Eagleville native Ellen Rachel Tandy died in her home in Winters, Calif. on Sunday, March 5, 2000 at age 96-1/2. A memorial service is scheduled for 3 p.m. Saturday, March 18 at Countryside Church, Fremont and Grafton Streets in Esparto, Calif. A private interment will follow at Cottonwood Cemetery.

Born Ellen Rachel Bailey in Eagleville, Calif. August 21, 1903, she lived most of her early years in Cedarville, where she met Albert Tandy when he was teaching.

In June of 1937, Albert and Ellen moved to the Madison area of Yolo County on his parents' farm. She was a member of Countryside Church for 61 years, being active in Ruth's and Ladies Auxiliary, Women's Farm Bureau and the Ru ral Study Club.

Mrs. Tandy is survived by her sister Esther Marsh of Cedarville, Calif.; daughters Ellen A. Peckham of Winters and Janice M. Walthers and husband Bob of Cedarville; brother-in-law Bill Tandy and wife Iola of Winters; sister-in-law Terry Bailey of Citrus Heights. She is also survived by grandsons Jack Peckham, Whitney Bittle, Cameron Bit tle and wife Liz Rambo, granddaughters Deb Peckham, Myrna Spiva and husband Joe, Darci Peckham-Lewis and husband Napoleon; great-grandsons Nathan Covington and Demetrius Lewis; great-granddaughters Nichole and Jen nifer Peckham, Lela Spiva and numerous nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by a grandson Gerald Peck ham, husband Albert and brother Melvin.

Remembrances may be sent to Surprise Valley Hospital, Cedarville or the donor's choice of charity.

Ellen Rachel Tandy

Eagleville native Ellen Rachel Tandy died in her home in Winters, Calif. on Sunday, March 5, 2000 at age 96-1/2. A memorial service is scheduled for 3 p.m. Saturday, March 18 at Countryside Church, Fremont and Grafton Streets in Esparto, Calif. A private interment will follow at Cottonwood Cemetery.

Born Ellen Rachel Bailey in Eagleville, Calif. August 21, 1903, she lived most of her early years in Cedarville, where she met Albert Tandy when he was teaching.

In June of 1937, Albert and Ellen moved to the Madison area of Yolo County on his parents' farm. She was a member of Countryside Church for 61 years, being active in Ruth's and Ladies Auxiliary, Women's Farm Bureau and the Ru ral Study Club.

Mrs. Tandy is survived by her sister Esther Marsh of Cedarville, Calif.; daughters Ellen A. Peckham of Winters and Janice M. Walthers and husband Bob of Cedarville; brother-in-law Bill Tandy and wife Iola of Winters; sister-in-law Terry Bailey of Citrus Heights. She is also survived by grandsons Jack Peckham, Whitney Bittle, Cameron Bit tle and wife Liz Rambo, granddaughters Deb Peckham, Myrna Spiva and husband Joe, Darci Peckham-Lewis and husband Napoleon; great-grandsons Nathan Covington and Demetrius Lewis; great-granddaughters Nichole and Jen nifer Peckham, Lela Spiva and numerous nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by a grandson Gerald Peck ham, husband Albert and brother Melvin.

Remembrances may be sent to Surprise Valley Hospital, Cedarville or the donor's choice of charity.

Norma Thompson

Alturas native Norma Thompson passed away in Rancho Cordova, Calif. on March 10, 2000. A memorial service was held Wednesday, March 15 at 2 p.m. at the United Methodist Church on Zinfandel Drive in Rancho Cordova. Miss Thompson had been an active member of that church.

Born April 1, 1907 in Alturas, Calif. to Albert Thompson and Margaret Pope, she is survived by her sister Phyllis Thompson of Rancho Cordova; cousins Judith Waegell and Dawn King and numerous family members. Donations may be made to the United Methodist Church in her memory or to a charity of the donor's choice. Arrangements by the Neptune Society of Northern California, Sacramento.

 

Record news for March 23, 2000

 

• Big plans for SR 299 into Alturas
• County assessing needs for local bus service
• Get checked out for good spring health
• Squirrel Roundup means open season on squirrels
• MPAT opens new play this weekend
• Migratory bird festival comes to Modoc
• Spring concert at Modoc High

Big plans for SR299 highway into Alturas

There are big plans in the works for State Highway 299 coming into Alturas from the west, with actual construction set for 2003 or 2004.

CalTrans has presented the Local Transportation Commission with a set of three alternatives (A,B, and C) that cover SR 299 from the intersection of US 395 in Alturas west to Mill Street.

Alturas Public Works Director Stacy Chase said al ternative C has the received the most favor from a local committee now working with CalTrans. That project makes the highway three lanes from Mill Street to Juniper Street and five Lanes from Juniper Street to Main Street.

One of the other alternatives, "A" would make the high way five lanes from Mill to Main and the other, "B", would make the highway three lanes from Mill to Main.

The five lane alternative was deemed too expensive and the committee felt it could fund alternative C. The preferred alternative has a projected cost 3.3 million.

Basically, the preferred project has one eastbound and one westbound lane, with a left turn lane in the middle from Mill to Juniper and then goes to two eastbound and two west bound lanes with a center turn lane from Juniper to Main. Chase said right hand turn pockets may also be included at intersections of various streets. Curb, gutter and sidewalk are also planned, but to just what distance has not been de termined.

The CalTrans consultants will listen to the committee and the LTC's preferences and then come back with a plan that will be open to public comment.

The new highway structure will make the entry into Alturas more efficient and safer, said Chace. Additionally, he said, the changes will make it easier for business devel opment on that corridor.

He feels the center turn lane as well as right hand turn pockets will make some intersections, especially Warner and SR 299, much safer. Additionally, said Chase, some current water drainage problems will be addressed in the project and he feels the project will alleviate some of the pre sent problem areas.

The LTC and committee have been meeting for several days on the project and once the final plans are proposed, the public and especially those businesses, agencies and resi dences along the highway will be able to address those issues which may have some impact. Nothing, said Chase, is writ ten in asphalt at this time and public input will be important.

County addressing needs for local bus service, routes

So just what are the real and perhaps unmet public trans portation needs of Modoc County residents? Anyone who has an opinion will have ample opportunity to make it public.

The Modoc County Local Transportation Commission (LTC) will be holding a series of public meetings to identify transit needs and determine which needs are reasonable to meet with available funding.

The first public meeting is set for tonight, March 23, at Sons of the Pioneers meeting hall in Modoc Recreational Estates, 7 p.m. The workshop will explain unmet transit needs, road funding, maintenance and rehabilitation is sues and the development of Modoc's 20-year Regional Transportation Plan.

Two other public meetings are scheduled, April 13, 3:30 p.m. at the County Road Department Conference Room, 202 West 4th Street, and May 16, 6 p.m. at Alturas City Hall, 200 North Street.

The LTC and Sage Stage operator, Modoc Transportation Agency, are obliged to coordinate and consolidate trans portation services in Modoc and to modify existing bus ser vices to best serve reasonable needs. Oral testimony may be given at public meetings and workshops and written com ments may be sent to Transit Needs 2000, 202 West 4th Street, Alturas. 96101, or faxed to 530-233-6424 or by email to couch@hdo.net. Deadline for written comments is 4 p.m. May 5.

The LTC receives Transportation Development Act fund ing through local sales and fuel taxes. State laws and regu lations control how TDA funds are used. For the year 1999-2000, the LTC allocated $91,000 to Sage Stage public transit operation. Sage Stage may receive up to $15,000 reimburse ment from the Federal Transit Administration. A special $30,000 grant from Modoc County CalWORKs Employment Program will allow Sage Stage to develop and implement public dial-a-ride services in the greater Alturas area.

In June, Sage Stage will start dial-a-ride services offer ing door-to-door transportation within a 10-mile radius of Alturas. Reservations will be required for each trip, which means transportation between home or pick-up location and one destination. Routes and availability will vary accord ing to demand. Each dial-a-ride bus has eight seats and one wheelchair tie-down.

Sage stage is saying passengers will be picked up within 15 minutes (before or after) confirmed reservation times. The cost will be $4 per trip with a 50 percent discount to se niors, the disabled and youth. Current funding allows for the service to be operated with one bus, 20 hours per week.

In order to assist the LTC, in its decision making process, the public needs to inform the agency of needed or wanted destinations, why the bus is needed and why the trips are needed. Those reasons may include lack of a driver's li cense, disability, limited income or legal restriction, medi cal appointment, personal or family business, shopping, recreation and so on. The LTC also wants to know how often to schedule routes and what routes and days of the week are the most preferred. In addition, the public is asked whether local or long distance travel represents the largest need.

For more information contact Transportation Manager Pam Couch at 530-233-6422.

Get checked out for good spring health

This Saturday is a good time to get a physical tune up for spring as the sixth annual Modoc Health Fair takes place at the Griswold Gym in Alturas from 8 a.m. to 12 noon.

In addition the the regular health fair a Children's Mini Health Fair is also held that day at the same times.

Adults can have blood pres sure, hearing, diabetic tests as well as participate in breast cancer education, dental and ortho information, depression and health awareness, HIV/AIDS prevention, addic tion education and screen ings, telemedicine, tobacco education, hypnotic weight reduction, and others.

In addition, there will be games, raffles and plenty of give-a-ways plus consultation on a variety of issues.

There is also the chance for a blood screen panel for a modest $10 charge.

The Health Fair is spon sored by Modoc County Public Health, Modoc County Alcohol and Drug Services, Modoc County Health Department, Modoc Medical Center, Modoc Indian Health Project and Families Matter.

The children's portion of the Health Fair is for toddler to elementary age youngsters. Some of the stations to be of fered include: Dress up as a Doctor, Art, Tooth Care, Hand Washing, Nutrition, Exercise, CLOAK-After School Program and other in formation.

Parents are encouraged to accompany their children and also visit the regular health fair booths. Information will also be available on the Healthy Families Insurance Plan.

The Children's mini health fair is sponsored by "Families Matter" Child Abuse Prevention Council, Early Head Start, Even Start, Welcome Baby, RAINBOW, CLOAK and the Alturas State Preschool.

Squirrel Roundup means open season on squirrels

 

By Nora Russell

During the ninth annual Squirrel Round-up it will be open season on squirrels in Surprise Valley.

This unusual event was the brain child of the Sur prise Valley Chamber of Commerce. The idea came about soon after ranchers were no longer allowed to poison the squirrels in their fields and squirrel over-population was becoming a huge problem.

"This event works well for everyone," said Chamber President Candy Maidens. "It helps ranchers with the squirrels and it brings peo ple into the valley."

The name "Squirrel Roundup" could conjure vi sions of rounding up the lit tle varmints on horseback, but it is actually a squirrel hunt.

"The first year we called it 'Squirrel Wars'," Maiden said. "But the 'wars' part of it created a bad impression of what it really is, so we came up with 'Squirrel Roundup'."

Squirrel shooters come to the valley from such far away places as Los Angeles, Washington state and Idaho.

"We've advertised the Roundup on the Internet and also in varmint maga zines," stated Maidens. "But word of mouth has been our best advertisement."

There haven't been very many objections to the shoot ing event by animal rights activists.

"There were some in the beginning," said Maidens. "But we bring up the fact that if a horse or cow steps in a squirrel hole and breaks a leg, the animal then has to be destroyed."

Aside from a minor in jury from a bullet that rico cheted during a shoot, there have been no injuries dur ing all nine years of the Roundup.

After a squirrel hunter has registered for the Roundup, they are given a list of 15 ranchers who want to have the squirrels hunted on their land. It is then up to the hunter to contact the rancher and arrange the time and place where he will hunt.

"Some of the hunters have been coming up here all nine years," said Maidens. "They've developed long lasting friendships with the ranchers."

When a squirrel is shot the tail must be preserved by the hunter for the tail count at the end of the day.

During the first year of the Roundup the hunters were required to bring in the carcasses of the shot squir rels. That left a large collec tion of squirrel bodies to be disposed of by taking them to the desert where they were consumed by wild animals.

Once the day of squirrel hunting is over the hunters will meet at the fairgrounds in Cedarville for the tail count at 4:00 p.m.

A $100 prize will be awarded to the hunter in each category that kills the most squirrels. Those cate gories include Adult, Women, Youth and Bow and Arrow.

The hunters will then be treated to a steak dinner and there will be a drawing for more prizes.

MPAT opens Iolanthe tonight with comedy, memo rable songs

Students from area schools were invited to sit in on the fi nal dress rehearsal for Modoc Performing Arts Theater's new musical Iolanthe, Wednesday morn ing.

Almost 380 students from Surprise Valley, Al turas, Likely and Canby schools were expected.

"We first opened the final dress rehearsal to the schools about five years ago," said Stage Director Sandy Boldon. "Last year, we filled nearly every seat in the Niles Theater for our per formance of Fiddler on the Roof, and this year, the re sponse was overwhelming."

Over the last two months, area teachers have been contact ing Boldon and other members of the production staff to find out details about the play that might help them in the class room. According to Boldon, Iolanthe is a great play to dis cuss in class.

"Gilbert and Sullivan plays always offer unique insights into British culture, and Iolanthe turns its spot light on Britain's House of Lords, a governing body whose seats are obtained by heredity, not by election," describes Boldon.

"Gilbert and Sullivan thought this was a pretty ridiculous way to run a gov ernment, even back in 1882, when the play was written. Yet, it wasn't until last year that the House of Lords was reformed and the Lords of Peers, had to go on the cam paign trail and get elected."

The reform of the House of Lords in Iolanthe is not brought about by law or pub lic outcry, however. It hap pens when a band of meddle some fairies try to help two lovers marry against the wishes of the lady's guardian, who hap pens to be the Lord Chancellor of Par liament. When the fairies intervene, the Chancellor accidentally insults the Queen of the Fairies, and the consequences are every politi cian's nightmare.

Sally Clark who portrays Queen of the Fairies and Re bekah Richert as Iolanthe "are worth the price of ad mission alone," says Boldon, "and having Kevin Pent back in a play is a real joy, with his deadly sense of humor that really comes out in this one. We also have three high school girls who are in their first play with us. They really light up the stage and make me remem ber what community theater is all about. This one is so much fun."

The cast includes Bill Tierney as the Lord Chan cellor, Sally Clark as Queen of the Fairies, Rebekah Richert as Iolanthe (Strephon's Mom), Heather Gregory as Phyllis, David Ash as Strephon, Kevin Pent as Sergeant Willis, Larry Shippen and Dee Green as two Lords who are also vy ing for Phyllis' affection, and Kerry Davis, Karen Hays and Eleanor Dorton as lead fairies. The chorus of fairies also includes Midge Dier, Mary Bauer, April Dorton, Caitlin Kraft, Marya Gates, Scherane Johnson and Jodie Jones. The House of Lords will be represented by Steve John son, Gary Bell, David Cohen, Landon Flournoy, Ryan Hagge, Raphael Erd man and Jeran Brown.

The production team is headed by Nancy North-Gates, Musical Director; Sandy Boldon, Stage Direc tor and Jodee Roberts, Assis tant Director.

Iolanthe opens tonight at 7:30 p.m. with music, com edy and surprises and will run through the weekend, March 24 - 26 and also March 31 - April 2 at A.C.T. Niles Theater, So. Main St., Alturas. Show times for the evening performances are 7:30 p.m. with Sunday mati nees starting at 3:00 p.m.

Tickets are available at Pizza & Pasta and at the door, $8.50 for adults; $6 for students and senior citizens.

Migratory Bird Festival comes to Modoc

The First Annual Modoc Migratory Bird Festival will be held May 13, 2000, with the theme "Birds in our Water shed".

This fun filled event, sponsored by the Modoc County Natural Resource Education Committee, will be held this year at the Modoc National Wildlife Refuge, just south east of Alturas, California.

The sponsors have an nounced that an art show, featuring local artists, will kick off the Festival on Fri day, May 12, at the Art Cen ter on Main Street, Alturas. Later that evening spectators can enjoy a night time wildlife walk with Birds, Bats and the Stars on the Refuge.

The following day, Satur day, promises to be full of fun and education for all ages, beginning at 9:00 a.m. and ending at 3:00 p.m. Some of the day's activities include a fun run, building bird and bat boxes, birding tours, native plant talks, hands-on workshops, booths, exhibits, and much more. A children's area will give youngsters the opportunity to read, color, and make craft items. Food and refresh ments will be available throughout the day.

So mark calendars and plan to be a part of this unique event to learn and enjoy the birds and other wildlife that are so impor tant to Modoc's way of life.

Spring concert at Modoc High

Music will fill the Gris wold Gym for the annual Spring Music Festival to feature about 300 students from fourth through twelfth grades in Modoc District Schools.

The public is invited to the free performance on Wednesday night, March 29 starting at 7:00 p.m. in the Modoc High School Griswold Gym on East Eighth Street, Alturas.

Music directors Ethan Walker and Karen Siegel will lead participating groups to include fifth and Sixth grade Bands, choirs from fourth, fifth and sev enth and eighth grade, Modoc Middle School and Modoc High School Choirs, Modoc Middle School A.M. and Modoc High Jazz Bands and MHS Concert Band.

The finale will feature MHS Concert and Jazz Bands and all student in strumentalists and vocalists leading the audience in "Sing for America."

Hear music from Beauty and the Beast to Ave Maria, with a wide repertoire planned for the evening per formance.

 

OBITUARIES:

Byron C. Caldwell

Byron C. Caldwell will be laid to rest at the Adin Cemetery on Friday, March 24 at 2:30 p.m., near where so many of his family members have been interred.

Mr. Caldwell, died at U.C. Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, Calif. on March 21, 2000.

He was born August 27, 1909 in Pittsburg, Calif. and moved to Williams in 1948. He owned and operated Caldwell's Flying Service from 1948 to 1989 when he retired. He held his pilots' license and owned his own plane. He served many years with the Williams Fire Department.

Preceded in death by his sons, Robert B. and Ronald J., he is survived by his wife of 64 years, Evelyn Caldwell of Williams, grandsons Ian and Brett Caldwell of Oregon and Ronald F. Caldwell of Texas and great-granddaughter Olivia Caldwell of Williams.

Visitation will be at the McNary-Moore Funeral Chapel in Corning tonight, March 23 from 7 to 9 p.m. Services will be held Friday, March 24 at 9 a.m. at the Williams Community Church.

Those wishing to, may contribute to the Williams Community Church.

LaVon Cecelia Coffin

Alturas resident, LaVon Cecelia Coffin passed away on the morning of Saturday, March 18, 2000 at her home, at the age of 70. A memorial service is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. Friday, March 24 at Faith Baptist Church in Alturas.

LaVon was born to Harold Campbell and Pauline Dinsmore Campbell in Toledo, Ohio on August 19, 1929, and was raised in both Ashtabula and Cleveland, Ohio. After graduating from high school, she enrolled in Bowling Green University where she majored in Art with a minor in English.

Upon graduation, LaVon enlisted in the U.S. Army working as an occupational therapist during the Korean War. It was during her service to her country that she met Joe Alden Coffin. They were married on December 22, 1955 in San Antonio, Texas, where both were stationed at Fort Sam Houston. LaVon continued to serve her country until June of 1956, when she left the service to begin her family. After adding three children to their family, the Coffin's left San Antonio for Southern California.

It was in California that LaVon began work in teaching. While raising a large family of five children, LaVon taught as a substitute while continuing her education toward a teaching credential in Special Education. She worked as a Special Education teacher for many years in Garden Grove, California. However, LaVon's real love was the mountains and when a teaching position came open at Modoc High School, the Coffin's pulled up stakes and moved to Alturas in January of 1977. She taught Special Education there for many years, developing a simple form for the Individualized Education Plan that was used throughout the District. Before her retirement in 1987, she also taught Art and English. However, retirement did not slow down her life.

LaVon was very active in community affairs. She was a staunch supporter of the Modoc County Free Library and spearheaded the campaign for the library tax that makes it possible for Modoc to enjoy the resources the library provides. Her efforts earned her the Citizen of the Year award. LaVon also served on the Alturas City Council and the Northern Cal-Neva Resource Conservation and Development Council. She was an active Toastmaster and has earned several Paul Harris Fellowships through the Alturas Rotary Club. She was also a member of the Alturas Garden Club where she enjoyed many years of gardening and fellowship. With all of this to keep her busy, she still found time for her true love . . . art.

LaVon was an active calligrapher and has created many illustrated manuscripts such as the Lord's Prayer and other scriptures. She became involved in the art of Ukrainian Eggs as well. She took great joy in making stationery, cards and book makers and spent most of her free time drawing and coloring with colored pencils.

LaVon is survived by her husband Joe Coffin of Alturas; daughters Cheryl Ford of Alturas, Kimberlee Aldana of Monterey, Stephanie Coffin of Salinas and son Jim Coffin of Oak Harbor, Washington. She was preceded in death by her son Robert. She also leaves nine grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Those wishing to honor the memory of LaVon Coffin may do so by sending contributions to the Alturas Garden Club or the Rotary Foundation.

 

Donald Ray Gillespie

Services for Donald Ray Gillespie, 66, a resident of Modoc County, will be held 2:00 p.m. Friday, March 24, 2000 at Kerr Mortuary Chapel in Alturas. Ken Ward and Don Young will conduct the services with interment to follow at the Alturas Cemetery.

Don Gillespie passed away at his home in Alturas, Calif. on March 19, 2000, following a long battle with several health problems.

Don was born on November 13, 1933, in Bell, Calif. to Lawrence and Dorothea Gillespie and graduated from Huntington Park High School, Huntington Park, Calif.

He married Patricia Ann Lawver on December 2, 1950 in Kingman, Arizona. They made their home in Southern California where he worked as a millwright in furniture manufacturing for many years. During this time, Don was an Elks Greeter for the Huntington Park Elks Lodge and traveled throughout Southern California as a member of this group.

In 1969 the Gillespies purchased the Rancho Steak House and moved to Alturas. Many new and lasting friendships were created in their new Modoc home. A reputation as one of the "best cooks" around remained a source of personal pride for Don throughout the rest of his life. Among his specialities was the ability to make "good soup."

After the sale of the restaurant in 1976, Don returned to Southern California where he opened a new furniture business designing and showing bedroom furnishings. According to family members, he designed and manufactured the first distressed maple waterbed furniture. With his health failing, he re turned to Modoc in 1991, making his home near family and friends in Canby.

Don looked forward to fishing and camping and spent many happy days in pursuit of "catching the Big One." An other favorite past time was his gardening and auto racing. He was delighted when he won many blue ribbons at the Modoc District Fair. In 1996, his love of people and cooking motivated the opening of "Don's Kitchen" and "Crafters" on Main Street in Alturas. Again the friends and compliments filled his day with pride and joy. "Sadly in 1998, the store closed due to his continued health problems," recall family members. "His time here with us was extended with the help and support of many compassionate and caring medical staff and friends. Don surely felt he had very special care from all."

He was preceded in death by his parents.

He is survived by his wife Patricia of Alturas; a brother Clifford and wife Sandra Gillespie of Fountain Valley, Ca..; four daughters, Cynthia and husband Chuck Lauer of Susanville, Ca.; Donna and husband Ron Bellamy of Alturas; Bonnie and husband Jimmy Sherer of Canby; Chris tine and husband Kenneth Ward of Alturas. Stepchildren Sean and wife Jackie Saville of Erie, Colo.; Cecilia and husband Sean McKee of Anaheim; adopted son James and wife Leo Hogan of San Clemente. He is also survived by 14 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Visitation will be from 2 p.m. today, March 23 at Kerr Mortuary in Alturas.

 

Charles Wistos

Alturas native Charles Wistos passed away Tuesday, March 21, 2000 at the Skilled Nursing Facility in Alturas, Calif. Visitation will be Saturday, March 25 at 10 a.m. at Sacred Heart, followed by a Rosary at 10:30 a.m. and Mass of Christian Burial at 11 am. Committal will follow at the Alturas Cemetery.

Mr. Wistos was born in Alturas, Calif. on May 6, 1906 to John and Elizabeth Wistos.

Mr. Wistos' wife Dorothy of Alturas survives, as do many family members who will be named in a complete obituary to be published next week.

Contributions in his memory may be made to the Modoc Medical Center Skilled Nursing Facility, McDowell St., Alturas, CA. 96101.

 

Record news for March 30, 2000

 

• Conservation efforts succeed in protecting trout
• Railroad school moved during the night
• Information meeting for Forest Service Roads
• MJUSD to survey kids on health, habits
• Modoc Recreation Park nearing reality
• Job Fair coming soon

Conservation efforts succeed in protecting redband trout

An effort that could be used as a model for future wildlife conservation has apparently succeeded in preventing the listing of the Goose Lake redband trout as an endangered species.

The news is not only good for the conser va tionists and the trout, it also comes as a wel come announcement for ranchers in the northern part of Modoc County and southern Lake County Oregon who were instrumental in the project.

Modoc Land Use Committee's Sean Curtis said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's announcement that the fish will not be listed as an endangered species is considered a major success in land use management.

"This is historic and the results are what we wanted from the conservation efforts," said Curtis. "A lot of work went into this pro ject and we're now seeing positive results."

The future of the Goose Lake Redband Trout was brought into question with the se vere drought of 1992 when Goose Lake pretty much dried up. A population of the lake's red band trout was lost, but there were still popu la tions of smaller redband trout in the small tributaries to the lake. Goose Lake drying up during severe drought years is not unusual, according to the U.S. Wildlife Service. The FWS was petitioned by environmental groups to have the trout listed as endangered.

The possibility of that endangered species listing and its resulting land use restrictions brought together a group of local ranchers, led by Modoc County cattleman Herb Jasper, in an effort to protect both their livestock opera tions and the fish. That group was called the Goose Lake Fishes Working Group, which included ranchers, wildlife agencies and others who aimed their efforts at overall habitat improvement and changes in cattle grazing management.

Jasper was credited with spearheading the effort to get the local private land owners to allow the agencies onto their lands to do as sessments and to become a part of the im provement process.

In 1994, the working group signed a Memorandum of Understanding to protect and reestablish native fishes in the Goose Lake Basin in California and Oregon. And in May, 1995 the Goose Lake Fishes Conservation Strategy, which was designed to conserve all native fishes in the lake by reducing threats, stabilizing fish population and maintaining the ecosystems, came into play.

Much of that effort was aimed at manag ing cattle grazing along stream banks by fencing the cattle out and by rotating grazing from pasture to pasture. In addition, willows were planted and other streambank protec tion measures were taken in the mountains.

"Based on the conscientious efforts of the GLFWG, threats to the redband in the Goose Lake basin are being addressed," the FWS states. "Recent projects have substantially benefited redband trout but more resources and time will be needed to complete all of the projects identified."

In 1997, the Oregon Natural Desert Association, Oregon Trout, the Native Fish Society and the Oregon Council of Trout Unlimited originally petitioned the FWS to list the Great Basin redband trout as threat ened or endangered and provided substantial information that the listing might be war ranted.

That petition primarily cited the destruc tion, modification or limitations of the habi tat for the trout. The threats cited came mainly from habitat destruction by livestock graz ing, irrigation, removal of water from streams, fragmentation of streams, stream channelization and timber harvest.

The decision not to list the fish as endan gered was prompted by the efforts that have been undertaken to protect those fish and im prove habitat. In addition to the conservation efforts, several wet weather years in succes sion have helped the habitat and fish recover.

According to the FWS, there has been a substantial improvement in fish numbers. "The increase in numbers and distribution of these fish and the ongoing conservation actions are reason enough not to list the species, but they do not mean that the FWS is no longer concerned about redband trout," said Antonio Bentivoglio, a fisheries biolo gist for the Oregon State Office. "Habitat and redband trout populations in places where conservation and restoration actions aren't happening yet may be less resilient to future impacts or changing conditions. We can still do lots of work with landowners and agencies to improve more habitat."

The redband trout is native to southeastern Oregon's Great Basin and small parts of California and Nevada. It is identified by a distinctive red stripe down its side and is a relative of the rainbow trout.

One of the key elements found in the re cent studies of the redband trout is their adaptability to short periods of warmer water that would normally kill other rainbow trout. The trout will still grow better, spawn and be healthier in colder water.

While the decision not to list the fish is good news for the livestock producers, the en vironmental groups are not so enamored with it. They say the redband is extinct over 72 percent of its normal range with strong populations remaining in only 10 percent.

Staff ecologist Joy Belsky of the Oregon Natural Desert Association stated: "We're relieved to find out that the trout populations are doing better than expected and not head ing toward extinction. It is unfortunate that it takes an ESA petition and a lawsuit to force federal and state agencies to undertake a comprehensive assessment of the populations of this once wide-spread species."

She points out that Great Basin redband populations have been disturbed and their habitat destroyed by a century of livestock grazing, which has denuded stream banks, reduced water quality, and altered stream flow patterns by damming and dewatering streams for irrigation and stock ponds and by logging in stream headwaters.

"All the adverse habitat conditions affect ing these fish that were presented in the peti tion are still valid and will likely worsen in the future," said Jim Myron, director of Oregon Trout.

The tributaries to Goose Lake, specifically Lassen Creek and Davis Creek have been off limits to fishing for several years and there appears to be some relief in sight for fisher men and the redband trout. Lassen and Willow Creeks will be open from the Saturday before Memorial Day through November 15 to a catch and release only, bar bless hooks and artificial lures. Davis Creek is the same as Lassen and Willow this year for redband, except there is a five-fish limit for brown trout out of that creek.

According to Belsky, the recent survey on the fish found most were in the headwaters of streams. She said the valley bottom segments of the streams have been altered by agricul ture activities so that they no longer contain the four to five pound redband that once helped make up a world-class fishery.

"We may not be losing the fish, but we have lost quality of life and commercial op portunities when we lose the large fish that were abundant in this area," she said.

The Goose Lake Working Group and the federal and state wildlife agencies are moni toring the situation and are continuing to stress habitat improvement. One of the main concerns of the FWS is when another drought year or series of dry years occurs.

Railroad school spirited away during the night

The Alturas Railroad School, under the direction of Dave Rangel and Suzanne Berdall, was spirited away during the night March 25, following a revelation that Rangel was al legedly responsible for a potentially libelous postcard sent during the March 7 local election.

The City of Alturas, suspicious of Rangel's activities fol lowing the election, sent some of the postcards to a handwrit ing expert in Redding. That expert, Larry C. Liebscher, said he identified the writing positively as Rangel's late last week and would testify in court to that finding. The post cards attacked councilman Kerry Merwin and County Supervisor Joe Colt, both of whom where unseated in the March election.

On Tuesday, Rangel denied any connection or involve ment in the postcard. He called the city's hiring of the hand writing analyst a waste of time and money since there is nothing criminal contained in the postcard. He said the postcard, regardless of who sent it, was an expression of opinion covered under freedom of speech.

"I could provide a handwriting expert and verify the post cards were from Bill Clinton," Rangel countered. "I deny I had anything to do with the postcard."

The postcard had been mailed from Marysville and falsely accused Merwin of taking bribes from Bethel's Propane to keep natural gas out of the city and for supporting an AIDS clinic in Alturas. It also accused Colt of supporting a prison project near Alturas. There was absolutely no truth in any of the accusations.

Rangel said the railroad school was moved because "the city forced us out" by locking the railroad museum. The city counters that while the locks were changed at the museum to protect city property, Rangel and the school were told they could have access whenever they requested.

City Councilmen Jack Ochs and George Andreasen, who have been instrumental in the Alturas Wrymoo Railroad Museum and the Railroad School fully supported the hand writing analysis to put the issue to rest.

"We were confident in our suspicions but we needed proof to move forward," Andreasen said. "There are some other things going on as well and right now our goals are to protect the interests of the city. There is more to this than just the postcard."

The Alturas City Council will be holding a work session Monday, 1 p.m. at City Hall to discuss the future of the rail road projects and the public is invited to comment. Currently, the city is looking into the museum operating contracts and inventory lists.

Andreasen stressed that the railroad school was not locked out of the museum for its classes. "That's just a smoke screen and a lot of garbage by Rangel to divert atten tion from the real prob lem," said Andreasen. "The city will be working to move forward with the railroad museum and with the railroad school, with out Rangel's involvement."

The Railroad School graduated its first class this last week, and according to Andreasen, the three graduates were inter viewing for jobs with railroads in central Oregon.

It was assumed that Rangel and Berdall were planning to move the school and open it in another city, but Andreasen said there are several issues in the works that need clear ing up before the school re-opens. He said he would like to see the school re-opened in Alturas, without Rangel or Berdall's in volvement.

Tuesday, Rangel said the railroad school and museum is a dead project at this point. He said one of the necessary components of the school was the hands-on experience stu dents could obtain at the museum. Rangel said he doesn't see either the museum or school re-opening in the Alturas area.

According to Andreasen, the city is cur rently assessing both the school and railroad museum project and is not about to let either project die without a fight.

"There has been an awful lot of good work done on the museum and the school, and most of it by local volunteers," said Andreasen. "We believe it is still a good project, we just need to get things lined out. The city has been insulted by Rangel's actions, but we haven't really lost anything. The volunteers are very disappointed and disheartened, but we be lieve the concept for the school and the mu seum is still ex cellent."

While still denying any involvement in the postcard, Rangel set an analogy of the city's action. He said it would be like the Rotary Club sending out something objec tionable to the city and the city locking them out of their hall. Andreasen said the issue goes well beyond just objection able.

"I can't figure out the connection with the postcard," Rangel said. "We're the losers in this. We understand there are no guarantees in anything. It's tough, I spent a lot of money and effort marketing the school."

He further said that the postcard is "not the central issue" in this situation, he said it was a smoke screen and that there are some state and federal issues that may come up and come back to bite the city.

Andreasen said there may, in fact, be some federal and state issues popping up, but feels that Rangel is on the hot seat, not the City of Alturas. "He's right, the postcard is not the end of this, it's probably more the tip of the iceberg," said Andreasen. "We don't be lieve the city has anything to hide."

On March 22, the city council held a spe cial meeting and rescinded a motion of January 25 which authorized the transfer of Locomotive 4031 from the City of Alturas to Wrymoo. The locomotive will remain in the hands of the city. At this point activity at the Railroad Museum has come to a halt as the city goes through contracts and inventory lists to determine final disposition and the future of the project.

In addition, the council confirmed by vote that Wrymoo, Berdall and Rangel have no authority to represent the City of Alturas in any property acquisition or disposition of city property. The council expressed concern over equipment and cars at the Railroad Museum in particular.

Paul Dolby, who owns the building where the Railroad School was housed, said that in dividuals came in last Saturday night about 8 p.m. and removed most of the equip ment and supplies from the school rooms. He said no one from the Railroad School had told him they were moving. There was no activity at the school Monday morning and only scat tered equipment remained.

Rangel said he intends to settle whatever rent remains on the Dolby building.

Information meeting on Forest Service road management policy

A public meeting is scheduled to provide infor mation and an opportunity to comment on the Forest's Service's proposed road management policy.

This policy is designed to help the agency determine how best to manage the more than 380,000 miles of roads in the national forest roads system.

The Modoc National For est has scheduled a public meeting Wednesday, April 5, 6:30 p.m., City Hall, Al turas, to provide information about the proposed road management policy, and to explain how the policy is re lated to President Clinton's roadless initiative, an nounced in October 1999. An update on the roadless plan ning process will also be given.

Wayne Chandler, Acting Forest Supervisor says the proposed road management policy will affect the approx imately 3,000 miles of exist ing roads on the Modoc Na tional Forest. The policy would shift the emphasis from building new roads to maintenance and recon struction of existing roads. Under the proposed policy, each national forest would work with the public to iden tify heavily-used roads that require maintenance or up grade, and roads that are unused or environmentally damaging that can be de commissioned or converted to other uses.

Public comments on the proposed road management policy must be received by May 2, 2000. Comments should be addressed to CAET-USFS, Attn: Roads Project, P.O. Box 2230, Salt Lake City, UT 84122. Forest Service will present the pro gram to local groups. Con tact Robert Haggard, 233-8840 or Nancy Gardner 233-8713.

Public Information Meet ing, City Hall, 200 West North, Wednesday April 5, 2000 at 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Modoc Recreation Park; becoming a reality

By Nora Russell

The planned recreation park in Alturas that has been tentatively known as the "Skateboard Park" now has the official name of Modoc Recreation Park (MRP).

The new name and the creation of an official logo are just two of the steps al ready taken out of many that will lead to a state-of-the-art recreation facility in Al turas.

The recreation park will be lo cated on the north side of 4th Street, east of the Boy Scout Hall. The City of Alturas was gracious in donating the land.

A wide variety of activi ties will be available in the fence enclosed park includ ing; skateboarding ramps, in-line skating, free style biking, BMX biking and an area designated for free skating.

The park will be designed with the beginner, interme diate and advanced skater or boarder in mind. A fenced toddler playground area makes the park a recreational opportunity for the entire family.

There will be an elevated spectator area because events such as workshops, competi tions and demonstrations are planned.

Grants like the Gang Risk Intervention Grant and Waste Tire Recycling Grant are being sought to help fund the park.

To date a grant from the National Recreation and Park Asso ciation has been awarded to MRP for its BMX facility. It will provide a starting gate valued at $1,500, A Rapid gate valued at $850, a Sure Start system valued at $750, A Moto maker software package valued at $150 and an opera tor and equipment to build the track for a period of five days valued at $2,000.

Another source of funding for the park will come from fundraising projects put on by the MRP Committee, made up of 12 middle school and high school students along with adult sponsor, Matt Barnreitter.

A St. Patrick's Day dinner and silent auction was hosted by the committee on March 17.

"The students did every thing for the fundraiser themselves," Barnreitter said. "They served dinner, bussed tables and ran the auction."

Future fundraising ideas that the committee has are a Bike-a-thon and a Skate-a-thon and selling t-shirts bearing the offi cial Modoc Recreation Park logo.

The t-shirts will be available to the public after April 6. They will be white with a black and blue logo. For price and ordering in formation call Barnreitter at 233-2828.

The MRP Committee will go to Redding the first weekend of April to meet with the architects de signing the BMX track.

"The kids are very in volved in the entire design of the park," Barnreitter said. "They will get to meet with the architect and also even tually meet with Tony Dwyer."

Dwyer has ridden BMX bikes as a pro fessional and now travels across the country consult ing and building skate parks.

While in Redding the committee will also visit a Board Mart store so that they can learn how a skate supply store is run. The committee is exploring the possibility of having a collection of skate supplies that could be checked out and used by visi tors of the recreation park.

Job Fair coming soon

The Regional Job Fair will move into its second year on April 12 and promises to be an even big ger event this year, say or ganizers.

The Griswold Gym at Modoc High will accommo date youths and adults be tween 1:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 12 who will have the opportu nity to interact with repre sentatives at more than 70 booths--asking questions and examining visual ma terials and tools of the trade.

Sponsored by a collabora tion of public agencies, and made possible by the efforts of dozens of local businesses and organizations, the Job Fair is designed to show participants what kinds of jobs are available in com munities and what kinds of skills are necessary to suc ceed in today's workforce. Individuals will also learn where they can obtain the ed ucation, training and voca tional skills they need to ac complish their career goals.

"Anyone who is looking for work, considering changing careers or contin uing their education, should plan on attending the event. It will be a prime opportunity to meet with local employers, several of who will be accept ing applications," says VeeAnn Ambers, Program Manager, Alliance for Workforce Development, Inc.

Business and community organizations will staff over half of the booths. Some of the vocations they will be repre senting include auto me chanics, construction, draft ing, computers, forestry, law enforcement, medical and health care, food service, ranching, communications, commerce, retail and ser vice businesses.

Several public agencies like the Modoc Public Health Department, Modoc Child care Council, Head Start, TEACH, Inc., Modoc Crisis Center, California Employ ment Development Depart ment and the Alliance for Workforce Development, Inc. will also be on hand to share information.

Local and regional col leges, universities and training institutions will staff almost 20 booths. Re cruiters with the United States Air Force, Coast Guard, Navy, Army and Marines will be present.

Several outdoor hands-on exhibits will revolve around ambulance, fire truck, trac tor and tractor-trailer, bass fishing, horseshoeing and veterinary demonstrations. Interested participants will have a chance to try their hand at removing dents from a car compliments of No Shortcuts Auto Body.

"The Regional Job Fair has something for every one," offers Ambers. "It is a valuable opportunity for job seekers of all ages to interact one-on-one with employers and presenters. Participants will learn what employers expect from employees, how businesses and organiza tions operate, what specific jobs entail, what career op tions are available, and per haps most importantly, what it takes, realistically, to suc ceed."

Employers and busi nesses who would like to share career information or accept job applications at the Regional Job Fair should contact VeeAnn Ambers at New Directions, 233-7703 or Julie Miller at 233-3111 by April 5.

The Regional Job Fair is a collaborative effort of the Alliance for Workforce De velopment, Inc., Modoc Joint Unified School District, Modoc County Office of Edu cation, California Employ ment Development Depart ment, School to Work, Al turas Rotary Club and Al turas Sunrise Rotary Club. For more information, call New Directions at (530) 233-7703.

 

OBITURARIES:

 

Mary K.Woodward Paulson

Alturas native Mary Kathleen Woodward Paulson, known as "Kay" to her friends and family, passed away March 18, 2000 in Petaluma, Calif. from Alzheimer's dis ease. She was 81.

Born in Alturas, Calif. on November 10, 1918, she was one of two children born to Philip and Lula Woodward. She attended Alturas Ele mentary School and gradu ated with the class of 1936 from Modoc Union High School in Alturas. She con tinued her education study ing two years at San Fran cisco School of Fine Arts.

Mrs. Paulson was very artistic and "always very gener ous in giving her knitting, weaving, embroi dery and cook ing," recalls her brother Karol of Alturas.

She worked on a loom at home and was also very adept at making pine needle baskets, several of which were avail able at the Modoc County Museum over the years.

In May of 1948, she married Richard Paulson in Reno, Nev. They lived in Alturas and Tulelake where they reared their three children. Mrs. Paulson was an accomplished pi anist and played the organ at churches in both Tulelake and Alturas, and gave piano lessons for many years.

She became interested in wild flowers of Modoc County and had over 500 colored slides including identifying some rare wild flowers species she had discovered in Modoc. She was called on and invited to give numerous programs show ing her slides. She could give the botanical names as well as the common names of all the flowers, without referring to notes. Traveling through the county searching for different wild flowers was a favorite pastime, and she was always elated to find the first buttercup in the Spring. Mrs. Paulson served as president of the Modoc County Historical Society and as president of the Alturas Garden Club. She was a member of the Federated Church in Alturas.

She leaves to mourn her passing, Richard Paulson of Yountville, her husband of 51 years; her children Linda Reck of Petaluma; Bill Bruno of Visalia and Elizabeth Bamford of Vancouver, B.C.; brother Karol Woodward and wife Mary of Alturas; eight grandchildren and numerous friends.

Memorial services will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial donations be made to an Alzheimer's organization or the charity of the donor's choice. The Alzheimer's Association address is 919 North Michigan Ave., Suite 1100, Chicago, Illinois 60611.

Charles Wistos

Charles Wistos, 90, passed away in Alturas, Calif. March 21, 2000.

He was one of four sons born to John and Elizabeth Wistos who had moved from San Francisco to Alturas, just after the big San Francisco earthquake. Elizabeth returned to her sister's home in San Francisco, Calif. to await the arrival of Charles' birth on May 6, 1909, before returning to her Alturas home where Charles was reared. He finished the eighth grade in Modoc County, where his father was a well-known and well thought of tailor who operated a tailor business in Alturas.

Through the years that followed, Charles worked for the U.S. Forest Service on the Modoc National Forest in road construction and many areas. But, his first love was always in ranching.

He and Dorothy Madeline Macdonald were married in Alturas, Calif. on October 28, 1933 and shared 65 years of marriage and reared two sons and two daughters.

They lived for a short time in a cabin near Perez, while the family was young, while Charles worked with a road construction company building the highway between Al turas and Tulelake. He later went into ranching and oper ated a ranch in Standish, Calif. for a little over 20 years. He traded the ranch for the Bazinette Hotel, complete with bar and restaurant, in Angels Camp which they owned and op erated for 20 years until they sold the hotel and semi-retired. Mr. Wistos also served as a Calaveras County Supervisor for six years.

The Wistos' moved to Chester for a few years, before re turning to Alturas about 10 years ago. Mr. Wistos loved to hunt and fish and was able to do just that when he returned to Modoc County.

He is survived by his wife Dorothy of Alturas; sons George Wistos and wife Linda of Alturas; Ed Wistos and wife Lynn of Chester; daughter Claudia Schena and hus band Frank of Angels Camp and Charla Wistos of Sacra mento; his brother Steve Wistos and wife Ila of Alturas; nine grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

He was preceded in death by his brother John and wife Dorothy Wistos; brother Joe and wife Jeneva Wistos and his parents John and Elizabeth Wistos.

Visitation was Saturday, March 25 at 10 a.m. at Sa cred Heart Catholic Church in Alturas, followed by a Rosary at 10:30 a.m. and Mass of Christian Burial at 11 a.m. Commit tal followed at the Al turas Cemetery.

Contributions in Mr. Wistos' memory may be made to the Modoc Medical Center Skilled Nursing Facility, McDowell St., Alturas, CA. 96101.

 

April, 2000

 

 

Record news for April 6, 2000

 

• City mulls future of Railroad museum
• US Senate deals with forest receipts
• Search for new MJU super going well
• SAT9 test scores chart MJU student progress
• MTA needs to know where to go with bus
• Art show features students' art
• City mulls future of railroad museum

The City of Alturas met in a work session Monday to discuss the future of the Alturas Railroad Museum and the railroad school and will have the subject on next Tuesday's council meeting agenda for action.

The probable action the council is leaning toward will be to sever its contractual relationships with Wrymoo, the railroad historical society which helped start the project. The city intends to continue the operation of the museum, under a new organization. That organization will certainly include volunteers who have been involved from the beginning of the project.

The railroad museum is now at a standstill and the railroad school was moved out of Alturas last week after a handwriting expert identified David Rangel, the school's deputy director, as the sender of a March 3 postcard falsely attacking then councilman Kerry Merwin and Supervisor Joe Colt. Both men were defeated in the March 7 election.

While that postcard created some question as to the overall city-Wrymoo relationship, subsequent investigation has revealed there may be deeper problems, according to City Attorney Fritz Barclay.

Barclay said the city is currently tracking and detailing inventory and acquisition of equipment by Wrymoo and more specifically Rangel. The city's concern is whether Rangel was representing himself or the city when equipment was acquired from government surplus.

Barclay said the city has a handle on the inventory, which includes locomotives and rail cars, but has run across some irregularities in some instances. For instance, some equipment acquired by the city is not at the local railroad museum, but its location is known.

Rangel has denied having anything to do with the postcard. Sending the postcard is not a criminal act and no charges are pending. He said the decision to close the railroad school was made because the city locked the school out of the museum, which was used for hands-on instruction. The city calls that claim ludicrous, saying that Rangel and school officials were specifically told they had access to the museum at any time. The locks had been changed to protect city property, but city officials were available to open the gates for the railroad school.

City officials believe the overall railroad project is viable and vow to continue the operation.

US Senate deals with Forest receipts

A U.S. Senate Bill that would "guarantee" a good level of funding from national forests for county schools and roads is currently in the working stages and could be brought to vote in the next couple of weeks.

According to Modoc County Superintendent of Schools Carol Harbaugh, who has been instrumental in the drive to maintain Forest Receipts for rural areas, there is hope the bill will pass the Senate. It does face an uncertain future once it reaches President's Clinton's desk. The Administration supports a different remedy to the funding issue.

Historically, 25 percent of National Forest receipts have been returned to the counties of origin and those funds have been split evenly between the county schools and road departments. By far, the biggest chunk of those receipts came from timber harvests.

With the near death of the timber industry in this area, the level of those receipts have been going down. They have, however, been kept artificially high for the past few years thanks to a "spotted owl" designation by the federal government. That designation allowed Modoc to receive averages over certain years and the payments were not massed up actual timber receipts. Had the payments been based upon actual timber harvest, the county would have received very little.

Harbaugh said the current Senate Bill (1608) would provide a level of funding somewhere near the peak timber harvest years of the 1980s. She suspects Modoc County's annual share would be between $2 and $3 million. The county's last payment totaled $1.9 million. If not for the spotted owl designation, it would have been just a fraction of that amount.

An organization called the National Forests Counties and Schools Coalition has been working on the forest funding issue and is lobbying for Senate Bill 1608 primarily as a way to stabilize funding levels and preserve the relationship between the national forest and local government.

While the coalition is willing to admit it is not tying actual forest receipts to timber harvests any longer, it says the government still needs to help fund local roads and schools because of the federal government's dominance of land ownership.

Modoc County property, for instance, is more than 70 percent federally owned and that land is not subject to property tax.

Harbaugh said the forest systems still need to follow the 1908 Congressional mindset that helped offset federal land ownership by sharing in forest receipts. "We're not getting any property tax funding from the federal lands," said Harbaugh. "If those lands were not tied up in federal ownership, they could be developed and generate local revenue."

The impact of dipping forest receipts affects rural counties more than their metropolitan cousins and if legislation isn't passed that will take over once the spotted owl reprieve is finished, counties stand to lose millions of dollars. Congress is now wrestling with where those funds will come from if the forests are not generating income from timber harvest.

Search for MJU new super going well

The search for a new Modoc Joint Unified School District Superintendent is going well and should be wrapped up by early May, according to interim superintendent Don Demsher.

Demsher said the district sent out 45 packets to interested individuals and from those received 14 applications, which he characterizes as a "strong field" of candidates.

The applications are being screened today by a committee made up of board members, staff and members of the public. That committee will recommend from five to seven people for interviews.

Demsher said interviews will take place April 15 and a recommendation will be made for hire after the site visitations of those top candidates. He expects an offer to be made in early May and hopes a new superintendent will be on board this spring. Demsher intends to spend some time assisting the new superintendent with the transition.

Demsher took over the district last year when former Superintendent Craig Drennan was charged and then convicted of eavesdropping on then High School Principal Dewey "Duke" Pasquini. Drennan had ordered a hidden video camera placed in Pasquini's office.

SAT9 test scores chart MJU student progress

S.T.A.R. (State Testing And Reporting) is a two-year-old system in which the Stanford Achievement Test (SAT9) scores of students in grades two to eleven are evaluated and compared on a statewide level.

Students in the Modoc School District will be given the SAT9 test during the May 1 to May 12 window of time provided. There will be two days available to take make-up tests after May 12 for those students absent during the original testing days.

"Previous to the S.T.A.R. System school districts had four different tests that they could choose from to evaluate student's progress," said Jim McLaughlin, Dean of Students at Modoc High School.

Concerns over the quality of education that students were receiving in California prompted the governor and education officials to mandate a standardized test so that students could be evaluated statewide as well as at the district level.

"This test is not the SAT test that is required for college entrance," McLaughlin said. "This is a basic skills test that evaluates student progress."

"It is the best way to really tell how well we're doing," McLaughlin added. "It will help us chart each class as it progresses over the next five years."

When the Academic Performance Index (API) Report was released in January it showed Modoc High School with an API score of 620 and Modoc Middle School received 610 out of the possible 800.

"There were some circumstances with last years test that we hope to rectify," McLaughlin explained. "The SAT9 involves five and-a-half hours of testing and last year the students took the entire test in one day. Under those conditions students get tired and restless and don't do as well as they can."

This year the SAT9 will be given in smaller segments over a period of days so it will not seem overwhelming to students.

Only 86 percent of Modoc High students took the test last year because no make-up tests were given to students not present when the test was given.

"This year we want to be sure that all the students take this test," McLaughlin said. "That is the only way to get a truly accurate picture of student and class progress."

The state of California is offering incentives to schools and students for growth in academic performance.

"What those incentives will be hasn't been firmed up yet," McLaughlin explained. "But an exciting one for students is if their test score is in the top 10% statewide or in the top 5% schoolwide, they will receive a $1,000 scholarship."

MTA needs to know where to go with bus

The Modoc Transportation Agency (MTA) wants to know where you need to go.

The MTA hopes to provide transit services to meet your reasonable transportation needs. Please take a few minutes to answer the survey inserted in the edition of the Modoc Record. Return the completed form to "Transit Needs" 202 West 4th Street, Alturas, CA 96101, or hand to Sage Stage driver. Respondents giving their name and address will receive a "Free Ride".

Every year the Modoc County Local Transportation Commission must identify transit needs in Modoc County. Then, figure out which needs to meet with the funding received. The Commission sends letters to individuals requesting input. Also, the Commission publishes notices in newspapers, and holds public meetings. Sadly, only a few folks usually respond. This year, the Commission is really reaching out to the community, in hopes of learning where people need to go.

Because the Commission and MTA Board are made up of the same city and county representatives, three from each, they're combining tasks to address unmet transit needs and make Sage Stage service changes. The hope is to get more public comments, and hopefully to encourage more people to use public transit. In rural areas, fare collections must equal ten percent (10%) of operating costs to be able to use available funding. You see, state laws provide 90% of public transit costs through the Transportation Development Act. The Act earmarks 1/4% retail sales tax and smaller portion of gasoline and diesel taxes to provide public transit. These taxes are proportionate to population and spending; they have collected in Modoc County and returned to Modoc County for public transportation.

It's no secret that ridership is very, very low on local fixed-route service. So, the MTA Board will consider eliminating some routes. Targeted for cuts are the City Loop (Tuesday & Friday) and Alturas-Davis Creek (Thursdays). And, unless riders increase, the MTA Board may need to eliminate some Alturas-Cedarville service too. In place of these routes, Sage Stage hopes to offer public Dial-a-Ride. What's "Dial-a-Ride:? It's transportation-for-fare taking passengers where they want to go during certain days and times. Before any changes, the Commission and MTA Board need your input! Tell them what you think are reasonable guidelines to start Dial-a-Ride. More important, tell them exactly what you need and will use!

Public Dial-a-Ride typically provides door-to-door transportation between home (trip origin) and some destination. Routes change according to requests for service. Reservations are required because Dial-a-Ride is designed to meet specific transportation demands. So, pick up and drop off times sometimes vary. To begin, the MTA Board is considering offering Dial-a-Ride within 10-miles radius of Alturas. What service area do you think is reasonable to meet your needs? Unless more funding comes in, the MTA Board is limited to operating Dial-a-Ride about 20 hours per week. What days and hours are best for you? What fare do you think is reasonable? How long are you willing to wait (past reservation time) for pick up, and how long are you're willing to ride while other passengers are picked up or dropped off? The only way to get what you want is to let these agencies hear from you. Please fill out the survey, write a note, or tell Commissioners and MTA Board Members what you and the community need.

The Commission and MTA Board consist of three members and an alternate each appointed by the County Board of Supervisors and City Council. County members include Chairman, Supervisor Ron McIntyre; Vice Chairman, Supervisor Joe Colt, citizen Billy Madison representing the County at Large; and Alternate, Supervisor Terry Williams. The City of Alturas recently appointed Mayor Dick Steyer and citizen Kerry Merwin representing City at Large. Continuing, as City representatives are Councilman George Andreasen and Alternate, Police Chief Larry Pickett. The Commission meets on the third Tuesday of most months in the Coun cil Chambers at City Hall from 6:00 p.m. Staff to both agencies is Pam Couch, Transportation Manager and Niki Witherspoon, Transportation Assistant.

April show to feature local students' art

The work of more than 100 local students will be featured by the Art Center in April. An open house kicks off the show Wednesday, April 12 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. The Art Center is located at 317 So. Main St., Alturas, across from the Niles Hotel.

The day of the week and the date are a departure from the Center's usual show on the first Friday of each month. Everyone is invited to the opening of this popular annual student art event. Refreshments will be served.

High school and middle school students from Modoc County and Surprise Valley Joint Unified School Districts will display work in many mediums. Some of the work will be for sale. All of it will be entered in a juried show.

Ribbons will be awarded in several categories, and the winners of those categories will compete for Best of Show.

Paintings in oil, oil pastel, acrylic and watercolor will be entered. Drawings will include works in pen and ink, pencil and colored pencil. Sculpture and ceramics will also be represented.

A special feature of the April 12 opening will be a drawing for a wooden semi-truck model created by the late Les Donaldson, a well-known Alturas wood artisan and painter.

Tickets are limited to 50 and may be purchased for $5 each at the Center, where the truck is on display. Proceeds from the drawing will benefit the Art Center's art scholarship fund.

The annual student art show is sponsored by the Modoc Joint Unified School District, represented by Ann Wise and the Surprise Valley Joint School District, represented by Pete Petford. Co-sponsoring the event are the Modoc County Arts Council, represented by Ken Franklin and the Art Center.

 

Sports

 

Modoc spring sports in full swing

The Modoc High School sports calendar weekend with the baseball and softball teams playing doubleheaders in Burney, the track team in Redding, and the golf squad hosting their own three-team meet.

There's more action again in the coming week. The baseball and softball teams will be hosting Fall River tomorrow afternoon. Double-headers in both sports begin at 2:00 p.m. The track team will attend the Lakeview Invitational on Saturday and the golf team will play Lassen High in Susanville on Tuesday, April 11.

The Braves got key runs in the late innings in both ends of a double-header at Burney. Modoc swept the Raiders to up their record to 8-1 overall and 3-1 in the Shasta-Cascade League, where every team has at least one loss so far.

Modoc manager Brad Server pointed out that while Burney fielded a talented squad that will surely play a spoiler role in the SCL, "We had a little more depth. That's why we won. We had more to work with up and down the order."

Game one was a pitching duel between Modoc's Josh Conner and Burney's Robert Pearson. Server called it Conner's "best game in two years." The senior lefty went the distance on the hill while striking out six and al lowing only one earned run on three hits.

The Braves opened the scoring in the fourth inning when Glen Christensen singled, stole second and came home on a Brett Spicer RBI.

The Raiders then took the lead with two runs in the bottom of the inning, but Modoc came back to tie it in the top of the fifth. Kaylon Benson got on with a bunt and went around to third on a throwing error before Anthony Northrup drove him in.

Modoc got the tie-breaker in the top of the seventh when Anthony Silva singled and Lucas Tramontanas followed with a double to bring him home.

Server said the first game was the best the team had played since their victory over Hayfork in the championship game of the Liberty Christian Tournament.

Game two was a much uglier affair, with hot and windy conditions leading to five Modoc errors. This was also another come-from-behind win, with the Raiders taking leads of 4-1 and 7-5 before the Braves exploded for seven runs in the top of the sixth to take the lead for good.

The highlight of the big inning was a grand-slam by Anthony Northrup on a 390 foot homer that landed in the back of a pick-up truck.

Northrup wasn't the only one wielding a hot-stick in Modoc's 14 hit attack. Blake Thorn was 3-4 with a double and Kris Server was 2-5 with a double. Benson and Spicer both went 2-4.

After Tramontanas had a double and triple in game one and two more hits in game two, the Raiders decided it might not be a bad idea to quit pitching too him. Tramontanas drew intentional walks on his last two at bats. He also pitched all seven innings in game two.

Nine errors in 12 innings made for a rough afternoon in Burney for the Modoc softball team. The Braves dropped to 2-2 after losing to the Raiders by scores of 5-0 and 11-1.

"Some of those fielding errors came at the wrong time and really ended up costing us," Modoc manager Dennis Banister said. "They (Burney) were a really good team and took advantage of our mistakes."

It also didn't help that the Braves managed just seven hits for the double-header. Banister said that while Modoc did hit well, the ball often went right at Burney fielders.

In game one, Molly Busby went 2-3 and Charlene Stevens whacked a double. Stephanie McMaster pitched six innings, allowing just seven hits.

She also scored the lone Modoc run of the day, in game two. Busby, Sara Howell, Jessica Kern and Laura Toaetolu also added hits in that game.

The Braves finished second in a three-team meet played at Arrowhead Golf Course in Alturas. Mt. Shasta led at 490, followed by Modoc at 508 and Fall River at 572.

Jack Britton and Michael Bates both finished at 92, just one stroke behind the top score of 91. Jerry Wheeler shot a 99 while Shawn Sherer finished at 111 and Scott Knuepel came in at 114.

Modoc participated in the Eagle Classic Relays at West Valley High School. All of the races were relays and the field events were judged on team totals when a school had three or more athletes in that event. The event was made all the more complicated for the Braves because of illness and injuries that kept some team members home.

The trio of Tatum Dunn, Colleen McElwain and Rachel Gover combined to jump 79 feet six and one-half inches in the triple jump and 37-11 and one-half in the long jump. Those same three also teamed up with Dawnelle Gaskey to run a 56.88 in the 4 x 100 relay and a 2:14 in the 4 x 200 relay.

In the boys field events, Aaron Wishart and Chris Lauppe both cleared 11 feet in the pole vault, while Richard Tate tossed the shot 62-5 and three-quarters and threw the discuss 64-9.

At the JV level, the team of Todd Clark, Clinton Tate and Ryan Lieurance combined to throw 91-9 and one-quarter in the shot. The JV boys also had a sprint medley team of Justin Ulrich, Keith Wishart, Clark and Clayton Broman that registered a time of 5:23.

For the JV girls team, Jamie Kuhn threw the shot 23-10 and one-half and Roxsanne Gladu tossed it 19-8 and three-quarters.

Big valley

It took just three games for the first ever softball team at Big Valley to get their first ever win. The Cardinals showed they have strong offensive potential in a 16-8 victory over Tulelake in the first game of a double-header.

Senior Michelle Terry led the batting attack with three hits, including a double. The Cards also got two hits each from Jamie Hawkins (the winning pitcher), Emily Kelly and Jennifer Dowell. Sophomore Tristen Salters also slugged a double.

The Honkers came back to win game two by a score of 18-8 despite two more hits from Dowell.

The Big Valley baseball team got solid pitching from David House and Jimmy Perez, despite losing two to Tulelake by nearly identical scores of 7-1 and 7-0. House held the Honkers to just five hits over seven innings while Perez allowed only six hits in five innings in game two.

Both the baseball and softball teams play at home tomorrow. Doubleheaders against Dunsmuir begin at 2:00 p.m. for both teams.

The Big Valley track team is also in action this weekend. Their first meet of the year will be at the Lakeview Invitational on Saturday. Many of the athletes on the track team are also playing baseball and softball.

Wrestlers do well at home meet

Modoc schools' Youth Wrestling team finished its season in good fashion Saturday as several young grapplers won their division in their home tournament.

According to coach Shaun Wood, about 160 wrestlers were involved in the tourney and Wood called it one of the toughest events of the year.

This Friday, Saturday and Sunday will be the toughest tourney for Modoc's wrestlers, however, as several of them head to the World Tournament of Champions in Reno.

Wood is taking high school wrestlers Robert Flournoy, Wayne Sanders, Landon Brown and Matt Main, along with his three sons, Travis, Josh and Tyler Wood.

Taking first places for Modoc at the home tournament were: Blake McGarva, Jackson Nay, Joey Catania, Ross Cockrell, Brad Bell, Casey Poindexter (2), Travis Wood (2), Josh Wood (2), Ian Jacques, Chris Miller, Brandon Veverka and Tyler Wood.

Second place finishers were: Jaafar Mirlohi, Cory Bell, Nick Hawes, Brad Groff, Adam Pence, Tyler Stains, Neil Mohr and Justin Estes.

Third places were earned by Jason Jones, Breanna Fogerty and Garrett Chapman.

Fourth places went to: Megan McCulley, Will Mohr, Hank Raabe, Jack Veverka, Brittany Barnes, Jalen Estes, Chris Houghtby and Thomas Simmons.

Likely Links kick-off is April 15

April 15 may be tax day, but it's also a good day as the Likely Links Golf Course hosts its kick-off scramble.

The event will be a four-person scramble at $10 each and a tri-tip dinner, at $8.95 will follow the tournament. Golfers are asked to call ahead to be a part the tourney at 233-6676.

April 15 will also be the opening date for the diner at the course, and until then snacks and drinks are available at the clubhouse.

 

 

 

Record news for April 13, 2000

 

 

• City terminates contract with Wrymoo
• County, City cool to Nor-Cal rates
• Natural gas may be getting closer
• Chisholm is new forest supervisor
• Roads open to Nelson, Delta Lake fishing holes
• Black Bear Diner finds a home in Alturas

 

City terminates contract with Wrymoo group

The Alturas City Council Tuesday night voted unanimously to terminate its contract for with the Wrymoo Railroad Historical and Education Society concerning the railroad museum and the railroad academy.

City attorney Fritz Barclay told the council there was sufficient cause, basically lack of performance by Wrymoo to terminate the contract and move forward with the museum. In addition to a lack of volunteer help from Wrymoo, as was promised, Barclay said there were some irregularities in the acquisition of some equipment, primarily by Dave Rangel of Wrymoo.

Barclay said the significant issue at this time is to prepare a detailed inventory of equipment, especially rolling stock at the Railroad Museum and other places. He said it's vital that the city and Wrymoo come to terms on what belongs to whom.

Scott Kessler, City/County Planner told the council that moving Wrymoo out of the picture may be a benefit in the long run. He suggested the city rename the museum the Alturas Railroad Museum and move forward with current plans and establish the Alturas Railroad Academy in a proper and licensed manner. Both ideas, said Kessler, are solid in concept and can work well.

While a postcard attacking councilman Kerry Merwin and Supervisor Joe Colt, sent out to some voters during the March 7 election raised a red flag, Barclay stressed that wasn't the reason for the termination of the contract. A handwriting expert informed the council that some of the postcards, which were filled with false charges, were addressed in Rangel's handwriting. Rangel has denied having anything to do with that postcard and in a press release this week charged that either councilmen George Andreasen or Jack Ochs knew of and approved the mailing of the postcard. Both councilmen called that charge "hogwash" and said terminating the contract would a major benefit to the city and the museum, even though it will be a setback initially. According to Barclay, one "irregularity" discovered recently was the acquisition of a locomotive from government surplus. The locomotive was acquired by Rangel, represent ing the city. It had to be moved from its location immediately, so Rangel apparently made a deal with Yuma Valley Railroad in Arizona to move the engine and the deal allowed that railroad to use the locomotive for a period of time. The big question in the deal is not whether the Yuma Railroad should use the locomotive, but the actual ownership of the locomotive.

Barclay said there is no doubt the locomotive belongs to the City of Alturas, but the letter agreement with Yuma contains language that places its ownership with Wrymoo. Barclay will send a letter to Yuma, at council's direction, informing them of the ownership issue and explaining that the city has no trouble honoring the contract for its use. Yuma, said Barclay put out funds to transport the engine and entered that contract in good faith. Eventually that locomotive will be returned to the Alturas museum.

Barclay and Andreasen also explained that city-owned tank cars are housed by the McCloud River Railroad and those people have been informed that they are city property. There appears to be no problem with the ownership issues, but the city wants to insure that equipment Rangel obtained representing the city remains in city's hands.

Once the inventory lists and the disposition of all rolling stock and equipment is complete, the city will be working to get the museum back in working order.

Kessler said he would like to see the project jump-started by selling a couple of the city's locomotives and buying a steam engine and passenger cars with the proceeds. He feels the city could be running quality tourist passenger service in the not too distant future.

Mayor Dick Steyer also pointed out that Kessler was responsible for the concept of the Railroad Academy's push to educate students for entry level positions rather than an engineer school as initially proposed by Wrymoo. Kessler's research indicated, said Steyer, that the railroad job market was good in the entry level arena and that has proven true. Kessler said the plans are to reinstate the school in a different manner and ensure that it becomes accredited and licensed this time around. Kessler also feels that with Wrymoo out of the picture, negotiations with the Lakeview Railroad for passenger and shared service may be more fruitful.

In Wrymoo's press release, it contends the society is exploring its options and expects the issue to remain alive for many years.

City, County cool to Nor-Cal rates

The City of Alturas and County of Modoc attitudes are pretty cool considering the NorCal/Jefferson Public Power Authority purchase of PacifiCorp's Northern California property, especially when a 10-year study of electric rates is considered.

On Monday, the city and county held a joint work session to allow it's consultant from R.W. Beck, Dean H. Park, to air his point of view and also for representatives from NorCal to present their case.

Neither the city nor the county has joined the Nor-Cal/Jefferson Joint Powers Authority and had plenty of questions following the work session.

One of the main points brought out during the work session was the fact that Nor-Cal/JPPA predicts electric rates for Modoc customers will rise about 45 percent over the next 10 years. The rates are frozen at current levels for 2000 and 2001, and increases in rates are predicted from 2002 on. Nor-Cal is predicting PacifiCorp rates could be much higher over the same period.

While all local representatives wanted some specifics, the Nor-Cal/JPPA plan relies on financial and operational assumptions and predictions that the local elected officials are having trouble buying. The city and county have asked Park to come back with a recommendation in the near future.

Tuesday night the City Council opted to table the issue until it hears from park. The city and county are considering adopting resolutions to join Nor-Cal.

PacifiCorp (now owned by Scottish Power) agreed to sell its northern California properties to Nor-Cal Electric Authority in July, 1999. NorCal, with lead entities the County of Del Norte and City of Yreka, initially planned to acquire, own and operate the electric system. In August, 1999, PacifiCorp filed an action with the California Public Utilities Commission to transfer the electric system from PacficCorp to Nor-Cal.

A curve was thrown into the mix in August when a "validation" judgment in Del Norte Superior Court ruled that Nor-Cal did not have the legal authority to operate the electric system. In response to the judgment, the cities of Yreka and Dunsmuir organized a new joint powers authority, Jefferson Public Power Authority, to operate the system. Nor-Cal would remain in the mix, but counties can not be involved in the operation of the system, while cities can. All cities within the service territory have been invited to join Jefferson. Alturas, and other cities, have not yet been convinced. Several cities in the north state have joined the JPA.

While the new organization with the two JPAs looks good on paper, Modoc District Attorney Tom Buckwalter, queried the Nor-Cal representatives as to why they haven't sought a court validation of the new JPA structure. Nor-Cal attorney Dean Criddle, said they felt the judge in the first validation case gave them a roadmap that they followed. Additionally, he said, the validation action would be expensive and time consuming. He said the purchase of PacifiCorp facilities is on a rather tight time line, with the deal hopefully wrapped up this summer.

In addition to the rates, financial situations and legal questions, the city and county are also concerned about franchise fees and property taxes. Currently PacifiCorp pays franchise fees and property taxes. Their property is assessed by the State Board of Equalization.

The issue of taxes and fees may come down to a simply question that wasn't clearly answered at Monday's session: If neither the county nor the city join the JPA are they eligible for the taxes and fees? The tax issue is a major concern of county assessor Josie Johnson.

Natural gas may be getting closer

The possibility of natural gas service in Alturas may be getting closer as long as proposal by Rock Creek Energy pans out. Rock Creek has a franchise agreement with the city.

Tuesday night Ken Teague, of Rock Creek, suggested that the city become the billing agency for the natural gas service, enabling the service to get started without going through the two years of California Public Utilities Commission hearings and studies.

As a municipality, the city is not subject to the CPUC rate regulations and related studies and costs. Teague told the council Rock Creek was not afraid of going through the CPUC for rate regulation, since it usually benefits the utility more than the customers, but felt that by going through the city, the time frame and costs would be lessened. He felt the rates would be lower. Rock Creek plans on charging 85 percent of the local prevailing propane rates.

He said Rock Creek would build, maintain and operate the system and deliver the gas to the meter. From there, the city would take care of billing and so on. Rock Creek is planning to build the line, connecting to the existing Tuscarora pipeline just south of Alturas. Tuscarora left a connection for Alturas off that main line.

The council opted to have a contract prepared to go along with Teague's suggestion and insure that everything is legal and above board.

Teague said the company would like to start building the line in September. He said Rock Creek would have trained personnel in Alturas to handle the operation and maintenance of the system. He hopes to have natural gas available for Alturas next winter.

Also on Tuesday night, the council accepted a 300 name petition from Jim Parker, in support of rehabing the Alturas tennis courts. Parker and Richard Belarde gave the council some ideas and costs for the project.

The council is supportive of the tennis court upgrades, but Mayor Dick Steyer said raising or finding the funds will be the difficult part. Parker said the group will be forming a tennis club in the near future. That club, said Parker, would be involved in fundraising efforts.

The council re-appointed City Planning Commissioners Dan McKernan and VeeAnn Ambers to four year terms expiring in April, 2004.

Chisholm is new forest supervisor

The Modoc National Forest will have a new supervisor, Daniel K. Chisholm, who comes on board May 7. Wayne Chandler is now serving as interim Forest Supervisor.

"Chisholm brings more than 16 years of Deputy Forest Supervisor and Forest Supervisor to the Modoc National Forest," said Pacific Southwest Regional Forester Brad Powell. "I am looking forward to working with him on his new assignment."

Chisholm holds a Bachelor's Degree in Forest Management from the University of Minnestoa and a Masters Degree in Systematic Analysis from Michigan State. His experience includes positions on eight national forests including the Nez Perce, Clearwater and Panhandle Forests of Idaho; Beaverhead and Lewis and Clark National Forests in Montana; San Juan National Forest in Colorado; and the National Forests of North Carolina. Previous jobs include District Ranger, Planning Team Leader, Planning Staff Officer, Resource Staff Officer and Deputy Forest Supervisor.

Chisholm is currently Forest Supervisor of the Mendocino National Forest, headquartered in Willows.

"My wife, Wanda, and I are very excited about coming to Modoc County and the Modoc National Forest, Chisholm said. "I have spent most of my life in small towns and especially enjoy rural community life. The Modoc National Forest has a well-known reputation for working together with the community to resolve issues. This is a busy forest with experienced and professional employees. I'm anxious to begin my new assignment."

Roads opened to Nelson, Delta Lake fishing holes

In news that will make local anglers happy, the roads to Delta Lake and Nelson Corral have been opened by the Bureau of Land Management.

The roads had been closed because of possible road damage during the wet and muddy conditions. "The roads dried out early this year and vehicle use should not pose a problem," BLM Alturas Field Manager Tim Burke said. "There are still a few wet spots on the flat between Bayley Dam and Delta Lake, but if people drive responsibly, we can avoid damage that we have seen the past. People also need to remember that spring storms could cause conditions to deteriorate."

In addition to the recent warm, dry weather, Burke credits a patient public for allowing the re-opening of the roads early.

"Everyone has been very cooperative in observing the use restriction," said Burke. "The roads are in excellent shape.

Burke said repairs completed by the BLM on the Nelson Corral Road last fall held up well through the winter, and the road is in good condition.

BLM placed the seasonal vehicle closures on the two roads as a way to limit natural resource damage during muddy spring conditions. The BLM worked with area outdoor enthusiasts and groups to come up with a seasonal road closure that would limit vehicle use during the muddiest periods, while still allowing spring fishing access to Delta Lake and Nelson Corral.

Black Bear finds a home in Alturas

 

By Nora Russell

Watching the ten-day transformation of Jerry's Restaurant into the Black Bear Diner has been a recent spectator sport in Alturas.

A new roof and a fresh coat of paint were the early signs of change. Soon bears began appearing; bears in a mural on the wall, black bears along the border of the roof and then carved bears began popping up around the landscape. A cowboy bear with a lariat, a hunting bear carrying a rifle and a large bear standing on its hind legs bearing a sign that says "Feed the Bears".

By April 12 when the Black Bear Diner opened its doors for business, bears had taken over the decor of the restaurant.

"The bear theme wasn't just a glitzy corporate idea for a restaurant," explained Bob Manley, one of the three partners behind the Black Bear Diner success. "It has been developing from the time I killed my first, and last, bear at the age of 12. I've been a guide in wilderness areas around bears and I started the Black Bear Gallery in Mt. Shasta before getting together with Bruce Dean 5 years ago to start the Black Bear Diner."

Manley is not a stranger to the northeastern part of California. His father was coach in Cedarville in the early 1940's. In the process of transferring to a coaching job in Oregon he drove by Mt. Shasta and fell in love with it. Wanting to stay in Mt. Shasta he asked if a coach was needed at the high school, coincidentally their coach had just quit and the family stayed in Mt. Shasta.

Following in his father's footsteps Manley also became a coach, many times coming to Alturas with his teams to play sports.

One of the claws of the bear that he killed hangs on a chain around his neck. "Before each game the team members would touch the bear claw for luck," Manley said.

The Black Bear Diner in Alturas is the eighth one opened by the three partners; "Papa Bear" Bob Manley, "Sugar Bear" Bruce Dean, and "Worry Bear" Dave Doty. The other diners are located in Mt. Shasta, Redding, Willows, Salinas, Sparks, Yreka and Susanville.

Manley attributes the success of the diners to the desire to become a part of the communities where they are.

"All of the contributing dollars from the diner go to kid's programs in the community," stated Manley. "We sponsor the Player of the Week for school athletes."

A kid's room called "Braves Country" has been created inside the diner and is equipped with a TV and VCR for coaches who want to watch a game with their players. The walls are decorated with pictures and memorabilia of various Modoc athletes.

"We just really want to honor the achievements of kids," said Manley. "It also creates a connection for adults, a place to remember who you were and where you came from."

A jukebox filled with Country and Western music and Oldies has been added to the diner. "We want this to be a safe environment for kids, and hopefully to remind people of times when things were simpler. When kids could just be kids," he added.

A small "Cubby Hole" gift shop carries a wide selection of Black Bear merchandise. From Black Bear steak sauce, beer and wine to t-shirts with a bear paw that say "Talk to the Paw".

The menu has been broadened to include homemade cobblers and specialty items. Bob's Big Bear Burger has become a popular menu item, it is a 3/4 pound burger so big that buns had to be made especially for it.

"That's why it comes with a steak knife stuck into it," said Manley. "It's so big people usually have to cut it to eat it."

"We just want to create our own niche in Alturas," explained Manley. "We didn't come here to take business away from other restaurants. A community that has lots of choices for people to stop and eat ends up becoming busier, and that's good for all of us."

 

Sports

 

Modoc baseball, softball split with 'dogs

Stephanie McMaster put on a remarkable pitching performance for the Modoc softball team in their double-header loss against Fall River. McMaster threw the entire 14 innings the two teams played on the afternoon, striking out 22 (over half the outs) while only allowing nine hits and one walk.

Unfortunately, that wasn't enough for the Braves to sweep the Bulldogs. Modoc lost the first game 5-4. The two teams were tied 0-0 heading into the sixth inning, when a costly fielding error allowed FR to put together a five-run rally in the top of the sixth.

Modoc came back with a scoring run of their own in the bottom of the seventh. Tara Northrup, Amanda LaPlante and Jennelle Jacques all reached base and came in on a Jessica Kern double. Molly Busby followed with a single to bring Kern in and make the score 5-4.

However, the rally ended there and the Braves had to settle for getting their revenge with a 7-2 win in the nightcap.

Modoc capitalized on walks and Fall River errors to score five runs in the fourth to put the game away. Busby had a double while Jacques and Kern also registered hits.

The softball team, 3-3 in the Shasta-Cascade League and 6-5 overall, is off until April 28, when they will host Mt. Shasta.

The Braves are 4-2 in the SCL and 9-2 overall after splitting with Fall River last Friday. In the first game, a six-run third inning gave the Bulldogs a lead that Modoc couldn't quite make up, as Fall River won 8-6.

Modoc still pounded out 10 hits in the opener, including three hits by Kris Server (two of them doubles) and two singles each by Ramon Molina and Anthony Northrup.

The Braves bounced back in the nightcap to take a 7-6 win. Six of those runs were driven in by sophomore outfielder Blake Thorn. He gave Modoc an early lead in the second with a three-run dinger.

The Bulldogs came back to take a 6-4 lead before Thorn drove in two more in the fifth to tie the game up. The score would remain 6-6 through the seventh, so Modoc had to win the game in extra innings.

In the bottom of the eighth, it was Thorn once again, this time singling in the only run the Braves needed to claim the win.

Server added two hits, one a double, while Anthony Silva also knocked a pair of singles. Molina, Server and Lucas Tramontanas combined for eight innings on the mound.

Lost River will visit Alturas this afternoon to scrimmage the Braves at 4:00 p.m.

Aaron Wishart and Luke Hughes both had second place finishes at the Lakeview Invitational on Saturday. Wishart was second in the 110 high hurdles at 17.35, fourth in the pole vault at 11 feet, and fourth in the high jump at 5 feet 6 inches.

Hughes ran a 4:35.29 in the 1,500 meters to take second in that event, and also grabbed third place in the 800.

Cody Holloway placed fourth in both the 100 meters and the long jump.

As a team, the varsity boys took sixth out of 13 teams competing in Lakeview.

In the girls varsity events, freshmen Colleen McElwain and Rachel Gover combined to place in five different events for the Braves. The pair teamed with Tatum Dunn and Dawnelle Gaskey to run a 56.37 in the 4 x 100, good enough for sixth place.

The Braves took fourth, fifth and sixth in the long jump. Dunn flew 13-4 while Gover and McElwain both finished just one-quarter of an inch behind. McElwain also took sixth in the 100 and 200, while Gover finished sixth in the triple jump.

Senior Rebekah Richert placed fourth in both the shot and the discus, while Tamara Drennan was sixth in the shot.

The girls JV squad had the top team score of the 13 schools competing. The Braves finished with 65 points, followed by Henley at 57 and Burns at 51.

Kayla Harness won both the 1500 (5:54.12) and the 400 (1:12.84) and took fourth in the 800. Vanessa Thomason was right behind her in the 1500 and 800. In the 400, Jamie Kuhn and Katrina McCaffrey followed Harness to make it a 1-2-3 sweep for Modoc. Kuhn also took third in the shot-put.

Amy Gentry took third in both of the hurdling events.

In the boys JV races, Tyler Belarde took third in the 800 and fourth in the 1500. Ryan Lieurance was fifth in the 800 and Justin Ulrich was fifth in the 400.

The track team will compete on Saturday at the John Frank Meet at Shasta College.

Modoc's linksters took on both the Lassen High varsity and JV in a nine-hole match. While the Lassen varsity shot a 197 to win the match, the Modoc squad, composed mostly of freshman, beat the Lassen JV by a score of 248-257.

Freshman Jack Britton had the low score for the Braves. His round of 42 was also the fourth lowest score overall. Britton has also qualified for the CIF Sectional Tournament in May by having averaged under 90 over a three-round period.

Against Lassen, Michael Bates shot a 48 and Jerry Wheeler finished at 49. Andrew Bushey used 53 strokes while Shawn Sherer and Bill Moriarity both finished the day at 56.

The Braves play Portola this afternoon at the Gray Eagle course. Next Monday, they will take on Henley at the Rheams course.

BV's Hawkins wins shot put in Lakeview

Big Valley sophomore Jamie Hawkins had a busy two days last weekend. On Friday afternoon at the softball diamond, she went 6-8 at the plate with a homerun against Dunsmuir. On Saturday, she won the shot put at the Lakeview Invitational with a toss of 33-1, and also took sixth in the 300 hurdles.

Calvin Jackson also placed in two events at the track meet. He was fourth in the 300 in termediate hurdles and fifth in the 100 meters. He got Friday off since the Dunsmuir baseball team had to forfeit their double-header with the Cardinals.

The Big Valley softball team used a powerful hitting attack to come very close to winning their second game of the season on Friday against Dunsmuir. Besides Hawkins' numbers mentioned above, Kelsey Hunsaker was 7-8 with a double and a triple, Emily Kelly was 4-8 with two doubles, Jennifer Dowell was 5-8 and Holly Baker was 2-3 in the second game.

In the first game, the Cards led 11-9 and stranded two runners at third before the Tigers came back in the last inning to take a 12-11 win. Game two was a 23-10 win for Dunsmuir.

BV coach Matt Hunsaker pointed out that the loss in the first game may have been due in part to the fact that the Cardinals are playing their first ever season.

"We made some mistakes that a team that's already been playing four or five years wouldn't have made," he said. "There are some scenar ios that are pretty in depth that we're still learning about."

Hunsaker, who's football teams have won three straight section titles, is also learning that, "coaches don't have as much control in softball as they do in football."

The Big Valley softball and baseball teams will play double-headers this afternoon at Happy Camp. The track team is off until April 22, when they compete in the Bonanza Invitational at the Oregon Institute of Technology.

Likely Links kick-off is Saturday

April 15 is the day the Likely Links Golf Course hosts its kick-off scramble.

The event will be a four-person scramble at $10 each and a tri-tip dinner, at $8.95 will follow the tournament. Golfers are asked to call ahead to join the tourney at 233-6676. Tournament tee-off is at 10 a.m. and the tourney will be played unless the weather is too bad.

April 15 will also be the opening date for the diner at the course.

 

Record news for April 20, 2000

 

• County schools, road funds in hands of Senate
• Principal is model for reading program success
• Forest Service in middle of major planning projects
• Lions host annual Easter Egg hunt
• Canada goose hatch cracking up on Refuge
• MHS Classs of 1950 looking for folks

 

County schools, road funds in hand of Senate

Senate Bill 1608 that would provide a stable level of funding from national forests for county schools and roads has come out of committee and will be voted on by the entire Senate in the near future.

Modoc County Superintendent of Schools Carol Harbaugh, says the bill stands a good chance of passing the Senate muster but does face an uncertain future once it reaches President's Bill Clinton's desk. The Administration supports a different remedy to the funding issue.

Since 1908, 25 percent of National Forest receipts have been returned to the counties of origin and those funds have been split evenly between the county schools and road departments. Historically, the biggest chunk, by far, of those receipts came from timber harvests. Timber no longer plays a dominant role on the Modoc National Forest.

Since the demise of the timber industry in this area, the level of those receipts has been going down. They have been kept artificially high for the past few years thanks to a "spotted owl" designation by the federal government. That designation allowed Modoc to receive averages over certain years and the payments were not made up of actual timber receipts. Had the payments been based upon actual timber harvest, the county would have received very little.

Harbaugh said current Senate Bill 1608 will provide a level of funding somewhere near the peak timber harvest years of the 1980s. She suspects Modoc County's annual share would be between $2 and $3 million. The county's last payment totaled $1.9 million. If not for the spotted owl designation, it would have been just a fraction of that amount.

An organization called the National Forests Counties and Schools Coalition has been working on the forest funding issue and is lobbying for Senate Bill 1608 primarily as a way to stabilize funding levels and preserve the financial relationship between the national forest and local government.

The coalition says the government still needs to help fund local roads and schools because of the federal government's dominance of land ownership.

Modoc County property, for instance, is more than 70 percent federally owned and that land is not subject to property tax. Since those lands are in federal ownership, they are not open for future development.

Harbaugh said the forest systems still need to follow the 1908 Congressional mindset that helped offset federal land ownership by sharing in forest receipts.

"With the creation of the U.S. Forest Service in 1908, the U.S. Government created a compact with the people of forest counties whereby they would receive Forest Reserve funds in perpetuity in exchange for the government removing the lands from further private development," said Harbaugh. "If this legislation is not passed, or if it is amended, projected future funding could be less than $600,000 annually."

According to Harbaugh, Modoc County received $2,941.553 in 1987/88 and $3,734,925 was the high in 1990/91, inflated because of forest fire related harvests. The payments have been on the decline since 1991 as follows: 1991/92, $2,719,580; 1992/93, $2,455,757; 1993/94, $2,316,932; 1994/95, $2,316,932; 1995/96, $2,235,153; 1996/97, $2,153,379; 1997/98, $2,071,199; and 1998/99, $1,907,616.

According to Harbaugh, if the county loses two-thirds of forest receipts, it could have dire effects on sports, bussing, class size, supplies, electives, music and so on.

She said the Forest Counties and Schools Coalition now has over 1,000 local organizations in more than 25 states.

The impact of dipping forest receipts affects rural counties more than metropolitan areas and if legislation isn't passed that will take over once the spotted owl reprieve is finished, counties stand to lose millions of dollars. Congress is now wrestling with where those funds will come from if the forests are not generating income from timber harvest.

According to Congressman Wally Herger, the house was successful in adding a significant increase in funding in the Fiscal Year 2001 Budget Resolution which would increase Modoc's share to $3,170,980,72. That funding must still survive the Senate and the veto pen of Clinton.

While Herger touts the passage of the funding measure, he doesn't come up with where those funds will come from since actual national forest receipts will not be able to cover the cost.

Principal is a model for the reading program

 

By Nora Russell

Surprise Valley Elementary Principal Mel Soletti made a promise to his students at the beginning of the school year; if they became a Model School through the Accelerated Reading Program he would dye his hair the school colors of gold and maroon.

The students far surpassed their end of the bargain; instead of settling for the five Model Classrooms needed to become a Model School, each classroom in the school met the (AR) requirements. The crowning achievement was the certification of the school library as a Model Library.

The afternoon of Monday, April 17 Soletti sat in the chair at The Little Hair Shop in Cedarville to have his hair dyed and live up to his end of the deal.

Soletti originally anticipated having his "salt and pepper" hair colored with something that could be washed out in a couple of days. But since a true maroon color couldn't be found in the temporary dye, he agreed to have his hair permanently dyed. "The kids worked hard at their reading," he said, "the least I can do is go the whole way with this thing."

Before Soletti's hair could be permanently dyed it had to be bleached with peroxide so that the dye, or stain, would adhere to the hair. Virginia Ray and Jennifer Vermillion painted the peroxide onto his hair and made sure it didn't become over-processed.

The bleaching process took longer than expected, but Soletti spent the time laughing and talking with the steady stream of students coming in and out of the shop to watch his transformation. "We're going to see a new Mr. Soletti at school tomorrow," a second grader said excitedly.

Parents expressed how much the reading program had helped their children with reading. "It has helped my daughter so much," Vermillion offered. "She is more enthusiastic about reading and she takes the responsibility for her reading goals instead of it being a full time job for mom and dad."

"I think that kids enjoy doing things that allow them to be successful," added Soletti. "In the AR program with hard work every student can succeed because each student works at their own level."

In a survey of 743 Accelerated Reading educators 99.2% of them agreed that the program motivates students to read more and better books. Ninety three percent said that it improves student abilities in all academic areas such as reading, writing, math, science and social studies. Ninety six percent said that it helps students to love reading.

"Reading is a skill; the more the students practice it the better they will become at it," Soletti explained.

Once Soletti's hair was completely bleached, Ray and Vermillion painted on the colored dye, bright gold on top and deep maroon on the bottom. Twenty minutes later his hair was rinsed and blow dried.

While the school colors could stay in Soletti's hair until it grows out naturally, he has to be at an Adminis tra tors meeting in Reno in two weeks. "I don't want to show up at the meeting with my hair like this," Soletti said.

"When you explain why you dyed it, they'll probably admire you for it," offered Ray.

"I'll take pictures," he responded.

Forest Service in middle of major planning projects

The Modoc National Forest is in the midst of several major projects, some of which may have some impacts locally. Many of the projects are nearing decision or comment period deadlines.

The comment period for the Forest Service Road Policy ends May 2. There is currently an 18-month moratorium on new road construction in unroaded areas. During the moratorium, the Forest Service will develop a long term road policy for the National Forest Transportation System. In addition to minimizing environmental damage, the Forest Service will establish new policies to guide decisions on identifying nonessential roads, recommending roads to be eliminated or maintained to reduce environmental damage, and assessing roads that need to be reconstructed and maintained so they are safe and can sustain public use. The contact for the project is Robert Haggard, 233-8840.

Haggard is also the contact person the Sierra Nevada Framework Environmental Impact Statement with the draft of that document scheduled for release in May.

The framework would amend 11 National Forest Plans, including the Modoc and is focused on five problem areas: old forest ecosystems; riparian, aquatic and meadow ecosystems; fire and fuels; noxious weeds; and lower Westside hardwood forests. A draft EIS that outlines alternatives for addressing these problems is currently being developed for publication. Publication of the draft EIS will be followed by a public comment period which will help shape the final EIS and Record of Decision.

Public information meetings and comment meetings will be scheduled in Adin and Alturas concerning the Sierra Nevada Framework.

Curt Aarstad is the contact person for the Roadless Review EIS. The roadless proposal has two parts. First, the proposal would restrict certain activities, such as road construction and reconstruction in the unroaded portions of inventoried roadless areas. And second, the proposal would establish procedures and criteria to be used by each forest to determine what activities are consistent with the important values associated with roadless areas of all sizes -- inventoried or not--that maintain or enhance social or ecological attributes. Local forest plan amendment and the NEPA processes, both of which require active public participation, could be used to implement the procedures and criteria developed in this part of the proposal. The final rule would delineate the framework for this forest-by-forest implementation process.

Part one of the rule could affect about 50 million acres of inventoried roadless areas with 45 percent of those already in management designations that do not allow road construction. The amount affected by part two of the rule will be determined in the future through local forest planning. Contact Aarstad at 233-8745. The release of the draft EIS is scheduled for May.

A public information meeting is scheduled at the Alturas Forest Service Office May 23, 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. on the Roadless Review EIS. A public hearing is scheduled on the issue June 22, 6:30 p.m. at the same location.

Another project creating some local concern is the proposed planning regulations with the final rule scheduled for release late this summer. The Forest Service is in the process of revising the way land and resource management plans for the 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands are developed. The agency has developed a proposed regulation that is based upon many years of experience, the recommendations of a distinguished group of natural resource scientists and feedback from the public. The Forest Service believes the final result will be a good product that will be improved after close scrutiny by all people who have an interest in the way forest lands are managed. Haggard is the contact person at 233-8740.

Final decisions are pending on a couple of controversial geothermal plant developments in the Medicine Lake area. The contact person on both EISs for the Telephone Flat Geothermal Plant and the Four Mile Hill Geothermal Plant is Randall Sharp at 233-8748.

The Warner Mountain Rangeland Project draft management plan is expected to be released in June.

Lions host Kids' Egg Hunt Saturday

The Alturas Lions Club will generously sponsor their annual Easter Egg Hunt for all children on Saturday, April 22 starting at 1:00 p.m. sharp in Veterans' Memorial Park, South Main Street, Alturas.

Children from one to 10-years-old are welcome to bring their baskets to join in the hunt. There will be prizes for specially marked eggs, which will be among the many dozens of colored eggs, scattered across the park lawns. No matter what the weather, the "hunt" is always held.

Lawn signs will help adults and children locate the five designated age category areas for the hunt. The area will start on the lawn in front of the Veterans' Hall and encompass the lawn area next to the new playground area.

A small group of "Lions" start their Saturday morning at 7:30 a.m. preparing the eggs for the event. They boil 200 dozen eggs at Kelly Hot Springs near Canby, then color them in large tubs. The eggs cool on the return to Alturas by noon. The Leos Youth Club members pitch in to assist and help set the eggs out on the park lawns, which takes about an hour, described Lions' Egg Hunt Chairperson Pat Schluter.

Finding a specially marked goose egg, donated by Rob Flournoy to the Lions Club for many consecutive years, will win a child an Easter basket or plastic egg filled with candy.

"Three Easter baskets will be given per the five different age groups and we will have plastic eggs filled with candy as prizes too," said Schluter.

It doesn't take the young ones long to scoop up the eggs. Three years ago, the Lions clocked the event as taking one minute and 10 seconds.

Moving the Egg Hunt project from Sunday to Saturday has allowed the Lions to celebrate Easter with their own families and also does not conflict with local family celebrations and church services.

Canada Goose hatch cracking up on refuge

The goose hatch on the refuge is beginning just in time for Easter.

Broods have been seen on Duck Pond and Teal Pond for the past week. Also hatching already are the Great-Horned Owl chicks which are growing rapidly to attain the same size as adults before they can fledge (grow feathers) and fly. Sandhill cranes and the early nesting ducks such as mallards are also on their nests.

The refuge asks that visitors to the refuge and fishermen at Dorris Reservoir please remember to avoid nesting sites. If a goose is scared off the nest, it is best to pull the down in the nest over the eggs and move back from the site to around 100 yards. This will help protect the eggs from the elements until the goose comes back to the nest. Also please remember to have pets on leash at all times.

The west road at Dorris Reservoir may be closed on wet days when driving may be hazardous or cause damage to the roads. The road will remain open once the weather conditions improve. Visitors may still access the west side on foot.

Feel free to come and view the new goose broods but remember to keep a safe distance between you and the birds.

MUHS Class of '50 looking for folks

Modoc Union High School Class of 1950 is planning a reunion for August 5, 2000, in Alturas.

To make the reunion complete, addresses are needed for the following people: Margaret Parker, Lloyd Severe, Bob Powers and Michael Rolins.

Should anyone have information about the whereabouts of the above folks, please call James Souther at (530) 233-2737 or Betty Russell at (530) 233-2561.

 

Record news for April 27, 2000

 

• Search continues for missing men
• Charges dismissed against former DA
• Warner Mountain streams open later
• Only home health provider closing
• MJUSD near new superintendent offer

 

Search continues for 3 fishermen lost at Ballard

Three fishermen were lost and presumed drowned when they did not return home from a trip to Ballard Reservoir south of Canby last Thursday. The search was continuing as of Wednesday.

According to Modoc Undersheriff Mark Gentry, the men are Edwin Robinson, 39, of Alturas, Rodney Ruskell, 50, Alturas and Ruskell's 13-year-old son Jordan, of Salinas. According to Gentry, Jordan Ruskell was visiting his father for Easter break.

Gentry said the trio was reported missing by family members Thursday when they did not return home from fishing on time. Modoc Sheriff's Deputies initiated the search Thursday evening and searched through a very cold night, said Gentry, finding no sign of the men.

Gentry said Thursday night had turned cold and eerie. A layer of fog had covered the reservoir. When deputies arrived at Ballard, Gentry said they saw the fishing boat partially submerged in the lake with the bow pointing vertically. Fishing poles on the bank with baited lines were still in the water, said Gentry. The trio was using a seven-and-a-half-foot flat-bottomed aluminum boat.

The trio's vehicle was still at Ballard and deputies found some items of clothing. According to Sheriff Bruce Mix, the vehicle was not disabled and food items remained with the pickup.

Searches throughout the weekend yielded no results and as of Wednesday afternoon the search was continuing. Scuba divers from Washoe and Lassen Counties, helicopters, search boats, fish finders and special search dogs have been employed in the search.

Gentry said the water conditions were murky and deputies were unable to see very far into the depths. The visibility of the divers was limited to 18 inches and an underwater camera with its

own light increased visibility to only two feet. Spring run-off is keeping the water murky and winds are obscuring the view from the surface.

On Tuesday, new drag lines were being developed. There are a lot of old tree stumps and boulders in Ballard, which makes dragging difficult. Mix, at the scene on Tuesday, said the use of the dogs was giving searchers some hope of finding the bodies. Mix said the specialized dogs, a variety of breeds, are trained to locate human scent coming off the water. He said they are very helpful in finding the location of drowned individuals. Tuesday morning the dogs had reacted to several hits near the same area, and boats were concentrating on those spots of Ballard. Ballard is estimated to be about a mile long and one-quarter mile across in places.

The Modoc Sheriff's main rescue boat has a Global Positioning System (GPS) Unit installed and it was being used during the search to track what parts of the reservoir the boat had covered. The print out from the Sheriff's office shows an exact map of Ballard and surrounding areas, and shows by line the path of the boat. As of Tuesday, the main boat had covered much of the north portion of Ballard.

The drownings are the first at Ballard, which is a very well used recreation area about four miles south of Canby.

 

Charges dismissed against former DA

Criminal charges against former Modoc District Attorney Hugh Comisky and Alturas resident Jim Nelson were dismissed Monday by Chris Stromsness, a judge from Siskiyou County.

The judge said the charges were dismissed because "the people (county) interfered with due process" in a property line dispute involving Nelson and Omar Adrana on Estes Street, Alturas.

The basis for the criminal proceedings (involving trespass and malicious mischief) came from the fact that Nelson removed some wooden survey stakes from a disputed piece of property claimed by Adrana, and Adrana claimed he was intimidated or threatened by the Nelsons. Comisky was involved because as Nelson's attorney, he had advised him to pull out the stakes.

Alturas Police Sergeant Ken Barnes, turned in the initial investigative report, and Modoc District Attorney Tom Buckwalter filed the charges based upon a belief that removing survey stakes was illegal.

Judge Stromsness said that Barnes had "overstepped his role as a peace officer and chose sides" in the incident.

Buckwalter told the court Monday that he would be appealing the decision to dismiss. On Tuesday he said the Judge erred in his decision and he would be able to prove Adrana was the legal owner of the disputed property.

Adrana, the new owner of the property, had the official survey done to establish the legal property line. That line, it turned out, was 12 to 13 feet into property where the Nelson's had parked their vehicles.

A conflict arose between Adrana and the Nelson's over the placement of the stakes. Nelson contended that the property remained his because he had used it since purchasing it in 1986 and the existing fence was thought to be the boundary line. Adrana's survey indicated a different property boundary that took up the portion of what Nelson thought was his. Adrana had planned to build a fence on the new boundary line.

According to the judge, the case should have gone through the normal civil court proceedings to determine the actual ownership boundaries.

Comisky filed a motion Monday asking that Modoc District Attorney Tom Buckwalter be recused (removed) from the case because he felt Buckwalter's filing the criminal charges was a "political payback" from the last election. Buckwalter was successful in unseating Comisky for Modoc District Attorney. Stromsness never ruled on the recusal since he dismissed the charges.

The property boundary case between Nelson and Adrana is going to civil proceedings. Those proceedings have been started and are not a part of the criminal case dismissed Monday. Stromsness said Monday's decision should have no bearing on the civil case.

Warner Mountain trout streams open later

The traditional trout stream opening day for the Warner Mountain drain-ages that normally opened the last Saturday in April will open the Saturday preceding Memorial Day during the month of May this year.

This regulation change was the result of a recommendaion of local anglers that was adopted by the California Fish and Game Commission with support from Department of Fish and Game Fisheries Management personnel. The recommendation for the change was based on allow ing the stream trout an opportunity to spawn in the spring before being har-vested. All the streams affected, except the South Fork Pit River, rely on natural reproduction to maintain catchable populations of trout.

The regulation includes all streams in Lassen and Modoc Counties east of Highway 395 and North of Clarks Valley Road at Madeline. The 2000 stream opener for trout on these waters will be May 27. Consult the California Sports Fishing Regulation 2000 booklet, Sierra District, on page 13 for the text of this regulation.

Three waters containing Goose Lake Redland Trout that have been closed to protect that species will be opened this year on May 27 to catch and release angling only. The three streams, all Goose Lake tributaries, are Cottonwood Creek and tributaries, Lassen Creek and tributaries and Willow Creek. Anglers are restricted to artificial lures with barbless hooks only on these catch and release waters.

Please consult the 2000 Sport Fishing Regulation booklet available at license agents for further explanation of these regulations or contact your local game warden. In Alturas you may contact Warden Albright at 233-3263 or Lt. Wolter at 233-3718. Regulation information can also be obtained at the Fish and Game Regional office in Redding at 225-2300.

Only home health provider to close

 

By Nora Russell

California Health Professionals, Inc. (CHP), which has been providing in home health care for patients in Modoc County since 1994, will close its doors for the last time on Friday, April 28.

"We're sorry to be closing," said Nancy DeForest, an RN who has worked for CHP for the last two years. "When we're gone, there won't be any more in home health care in Modoc."

CHP has been in business for over 20 years and its closure will affect the many communities that had been served by the company in northern California. Modoc County will be affected more seriously than most because CHP was the last of three in home health providers to go out of business in the last decade.

In a letter sent to the Alturas CHP by its main office in Chico, the reasons for the closure were explained, "There have been changes in the home care industry since President Clinton signed the 'Balanced Budget Amendment' of 1997. CHP has been deeply impacted by those changes....Unfortunately we have lost money in the last three years and can no longer remain as a viable business."

The high number (28%) of Modoc residents between the ages of 55 and 75 makes the impact of the loss of in home care even greater.

Registered nurses making housecalls provide patients not in need of 24 hour surveillance by medical staff, the comfort

and convenience of medical care in their own home.

"It means that more people will be in the hospital when they don't need to be," explained Lisa Griffin, P.A.

 

MJUSD nearing new superintendent offer

The Modoc Joint Unified School District is nearing a selection for a new superintendent, and could make a choice within the next 10 days.

According to interim Superintendent Don Demsher, the interviews last week with four candidates went well and two of those people are being seriously considered.

Demsher said the district is now making site visitations to those individuals' school and districts and the offer of the position will come after those visitations.

The visitations will give local administrators and officials a good view of each candidate's strengths and possible weaknesses, said Demsher.

Both candidates are viable, according to Demsher, and he said all recommendations received so far have been positive.

 

May, 2000

Record news for May 4, 2000

 

• Search scaled back for three missing men
• EIS released on Sierra Nevada Framework
• Alturas Elementary honored for programs
• Dr. Go Forth is educator of the year
• Migratory bird festival promises learning
• Duck Race tickets flying out quickly

 

 

Search at Ballard Reservoir scaled back for three missing fishermen

The search for three fishermen lost and presumed drowned when they did not return home from a trip to Ballard Reservoir April 20 has been scaled back by local authorities.

The last major day of searching was Saturday when a search and rescue team including divers was dispatched to Ballard from Washoe County. That team failed to find any of the men.

The missing men are Edward Robinson, 39, of Alturas, Rodney Ruskell, 50, Alturas and Ruskell's 13-year-old son Jordan, of Salinas.

According to Modoc Undersheriff Mark Gentry, a cloth elastic wristband was found at Ballard during the search and that band has been identified as belonging to Robinson.

Gentry said the Sheriff's Office will continue to patrol Ballard by boat and on foot, and suspects the bodies will surface sometime in the near future. Just how long that will be, said Gentry, is unclear because of the current situations and water temperature.

The trio was reported missing by family members April 20 when they did not return home from fishing on time. Modoc Sheriff's Deputies initiated the search that evening.

Gentry said deputies found the fishing boat partially submerged in the lake with the bow pointing vertically. Fishing poles on the bank with baited lines were still in the water, said Gentry. The trio was using a seven-and-a-half-foot flat-bottomed aluminum boat. The search effort has recovered the anchor.

The trio's vehicle was still at Ballard and deputies found some items of clothing. According to Sheriff Bruce Mix, the vehicle was not disabled.

Searches throughout the 11-day period ending Sunday yielded no results and officials decided to scale back the effort.

Scuba divers from Washoe and Lassen Counties, helicopters, fixed wing aircraft, search boats, fish finders and special search dogs have been employed in the search.

Gentry said the water conditions were murky and deputies were unable to see very far into the depths. The visibility of the divers last week was limited to 18 inches and an underwater camera with its own light increased visibility to only two feet. Spring run-off is keeping the water murky and winds are obscuring the view from the surface. Searchers are hoping the clear and warm weather will allow the water to clear and warm up some.

Ballard is estimated to be about a mile long and one-quarter mile across in places. According to Mix, the reservoir covers 110 acres. The drownings are the first at Ballard, which is a very well used recreation area about four miles south of Canby.

Draft EIS set for release on Sierra Nevada Framework

A massive document that could have some serious impacts on the management of 11 national forests, including Modoc, and the Sierra Nevada is scheduled for release to the public this Friday.

Wayne Chandler, Acting Modoc National Forest Supervisor, told county supervisors Tuesday that the draft EIS is 1,500 pages long and that informational meetings will be held locally on the EIS.

The Draft EIS examines the environmental effects of possible future management scenarios for the Modoc, Lassen, Plumas, Tahoe, Eldorado, Stanislaus, Inyo and Sequoia National Forests and the Lake Tahoe Basin Management unit and the portion of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest in the Sierra Nevada. The EIS does not impact private land.

According to Chandler, there will be a 90-day public comment period on the EIS. The four informational meetings for Modoc are as follows; June 1, in Adin, 1 to 3 p.m.; June 6, in Alturas, 1 to 3 p.m.; June 7 in Cedarville, 1 to 3 p.m. and June 8 in Tulelake, 1-3 p.m.

In addition to the public information meetings, there will also be official public hearings where testimony can be received in July. Local officials have stressed the management plans in the Draft EIS should be taken seriously and comments should be specific.

The Draft EIS describes eight alternatives to address five identified urgent problem areas for Sierra Nevada national forests: old forest ecosystems, aquatic; riparian and meadow ecosystems; fire and fuel management; noxious weeds; and lower westside hardwood ecosystems.

The eight alternatives range for a going along with what's happening now, to a pair of "preferred alternatives" which will mean changes in management policies and activities. Those alternatives are listed as numbers six and eight.

Taking out the "no action" alternative, the remaining seven reflect diverse approaches to improving forest management relative to problem areas while addressing social, economic and cultural concerns, roads and recreation.

Chandler points out that all seven alternatives are based on science in the Sierra Nevada Ecosystem Project and more recent studies. Each action alternative is built around a different theme and has a related set of land allocations and associated standards and guidelines governing management activities.

"This process, affecting more than 11 million acres of treasured public lands, has been underway in various forms since 1991," said Brad Powell. Pacific Southwest Regional Forester. "The issues involved are ripe for resolution, and I am very pleased to announce this significant step. I encourage the public to help us refine and improve our analysis as we move toward a final decision."

Kent Connaughton, the Framework Project Manager, feels the final decision will require some "well-reasoned" tradeoffs between fuel reduction (to reduce fire risk) and wildlife habitat protection.

"While alternatives six and eight both reduce fuels and protect wildlife habitat, alternative six has more opportunity to fully implement measures to reduce the fire threat in Sierra Nevada," said Connaughton. "Alternative eight limits fuel reduction until further study of the effect on wildlife habitat. We are highlighting both alternatives to give the public an opportunity to focus their input during the 90-day comment period, and to help us reach the best possible final decision."

It is important to note that all eight alternatives protect water quality and the ecosystems in and near streams, lakes and meadows. Alternatives six and eight rate highest in those areas. All the alternatives protect large trees and increase the amount of old growth forest conditions, protect and restore lower westside hardwood forests and provide strategies for dealing with noxious weeds. And all action alternatives improve habitat for selected species, some more than others. Differences in how the alternatives benefit all of these identified problem areas are mainly a matter of strategies used to reach the goals. The degree of benefits differs mainly in the complex areas of fuel reduction and wildlife habitat protection.

None of the alternatives provide for a regulated timber supply, meaning that the traditional measure of Allowable Sale Quantity would not apply. Timber production would be a result of improving forest health and reducing fire danger, and would result mainly from thinning stands of smaller diameter trees. Under five of the seven action alternatives, timber sale offerings on all 11 National Forests would decline in varying degrees from recent levels (which are themselves significantly lower than the levels of the mid-1980s). Alternatives six and eight are among the five that would cause a decline.

All seven alternatives would decrease the amount of timber offered in the Herger-Feinstein Quincy Library Group Pilot Project Area, on the Lassen and Plumas National Forests, and the Sierraville Ranger District of the Tahoe National Forest/ The amount of decrease varies widely among alternatives, allowing different levels of implementation of the pilot project. In another area of public interest, the degree of flexibility for local Forest Service managers varies from high to low among the alternatives.

As far as public land grazing issues, there would be no immediate impacts, instead changes would come on a case-by-case basis as grazing permits are considered for renewal. In general, all the alternatives reduce the acres of rangeland considered suitable for grazing. This stems from the emphasis in the alternatives for additional protections of riparian areas and aquatic environments.

Full details are available in the document itself, which is being mailed this week to those on the Framework Project mailing list. Anyone wanting a copy of the Draft EIS, or a 40-page summary, can obtain one by writing to: USDA Forest Service--CAET; Sierra Nevada Framework Project; P.O. Box 7669; Missoula, Mt. 59807. Copies will also be available at libraries throughout California and western Nevada. The entire Draft EIS will also be on the Internet at www.r5.fs.fed.us/sncf.

The Draft EIS Notice of Availability is scheduled for Federal Register publication on May 5. To ensure a comment period of at least 90 days, input will be accepted until a postmark date of August 11, 2000. Comments from the public, state and federal agencies, tribes, elected officials, organizations and others should be sent to the above address in Missoula. The Forest Service team then will record the comments on a database

 

Alturas Elementary honored by state for programs

Alturas Elementary School is one of the 233 elementary schools out of more than 5,000 in California to be recognized as a California Distinguished School for the year 2000.

The California Department of Education recognizes exemplary elementary and secondary schools in alternate years. The 1999-2000 state recognition program focused on elementary schools.

To be eligible for the 2000 School Recognition Program, Alturas Elementary School's 1999 SAT 9 assessment results had to place in the upper half of the statewide distribution.

Other standards that were considered during the application evaluation were: visionary and collaborative school leadership; implementation of state-adopted academic standards; a strong curriculum in all subject areas that includes content knowledge, application of basic skills, problem solving, and comprehension; reduced class size; comprehensive professional development that reflects the California standards for the teaching profession; modern technology to support student learning; special assistance for students who are learning the English language, who are at risk, or who have physical or learning disabilities; a safe and clean learning environment that communicates the importance of education in our society; strategies that promote healthy behaviors and positive character traits in students; extensive family participation in the school; and partnerships with business and community groups to enhance student learning.

After Randy Wise, Alturas Elementary Principal, was notified of the school's eligibility, an eleven page application describing the school's programs and accomplishments was submitted for review.

The applications were screened in Sacramento and 233 schools out of 681 that applied were selected to receive site visits.

A team made up of two representatives from Sacramento, a principal from Redding and representatives from Modoc County Office of Education and Tulelake conducted the site visit on March 28. They visited classrooms, met with parents and members of the community and talked with the teachers of Alturas Elementary. Their goal was to validate the accuracy of the information presented in their application, and to ensure that the school is viewed positively by the community.

A statewide awards ceremony will be held on the evening of Friday, May 5, at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim. A delegation from Modoc will attend to accept the Distinguished School Award for Alturas Elementary School.

The delegation will be made up of the Superintendent of Modoc Joint Unified School District, Don Demsher; Alturas Elementary School Principal, Randy Wise; MJUSD Board Member, Cindy Culp; computer aid, Susan Slinkard; second grade teacher, Donna Johnson; first grade teacher, Kim Parker; first grade teacher, Barbara Moklestad; fourth grade teacher, Beverly Carstens; reading teacher, Susan Younger and Reading Recovery teacher, Carla Ratcliff.

The State Board of Education president and the State Superintendent of Public Instruction will greet each principal and present him with a Distinguished School flag and award plaque for the school.

Dr. Go Forth receives top honor in education

Dr. April Lea Go Forth, Director and Founder of the Resources for Indian Student Education Center based in Alturas, was honored by being named and awarded the "Distinguished Educator" plaque at the 23rd annual American Indian Education Conference at the Disneyland Hotel, Anaheim on April 15.

Actor Floyd Crow Westerman was the keynote speaker for the Educators' luncheon and later interviewed and filmed Dr. Go Forth for a documentary that explores the history of educating Indians in the United States.

As participants at the conference, Medicine Wheel Youth Trainers from RISE, presented 90 minutes of project goals, purpose and outcomes to 20 education professionals during the first strand of workshops on April 14. The team included Jacie Matzke, Lillian Toaetolu, Michael and David Parrish and Dana Knighton.

HAWK Peer Educators from RISE who have been sought as presenters for upcoming events, says Dr. Go Forth, followed in the second strand of workshops with a presentation on HIV/STDs. Twenty-one participants received current information on risk behaviors, transmission and prevention related to sexually transmitted infections. The highly-interactive workshop was delivered by Lisa Craig, Posh VanEtten, Robert Parrish, AnnMarie Sanchez and Laura Toaetolu.

Accompanied by 22 RISE students, staff and chaperones, the group visited the magic kingdom of Disneyland on Sunday. RISE gives thanks to the Cedarville Rancheria for assisting in the transportation of the large group.

Dr. Go Forth thanked her students, "for what is a teacher without students," she told the Record, with a smile.

Migratory Bird Festival promises learning

The 2000 Migratory Bird Festival is being held in Alturas Saturday, May 13.

The action packed event will begin with a "breakfast with the birds" tour at 7:00 a.m. and continue throughout the day with activities that include tours, an art show, bird watching, free bird houses for kids, ranch tour, wildlife drawing and much more. A story time and other activities will be available throughout the day in a special area for children.

Booths and workshops will include wildlife photography, waterfowl identification, sage grouse biology, and many other demonstrations including bat biology and basic birding tours for adults and children. T-shirts featuring the logo de signed by Modoc High School student Christina Crawford will be for sale, as will refreshments.

Don't forget to bid on the Silent Auction of wildlife art items during the festival. Silent bids will close at 2:30 p.m.

Also, free transportation is being provided to the festival by Sage Stage. The shuttle service will be available from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. between the Veteran's Park in Alturas and the Modoc National Wildlife Refuge. One bus will travel back and forth, carrying riders on first-come, first served, space-available basis to and from the Modoc Migratory Bird Festival.

With advance notice, special curbside pick up from your home within Alturas City limits can be arranged. Call Sage Stage at 233-3883 for reservations, personal assistance and trip planning Monday through Friday only.

This fun and informational day is sponsored by the Modoc County Natural Resource Education Committee. The location is Modoc Wildlife Refuge, just south of Alturas. Make plans for your family to be a part of this unique event to learn and enjoy the birds and other wildlife that are so important to our way of life. Directions to Modoc Wildlife Refuge: from Highway 395 (Main Street) take County Road 56 east past the museum to County Road 115, then south to the Refuge. Transportation will be available from the park off County Road 56 via Sage Stage bus.

For further information, call the Refuge at 530-233-3572 or visit the web site at www.r5.fs.fed.us/modoc/naturalhistory/bird_festival/birdfest.htm.

Duck race tickets flying out quickly

Modoc County Little Leaguers flooded the new Alturas Rotary Park ballfields last weekend to open the season with several games going on at the same time.

The new ballfields are the fruit of the Alturas Rotary Clubs' Great Pit River Duck Race fund raisers. Duck Race chairman Bill Madison said seeing all the Little Leaguers playing ball last weekend on the new fields was pretty exciting and very gratifying. A grand opening of the park is planned for June 3.

"Just watching the kids fill up those fields made all the work on the Duck Race very worthwhile," said Madison. "The community should be very proud, as well, that the park was funded through its donations to youth. It's a very positive monument to our commitment to youth activities."

While the kids are now playing, the work is not done and the year 2000 version of the Duck Race is now going hot and heavy. Tickets went on sale in April and according to Madison, sales have been better than usual.

"We're really pleased and if people want to make sure they get a Duck Race ticket, we'd advise them to purchase them early," said Madison. "Don't forget, the grand prize winner last year bought just one duck."

The top prize this year is a really cool 2000 Volkswagen Beetle. Other prizes include a fishing boat, Monitor Stove, a Rally Scooter, set of tires, riding lawn mower, refrigerator and much more. A full list of prizes and sponsors will be published next week.

There are 3,000 tickets available for the Duck race, for $25 each. The coupon book that comes with the race ticket is full of great bargains.

This year's Duck Race will be held July 1 during the Alturas Chamber of Commerce's Fandango Days celebration.

What happens is 3,000 numbered rubber ducks are dropped into the Pit River at the Estes Street Bridge. The ducks float down to the Main Street Bridge where they're gathered up in order of finish. Each duck's number corresponds to the ticket holder. The first duck across wins the top prize.

Tickets are available now at Seab's True Value, Belligerent Duck, Walt's Market, Les Schwab Tires, 4-Corners, Holiday Market, Alturas Tire, Likely Store and Cafe, Williams Texaco and Plumas Bank.

 

Record news for May 11, 2000

 

• Ballard releases 2 of 3 bodies
• Sheriff investigating shooting death of teen
• City opts to contine effort on railroad museum
• Migratory bird festival set this weekend
• MMC welcoming new medical director
• Modoc Museum opens with exiting displays

 

Ballard Reservoir gives up 2 of 3 bodies

Two of the three bodies of men drowned at Ballard were discovered over the weekend, floating in the reservoir south of Canby.

The body of Jordan Ruskell, 13, of Salinas, was found by Deputies Mark Pearce and George Semenko while they were patrolling the reservoir on Friday. The young man's body was found across the reservoir from the boat launching area.

On Sunday, about 3 p.m. a pair of local fisherman discovered the body of Eddie Robinson, also floating in the reservoir across from the boat launching area, but not close to where the boy's body surfaced. The body of Rodney Ruskell, age 50, is expected to be recovered in the near future.

According to Undersheriff Mark Gentry, there are no signs of foul play on either of the bodies and both have been sent to Shasta County for routine autopsy. An autopsy on Jordan Ruskell has revealed the cause of death as drowning.

The three fishermen were lost and presumed drowned when they did not return home from a trip to Ballard Reservoir April 20.

The last major day of searching was April 30 when a search and rescue team including divers was dispatched to Ballard from Washoe County.

Gentry said deputies found the fishing boat partially submerged in the lake with the bow pointing vertically. Fishing poles on the bank with baited lines were still in the water, said Gentry. The trio was using a seven-and-a-half-foot flat-bottomed aluminum boat. The trio's vehicle was still at Ballard and deputies found some items of clothing. According to Sheriff Bruce Mix, the vehicle was not disabled.

Scuba divers from Washoe and Lassen Counties, helicopters, fixed wing aircraft, search boats, fish finders and special search dogs have been employed in the search.

Ballard is estimated to be about a mile long and one-quarter mile across in places. According to Mix, the reservoir covers 110 acres. The drownings are the first at Ballard, which is a very well used recreation area about four miles south of Canby.

Sheriff investigating shooting death of teen

The Modoc County Sheriff's department is investigating the May 6 shooting death of a local teenager.

According to Undersheriff Mark Gentry, the victim, 15-year-old Cory Hewitt, and a friend, age 16, were out shooting squirrels in the area of County Road 75 about 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

As they arrived back at the victim's house, and were getting off an ATV, the .22 caliber rifle discharged. The bullet struck the 15-year-old in the back. He was pronounced dead by local ambulance technicians when they arrived at the scene.

The Modoc District Attorney's Office has filed involuntary manslaughter charges in juvenile court against the 16-year-old. He will not be treated as an adult in the case.

In another case, the Sheriff's office is treating the death of a 22-year-old Adin woman as an apparent suicide.

Gentry said the woman was found by her sister May 6 and reported to the Sheriff's Office who responded. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to Gentry, there is no evidence of foul play.

City opts to continue rail museum work

The City of Alturas Tuesday night opted to continue its efforts on an Alturas Railroad Museum, but has agreed to working with an entity other than Wrymoo.

A group formerly know as Friends of Wrymoo has been reorganized officially as the Warner Mountain Gandy Dancers and asked the council Tuesday for recognition and permission to continue work parties and fundraising efforts for the museum. The council approved that request.

The council has canceled a contract with Wrymoo and is currently in the process of identifying property and ownership of railroad equipment. Wrymoo and the city had originally cooperated on the effort to build and maintain the Railroad museum, but that arrangement went afoul during the last election. The Gandy Dancers' President Jill Porter, said the new group's intent is to continue interest and work on the railroad museum and bring the ideas and dreams to fruition.

In other action Tuesday night, the council opted to relax enforcement of an ordinance basically prohibiting merchandise and other items on Main Street sidewalks while it and the Alturas Chamber of Commerce come to terms on an amended ordinance.

While the current ordinance is ambiguous in many areas, its basic premise that the sidewalks will not be obstructed remains intact. Businesses will have to use more of a common sense approach to placing items on the sidewalks during the interim.

Chamber President David Mason said the problem coming up with language for a new ordinance is in making it fit the situation and treat all businesses fairly. He said he and the Chamber will be working with City Planner Scott Kessler to come to terms on the language.

The council also agreed to extend franchise negotiations with Charter Cable another 60 days to hammer out some small details of the agreement. The franchise expires May 31.

The council also approved a $1,300 expenditure from Community Project funds to complete the trash barrel project for Main Street. The attractive wood surrounds were constructed last year by Summer Youth Employment workers under direction of VeeAnn Ambers. Those trash bins should be placed on Main Street by summer.

Migratory Bird Festival is set for top flight weekend

There could not be a better time than now to hold the 2000 Migratory Bird Festival in Modoc. Canada geese are parading with their young broods throughout the Modoc National Wildlife Refuge and the scenes are excellent.

The festival is being held in Alturas this Saturday, May 13. There will be plenty of interesting indoor activities and the event will be held regardless of weather conditions.

The action-packed event will begin with a "breakfast with the birds" tour at 7:00 a.m. and continue throughout the day with activities that include tours, an art show, bird watching, free bird houses for kids, ranch tour, wildlife drawing and much more. A story time and other activities will be available throughout the day in a special area for children.

Booths and workshops will include wildlife photography, waterfowl identification, sage grouse biology, and many other demonstrations including bat biology and basic birding tours for adults and children. T-shirts featuring the logo designed by Modoc High School student Christina Crawford will be for sale, as will refreshments.

Don't forget to bid on the Silent Auction of wildlife art items during the festival. Silent bids will close at 2:30 p.m.

Also, free transportation is being provided to the festival by Sage Stage. The shuttle service will be available from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. between the Veteran's Park in Alturas and the Modoc National Wildlife Refuge. One bus will travel back and forth, carrying riders on first-come, first served, space-available basis to and from the Modoc Migratory Bird Festival.

With advance notice, special curbside pick up from your home within Alturas City limits can be arranged. Call Sage Stage at 233-3883 for reservations, personal assistance and trip planning Monday through Friday only.

This fun and informational day is sponsored by the Modoc County Natural Resource Education Committee. The location is Modoc Wildlife Refuge, just south of Alturas. Make plans for the family to be a part of this unique event to learn and enjoy the birds and other wildlife that are so important to our way of life. Directions to Modoc Wildlife Refuge: from Highway 395 (Main Street) take County Road 56 east past the museum to County Road 115, then south to the Refuge. Transportation will be available from the park off County Road 56 via Sage Stage bus.

For further information, call the Modoc Refuge at 530-233-3572 or simply visit their Internet site located at www.r5.fs.fed.us/modoc/naturalhistory/bird_festival/birdfest.htm.

MMC Clinic welcomes incoming Medical Director

 

By Nora Russell

On August 1 the position of Medical Director for the Modoc Medical Center Clinic will be filled by Dana Lewis, OD.

Lewis is currently serving an OBGYN fellowship in San Bernardino where she splits her duties between two hospitals, River side County Regional Medical Center and Arrowhead Regional Medical Center.

Labor and Delivery, Clinic, and Night Float are three areas of responsibility that Lewis manages. Lewis has experience with high-risk pregnancies and has delivered more than 40 babies through C-Section since the beginning of the year.

"We are very glad that Dr. Lewis will be joining our staff," said Teresa Jacques, Modoc Medical Center Administrator. "We are planning to redo the OB rooms and provide additional OB training for the nurses now that we have a doctor with such extensive OB experience."

"I always wanted to be a doctor," Lewis said. But it wasn't until after receiving a degree in Biological Sciences at the University of California in Irvine and a Masters Degree in Public Health at Loma Linda University, specializing in En vironmental Health that Lewis got serious about becoming a family doctor.

In January of 1991 Lewis entered the Western University of Osteopathic Medicine and graduated as a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine in 1996.

San Bernardino Medical Center is the hospital where Lewis spent her internship. She participated in a transitional year-round program with electives in community medicine and family med-icine. Lewis went to the University of Southern California Department of Med-icine for two years and was Chief Resident for one year. She graduated in 1999 with the first group to graduate from that particular program.

Moving away from her mother, grandmother and brother will be difficult, "But my mom is already trying to figure out a way to move up here too," laughed Lewis. Her mother works in the education field and has a doctoral degree in education. Lewis' father is a retired Los Angeles County Sheriff living in Santa Barbara and does security work up and down the state of California.

Lewis will take the place of the fly-in doctors group at Modoc Medical Center four days a week and will be in charge of the emergency room, hospital patients and the nursing facility patients.

"We're planning a community meeting and barbecue to introduce Dr. Lewis to the community," explained Jacques. "We'll also talk about other improvements that are planned for Modoc Medical Center. The date is tentatively set for the third week in July."

Lewis enjoys plays and dramatic acting and would like to become involved in MPAT. She is looking forward to settling into a routine that will allow her the time and opportunity to pursue her interests of softball, arts and crafts, playing piano and going to the movies.

Modoc Museum opens with exciting new displays

 

By Nora Russell

Spring time has arrived, and with it the re-opening of the Modoc County Historical Museum on May 3.

Even though the museum had been closed to the public since October 31, 1999, a lot of activity was going on behind the scenes.

New carpet was put down in the lobby and offices, a new storage area was created and the floors were stripped and waxed by Dixie Server and two hard working volunteers. A western mural was painted on the walls of the men's restroom by museum curator, Paula Murphy. Now both of the bathrooms in the museum have murals of cowboys and cowgirls and are decorated in a western theme.

One of the three new displays available for viewing this season was created by Gerry Gates, Modoc National Forest Service archeologist of Heritage Resource Management. The display includes pictures, artifacts and dioramas of The Modoc War of 1872-1873.

Gates provides a comprehensive time-line beginning on the fateful day of November 29, 1872 when "Calvary from Fort Klamath under Capt. James Jackson enter Captain Jack's camp on the Lost River and orders Jack back to the reservation. After terse discussions, two shots rang out, Lt. F.A. Boutella and Scarfaced Charley, firing simultaneously at each other (and missing)...the Modoc War began," to the end of the the war.

Two dioramas created by Gates depict the confrontation at Captain Jack's Camp and the Battle of Sorass Lake on May 10, 1873.

Modoc Women in the Military is the subject of another new display featuring four Modoc women. The presentation includes personal items and memorabilia belonging to Virginia Pearce, June Graham, Claudia Cooper and Trudi Englehardt from their time spent in the military.

Virginia Pearce received flight training in Houston, Texas in 1942. She ferried airplanes across the U.S. and Canada which helped to free up male pilots to fly oversees during World War II.

During her time in the military, Trudi Englehardt was assigned as the fourth ever female correctional officer at the United States Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. It was a maximum security prison housing 1500 male prisoners from all branches of the military.

The third new display is in honor of the late Don Stahl, a patron member of the Modoc County Historical Society. Stahl was an avid fisherman and taught numerous beginning fly tying classes, also giving fly tying demonstrations at the Modoc County Children's Fair.

Included in the display are pictures of the largest fish he ever caught and the description of his signature fishing fly called the Pine Creek Special Fly.

The museum will be open Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m to 4:00 p.m. and will be closed Sunday and Monday.

 

 

Record news for May 18, 2000

 

• Final body recovered in Ballard accident
• County joins with Siskiyou to oppose PacifiCorp motion
• SV Hospital wants share of tobacco settlement
• MJUSD hires new super from Chester
• New computers expand resources at Library
• Fun-filled planned for Children's Fair
• Ft. Bidwell plans BBQ
• Modoc jobless rate at 8.5%

 

 

Final body recovered in Ballard accident

The final body of three missing fishermen, that of Rodney Ruskell, age 50, of Alturas, was found floating in Ballard Reservoir Monday about 8:45 a.m. by Deputy Mark Pearce.

The body was found about 60 yards offshore from the boat launching area at Ballard.

The body of Jordan Ruskell, 13, of Salinas, was found by Pearce and Deputy George Semenko while they were patrolling the reservoir on May 5. The young man's body was found across the reservoir from the boat launching area.

On the afternoon of May 7, a pair of local fisherman discovered the body of Eddie Robinson, also floating in the reservoir across from the boat launching area, but not close to where the boy's body surfaced.

Autopsies on both Jordan Ruskell and Robinson show drowning to be the cause of death. The elder Ruskell's body has been sent to Shasta County for autopsy and Undersheriff Mark Gentry said he expects the same results. There was no sign of foul play on any of the men.

The three fishermen were lost and presumed drowned when they did not return from a fishing trip to Ballard April 20.

Gentry said deputies found the fishing boat partially submerged in the lake with the bow pointing vertically. Fishing poles on the bank with baited lines were still in the water, said Gentry. The trio was using a seven-and-a-half-foot flat-bottomed aluminum boat.

Scuba divers from Washoe and Lassen Counties, helicopters, fixed wing aircraft, search boats, fish finders and special search dogs were employed in the search.

Ballard, about four miles south of Canby, is estimated to be about a mile long and one-quarter mile across in places. The reservoir covers 110 acres. The drownings are the first at Ballard.

 

County joins with Siskiyou on opposing Nor-Cal motion

Modoc County will join with Siskiyou County in opposition to a motion filed by PacifiCorp before the California Public Utilities Commission concerning the Nor-Cal Electric purchase settlement and operation the electrical system in northern California.

District Attorney Tom Buckwalter received the go ahead Tuesday to oppose the motion, saying that PacifiCorp and Nor-Cal appear to be less than honest in their approach.

For instance, he said PacifiCorp states there is no opposition to the settlement. In fact, said Buckwalter, the City of Alturas, Modoc County and Siskiyou County have serious concerns about the settlement and the overall project.

"We've been trying to negotiate in good faith with Nor-Cal and PacifiCorp to get some questions answered," Buckwalter said. "We're not getting any answers."

PacifiCorp has filed a motion with the CPUC as an effort to approve the sale of their northern California properties, including Alturas and Modoc County, to Nor-Cal, a joint powers authority with the operation going to a newly formed JPA called Jefferson Public Power Authority, who would operate the system.

The whole project received a setback when a Del Norte County court ruled that Nor-Cal, could own but not operate the system. The settlement under review by the CPUC establishes Jefferson as the operating entity.

The City of Alturas and County of Modoc remain skeptical of the purchase of PacifiCorp's Northern California property, especially when a 10-year study of electric rates is considered.

Last month the city and county held a joint work session to allow it's consultant from R.W. Beck, Dean H. Park, to air his point of view and also for representatives from NorCal to present their case. Neither Modoc, nor the City of Alturas has joined the JPA.

One of the main points brought out during the work session was the fact that Nor-Cal/JPPA predicts electric rates for Modoc customers will rise about 45 percent over the next 10 years. The rates are frozen at current levels for 2000 and 2001, and increases in rates are predicted from 2002 on. Nor-Cal is predicting PacifiCorp rates could be much higher over the same period.

While all local representatives wanted some specifics, the Nor-Cal/JPPA plan relies on financial and operational assumptions and predictions that the local elected officials are having trouble buying.

PacifiCorp (now owned by Scottish Power) agreed to sell its northern California properties to Nor-Cal Electric Authority in July, 1999. NorCal, with lead entities the County of Del Norte and City of Yreka, initially planned to acquire, own and operate the electric system. In August, 1999, PacifiCorp filed an action with the California Public Utilities Commission to transfer the electric system from PacficCorp to Nor-Cal.

A curve was thrown into the mix in August when a "validation" judgment in Del Norte Superior Court ruled that Nor-Cal did not have the legal authority to operate the electric system. In response to the judgment, the cities of Yreka and Dunsmuir organized a new joint powers authority, Jefferson Public Power Authority, to operate the system. Nor-Cal would remain in the mix, but counties can not be involved in the operation of the system, while cities can. All cities within the service territory have been invited to join Jefferson. Alturas, and other cities, have not yet been convinced. Several cities in the north state have joined the JPA.

In addition to the rates, financial situations and legal questions, the city and county are also concerned about franchise fees and property taxes. Currently PacifiCorp pays franchise fees and property taxes. Their property is assessed by the State Board of Equalization.

 

SV hospital wants share of tobacco settlement funding

The Directors of the Surprise Valley Hospital District asked the Board of Supervisors Tuesday for consideration in the share of state tobacco settlement funds.

Those funds come from the state's lawsuit settlement against the tobacco companies and are not related to any of the Proposition 99 or Proposition 10 monies approved by the voters. The settlement funds have nothing to do with the Modoc County Tobacco Education Program.

The county received about $142,000 as its share of the settlement and will receive funds from the settlement over the next 25 years. Even though the settlement had to do with health related costs because of tobacco, the funds are not earmarked for any special purpose. While some counties are using the funding for health-related items, many are not.

The county used its first level funding to pay down the debt on Modoc Medical Center and it went directly into the county treasury. The money did not go into any fund that Modoc Medical Center could use for operation or purchases.

The Surprise Valley representatives said while they did not object to using some of the funding for Modoc Medical Center, they believed a share of it should go to their facility, which is financed, in part, by special district taxes on Surprise Valley residents, and to the Canby Clinic.

Supervisors explained that the current round of funding has been spent, but they would be willing to discuss a formula or method to share future funds from the settlement.

SV Hospital Administrator Joyce Gysin said the facility has the same troubles Modoc Medical does and is always in a struggle to survive, especially with low Medi-Cal, Medicare reimbursements. She said all rural hospitals are facing similar problems and are struggling to make ends meet.

Some people representing the Surprise Valley felt that putting money into the Alturas hospital was a waste. They suggested the people of Alturas and surrounding areas vote in a special district and tax themselves if they want to keep the hospital open. Any vote on a special district and taxation would have to pass by two-thirds majority, which many officials feel is unattainable at this time.

Gysin said the Surprise Valley hospital serves county residents and should be entitled to some of the tobacco funding. The facility receives $96,000 annually through its special tax assessment and has been operating for the past 15 years.

Gysin said it has been successful largely because of the special district funding and a loyal and dedicated staff. She felt that since the tobacco settlement funds came about because of health care costs, they should be spent on health care items by each county.

Supervisors stressed that the hospital in Alturas needs to be maintained and kept open and since the current relationship with the University of Southern California.

 

MJUSD hires new super from Chester

 

By Nora Russell

During the Modoc Joint Unified School District board meeting held on May 16, Interim Superintendent, Don Demsher, announced that Kevin Jolly had been chosen as the new Superintendent of the school district .

Jolly attended the May 16 board meeting and will return on May 19 to sign the finalized contract.

Presently, Jolly is the principal of Chester High School in Chester, CA and was the principal of the elementary school in Chester for two years prior to that.

Demsher and members of the MJUSD school board traveled to Chester and met with the students, parents and staff from Chester High. "They all had very positive things to say about Jolly," said Demsher. "He made significant improvements to the school while he was there."

Jolly will begin his official duties as MJUSD Superintendent on July 1.

During the board meeting it was also approved that the District maintenance personnel will do modernization projects at the small schools and will have the authority to hire appropriate personnel to do the necessary work.

While under discussion board member, Jeff Bushey, expressed concern that he had heard that local contractors felt they were being used by the district to submit bids, when the district planned on doing the projects in-house anyway.

"Some contractors feel that this happens often and they may not be willing to bid with the district again," explained Bushey.

Demsher assured the board that legal counsel had been consulted and it is legal for the district to choose to do the work in-house as many other districts do.

"Sub-contractors will still be hired to do some of the work," pointed out board president, Sean Curtis. "The district will get more for their dollar handling projects in-house, and we're responsible for how we use public funds."

The board also approved a request made by John Nickel, Modoc High School Principal and Jim McLaughlin, Dean of Stu dents, Modoc High School for changes in Modoc H.S. Graduation Requirements.

The present requirements of Geography/Drivers Ed, 10 credits and Health/Study Skills, 10 credits will be changed to Geography, 10 credits; Health, 5 credits and Drivers Ed/StudySkills/Ca-reers, 5 credits.

Where there was no graduation requirement for computer skills, a Computer Applications class worth 10 credits will now be required. Students can choose to attend a year-long course or demonstrate proficiency in those skills.

New computers expand resources for library patrons

By Nora Russell

"Digital Divide" is a term used to express the gap between those who have access to computer technology and those who do not.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is working to close the "Digital Divide" through the U.S. Library Program, with the goal of making technology available to everyone, regardless of race, gender, income or age.

The foundation recognizes that libraries have a heritage of providing free information to the public, yet the libraries may lack the financial resources to provide widespread access to technology.

The U.S. Library Program makes grants to public libraries for the purpose of purchasing computers and hardware to bring Internet access to their patrons. As part of the grant, libraries also receive free training and technical assistance and other support, as well as donated software from Microsoft Corporation.

The five-year goal of the Library Program is to provide grants to the more than 11,000 libraries in the United States and Canada serving low-income communities and provide training to librarians to ensure information access for future generations.

With grants totaling $34,135 from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Modoc County Library purchased ten new Gateway computers with Internet connections, and five new laser printers for its five library sites: Alturas, Adin, Cedarville, Davis Creek and Lookout.

Cara Wilson and Theresa Stoisch, both Public Access Computing Trainers with the Gates Foundation, installed the computers at each library site and provided training to the library staff between May 4 and 9.

One of the two computers installed at each of the Adin, Cedarville, Davis Creek and Lookout sites, is in the Spanish language.

Each computer is also equipped with two sets of headphones and a wide variety of programs, although not all of the programs are available in Spanish. Many of the programs are available in large fonts for easy readability. A few of the programs on the computers are:

The World English Dictionary 2000 is an electronic "desk reference library." Its reference features include: word definitions, synonyms, quotations, world maps, and a style guide. It also has the features of sound, images, videos and animation.

Encarta Encyclopedia 2000 is a reference tool that enhances basic encyclopedia articles with multimedia features: pictures, sounds, videos, and animation. Encarta is updated monthly to provide current information and also provides links to relevant Web pages.

Encarta Africana 2000 is an interactive reference program that examines the legacy of the African Diaspora by focusing on the histories, cultures, and geographies of Africa and people of African descent.

Encarta Research Organizer 2000 helps structure information from a variety of computer-based sources for use in term papers, reports, and other research projects.

World Atlas 2000 is a multimedia world atlas and globe. Different scale maps of the world can be viewed along with photos, videos, music clips, and statistics about countries and cultures.

Expedia Streets & Trips 2000 is a travel guide and detailed atlas of the United States, Mexico, and Canada that can locate on street maps specific addresses, cities, states, airports, National Parks, and a variety of other points of interest. In addition, it can help customize automobile trips, providing detailed driving instruc tions, maps with route highlighted, distance, and estimated fuel and mileage costs.

Corbis Leonardo daVinci, Critical Mass, and FDR are like multimedia museum exhibits. Leonardo deals with the life, times, and work of Leonardo da Vinci. Critical Mass explores the history of the atom bomb and its creators, and FDR illustrates the life and times of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Office programs such as Word 2000, Excel 2000, Publisher 2000, PowerPoint 2000 and Access 2000 are also available on the computers.

Learning programs for children starring some favorite characters are included, such as: Arthur's Brainteasers, Math Carnival, and Reading Roundup; Barney's Circus, Farm and Sea; Dr. Seuss' The Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham; Magic School Bus's Rainforest, Earth and Dinosaurs and other story programs.

Big Science Ideas: Systems allow kids to explore various science systems, a mid-size system of a pond ecosystem and a huge size system of the earth's plate tectonics.

Success Builder programs teach algebra and geometry skills. They are both divided into 12 chapters, contain over 50 in-depth topics, and offer more than 500 multiple-choice practice problems.

Baker estimates that the computers will be available for use by library patrons in late June. Another team of computer technicians will come from the Gates Foundation to provide a second round of training for library staff members.

Guidelines will then be developed for use of the computers at each site. "Each library site has different hours and different needs for their patrons," explained Baker. "We want to provide the widest access possible and will develop guidelines with that in mind."

"I want to acknowledge Jerry Cook and Neil Flagg, who have provided a lot of technical assistance to the library locally," Baker added.

Library patrons in outlying areas will be able to use the computers to do more research; more quickly. Davis Creek doesn't currently have a card catalog, they will now be able to find books available from Alturas over the Internet.

Patrons will also be able to use their library card to access Gale Reference Center Gold, a full text periodical database with over 11,000 titles.

"Having these computers has really expanded the library resources, where budget and space limitations may have restricted expansion in other ways," said Modoc County Librarian, Cheryl Baker.

 

Fun-filled day planned for Modoc Children's Fair

 

By Nora Russell

Whether it snows, rains, hails or sleets the 13th annual Modoc County Children's Fair will provide fun, food, entertainment and education on Saturday, May 20.

"The fair is happening no matter what, but we're sure hoping for some sunshine," said Barb Weed, Children's Fair Coordinator.

The theme of this year's fair is "Yesterday's Memories are Tomorrow's Future".

Mrs. Havlina's 6th grade language class in Tulelake was the winner of a county-wide competition to come up with the theme. The class won a pizza party for the winning entry.

A broad assortment of activities will be available from the fair's opening ceremony at 9:00 a.m. until closing at 3:00 p.m.

The Main Stage, Stage Area II and Stage Area III is where the action-packed entertainment will take place.

The Belles and Beaus performing western dances; wild animals taking over the stage with Wild Things; magician Tommy Nugent presenting Magic and Motivation; The Keith Show combining comedy and juggling and local band, Heartless, performing a medley of popular music.

Hands-on games and crafts will include; macaroni jewelry, Clean Mud, a fishing booth, Flubber and Gak.

Skills to be demonstrated during the fair are: Archeology, rocket display, stained glass, fish casting, fowl display, kite flying, bird feeders, origami, a chess competition and the opportunity to have names printed in a foreign language on ribbons.

Personal creativity can run rampant under the Discovery Tent while making yarn dolls and other intriguing projects like; earth buddies that grow grass hair, tin foil embossing, worm painting, making headbands, marble mazes, ant farms and stick bugs.

Emergency vehicles will be on hand from the California Department of Forestry, BLM, Modoc National Forest, Alturas Rural Fire Department, Alturas Police Department, California Highway Patrol, Alturas Fire Department, Cal Pines Fire Department and Modoc Medical Center. Emergency personnel will be available to answer questions and demonstrate some uses of emergency equipment.

For the third consecutive year the Children's Fair will sponsor a 50/50 raffle. The grand prize is half of the money raised from the raffle. K.C. Tierney, winner of the 1998 50/50 raffle, received $750 while last year's winner, Judi Stevenson, received $1,000.

"Our goal this year is to award the winner $1,500," explained Weed. "We are very close to being able to do that now."

This year, additional prizes will be included in the raffle; 1st prize is a microwave, 2nd is a garden gift basket and 10 miscellaneous prizes.

Synchronizing all of the many elements of a large children's fair is no easy task. The planning committee works all year to bring everything together by the third week in May.

"I am always amazed at how smoothly the committee works together," said Weed. "I can't thank them enough for how supportive they are of each other."

Modoc County Health Services, Modoc Child Care Resource and Referral and Families Matter are the sponsors of this year's children's fair along with supporting agencies; Modoc Joint Unified School District, Modoc Child Care Council, Alliance for Workforce Development, Inc., Environmental Alternatives, Warner Mountain Group Home, I'SOT Inc. and Modoc County Office of Education.

"We wouldn't have a fair without the support of community members who participate," added Weed. "They are what makes the fair so successful."

Ft. Bidwell Barbecue planned

 

Plans are shaping up for the Fort Bidwell Barbecue scheduled for May 28, the Ft. Bidwell Fire Department and Fort Bidwell Civic Club members report. All that is needed to make it a success is bright sunny weather and plenty of hungry people from 11:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Community Center in Ft. Bidwell.

In the meantime, the Civic Club repeats, it will host a limited number of sales booths for individuals or groups who wish to sell such items as books, soaps, hair care products, beadwork, art work or other. Space rental is $10 for the day.

"Bring your own product, table, chair and sign and keep whatever money you make," say organizers. For a booth reservation on a first come, first served basis, call Laurie Stefenoni at 279-2115 or 279-2196.

Prize drawings will include a beef hindquarter; beef forequarter, all cut, wrapped and frozen, plus many other prizes to be announced at this year's fund-raiser.

Tickets for the barbecued New York steak, chicken or hamburger with all the trimmings meal are $10 for adults; children six to 12 years, $6; Children five years and younger are free, when accompanied by a paying adult.

 

Modoc jobless rate at 8.5%

Modoc's unemployment rate for April, 2000 dropped to 8.5 percent, down from 10.9 percent in March, 2000. That's continuing an improvement trend from February's 11.8 percent.

The unemployment rate for the nation in April was 3.7 percent and the state rate was 4.7 percent.

Modoc's 8.5 percent ranks in 39th out of the state's 58 counties for highest unemployment. Siskiyou County's unemployment rate was 9.1% ranking it 41st and Lassen County had a jobless rate of 7.2 percent, ranking it 35th.

 

 

June, 2000

 

Record news for June 1, 2000

 

• One geothermal plant approved, other denied
• Belarde pleads not guilty to misuse of funds
• High school seniors ready to graduate
• MNF sets up meetings for Sierra Framework
• SVJUSD searches for new superintendent
• Junior Show lines out activities
• Cattlemen's Field Day is Sunday

 

One geothermal plant approved, another denied at Medicine Lake

One proposed geothermal power plant in the Medicine Lake area has been approved by federal agencies and another denied.

According to the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management, the Fourmile Hill project northwest of the lake received their blessing while the Telephone Flat project southeast of the lake was denied.

"The environmental impacts of each project were analyzed independently, and each project had a unique set of environmental circumstances which led to the decisions," said Randy Sharp, who led the environmental analysis process for the BLM and Forest Service. "These were difficult decisions for the agencies to make. We had to balance the value of geothermal energy production, which is considered more environmentally friendly than some other methods of power production, against the impacts the developments would have on the Medicine Lake area."

According to Sharp, the analysis showed the Fourmile Hill project, located outside the Medicine Lake volcanic caldera could be built and operated with noise and visual impacts reduced to acceptable levels. The analysis also showed that impacts to Native Americans' cultural and spiritual uses of the area could also be reduced to acceptable levels.

The decision to deny the Telephone Flat project was made because the location of the wells and power plants within the volcanic caldera would create significant noise and visual impacts to recreation visitors, homeowners and American Indian tribes. Construction of the power plant and power lines would have impacted a Modoc National Forest old growth timber stand managed for sensitive species and would have also impacted the Mt. Hoffman roadless area. Those impacts could not be reduced to acceptable levels, ac cording to the environmental analysis.

The Fourmile Hill project was proposed by the Calpine Corporation on lands within the Klamath National Forest and the Telephone Flat project was proposed by California Energy General Corporation on Modoc National Forest Lands. Both were proposed in 1996 on geothermal leases administered by the BLM.

The BLM was responsible for decisions on development of the geothermal resource while the Forest Service had to decide whether to issue permits for activities such as road and power line construction on national forest lands.

According to Sharp, the rationale for the approval of the Fourmile Hill project included: the project being outside the caldera; the impacts to American Indian traditional cultural uses and values could be mitigated; the project would not impact the Mt. Hoffman and Dobie Flat roadless areas and is consistent with land and resource management plans of the national forests as well as BLM policies for renewable energy development.

The approval also included two special provisions: the establishment of a citizen oversight panel to chart the company's compliance with environmental protection provisions; and a five-year moritorium on further development of the Fourmile Hill geothermal lease, pending analysis of geothermal development impacts.

The rationale for denying the Telephone Flat included: The plant being inside the caldera and recreation use has increased significantly since the geothermal leases were issued in 1982; the noise and visual appearance of the plant would have significant impacts on recreation users and those impacts could not be mitigated to an acceptable level; construction would impact the old growth area and could not be mitigated; the project is not consistent with Modoc National Forest provisions that call for protection of heritage resources; construction would impact the Mt. Hoffman roadless area and could not be mitigated; and the American Indian traditional cultural values that make the area eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places would be adversely affected. Consultations with tribal governments, traditional practitioners, the state historic preservation officer and the National Advisory Council on Historic Preservation indicated these effects could not be reduced to acceptable levels.

The decision-making process on the Medicine Lake issue was lengthy and agencies received and analyzed nearly 2,000 public comments.

Sharp said people have expressed concerns about geothermal development in the Medicine Lake area for several reasons. The area is considered by American Indians to have significant spiritual and cultural values. The Pit River Nation and the Klamath tribes have expressed concern that the construction of the plants would be incompatible with use of the area for traditional spiritual purposes.

Other groups have expressed concern that developments would be incompatible with recreation uses both summer and winter. Still other concerns were for groundwater and harmful effects on domestic water supplies.

There has also been support for the projects because geothermally-produced electricity is considered to be more environmentally friendly than other generating methods such as fuels and nuclear power.

The decisions can be appealed to the Interior Board of Land Appeals for the BLM and to the Regional Forester for the Forest Service.

 

Belarde pleads not guilty to misuse of funds

Richard Belarde entered not guilty pleas Tuesday to eight felony counts stemming from alleged misuse of funds in his position as Modoc Social Services Director.

Belarde and a clerical supervisor for Social Services have been placed on paid administrative leave by the County Board of Supervisors pending the results of an ongoing investigation.

A pre-hearing conference in the case is set for June 12 in Modoc Court. Belarde has been charged with six felony counts involving misuse of public funds, one charge of furnishing cocaine to an individual and one of embezzling from the county. No charges have been filed against the other employee.

Belarde was released on his own recognizance.

According to Modoc District Attorney Tom Buckwalter, the Modoc County Drug Task Force handled the investigation into the incident following a tip from an informant. That informant told Task Force officers that Belarde had approved general assistance funds three times, at $295 each payment.

Belarde is charged with three counts of misuse of public funds and three counts of presenting fraudulent claims. The embezzling charge comes from Belarde allegedly taking a county-owned computer. He is also accused of furnishing cocaine to an individual.

The county is undertaking an audit into past records of the Social Services Department and investigating other leads in the case.

 

High school seniors ready to graduate

High school seniors throughout Modoc County are readying themselves this week for graduation and the next step in their young lives.

Big Valley High School will graduate its seniors June 2, 8:30 p.m. in the Cardinal Gymnasium. Valedictorian is Michael McClain and Salutatorian is Megan Armstrong.

Modoc High School's graduation is June 8, 8 p.m. at the Griswold Gymnasium. Valedictorian is Rebekah Richert and Salutatorian is Susanna Wise.

Surprise Valley High School graduates June 9, 8 p.m. in the Hornet Gymnasium. The race for valedictorian and salutatorian has not yet been decided.

 

MNF sets up meetings for Sierra Framework

USDA's Forest Service has published proposals for improving forest plans on 11 national forests in the Sierra Nevada mountain range and Modoc Plateau.

Following an extensive period of scientific study and collaboration with the public, a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is now available for public review. In an effort to continue public involvement, national forests will be holding public information meetings.

The Modoc National Forest has scheduled four information meetings early June to help public and employees get acquainted with the 1500-page, three-volume document. Meetings in the vicinity of the Modoc National Forest are planned in the following locations:

Adin, Thursday, June 1, Adin Community Hall, 1-3 p.m.

Alturas, Tuesday, June 6, USDA Conference Room, 800 W. 12th, 1-3 p.m.

Cedarville, Wednesday, June 7, Warner Mtn. Ran-ger District Office, 1-3 p.m.

Tulelake, Thursday, June 8, Doublehead Ranger District Office, 1-3 p.m.

For specific information regarding the Sierra Nevada Framework project contact Robert Haggard at the Forest Service office in Alturas at 233-8840. For information regarding the upcoming meetings contact District Ranger Sue Wheatley in Adin at 299-3215, Edie Asrow in Cedarville at 279-6116, or Bernie Weisberger at 667-2248 or Haggard at 233-8840.

The 90-day public comment period for the DEIS ends August 11.

The Draft EIS displays the environmental effects of several proposals for future management of the Modoc, Lassen, Plumas, Tahoe, Eldorado, Stanislaus, Sierra, Inyo and Sequoia National Forests (NF), the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit and the portion of the Humboldt-Toiyabe NF in the Sierra Nevada. The EIS does not affect private land.

The Draft EIS is designed to specifically address five national forest problem areas identified during scientific review and public comments as needing urgent attention. The problem areas are: old forests and habitat for associated species; aquatic, riparian and meadow ecosystems, fire and fuels management; noxious weeds, and lower westside hardwood ecosystems.

The eight alternatives include a "no action" alternative to describe "no change" from current management. The remaining seven "action" alternatives reflect diverse approaches to improving national forest management relative to the problem areas and addressing significant issues such as social, economic and cultural concerns, roads and recreation access. In the two years leading up to the Draft EIS, citizens, elected officials, land managers, scientists, resource special-ists, and interest groups were among the thousands of people who contributed to the ideas represented in the alternatives.

Each action alternative has been built around a different theme and is related to a set of land allocations and associated standards and guidelines governing management activities. Projected environmental, social and economic consequences are discussed along with outputs for each alternative to provide a sense of the strengths, weaknesses and trade-offs among alterna tives. The seven action alternatives have similar goals, but different ways to achieve those goals, for old forest conservation, aquatic, riparian and meadow protection, noxious weed management, and lower Westisde hardwood conser-vation. For fire and fuels management, the goals, as well as the means to achieve those goals differ among alternatives.

The Forest Service in encouraging people to review the Draft EIS and identify features of the various alternatives that should be carried forward to a final decision about improving national forest management. A forty page Summary will be available, as will a much larger, three volume set of the full Draft EIS, Appendices and Maps. The full set will also be available on compact disk (CD). All the materials are free and may be requested by writing to USDA Forest Service-CAET, Sierra Nevada Framework Project, P.O. Box 7669, Missoula, MT 59807. Requests may be sent by email to mailroom_wo_caet@fs.fed.us. Copies will also be avail able at libraries throughout California and western Nevada. The entire Draft EIS will also be on the Internet at www.r5.fs.fed.us/ sncf.

During the public review period comments on the Draft EIS may be sent to the same address, where a Forest Service team will record them on a database and then quickly forward them to the project's headquarters in Sacramento for use in improving the Final EIS. The Final EIS will accompany a decision on amending forest plans for the eleven national forests. The 90-day public review period ends August 11.

 

SVJUSD searches for new superintendent

By Nora Russell

The Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District school board has hired a search group to screen applicants for a new Superintendent/High School Principal for the district.

The current Superintendent/Principal, Henry Bietz, tendered his resignation after serving the district for 11 years.

"I've enjoyed every day of being here," Bietz said. "The staff and school board have been more than supportive of me. This is a decision based solely on wanting to pursue other things."

Bietz has accepted the posiiion of Superintendent/Elementary School Principal of the Westwood Joint Unified School District in Westwood, CA. Westwood is located 20 miles west of Susanville.

"The school district is about twice the size of SVSD," explained Bietz. "But it is different in that the elementary school contains grades K-6 and the high school has grades 7-12."

Applications of individuals applying for the position in Surprise Valley will be screened on June 13. The following week the school board and a committee made up of administration and staff will conduct interviews.

"The district is in very good shape in regards to curriculum, staff and in most ways; it may be time for someone new to bring new ideas to the district," Bietz said. "It is good to be leaving on a positive note."

 

Junior Show lines out activities

The 52nd Annual Junior Livestock Show and Sale is rapidly approaching for June 12 through June 16.

The Junior Show Committee thanks the community for their continued support and Captain Pat Filbin, and his CDF Devil's Garden Conservation Camp crew for all the repairs done at the John Cummings Memorial Show Grounds. A total of 4,800 man-hours have gone into fixing up the facility and buildings since Febru ary 1999. As suggested during last years' show, the show schedule is listed below.

Monday, June 12: Horse Performance Classes, 8:00 a.m. - Showmanship and then Groom and Fit.

A 15 minute break for the horse and rider change of tack and clothing. Then Open English Equitation, Open English Pleasure, Open Hunter Hack, Bareback Equitation, Western Equitation, Western Pleasure, and Trail.

The afternoon is then set up for the fast paced Gymkhana classes with Barrels, Scramble Barrels, Pole Bending, Single Stake Race, Keyhole Race, and Egg in Spoon wrapping up the horse events for Monday.

Tuesday, June 13: A Poultry division has been added to go with the Rabbit division. Poultry (chicken, geese, ducks, etc.) will be weighed in at 8:00 a.m. The Poultry market class will be judged at 9:00 a.m. Following market class is the Breeding and Showmanship classes.

Rabbits will be weighed in at 10:00 a.m. Rabbit market classes begin at 11:00 a.m., with Breeding and showmanship classes wrapping up the day.

Wednesday, June 14, is the weigh-in day for Beef, Sheep and Swine starting at 4:00 p.m.

Thursday, June 15, is the market and breeding class day, beginning with the market swine at 9:00 a.m. Market Beef, in the Arena and market sheep, in the sale arena begin at 11:00 a.m. Pee Wee Showmanship will be at 2:00 p.m. This year are four Pee Wee Showmanship entries. Pee Wee members are in grades Kindergarten through third grades. Breeding classes begin at 3:00 p.m. with swine starting off. Breeding sheep and beef begin at 3:30 p.m. The Livestock Judging Contest starts at 4:30 p.m. and is the last event of the day.

Friday, June 16, starts early with Showmanship. FFA Swine start the day at 8:00 a.m. FFA Sheep start at 9:30 a.m. in the sale arena and Novice 4-H Beef in the horse arena. The afternoon begins with FFA Round Robin at 2:00 p.m. The Tri-tip Barbecue (sponsored by Alturas Rotary Club.) is at 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Modoc Middle School. Tickets are available at the door. Adult tickets are $6.00; children 12 and under, $4.00.

The Awards Presentation begins at 5:15 p.m. in the sale arena with Pearce Flournoy doing the honors. Then the grand finale, the Livestock Sale, will begin at 6:30 p.m. Eric Duarte will again be volunteering his time for the kids as auctioneer of the sale. Poultry will sell first, then Rabbits, Hogs, Beef and Lambs.

 

Cattlemen's Spring Field Day at Crum Ranch Sunday

The Modoc County Cattlemen's Spring Field Day is June 4 at the Don Crum Angus Ranch, 1802 N. Juniper St., Alturas.

The morning will start at 10:30 a.m., with a tour of the ranch, followed by a discussion on topics including: Irrigated pasture establishment and fertilization; dry land pasture establishment; electric fencing -- what works and doesn't work; and how to pick a bull using EPD's.

The hospitality hour, sponsored by Intermountain Production Credit Association, begins at 12 noon with lunch served at 1:00 p.m. Adults will be charge $8 for lunch; children dine free.

In the afternoon, Tulelake area rancher Mike Byrne will talk about the latest Supreme Court decision and how it affects public lands grazing. The court's decision may have some impacts on how grazing will be handled in the future and ranchers should be aware of the potential issues. Byrne has started the decision also has some good and not so good points. The Modoc County CattleWomen will announce their local scholarship recipients.

 

Record news for June 8, 2000

 

• There's no shortage of public services for Modoc residents
• Lifeguard shortage delays pool opening
• Junior Livestock Show opens Monday
• Canby Fire Department hosts BBQ Saturday
• Fandango celebrates Smile of God
• May building activity increases

 

There's no shortage of public services in case of Modoc County residents

By Nora Russell

A mere decade ago, if Mr. Joe Public received services from an agency such as Social Services, the County Health Department or a school, chances are he would deal with one case worker and his file would stay within the agency walls.

That changed with the emergence of the "Collaborative Model".

Mr. Public would no longer receive services from only the agency of his choice. He would now, perhaps unwittingly, be entered into the intricate maze of services and service providers known as the Modoc County Collaborative.

"The Modoc County Collaborative was formed to combine the services necessary for prevention and early intervention of child and family crises," explained Carol Harbaugh, Superintendent of the Modoc County Office of Education. "Just about every grant available now requires that we collaborate with other services so that services are not duplicated."

The Modoc Collaborative has grown to more than 26 agencies who work together and have weekly meetings to share information.

When asked if the sharing of information between the agencies affects the client's right to privacy, Harbaugh responded, "The client signs a release approved by the county counsel, on which the collaborative agencies are listed and the client checks the box beside which agencies they are willing to have share their information."

Harbaugh sees the collaboration of county agencies as a way to provide a more seamless system and to prevent people from abusing the system.

Collaboration may make the system seamless, but it makes differentiating between which agency receives the grant funding; which agency is the administrator of the grant, and which agency actually runs a specific program, a daunting proposal.

"It is real confusing," said Carol Callaghan, Executive Director of T.E.A.C.H., Inc. "An example that I can give is the Child Abuse Prevention/ Intervention/Treatment (C. A.P.I.T.) grant. The grant was awarded to Modoc County for $80,570, the county subcontracted it to T.E.A. C.H., Inc. for $68,464 as managers of the program. Modoc County will receive 15% of the grant, or $12,086 for administration; they will file a three year plan and perform audits of T.E.A.C.H. to make sure that the program is managed correctly."

T.E.A.C.H. is a private, non-profit organization which administers a wide variety of programs funded by federal, state and private funders. It was originally formed in the 1970's under the C.E.T.A. program.

Eventually, C.E.T.A. was phased out as a government jobs program, bylaws were changed in 1983 and Training, Employment & Community Help, Inc. (T.E.A.C.H.) was born.

The following programs are provided by Modoc County Office of Education and T.E.A.C.H., Inc., and do not include programs offered or administered by other agencies including public health.

Modoc County Office of Education:

Modoc Middle School Healthy Start: Dedicated to the development and provision of case-managed services for families of middle school aged children through an interagency Modoc Family Resource Center.

Funding: $400,000 total grant for 7/97 to 6/00.

Employees: 2 full time and 2 part time.

Serves: 26 families.

Sierra Health Foundation - "Families Matter": Activities/planning to develop "Community Partnerships for Healthy Children" through community assessment and involvement of community members.

Funding: $50,000 annually for 8 to 10 years.

Employees: 1 full time.

Serves: Clients countywide.

Even Start: Literacy and child development services for parents of children birth to age 8.

Funding: $220,000 annually, 4 years + 4 years.

Employees: Alturas - 4 full time.

Serves: 18 families.

Tulelake - 5 full time, 2 part time.

Serves: Tulelake - 20 families.

School to Work Tutors:

Funding: $25,000 annu ally for 5 years.

Employees: 3 full time.

Serves: All K-12 schools.

Early Head Start: Home-based child development program, including: group activities, parent activities, parent participation, parent governance and program planning; nutrition and transportation.

Funding: $811,000 annually, ongoing.

Employees: 15 full time, 2 part time.

Serves: 97 families of birth to 3.

Comprehensive Adolescent Recourse in Education - C.A.R.E.: Provides after school services; counseling, education, socialization. Provides: field trips, community based services and tutoring.

Funding: $90,000 annually, ongoing.

Serves: number of children served fluctuates.

School Aged Parents/ Infant Development - S.A. P.I.D.: A center-based child care and parenting education for parents grades 9-12.

Funding: $103,000 annually, ongoing.

Employees: 1 part time.

Serves: 2 families with teen parents.

Family Support & Resource Network - RAIN BOW: Families receive peer support, information, and/or referrals to other agencies through collaboration of family support for high-risk, developmentally delayed and disabled children and their families.

Funding: $8,700 annually, ongoing.

Employees: 1 part time.

Serves: county wide.

Local Planning Council:

Funding: $35,000 annually, ongoing.

Employees: 1 part time.

Serves: county wide.

Family Home Network "New Beginnings" Infant/Toddler Program: Childcare & development to parents and childcare prov-iders with training in child development, health & saf-ety, age-appropriate activ-ities.

Funding: $175,000 annually, ongoing.

Employees: information not available.

Serves: 50 birth to 3.

Safe and Drug Free Schools:

Funding: $8,186 annually, ongoing.

Employees: 2 part time.

Serves: all schools.

Tobacco Use Prevention Education: Provide information about various cessation programs available, offer mini-grant funds to organizations or individuals interested in conducting activities that are tobacco-free.

Funding: $25,000 annually, ongoing.

Employees: 2 part time.

Serves: all schools.

21st Century Learning Center - C.L.O.A.K.: An after-school and weekend program focusing on aca demic/recreation/enrichment development of Kind-ergarten through middle school students.

Funding: $362,445 annually.

Employees: 3 full time, 69 part time and 10 volunteers.

Serves: 285 students per day.

Preschools at Surprise Valley, Newell and Alturas:

Funding: $228,859 annually, ongoing.

Employees: Surprise Valley: 1 full time, 1 part time .

Alturas: 1 full time, 1 part time.

Newell: 3 full time, 3 part time.

Serves: Surprise Valley: 31, 3-5 year-olds.

Alturas: 48, 3-5 year-olds.

Newell: 40, 3-5 year-olds.

Workability:

Funding: $42,050

Employees: 3 part time

Serves: 60 high school students

Transition Partnership Program:

Funding: 78,380 annually, ongoing

Employees: 1 full time, 6 part time

Serves: 35 high school students

Court School: A residential facility run by Envi ronmental Alternatives.

Funding: $202,489 annually, ongoing

Employees: 6 full time, 1 part time

Serves: 30 high school students

Community School: Provides services to those students requiring/requesting an alternative education setting, as well as any students expelled from district schools in county.

Funding: $49,042 annually, ongoing

Employees: 2 full time

Serves: 11, grades 7-12

Special Education:

Funding: $2,103,126 annually, ongoing

Employees: 52 full time, 7 part time

Serves: 265, birth to age 23

Regional Occupation Programs: Designed to be vocational preparation cour-ses and programs. County run, facilitated through dis-trict schools and/or com-munity based or ganiza-tions.

Funding: $195,828 annually, ongoing.

Employees: 10 part time.

Serves: approximately 264 students, grades 9-12.

Secondary School Program (Vocational Educa tion):

Funding: $15,814 annually, ongoing.

Employees: District teachers.

Serves: All high school students in Voc. Ed.

Opportunity: It is an alternative program designed as intervention for kids who are experiencing difficulty in a classroom setting. Provides smaller student/ teacher ratio. Meant to get students back into the main-stream school as soon as possible.

Funding: $155,419 annually, ongoing.

School to Work Tutors:

Funding: $45,000.

Employees: 3 full time.

Serves: All K-12 schools.

Cal Learn Program: Case management services for pregnant and parenting teens whose families are T.A.N.F. recipients. Cash incentive provided per report card and graduation.

Funding: Information not provided by MCOE.

Employees: 1 part time.

Serves: 10 families.

Independent Living Skills Program: Life skills classes designed for children who will emancipate from foster care.

Funding: Information not provided by MCOE.

Employees: 1 full time.

Serves: 13 youth in foster care.

Grants currently administered by T.E.A.C.H., Inc.

California Department of Education:

Includes: Alternative Payment Program/Federal Block Grant/Cal Works Child Care Stages II & III. Subsidized Child Care - As sistance w/child care pay ments for income eligible families.

Funding: $456,569.

Employees: 5 full time.

Serves: 398 children.

Resource and Referral - Toy Lending library, Resource library, referrals for licensed day care. Outreach services provided to Surprise Valley, Canby, Newell, Tulelake, Likely and New Pine Creek.

Funding: $135,027

Employees: 1 full time

Serves: 1,169 client contacts annually

Even Start/Tulelake - Family Literacy Program that includes Adult Education, Early Childhood Education, Parent Learning Groups and parent and child fun times.

Funding: $206,325

Employees: 5 full time, 1 part time

Serves: 20 families.

California Department of Youth Authority: Facility construction: Tulelake Youth Center

Funding: $1,867,024.00

Office of Criminal Justice and Planning: Rape Crisis Center: Crisis intervention for victims of sexual as sault. Accompaniment and advocacy services. Community education presentations re: sexual assault, date rape, date rape drugs, etc.

Funding: $186,966

Employees: 3 full time, 1 part time

Serves: 44

Department of Community Services and Development: Low Income Heating Energy Assistance Program (L.I.H.E.A.P.). Assistance for income eligible individuals/families with payment of heating bills. Home weatherization.

Funding: $77,200 $5,209 for home weatherization

Employees: 1 part time.

Serves: 1,035

Emergency Food and Shelter National Board: Funds Food Bank services, limited residential rental assistance, limited utility payments.

Funding: $10,670.

Employees: 1 part time.

Serves: 1,288

Department of Health Services:

Battered Women's Shelter Program. Services for female victims of domestic violence and their children.

Funding: $181,000

Employees: 4 full time, 1 part time

Serves: 140

Judicial Council of California:

Court Appointed Special Advocate (C.A.S.A) Program. Provides trained, court appointed volunteers to serve as advocates for children who are wards of the court.

Funding: $28,500

Employees: 1 part time

Serves: 17

Modoc County Department of Social Services:

Cal-Learn Program. Case management services for pregnant and parenting teens whose families are T.A.N.F. recipients. Cash incentive provided for report card and graduation.

Funding: $30,012

Cal-Works Stage One child-care. Subsidized child care for eligible Cal-Works families.

Funding: $100,000

Modoc County Administrative Services Department:

C.A.P.I.T. (Child Abuse Prevention, Intervention and Treatment) Funds one on one and group parenting classes. Fetal Alcohol Awareness. Funding for Modoc County Child Abuse Prevention Council. Provision of Court ordered super vised visits.

Funding: $67,055

Employees: 2 full time

Serves: 150 families

Welcome Baby! Project. In home visitation project performed by a Licensed Vocational Nurse providing education, support and referral services to families with children ages 0-5.

Funding: $26,986

Employees: 1 part time

Serves 50 families

Modoc/Siskiyou Community Action Agency

Food Bank: Food assistance provided to needy families who are residents of Modoc County. Limited assistance provided to transients.

Funding: $11,988

Employees: 1 part time

Serves:1,288

Satellite Grant: Grant research/writing assistance provided to local agencies.

Funding: $7,500

Employees: 1 part time

Transportation: Bus Tickets, gas vouchers provided to transients unable to leave county due to lack of funds.

Funding: $3,000

Employees: 1 part time

Serves 660

Harbaugh has been instrumental is bringing approximately $1 million in grant-funded programs to Modoc County.

The Modoc Family Resource Center also operates what it calls a case management service, staffed by five family service workers. The case workers provide in-home counseling to children who are referred for help by either the school or other agencies.

"We don't provide all of the services, but we coordinate them and make sure the families get the services they need, even to the point of providing transportation," said Harbaugh.

 

Lifeguard shortage delays pool opening

A lifeguard shortage will delay the opening of the Alturas Swimming Pool until mid-June.

The pool normally opens for the season the day after school lets out, which would be Friday, June 9. According to City Clerk Cary Baker, only five certified lifeguards are available this season and others will be trained next week. Once the trainees pass the certification course, of 37 hours and a test, the pool will be fully staffed.

The city expects the pool to open between June 17-19.

 

Junior Livestock Show starts Monday

The 52nd Annual Junior Livestock Show and Sale is all set to start its run Monday with the horse classes and will continue through the week.

On Friday, the finale of the show and all the hard work of the participants is rewarded with the sale.

The Junior Show Committee would like to thank the community for all their continued support.

The 52nd Annual Junior Livestock Show schedule is as follows and hte public is invited to attend.

Monday, June 12, 2000

Horse Performance Classes:

8:00 a.m. - Showmanship: Senior 4-H/FFA; Junior 4-H; Novice 4-H. Groom and Fit: Senior 4-H/FFA; Junior 4-H; Novice 4-H.

Break for tack/clothing change (15 min utes).

Open English Equitation; Open English Pleasure; Open Hunt Hack. Bareback Equitation: Senior 4-H/F-FA; Junior 4-H; Novice 4-H.

Western Equitation: Senior 4-H/FFA; Ju nior 4-H; Novice 4-H.

Western Pleasure: Senior 4-H/FFA; Ju nior 4-H; Novice 4-H.

Trial: Senior 4-H/FFA; Junior 4-H; Novice 4-H.

The afternoon is then set up for the fast paced Gymkhana classes. These classes will follow the same order as the Performance classes. Barrels, Scramble Barrels, Pole Bending, Single Stake Race, Keyhole Race and Egg in Spoon wrapping up the horse events for Monday.

Tuesday, June 13

Poultry Division - Sale Ring. 8:00 - 9:00 a.m. Weigh-in.

9:00 a.m. Market Class-es, Breeding Class and Showmanship.

Rabbit Division - Sale Ring: 10:00 - 11:00 a.m. Weigh-in. 11:00 a.m. - Market classes, Breeding class and Showmanship.

Wednesday, June 14

Weigh-in for Beef, Sheep, and Swine is between 4:00 and 7:00 p.m.

Thursday, June 15

Market Classes: 9:00 a.m. Market Swine; 11:00 a.m. Market Beef (in arena). Market Sheep (in sale ring); 2:00 p.m. Pee Wee Showmanship - sale ring.

Breeding Classes: 3:00 p.m. Breeding Swine (sale ring); 3:30 p.m. Breeding sheep (sale ring); Breeding Beef (arena); 4:30 p.m. Livestock judging contest.

Friday, June 16

Showmanship: 8:00 a.m. - In ring - FFA Swine, Senior 4-H Swine; Junior 4-H Swine and Novice 4-H Swine.

9:30 a.m. - In ring - FFA Sheep: Senior 4-H Sheep; Ju nior 4-H Sheep; Novice 4-H Sheep. In arena - Novice 4-H Beef; Junior 4-H Beef; Se nior 4-H Beef; FFA Beef.

2:00 p.m. - FFA Round Robin; Senior 4-H Round Robin; Junior 4-H Round Robin; Novice 4-H Round Robin.

3:30-6:30 p.m. - Tri-Tip BBQ at the Modoc Middle School. Sponsored by the Al turas Ro tary Club.

5:15 p.m. - Awards Pre sentation - Sale Ring

6:30 p.m. - Livestock Sale. Sale order: poultry, rabbits, hogs, beef and lambs.

 

Canby rolls out hospitality Saturday

No matter where you call home, everyone's invited to the Canby Volunteer Fire Department's Annual Steak Barbecue at the Canby Fire Hall and park on Saturday, June 10 with serving from 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

The hall and park sit on the side of Highway 299, smack dab in Canby.

The setting is shady, with tables and benches and fun for all ages. Come visit with friends or meet new folks. Be prepared to relax and feast on barbecued top sirloin steaks, baked potatoes, baked beans, an array of luscious salads, French bread and dessert. Beverages available include coffee, mixed drinks, beer and sodas. Tickets, $7.50 for adults and $3 for ages under 12.

"We're hoping for a really good turnout this year for the 24th annual barbecue," encourages Ron Sherer, Canby Volunteer Fire Department Chief. But it could be the last if area Modoc residents don't show up to support the event, he notes.

"It's a really nice community get-together and everybody pitches in to help, but it's not the big fund-raiser that it used to be for the fire department," said Sherer. "We're just hoping to see a good crowd come this year so we can keep it going. Otherwise, Canby will sadly be without a community get-together."

 

Fandango celebrates 'Smiles of God'

The theme "Smiles of God" has been selected for the Fandango 2000 celebration. The theme is an English interpretation of what early explorers described as the name given to the Modoc area by the natives.

A more literal Indian interpretation might have been that this land had been smiled upon by the Creator. In short, this area of northeastern California was pleased with pristine beauty, awesome mysteries, and a life-sustaining abundance of wildlife, water and other natural resources.

The Alturas Chamber of Commerce is hoping the theme will awaken the public in Modoc and get more people involved in the upcoming proposals of the agencies that manage the the natural resources.

The grand marshal for the Fandango Parade, set July 1, 11 a.m. is Erin Forrest. The parade will start at Plumas Bank and travel south on Main Street to the activities in Veteran's Park.

 

May building activity increases

The City of Alturas issued 20 building permits in the month of May, valued at $81,103.50. That's up substantially from April when six permits were issued, valued at $24,880.

Remodeling, re-roofing and the installation of three mobile homes in a trailer park made up the bulk of the permit values. The city collected $1,101.41 in fees.

Modoc County's building department issued 44 permits for May, valued at $2,433,465. Those totals are up substantially from April's 18 permits valued at $520,000.

A fiberoptic regeneration facility at Tionesta valued at $1 million makes up the bulk of the estimated values. There were also four new homes permitted in May. The county collected $10,750.90 in fees.

 

 

Record news for June 15, 2000

 

• Happy Camp Lookout burns to ground
• My memories of life on the mountain
• Public service providers abound
• There's a Super Bull at Cedarville June 17
• Duck Race is gearing up quickly
• Sheriff Mix warns of VISA scam
• Junior Livestock Show initial results
• Unemployment levels drop in May

 

Happy Camp Lookout burns to the ground

In a strange twist of fate, the oldest Modoc National Forest Fire Lookout has burned to the ground, at a time when fire officials are preparing for a potentially explosive season.

The Happy Camp Lookout, which commands a great view of the National Forest from the high point 15 miles west of Canby burned sometime between Friday night and Saturday morning. Forest officials believe the fire was electrically caused.

The Lookout had been staffed for two weeks but the regular fire lookout came down Friday evening. A replacement arrived Saturday morning and found the facility completely destroyed. Visibility was low that night because of storms.

The Forest Service is now weighing its options on whether to rebuild the lookout, said information Officer Nancy Gardner. The loss of that vantage point could be crucial during fire season.

Happy Camp Lookout was the first constructed on the Modoc National Forest in 1911. In 1915, a better building replaced a shack and then in 1955 electricity was wired to the shack and a better building was constructed. The Lookout has been used every fire season for the past 90 years.

Candy's Velma McCrary spent 21 years as the Forest Service Lookout at Happy Camp and the loss the facility struck her like the loss of a home. She retired in 1993.

McCrary had some fond and scary memories of life at Happy Camp and puts those memories into her owns words here.

 

My memories of life on the mountain top

By Velma McCrary

Saturday, June 10 was a very sad day for me after learning that morning that Happy Camp Lookout had burned down to its cement foundation sometime the night before.

That lookout tower was my 'home away from home' for twenty-one fire seasons until I retired in 1993 and I have always thought of it as 'my lookout'.

Happy Camp Mountain was the site of the first lookout station on the Modoc Forest in 1911 and the first fire lookout person was Eli Dale. The first building on the mountain was described as a crude shack, but served its purpose until 1915 when a more permanent tower was built.

Around 1951, the mountain top was leveled off and a new cab for the lookout was built. Electric power came to the mountain, along with new radio equipment, doing away with many of the old 'shout and holler' phones that has been used for years.

I have many fond memories, and a few scary ones too, of my years on the lookouts, which totaled 25 years; three on Fox Mountain, one on Hayden Hill and then to Happy Camp.

There were lots of visitors over the years, even some from foreign countries. Travelers passing through would see the sign on the highway and decide to visit. Many times it was a group of school children, looking for Smokey Bear, and then there were the deer hunters, who came back year after year to visit. And then, there was the long-time friend, who rode his motorcycle up to the lookout to bring me a slice of fresh-baked apple pie.

In 1975, Happy Camp and I, survived a direct hit from a lightning bolt that left scorched places outside and inside the tower and exploded the drain pipe under the sink.

Another anxious time was in 1977 during the Scarface Fire when I was told by our dispatcher to evacuate. At midnight I was in my old faithful Blue Bomber pickup heading down the hill for Canby, with all the area to the west of me on fire. It was pretty scary, but luckily, I had C.B. radio contact with my son, Mickey, who was with a group evacuating Happy Camp Station.

In 1979 we had the Happy Fire, which burned almost to the lookout, with a spot fire three-fourths of a mile below it. I stayed up there during that fire, really had to, no one was to get out. There was no sleep that night, too much radio traffic busy relaying messages and worried about the wall of flame coming at me.

The second night I caught a few short cat-naps, then on Saturday morning my relief lookout arrived and I headed for home for some much needed rest.

Another scary time was in 1987 during the Crank Fire which was burning about three miles to the west of Happy Camp. Again, I had to evacuate but this time it was during daylight hours. I was only down for a few days that time, but during the Scarface Fire, I was down two weeks and worked during that time at the Division of Forestry Fire Center in Bieber.

I always kept a detailed daily log of all activities and weather activities on the forest, especially during fires and electrical storms, and was often asked about what I had observed and recorded. There were many old log books stored in a cupboard at the lookout, dating back to the early '60's, now all that information has gone up in smoke.

I always took great pride in my work and it was a hard decision to make when I decided to retire, but fire look-outing and the forest service are still in my blood. When we get a lightning storm, I'm glued to my scanner, with map, pen and paper in hand. Also, when traveling, I'm always on the lookout for smokes. Guess old lookouts never retire, their eyes never quit searching for that tell-tale wisp of smoke, "We just can't climb the stairs anymore."

Public service providers abound

In an article that ran in the June 8 edition of the Modoc Record titled, "There's no shortage of public services in case of Modoc County's residents," the services provided by Modoc County Office of Education and T.E.A.C.H., Inc. were outlined.

Many of the services in the article are similar to services provided by other public agencies and some confusion may arise from that.

The Tobacco Use and Prevention Program administered by M.C.O.E. is not the same program as the Modoc County Tobacco Education/Cessation Program provided by the Modoc County Health Services.

The CHDP/Sliding Fee Physician program administered by T.E.A.C.H., Inc. through the Modoc Family Resource Center is not the same as the Child Health & Disability Program (CHDP) provided by the Modoc County Health Services.

The C.L.O.A.K. after school activity program which is administered by T.E.A.C.H., Inc. is not the same as the Latchkey after school-center-based program provided through the Modoc Joint Unified School District.

The Transitional Housing Placement Program administered by Child & Family Resources is not the same as the Section 8 Rental Assistance Program funded by HUD or the Very Low Income Housing program provided by I'SOT, Inc.

The Modoc County Office of Education Infant Pre-school, the Alturas State Preschool, Surprise Valley State Preschool, Newell State Preschool and the Family Home Network "New Beginnings" Infant/Toddler Program are managed through M.C.O.E. and Early Head Start, Alturas Head Start and Even Start - Families First are provided by T.E.A.C.H., Inc. They should not be confused with The Purple Crayon Daycare, The Budding Tree Day Care Center and The Creation Station Preschool which are provided by the Modoc Child Care Council.

The Rape Crisis Center administered by T.E.A. C.H., Inc. is not the same as the Modoc County Victim/ Witness Assistance Prog-ram and the Modoc County Statutory Rape/Vertical Pro-secution Program provided by the Modoc County District Attorney's Office.

There's a Super Bull at Cedarville June 17

It's a rough and tumble sport and the Modoc Super Bull is coming June 17 to the County Fairgrounds in Cedarville.

Thousands of fans show up for the professional bull riding event starting at 7 p.m. In addition to bull riding, events include cowboy poker, six head ranch bronc riding and Charlie "Too Tall" West and his popular specialty act.

There will be a total of 30 bull riders competing, with the top six in the short go. They'll be competing for a purse which includes $3,000 added money.

Professional bull riding events have been gaining in popularity over the past few years and the Cedarville event is no exception.

The event announcer this season is Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association's Don Jesser.

Tickets are $10 pre-sale and $12 at the gate. Kids under seven are admitted free. Tickets are available at Modoc Motor Parts and Seab's True Value Hardware in Alturas; and Surprise Valley Parts, Page's Market and Western Irrigation in Cedarville.

For more information, call 530-279-6165 days or 530-279-2293 evenings.

The Duck Race is gearing up quickly

This year's Alturas Rotary Clubs Duck Race will be held July 1 during the Alturas Chamber of Commerce's Fandango Days celebration and tickets for the big event are selling very well.

There is $53,000 in prizes. Top prize is a 2000 Volkswagen Beetle. The 3,000 Duck Race tickets have sold out each year and Rotary said they are moving quickly again.

The tickets are $25 each. The coupon book that comes with the race ticket is full of great bargains.

"We'd advise anyone who wants a ticket to get one very soon," said Rotary's Bill Madison. "The community continues to be very supportive and we certainly see the same thing happening this year. When it comes to supporting youth, this community really steps up."

People who buy 10 ducks, and only people who buy 10 ducks or more, are also eligible for the Gold Crown Corporate prize: two all terrain vehicles from Arctic Cat.

On race day, the 3,000 numbered rubber ducks are dropped into the Pit River at the Estes Street Bridge. The ducks float down to the Main Street Bridge where they're gathered up in order of finish. Each duck's number corresponds to the ticket holder. The first duck across wins the top prize, followed in order of the finish for the other prizes.

All proceeds from the race are earmarked for the Alturas Rotary Youth Park fields at Fourth and West C Streets in Alturas. Those fields were just a vision when the Duck Race was started, and now Little Leaguers are playing on four new fields. Other work and projects still need to be completed to make the Youth Park whole and each successful Duck Race brings the finished product closer to fruition.

Tickets are available now at Seab's True Value, Belligerent Duck, Walt's Market, Les Schwab Tires, 4-Corners, Holiday Market, Alturas Tire, Likely Store and Cafe, Williams Texaco and Plumas Bank.

Sheriff Mix warns of VISA scam

Modoc County Sheriff Bruce Mix is warning residents to be wary of what he considers a scam aimed at obtaining VISA credit card numbers.

He said a woman in Adin received a call this week with the caller asking to verify her VISA card number and other pertinent information. The woman did not release any information and called the Sheriff's Office.

Mix stresses that people should never give out their credit card number to unknown sources, nor their social security number or mother's maiden name.

Junior Livestock Show starting results

Monday's weather was balmy, but the horses and riders were not. The high point winners in the Performance Division this year were Elizabeth Younger, Alturas FFA for the Senior 4-H/FFA Section.

The Junior 4-H Section winner was Megan McCulley, Hilltop 4-H and the Novice 4-H winner was Anna Nelson, New Pioneer 4-H.

The fast paced Gym-khana Division ended the busy day. The Senior High Point winner was Jami Harris from Alturas FFA. In the Junior Section, Jackson Nay from New Pioneer 4-H was the High Point winner. Christjan Bidwell, from the Bieber 4-H was the High Point winner from the Novice 4-H section. The individual section winners are listed below.

Groom and Fit: Senior - Elizabeth Younger; Junior - Wayne Cockrell; Novice - Amanda Hess. Showmanship: Senior - Elizabeth Younger; Junior - Denise Brown; Novice - Claire Crenshaw. English Equitation: Elizabeth Younger. English Pleasure: Elizabeth Younger. Hunter Hack: Elizabeth Younger.Bareback Equitation: Senior - Deidra Jeppson; Junior - No Entries; Novice - No Entries. Western Equitation: Senior - Elizabeth Younger; Junior - Wade Frutuozo; Novice - Anna Nelson. Western Pleasure: Senior - Amber Knauss; Junior - Elizabeth Younger; Novice - Stacey Parnow. Trail: Senior - Jami Harris; Junior - Meghan McCulley; Novice - Anna Nelson. Barrels: Senior, Jamie Harris; Junior, Jackson Nay; Novice, Christjan Bidwell. Pole Bending: Senior, Jami Harris; Junior, Wayne Cockrell; Novice, Christjan Bidwell. Keyhole: Senior - Jessica Nay; Junior - Moe Sellers; Novice - Amy Alexander. Single Stake Race: Senior - Niki Poindexter; Junior - Wayne Cockrell; Novice - Christjan Bidwell. Egg in Spoon: Senior - Jami Harris; Junior - Wade Frutuozo; Novice - No Entries. Scramble Barrels: Senior -Niki Poindexter; Junior - Jackson Nay; Novice - Christjan Bidwell.

Tuesday, a Poultry Division was brought back to the show, with the assistance from Curt Talbott, New Pioneer's Poultry Leader. Poultry had been a part of the show many years ago and will continue to be. There were three entries in the market poultry class. Michael Lanham, New Pi neer 4-H took home the Grand Champion ribbon for his pen of two market birds. Victor Madrigal, Alturas FFA received the Reserve Champion ribbon and Erica Wedgewood, Hilltop 4-H received a blue market ribbon.

There were twenty-six breeding class entries from 4-H and FFA members. Neil Mohr, Schaffer Mt. 4-H received the Grand Champion ribbon, Anna Nelson, New Pioneer 4-H was the Reserve Champion winner, Jessica Correa, Schaffer Mt. 4-H took third, Shannon Ochs, Alturas FFA won fourth place and Brandon Colbert, New Pioneer 4-H received the fifth place ribbon.

There was one open showmanship division. Anna Nelson, received the first place ribbon, Neil Mohr, placed second, Adri anna Mattern, New Pioneer 4-H took the third place ribbon, fourth went to Jessica Correa, Schaffer Mt. and Willie Mohr, also from Schaffer Mt. 4-H club was awarded with the fifth place award.

The Rabbit Davision was next with Emily Kelly, Providence 4-H winning the Overall High Point Award. In the Single Fryer Meat Division, Lanee Tucker, Canby Hot Spring 4-H received the Grand Champion award, and Alysha Northrup, Hilltop 4-H was the Reserve Champion winner. The Best of Show winner for the overall breeding division went to Emily Kelly . Connie Wilson, Hilltop 4-H received Reserve in Show.

Showmanship wrapped up the day with Emily Kelly, taking first place in the FFA/Senior 4-H section. In the Junior 4-H section, Sarah Teuscher, Cedarville 4-H received the first place. Patricia Soletti, Cedarville 4-H won the first place award for the Novice 4-H section.

All the first place showmanship winners qualify for Round Robin Showmanship beginning with FFA/ Senior 4-H at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, June 16. The Junior Show Board would like to extend a special thanks to all the leaders who helped at the show.

Unemployment rate drops in May

Modoc's unemployment rate dropped to 7.8 percent for the month of May, down from April's 8.7 percent. In May, 1999, the jobless rate for Modoc was 8.3 percent.

The number of people employed out of a labor force of 4,040 was 3,730 with 320 unemployed.

Modoc ranked 41st out of the state's 58 counties in highest unemployment, with Siskiyou's rate at 7.6 percent, ranking it 40th and Lassen's 5.8 percent ranking it 26th. Marin County has the lowest unemployment rate of 1.5 percent.

 

 

Record news for June 22, 2000

 

• MJU remains silent on progression of computer plan
• Fire Danger normal for Modoc
• MJUSD businessm anager cited for embezzlement
• Only 10 days left to by duck for race
• Classic Cruisers host 10th annual car show
• Junior Livestock Show was big success
• Big Valley Summer Festival is fun

MJU silent on progression of computer plan

 

By Nora Russell

 

Almost four weeks ago, a series of questions were submitted to the offices of Bert Trevail, Computer Tech for Modoc Joint Unified School District and Don Demsher, Interim Superintendent of MJUSD in an attempt to obtain information for a Modoc Record article about the current state of the network, satellite and Internet access of the district.

 

The answers to those questions have not been returned to the Modoc Record by Trevail or Demsher.

 

When acquiring information from a public entity for an article in progress, it is usually not difficult. In part because it is a 'public' entity and in the United States there is the Freedom of Information Act and the California Public Records Act which allows 10 days from the time information is requested for it to be released or a legally acceptable reason given as to why the information is not forth-coming.

 

There are times, however, when investigation into a story comes to a stand-still because of a lack of cooperation.

Such is the case of the unanswered questions that were presented Trevail and Demsher.

The series of questions were hand-delivered to their offices on May 29, 2000.

The questions directed to Mr. Demsher included: 1) What are the goals of Modoc Joint Unified School District in regards to providing computer access and technology to students?

2) Within the district, is there an employee in charge of finding and acquiring funding for technology? If so, who is it?

3) Who is responsible for staff development in the use of available technology? Please describe the training available.

4) Is the network running on a consistent basis? (i.e. daily for at least 1 month without interruption?).

5) Are there district policies for personal use of Internet and computers by staff?

The questions given to Trevail are:

1) Please outline the improvements that have been made to the computer system during the 1999-2000 school year. (This includes the network, satellite and Internet access.)

2) How many computers at Modoc High, Modoc Middle School, Alturas Elementary School, Arlington Elementary, South Fork Ele mentary and Stateline Elementary provide Internet access to a) students, b) teachers, c) administration.

3) How many working computers are in each classroom (does not include computer labs) at each of the above named schools.

There were also questions about multi-media availability, programs used by students and training provided to teachers and staff members.

School board member, Bill Hall commented, "I would expect that they would follow through on answering the questions. It is just common courtesy that if they say they'll have them returned to you at the end of the week, that they would."

Since the first set of questions have not been answered, it has not been possible to submit the rest of the questions to be answered. Such as: Why was it necessary to pay P-Cat Computer Consulting $3,622.50 for network set-up?

Or can Trevail explain what he meant by the statement he made in a tape recorded interview in October, 1999 when he said, "The last connection was completed two weeks ago, (referring to the hundred meg connections provided to each computer in the school district). And that was the connection between us and the high school. Uh, you see...we have to be careful with the terms, Golden Net will only fund for connections between County Office of Ed and the district offices. The district office consists of here, which covers the high school and elementary, just coincidentally; the high school or the maintenance office, which just happens to cover Warner and the high school. So, by Golden Net connecting the district offices and the Office of Education, we were able to piggy-back on that and connect the entire schools."

 

During the same interview Trevail also said, "We have to be careful not to say that Golden Net is paying for student access, despite the fact they are, we can't say that. Because they're not going to pay the district access."

 

Trying to track the funding of Golden Net to the school district has not been successful either.

"We don't keep a running total of that as far as I know," stated Ann Ferry, in the business department of MJUSD. "We have to spend the money out of our own funds first. We get a notification from Golden Net that a certain amount of funds are available. Each job that is completed is billed to them with an invoice for reimbursment. As far as a total of the funding, that's a question for Bert."

 

As of press-time Trevail has not returned the voice mail left on his machine asking for that information.

 

Fire danger normal for Modoc, but conditions can change quickly

 

Currently the fire danger in Modoc and most of Northeastern California is normal for this time of year, but fire officials remain concerned that things could change quickly.

 

There is a safety alert out for fire behavior in the Great Basin, including Modoc, because of some low fuel moistures in sage, juniper and mixed conifer forests.

 

According to the Modoc National Forest, the potential now for serious or critical fire problems is normal because of typical spring weather. The 30-day forecast is calling for temperatures to be just above normal with precipitation just slightly above normal. The month of June is critical for determining the potential in the area for the rest of the season.

 

Modoc has been fortunate to have had normal winter precipitation and temperatures which continued through spring.

 

One area that is concerning Modoc officials is the 1,000 hour dead fuel moisture, which is averaging in the 11 to 15 percent range.

 

Fire officials in Modoc are asking residents to insure there is a cleared area around their homes and asking that hikers and campers take extra care to make sure fires are out. One of the big fears this time of year is unattended campfires that can erupt in Modoc's windy conditions. A wildland fire could spread quickly.

 

While Modoc seems to be better off than much of the west, firefighters are being warned that any wildland fire will exhibit maximum flame lengths with extreme rates of spread. They are advising against frontal assaults except in the most favorable circumstances.

 

MJUSD business manager charged with embezzlement

 

The business manager of the Modoc Joint Unified School District has been cited this week with two counts alleging embezzlement and two counts of a public official misusing funds.

 

Debbie Williams, 40, of Alturas, paid back the funds, $1,248, before the charges were filed. District Attorney Tom Buckwalter said he is still seeking a conviction in the matter. She is no longer employed by the district.

 

According to police, the missing funds were from cash deposits in October, 1999 and in February, 2000.

 

Only 10 days left to buy Y2000 duck race tickets

 

With 10 days left before the Great Pit River Duck Race, Alturas Rotary Club members are out selling the final flock of ducks.

 

Rotary's Bill Madison said the support for the Duck Race continues to be strong and he expects the 3,000 tickets to be sold out by race day.

 

"What's important to us is that the Duck Race has funded the Rotary Youth Park fields. The community should be proud of itself that this year there were hundreds of kids playing on those fields," Madison said. "There are still some projects we need to get finished at the Youth Park and all the funds raised through the Duck Race are earmarked for that area."

 

Top prize in this year's race is a 2000 Volkswagen Beetle. Second prize if a fishing boat. A total of $53,000 in prizes is offered this year.

The tickets are $25 each. The coupon book that comes with the race ticket is full of great bargains.

 

People who buy at least 10 ducks, and only people who buy 10 ducks or more, are also eligi ble for the Gold Crown Corporate prize: two all terrain vehicles from Arctic Cat.

 

On race day about 2 p.m., the 3,000 numbered rubber ducks are dropped into the Pit River at the Estes Street Bridge. The ducks float down (sometimes slow, sometimes fast) to the Main Street Bridge where they're gathered up in order of finish. Each duck's number corresponds to the ticket holder. The first duck across wins the top prize, followed in order of the finish for the other prizes.

 

Tickets are available now at Seab's True Value, Belligerent Duck, Walt's Market, Les Schwab Tires, 4-Corners, Holiday Market, Alturas Tire, Likely Store and Cafe, Williams Texaco and Plumas Bank.

 

Classic cars coming to town for 10th cruise

 

The Modoc Classic Cruisers 10th Annual Classic Car Show is coming to Alturas for Fandango Days July 1 at Rachel Dorris Park.

 

Last year's show brought 70 of some of the finest classic cars in the north state, Nevada and southern Oregon. This year car club members are expecting about 100 cars.

 

The local car club is also raffling a great stock 1954 pickup that's in excellent shape. Tickets are available from car club members and the winner will be drawn at the car show July 1. The pickup is on display at Alturas Tire, 12th and Main in Alturas.

 

Modoc Classic Car Club members are encouraging local owners of classics to bring theirs out and show them in the Fandango show.

 

The car show will start setting up at 9 a.m. and the show and shine will run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Many of the classic cars participate in the Fandango Parade and are a real asset. The awards will be presented after the duck race.

 

This year the newsiest car allowed in the show will be 1975. All cars must be pre-1975 and most are in the real classic era of auto mobiles. There are some real beauties, from the early days through hot rods and muscle cars that arrive in Alturas.

 

Classes in this year's show are as follows: stock cars, 1954 and older, 1955-1964; 1965 to 1975 and convertibles 1975 and older; modified cars, 1940 and older; 1941-1954, 1955-1964, 1965-1975, and convertible 1975 and older; trucks, sedans delivery and panel, 1959 and older, stock, 1960-75, stock; 1959 and older, modified; 1960 to 1975 moodier.

Additional trophies are included for Best of Show, Best Interior, Best Engine, and Best Paint.

For more information or to enter contact Ken Skaufel at 530-233-2753 or Dean Harbaugh at 530-233-2855.

 

Junior Show and Sale was a big success

 

The 52nd Annual Modoc County Junior Livestock Show and Sale was blessed with great weather, incredible community support, and strong participation in each division.

 

The renovated grounds gave the Modoc County 4-H and FFA kids a nice facility to show off all their hard work. The combination of community support both before and during the show, the kids' hard work and a nice facility made for a success ful combination. The following are the results following Wednesday with a correction to be noted from Mon day's Horse Show Results.

 

Western Pleasure: Senior, Jami Harris; Junior, Megan McCulley; Novice, Claire Crenshaw.

 

Wednesday was weigh-in day with over 150 animals passing over the scales in preparation for the market classes on Thursday.

Thursday Market and Breeding classes. Market Swine started at 9:00 a.m. judged by Tim Brown of Tulelake, California. Grand Champion Market Swine went to Beau Ferry, New Pioneer 4-H, the Reserve Champion winner was Ashley Cockrell, Eagleville 4-H.

 

Market Beef started at 11:00 a.m. in the arena, be ing judged by J.B. Dimick from Eagle Point, Oregon while Market Sheep was in the sale ring, being judged by Ty Kliewer from Klamath Falls, Oregon. The Grand Champion Market Beef winner was Ryan Imbach, New Pioneer 4-H, and Reserve Champion went to Mandy McGiffin, Cedarville 4-H. The Grand Champion Market Sheep went to Rachel Imbach, New Pioneer 4-H and Reserve Champion was Stacie Grove, Eagleville 4-H.

 

The Pre-Novice kids did a wonderful job showing their animal, in Pee Wee Showmanship. Tyler Stains won the Pee Wee Showmanship with his dog. The judge J.B. Dimick found judging very challenging and asked the audience for assistance. Cole Estill received second, third went to Shelby Anderson, fourth place went to Benji Zandstra, Joel Waymire received fifth place, sixth place was awarded to Hannah Lockwood, Amanda Ponti received seventh place and Ariel Mann won eighth place.

 

Following Pee Wee Showmanship was the Breeding classes. Breeding Swine was the first class. Grand Champion Breeding swine went to Landon Brown. Breeding Sheep and Beef followed breeding swine. Grand Champion Grade Ewe was won by Rachel Imbach. The board opted not to offer Registered Breeding Sheep this year due to lack of participation in the past. They would like to bring back the class if there is an interest. Breeding Beef had several entries. Grand Champion Registered Female went to Ryan Imbach. Shannon Ochs, Alturas FFA won the Reserve Champion Registered Female. Landen Flournoy, from Likely 4-H Club won the Grand Champion Grade Female as well as the Reserve Champion Grade Female.

 

The Livestock judging contest was the last class on Thursday. Chris Ramey was the high scoring individual in 4-H, for FFA Jeff Nelson was the winner, and in the adult division, Shane McGarva was the high scoring individual. Each win ner received an engraved knife provided by the Surprise Valley FFA Chapter.

 

Friday's schedule involved Showmanship, the Round Robin competition, and the Grand Finale, the sale. FFA Swine Showman ship started the day off with Jamie Harris winning first place. Landon Brown won the Senior 4-H division, Michael Sphar was the winner for the Junior 4-H class and the Novice 4-H award went to Dillon Flournoy. FFA Sheep and Novice 4-H Beef were being judged at the same time in different arenas. John LeNeave won the FFA Sheep Showmanship. Michael Bates won the Senior 4-H class, Junior 4-H went to Rachel Imbach and Leah Estill, New Pioneer 4-H won the Novice 4-H Showmanship. In the Beef Division, Ella Weidner, High Grade 4-H won the Novice class, Rachel Imbach won the Junior 4-H. The Senior Showman was Ryan Imbach and Allison Ferry, Alturas FFA won the FFA class.

 

Round Robin followed Showmanship. The FFA Round Robin winner was Jami Harris. In the Senior 4-H division the winner was Ryan Imbach. In the 4-H Junior division Rachel Imbach earned the top award and the 4-H Novice winner was Anna Nelson, New Pioneer 4-H.

 

Friday concluded the week-long event with the Alturas Rotary's delicious barbecue, followed by the awards ceremony and then the sale.

Friday evening's ceremonies began with the Awards Presentation with Pearce Flournoy announcing. Sponsors of the awards presented their trophies and cash awards in recognition of the members' hard work and dedication to their pro jects.

 

Auctioneer, Eric Duarte, made an announcement prior to the sale that generated competitive bidding and produced an outstanding sale with solid prices throughout. One hundred, twenty lots were sold, bringing in over $87,000. There were many factors involved in the success of this event, but none more important than the outstanding community support, strong Buyer's Committee and the hard work of the Junior Show Board. All groups should be commended for a job well done. This year's board was made up of sixteen mem bers:

Allison Ferry (Pres-dent), Cassie Cockrell (Vice-President), Logan Wilson (Secretary/Treasurer), Ros-eann Ginochio, Landon Brown, Aimee Boulade, Ashley Cockrell, Beau Ferry, Stacey Curnow, Jake Bonham, Tamson DeForest, Glen Kresge, Jodie Jones, Will Welsh, Rebecca Crites, and Deidra Jeppson. In addition the board had tremendous assistance and support from the FFA Advisors, 4-H Leaders, parents, volunteer leaders and the community.

Friday's sale began with the newly added division of Poultry. There were three members each selling a pen of two market poultry for an average price of $14.82 per pound. The single fryer rabbit division had 12 lots selling for an average price of $33.22 per pound. Fifty-three hogs sold for an average price of $3.10 per pound. Eleven head of beef went for an average price of $1.55 per pound. And in the sheep division, forty lambs sold for an average price of $5.81 per pound.

 

George Wistos from the Belligerent Duck started the sale off by purchasing the Grand Champion pen of two poultry from Michael Lanham for $16.00 per pound. Reserve Champion went to Victor Madrigal and was purchased by High Desert Online for $15.00 per pound. The Grand Champion Rabbit single fryer went to Lanee Tucker and was bought by Supply One with help from the Surprise Valley Vet Clinic for $52.00 per pound. Alysha Northrup sold the Reserve Champion Single Fryer for $25.00 per pound to the Modoc District Fair. There were no pen of three entries. Carstens Motors and Pacific Linen bought the Grand Champion hog from Beau Ferry for $4.00 per pound. The Reserve Champion hog, raised by Ashley Cockrell was purchased by Ed Staub and Sons for $2.75 per pound.

 

The Grand Champion Market Beef was raised by Ryan Imbach was purchased by Modoc Vet Center, Pfizer, Fort Dodge Animal Health, Schering-Plough, Beohringer-Ingelheim, Y Tex Corp, Western Vet Supply and Merial for $2.00 per pound. J.W. Kerns bought the Reserve Champion Market Beef raised by Mandy McGiffin for $1.75 per pound.

 

The Brass Rail purchased the Grand Champion Lamb from Rachel Imbach for $14.00 per pound. The Reserve Champion raised by Stacie Grove was bought by High Desert Online for $11.00 per pound.

 

Dr. and Mrs. Pat Sabin DDS of Lakeview, Oregon, gave $50.00 to each of their patients at their dental practice. Modoc Insurance Services added on $50.00 to all their client's children. Bob and Sharon Staton added-on $25.00 to each of the Eagleville 4-H Lamb project kids. Nelson Trucking adds $1.00 per pound to Ashley Cockrell. Jack and Linda Ochs added $100.00 to Whitney Ponti. Tharco added $200 to Cassie Cockrell, Ashley Cockrell and Wayne Cockrell. Sunrise Motel added $30.00 to Allison Walgenbach. Shasta Livestock and High Desert Lodging added $25.00 to Jami Harris, Dillon Flournoy, Myles Flournoy, Phil Parriott, Wade Frutuozo, Nicole Frutuozo, Tamsen DeForest, Stacie Grove, Leah Estill, Cassie Cockrell, Ashley Cockrell, Wayne Cockrell, Sarah Catania, Joey Catania, Blake Wilson, and Logan Wilson. Auctioneer Eric Duarte again did a magnificent job. Mike Mason, and Roy Paul Baker worked the ring and sought out the bidders. Redwood Meats from Eureka floored the hog prices, Modoc Auction Yard floored the beef prices, and Larranga Ranch of Alturas floored the lamb prices again.

 

Andy Weber, Weber Trucking generously donated his time and truck to haul the animals to the appropriate slaughter facilities. Frank Watkins of Frank Watkins Agency and Debra Cockrell generously donated their time, and the pictures for the buyers cards. Susie Philpott, Rena Harris, Jeanne Pearcy, David Lile and Debra Cockrell staffed the sale tables. Rick Delmas assisted Eric Duarte at the Auctioneer stand and Cathy Baldwin helped the sale table run smoothly and pointed out buyers for the kids.

 

Congratulations to all the members and thank you to the leaders, parents and Junior Show Board members, Rotary, Buyer's Committee and Ringmen for all their hard work in keeping the show running smoothly. A special thanks to the CDF-Devil's Garden Conservation Camp Captain Pat Filbin and his fire fighting crew, thanks for all their hard work repairing the John Cummings Memorial Showgrounds.

 

Big Valley Summer Fest offers a variety

The fifth annual Big Valley Summer Festival will be held in historic Adin, Calif. on Saturday and Sunday, July 15 and 16.

 

This annual event brings people from all around the area to enjoy home-cooked delicacies, sell their arts and crafts, compete in a va riety of sporting events, and partake in many other exciting experiences found in a country festival.

 

Big Valley Summer Festival will feature a parade, baseball tournament, food and crafters booths, three on three basketball, Jack Russell terrier dog races, barbecues, pool tournament, a street dance and much, much more. The main events will be held in the shade of the Adin Community Park. For more information on renting a booth to sell your wares call Meredith Richno at 299-3505. If you have a Jack Russell dog that excels in running and would like to race, call Karen Kramer at 294-5327.

 

This year's Runner's World Magazine will be sponsoring a three, six and 10-mile walk/run. These races will be held in the beautifully scenic Ash Valley Wildlife Area, six miles south of Adin. A $10 entry free is required for the three and six mile run. The 10-mile run is $15.

 

The entry fee includes a t-shirt "Run on the Wild Side" featuring a painted Sand Hill Crane. Fruit and water is also provided with your entry fee. For more information, call Cheryl Jones at 299-3543.

 

"There is something for everyone at this year's Big Valley Summer Festival," say community organizers, "so take a short drive to historic Adin to join in the old fashion fun. For more information on Big Valley Days Festival call Dan Bouse 299-3560.

 

July 2000

 

Record news for July 6, 2000

 

• Forest Service seeks comment on public range
• Lightning came with rain on Modoc Forest
• The Rotary Bug heads to Washington state
• Milton named Rotary Citizen of Year
• Fandango celebration brought folks to town
• Big Valley is place for summer fun
• Miss Modoc contestants compete Saturday
• Modoc picnic in Sacramento
• Fourth annual youth event, pow wow returns

 

 

Forest Service seeks comment public range

The Modoc National Forest is now seeking public comment on an Environmental Assessment on 28 grazing allotments in the Warner Mountain Ranger District.

There are several alternatives out for comment on the issue which has been under study for some time. The Forest Service has stated range conditions in the Warners are worse than other areas of the forest. A decision on the alternatives will be made following the 30-day comment which starts today.

The alternatives go from the current management of no change, to no grazing and on to a variety of other ideas, many of which may impact grazing allotments.

The Stewardship Alternative proposes changes in grazing utilization standards for all 28 grazing allotments as well as various combinations of treatments totaling approximately 18,000 acres of aspen and upland vegetation, 50 miles of fence construction and reconstruction, 36 new water developments, and other grazing-related improvements.

The no grazing alternative goes as far as to allow no grazing for 10 years. The Wilderness Sheep Adaptive Management Alternative proposes limited use on areas of three sheep allotments within the South Warner Wilderness and changes in grazing utilization standards for those sheep allotments. The Bald Mountain Permittee alternative proposed actions specific to the Bald Mountain Allotment..

For more information the project, or a copy of the EA, contact Doug Schultz, Warner Mountain Ranger District. P.O. Box 220, Cedarville, Ca. 96104 or telephone 530-279-6116. Fax requests can be sent to 530-279-6107.

To comment on the project mail or fax comments to District Ranger Edith Asrow at the ranger district office. Comments must be received by the close of business August 7.

 

Lightning came with rain on Modoc area

The Warner Mountains were pounded Sunday night by lightning, but that thunderstorm also came with a drenching of rain. As a result of that moisture, there were no fires reported.

According to Carol Sharp, U.S. Forest Service, a reconnaissance plane took a good look Monday and didn't find any sign of fire. There are fires in Nevada and north of Lakeview. The was one small fire reported in the Lava Beds.

Sharp said there are currently two engines and 12 people off the Modoc Forest working on other fires in Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, and Arizona.

Under the Forest Service assessment of fire season for the area including Modoc and Lassen Counties, is indicating above normal potential for serious fire problems in the coming month and season if present weather conditions continue.

The trend is based upon temperature/precipitation departure over the normal levels as well as 1000 hour dead fuel and live fuel moistures. The past four to six weeks have seen just below normal precipitation and just above normal temperatures.

A Wednesday afternoon thunderstorms came with several lightning strikes on the forest, and some small fires were discovered and extinguished. As with pervious storms, there was rain with the lightning.

 

The Rotary Bug heads out to Washington state

The winner of the Alturas Rotary Club's Duck Race 2000 Volkswagen Beetle is William Sanford of Washington state.

Sanford who works for Boeing, lives in Mukilteo, Washington, had the number of the fastest duck in the Pit River Saturday afternoon as it floated its way to the lead and finished well ahead of the flock. Sanford was in Alturas visiting the Covingtons for the holidays.

More people than ever lined the Pit River and the Main Street Bridge to take in the 5th annual Great Pit River Duck Race, whose proceeds go into the Rotary Youth Park complex on Fourth Street in Alturas.

As in all four previous years, the Rotary Club sold all of the 3,000 Duck Race tickets, at $25 each, ensuring a nice sum of funds, after costs, for the youth park.

"We had one of the best turnouts we've ever had," said Bill Madison. "It went great, the Boy Scouts had a great job collecting the ducks after the race. I also want to thank Randy and Carol Sharp for letting out enough water to run the race. As everyone knows the water in the river was pretty low. We'll be able to put $32,000 to $35,000 into the ballfields from this race."

There was some concern when the Rotary Club chose the VW Beetle over a pickup this year, said Madison. But the switch turned out to be good. The tickets all sold out before the race, even though the ticket sales started later and Fandango Days was earlier. In addition, said Madison, more individuals bought ducks this year than ever before.

Madison said the club has ordered bleachers for the fields and he hopes they'll show up this week. That would be in time for the upcoming All-star tournament.

The second place winner, who gets the 14-foot Smoker Craft boat was Vondia Walton, of Dunnigan. Interestingly enough, the Walton's won the first Chevy pickup in the first Duck Race and have been heavy supporters of the race ever since.

The Monitor Stove from Ed Staub and Sons was won by David Hoxsey, Alturas, while the Rally Scooter from Home Medical went to John Derner Trucking.

Joe Coffin, of Alturas, won the set of new tires from Les Schwab while Tangles Hair Salon won the family member ship from Arrowhead Golf Course.

Joe Covington was the winner of the riding lawn mower from Seab's True Value and Bob and Nancy Heard won the Whirlpool refrigerator from Phillips Appliance.

Jeannie VanNes won the 18-speed bike donated by D&L Distributing. Joy Murphy won the dozen donuts each for a year from the Donut Shop while Amanda Hagge won the $300 gift certificate from 4 Corners Market.

The Modoc Motor Parts Motorola cell phone was won by Mike Madison and John and Carolyn Hughes won a car wash a week from Williams Texaco. The Bottle Shop won Don Harbert's 55 Gallons of tractor oil.

Bob Howard won the keyboard from Seab's Electronic's and Frank's Carpets won a two-night retreat at Cockrell's High Desert Lodging. John Dailey was the winner on a muf fler and tailpipe from Ron Campbell, Inc. R.D. Walter Trucking won the 14-inch Husqvarna chainsaw from Modoc Engines.

Larranaga Trucking won the makeover from Classie Lassie and Adkins Engineering won the two-night stay at Best Western. Robert Conrad was the winner of the sun glasses from Dr. Tom Krauel. A free oil change for a year from Walton's Auto Care was won by Andrew Hoxsey and a one night stay at Mil Creek Lodge was won by Nancy Walters. Walt and Mary Smith won the garbage disposal from A&M pump. LuRay Berger was the winner of Jim Russell's handmade quilt stand and William Compton won a pair of Vans from Family Footwear.

Gary Williams won the two oil, filter changes from Modoc Minute Lube and Harold Watega won the remote control car from Lucy's Ceramics. The King family won a $100 Savings Bond from Bank of America and K&K Produce won the $100 Savings Bond from U.S. bank.

The Corporate prize winners were: first, a 500 Arctic Cat 4x4, Jerry Sanders; and, second, a 400 Arctic Cat 2x4, David Hoxsey.

 

Milton named Rotary Citizen of Year

The Alturas Rotary Clubs selected Russ Milton of Alturas as the Year 2000 Citizen of the Year and presented the award during the Duck Race Saturday.

Milton has owned and operated Modoc Modoc Parts in Alturas for almost 30 years and during that time has been a major contributor to a wide variety of programs and projects.

Milton is currently a member of the Alturas Chamber of Commerce and is a Director of the Alturas Community Theater and on the advisory board of St. Michael's Episcopal Church. He gives freely of his time to the theater and to his church.

He is a founding member of the Alturas Chamber of Commerce and was instrumental in the planting and maintaining of the street trees on Main Street. He was also very instrumental in the fundraising efforts and maintenance of the Alturas Community Clock at the Post Office. He has been involved in a wide array of activities since moving to Alturas.

He was a member of the Alturas Fire Department for more than 25 years and was also one of the charter members of the Alturas Sunrise Rotary Club.

 

Fandango celebration brought folks to town

A sun-filled, cloudless, blue sky and breeze drifted over the annual Fandango Days "Smiles of God" themed celebra tion, as Alturas' Main Street sidewalks were packed with parade watchers all the way to Veterans Park on July 1.

The 40-minute parade got underway at 11 a.m. with 30 individual entries including four "floats," several classic cars and a host of service agency vehicles from the Modoc County Sheriff's Posse to Modoc National Forests' Smokey the Bear.

The Malin, Ore. fire truck, added splash as the last to roll, sporadically shooting a powerful stream of water down Main Street. Its spray cooled spectators as they moved to Veterans' Park for activities from noon to 6 p.m.

Following the outcome of the 2 p.m. Alturas Rotary Clubs' Great Pit River Duck Race and the announcement of Citizen of the Year awarded to Russ Milton of Alturas, the crowds returned to the park. Some 18 entries were submitted in the High Plateau Humane Society's "Corny Dog" contest at the park. Certificates, crowns and several watermelons were awarded the dogs and their owners. All sizes and breeds were entered in various categories, noted Sue Rutledge of the local chapter, but it was all in fun and no names were recorded.

Crowds stayed in the park, enjoying the Alturas Lions and Elks Lodge pit beef barbecue meal, booths, activities and the Modoc Classic Cruisers Car Show, until local band "Heartless" closed the stage around 6 p.m., without incident.

Among the notables who rode in the parade were Grand Marshal Erin Forrest and Congressman Wally Herger.

The Sweepstake trophy was awarded the Pit River "Pride of the Tribe" float; "Best Theme" float was awarded "Pioneers of Modoc" created by the California Pines Volunteer Fire Department Auxiliary. ALTEC Engineering, with the Kip Lybarger Family, won the Best Commercial entry award. "M Bar P Therapeutic Horsemanship for the Challenged" won the Best Civic/Service Club award for their "All God's Children" float. Best Youth Organization entry was "Bud's Tigers" Little League team. The Lake County Round-up Court won the Equestrian Group trophy and Grace Nygard of Likely won the Best Single equestrian trophy for her sidesaddle, costumed style. Novelty division trophy was awarded Monica Eppler and De lanie Windbigler of Alturas. The Native American division trophy was taken home by Resources for Indian Student Education with dancer Robert Parrish who danced his way down the greater portion of Main Street.

Bill Tierney of Cedarville, was parade announcer, with the National Anthem sung by Rebekah Richert of Alturas.

Sunday night's weather turned much cooler for the California Pines Property Owners' annual fireworks display for the public. A good crowd turned out to enjoy the evening, which was the Fandango 2000 finale.

 

Big Valley is place for summer fun

Big Valley Summer Festival's preparations are well under way. Come this July 15 and 16, Adin will be overflowing with all sorts of entertainment. This annual festival is full of country cooking, arts and crafts, sporting competitions, and more.

Pre-summer Festival fun will be happening Friday night at the Adin Community Hall from 6-8 p.m. with a Scrap Booking Demo and workshop. Linda Sawyer, Creative Memory consultant, will provide supplies and guidance to help you create special memory pages for your cherished photos. Whether you have already begun your memory album or you're just getting interested in this wonderful way to preserve family memories, come join Linda and let the creativity begin.

In addition, Friday night the Adin Inn Pool Tournament will begin with the singles competition at 6:00 p.m. A $10.00 entry fee is needed for the singles and the doubles. The doubles tournament will begin on Sunday; night at 6:00 p.m. A beautifully crafted pool stick and cash are waiting for the winners of the tournament. Therefore, if you plan to compete in the pool tournaments, show up at the Adin Inn early to practice and enter. For additional information, call Michele Akers at 299-3315.

Food and crafter's booths will be ready to sell their wares in the Shade of the Adin Community Park. Beautifully hand constructed and painted items along with a wide variety of scrumptious food are available from 10:00 - 4:00 both Satur day and Sunday. Adin Chamber of Commerce is providing a 12x15 foot space of lawn for booths to be set up for a rental fee of $20.00. Rental fees are to be paid in advance of use. If you would like to reserve a booth, call Meridith Richno @ 299-3505.

Big Valley Summer Festival will commence Saturday morning with its annual parade starting at 10:00 a.m. The Parade line-up will be packed with Grand Marshals, antique autos, drill teams, horse drawn vehicles, mounted single and group riders. Native American entries and much more. Find your spot in the shaded areas of the tree lined street and view history pass before you. If you would like to be in the parade, send in your entry information and description by July 8, 2000. A fee of $5.00 is payable the day of the parade. Line up will begin at 8:00 a.m. with judging at 9:00. Parade Chairman, John Landoski, would again like to welcome visiting courts, floats and other entries in this year's parade. Send information to John Landoski at P.O. Box 273, Adin, CA 96006 or call him at 299-3526.

A 3-on-3 basketball tournament will be held on the cement court at the park starting at 11:00 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. This event is open to all ages and is fun for the whole family whether playing or cheering on the sidelines. Michelle Salters, organizer of this would like the teams to pre-register so she can match teams and times. Pre-register your team for $20.00 per team. If you wait until Saturday, the entry fee will be $25.00, so try to register now. Winning teams will receive cool T-Shirts! There will also be a Free-Throw Contest. Call Michelle to register at 299-3401.

Well-groomed McDaniels Field will be the site of the Big Valley Summer Festival Softball Tournament. Situated in the corner of Adin Park, McDaniels Field will be active with ongoing softball competition both Saturday and Sunday. There is plenty of room to view the games either from the bleachers or on the lawn. A concession stand is available at the field or walk across the park to many food booths. Bryan Gerig is organizing the games so for more information call him at 294-5626.

The thrill of the chase! Do not miss the high energy of the Jack Russell dog races starting at 3:00 p.m. Saturday. This year promises to be as exciting as last year. Entry fees for the races are $5.00 per class. The divisions are: Puppy Class= up to one year: 1-4 Year Class and the Veteran Class=5 years and older. Karen Kramer, coordinator of this event offers free practice and training at the Kramer Ranch July 1st 6-8 p.m. and July 13th 6-8 p.m. Muzzles are required for the race. Some muzzles will be available to borrow. Reg ister your "running Russell" early by calling Karen at 294-5327 or 294-5350.

"Ducks for Sale" The Adin Ambulance Crew is out in force selling "ducks". You may purchase a rubber duck from any of the Ambulance Crew for $10.00. Find a spot on the shaded banks of Ash Creek, and watch the Duck Derby Race, Sunday at 2:00 p.m. Cheer for your duck as it sweeps down the river to cross the finish line first and win a prize! The Duck Derby is a fund-raiser that helps support the Adin Ambulance in purchasing needed emergency equipment to better service the community. Call Dorothy Hutchinson to purchase your winning duck at 299-3527 or contact any of the crew!

If you love classic cars and who doesn't, come check out the vintage cars on display courtesy of Mountain Cruisers Club. The Mountain Cruisers will thrill us with ten to fifteen 1930 and up stock cars and High-Tech hot rods! The classic cars will be in the parade and on display at the Adin Com munity Park. If you would like to display your classic in the park, call club president Sandy Roderrotabere at 335-4156 or if you would like to show off your classic in the parade call John Landoski, parade chairman, at 299-3526.

The beautiful Ash Creek Wildlife Area with its wildflowers and waterfowl is the site for this year's "Run on the Wild Side". This is the sixth run Cheryl Jones has organized for Big Valley. She has gotten Runner's World Magazine and local businesses to sponsor this exciting event. Runners and walkers of all ages can choose between 3, 6, and 10- mile trails! An entry fee of $10.00 is required for the 3 and 6 mile run. The 10 mile run is $15.00. your entry fee includes a T-Shirt "Run on the Wild Side" sporting a Sand Hill Crane. Fruit and water are provided during the race. Call Cheryl Jones at 299-3543 to register for the "wildest" run in Northern California!

The Adin Chamber will be holding its annual Street Dance at the Community Hall parking lot from 9:00 p.m. - 2:00 a.m. Saturday. Disc Jockey Make Flanagan will provide the music and light show for the dance. Admission for the dance is $5.00 per person. So, bring a friend and come share a night of entertainment and dancing under the stars with the Big Valley community. Do not forget your jacket.

The 4-H clubs of the community will be working hard to earn money for their clubs. The Lookout 4-H club is hosting one of the weekend's breakfasts. Pancakes, eggs, your choice of sausage or bacon and juice and coffee is the menu that will be served from 6:30-9:30 Saturday morning. Adults are $4.00 and children under 12 will cost $2.00. The Providence 4-H club of Adin will be selling raffle tickets. The raffle is for one ton of hay, one cord of firewood and a park bench. They will also have their annual dunk tank! Partake in the fun while supporting a great organization.

Sunday morning another pancake breakfast will be prepared and served by Club Eternal Youth Group from 7:00 a.m.- 10:00 a.m. You may pay for your breakfast by donation. When finished with your delicious breakfast, take a few short steps outside the Adin Community Hall and join family and friends in Sunday service. Congregations from the community join in prayer and music celebrating and giving thanks to the Lord under the blue sky above. Church 'In the Park' is organized by Pastor Walt Fisher and he welcomes all to attend.

There is something for everyone at this year's Big Valley Summer Festival so take the short drive to historic Adin and join in the old fashion fun.

For more information on Big Valley Days Festival, call Dan Bouse BVSF Chairman at (530) 299-3560.

 

Miss Modoc contestants compete Saturday

Who will be given the title and crown as Miss Modoc, representing the Modoc District Fair? That answer will come at 8 p.m. on Saturday, July 8, during an evening of entertainment, food, square dancing and the pageant.

In the running for Miss Modoc are Cassandra "Cassie" Lynn Cockrell, 16, the daughter of Debra and Will Cockrell of Cedarville, is sponsored by Surprise Valley Rotary and Club Cal-Neva of Reno. Shannon Ochs, 17, daughter of Linda and Jack Ochs of Alturas, is sponsored by the Auction Yard Cafe and L&B Ranch Supply. Jodie Marie Jones-Zandstra, 17, daughter of Katherine and the Rev. Dr. Ben Zandstra of Lake City, is sponsored by Seab and Karen McDonald of Seab's True Value, J.C. Penney and Radio Shack.

The Queen and her court will be determined on July 8 at the Modoc District Fairgrounds after personal interviews with judges at 4 p.m. in the fair office; judging of the contestants' horsemanship skills, starting at 5 p.m. in the arena, which the public may spectate; and introduction on stage and a question from the judges at 7:45 p.m.

Judging is divided into two divisions: Horsemanship for 55 percent and poise, personality, appearance and personal interview, 45 percent.

Two girls will be chosen. First place is Miss Modoc County Queen and first runner-up is Miss Modoc Princess. The winning contestants will receive a western hat, buckle, tiara, sash and savings bond.The public will be welcome to enjoy the barbecued beef or chicken dinner offered outdoors near the park stage starting at 6 p.m. by the Boy Scout Troop of Surprise Valley. Dinner tickets are $10 for adults; $6 for youngsters 12 years and younger.

A fashion show featuring male and female fashions from Ardie's Classie Lassie and Calico Cow and L&B Ranch Supply in Alturas, will be enjoyed during the dinner between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Public square dancing will open at 7:00 p.m. in the dance hall with a professional caller to guide everyone - no matter if they know the steps or are veterans at square dancing. Everyone can get onto the dance floor for $5 cover charge per person. The crowning of the queen and her princess will take place in the same hall at 8 p.m.

The chosen court will represent Modoc County at 10 events this summer and next season including the Modoc District Fair August 17-20.

The blue-eyed Cockrell stands five feet, nine inches tall with brownish blonde hair. She will enter her senior year at Surprise Valley High this fall.

"It would be an honor to represent Modoc County because I love where I live and want to meet new people," Cockrell offers.

She plans to attend college to study the field of Law, specializing in ag and water resources. Cassie has earned awards for sports and academics and she has served as an officer for several ag-related clubs. She earned the Superior Region FFA Project Competition 2000 for her Partnership Yearling Project, which is keeping her busy this summer. She owns 45 percent of the partnership. The project includes approximately 54-head of yearlings and she created a budget that involves purchasing 550 to 600 pound yearlings and all that goes along with the business.

Shannon Ochs of Alturas, the 17-year-old daughter of Linda and Jack Ochs, will enter her senior year at Modoc High this fall. The dark-haired; hazel eyed Shannon stands five feet, 9 inches and is working full-time at L&B Ranch Supply, one of her sponsors, along with Auction Yard Cafe. Ochs serves as FFA Chapter Vice President for Alturas FFA and keeps busy showing her livestock and horses at local fairs and shows.

"I think it would be an honor representing Modoc County as part of the Miss Modoc Court," she shared.

Ochs future plans are to attend Modesto Junior College and transfer to CSU, Chico, to major in Ag Educantion and Mechanics. Born in Redding, she has grown up in Modoc County. Ochs was selected as first alternate for Girls State this spring.

Jodie Marie Jones-Zandstra of Lake City, is the 17-year-old daughter of Katherine and the Rev. Dr. Ben Zandstra. With green eyes, auburn hair, Jodie stands five feet, six inches tall and is a lifetime Modoc resident. Jodie shares that she has always had the desire to be named Miss Modoc. She has many long term goals and ambitions when she finishes her senior year at Surprise Valley High in 2001; among which is studying veterinarian medicine at University of Australia. Her academic accomplishments have earned her special recognition and she has served as an officer for school, 4-H and FFA organizations. She also loves working with her horses and the artist in her enjoys working with ceramics.

Her sponsors are Seab and Karen McDonald of Seab's True Value, J.C. Penney and Radio Shack.

The Queen and her court will be determined on July 8 at the Modoc District Fairgrounds after interviews with judges; judging of the contestants' horsemanship skills and introduction on stage. Judging is divided in to two division: Horsemanship for 55 percent and poise, personality, appearance and personal interview, 45 percent. The chosen court will represent Modoc County at 10 events this summer and next season.

This year's contestants will be seen riding in the Fandango Parade this Saturday.

 

Modoc Picnic in Sacramento

Modocers who live away from Modoc will have the chance to visit at the 59th annual Modoc Picnic on Sunday, August 6 at the Carmichael Park in Carmichael, Calif.

All Modoc'ers, former Modoc'ers and families are invited to this annual event. This is a potluck so those attending are asked to bring a dish of their choice, their own place setting and their own beverage.

Lunch will begin at 12 noon or thereabouts. It is advisable to arrive early so that attendees may have a chance to visit before the group sits down to lunch.

Carmichael Park is located at the corner of Fair Oaks Blvd. and Grant Ave. The picnic will be located at the rear of the park near the playground. Just follow the signs.

For further information please contact either Guy Fender at (916) 371-3725 or Frank Rider at (916) 645-2995.

 

Fourth annual youth event, pow wow returns

Resources for Indian Student Education will host a two-day family and youth-oriented gathering on July 14 and 15 at California Pines Lodge.

"Last year over 300 people gathered at Cal Pines Lodge for educational and traditional activities," described Dr. April Lea Go Forth, RISE Director.

In the past three years, the event was funded by a TUPE grant awarded to RISE through Prop. 99 funds, but this year, support through Plumas County Health Department and the Native Performance Fund have expanded workshop topics and provided Saturday afternoon health and education activities.

Friday, July 14 begins with a family dinner and ends with a teen dance at the lodge. Youth leadership teams from Roundhouse Council, Four Winds of Indian Education, and RISE from Alturas, will lead evening programs for families. Pre-registered guests will come from Stockton, Redding, Sacramento, Greenville, Placerville, Elk Grove, Chico, Oroville, Burney, Fall River, Challenge, Marysville and Modoc County.

Saturday, July 15, California Pines Lodge will serve breakfast for guests before the morning workshops. The Medicine Wheel Project honors traditional use versus commercial abuse of tobacco, and Genevieve Markussen will be the guest consultant. Irma Amaro-Davis will address HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infections in two HAWK workshops; one for adults and a second one for youth. A team of RISE staff/parents will conduct a parent workshop this year.

Lunch will be sold by Cal Pines Lodge, and Indian tacos in front of the lodge, by Cynthia Gonzales, PAC Chairperson. Saturday afternoon will offer sessions on college recruitment, swimming, a bubble pool, basketball, cake walk, and the U.S. Forest Service will conduct a session with "Enviroscape" on loan from MESA Statewide. Everyone is welcome to an Intertribal workshop from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. on powwow protocol. The Pow Wow begins at 5:30 p.m., after dinner, and it is open to the public. Drawing items have been donated by Alturas merchants, who are featured in a PowWow program, to be raffled all evening. Raffle proceeds benefit the 2001 scholarships at RISE. Vendor booths will be open throughout Saturday as well.

 

 

Record news for July 13, 2000

 

• Local school election filing opens next week
• Lighting sparks small fires
• LTC moves forward on SR 299 project
• Case dismissed, will be refiled against county social services director
• Youth Pow Wow set for Cal Pines
• Big Valley's Summer Festival rolls out the fun this weekend
• 'Cassie' Cockrell wins Miss Modoc crown
• Lost River names cast for July 20 opening
• Modoc Picnic in Sacramento

 

 

Local school election filing opens next week

The filing dates for candidates in Modoc school elections on November 7 are July 17 through August 11 for school districts and special districts.

Candidates should pick up nominations papers at the clerk's office and return those forms to the clerk.

Those board members up for election in the Modoc Joint Unified School District are Jeff Bushey, Cindy Culp and Sean Curtis. MJUSD voters will have the opportunity to elect a new majority.

In Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District, trustees Bob Staton and Tony Darst and up for election.

The Tulelake Basin Joint Unified School District will have board members Shelly Buckingham, Tom Macy and Jerry LeQuieu open for election.

There are also two members of the County Board of Education coming up, Angela Benner in the first district and Jim Hays in district four.

The November 2 election also includes special district governing boards in the county including the Surprise Valley Hospital District, community service districts, irrigation, and water and fire districts.

The last day to register to vote in the November general election is Oct. 9. That is also the last chance to make name or address changes.

In addition to the local elections, races for all national and state offices will be on the ballot.

 

Lightning sparks small fires

Thunderstorms over the past week have sparked 18 small forest fires on the Modoc National Forest, but none were considered a serious threat.

According to Joan Chandler, U.S. Forest Service Dispatcher, the fire danger currently remains at the moderate level, about normal for this time of year. She suspects the fire danger levels to increase if the dry and warm weather continues.

Most of the lightning storms over the past week came with heavy precipitation in scattered areas across the forest, said Chandler. The rain helped to keep blazes small.

Of the 18 fires, eight were located on the Big Sage Fire Management Unit and two of those remain burning. Fires in that unit are allowed to burn themselves out, but are monitored to insure they do not endanger areas outside the unit.

 

LTC moves forward on SR 299 project

Just what will happen to Highway 299 from Main Street west past Mill Street will be decided by the Modoc County Local Transportation Commission July 25 at a regular meeting.

Tuesday night the Alturas City Council recommended one of the five alternatives presented by the LTC for modification for the highway coming into town.

The recommendation is for a three-lane highway from Main Street to just past Mill street with the center lane being a left-turn lane the entire distance. The highway is currently two-lane. There will also be some safety items installed at the Warner and Highway 299 intersection.

The initial project called for a new traffic light at the intersection of Main and Highway 299 where traffic is controlled now by a blinking red light. Population growth patterns in Modoc and Alturas, however, did not justify the traffic light and it was deleted from the project. The blinking red light will remain. The area did not grow and actually went backwards.

The project includes eight-foot paved shoulders, the realignment of a short section of West C to match up with Juniper Street, a .15 foot asphalt concrete overlay and improved roadway drainage.

The project, at an estimated cost of $2,768,000, is scheduled by Caltrans for 2003. A major rehabilitation project for Main Street and Highway 395 is scheduled for next summer.

In addition to the recommendation, the council also approved an Alturas Fire Department request to place a fire training facility at the City's Railroad Property. That area will be used for AFD training on structure and other fires.

The council also approved an expenditure of $250 to purchase replacement light fixtures for the Alturas Tennis Courts.

 

Case dismissed, will be refiled against county social services director

The misuse of funds case against Modoc County Social Services Director Richard Belarde was dismissed last week in preliminary hearing by Judge Stephen Bradbury, who was sitting in Modoc Superior Court.

Bradbury, from Susanville, dismissed the case because the prosecution was not ready to move forward.

Assistant District Attorney Jordan Funk, who is handling the case, plans on refiling the case this month. Funk said the DA's office investigation of the case was not complete by the time of the preliminary hearing, but that he is certain it will be refiled.

Funk said the dismissal of the case by Judge Bradbury had nothing to do with the quality or the merits of the case and evidence. Funk said more investigation was needed.

Belarde has entered not guilty pleas to all charges.

He and a clerical supervisor for Social Services have been placed on paid administrative leave by the County Board of Supervisors pending the results of the case. Their status remains the same following the dismissal last week, pending the new filing.

Belarde has been charged with six felony counts involving misuse of public funds, one charge of furnishing cocaine to an individual and one of embezzling from the county. No charges have been filed against the other employee.

Belarde remains released on his own recognizance.

The county is undertaking an audit into past records of the Social Services Department and investigating other leads in the case.

 

Pow wow returns to Cal Pines for family weekend activities

A host of visitors and Modoc residents are expected to attend this weekend's Resources for Indian Student Education family and youth-oriented PowWow gathering on July 14 and 15 at California Pines Lodge.

"Last year over 300 people gathered at Cal Pines Lodge for educational and traditional activities," described Dr. April Lea Go Forth, RISE Director.

Workshop topics have been expanded this year along with Saturday afternoon health and education activities. In the past three years, the event was funded by a TUPE grant awarded to RISE through Prop. 99 funds, but this year, support through Plumas County Health Department and the Native Performance Fund has been added.

Friday, July 14 begins with a family dinner and ends with a teen dance at the lodge. Youth leadership teams from Roundhouse Council, Four Winds of Indian Education, and RISE from Alturas, will lead evening programs for families. Pre-registered guests will come from Stockton, Redding, Sacramento, Greenville, Placerville, Elk Grove, Chico, Oroville, Burney, Fall River, Challenge, Marysville and Modoc County.

Saturday, July 15, California Pines Lodge will serve breakfast for guests before the morning workshops. The Medicine Wheel Project honors traditional use versus commercial abuse of tobacco, and Genevieve Markussen will be the guest consultant. Irma Amaro-Davis will address HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infections in two HAWK workshops; one for adults and a second one for youth. A team of RISE staff/parents will conduct a parent workshop this year.

Lunch will be sold by Cal Pines Lodge, and Indian tacos in front of the lodge, by Cynthia Gonzales, PAC Chairperson. Saturday afternoon will offer sessions on college recruitment, swimming, a bubble pool, basketball, cake walk, and the U.S. Forest Service will conduct a session with "Enviroscape" on loan from MESA Statewide.

Everyone is welcome to an Intertribal workshop from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. on powwow protocol.

The Pow Wow begins at 5:30 p.m., after dinner, and is open to the public.

Drawing items have been donated by Alturas merchants, who are featured in a PowWow program, to be raffled all evening. Raffle proceeds benefit the 2001 scholarships at RISE. Vendor booths will be open throughout Saturday as well.

 

Big Valley's Summer Festival rolls out the fun this weekend

Big Valley's Summer Festival opens for weekend fun on July 15 and 16, in the historic berg of Adin, which will overflow with all sorts of entertainment and fun for any age.

This annual festival is full of contests, booths, country cooking, arts and crafts, sporting competitions, and more.

Pre-Summer Festival fun will be happening Friday night at the Adin Community Hall from 6-8 p.m. with a Scrap Booking Demo and workshop. Linda Sawyer, Creative Memory consultant, will provide supplies and guidance to help anyone interested create special memory pages for cherished photos. Whether you have already begun your memory album or you're just getting interested in this wonderful way to preserve family memories, come join Linda and let the creativity begin.

In addition, Friday night the Adin Inn Pool Tournament will begin with the singles competition at 6:00 p.m. A $10.00 entry fee is needed for the singles and the doubles. The doubles tournament will begin on Sunday night at 6:00 p.m. A beautifully crafted pool stick and cash are waiting for the winners of the tournament. If you plan to compete in the pool tournaments, show up at the Adin Inn early to practice and enter. For additional information, call Michele Akers at 299-3315.

Saturday's events

Big Valley Summer Festival will commence Saturday morning down Adin's Main Street, with its annual parade starting at 10:00 a.m. The Parade line-up will be packed with Grand Marshals, antique autos, drill teams, horse drawn vehicles, mounted single and group riders, Native American entries and much more. Find your spot in the shaded areas of the tree lined street and view history pass. Parade Chairman is John Landoski.

Saturday will open with food and crafters' booths ready to sell their wares in the shade of the Adin Community Park in Adin. Beautifully hand-constructed and painted items along with a wide variety of foods will be available from 10:00 - 4:00 both Saturday and Sunday. Adin Chamber of Commerce is providing a 12x15 foot space of lawn for booths to be set up for a rental fee of $20.00. Rental fees are to be paid in advance of use. If you would like to reserve a booth, call Meridith Richno @ 299-3505.

A 3-on-3 basketball tournament will be held on the cement court at the Adin park starting at 11:00 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. This event is open to all ages and is fun for the whole family whether playing or cheering on the sidelines. Organizer Michelle Salters asks teams to pre-register so she can match teams and times. Pre-register for $20.00 per team. If you wait until Saturday, the entry fee will be $25.00, Winning teams will receive special T-Shirts. There will also be a Free-Throw Contest. Call Michelle to register at (530) 299-3401.

Well-groomed McDaniels Field will be the site of the Big Valley Summer Festival Softball Tournament. Situated in the corner of Adin Park, McDaniels Field will be active with ongoing softball competition both Saturday and Sunday. There is plenty of room to view the games either from the bleachers or on the lawn. A concession stand is available at the field or walk across the park to many food booths. Bryan Gerig is organizing the games Call Bryan for more information at (530) 294-5626.

The thrill of the chase! Do not miss the high energy of the Jack Russell dog races starting at 3:00 p.m. Saturday. Entry fees for the races are $5.00 per class. The divisions are: Puppy Class-up to one year: 1-4 Year Class and the Veteran Class-5 years and older. Karen Kramer is coordinator. Muzzles are required for the race. Some muzzles will be available to borrow. Reg ister your "running Russell" early by calling Karen at 294-5327 or 294-5350.

"Ducks for Sale" The Adin Ambulance Crew is out in force selling "ducks". You may purchase a rubber duck from any of the ambulance crew for $10.00. Find a spot on the shaded banks of Ash Creek, and watch the Duck Derby Race, Sunday at 2:00 p.m. Cheer for your duck as it sweeps down the river to cross the finish line first and win a prize! The Duck Derby is a fund-raiser that helps support the Adin Ambulance in purchasing needed emergency equipment to better service the community. Call Dorothy Hutchinson to purchase your winning duck at 299-3527 or contact any of the crew.

Come check out the vintage and classic cars on display courtesy of Mountain Cruisers Club. The Mountain Cruisers will thrill with ten to fifteen 1930 and up stock cars and High-Tech hot rods. The classic cars will be in the parade and on display at the Adin Community Park. If you would like to display your classic in the park, call club president Sandy Roderrotabere at 335-4156 or if you would like to show off your classic in the parade call John Landoski, parade chairman, at 299-3526.

The beautiful Ash Creek Wildlife Area with its wildflowers and waterfowl is the site for this year's "Run on the Wild Side." This is the sixth run Cheryl Jones has organized for Big Valley. She has lined up Runner's World Magazine and local businesses to sponsor this event. Runners and walkers of all ages can choose between 3, 6, and 10-mile trails. An entry fee of $10.00 is required for the 3 and 6 mile run. The 10-mile run is $15.00. your entry fee includes a T-Shirt "Run on the Wild Side" sporting a Sand Hill Crane. Fruit and water are provided during the race. Call Cheryl Jones at 299-3543 to register for the "wildest" run in Northern California.

The Adin Chamber will hold its annual Street Dance at the Community Hall parking lot from 9:00 p.m. - 2:00 a.m. Saturday. Disc Jockey Mike Flanagan will provide the music and light show for the dance. Admission for the dance is $5.00 per person. So, bring a friend and come share a night of entertainment and dancing under the stars with the Big Valley community. Don't forget your jacket.

The 4-H clubs of the community will be working hard to earn money for their clubs. The Lookout 4-H club is hosting one of the weekend's breakfasts. Pancakes, eggs, your choice of sausage or bacon and juice and coffee is the menu that will be served from 6:30-9:30 Saturday morning. Adults are $4.00 and children under 12 will cost $2.00. The Providence 4-H club of Adin will be selling raffle tickets. The raffle is for one ton of hay, one cord of firewood and a park bench. They will also have their annual dunk tank.

Sunday

Sunday morning another pancake breakfast will be pepared and served by Club Eternal Youth Group from 7:00 a.m.- 10:00 a.m. You may pay for your breakfast by donation. When finished with your delicious breakfast, take a few short steps outside the Adin Community Hall and join family and friends in Sunday service. Congregations from the community join in prayer and music celebrating and giving thanks to the Lord under the sky. Church 'In the Park' is organized by Pastor Walt Fisher and he welcomes all to attend.

There is something for everyone at this year's Big Valley Summer Festival so take the short drive to historic Adin and join in the old fashion fun.

For more information on Big Valley Days Festival, call Dan Bouse BVSF Chairman at (530) 299-3560.

 

'Cassie' Cockrell wins Miss Modoc crown

Cassandra "Cassie" Lynn Cockrell, daughter of Debra and Will Cockrell of Cedarville, was crowned Miss Modoc during the July 8 festivities held at the Modoc District Fairgrounds in Cedarville.

Cockrell is sponsored by Surprise Valley Rotary and Club Cal-Neva of Reno. The 16-year-old, blue-eyed Cockrell stands five feet, nine inches tall with brownish blonde hair. She will enter her senior year at Surprise Valley High this fall.

Jodie Marie Jones-Zandstra, 17, daughter of Katherine and the Rev. Dr. Ben Zandstra of Lake City, was chosen as First Princess and is sponsored by Seab and Karen McDonald of Seab's True Value, J.C. Penney and Radio Shack.

Second Princess Shannon Ochs, 17, daughter of Linda and Jack Ochs of Alturas, was crowned First Princess and is sponsored by the Auction Yard Cafe and L&B Ranch Supply.

Cockrell received a silver buckle from the Alturas Elks Lodge 1756, a $200 U.S. Savings Bond from Modoc County Farm Bureau, $25 cash from the outgoing 1999 Miss Modoc, a bouquet of roses from Jeannette Primorac, Fair Board member; a court jacket from L&B Ranch Supply and $100 towards a travel outfit from the Modoc County Sheriff's Posse. Princesses also received crowns, sashes and rose bouquets, court jackets, buckles sponsored by United Country Stevenson Realty and Dr. Russell L. Holpuch, DDA/MSD of Redding; and $100 each from the Modoc Sheriff's Posse for travel outfits. Modoc Fair sponsored a $100 savings bond for the first princess and Traci and Pat Green sponsored a $100 savings bond for the second princess. Each received a western hat.

"A nice crowd of about 75 to 100 folks turned out to watch the crowning," said Green, with a host of young people staying to try their feet at square dancing which followed, with retired professional caller Don Monteer of Reno. Surprise Valley Hot Springs hosted the square dance evening until about 10 p.m.

"He was wonderful," said Green "and everyone seemed to have a really good time." Ardie Ferry of Ardie's Classie Lassie and Calico Cow presented a 20-minute fashion show outdoors during the barbecue dinner prepared by the Boy Scout Troop of Surprise Valley. This year's pageant was coordinated by Bekki Ingraham and Jeannette Bucher. Judging is divided into two divisions: Horsemanship for 55 percent and poise, personality, appearance and personal interview, 45 percent.

The Queen and her Court will represent Modoc County at 10 events this summer and next season including the Modoc District Fair August 17-20.

 

Lost River names cast for July 20 opening

Lost River, The Story of the Modoc Indian War opens its third season July 20 in Al turas at a new location under the stars, on the former Alturas Mill site .

The outdoor historical play depicts the events surrounding the Modoc Indian War of 1872 and 73.

The play is presented by the Modoc County Arts Council and Modoc Performing Arts Theatre. Modoc Indian Health Project, Pepsi-Cola, and Plumas Bank sponsor the 2000 season.

Ben Van Meter formerly of Santa Rosa, Calif., who has relocated to Alturas, wrote the play after many years of research, discussions with numerous historical scholars, and the input of the Modoc Tribe of Oklahoma. Van Meter serves as a producer along with director Massie on this season's production.

Many cast members return this summer and are:

The Spirit Elders: Nathaniel "Chief" Forrest, Jeremiah Hays, Rosemary Forrest, Margaret Forrest. Narrator: Alan Cain. Rurik Davis will play the role of Captain Jack and Melody Sheline, Winema. The Modocs include Misty Gwinn, Pershing Parker, Don Utter, Stan Yagi, Ken Ballard, Jeanetta Lucier, Katherine Ames, David Parrish, Franklin Hays, Michael Parrish, Hannah Hays. The Army includes Larry Shippen as General Canby; Gerry Gates, Harry Boulade, Linda Lucier, Niles Reynolds, Morgan Davis, Josh Merkel, Tiffany Ford, Stacy Moseley, Hannah Hays, Nick Hawes, Jeremy Lucier, Stan Yagi. The Settlers: Alan Tomaszewski, Dee Green, Kerry Davis, Nancy Ballard, Karen Hays, Craig Flournoy, Jeremy Lucier, Tiffany Ford, Josh Merkel, Aloha Schaefer, Nick Hawes, Midge Dier, Larry Manzer.

The 2000 season marks the beginning of work on a new home for Lost River, a 300-seat amphitheater near the new Railroad Museum in Alturas.

Pre-show music will begin at 6:30 p.m. provided by the Black Irish Band, a folk group offering regional musical selections. The show also features the Indian drumming of "Rising Nation" a local American Indian youth group, which includes Lisa Craig, Jacie Matzke, Robert Parrish, AnnMarie Sanchez, Chris Craig and Dr. April Lea Go Forth and the music of David Arkenstone from his Compact Disc "Spirit Wind."

Lost River will perform July 20 through 23 and July 27 through 30 in Alturas. Tickets are $9 for adults and $6 for students and senior citizens. Tickets available at the gate or in advance from Pizza & Pasta Place. The amphitheater is located on the west end of Fourth Street between the Alturas airport and the Alturas Railroad Museum or former lumber mill site. A group discount is available for groups of 20 or more. For more information or to order tickets for Lost River, The Story of the Modoc Indian War, call the Modoc County Arts Council at 530-233-2505.

 

Modoc Picnic in Sacramento

Modocers who live away from Modoc will have the chance to visit at the 59th annual Modoc Picnic on Sunday, August 6 at the Carmichael Park in Carmichael, Calif.

All Modoc'ers, former Modoc'ers and families are invited to this annual event. This is a potluck so those attending are asked to bring a dish of their choice, their own place setting and their own beverage.

Lunch will begin at 12 noon or thereabouts. It is advisable to arrive early so that attendees may have a chance to visit before the group sits down to lunch.

Carmichael Park is located at the corner of Fair Oaks Blvd. and Grant Ave. The picnic will be located at the rear of the park near the playground. Just follow the signs.

For further information please contact either Guy Fender at (916) 371-3725 or Frank Rider at (916) 645-2995.

 

 

Record news for July 20, 2000

 

• CSD voters to decide on board numbers
• Campers see bear in Warners
• Mosquitoes meet match at Hot Springs
• Supervisors approve CR 91 and CR 1 roadwork
• Lost River opens at a new site
• Candidates filing for local office
• June jobless rate drops to 6.9%

CSD voters to decide on board numbers

 

Voters in the embattled California Pines Community Services District will have a say in changing the configuration of that board in the November 7 general election.

All three members of that board were recalled this spring in a bitter confrontation. Part of the discussion surrounding the recall was the possibility of having more than three members on the governing board.

The current board has opted to let the people make the decision. It could have made the decision itself, but chose a vote.

Those voters will be asked whether to increase the number of directors on the CSD from three to five members. A simple majority could approve or disapprove the measure in November. There will actually be two questions on the November ballot. The first will ask whether to increase the size of the board and the second issue will be to elect candidates to take those positions should the measure pass. If voters choose to stay with three board members, the other question is moot. Candidates should file papers with the Modoc County Clerk's Office between now and August 11.

According to Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison, candidates may now register for the one position coming up in November, that of Bill Roland as well as the two other positions if the measure passes.

The Modoc County Grand Jury, who investigated the CSD, has recommended increasing the board from three to five members. in order to "provide better representation of all members."The Grand Jury had investigated allegations of poor record keeping by the previous board and conflicts on issues of trust. It found that not all records were kept in a place that was readily accessible and recommended that the CSD establish a safe place to keep all financial records, meeting minutes and any other pertinent information concerning their activities.

"These records should be kept in an organized and orderly manner," the Grand Jury states. "Original records should never be removed from the office, but copies could be made as needed . . . volunteers, board spouses and others should not be given the authority to make decisions or have direct access to district files. The CSD should establish rules and responsibilities for the individual board members and management."

Current members of the CSD Board are Wayne Miliron, Charles Green and Bill Roland.

 

Campers see bear in Warners

A pair of campers encountered a curious and hungry bear in the Warner Mountains' Pepperdine Campground in June and Modoc National Forest officials are advising July campers to be aware of bears.

While bear sightings are infrequent in the Warners, there are bears who live in the mountains.

According to the campers' account, they arrived at Pepperdine in the mid-afternoon and found they had the place to them selves.

"We made the mistake of leaving our big plastic food crate sitting on the picnic table while we went for a hike in the wilderness area," they state. "We arrived back at camp and a bear was busy doing something behind a big fallen tree. As it turns out, he was enjoying a bag of our granola.

"He seemed pretty naive about human food; there were lots of goodies in the box that he ignored."

The bear knocked the water container for a loop, and it was leaking. He had apparently danced around in the mud and then climbed up on the car to inspect the tables and chairs lashed to the roof. He left a trail of muddy footprints.

"Our arrival frightened him away," the campers said. "However, he circled around the campground and returned from the other direction, apparently to retrieve the granola. We frightened him away by banging on a pot and he didn't come back."

Th campers had some second thoughts about their activities that day and decided to take better care of their foodstuffs next time around.

"We felt very badly about our thoughtlessness in leaving the food out," they said. " We thought you might want to remind people to be careful. We didn't see anything anymore in the Warners. We camped at Emerson the night before, and also had the place to ourselves. A reminder about bears would certainly have made us more cautious."

Mosquitoes meet match at Hot Springs

 

By Nora Russell

Pools of water created by the natural hot wells surrounding Surprise Valley Hot Springs are the perfect breeding ground for swarms of mosquitoes.

"At first I thought the mosquitoes were a nuisance that I would have to live with," explained Hot Springs manager, Kurt Rose. "But I knew they would bother guests, so when I heard that Gerlach had found a way to control mosquitoes, I wanted to find out how."

Rose went to Gerlach, NV to research their control method. "I found out that there is a way to control mosquitoes. As soon as I started talking to the guy, it was like we were in this war against mosquitoes. Like, 'You hate mosquitoes? I do too!'" laughed Rose.

It was in Gerlach that Rose learned about Dan Ariaz, the man charge of vector control for Washoe County for many years.

"Finding Dan was something like Divine Intervention," Rose said.

Ariaz has specialized in Biological Vector Control for over 20 years and was the president of The American Mosquito Control Association in 1998-99.

Vector control is the control of any animal that transmits disease to another. It could be a flea transmitting the Bubonic Plague, a deer mouse transmitting the Hanta Virus or a mosquito transmitting Encephalitis or Malaria.

Preventing mosquitoes from transferring disease to humans is something that Ariaz takes personally. His younger brother contracted mosquito-borne Encephalitis and Ariaz has been a witness to how debilitating the disease can be.

"Encephalitis is tough on the young, but can be severe or even fatal to the elderly," Ariaz explained.

There are over 50 known species of mosquitoes in California and 20 of them have been found in Modoc county, including the Tarsalis which can be a carrier of Encephalitis and two types of the Anopheles mosquito; the Freeborni and the Punctipennis, which can carry Malaria.

Sixteen times, locally acquired Malaria has been reported from California. Each time, swift response by health officials and the mosquito abatement districts has prevented the disease from becoming reestablished.

One large outbreak of Malaria occurred in Nevada County, where Anopheles Freeborni around a Lake Vira campground bit a Marine recently back from Asia and over several months transmitted the infection to more than 35 Girl Scouts and other campers. The girls had already returned to their homes scattered throughout California and Nevada before their infections began to be diagnosed.

"It is always better to be proactive instead of reactive in mosquito control," Ariaz said. "In New York they had let their mosquito control budget be whittled down until the outbreak of the West Nile Virus last year that killed six people, now they have a budget of $10 million."

"I don't want to scare the public," Ariaz added. "In fact the chance of getting a mosquito-borne disease is not high, but in my opinion, even one case is one case too many."

Ariaz advocates a "soft" approach to mosquito control and has been teaching Rose how to apply it at the S.V. Hot Springs.

"The first night I was here, Kurt and I stood outside and 20-30 mosquitoes at a time were landing on us. We sprayed BTI the next day and that night no mosquitoes landed on us," said Ariaz.

"It's a quality of life issue, now I feel like I can go outside any time and not be bitten by mosquitoes," added Rose.

BTI (Bacillus thuringensis variety israelensis) is a spore that was discovered in the water in Israel where there are no mosquitoes. It produces a crystalline substance that, when eaten by mosquito larvae is toxic.

In addition to the BTI, Rose sprays synthetic Pyrethyoiv into the ponds located around the hot springs, It is a compound that mimics insect hormones. Under normal conditions, mos-quito larvae produce hormones that are essential to bring about the changes in tissues that result in the larvae pupating and then emerging as adult mosquitoes. The use of the synthetic compounds exposes the larvae to the wrong hormone at the wrong time and has the effect of preventing the larvae from ever completing their development. These compounds have the advantage of being bio-degradable so they don't leave any harmful residue.

Rose purchased a machine that sprays both the BTI and the synthetic compound. It can be calibrated to spray in the minute amounts BTI requires. It uses three ounces per minute and covered 40 acres in 35 minutes using 90 ounces of BTI.

"It really helps to have the right piece of equipment," Rose said. "And it's nice to have the inventor training me on how to use the machine." Referring to the fact that Ariaz holds the patents to some of the parts on the machine.

The frequency that Rose will have to spray to keep the mosquitoes at bay will depend on larvae found and other conditions that he will keep watch on.

"The nice part of controlling mosquitoes this way is that if I spill any on me, I can just wash it off with soap and water. And it won't hurt the fish in our fishing ponds," Rose added.

"It was expensive to get started," he explained. "Especially for a private business owner. The machine cost $7,000 and the BTI is $50 a gallon. It would be nice if there was some sort of mosquito abatement program in Modoc county to help out."

Three years ago Ariaz submitted a report on possible mosquito control techniques for Modoc County to the Department of Public Works because he has received calls from concerned citizens.

According to Stacy Chace at the Department of Public Works for the city of Alturas there was a mosquito control program in Alturas approximately 12 years ago.

"We did spray in town, but the mosquitoes would just come in from the outlying areas and it was like blowing smoke in the wind and regulations became so tight that the program was dropped. I think the only concern about mosquitoes was that they could carry encephalitis, but we don't get those types of mosquitoes here anyway."

 

Supervisors approve CR 91 and CR1 roadwork

The Modoc County Board of Supervisors considered and voted on issues involving county personnel, roadwork, and working comments regarding Sierra Nevada Framework during its meeting on July 18.

The first item on the agenda was the presentation of an "Employee Service Award" to Charles "Charlie" Ramos upon his retirement after 18 years with the Modoc County Alcohol & Drug Services Department.

The certificate was read aloud and Ramos received a standing ovation.

Mental Health Director, Phil Smith, spoke about the 'legendary' quality that Ramos has in the county due to the excellent work he did at the Alcohol and Drug Services Department.

The board unanimously voted to send a letter of appreciation to the Country Jam for their donation of several flags and a cooler to county facilities. The board also voted to sponsor a permanent Country Jam sign to be placed outside the Veteran's Hall.

The loosely formed Country Jam organization will be responsible for providing the materials for the sign and Rick Hironymous, Public Works Assistant, will arrange for it to be made at the Devil's Garden Conservation Camp.

Road Commissioner, Thomas Tracy presented a report to the board on future State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) projects.

According to Tracy, there appears to be about $4.4 million available to the Modoc County region (the county and Alturas) in the 2000 STIP. About $1.8 million is new money, the remainder is money currently in reserve for construction of the Highway 299 widening in Alturas.

It is anticipated that the Local Transportation Commission would split the $4.4 million by population, one third to Alturas and two thirds to the county, although there is a possibility that Al turas would loan their share to the county, since they do not presently have streets eligible for these funds.

"The next chunk of STIP funding will be applied to two roads, $1.8 million for County Road 91 and $1.1 million for County Road 1, from one mile north of Eagleville almost to the Lassen line," explained Tracy.

"In my opinion, 91 takes traffic away from Modoc. I would prefer to see the money used on County Road 1 which brings people into Modoc," stated board member Pat Cantrall.

"We have so many miles of road to maintain," responded board member McIntyre. "If we can finish 91 and 1 then the road de partment can concentrate on other roadwork."

Mike Maxwell, County Administrative Officer, added that, "The county also has the responsibility of safety concerns for the citi zens who use all of the roads."

Tracy presented a list of future road projects planned for Modoc County. "At this point this is just a wish list because funding for these things can change quickly," he explained.

The first tier roads in future projects include (in order of priority): CR91, from CR85A to Lassen County, 11 miles, year 2001/02 at a cost of $1.8 million.

CR 1 from CR35 to Nevada, 15 miles, year 2003-2006 at a cost of $3.1 million.

CR 114 from CR101 to Oregon, 5 miles, year 2007/08 at a cost of $800,000.

CR 111 from Highway 139 to CR 108, 6.0 miles, year 2009/10 at a cost of $1 million.

CR1 from Cedarville to Lake City, 10 miles, year 2011/12 at a cost of $1.8 million.

CR 1 from Lake City to Ft. Bidwell, 15 miles, year 2013 - 2016 at a cost of $2.7 million.

CR 114 from Highway 139 to CR 101, 5 miles, year 2017/18 at a cost of $800,000.

CR 111 from Highway 139 to Causeway, 6 miles, year 2017/18 at a cost of $1 million.

CR 120 from CR 111 to Causeway, 1.6 miles, year 2019/20 at a cost of $250,000.

For a total of 75 miles at a cost of $13,200,000.

Plans for the second tier roads which are mostly minor collectors will include:

CR121 from Hwy 139 to CR 120, 4.2 miles, year 2000/01 at a cost of $400,000.

CR 9 from Hwy 395 to Buck's Creek, 4.6 miles, year 2001/02 at a cost of $400,000.

CR 17 from CR 1 to CR 18, 3.3 miles, year 2002/03 at a cost of $313,000.

CR 18 from CR 1 to CR 17, 1 mile, year 2002/03 at a cost of $87,000.

CR 88 from Hwy 299 to transfer station, 1.1 mile, year 2003/04 at a cost of $93,000.

CR 89 from Hwy 299 to Adin Cemetery, 0.7 miles, year 2003/04 at a cost of $59,000.

CR 198 from Hwy 299 to Hwy 299, 1.1 mile, year 2003/04 at a cost of $93,000.

Adin Streets, 1.9 miles, year 2003/04 at a cost of $155,000.

CR 60 from CR 54 to CR 61 4.7 miles, year 2004/05 at a cost of $400,000.

For a total of 22.6 miles at a cost of $2 million for materials only.

The board recommended that County Roads 91 and 1 will be the next roads to receive funds. The recommendation was passed unanimously.

Sean Curtis, Resource Analyst and member of the Land Use Committee presented "Working comments regarding Sierra Nevada Framework" for the board's consideration.

Comments include:

Fire Risk: The likelihood of severe fire needs to play a bigger role in assigning risk.

"They've based fire risk on the value of the property that might burn instead of the type of fire fuel in the surrounding area." Curtis explained. "They are ignoring the investment the pubic has made in timber stands, threatened and endangered specie habitat enhancement and watershed improvement."

Affect on Private Property: The document needs to deal with the potential negative impacts these alternatives create on private lands besides the fire risk to structures.

"We're already seeing more intensive farming of land and structures built on land because ranchers have to make up the income they are losing from the loss of grazing permits," Curtis said. "Those things could be even more ecologically damaging than the grazing that was deemed bad for the ecology in the first place."

Willow Flycatcher: The available science on the impacts of livestock grazing on the viability of the Willow Flycatcher is too weak to serve as guidance for management.

Local Flexibility: A procedure needs to be developed that allows local decision officers the ability to manage outside the regional prescription.

Revisit the discussion of creating a special designation for the Modoc National Forest: The ecological, geological and climatic differences will make the meeting of many of the standards and guidelines impractical, irresponsible or impossible. Consideration of designation as a research or stewardship forest that would allow many of the "cutting edge" projects to continue.

The board voted to accept the comments as written and submit them to the Forest Service.

 

Lost River opens at new site

Lost River, The Story of the Modoc Indian War opens in Alturas tonight, for its third season July 20 at a new location under the stars, on the former Alturas Mill site .

The story is brought to life, outdoors, for eight performances on July 20,21,22,23 and 27,28, 29 and 30 at 8 p.m. Preshow entertainment will be provided by the folk group "the Black Irish Band" starting at 6:30 p.m. and the "Rising Nation" a local American Indian drum group will perform prior to the start of the play.

The amphitheater area will be open for picnickers and music enthusiasts at 6:15 p.m. Picnickers will need to provide their own blankets or seating for the preshow. Bring a jacket or sweater for the later hours in the evening.

Tickets are $9 for adults and $6 for students and senior citizens. Tickets available at the gate or in advance from Pizza & Pasta Place.

"We are very excited about this year's show," says director Charles "Chip" Massie. "We have a great cast and site, and the nights have been beautiful."

Lost River, written by Ben Van Meter of Santa Rosa, CA and more recently relocated to Alturas, brings both sides of the historical events surrounding the Modoc Indian War of 1872 and 73, to life. The Modoc Indians search for a homeland in 1872, brought them into direct conflict with the Government of the United States. After talks between the two parties broke down, the Modocs began one of the greatest defensive stands in history. They held off nearly one thousand soldiers for nine months with fewer than 50 warriors.

Led by narrator "Jeff Riddle," (Alan Cain); son of Winema, (played by Melody Sheline), who plays the role of a translator during the peace talks, the play shows how con flicts between cultures can escalate into war.

Van Meter's script flows between the two sides showing the good and bad, humor and horror, just and unjust with ease.

Captain Jack, (played by Rurik Davis) the leader of the Modoc's negotiated for a home where his people would be safe and able to lead a traditional lifestyle. The local settlers and the White House pressed General E.R.S. Canby of the U.S. Army for removal of the Modoc's to a distant reservation. The chasm of doubt and mistrust between the two led to a destructive end to negotiations and the beginning of war.

The production is presented by the Modoc County Arts Council and Modoc Performing Arts Theatre. This year's production was sponsored by a $10,000 contribution from Modoc Indian Health Project, a $5000 grant from Native Performance Fund for Modoc costuming, and $500 contributions from Pepsi-Cola, and Plumas Bank. The monies donated help cover promotional, material and equipment expenses. The crew and cast have been busy constructing an amphitheater at the new performance site, near the Railroad Museum at the west end of Fourth Street in Alturas. All together 1000 hours of volunteer time will be spent in construction, rehearsal, and performance. A benefit raffle will be held to raise money to pay other expenses, and many businesses in and out of Modoc have contributed time, material or cash contribution to cover the expense of posters, brochures, and programs and advertising.

"This year's production features some new scenes and characters, a new home and a strong energetic cast," offers Massie.

Van Meter serves as a producer along with director Massie on this season's pro duction.

Cast members this season are:

The Spirit Elders: Nathaniel "Chief" Forrest, Jeremiah Hays, Rosemary Forrest, Margaret Forrest. Narrator: Alan Cain. Rurik Davis will play the role of Captain Jack and Melody Sheline, Winema. The Modocs include Misty Gwinn, Pershing Parker, Don Utter, Stan Yagi, Ken Ballard, Jeanetta Lucier, Katherine Ames, David Parrish, Franklin Hays, Michael Parrish, Han nah Hays. The Army includes Larry Shippen as General Canby; Gerry Gates, Harry Boulade, Linda Lucier, Niles Reynolds, Morgan Davis, Josh Merkel, Tiffany Ford, Stacy Moseley, Hannah Hays, Nick Hawes, Jeremy Lucier, Stan Yagi. The Settlers: Alan Tomaszewski, Dee Green, Kerry Davis, Nancy Ballard, Karen Hays, Craig Flournoy, Jeremy Lucier, Tiffany Ford, Josh Merkel, Aloha Schaefer, Nick Hawes, Midge Dier, Larry Manzer.

 

Candidates filing for local offices

The filing period for candidates in Modoc school and special district elections November 7 continue through August 11. There have been some candidates filing this week.

Candidates should pick up nominations papers at the clerk's office and return those forms to the clerk.

Two members of the County Board of Education are coming up, Angela Benner in the first district and Jim Hays in dis trict four. Hays has taken out papers to run again.

Three board members are up for election in the Modoc Joint Unified School District: Jeff Bushey, Cindy Culp and Sean Curtis.

In Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District, trustees Bob Staton and Tony Darst are up for election.

The Tulelake Basin Joint Unified School District will have board members Shelly Buckingham, Tom Macy and Jerry LeQuieu open for election.

The November 7 election also includes special district governing boards in the county including the Surprise Valley Hospital District, community service districts, irrigation, water and fire districts.

Curtis W. Barber has filed against Bill Roland in the California Pines Community Services District.

Edward "Ed" Hammons has filed for election in the Big Valley Joint Unified School District, representing the Lookout area.

The last day to register to vote in the November general election is Oct. 9. That is also the last chance to make name or address changes.

In addition to the local elections, races for all national and state offices will be on the ballot.

 

June jobless rate drops to 6.9%

The Modoc County Unemployment rate for June dropped to a respectable 6.9 percent, down from May's 7.8 percent. In June, 1999, the unemployment rate was 7.6 percent.

Of the Modoc work force, 3,810 were holding dmployed. The state's unemployment rate for June was 5.2 percent and the national rate was 4.2 percent.

The 6.9 percent ranks Modoc 34th out of the state's 58 counties for highest unemployment. Shasta County had a June rate of 6.6 percent, ranking it 32nd, Siskiyou's jobless rate was 8.1 percent, ranking it 41st, and Lassen's was 6.0 percent, ranking it 26th. As usual, the lowest unemployment rate of 1.8 percent belonged to Marin County and the highest of 25.3 goes to Imperial County.

 

 

Record news for July 27, 2000

 

• Candidates filing for local offices
• Nevada drought worries BLM as stock water holes dry up
• East of Warners looks at drought, west not as dry
• Alturas youth stabbed during Saturday fight
• City meets Monday on electric JPA
• Eagleville community hosts annual barbecue, dance Saturday night
• Plans for Aquatic, Health Park expand to include park and recreation
• Photography, stoneware combine for August show
• Modoc Picnic in Sacramento

 

 

Candidates filing for local school offices

Local candidate interest is starting to pick up for the general election November 7. The filing period for candidates in Modoc school and special district elections continues until August 11.

Jim Hays will seek re-election to the County Board of Education. Angela Benner in the first district is also up for election.

Three board members come up for election in the Modoc Joint Unified School District: Jeff Bushey, Cindy Culp and Sean Curtis. As of this week, Curtis has filed for re-election.

In Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District, trustees Bob Staton and Tony Darst are up for election. Staton, who was appointed to fill out a first term, will run for reelection in the Eagleville area. Darst has also filed for reelection.

The Tulelake Basin Joint Unified School District will have board members Shelly Buckingham, Tom Macy and Jerry LeQuieu open for election.

The November 7 election also includes special district governing boards in the county including the Surprise Valley Hospital District, community service districts, irrigation, water and fire districts.

Curtis W. Barber has filed against Bill Roland in the California Pines Community Services District. Roland has also taken out his papers.

Also on the ballot in the Cal Pines CSD is whether to increase the board size from three to five members. If that measure is approved by voters, candidates filing for the two new positions will be seated. So far, Robert Lyon has filed for a two-year term and Jim Ganoe has filed for a four-year term.

Edward "Ed" Hammons has filed for election in the Big Valley Joint Unified School District, representing the Lookout area. Wayne Wood has taken out papers to represent the Adin area.

Candidates should pick up nominations papers at the clerk's office and return those forms to the clerk.

The last day to register to vote in the November general election is Oct. 9. That is also the last chance to make name or address changes.

In addition to the local elections, races for all national and state offices will be on the ballot.

 

Nevada drought worries BLM as stock water holes dry up

The Surprise Valley Resource Area of the Bureau of Land Management has weathered a storm of controversy considering some changes in grazing practices, but what may cause more worry now is a continuing drought in the area.

According to Susie Stokke, SV Resource Area manager, the stock ponds are drying up and there simply may not be enough stock wa ter available to continue grazing on all allotments.

"We're going to be discussing the water issue with the permittees and find out what they're thinking as well as voicing our con cerns," said Stokke this week. "This is one of the worst years we have had for stock water and our live fuel moisture is as low as it has been in years."

Stokke stressed that grazing permittees in the area, especially on the five allotments where deficiencies were apparent, have been doing a good job meeting the BLM's requirements. Those allotments had their grazing practices changed prior to moving out on the ground this year, in an effort to better manage the forage and riparian areas.

"The permittees have been working hard and there has been improvement," said Stokke. "The stock water, however is snow dependent and we just didn't have much snow."

She said some rain would probably help the grasses and forage, dispersing the cattle a little better, but may not really solve the stock water problem.

The water situation is severe enough, said Stokke, that she is looking for an emergency gathering of wild horses by September. Those horses would be gathered and put up for adoption.

In addition, the fire danger in the resource area is nearing the point where open campfires will be banned in the near future. While the BLM in that area is probably going to severe fire restriction July 30, the same situation is not affecting the Modoc National Forest.

The changes last spring for five grazing allotments administered by the BLM meant some different methods of management.

Stokke pointed out that five of the livestock allotments under the SV Resource area administration were not meeting at least one standard for rangeland health because of current livestock grazing.

She said current BLM regulations required that grazing management changes be made to enable the land to improve and those changes had to be made before the start of the 2000 grazing season.

Stokke pointed out that the problems varied in each of the allotments and the problems are found in parts of al lotment, not all across the landscape. Many of the problem areas, she said, were in riparian (stream and streambank) and meadows.

Stokke said the management goals were designed to provide for better habitat for wildlife and fish, produce more forage for livestock and provide quality recreation experiences for a variety of visitors.

"We are pleased with the progress made this year," said Stokke.

 

East of Warners looks at drought, west not as dry

Modoc and the rest of the west looks to be dry for the next few months, according to the National Oceanic and Aeronautical Administration.

The dryness, and hotter than normal temperatures will be concentrated over California and Nevada northward into the pacific Northwest and northern Rockies. La Nina, the abnormal cooling of the tropical Pacific waters generally produces warm and dry weather from summer through fall in the west.

The NOAA says the current La Nina has played a key role in the drought experienced over much of the west this year and while it has weakened, its affect on the west is pretty well set.

The U.S. Forest Service throughout this area is looking for severe fire dangers as the long, hot summer continues. Fire officials are being warned to look for a hotter and drier summer and a long fire season extending well into fall. What is unclear in all of the forecasts is just how much dry lightning will be expected over the next few months.

Carol Sharp, Information Specialist for the Modoc National Forest, said that situation remains a large concern for local officials. She said forest crews are well aware that this fire season could be extreme and very long.

In Surprise Valley, where the drought conditions appear worse, Susie Stokke, BLM SV Resource Area Manager, said she ex pects the BLM to ban open campfires by July 30 and increase the danger levels to extreme. She said the drought has resulted in lower live fuel moisture content than in past years and stock ponds are drying up quickly.

"In summation, the western United States can expect normal to above normal fire activity in all of the areas west and north of Arizona/Colorado for the next few weeks," the NOAA said. "There will be continued large fire growth in the Great Basin . . . and the emergence of fire season in northern California, particularly on days with multiple ignitions and when short-term resource shortages occur."

Most of western Nevada, east of Surprise Valley is projected to be in extreme drought conditions for the next few months.

 

Alturas youth stabbed during Saturday fight

An Alturas juvenile was stabbed several times July 22 in a fight at a Modoc Estates residence. Charges of assault with a deadly weapon with an enhancement of inflicting great bodily harm have been filed.

According to District Attorney Tom Buckwalter, the suspect in the stabbing is Jason R. Horn, Jr., 21, of Anderson. Horn was arrested that night and booked into the Modoc County Jail. He was arraigned Tuesday in Modoc Superior Court.

The investigation into the incident is continuing. Apparently the juvenile and Horn got into a fight in the early evening hours. Horn is accused of bringing out a knife, with a three-and-an-half inch blade, and stabbing the juvenile several times. Many of the wounds were to the chest area.

The juvenile was transported to Modoc Medical Center in Alturas, then airlifted to Mercy Hospital in Redding where he was treated and is now home and recovering.

 

City meets Monday on electric JPA

The Alturas City Council is holding a special meeting Monday to discuss joining the NorCal and Jefferson Electrical Joint Powers Authority.

NorCal, Jefferson is the entity in the process of purchasing and taking over Pacific Power and Light's electrical operation in the city.

The city had been reluctant to join the JPA, and has asked for several issues to be clarified before jumping on board. If it chooses to join, the city will also appoint representatives to the JPA boards. The meeting is set for City Hall, Monday at 6 p.m. and is an open session.

In April, the city and county held a joint work session and one of the main points brought out during the work session was the fact that Nor-Cal/JPPA predicts electric rates for Modoc customers will rise about 45 percent over the next 10 years. The rates are frozen at current levels for 2000 and 2001, and increases in rates are predicted from 2002 on. Nor-Cal is pre dicting PacifiCorp rates could be much higher over the same period.

PacifiCorp (now owned by Scottish Power) agreed to sell its northern California properties to Nor-Cal Electric Authority in July, 1999. NorCal, with lead entities the County of Del Norte and City of Yreka, initially planned to acquire, own and operate the electric system. In August, 1999, PacifiCorp filed an action with the California Public Utilities Commission to transfer the electric system from PacficiCorp to Nor-Cal.

A curve was thrown into the mix last August when a "validation" judgment in Del Norte Superior Court ruled that Nor-Cal did not have the legal authority to operate the electric system. In response to the judgment, the cities of Yreka and Dunsmuir organized a new joint powers authority, Jefferson Public Power Authority, to operate the system. Nor-Cal would remain in the mix, but counties can not be involved in the operation of the system, while cities can.

In addition to the rates, financial situations and legal questions, the city and county are also concerned about franchise fees and property taxes. Currently PacifiCorp pays franchise fees and property taxes. Their property is assessed by the State Board of Equalization.

 

Eagleville community hosts annual barbecue, dance Saturday night

Eagleville will be celebrating 55 years of serving the community's own special barbecue sauce, renown for its good flavor, and pit barbecued beef and good times Sat urday night, July 29 during the annual Eagleville Barbecue at the Eagleville Community square.

The public is invited to dine and dance the evening away. Children welcome.

Dinner will be served from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m. In addition to the beef and vegetables, pit barbecued, beans, green and potato salads, rolls, and coffee to be served with other beverages offered for sale.

The food is still prepared the same way as it was when the barbecue first started following World War II. The day before the barbecue the meat is rolled with vegetables and seasonings, then wrapped in a layer of butcher paper and burlap. Early the next morning, the bundles are dipped in water and carefully laid on the coals of the pit-fires which were lit the previous evening. The meat cooks all day, and is ready just as festivities get underway in the evening.

A ticket to the dinner also includes the dance from 8 p.m. to midnight.

The Eagleville Fire Department and community's few hands will chip in to make the event possible for so many.

Tickets for the dinner/dance are $10 at the door, adults; or pre-sale $9 available at Eagleville Fire Department, and Seab's True Value in Alturas and Page's Market, Cedarville. Children, ages six to 12, tickets are $4; under five, served free.

Everyone is invited to join the fun. All proceeds will benefit the Eagleville Volunteer Fire Department.

 

Plans for Aquatic, Health Park expand to include park and recreation

An Aquatic and Health Park to be located in Alturas is in the embryonic stages of planning.

A committee spear-headed by Modoc Medical Center Physical Therapist, Gavin Kleiman, met on the evening of July 25 to discuss creating a solid financial foundation for the park.

"It is going to take time to work the details out," Kleiman said, "But the stronger we build the foundation, the better the park will be."

Funding for the construction and maintenance of the Aquatic and Health Park was discussed and an option presented was the forming of a park and recreation district that would encompass the same geographic boundaries as the Modoc Joint Unified School District.

The park and recreation district would then provide an umbrella for the Aquatic and Health Park, tennis courts, soccer fields, ski club, baseball fields and skate park.

"This is much larger than I anticipated when we started planning the Aquatic Park," commented Kleiman.

"I wouldn't be interested in bringing in the partners except that I don't think the park and rec. district initiative would pass without it," said Carol Harbaugh, committee member and Superintendent of Modoc County Office of Education (MCOE).

Steve Pine, Assistant Superintendent of MCOE spoke about the skate park being an example of one of the partners that would be under the umbrella of the park and recreation district, but not being a burden to any other entity in the district.

Pine stated that the skate park will be self sustaining; financed by memberships, grants and sponsorship from large corporations like McDonalds, Coke, Pepsi and others.

Maintenance will be done by high school students enrolled in the Regional Occupation Program.

The skate park is, itself, still in the planning stages. Pine is currently seeking grant funding to level and grade the park area and create drainage.

Kleiman brought the meeting to an end by outlining the plan of action agreed to by the committee:

¥ The first step will be to apply for a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) to pay for consultants and pursue any other funding options for consultants.

¥ Draft a letter outlining the objectives of the park and recreation district for approval by the Modoc County Board of Supervisors.

¥ Create the proposed park and recreation district.

¥ Propose an assessment tax to fund the district. It will require a 66.2/3 vote to pass.

¥ Inform the public about progress made in creating the Aquatic and Health Park and the park and recreation district.

 

Photography, stoneware combine for August show

A new show combining the photography of Rick Holloway and Cody Holloway and pottery by Isabel Perez Judge of Janesville, will open at the Art Center's gallery for a public Friday evening reception, August 4 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Perez Judge's "functional stoneware" is displayed in galleries throughout California and Nevada, including the Nevada Museum of Art, and Reno Co-op, Reno; Rolling Stone, Santa Maria; Martin's Gallery in Pismo Beach, Graegle Art Gallery, Northwoods Gallery, Chester; Plumas Art Gallery, Quincy.

The potter and her husband Theodor, a sculptor and retired art teacher, relocated to Janesville, 12 years ago, from Guadalupe, Santa Barbara County, where her studio also includes an art gallery to display the works of area artists. Theodor sculpts the lids for her pottery.

Born in Santa Maria Judge developed a strong interest in pottery in high school. She earned her A.A. degree from Allen Hancock Junior College, with a concentration on the study of ceramics. Her master teacher was Bill Shinn. She also studies with Dolores Lewis Garcia and Emma Lewis Mitchell of Acoma Pueblo and Blue Corn, while at the Idyllwild School of Music and Art to learn the technique of Saneldefonso Pottery.

"As I get older," she says, "my pottery becomes more important to me. Just about everything I do and experience becomes a natural part of my work. I have been doing this as a secondary occupation and a primary source of my sanity, for about 30 years."

Rick Holloway has had extensive education and experience in photography since working as an Army Combat Correspondent in Vietnam, to college and positions in a variety of newspaper situations. The work shown for this show does not include any photojournalism, concentrating rather on the more creative, fun side of the camera. There will be both color and black and white photography and a variety of subjects.

Cody Holloway started taking photography seriously at age 15. He works for the Modoc Record in photography and does the darkroom lab work. He was also one of the photo editors and photographers for the Modoc High 2000 School Yearbook. He plans to take more photography courses at Linfield College in Oregon. The work he will be showing at the gallery does not include anything that was in the newspaper. He has both black and white and color shots.

 

Modoc Picnic in Sacramento

A get together with others from Modoc, will take place at the 59th annual Modoc Picnic on Sunday, August 6 at the Carmichael Park in Carmichael, Calif. Everyone's invited.

All Modoc'ers, former Modoc'ers and families are invited to this annual event. This is a potluck so those attending are asked to bring a dish of their choice, their own place setting and their own beverage.

Lunch will begin at 12 noon or thereabouts. It is advisable to arrive early so that attendees may have a chance to visit before the group sits down to lunch.

Carmichael Park is located at the corner of Fair Oaks Blvd. and Grant Ave. The picnic will be located at the rear of the park near the playground. Just follow the signs.

For further information please contact either Guy Fender at (916) 371-3725 or Frank Rider at (916) 645-2995.

 

 

August

 

Record news for August 3, 2000

 

• Farmers' plan to sell land in Tulelake creates fears
• Deadline to file for local office Aug. 11
• Modoc and Lassen National Forests, BLM announce fire restrictions
• Man arrested alleging attempted murder
• Modoc's worth more than last year
• Photography, stoneware combine for gallery opener Friday
• Modoc Fair to display new acts, features and fun for 2000 run

 

Farmers' plan to sell land in Tulelake creates fears

By Nora Russell

Some of the farmers in the Tulelake Irrigation District have banded together to offer approximately 30,300 acres of farm land to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or other interested buyers at an asking price of $5,000 per acre. No private or government agencies have made a decision to buy any of the land yet.

The proposal was presented to Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge officials and environmental organizations during a meeting held on July 15.

According to Fran Mace of the Klamath Refuge there had been no previous plans to buy the surrounding farm lands, "In fact the acquisition of that much land and what we would get out of it would be problematic for us."

Representatives from The Wilderness Society, The Nature Conservancy, national and local Audubon Society chapters, the Trust for Public Lands, the Sierra Club, the Oregon Natural Resources Council, the Klamath Forest Alliance, the California Waterfowl Association, the American Land Conservation and the Wildlife Management Institute, as well as Fish and Wildlife Service officials from Klamath Falls, California-Nevada regional offices and Washington, D.C. were present to consider information presented by a delegation of farmers.

"This offer reflects the economics and frustration of the farmers," said Phil Norton, manager of the Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuges. "Unfortunately, we have good dirt in the Klamath Basin, but a lousy climate."

Norton explained that much of the farmer's frustration comes from the fact that the Bureau of Reclamation opened up the basin and invited farmers to homestead the land and the government would provide the water. Now, the same government is changing the rules with the need to provide sufficient water to meet Indian tribal trust obligations and meet the requirements of the Endangered Species Act to protect threatened coho salmon in the lower Klamath River and the Lost River suckers and shortnose suckers in Upper Klamath Lake.

Nancy Huffman, Chairperson for the Modoc County Board of Supervisors, has been farming in Tulelake since marrying her husband in 1952.

"He homesteaded the land in '48 and moved onto it in '49," explained Huffman.

"Every time you turn around something is happening to make it more difficult to farm," she said. "The starch plant in Tulelake is closing this month; I don't know where the potato farmers will take their culls now. It's discouraging because there seems to be an assault on any use of resources."

"This is an emotional issue for everyone," said Norton. "We're not here to put people out of business, but if people are willing to sell we should sit down and try to make it work."

Points of agreement between the parties involved in the proposed land sale are few and far between, but one of them is that the asking price of $5,000 an acre is high.

"The last homestead that sold in the basin, sold for $1,600 an acre," Tulelake farmer Marty Macy told the Modoc County Board of Supervisors during their August 1 meeting. "There were two maps at the meeting in that article in the Herald and News (July 19, 2000 issue), not just the one they showed. The other map showed farmers who would be willing to sell their land at $2,500 an acre; there were only 8 parcels marked."

"A lot of people are willing to sell at the $5,000 level," commented Norton. "And that's understandable, but fair market value is what would have to be paid for the land."

"I am very disappointed that the Klamath Refuge invited the ecological groups to the meeting, but not the counties," stated Huffman. "Modoc County has a good reputation for cooperating with the BLM, Forestry and Refuges."

"I did receive a letter from your (Modoc County) supervisors expressing their concern that they had not been included in the meeting," said Norton. "The meeting was just to get the input of the environmentalists on the offer that had been presented to us. It was not a decision making meeting at all."

Macy requested that the Modoc County Board of Supervisors oppose the sale of 30,000 acres of private land in "the strongest language possible".

"For some of us, there is no dollar value on our land, you couldn't throw money at us and have us accept it," Macy said. "This sale would decimate the area, they want this to be the Everglades of the west coast."

Supervisor Ron McIntyre warned the board, "We should be careful in considering that, if you're a private land owner you have the right to sell if you want to."

"That's why I put it up this week for discussion," Huff-man said. "So that it can go on the next agenda so that the county can consider what action they may be able to take."

The issue most concerning Macy at the Board of Supervisors meeting is a new proposal to sell 15,000 acres of land presented to the refuge by farmers.

"The refuge wants to push this through in a three to four month period, so we need to voice our objection in the strongest terms possible soon," Macy said.

When Norton was able to be reached for comment he stated, "Actually what this is, is the pink team (nicknamed because the blocks of land proposed for sale were colored in pink on the map in the July 15 meeting) has retained a lawyer, Bill Thomas, and they came up with this proposal. It is their vision from their point of view. It's driven by farmers who see this as a window of opportunity to sell their land.

"People are operating on rumors; second hand rumors at that, right now," he continued. "If I say something to someone in the morning, by evening it has become something totally different. I'm beginning to think that 'I have no comment on the situation' is the best thing for me to say.

"We have three or four scenarios as to how this whole thing might work out; the ranchers have three or four scenarios as to what they would like to see happen and the conservationists have three or four more scenrios. This will only be resolved when we can sit down and begin negotiating."

Deadline to file for local office Aug. 11

The filing period for candidates in Modoc school and special district elections has a deadline of August 11. The election is November 7.

Jim Hays will seek re-election to the County Board of Education. Angela Benner in the first district is also up for election and will not run. Kara Stevenson has taken out papers.

Three board members come up for election in the Modoc Joint Unified School District: Jeff Bushey, Cindy Culp and Sean Curtis. As of this week, Curtis, Bushey and Culp have taken out papers for re-election. If all incumbents file, the deadline for candidacy is August 11, if not, it is extended until August 17.

In Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District, trustees Bob Staton and Tony Darst are up for election. Staton, who was appointed to fill out a first term, will run for re-election in the Eagleville area. Darst has also filed for re-election.

The Tulelake Basin Joint Unified School District will have board members Shelly Buckingham, Tom Macy and Jerry LeQuieu open for election.

The November 7 election also includes special district governing boards in the county including the Surprise Valley Hospital District, community service districts, irrigation, water and fire districts.

Curtis W. Barber has filed against Bill Roland in the California Pines Community Services District. Roland has also taken out his papers.

Also on the ballot in the Cal Pines CSD is a measure to increase the board size from three to five members. If that measure is approved by voters, candidates filing for the two new positions will be seated. So far, Robert Lyon has filed for a two-year term and Jim Ganoe has filed for a four-year term as has Lucile Field and Les DuBose.

Edward "Ed" Hammons has filed for election in the Big Valley Joint Unified School District, representing the Lookout area. Wayne Wood has taken out papers to represent the Adin area.

Candidates should pick up nominations papers at the clerk's office and return those forms to the clerk.

The last day to register to vote in the November general election is Oct. 9. That is also the last chance to make name or address changes.

In addition to the local elections, races for all national and state offices will be on the ballot.

 

Modoc and Lassen National Forests, BLM announce fire restrictions

With wildland fire dangers continuing to increase, and ongoing blazes draining fire fighting resources, the Lassen and Modoc National Forest, and the Bureau of Land Management have announced restrictions on campfires and other use of fire in the wildlands beginning August 1.

The restrictions are effective Tuesday, August 1 on all Lassen and Modoc National Forest lands, and on lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management Alturas, Eagle Lake and Surprise field offices.

Under the restrictions:

¥ Campfires can only be used within the fire rings or stoves provided in developed recreation sites or in posted campsites and campgrounds.

¥ Portable stoves using gas, jellied petroleum or pressurized liquid fuel are exempt from the restriction.

¥ Internal combustion engines can only be used on established roads and trails.

¥ Smoking is allowed only within enclosed vehicles or developed recreation sites.

The South Warner Wild-erness and Big Sage Fire Management Unit (BSFMU) within the Modoc National Forest are exempt from the restrictions. The Forest will allow firewood cutting and chainsaw use off of established roads in area DG-1P within the fire management unit. BLM field offices will allow firewood cutting until 1 p.m. daily.

"The fire conditions are severe here and throughout the western United States. We have dispatched about 25 Forest Service personnel to support other fire fighting efforts in the Great Basin, Rocky Mountains and in Idaho," said Chuck McElwain, Deputy Fire Management Officer of the Modoc National Forest. "With the explosive fire behavior, the restriction are needed to reduce the possibility of wildfires. We'll ease the restrictions when the fire danger lessens."

The neighboring Plumas National Forest enacted fire restrictions June 28.

Information on any site specific exemptions to the restrictions is available by calling the nearest office of the Lassen or Modoc National Forests, or the BLM.

 

Man arrested alleging attempted murder

An Alturas man, Phillip Cisneros, age 29, of Alturas was arrested July 30 alleging attempted murder, felony spousal abuse and a violation of probation.

Modoc County Sheriff Bruce Mix said Cisneros, a convicted felon, went to his estranged girlfriend's place of employment after 8 p.m. When she finished work he rode with her to pick up her children from the babysitter.

According to Mix, while traveling on County Road 54, the pair got into an argument. During the argument, Cisneros pulled a pistol and threatened to shoot himself.

Mix said he then trained the pistol at his girlfriend's head and pulled the trigger twice, but the gun malfunctioned. He tried one more time, the gun jammed, so he hit her in the head with the pistol.

When they arrived at the babysitter's home, she called the Sheriff's office for help. Mix said the California Highway Patrol arrived on the scene first and detained Cisneros. Sheriff's deputies arrived and Cisneros was taken into Alturas and booked into the Modoc County Jail. Mix praised the quick response of the CHP.

 

Modoc's worth more than last year

Modoc's assessed value increased by 3.64 percent from last year, up to a total of $577,347,089, according to Modoc County Assessor Josie Johnson.

For 1999, the county's total local assessment was $557,084,868 and that was up from 1998's $540,356,919. According to Johnson, 1,889 parcels were reappraised because of a change of ownership and approximately 395 parcels had completed new construction. The number of parcels reassessed was down from last year's 2,970, but up in construction from 189.

In the secured rolls, there were 27,410 parcels with land totaling $317,806,731, improvements totaling $214,981,802, private property $26,125,868 and fixtures $4,147,389. The increase was 4.08 percent.

In the unsecured rolls, there were 1,015 parcels assessed at $5,479,348 land, improvements $2,737,139, personal property $11,463,074, fixtures, $1,995,460. That was actually down 6.61 percent from last year when the total unsecured was $23,014,505.

The totals for 2000-01 are as follows: land, $323,286,079; improvements, $217,698,941; personal property, $37,588,943; fixtures, $6,142,849.

The utility roll, assessed by the state, was down .62 per cent from last year. It went from 1999-00's $151,350,979 to 2000-01's $150,417,177. For land, the assessment was $6,750.007, improvements, $134,038,231, and personal property, $9,628.939.

Johnson said there is a upward swing in Cal Pines values as lots are selling.

 

Photography, stoneware combine for gallery opener Friday

A new show will open, combining the photography of Rick Holloway and Cody Holloway of Alturas and pottery by Isabel Perez Judge of Janesville, at the Art Center's gallery Friday evening, August 4 with a public reception from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Perez Judge calls her art form, "functional stoneware." Her pieces are displayed in galleries throughout California and Nevada, including the Nevada Museum of Art, and Reno Co-op, Reno; Rolling Stone, Santa Maria; Martin's Gallery in Pismo Beach, Graeagle Art Gallery, Northwoods Gallery, Chester; Plumas Art Gallery, Quincy.

The potter and her husband Theodor, a sculptor and retired art teacher, relocated to Janesville 12 years ago, from Guadalupe, Santa Barbara County. Her Janesville stu dio also includes an art gallery to display the works of area artists. Theodor sculpts the lids for her pottery.

" I have been doing this as a secondary occupation and a primary source of my sanity, for about 30 years," says Isabel of her art.

Rick Holloway, publisher, owner and editor of the Modoc County Record, has had extensive education and experience in photography since working as an Army Combat Correspondent in Vietnam, to college and positions in a variety of newspaper situations. The work shown for this show does not include any photojournalism, concentrating rather on the more creative, fun side of the camera. There will be both color and black and white photography and a variety of subjects. Holloway had a gallery showing several years ago at the Art Center, and returns with new works and with son Cody this time.

Cody Holloway started taking photography seriously at age 15. He works for the Modoc Record in photography and does the photo darkroom work. He was also one of the photo editors and photographers for the Modoc High 2000 Yearbook. He plans to take more photography courses at Linfield College in Oregon, where he will enter his freshman year this month. The work he will be showing at the gallery does not include anything that was in the newspaper. He has both black and white and color shots.

The public is invited to come by Friday evening to enjoy the show, refreshments, and meet the featured gallery artists. The show will continue through the month of August at 317 So. Main St., Alturas.

 

Modoc Fair to display new acts, features and fun for 2000 run

Several new features and entertainment acts will be making their premiere visit to the Modoc District Fair in Cedarville August 17-20. Fair Manager Traci Green is plenty excited about the overall outlook of the 2000 county fair, themed "Majestic Modoc."

Always a beautiful setting, the fair will open Thursday, Aug. 17 with free admission from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. and feature the morning Junior/Senior Horse Show starting at 8 a.m. Entertainment, will run throughout the day with acts such as Madison Avenue performing classic rock and blues music and "Raised on Radio," a musical variety act both on the Park Stage, Buckaroo Beau, a bull whip and gun comedy act on the South Park Stage. Don't forget to check into the new "Wild Science" expo hall, a great place for all ages and offering hands-on fun and plenty of visual stimulation.

The "Carnival of Fun" officially opens at 5 p.m., along with the exhibit buildings. The Basque Barbecue will be served at 6 p.m. in the Park area for $10 adults; $6 for kids, followed by the Mark Walgenbach Memorial Sheep Dog Trials in the arena. Cooks Racing Pigs will start their performances on Thursday and are scheduled for shows throughout the four-day fair run.

Kids' Day, Friday, Aug. 18 allows kids 12 years and under free admission and a pay one price of $10 per child for unlimited rides between 12 noon and 6 p.m. on the Carnival of Fun rides.

New on Kids' Day will be the Wheels of Free Style- Bike Stunt Team act, which appeared at the Modoc Children's Fair in the past and will give two performances at 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. for viewers west of the Floriculture Building. The Stunt Team is sponsored by Modoc County Tobacco Education Program. Jerry Sanders of Alturas will bring his bass fishing boat and fishing demo for kids to check out. Sanders has provided the action at several fairs and events for children and is always popular. Entertainment will be ongoing throughout the afternoon with Cook's Racing Pigs, musical acts including the new to the fair Grupo Renovacion playing Hispanic music starting at 8 p.m. on the Park Stage. Stock Car races by MSB Promotions will start at 7:00 p.m. and comedians Skip Banks known as "Balloon Man" and Martin Mancuso will return to entertain. Also returning are the easy listening "Hoover and Sorensen," vocalists and Clown Ronny Roundhouse and the annual STYX Men's Invitational Softball Tournament at the ballfield. Carnival of Fun will be traveling from Yreka to the Nevada State Fair, bringing all the thrill and kiddie rides to this year's Modoc Fair.

Saturday, Aug. 19 will be Senior Citizen's Day with free admission for those 60 years and older and transportation can be arranged by calling Sage Stage at 233-3883. The Alturas and Surprise Valley Rotary Clubs will sponsor the 12:30 p.m. luncheon for seniors in the Park Area and ranchers' day events will be ongoing.

Blacksmith Bob McAdams will be showing his craft at the historic collection of buildings known as "Louieville." Les Schwab Tires is sponsoring a "Home Run Derby" on the ball field and a Demolition Derby with local drivers and guests will take place on the track starting at 8 p.m. The Alturas Elks Lodge will be sponsoring a Barn Dance from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. to close out Saturday's events.

Sunday morning offers a parade and pancake breakfast in downtown Cedarville, followed by the 11 a.m. opening of the fairgrounds. Spectators have free admission into the Junior Rodeo which starts at 1 p.m. with grandstand seating. Entertainment will be offered throughout the afternoon until the fair officially closes at 6:00 p.m.

Check out page 26 of the new 2000 Modoc Fair Premium List for the entire schedule of events. The Premium Books are available free at the Modoc Record office Alturas

Chamber of Commerce, Farm Advisor's office, Page's Market and Modoc District Fair, Cedarville.

 

 

Record news for August 10, 2000

 

• Deadline looms for candidates in local schools election
• Fire danger high on forest
• Modoc adopting water ordinance
• Salisbury leads SVJUSD as new Superintendent
• Modoc Fair is set for majestic run
• Alturas woman is sea mammals' best friend

 

Deadline looms for candidates in local schools election

The filing period for candidates in Modoc school and special district elections has a deadline of August 11. The election is November 7.

Jim Hays will seek re-election to the County Board of Education. Angela Benner in the first district is also up for election and will not run. Kara Stevenson has taken out papers in Surprise Valley.

Three board members come up for election in the Modoc Joint Unified School District: Jeff Bushey, Cindy Culp and Sean Curtis. As of this week, Curtis, Bushey and Culp have taken out papers for re-election. If all incumbents file, the deadline for candidacy is August 11.

In Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District, trustees Bob Staton and Tony Darst are up for election. Staton, who was appointed to fill out a first term, will run for re-election in the Eagleville area. Darst has also filed for re-election.

The Tulelake Basin Joint Unified School District will have board members Shelly Buckingham, Tom Macy and Jerry LeQuieu open for election. Buckingham and Macy have filed.

The November 7 election also includes special district governing boards in the county including the Surprise Valley Hospital District, community service districts, irrigation, water and fire districts.

Curtis W. Barber has filed against Bill Roland in the California Pines Community Services District. Roland has also taken out his papers.

Also on the ballot in the Cal Pines CSD is a measure to increase the board size from three to five members. If that measure is approved by voters, candidates filing for the two new positions will be seated. So far, Robert Lyon has filed for a two-year term and Jim Ganoe has filed for a four-year term as has Lucile Field and Les DuBose.

Edward "Ed" Hammons has filed for election in the Big Valley Joint Unified School District, representing the Lookout area. Wayne Wood has taken out papers to represent the Adin area. Leonard Larson has also filed.

Candidates should pick up nominations papers at the clerk's office and return those forms to the clerk.

The last day to register to vote in the November general election is Oct. 9. That is also the last chance to make name or address changes.

In addition to the local elections, races for all national and state offices will be on the ballot.

 

Fire danger high on forest

Fire danger in Modoc County is increasing with the continued hot and dry weather and caution is stressed while in the woods.

Since last Thursday, there have been 10 lightning-caused and one human-caused fire. The human-caused fire was eight miles east of Tulelake, burning 28 acres. The specific cause is under investigation.

Two of the fires were in the South Warner Wilderness Area, where smokejumpers were dispatched. The fires were single trees and burned less than one-tenth acre each. The remaining fires burned about two acres total.

Some fires were reported Tuesday and Wednesday, but none was large.

There are 17 overhead personnel off forest, in southern California, Montana, Idaho and Utah. A 20-person crew and four engines are here on standby for local coverage.

 

Modoc adopting water ordinance

Modoc County is concerned about the exportation of its groundwater, and is taking steps to make any water grab more difficult.

Last week the County Board of Supervisors held the first reading of the groundwater ordinance and will formally adopt it with a second reading and public comment period following the next meeting August 15.

"It is essential for the protection of the health, welfare and safety of the residents of the County, and the public benefit of the state, that groundwater resources of Modoc County be protected from harm resulting from the extraction of groundwater for use on lands outside the county, until such time as needed additional surface water supplies are obtained for use on lands of the county, or overdrafting is alleviated, to the satisfaction of the board," states the ordinance.

"Much of the farm production of the county depends on the use of groundwater to produce crops which significantly contribute to the gross value of all agricultural crops and agricultural production in the county estimated as several hundred million for 2000," it continues.

The ordinance also states that groundwater is used to supply water sources for most of the communities in the county.

The main means of protecting that groundwater through the ordinance is the requirement for a permit to extract that water for use outside of the county lines. The permit is only for water intended for exportation, not other uses such as home or farm wells.

Groundwater is defined as all water beneath the surface of the earth within the zone below the water table in which the soil is completely saturated with water, but does not include water which flows in known and definite channels.

The permit will be filed for the County Planning Director and a request for environmental review shall be filed as required by county guidelines.

 

Salisbury leads SVJUSD as new Superintendent

Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District will start the 2000/2001 school year with Jack Salisbury as its new Superintendent/ High School Principal.

Salisbury has been a principal at all three education levels; elementary, middle and high school. He spent most of his educational career in Red Bluff with short amounts of time spent in Chester and Durham. Salisbury comes to Surprise Valley from Durham where he was the principal of Durham High School.

California State University at Chico is where Salisbury graduated with a So cial Science Major and a Physical Education minor, and later received an administrative credential.

"I was looking for a small school district to go to," Salisbury explained. "This is my first time to be Superintendent and I feel fortunate to have all of the grades; K-12."

"I think that Surprise Valley is such a pretty place, and the people have been so warm and friendly since I've been here," he added.

Salisbury has a son in Sacramento. "He helped me move up here, now it's my turn to go to Sacramento to help him move."

"Sports, all kinds of sports," head the list of pastimes enjoyed by Salisbury. "But especially golf," he said.

"I can't wait for my brothers to come up and teach me how to be a better fisherman," Salisbury said. Both brothers are fly fisherman but he prefers bait fishing.

Salisbury's goals for Surprise Valley Joint Unified Schools are that the kids will enjoy going to school in a safe environment and receive a good education.

Modoc Fair is set for majestic run

Modoc District Fair's "Majestic Modoc" will premiere for its 2000 opening season next week in Cedarville for the August 17 to August 20 run.

For those who plan to spend several days at this year's fair, a "season pass" can save admission costs for the four-day fair. Season passes are $7 for adults; $4 for children and $4 for senior citizens and may be purchased the first day of entry in the fair's business office.

Regular daily admission at the entrance gates: $3 for adults; $2 for kids up to age 12 and senior citizens.

Several new features and entertainment acts will be making their premiere visit to this year's fair, notes Manager Traci Green. The judges are lined up and this year's entries will be lining up to be judged next week.

Always a beautiful setting, the fair will open Thursday, Aug. 17 with free admission from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. and feature the morning Junior/Senior Horse Show starting at 8 a.m. Entertainment, will run throughout the day with acts such as Madison Avenue performing classic rock and blues music and "Raised on Radio," a musical variety act both on the Park Stage, Buckaroo Beau, a bull whip and gun comedy act on the South Park Stage. Don't forget to check into the new "Wild Science" expo hall, a great place for all ages and offering hands-on fun and plenty of visual stimulation.

The "Carnival of Fun" officially opens at 5 p.m., along with the exhibit buildings. The Basque Barbecue will be served at 6 p.m. in the Park area for $10 adults; $6 for kids, followed by the Mark Walgenbach Memorial Sheep Dog Trials in the arena. Cooks Racing Pigs will start their performances on Thursday and are scheduled for shows throughout the four-day fair run.

Kids' Day, Friday, Aug. 18 allows kids 12 years and under free admission and a pay one price of $10 per child for unlimited rides between 12 noon and 6 p.m. on the Carnival of Fun rides.

New on Kids' Day will be the Wheels of Free Style- Bike Stunt Team act, which appeared at the Modoc Children's Fair in the past and will give two performances at 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. for viewers west of the Floriculture Building. The Stunt Team is sponsored by Modoc County Tobacco Education Program. Jerry Sanders of Alturas will bring his bass fishing boat and fishing demo for kids to check out. Sanders has provided the action at several fairs and events for children and is always popular. Entertainment will be ongoing throughout the afternoon with Cook's Racing Pigs, musical acts including the new to the fair Grupo Renovacion playing Hispanic music starting at 8 p.m. on the Park Stage. Stock Car races by MSB Promotions will start at 7:00 p.m. and comedians Skip Banks known as "Balloon Man" and Martin Mancuso will return to entertain. Also returning are the easy listening "Hoover and Sorensen," vocalists and Clown Ronny Roundhouse and the annual STYX Men's Invitational Softball Tournament at the ballfield. Carnival of Fun will be traveling from Yreka to the Nevada State Fair, bringing all the thrill and kiddie rides to this year's Modoc Fair.

Saturday, Aug. 19 will be Senior Citizen's Day with free admission for those 60 years and older and transportation can be arranged by calling Sage Stage at 233-3883. The Alturas and Surprise Valley Rotary Clubs will sponsor the 12:30 p.m. luncheon for seniors in the Park Area and ranchers' day events will be ongoing.

Blacksmith Bob McAdams and daughter Tammy of "McAdams Forge Traveling Blacksmith, Madeline will be showing their craft near the historic collection of buildings known as "Louieville." Both hand-forged gifts and souvenirs can be purchased and McAdam's blacksmith demonstrations watched.

Les Schwab Tires is sponsoring a "Home Run Derby" on the ball field and a Demolition Derby with local drivers and guests will take place on the track starting at 8 p.m. The Alturas Elks Lodge will be sponsoring a Barn Dance from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. to close out Saturday's events.

Sunday morning offers a parade and pancake breakfast in downtown Cedarville, followed by the 11 a.m. opening of the fairgrounds. Spectators have free admission into the Junior Rodeo which starts at 1 p.m. with grandstand seating. Entertainment will be offered throughout the afternoon until the fair officially closes at 6:00 p.m.

Check out page 26 of the new 2000 Modoc Fair Premium List for the entire schedule of events. The Premium Books are available free at the Modoc Record office Alturas

Chamber of Commerce, Farm Advisor's office, Page's Market and Modoc District Fair, Cedarville.

 

Alturas woman is sea mammals' best friend

What's a young woman from the high desert plateau, who grew up on the family's ranch in Modoc, doing rescuing sea mammals? That's a question often posed to Alturas' own Shelbi Armstrong Stoudt.

Shelbi is doing what she loves and living her dream working at the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, helping sea lions, sea otters, sea turtles, dolphins, seals and porpoises who become stranded on dry land, usually due to an illness or injury.

"It's very rewarding, but it can also be physically, emotionally and mentally draining at times," says Shelbi, who works the "Stranding Department" full-time, answering dispatch center calls, coordinating assessment, rescue, capture and release into the wild on a full-time basis. The center is open to the public seven days a week, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with the exception of a few holidays.

"It's challenging and we currently have 70 animals on site, but the facilities can hold up to 200," she describes.

Standing four feet, nine inches and weighing 80 pounds, Shelbi recalls her first run in with a 700 pound adult male sea lion during a rescue. Male sea lions are known to bite when they feel threatened and rescuers protect themselves with ply wood shields while they throw nets over the animals, then guide the creatures into crates for transport.

The August 2000 issue of McCall's magazine which features actress Julia Roberts on the cover, also holds a feature of Shelbi in side as "one of three gutsy women who put their lives on the line each and every day to save creatures in danger." The article is entitled Animal Rescue 911.

It was on a 1993 rescue while Shelbi was still in training at the center, that she edged too close to the sea lion.

"He lunged, and 700 pounds of sea lion walked right over me," she recalls. "It hurt, but I wasn't injured. Now sea-lion rescues are my favorites, because I'm proud of how far I've come."

She also has come to see those male sea lions in a very different light as "gregarious - - very personable" personalities.

"It's illegal to interact with marine mammals," explains Shelbi of terms for the general public. But through her work she has had what she calls the most "wonderful" experiences and "such a variety of opportunities" that most folks never have or see. Her work also includes doing blood draws, giving injections, feeding and caring for these injured and ill mammals of the sea. When her mother Judi Armstrong travels down from Alturas to Sausalito to see her daughter, she is always a willing volunteer who has been recruited for several rescue operations, notes Shelbi. "Mom just gets right in there," she describes.

As a young girl growing up on her family's ranch near Alturas, Shelbi loved anything to do with dolphins. The summer between her junior and senior year at Modoc High, she took a summer job at Marine World, Africa USA in Vallejo; living with an aunt that summer while she worked. Although she didn't meet the age limit to be able to work with the animals there, she learned as much as she could and believed she wanted to major in Marine Biology. Shelbi continued her studies at University of California at Santa Cruz, but changed her major to Psy chology along the way, realizing that the science portion was something she didn't want to pursue. She earned her B.A. in psychology and that background has been invaluable to her in dealing with people who are most often in an emotional or irate state, regarding the animal's situation and sometimes the length of time it may take to respond to rescue them.

While in Santa Cruz during college, Shelbi joined the Monterey Marine Mammal field office as a volunteer; then was later hired for a paid position. She was a volunteer at the Sausalito based Marine Mammal Center for several years before becoming a staff person, two and half years ago. She commutes from her home in Santa Rosa to the center, which is located north of the Marin Headlands, in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The center operates with two full-time veterinarians, three full-time veterinary technicians and two volunteer crews per day.

"We have a list of 750 active volunteers who work in areas from administration to rescue," she describes.

The center was established in 1975 and has three branch offices which cover the Pacific Coast from San Luis Obispo County to Mendocino County.

While talking to the Record, Shelbi was busy answering phone calls and questions from concerned members of the public who were inquiring about recently rescued sea lions and their condition. The calls kept coming in.

"My job involves a lot of public relations as well," noted Shelbi. Times become more challenging when the center has been known to admit 100 sea lions and all the help they can muster.

Contending with environmental impacts is part of the job. A recent toxic algae bloom which has caused an organism to be passed through the food chain, has been causing "seizural activity in adult female California Sea Lions," that weigh 200 pounds and are usually five feet long. The sea lions become convulsive and disoriented. Calls from the public often notify the center's staff. When the animals don't return to sea after the standard 24-hour watch period, the center rescues them and can treat them with Valium to calm the seizures, but once the medication wears off, the sea lion is very aggressive, described Shelbi.

A similar situation happened in 1998, when Shelbi and her co-workers were physically taxed and challenged rescuing 72 sea lions in ten days, but few survived. The losses can be discouraging and Shelbi has learned that sea lions have about a 50/50 chance of survival when they come in.

Then there are the exceptions, successes and rewards. In June 1997, a sea otter pup was brought in from a beach in Monterey.

"When we couldn't locate her mother, we took her in and named her Freedom. She was so young, we gave her round-the-clock care, including grooming and bottle-feeding. After three months she was ready to leave our 'nest' but wasn't prepared to go back to the wild, so she was placed in an aquarium. I've visited her there several times. It's hard not to feel close to the ones we've spent so much time with," shares Shelbi.

The most rewarding part of her job is helping with releases, Shelbi told McCall's . "It's such a thrill to watch an animal we pulled off a beach in distress, get rehabilitated and start to swim freely in the sea. Every time I see that I think, 'Wow! This is great!' I feel so lucky that this is how I make my living.'"

 

 

Record news for August 17, 2000

 

• Initial ruling goes against NorCal purchase of PacifiCorp
• Races set in local school districts
• AFD has a busy week

 

Initial ruling goes against NorCal purchase of PacifiCorp

 

An initial ruling in the California Public Utilities Commission case involving NorCal Electric's purchase of PacifiCorp has gone against the agreement.

In a draft decision dated August 7, by Administrative Law Judge Orville I. Wright concluded that the CPUC should deny the PacifiCorp-NorCal agreement and dismiss the application.

"The settlement agreement is not reasonable in light of the whole record, is not consistent with law, and is not in the public interest," the opinion states.

The decision will be on the CPUC's agenda at the next regular meeting in September, where it can be acted upon or postponed until a later meeting.

According to law, the CPUC may adopt all or part of the decision, amend or modify it, or set it aside and prepare its own decision. The decision becomes binding once the CPUC acts.

NorCal, PacifiCorp and other interested parties may now file comments on the administrative law judge's decisions for consideration by the CPUC.

The decision puts a huge hurdle in the path of NorCal's plan to purchase PacifiCorp facilities and move forward on the overall program.

NorCal, a Joint Powers and Authority established by the County of Del Norte and the City of Yreka, along with a newly formed JPA entitled Jefferson JPA, were in the process of purchasing and operating PacifiCorps northern California service territory, including portions of Del Norte, Siskiyou, Modoc and Shasta counties. They had filed the application for CPUC approval, which is required before the sale could take place.

The action by the administrative law judge validates many of Modoc County, Siskiyou County and the City of Alturas' original concerns and strengthens their stance to not join the Joint Powers Authorities, according to Modoc County Administrative Service Officer Mike Maxwell.

In his decision, Wright states that: "The application is incomplete in that it fails to demonstrate how Nor-Cal can fulfill its guarantee that no PacifiCorp customer will be negatively impacted by the proposed acquisition because: there is no commitment for the underwriting of the proposed bond issue; there is no commitment for insurance of the bonds; and, the asset Purchase Agreement, the Indenture, the Bonds and the Resolutions of NorCal and Jefferson have not been validated."

Both Modoc County and the City of Alturas have questioned not only the financial issues associated with the purchase agreement, but have also pointed out a lack of legal validation of the Jefferson JPA.

Currently, NorCal has invested over $1 million in the project but Modoc officials have stayed away from monetary contribution. In fact, outside consultants hired by local agencies have been less than supportive of the project all along. The Alturas City Council has been split on issue of joining the JPA and is supposed to consider it at its meeting August 22. Modoc County remains very much opposed to joining the JPA.

One thing that bothered Modoc and Siskiyou was a ruling by Del Norte Superior Court that NorCal could not operate the electric system. The decision issued by Wright puts even more emphasis on that part of the deal.

"Having failed to validate Nor-Cal's participation in the application proposal, Jefferson JPA was established by the Cities of Yreka and Dunsmuir for the purpose of providing retail electric service as the licensee of Nor-Cal, thus avoiding the Superior Court judgment's critical holding that a county has no authority to provide electrical service at retail in California.

"As no validation action has been filed by Nor-Cal and Jefferson, it is not known whether the license arrangements of Nor-Cal would result in the validation of the Asset Purchase Agreement, the Indenture, the Bonds and Resolutions o the participating cities and counties."The decision goes on the say that the CPUC, " . . . does not undertake to perform the functions of the Superior Courts of this state."

Wright cites many holes in the application, including that its representation that they will market $198.5 million of 30-year taxable, non-recourse, revenue bonds at 7% interest to pay for PacifiCorp's assets is nowhere corroborated in the record and that Nor-Cal's borrowing projections and operating plan dated August 11, 1999 re not supported by the record.

Modoc County and the City of Alturas will have to make decisions down the line on what to do in the case of Nor-Cal, but if the CPUC denies the application or dismisses it, the questions may be moot.

 

Races set in local school districts

Three of the four school districts in the county will have contested elections in the November 7 general election. Only Surprise Valley Joint Unified trustees will run unopposed. The filing period has closed.

Three opponents filed in the embattled Modoc Joint Unified School District where all three incumbents are also running. The challengers on the ballot are Sharon Ponti, Seab McDonald and Ken Fogle. They will be vying to unseat Sean Curtis, Cindy Culp and Jeff Bushey.

The Big Valley Joint Unified School District has Katherine Banwarth challenging incumbent Wayne Wood in Adin and Ed Hammons challenging Leonard Larson in Lookout.

In the Tulelake Basin Joint Unified School District, one challenger, Ava Edgar has filed against incumbents Shelly Buckingham, Thomas Macy and Jerry LeQuieu.

Jim Hays will retain his District Four seat on the County Board of Education since no one emerged to challenge. The District One seat of Angie Benner will be contested be tween Kara Stevenson and James "Bucky" Harris. Benner chose not to run.

There were no challengers in the Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District where Bob Staton of Eagleville and Tony Darst of Lake City will retain their seats.

The California Pines Community Services District has an election of directors as well as a vote on whether to increase the size of the board from three to five directors.

Existing director Bill Roland is facing a challenge from Curtis Barber. If the issue passes to increase the size of the board, two positions will be added -- a two-year and four-year term. Running for the four year term are Jim Ganoe, Lucille Field and Les DuBose. On the ballot for the two-year term are Bob Lyon, Doreen LaGabed and Elizabeth Gladu.

The November 7 election also includes special district governing boards in the county including the Surprise Valley Hospital District, community service districts, irrigation, water and fire districts. If those special district elections do not have candidates, they are often appointed by the county Board of Supervisors.

The last day to register to vote in the November general election is Oct. 9. That is also the last chance to make name or address changes.

 

AFD has a busy week

For the first half of this year the Alturas Fire Department averaged less than one call per month, but that all changed last week.

The AFD responded to four fires in four days, two involving structures. There were no injuries on any of the fires.

According to Fire Chief Roger Dorris, high winds last Thursday were the cause of a fire on Henderson Street. The winds blew down a 24-inch thick tree limb which landed on the house's roof, smashing the electrical connections. The electricity caused the attic to start burning, including the blown-in insulation. Dorris figures fire and water damage to the building at about $10,000. There were 14 firemen and three engines on the fire that afternoon.

August 13 proved to be a busy day. The first fire call came in at 1:30 a.m. at 4th and Smith Streets. Dorris said a fire was started in a brush pile at the residence, and it spread to a lumber pile and got into a garage and storage shed. Dorris said the fire did quite a lot of damage to the garage and some antiques stored inside. The cause of that fire is under investigation.

There were 18 firemen at that fire and four engines. It took firemen about two hours on the scene.

Sunday, at 10 a.m., AFD responded to a dumpster fire behind Pizza and Pasta Restaurant on Main Street. It didn't take long to extinguish the fire and no other structures were damaged.

On Monday afternoon about 3 p.m., firemen responded to a grass fire at 5th and Main Street in an open lot. That fire was quickly extinguished. The fire was started by juveniles playing with fireworks. There were 14 firemen, three engines and a salvage van at the scene.

 

 

Record news for August 24, 2000

 

• Forests drier, danger levels reach new high
• Age of Technology dawns for Modoc Joint Unified schools
• Modoc Fair finishes successful run
• Caltrans has work on Main Street next week
• Used instruments wanted for band kids
• MPAT opens fall auditions

 

Forests drier, danger levels reach new high

While the Modoc National Forest is dry and fire danger is high, neighboring forests of Plumas and Lassen have gone into heavy level four fire restrictions because of conditions. Modoc is not yet at those levels.

The smoke that poured into Modoc Tuesday night on high winds came from a huge fire of over 20,000 acres on the Plumas National Forest, according to Carol Sharp, MNF Information Technician. That fire is burning in the Feather River Canyon.

That fire remains out of control, she said, and there are also fires reported on the Lassen Forest.

Some long time members of the Modoc Tribe Ride, whose event was last week in the Warner Mountains commented that they couldn't remember a time when the forest was so dry and void of water. There is little or no snowcap left on the higher mountain peaks.

The weather forecast is calling for hot and dry conditions and the Modoc Forest is keeping a wary eye on conditions locally, especially with hunting seasons arriving.

In addition to the dry conditions on the forest, and throughout the west, one of the major concerns in the region is fire-fighting forces stretched to the limit.

According to Sharp, Modoc is covered with the minimum fire protection forces at the moment, which includes five engines and two contract engines. She said the protection level will not drop from there.

"We're covered and we'll be able to respond to things quickly," she said. "We should be able to handle things until help arrives. The big question is where that help would come from."

There are 20 overhead crews off the Modoc Forest at the moment on fires in Montana, Idaho, California and Oregon. While some crews returned this week, Sharp said they are expecting to be heading back to Montana in a couple of days.

 

Age of Technology dawns for Modoc Joint Unified schools

By Nora Russell

Modoc Joint Unified School District Superintendent, Dr. Kevin Jolly, proved the old axiom, "actions speak louder than words" when, during a tour given to the Modoc Record, access to the district network and Internet was established on district computers.

A list of questions had been submitted to Interim Superintendent Don Dem-sher and computer techn-ician, Bert Trevail, by the Modoc Record at the end of the 1999/2000 school year in an effort to discover why the network, Internet and e-mail system had never fully functioned during the school year.

Jolly's response when he became the superintendent of the district for the 2000/2001 school year, was to set a goal to have the technology working and accessible to staff and students by the first day of school.

"My first goal was to get Internet access to each computer and that means that the entire district is online," Jolly explained. "My second goal is to ask teachers what they want to have available in terms of computer based research materials."

With the exception of outlying schools; Arlington, Stateline and South Fork, each of the district schools have Internet access to at least one computer in each classroom. Those computers will be accessible to students with teacher supervision.

"The reason the outlying schools aren't connected yet is because of the distance from the satellite," said Jolly. "The computers are ready but we still need to establish a phone and Internet connection. That will be done by the end of the second week of school."

Along with teacher supervision, students will be protected from accessing undesirable web sites by a program called CyberPatrol. The program filters sites that may contain inappropriate words, pictures or content and does not allow them to be accessed. Parents will also receive a permission slip to fill out before their child will be allowed to use the Internet.

Now that the network and Internet are a certainty in the classrooms, Jolly is looking forward to how they will be utilized. "I want the staff to log onto their computer daily and check their e-mail so they gain experience with it," Jolly said.

For Internet training purposes five teachers who are not familiar with the Internet will be assigned to one teacher who is, so they can learn how to do an Internet search. "Once the teachers are comfortable with using the e-mail and Internet I think that will translate into them passing that along to the students," Jolly added.

 

Modoc Fair finishes successful run

Everything seemed bigger and better to fairgoers at this year's "Majestic Modoc" District Fair.

From more parade entries in the Sunday morning parade sponsored by Surprise Valley Rotary Club to more concession sales and entries during the fair's August 17 through 20 run in Cedarville, the fair was deemed a success.

"I felt very, very good about this year's fair," shared Fair Manager Traci Green. "Those who made comments gave good, positive comments and constructive suggestions to make next year's fair even better."

The number of entries was up by 1,300 over last year.

"We were overwhelmed with entries this year," said Green. "We weren't expecting the numbers we had with over 4000 entries. We ran out of ribbons and apologize, but we have ordered more, so those who had winning entries will receive their ribbons at a later date. It may be about two months though."

The premium checks, on the other hand, were ready to be mail distributed this week.

This year's "Carnival of Fun," which was new to the Modoc Fair, pleased Green and midway riders with a variety of rides, a clean looking carnival area and identifiable staff. The musical variety and Buckaroo Beau's new act seemed to please the crowds, as did Charlie and Karen Cook's Racing Pigs, which made their debut this year, from Elk Grove.

Modoc District Fair Board of Directors, Manager and fairgoers appreciated the new addition of the "Wild Science" Exhibit for this year's fair.

"It was very well received," said Green. "We couldn't have done it without our sponsors Modoc County Tobacco Education Program in conjunction with TEACH, Inc. and Modoc Indian Health Project. We'd like to bring the exhibit back next year, but can't do it without sponsors."

Friday night's Stock Car auto races with MSB Promotions were also a crowd pleaser.

Surprise Valley Rotary's Demolition Derby had many entries, but got a delayed start, as Ranchers' Day events carried over into their time slot, and the track was made into more of a mud bog, than a wet track. But, the hardy, more warmly-dressed folks stayed to finish the Derby late into the evening.

Other than that, "things seemed to run smoothly," described Green.

Watch for some fair results in next week's Record.

 

Caltrans has work on Main Street next week

The local Caltrans office is advising residents to avoid the railroad crossing on Main Street August 29, from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. as work will be done to smooth it out.

This work will be the first of two phases of repair to the railroad crossing. It will be the removal and replacement of four inches of failed asphalt in the crossing vicinity. The second phase, an asphalt overlay of the entire crossing, is anticipated in mid-September.

In addition, on August 30, work will be done at the intersection of Highway 299 and 395 on the north end of Main. Avoid that intersection from 6:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. Caltrans will be removing and replacing asphalt at the junction. An alternate route away from that intersection would expedite work and allow a quicker return to normal traffic flows. There will also be a similar operation at the intersection of 395 and 4th Street later that day.

Caltrans requests motorists to use caution and reduced speed in and around road work sites. Traffic will be controlled both days

Used instruments wanted for band kids

The cost of renting and purchasing new musical instruments to play in the school band has soared over the past few years, making it almost unaffordable for a student who wants to be a part of "Band," to do so, according to Modoc Junior and Senior High Music instructor Karen Siegel.

Siegel and new Alturas Elementary music instructor Darva Campbell have come up with what they hope will be a partial solution.

"We're thinking there must be musical instruments in people's closets that aren't or won't be used and may just be collecting dust," describes Siegel. "If they want to sell them, we can match them up with a student who needs to buy an instrument. In the past I've thought about this, but now we need to do something to help these families. Instruments have gone out of sight in terms of cost."

Siegel gave some examples of new purchases, "A new clarinet can cost $800 and a saxophone is way out there and can be $1600. Parents who rent them for their child can pay as much as $68 a month for one."

In order to keep the music program strong, Siegel said she feels this is one way to help out, by trying to match people who want to sell an instrument with a student who needs to buy one.

Siegel and Campbell are also looking in to the possibilities of parents making purchases on the Internet's "E-Bay" site, which seems to have lower costs for musical instruments. But the disadvantage there is that the buyer has to pay the full cost all at once on a credit card. For parents who can do this, Siegel said she sees it as a big savings to purchase outright.

"We'll be doing more research, and letting parents know, but right now we just want to get a local program started," said Siegel.

Anyone with a wind, percussion or brass instrument to sell or to donate, may contact Karen Siegel at (530) 233-7301 Ext. 416 at Modoc High or 233-7501, Ext. 317 at Modoc Middle School. Darva Campbell can be reached at Alturas Elementary at 233-7601, Ext. 231. They will both return calls for voice mail messages left for them.

The band does not have a use for string instruments at this time.

Darva Campbell who holds a masters degree and is working on her Ph.D., has been on the teaching staff at California State University, Chico, educating college students on how to teach music to elementary school students. Now she's in the seat as the elementary school music teacher herself, and started her new position at AES this week. It was her recent marriage to a Modoc resident that drew her to the area, notes Siegel.

 

MPAT opens fall auditions

Modoc Performing Arts Theater (MPAT) announces that it will be having auditions for its fall play, Agatha Christie's Ten Little Indians, on Monday, August 28 and Tuesday, August 29, at 7:00 p.m. at the ACT Niles Theater, Main St., Alturas.

Ten Little Indians is a murder mystery set on an island off the English coast in the 1930s. Eight strangers are invited by a mysterious host to Indian Island for a long weekend. At the island manor are the butler and his housekeeper wife to greet the guests with a recorded message from their host. On-by-one, as in the Ten Little Indians nursery rhyme, the ten people are being mysteriously murdered. By whom? The cast consists of eleven members, ranging in age from their mid-twenties to sixty-ish and may consist of four or five women and six or seven men.

People interested in auditioning for roles need only show up and readings from the play will be provided for the auditions. There are also needs for technical crew to help with lights, set construction, publicity, and other non-performing activities. Gerry Gates will direct this play and may be reached at (530) 233-4447 in the evenings. The tentative play dates are October 26, 27 and 28 at 7:30 p.m. and a Sunday matinee on October 29 at 3:00 p.m. and a second run on November 3 and 4 at 7:30 p.m. with a final matinee on Sunday November 5 at 3:00 p.m

The rehearsal schedule is tentatively set for Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. to noon at locations to be announced to the selected cast.

 

 

Record news for August 31, 2000

 

• Sunday fire chars Alturas residence
• Modoc's voter tally lower than past years
• MJUSD makes top 100 list
• MJU phone system in interesting transition
• More students for MJU this year

 

Sunday fire chars Alturas residence

A Sunday afternoon fire caused major damage to a home at 807 West Henderson Street, but the resident of the home escaped injury.

According to Alturas Fire Chief Roger Dorris, the fire appears to have started from a burning cigarette in a piece of living room furniture. Dorris said the fire was fully involved when the Fire Department arrived. The front windows had been blown out and flames and smoke were pouring from those areas. It took a lot of water to knock the flames down and clear the smoke from the home.

Dorris said there is extensive heat and smoke damage to all interior walls and furniture. He said the structure was not damaged as badly.

The AFD had 17 firemen, three engines and a salvage van at the scene for about one hour, twenty minutes.

Modoc's voter tally lower than past years

The last day to register to vote in the November 7 general election is Oct. 9. That is also the last chance to make name or address changes.

In addition to the local elections, races for all national and state offices will be on the ballot. Additionally, there are eight initiatives on the ballot for the state.

Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison said voter registration has dipped since the last general election and has not rebounded as well as she had expected. Currently, the county is showing 5,289 registered voters. There were 5,885 voters in 1998.

Three of the four school districts in the county have contested elections in November. Only Surprise Valley Joint Unified trustees will run unopposed. Three opponents filed in the Modoc Joint Unified School District where all three incumbents are also running. The challengers on the ballot are Sharon Ponti, Seab McDonald and Ken Fogle. They will be running against Sean Curtis, Cindy Culp and Jeff Bushey.

The Big Valley Joint Unified School District has Katherine Banwarth challenging incumbent Wayne Wood in Adin and Ed Hammons challenging Leonard Larson in Lookout.

In the Tulelake Basin Joint Unified School District, one challenger, Ava Edgar has filed against incumbents Shelly Buckingham, Thomas Macy and Jerry LeQuieu.

The District One seat of Angie Benner will be contested between Kara Stevenson and James "Bucky" Harris. Benner chose not to run. Jim Hays of Alturas was unopposed for another term.

Bob Staton of Eagleville and Tony Darst of Lake City will retain their seats in the Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District where no challengers emerged.

The California Pines Community Services District has two elections -- the first for directors as well as a vote on whether to in crease the size of the board from three to five directors.

Existing director Bill Roland is facing a challenge from Curtis Barber. If the issue passes to increase the size of the board, two positions will be added -- a two-year and four-year term. Running for the four year term are Jim Ganoe, Lucille Field and Les DuBose. On the ballot for the two-year term are Bob Lyon, Doreen LaGabed and Elizabeth Gladu.

The November 7 election also includes special district governing boards in the county including the Surprise Valley Hospital District, community service districts, irrigation, water and fire districts. If those special district elections do not have candidates, they are often appointed by the county Board of Supervisors.

MJUSD makes top 100 list

Offspring Magazine com-bed through the database of SchoolMatch in search of the 100 best school districts in the na tion. From the midst of all that data popped Modoc Joint Unified School District in Alturas.

SchoolMatch is an Ohio based research firm that specializes in public school data.

The method used to compare the school districts was to divide the country into seven geographic regions: New England, Mid Atlantic, South, Great Lakes, Southwest, Plains and Pacific West.

In each of the regions SchoolMatch looked closely at living costs, mean income and mean property values, in each school district; academic performance and academic expenditures per student.

Using the living cost numbers, the firm divided the districts in each region into high, medium and low economic subgroups. The subgroups were then ranked by school district according to academic performance, as defined by students' scores on the SAT and on the ACT exams, as well as on the number of National Merit Scholars each district produced (per 100 students) since 1985.

Schools with the highest academic scores in each economic group within each of the seven regions made the final list of 100.

Dividing the country into different regional and economic groups helped to ensure that wealthy school districts and rural school districts were on a equal footing.

Seven school districts in California were among the 100 rated best in the country by Offspring; Palo Alto, Pa los Verdes Peninsula, Piedmont, Beverly Hills, Carmel, Laguna Beach and Modoc.

Of the seven school districts, Palo Alto has the highest enrollment with 9,437 students while Modoc has the fewest with 1,200 students. Palo Alto's academic performance is in the 99.0 percentile while Modoc's is at 98.0. (The numbers are expressed as national percentile rankings.)

Living costs of the other six California school districts range from 99.0 to 94.0, meaning that they are among the top two percent of the country's regions, while Modoc school district is noticeably lower at 43.0.

According to the Offspring article, in districts with the lowest living costs and the highest academic performance, you're getting the most for your educational dollar.

In the area of expenditures per student the average ranking among the seven California districts was 80.0 with Beverly Hills being the highest at 93.0. Modoc ranked 70.0.

Offspring Magazine calls itself "The Magazine of Smart Parenting" and comes from the editors of SmartMoney and the Wall Street Journal Magazine of Personal Business.

Threat of lightning worries forest crews

Modoc County remains free of forest fires, and local authorities are thanking their lucky stars. Fire danger levels are still high, at level three, but have not been increased to the extreme level as has neighboring forests of Plumas and Lassen.

Forest Service crews are a little on edge this week as thunderstorms are forecast but there is supposed to be some precipitation with the thunder and lighting and that will decrease the anxiety.

The Story fire is still burning in the Feather River Canyon, which has created some hazy evenings, but that fire is being controlled.

Another concern of local fire officials is the onset of hunting season in this part of the state. Hunters and campers are being advised to use extreme caution in the forests.

There are 19 people off the Modoc Forest at the moment on fires in Montana, Idaho, California and Oregon. Modoc remains covered in case of an outbreak of blazes.

MJU phone system in interesting transition

The new computerized phone system in the Modoc Joint Unified School is undergoing some growing pains, and should be a little easier to deal with in the near future.

MJUSD Superintendent Dr. Kevin Jolly, said the new system is not working quite the way it is intended, but is confident that it will once all the bugs are worked out.

He offers the following instructions when dialing the schools in the district. First dial 233-7201 and when the system answers either listen to the options or immediately dial the extension by pressing one and three digit extension number.

The following is a list of number for departments: press 0 for a secretary at the District Office Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; for a particular district office secretary, press 9; for maintenance, press 2; for transportation, press 3; for Alturas Elementary School, press 6; for Modoc Middle School, press 7; for Modoc High School and New Directions, press 8; if a person has a rotary phone, they can hold for a district office secretary.

More students for MJU this year

Modoc Joint Unified School District received an enrollment boost of seven students for the 2000/2001 school year.

According to Superintendent, Dr. Kevin Jolly, during the first five school days of this school year there were 1,000 students filling the desks in the district schools. Last school year there were 993 students counted.

"The enrollment numbers might be more," Jolly explained. "But, I think that counting actual students attending school during the first five days gives a more accurate count. Sometimes families have enrolled and then moved and we haven't found out about it yet."

Before this year, Modoc Joint Unified had seen a steady decline in student enrollment. During the 1997-98 school year the district had 1,200 students enrolled with the next year's enrollment slipping to 1,124 before hitting a low of 993 last year.

Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District is continuing to experience a slow but steady decline in enrollment. The 1997-98 school year opened with 233 students in the district; the following year, 1998-99 the enrollment had gone down to 223. This school year the student count has dipped to 203 students.

 

September

Record news for Sept. 9, 2000

 

• It got downright cold in Alturas
• Board considers separating DA, Counsel offices
• Building jumps up in August
• Outbreak of Anthrax kills cows in Nevada
• New gallery show offers functional with the surreal

It got downright cold in Alturas

 

While summer may not be over just yet, Modoc got a quick taste of cool weather when Alturas' low temperature Monday morning was 27 degrees, the coldest spot in the lower 48 states.

There was some moisture over the past week and several thunderstorms, but no fires were reported on the Modoc National Forest or Bureau of Land Management lands. The cold and wet days were the difference.

The change in the weather has put local firefighters a little more at ease according to the Modoc National Forest's Carol Sharp and has allowed Forest Supervisor Dan Chisolm to sign an order canceling restrictions placed on the forest. The forest is no longer at extreme fire danger levels.

The less severe conditions now allow wood cutting areas to open and campfires in more locations. That's welcome relief for hunters now in the area. The woods are still very dry, said Sharp, so caution must be maintained. Campfire permits are required and wood cutters need to phone 233-8819 for the Devil's Garden area and 279-8307 for the Warner Mountains prior to cutting.

Over the past few days, storms brought lightning strikes to the North Warner, Davis Creek and New Pine Creek areas. These locations are still being monitored for signs of fire. The good news is that most of the forest's fire personnel have returned, but two engines and 11 overhead staff remain in fires in the west.

Warner and dryer weather is expected which can make potential fire conditions critical so forest visitors are urged to be careful at all times, stressed Sharp.

Board considers separating DA, Counsel offices

The ramifications of Modoc County District Attorney Tom Buckwalter filing child abduction and violation of a court custody order charges against two Modoc County Child Protective Services workers continue to spread and are creating some major waves.

It could, in the end, be the impetus behind the Modoc County Board of Supervisors splitting the District Attorney/Counsel position into separate offices. The board heard those arguments presented by Administrative Officer Mike Maxwell and a rebuttal from Buckwalter at Tuesday's meeting. While the board did not make a decision, they took the issue under study.

Center in the entire debate is whether the board believes Buckwalter can serve as county counsel to its employees as well as prosecute them if he perceives they broke they law. Maxwell stresses there is a perceived conflict of interest in the office, while Buckwalter said he only deals in direct conflict issues, which he would refer to the state Attorney General's office.

The case is not simple and involves two social workers who removed a child from a mother in apparent violation of a court custody order. They felt they were protecting the child. The CPS workers steadfastly argue they could have been putting the child in danger had they returned her to her mother. The mother has been charged with misdemeanor child abuse involving the daughter and her two sons.

Buckwalter has explained he told the social workers, under his hat of county counsel, how to proceed with the case early, but they chose not to heed his advice and, in his mind, broke the law. He said he will prosecute anyone who breaks the law.

On Tuesday, Maxwell explained to the board that they were a legislative body and were not in a position to decide guilt or innocence of the workers. They were, however able to provide legal defense of the CPS workers if they found that the charges stemmed from activities under the "scope" of their employment. What the board had to find was that they were on the job when the alleged offenses were committed.

Maxwell also said he understood Buckwalter's conviction of charging people, regardless of who they are, when he believes they commit a crime. He said that conviction, alone, stresses a need to separate the county counsel/DA positions.

The county, in contradiction to Buckwalter's advice Tuesday, agreed to fund the CPS workers' legal defense. Buckwalter had argued they were not in the scope of their employment and providing for defense was a gift of public funds.

Supervisors agree, unanimously, that the workers deserved the county's legal defense, and voted to pay for their counsel. Each worker has separate counsel.

The employees, Jackie King and Mary Ann Prock, are out on physician-ordered leave from the county, Maxwell explained. He also asked the board to agree to solicit help from other counties to cover the Child Protective Services in Modoc and to allow the Social Services department to seek and pay for outside legal counsel on juvenile protective issues. The board agreed to all of those requests.

King and Prock were scheduled for arraignment Sept. 12, but Buckwalter said that will probably be postponed. Both local judges, John Baker and Larry Dier, had excused themselves from the case because of their heavy involvement in Child Protective Services and a replacement judge has not yet been named. Buckwalter expects the employees' attorneys to ask that he be recused (taken off) the case as the prosecutor.

Modoc has just three CPS workers and with two out on leave, Maxwell said the ability of the county to handle those services was in major jeopardy. He said Social Services was now "reluctant" to go to Buckwalter for legal advice and he felt that reluctance may trickle down to other employees. He was concerned that county officials would make decisions outside of legal advice, creating some bigger problems.

Buckwalter told the board he wears the two hats DA and County Counsel, distinctly and separately and would never use information gained in consultation with employees to use in their prosecution. He said that would be a violation of his license to practice law. He said he fully respects and follows the attorney-client privilege.

The board can separate the County Counsel/District Attorney office under an ordinance approved in the past that created a County Counsel's office. The office has not been filled to date because the board did not think it could afford a new position. Supervisor Joe Colt stressed that funding remains a real question now. Filling a new County Counsel position would not come cheaply, he said. Maxwell has stated that filling a new position, may be cheaper, in terms of liability and conflicts in the future.

Additionally, he said, the County Counsel position is taking up a lot of time. Buckwalter agreed that the portion of the job involving county matters is indeed a large part of what he does. He disagreed the offices should be split.

The board will bring the issue back at its next meeting.

Building jumps up in August

Building activity jumped up in August for the county, showing an estimated value of $704,214,27 on 33 building permits issued by the building department.

The permit totals include four new homes and seven garages, barns or storage buildings. The county collected $5,240.40 in fees. Last month the county issued 32 permits with a value of $254,849.40.

The City of Alturas issued 11 permits worth an estimated $31,972.03. That's down from July when it issued 12 permits worth an estimated $41,964. Re-roofing projects and Monitor stoves made up more than half the permits.

Outbreak of Anthrax kills cows in Nevada

Thirty cows at a ranch north of Gerlach died over the past week as a result of an outbreak of the deadly disease anthrax.

Nevada Department of Agriculture State Veterinarian, Dr. David Thain, reported that the outbreak occurred on a ranch northwest of Gerlach in Washoe County.

"The Department's Reno Animal Disease Laboratory isolated a pure strain of anthrax," said Thain.

Anthrax is an uncommon, highly contagious disease of livestock. "The spores of this bacteria can live in the soil for many years," continued Dr. Thain. "The current outbreak is believed to be due to recent ditch cleaning that released soil borne spores onto pasture grasses. The cattle became infected when they ate the grass."

Anthrax is also recognized as a potential weapon used by bio-terrorists and was a significant threat in the war with Iraq in the early nineties.

Bacillus anthracis is found most commonly in areas with neutral to mildly alkaline soil, following drought and flooding, or following excavations that disturb the soil and bring B. anthracis spores to the surface.

Anthrax is transmitted while animals graze in areas that previously experience the disease and the spores contaminate the water or forage.

Anthrax can be transmitted to neighboring ranches by birds, insects, or carnivorous predators.

If antrax is suspected in a field case where the animal is found dead, it is best to call a veterinarian as soon as possible. The specimen must be fresh for identification of anthrax because the effects of putrefactive bacteria in an unopened carcass at temperatures of 77° - 86° decimates the anthrax and recovery is difficult.

There are areas in the world, including Nevada, in which anthrax is endemic. This results in chronic environmental contamination with resulting animal and human disease.

Several endemic areas have been recorded. The state veterinarian, local veterinarian, or any of the long-established ranchers are able to identify historic areas reporting Bacillus anthracis morbidity or mortality.

New gallery show offers functional with the surreal

Realistic imagery and surrealism are combined in Robert Freschl's art work featured at the Art Center's new gallery showing Friday night, Sept. 8 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

The public is invited to come see the new display, enjoy refreshments and a chance to meet artists Robert Freschl and Bob and Tammy McAdams at the 317 So. Main Street gallery.

Freschl's ceramics, pen and ink drawings and the wrought iron works of Bob and "Tam" McAdams, combine for the new month-long show.

Freschl moved from the Bay area to Janesville six years ago with wife Noelle. When he is not drawing and creating ceramics, he runs his business as a landscape designer/contractor.

Bob McAdams and daughter Tam return to the Art Center with some new pieces including a wrought iron chandelier and functional pieces. The McAdams hail from Madeline and travel during the summer months to many black powder rendezvous where they sell their hand-forged pieces.

The Art Center's regular hours are Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Record news for Sept. 14, 2000

• Color will dot skies over Alturas for this weekend
• Modoc's SAT scores near state averages
• Flu Clinics will start later for this season
• Forest Service plans safety work on road
• Modoc jobless now at 6%

  Color will dot skies over Alturas for this weekend

  The skies will be full of man-made rainbows this weekend as the annual Alturas Balloon Fest takes off Saturday and Sunday.

  Everything gets underway Friday morning when two hot air balloons lift off about 8 a.m. from Alturas Elementary and Modoc Middle Schools. Spectators are encouraged to come out for the fun. At 6 p.m. Friday, a Balloon Social will be held at the Niles Hotel. It will be no host with food and drinks available. Cost is $5 per person. Pilots, the sponsors and the public are welcome.

  At Sunrise Saturday and Sunday, the balloons, usually 10 to 12, will lift off from the lawns at Alturas Elementary and Modoc Middle School. A special Randy Sharp breakfast will be served starting at 6 a.m. for just $2. At Sunset there will be a night glow at the Alturas Park. Also, auto races are scheduled in Cedarville.

  Following the launch on Saturday, there will be plenty of activities in Alturas Veteran's Park. Starting at 1 p.m.. will be a tri-tip barbecue sponsored by Disabled American Veterans, Chapter 113. Also at 1 p.m., musicians from the popular weekly Country Jam will be on hand. Volleyball games, horseshoe pitching and other activities are also planned at the park throughout the day.

  Balloon rides are still available to the public, just call the Alturas Chamber of Commerce at 530-233-4434.

  Modoc's SAT scores near state averages

  State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Delaine Eastin, announced the statewide results for the 2000 SAT I Reasoning Test (SAT) on August 29.

  Eastin noted, "The good news is that the average math score for California students increased by four points. At the same time, this year's average SAT verbal score and SAT participation rate for California is about the same as last year."

  California's average math score of 518 is above the national average of 514 and is also four points above last year's score. Modoc High School's average math score was 497, 18 points lower than the previous year's score.

  "What is interesting about a small school district like ours, is that the test scores of one or two students can cause the average to go up or down proportionately," explained Jim McLaughlin, MHS Dean of Students.

  Adding that, "It won't be until we receive the ACT national and state norms that we will have a complete picture of college entrance exam scores for last year."

  California's average verbal score of 497 remains the same as last year, while the national average verbal score is 505, also unchanged from last year. Modoc's average verbal score of 504 exceeds the state average by seven points.

  This year, 156,145 California students took the SAT, which is 49 percent of the estimated high school graduates, the same as 1999. Nationally, 1,260,278 students, or 44 percent of the estimated 2,840,000 graduates in 2000, took the SAT.

  Female test takers in California did not score as high as male test takers, but they are catching up. Females scored 495 in verbal, up three points from last year, while males scored 500 in verbal, down three points from 1999. Females scored 501 in math, up five points from 1999. Males scored 539 in math, up two points from 1999.

  SAT test results indicate that students who take more academic courses score higher on the exam.

  "We need to do more to ensure that students have access to the courses they need to be well prepared for the future. Our students are still too far behind the rest of the nation in the course load they are taking," explained Eastin.

  From 1991 to 2000, the percentage of California students taking 20 or more academic courses grew from 28 percent to 36 percent. During the same period of time, the national percentage of students taking 20 or more academic courses grew from 40 percent to 50 percent.

  Flu Clinics will start later for this season

  Modoc County Public Health may not be holding regular influenza clinics until early November due to delayed production of 2000-2001 vaccine supply.

  The 2000-2001 influenza vaccine contains antigens to provide protection against three strains of influenza viruses expected to cause illness this winter. The vaccine is designed to protect both seniors and others at high risk, including younger adults or children with certain chronic diseases. Those chronic diseases include heart disease, lung disease, asthma, kidney disease, metabolic diabetes, anemia and other blood disorders and those pregnant women who will be in the second or third trimester of pregnancy during influenza season.

  Modoc County Public Health's regular influenza vaccine shipment is expected sometime in October and the regular flu clinic schedule will be instituted when the shipment has been received.

  During the months of September and October there is a small supply of free Pneumoccal vaccine for seniors available at regular Wednesday Health Department Clinics. Please call 233-6311.

  Forest Service plans safety work on road

  Modoc National Forest Supervisor, Dan Chisholm, announced that the Forest Service, working with the Federal Highway Administration, is planning to provide increased public safety on Forest Road 49.

  Forest Road 49 is the road between the Lava Beds National Monument and the Medicine Lake recreation area.

  Forest Engineer Jed Par-kinson said, "The planned changes include improving sight distance, signing, widening and paving the existing roadbed to reduce dust and noise, while in-creasing passenger and vehicle safety by eliminating the recurrent washboard conditions."

  Chisholm further commented, "The road improvements are based on an analysis conducted in 1992. We must not ensure that there is no new information available that could change that decision. I have asked my staff specialists to review the existing road corridor and want to take this opportunity to ask the public if they have any information that may influence the decision to implement the plans to provide increased public safety and environmental protection for this road."

  According to Parkinson, personnel from the Federal Highway Administration and the Forest Service Regional Office have reviewed the proposal on the ground and are considering funding the project in 2001 or 2002, depending on the results of the final review and decision of the Forest Supervisor.

  Comments concerning the proposed project should be addressed to Bernie Weisgerber, District Ranger, Doublehead Ranger District, P.O. Box 369, Tulelake, CA 96134 or call Weisgerber at (530) 667-2246.

  Modoc jobless now at 6%

  Modoc's unemployment rate actually fell to 6.0 percent in August, down from 6.5 percent in July. It's up from last August when the jobless rate was 5.3 percent.

  The unemployment rate has dropped steadily from June at 6.8 percent and July's 6.5 percent. The August unemployment rate in the state was 5.0 percent and the national rate was 4.1 percent.

  Modoc ranks 36th out of the state's 58 counties for highest unemployment rate, with Siskiyou ranked 43rd at 7.5 percent and Lassen ranked 24th with 5.0 percent.

Record news for Sept. 21, 2000

 

• Making hay - in Modoc - while the sun shines
• County opts to split DA/County Counsel office
• County adopts good budget for 2000-2001
• Increased funding bill approved for forest counties
• Communities show support for friend in need

 

Making hay - in Modoc - while the sun shines

As fall quickly approaches, operations at Alturas Ranches swing into final harvest mode.

Nearly all the barns are already stacked to the rafters with new hay recently moved in from the fields where it was cut, raked and baled over the summer.

The last alfalfa cutting of the season, now well underway, will soon fill those barns to capacity.

The wild rice harvest is almost complete as lumbering green harvesters wend their way back and forth through the last of muddy paddies. Many of the seasonal workers have left to return to school. The remaining employees work long hours to complete the task. This season's operations will soon be history.

Each season Alturas Ranches, based in Modoc County, harvests 40 to 50 thousand tons of alfalfa hay. The high desert climate causes the plants to grow more slowly than in the valley, producing an especially high quality, nutritious alfalfa preferred by dairy farmers statewide. In addition, the mammoth operation raises over 3 million pounds of wild rice for the consumer market.

With fields located just south of Alturas and in the Madeline plains, the extensive farming operation has about 10,000 acres in alfalfa and 2,500 acres in wild rice. Passers-by on Highway 395 can see fields stretch all the way across the valley. The hay fields on the far side of the valley extend north and south and are a vibrant emerald green just before they are cut, usually three times each summer. Early in the season, the rice paddies on the near side of the valley become a curious network of square, shallow lakes on the valley floor, joined together by a delicate-looking network of narrow causeways.

In Madeline, the operation is more massive still. One can stand on any edge of the property and see field after field of alfalfa out to the horizon, bordered only by the distant mountains. A vast network of intersecting ditches and canals criss-cross the plain to irrigate the hundreds of fields.

Once the harvest is complete, no one can fail to be impressed by the colossal stacks of hay standing row upon row like massive, silent monoliths.

For the past two years, the ranch has developed and planted new ground in Madeline, making that part of the operation even more extensive. This year alone a square mile of new fields are being prepared where there was once nothing but sagebrush.

Jay Younger, the affable farm manager, oversees the entire operation. He credits the 20 permanent and 65 seasonal workers with successful planting, irrigation, harvest and transportation each year, noting that 30% of their dedicated work force is Hispanic.

"We couldn't produce anything without them," says Younger of his employees.

The successful year-to-year placement of the company's prodigious harvest falls to Sid Howard, the sales and marketing manager for Alturas Ranches.

As a result of all this effort, Alturas Ranches contributes approximately 5 to 6 million dollars to the local economy.

"It's the last, large private employer left in the county," says Younger, "a long-term economic generator for the local community."

According to Younger and Howard, the entire operation began as the vision of Bob Akers in 1976 who acquired the bulk of the property that now forms the backbone of Alturas Ranches. The operation has changed hands and names from time to time in the intervening years, but some locals still occasionally refer to it as Lyneta, it's former, long-time name. The present owners seem dedicated to developing the company to its fullest potential as evidenced by plans to put all its land into production.

Younger notes that the company tries to touch every aspect of the feed market. In addition to supplying high-test dairy hay, about 20% of the alfalfa is converted in their on-site mill to quarter-inch feed pellets for distribution to Western markets, some as distant as Japan.

Cultivation of wild rice began as the solution to a problem with several acres of ground that was too wet to produce good alfalfa. Related to oats, the wild rice grown by Alturas Ranches was brought from Minnesota in the early 80s. Surprisingly, local yields exceeded those in Minnesota. The wild rice ultimately became a successful second crop in the company's diversification plan.

County opts to split DA/County Counsel office

Modoc County Supervisors voted 3-1 Monday to split the District Attorney/County Counsel office into two entities and started the ball rolling in that direction.

Both positions are now held by Tom Buckwalter, who was elected District Attorney two years ago. The counsel position was part of the job. The split was necessitated, said Administrative Officer Mike Maxwell, because of possible conflicts in the DA also serving as legal counsel to employees. A case where Buckwalter filed misdemeanor charges against two Child Protective Service workers has intensified the issue. Buckwalter said there is no conflict. Buckwalter has filed criminal charges against other county employees over the past two years and prosecuted the cases.

Maxwell said the changeover, which will involve a new office, may be completed by December or January and he is working on the situation at the moment. Buckwalter Wednesday said he will continue to perform county counsel duties until a new person is hired and on board.

Maxwell figures the cost of a new County Counsel Department, including staff, will be between $150,000 and $160,000 per year, with about $30,000 to $40,000 coming from the general fund and the remainder split between non-general fund departments.

The position, if appointed, could be for a four-year term and may be terminated only through mechanisms set up in the government code. Buckwalter advised the county that once the offices are split, going back would be difficult.

The vote to split the position was 3-1, with Supervisor Terry William's voting no, saying the county could not afford the new position. He also said he felt the issue should be brought up during an election. Voting in favor were Supervisors Nancy Huffman, Pat Cantrall and Joe Colt.

While the issue of contracting for counsel was discussed, the county voted in favor of an in-house department.

Meanwhile the issue of the two CPS workers continues. Defense attorneys are expected to ask that Buckwalter be removed as prosecutor. Buckwalter has stated he will oppose that move and intends to prosecute the case.

Center in the entire debate is whether the board believes Buckwalter or anyone can serve as county counsel to its employees as well as prosecute them if he perceives they broke they law.

The case involves two social workers who removed a child from a mother in apparent violation of a court custody order. They felt they were protecting the child. The CPS workers continue to argue they could have been putting the child in danger had they returned her to her mother. The mother has been charged with misdemeanor child abuse involving the daughter and her two sons.

Buckwalter has explained he told the social workers, under his hat of county counsel, how to proceed with the case early, but they chose not to heed his advice and, in his mind, broke the law. He said he will prosecute anyone who breaks the law.

Earlier this month the board found that the charges stemmed from activities under the "scope" of the CPS workers employment and voted to pay for their outside legal defense.

The employees, Jackie King and Mary Ann Prock, are out on physician-ordered leave from the county and are scheduled to appear in court Oct. 3. County adopts good budget for 2000-2001 Modoc County adopted its 2000-2001 budget at Monday's Board of Supervisors meeting with expenditures of $45,851,715.

The budget is described as healthy and includes wage increases to employees of four percent July 1, 2000 and another four percent on July 1, 2001. Salary increases of the same amount are approved for department heads and the Board of Supervisors.

"It's a good budget, with more flexibility than we've had in the past few years," said County Administrative Officer Mike Maxwell.

The general fund portion of the budget amounts to $7,625,113 with enterprise funds taking up $9,417,217, special districts $58,101 and non-general fund money totaling $28,751,294.

General fund money includes those funds the county can spend as it sees a need, enterprise funds include earmarked funds such as the library, hospital and waste management. Much of the remaining funding is restricted to certain programs and may not be spent outside those programs.

For example, general fund department includes the Sheriff's Department at $1,177,743; the County Jail at $647,079; Probation at $306,413l; Recreation at $328,934; Ag Education at $98,627 (Farm Advisor); Buildings and Grounds, $305,189; Ag Commissioner, $422,463; Public Works, $157,352; District Attorney $243,354; Board of Supervisors $193,763; Administrative Services, $321,391; Planning, $291,544; Auditor, $240,278; Treasurer, $78,114; Tax Collector, $129,142; Assessor, $378,509; Recorder, $132,898; General Relief, $55,000.

The lion's share of general fund money goes for public protection, at a cost $1,528,759. Included in this year's budget is a general fund contingency of $200,000.

Some of the non-general fund departments, which funding is restricted to those departments and programs, include county roads, public and mental health, social services, tobacco control and so on.

As far as the revenue side goes, property tax makes up only five percent of the total budget, $2,091,194. Designated revenues from other sources makes up 89 percent, $40,892,078.

Wages and fringe benefits for county employees have risen just over $655,000 per year since 1996-97. According to the budget, in 1996-97 wages and fringe benefits amounted to $3,723,791 (54 percent of the general fund revenues) and in this 2000-2001 budget they amount to $4,379,537 (59 percent of general fund).

Increased funding bill approved for forest counties

The efforts of the National Forest Counties and Schools Coalition, of which Modoc County Superintendent of Schools Carol Harbaugh has been an integral part, can claim success in its efforts to improve funding for schools and roads.

According to Harbaugh, the U.S Senate passed the "Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act" Sept. 14 and that bill is expected to be signed by President Clinton.

The bill was sponsored by Senators Larry Craig, Idaho, and Ron Wyden, Oregon, and aims to solve the declining forest receipt dollars to local schools and governments. The bill provides safety net payments while directing a portion of the funds to the development of local projects to address community needs.

What the bill means for Modoc County is a net gain of $827,497.22 over fiscal year 1999. The full payment under the bill is $3,218,668.28, broken down by $2,735,868.04 split between county roads and schools and $482,800.24 for investment dollars for local projects.

"We applaud the U.S. Senate for taking the necessary steps to revive our rural forest counties and schools," stated Bob Douglas, Tehama County Superintendent of School and President of the organization. "Our Coalition, including school administrators, county officials, teachers and community leaders, supports this legislation that will provide critical funding to put rural forest communities and schools back on track."

The Senate Bill provides funding for more than 1,900 school districts in 800 rural forest counties across the nation. According to Douglas, in addition to schools and road funding, the bill provides $73 million towards local projects to improve ecosystems and reduce the risks of catastrophic fire.

JANET MAHLBERG

Communities show support for friend in need

The children of South Fork School in Likely know Janet Mahlberg well and are concerned about her, as are all who know her.

Until December of 1999, Mahlberg worked with all the South Fork students to provide music for their school plays, taught piano lessons and was an instructional aide.

"They love her dearly and she is a darling woman," shares Jackie McGarva of Likely, who met Mahlberg through a knitting group in Likely and became good friends.

It wasn't long ago that Fred and Janet Mahlberg moved from Colfax to Madeline and built a house. Fred works for the Lassen County Road Department in Ravendale.

It was hard for Mahlberg to have to quit her job last December, the work she loved and to leave the children she adored. Young as she was at 42, she was physically unable to continue, after the wonderful three and a half years she had spent at South Fork. She was getting too tired and it was difficult to carry her oxygen tank around. The reason for her downhill turn had stemmed from Eisenmenger Syndrome, which she had endured from the time she was six weeks old, but now she was getting worse. She had a hole in her heart and high blood pressure in her heart which affected her lungs. As a child, and the oldest of eight children, the doctors never thought she would live long and that was something her parents heard many times during their daughter's life, but they have had a strong belief in the power of prayer.

Her mother Melba Wren Sagaser of Colfax shares, "School was hard for Janet as a child, not just because she tired easily, but because the cold air made her lungs hurt and she easily ran out of breath. Nearly every day she asked me if she could stay home."

Despite this, Janet made friends easily and enjoyed being in the classroom learning and graduated from Colfax High School. She met Fred Mahlberg while attending Sierra College and the two have been married since February 1978.

"We knew that someday Janet would need some kind of major surgery," said her mother, "but we hoped it wouldn't be this soon."

As Janet grew older, she required oxygen at night and then 24 hours a day.

"We were not surprised when she told us at Christmas time last year, that her cardiologist had determined it was time to get the paperwork started for a transplant," said her mother.

Stanford University Hospital is the only place in Northern California that does heart and double-lung transplants. Appointments can be hard to get, but she managed to obtain one in March. Without the surgery, the transplant team said they felt she only had four to five years left. With the surgery, she had a 50 percent chance of living longer. Cost was a big consideration. People Janet had spoken with told her to figure around a million dollars. The medication after the surgery is $1200 to $2000 per month. She will have to take a handful of pills daily for the rest of her life.

"When I talked to her on the phone during this three to four week decision period, there were lots of tears and she would tell me how scary it was. She told me this was the hardest decision she ever had to make," shared her mother. "But, after she made it, she stood firm. Fred has been very supportive of her decision."

First, Janet had to get on the waiting list, and the average waiting time was one and a half to two years. She has to be within two hours' flight time to Palo Alto, where Stanford is located, because the window of time for surgery is four to five hours. The call usually comes at night because, unfortunately, that is when most accidents happen. Stanford will send one of their five helicopters to the airport to get Janet, but she also has to arrange for alternative air transportation in the rare event that Stanford's helicopters are unavailable. The surgery takes about eight hours. She will then be in intensive care for about four days. Her only visitor can be her husband, Fred, who can only visit for 10 minutes out of each hour. After her three-week hospital stay, she will move to an apartment about two blocks away for three months. During this time, Janet will have therapy, and the team will be refining her medicine "cocktail." The doctors know that her body will reject the new lungs and also that her kidneys will fail, but they assured her that they know how to treat most things that can happen. She underwent extensive psychological testing.

In June, the Stanford team coordinator called and made an appointment for more tests. One was an MRI, which took nearly three hours. As a result of the tests, there was good news later in June for her. The transplant team had decided that Janet would only need a double lung transplant and that they could repair her heart rather than replace it.

On July 18, she was put on the waiting list. She moved in with her sister and brother-in-law Judi and Don Barney of Grass Valley, so that she would be within the two-hour flight time. Fred is in Lassen County working and trying to sell their home. While she is waiting Janet is busy with her knitting, sewing, crocheting and visiting family and friends.

To help Fred and Janet with some of the costs that insurance does not cover, the Colfax community held a benefit dinner and auction fund raiser September 15 and have other plans.

Benefit set

The Madeline and Likely communities are assisting in an effort to raise money to be placed in the Janet L. Mahlberg Heart and Lung Trust Fund which has been set up at U.S. Bank Account. 153450763278.

On Sunday, October 29, the South Fork Assembly Church will host an Open House to show the public their new building addition. Special music, prize drawings and refreshments will be available during the Open House. In addition tickets to benefit the fund, will be available on chances at winning a photograph by Duane McGarva, overnight accommodations at Soldier Meadows Guest Ranch and many more prizes. The winners will be notified in February, as organizers want to make tickets available through the holidays. A knitted creation by Janet will also be a prize.

"The funds will be donated to Janet and Fred to use for any expenses they incur along the way in this ordeal, and are not limited to transplant costs," explains Jackie McGarva.

 

Record news for Sept. 28, 2000

 

• Nearing time to take plunge on proposed YMCA facility
• Modoc Railroad School is gone
• Wild thief teaches more than local scout troop had in mind
• BLM lifts fire restrictions
• Prescribed burning planned throughout Modoc's Forest
• Surprise Valley highlights to be shown on MCHS tour
• Exotic cars in town Thursday morning

Nearing time to take plunge on proposed YMCA facility

It's nearing the time to take the plunge on the project to build a new YMCA Center in Alturas.

The Modoc Aquatic and Health Center Committee, of at least 25 volunteers, has been working on the issue since March, and is at a point where the project needs to be presented to the public, for its approval; as well as for funding.

Plans for the center include an indoor heated swimming pool, hot tubs, gymnasium, all purpose room, change rooms, a kitchen, saunas, exercise equipment and office space. All of this is to be located in about a 30,000 square foot building in an area just north of the present Alturas swimming Pool.

"We are under no illusions that this is an easy undertaking," said Gavin Kleiman, Modoc Medical Center Physical Therapist who is heading the project. "Indeed, given the limited resources available to us, it presents a formidable challenge and at the same time a unique and exciting opportunity to pull together, to unite as a county and work for the common good."

Kleiman said the vision of the committee is to: "Garner support, raise funds, build a facility that will impact almost all members of the community, from schoolkids to seniors, to families and to hospital patients."

The plan is ambitious and has some good organizations behind it, including the YMCA, Alturas City Council, Modoc Medical Center, Modoc Joint Unified School District, Alturas Rotary Clubs, Disabled American Veterans, TEACH,Inc., Families Matter and local citizens and business owners.

The YMCA, said Kleiman has sent a national consultant, David Diehr to Alturas for a visit and he continues to act in that capacity. YMCA will not provide building or maintenance funding, but will provide training, guidance and program development, blueprints, and access to their information.

"People need to remember that the new YMCA is more than a pool," said Kleiman. "It will be a source of health, a community gathering point, a resource and place for kids to spend time after school and a family recreation center. It fills a desperately needed void for our local communities, especially during the long winter months."

According to Kleiman, the committee believes grant funding will be available through a variety of sources to build the facility, but the committee needs to show those granting sources that the facility can be maintained and operated.

The annual operating expenses are estimated at about $315,000. The formula to raise those expenses includes current money generated by the city for the existing pool, hospital therapy and so on.

"This brings us to the pivotal point in the success of this project," said Kleiman. "We have considered all options and feel that a small assessed tax paid by some or all of Modoc residents would allow us to succeed. The Library Tax of $18 per year generates $310,000. If we all paid only $9 per year, not per month, we can succeed." The committee has yet to decide on boundaries of the tax vote. Under consideration is forming a recreation district within the bounds of the current Modoc Joint Unified School District and going to the people to form that district and assessment by vote. The district issue only needs to pass by a simple majority, but the tax question requires two-thirds voter approval.

Kleiman and the committee believe the facility would be a huge addition to the quality of life in Modoc and that a small assessment, on an annual basis, would be well worth the money.

"Before we can apply for a grant to build the YMCA, we need to approve a small tax with a vote," Kleiman said. "We want to involve and invite the whole community to understand the process, come to meetings, give input and to be informed. We can do this with everyone's continued support. Just consider what a YMCA would mean for you and your loved ones."

It's possible the committee can bring the issue to vote during a special election early next year.

Modoc Railroad School is gone

A story apparently aired over CNN Sept. 23 concerning the Modoc Railroad Academy has prompted some emails and phone calls to the Modoc Record and local job programs.

The local academy closed in March, following an investigation by the Alturas City Council into the actions of the academy's promoter Dave Rangel. Rangel chose to move the school to the Stockton area where he is reviving it, according to Modoc County Planner Scott Kessler.

Kessler has stated that anyone interested in a railroad school should contact Sacramento City College, which has an accredited program that is much less expensive and better known than the Modoc Academy.

The Alturas Railroad School, under the direction of Dave Rangel and Suzanne Berdall, was closed during the night March 25, following a revelation that Rangel was allegedly responsible for a potentially libelous postcard sent during the March 7 local election.

The City of Alturas, suspicious of Rangel's activities following the election, sent some of the postcards to a handwriting expert in Redding. That expert, Larry C. Liebscher, said he identified the writing positively as Rangel's and would testify in court to that finding.

Rangel has denied any connection or involvement in the postcard. He called the city's hiring of the handwriting analyst a waste of time and money since there is nothing criminal contained in the postcard. He said the postcard, regardless of who sent it, was an expression of opinion covered under freedom of speech.

Rangel originally said the railroad school was moved because "the city forced us out" by locking the railroad museum. The city counters that while the locks were changed at the museum to protect city property, Rangel and the school were told they could have access whenever they requested.

City Councilman George Andreasen continues to stress that the railroad school was not locked out of the museum for its classes. The city is still working to move forward with the railroad museum and with the railroad school, without Rangel's involvement.

City officials believe the overall railroad project remains viable and vow to continue the operation. City officials point out that the Modoc Railroad Academy operated by Rangel has no connection to Alturas or Modoc County.

Wild thief teaches more than local scout troop had in mind

It may be a summer experience members of Boy Scout of Troop 49 will find themselves telling for years.

But, even if they don't, their recent hike through the Warner Mountain Wilderness made a memorable impression on them all.

Out to earn the scout 50-mile hike patches on a 60-mile hike were Jacob Hughes, 14; Sean Saulnier, 13, and Morgan Davis, 12, with Scoutmaster Walt Davis and Tom Cain, all of Alturas. It started out as a well-planned hike in the Warner Mountain Wilderness.

They successfully passed their first two days of a four day hike, with their first night spent along East Creek. The scouts set out for South Emerson Lake to camp overnight, but about a mile from the lake, facing a steep rocky grade, they decided to unload and store the extra two days' worth of food in two sleeping bag covers they hung from a scraggly tree about six feet off the ground. Off they hiked to the lake and camped, figuring they'd pick up the extra two days' rations on their hike out.

"I should have known better," Walt Davis says in retrospect. "But we figured no coyotes, small animals or squirrels could get to the food. But, that was really all we considered. We never considered a bear."

Instead of picking up their food, they found one sleeping bag cover ripped to shreds and the other cover, along with the food -- gone. All 15 pounds of pudding, salami, pastas, dehydrated ground beef and more were completely gone, but tracks left the tell-tale sign of a bear.

"We sat down and had a decision to make. To go on, or cut the trip short and they wouldn't be able to earn their patches," says Davis.

After taking inventory of what food was left, Davis let the scouts decide. They chose to continue the 20 miles more to Pepperdine Trail head.

With only a sack pound of Skittles (candy), a jar of Tang and some Power Bars, they ate the bars for lunch, Skittles divided five ways for dinner and washed them down with some Tang. They also had also Tang for breakfast.

"It was pretty neat," said Davis. "You never heard a complaint or a negative comment. I was hungry and I'm sure they were, but you never heard it and you never would have known anything was wrong."

With no food left, the group decided to hike the rest of the way to Pepperdine and catch a ride home a day early.

About 11 a.m. the hikers reached their starting point and met a woman just getting ready to go hiking. They asked if she had a cell phone they could use. She didn't but offering to drive one of them to town. Cain drove with the woman and Davis stayed with the scouts and gear. Cain returned with his rig and drove the scouts to dinner.

"We filled the boys with as much as they could eat, until they could eat no more," said Davis. "I'm sorry we never did get the woman's name who helped us out."

The boys earned their 50 mile patches and as a memento, the scouts are signing the shredded sleeping bag cover that will hang in the scout hall.

Reflecting on the experience, Davis said, "You sure learn more when things don't go as planned, than you do when everything goes smoothly."

BLM lifts fire restrictions

Fire restrictions for public lands managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management in Northeas-tern California and north-western Nevada are being lifted.

As of midnight, Monday, Sept. 25, campfires will again be allowed, with a campfire permit, on all areas of the public lands managed by the BLM Eagle Lake and Surprise field offices in Lassen, Plumas, Sierra, and Modoc counties in California; and Washoe and Humboldt counties in Nevada. Restrictions on use of internal combustion engines off of established roads, and smoking outside of vehicles, are also lifted. Fire wood cutting is again permitted in all BLM cutting areas.

Fire restrictions limiting campfires to developed campgrounds, and restricting internal combustion engines to roads, remain in effect for Nevada public lands managed by the BLM's Nevada field offices.

"Our weather pattern is shifting to autumn conditions, but it is still important to use care with fire outdoors," said BLM Fire Management Officer Jim Brown. "We still have high fire dangers in many areas."

Fire restrictions were lifted earlier for Lassen, Plumas and Modoc national forests lands, and on BLM lands managed by the BLM's Alturas Field Office.

Burning permits remain suspended for incinerators and debris pile burning in the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection's Lassen-Modoc Unit and the Lake Almanor Basin.

For additional information, contact the nearest office of the Bureau of Land Management or the Plum-as, Lassen or Modoc Nat-ional Forest.

Prescribed burning planned throughout Modoc's Forest

With the 2000 fire season coming to a close, prescribed burning is being scheduled throughout Modoc National Forest. The burns will vary in size from a few acres to 1,000 acres and have a variety of goals and objectives associated with them.

The primary objectives are to reduce the size and severity of wildland fire, reduce suppression difficulty and cost, protect investments, reintroduce fire into fire dependent ecosystems, improve forage and habitat for wildlife and foreage for livestock.

Randy Hall, Deputy Forest Fire Management Officer, said burning is planned at the following locations: Manzanita Hill and Deer Hill on Devil's Garden Ranger District, and Sugar Hill and Buck Mountain on Warner Mountain Ranger District. All areas are with-in the Upper Pit River Watershed Restoration Project. Hall explained that the cooler weather is favorable to prescribed burning conditions.

Keith Bryan, Big Valley Ranger District, said fall burning on Big Valley and Doublehead Ranger Dist-ricts will involve about 1,050 acres of underburning in the Long Bell area to reduce hazardous fuels. About 1,275 acres of pile burning in the Long Bell, Crank Springs, Happy Camp, Medicine Lake, Plum Ridge, Dry Lake, Higgins Flat, Myers Flat, Boyd Hill and Southsun areas is planned to improve wildlife habitat, reduce hazardous fuels, improve range conditions and clean up slash.

For more information on planned burning activities, contact Hall at 530-279-6116, or Bryan at 299-3215.

Surprise Valley highlights to be shown on MCHS tour

Modoc County Historical Society will host their Fall Field Trip on September 30 starting at 10:30 a.m. at the "Carriage Shop" located on Main Street across from the Drew Hotel, Cedarville.

Members and guests will view wagons and carriages and learn about the history of this business. The group will then proceed to Lake City's community hall where lunch will be served for $6.50 per person at 12 noon. Brief talks on the history of the area will be shared by local people during the lunch. The group will then head to Surprise Valley Hot Springs on Hwy. 299 E., five miles east of Cedarville, for a tour of the historic site and the new business owned by the Rose family.

The MCHS will provide a bus at no cost, which will seat 52 riders. The bus will leave the Modoc County Museum at 9:30 a.m. and return around 4:00 p.m.

Exotic cars in town Thursday morning

An exotic car touring group, "Beyond the West, Inc." will arrive in Alturas this morning at about 11 a.m. and remain through 3 p.m.

The group will have lunch at the Niles Hotel and three blocks of Main Street parking will be blocked off for them from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Both sides of Main will be reserved for the group, probably from Carlos to Second Street.

The group consists of about 65 vehicles, some vintage, some new, ranging from the very rare Jaguar XK220 to Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Aston Martins, Porsches, Shelby Mustangs and Dodge Vipers.

Beyond the West is a not-for-profit charitable entity dedicated to promoting automotive excellence while touring the nation's highways.

This year, the Rally of Nevada proceeds will benefit the Nevada Highway Patrol's "Shop with a Cop" program, dedicated to the needs of underprivileged children living in that state. The Alturas jaunt is a part of the Nevada Rally.

According to Beyond the West, the entire rally will be videotaped by Boatpix.com, from aerial and ground cameras which will be edited for television and shown across the world.

 

 

October

 

Record news for Oct. 10, 2000

 

• New twists on county counsel position switch
• MJUSD schools score up and down on statewide API tests
• Task forces seize huge pot garden south of Madeline
• 'Fall Gathering' brings new fun, adventure
• South American Harpist, Ortiz to dazzle audience at A.C.T. Niles
• BLM, Honey Lake Power propose juniper chip management tests
• by the California Arts Council.

 

New twists on county counsel position switch

Modoc County District Attorney Tom Buckwalter asked the Board of Supervisors Tuesday to clarify their actions of Sept. 18 which split the County Counsel office from the District Attorney Office.

The board agreed to his points, and officially validated all of his actions taken as county counsel since that time as well as making it clear they intend that Buckwalter serve as county counsel until someone is appointed to fill that position.

Buckwalter said he felt the motion made on Sept., 18 to split the offices, without indicating a timeline, left the county without counsel. He felt that needed to be clarified by official action before he felt legally comfortable to continue in that position.

The board passed motions to validate his past actions as well as including language that Buckwalter would serve in the position until it was filled.

In an interesting turn of events, Buckwalter's Assistant District Attorney Jordan Funk, told the board he was interested in taking the county counsel position under contract, while operating a modest private practice. He would have to resign his Assistant DA position.

Funk said he felt the county could save money by going with a contract attorney and said the position of county counsel is actually about a 60 to 70 percent position, but not full time.

Funk told the board the position, under contract, would probably cost the county substantially less than the $150,000 to $160,000 currently projected. He projected about one-half of that cost.

Funk also stated there could be issues of conflict of interest, but said he felt those would be minimal.

The Board has voted to establish a separate county counsel office and is still moving in that direction but will take Funk's proposal under consideration. Originally, the county projected it could have the new office up and running around the first of the year.

MJUSD schools score up and down on statewide API tests

Schools in the Modoc Joint Unified School District scored up and down on the 1999-2000 Academic Performance Index, API, which was released by the state Wednesday morning.

Both Modoc Middle School and Modoc High School exceeded their target growth in scores while Alturas Elementary fell back. Modoc Middle School showed an improvement from 610 last year to 703 this year while Modoc High School went up from last year's 620 to 665.

Alturas Elementary School dropped 43 points, from 753 in 1999 to 711 this year. The elementary school still scored higher than the other two, but because it failed to show improvement, is not eligible for awards attached to the API.

The test results statewide show that two-thirds of California Schools showed increase in their API, said State Superintendent of public Instruction, Delaine Eastin. AES scored in the top ranks in 1999.

"What is especially good news," said Eastin, "is that -- for the first time --we are able to financially reward schools for their efforts. We can finally give them something more than a pat on the back for all their hard work."

The API is the cornerstone of the 1999 Public Schools Accountability Act, which established a statewide accountability system for public schools. The API is a numerical index that ranges from a low of 200 to a high of 1000. The 1999 API established the baseline for each school's academic performance and an annual growth target. Each school's target is set at five percent of the difference between the school's API and the statewide performance target of 800.

In addition to establishing the API and annual growth targets for each school, the PSAA calls for cash awards for schools and staff based upon API growth, as well as assistance for schools not meeting their targets.

Results of the Stanford 9 test, given in spring 1999 and spring 2000 as a part of the state's Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program were used to calculate a school's 1999 API and 2000 API growth rates.

Three awards will be given to schools and/or school employees, based upon API growth between 1999 and 2000: (1), the Governor's Performance Award, GPA; (2), the School Site Employee Performance Bonus: and (3), the Certificated Staff Performance Incentive Award. There are some substantial dollar amounts included in some of those awards.

Just what the scores will mean in terms of dollars for schools in the MJUSD will be addressed in the near future. Surprise Valley Elementary School scores were not listed on Wednesday's tally sheet. Surprise Valley High School is not listed because it has fewer than 100 students.

Task forces seize huge pot garden south of Madeline

Law enforcement officers from Modoc and Lassen counties, the California Highway Patrol and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) seized a large marijuana garden Sept. 28 through Sept. 30 with an estimated street value of more than $13 million in northeastern Lassen County and arrested one suspect.

More than 2,730 mature plants were taken from the area near Mendiboure Reservoir, about four miles southeast of Madeline, according to Bob Geffre of the Lassen County Narcotics Task Force. About half the plants were growing on public land managed by the BLM's Alturas Field Office and the remainder were growing on private land.

According to Modoc Task Force Sergeant Mike Crutcher, the plants were growing in three large grow plots over a two-square mile area. The area was not accessible by vehicle and it required three days to remove the plants.

A hunter spotted the plants and reported them. San Jose resident Daniel Jaso, age 23, was arrested in the growing area Sept. 28 and booked into the Lassen County Adult Detention Facility. Geffre said Jaso will face state and federal felony marijuana cultivation charges.

Law enforcement personnel involved said the plants, standing four to seven feet tall, had an extensive irrigation system in place.

Geffre said officers from several law enforcement agencies were involved in the seizure because of concerns that other armed suspects might be in the area. The California Highway Patrol's helicopter from Redding was called in to overfly the area while officers and the suspect hiked out of the gardens. A BLM contract helicopter was used to haul the plants from the area that is not accessible by vehicle.

Geffre said the seizure was probably a record for mature plants in Lassen County.

'Fall Gathering' brings new fun, adventure

New things are coming to the second annual Thom's Creek Ranch Fall Gathering - a Harvest Festival set at Bob and Linda Thain's Ranch on Cedar Pass.

The three-day event will open to the public October 20 through 22, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.

"We've built the Taj Mahal of bunkhouses in the past year, complete with a porch that will be used as a stage for impromptu performances during the Fall Gathering," describes organizer Linda Thain.

The "Bunk House Boys and Girls," alias Monday Night Country Jam musicians, will play Saturday afternoon on the bunkhouse stage.

"We welcome and would love to give students the experience of playing before an audience whether they can play an instrument, sing or read their poetry. Adults are welcome too," says Thain, "whether it's an individual or group who wants to provide entertainment."

There will be plenty to do at the Fall Gathering. Alturas Future Farmers of America will be offering cotton candy and sweets. Gene and Carol Habeck of Greenbay, Wisconsin, will return and be posted at the barbecued Bratwurst and Kielbasa and snacks booth.

Tom and Judy Moore of Alturas have also volunteered to "dress up" for the occasion and manage the pumpkin patches. A free pumpkin, will be given to each child present, age six and under, from a special pumpkin patch, courtesy of the Thains. The Thains are purchasing thousands of pounds of pumpkins from "the Perry Boys," 83-year-old twin brothers who have taken up raising and selling pumpkins on their Mustang Ranch property in Nevada.

A separate pumpkin patch with pumpkins sold to the public for $2 to $4 will be open with free hay wagon rides to and from the patch.

Modoc Tobacco Coalition is supplying "treat" bags for the hundreds of school children from throughout the county, who will be getting off school busses which have staggered arrivals from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 20. The students will be bringing their picnic lunches and be able to carry their treat bags home, filled with the day's tangible experiences, from pumpkins to pencils.

New this year is a scarecrow contest. School classes have been given the chance to participate in the contest in which the Thains have provided five foot tall wire framed scarecrows for each class to decorate. Casio keyboards for the classroom, will be given as prizes.

Throughout the three days, part of the "ranch" life experience will include Modoc brand demonstrations on wood with Shorty Crabtree and Lynn Smith explaining why brands are used and what it's all about; Soza the Clown; a chance to see Texas Longhorns, rope twirlers, miniature burrows, dwarf draft horses, and horse shoeing demonstrations with Dave Crenshaw and Mike Dunn. Blacksmithing demonstrations on a portable forge will be provided every other hour, by Traveling Blacksmiths "Rose Petal" Tam and "Black Iron" Bob McAdams of Madeline.

Sage Stage will provide transportation with details soon to be made available to the public.

Modoc Child Development Advisory Committee (MCDAC) has stepped in to help with a couple of expenses this year, because so many children benefit from the experience.

Don't be shy, bring the family any of the three days with free admission at Thom's Creek Ranch on Cedar Pass, 5.5 miles from 395/299E junction. Watch for the signs, which will be in place by Wednesday, Oct. 18, halfway between Alturas and Cedarville on the pass.

The Thains are providing the ranch setting, have 42 quality crafters from Modoc, California, Oregon and Nevada, bringing their crafts to display and sell inside one of the buildings. The craft theme is geared to autumn, Halloween and Thanksgiving.

"We don't do booths or raffles," said Linda. "We don't want this experience commercialized and the crafters don't have to sit here all three days selling their items."

In promoting the Fall Gathering, Linda has left no stone unturned. For the pumpkin pie and treat contest, she has gathered sponsorships from local restaurants for dinners for two to gift certificates and lunches for four, from Davis Creek to California Pines Lodge and Likely and throughout Alturas and Cedarville. The contest closes Thursday, Oct. 19.

"We call it a 'Fall Gathering' to play off the ranching background of the area," says Linda.

The Thains are buying and bringing in thousands of pounds of pumpkins for both pumpkin patches.

"We have a dual purpose to give families in Modoc something to do with their children that is easy and basically free. And to provide the wonderful crafts people and artists in the area an outlet to display and sell their work. By accomplishing those two, we can establish a fun outing for everyone in Modoc as well as catch the traffic on 395 and 299 to benefit the crafters."

The Thains have background in promoting pro rodeos. Bob Thain travels the country as far as Hawaii and Alaska as a PRCA promoter with his own Bob Thain Productions. The Thains purchased their current Modoc ranch property 5-1/2 years ago and love their surroundings.

South American Harpist, Ortiz to dazzle audience at A.C.T. Niles

Internationally acclaimed Alfredo Rolando Ortiz, a composer, lecturer, author and recording artist, will mesmerize a local audience with his South American Harp music, during a one-time solo concert at the A.C.T. Niles Theater on Wednesday, October 11 at 7:30 p.m.

Labeled an "exceptional" performer, by critics throughout the world, Ortiz has also earned a reputation for being a "top of the line" artist who works with the Los Angeles Music Center Education Division's program called "Music Center on Tour."

Dr. Ortiz has a multi-cultural repertoire, and has recorded over 30 albums. He is the winner of a Gold Record in South America.

"We are incredibly lucky to have him coming here," says Ken Franklin, Modoc County Arts Council Director.

Ortiz' residency will also bring something new to Modoc, Tulelake and Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District students during his October 9 - 12 stay.

Dr. Ortiz has lectured on a variety of subjects at universities, colleges, and schools and authored several books and articles on his compositions, which have been performed and recorded by classical and folk harpists in many countries.

His acclaimed "South American Suite for Harp and Orchestra" premiered in March 3, 1996 and he has performed world- wide.

Born in Cuba in 1946, he emigrated to Venezuela in 1958. He began studying Venezuelan folk harp with a friend from school in 1961, during difficult economic times. A year later he became a pupil of Alberto Romero on the Paraguayan harp.

In 1964, he began medical studies in Medellín, Columbia, began performing professionally and recorded his first album. Music supported his medical studies until graduation in 1970, but since 1978, his life has been dedicated only to music.

His medical degree as well as studies and work in the field of Music Therapy and Sensory Motor Training, allow Dr. Ortiz to adapt his performances for special education students.

His performances feature delicacy and drama. He was invited to perform his Suite at the World Harp Congress in Prague, Czech Republic in 1999; the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra in Albuquerque, March 1999 and at the Third Latin American Harpists Encounter in Caracas, Venezuela in 1998. His many concerts and recitals have included the Soka International Harp Festival, Japan, 1990, 1994 and 1998; the World Harp Festival, Belfast, Northern Ireland, 1992.

Due to popular demand, he was featured four years at the San Luis Obispo Mozart Festival in California.

Dr. Ortiz will be working with Modoc school students, presenting 45-minute assemblies, incorporating many educational aspects into his performances.

Ortiz completed performances in September with the Dallas Philharmonic Orchestra in Dallas, Texas. Several of his compact disc recordings will be available at his Alturas performance.

His visit to Modoc County is made possible by Modoc County Office of Education, Modoc, Surprise Valley and Tulelake Basin Joint Unified School Districts, Alturas Community Theater, Modoc County Arts Council, Inc. and funded in part by the California Arts Council.

BLM, Honey Lake Power propose juniper chip management tests

Tests are slated to begin in late October to determine the feasibility of shearing and chipping juniper trees to control the spread of the plants, and generate electricity.

The ras Field Office and Honey Lake Power of Wendel proposed to conduct the tests on four 13 to 30-acre plots of public land in northeastern Lassen County where the spread of western juniper trees has been identified as a problem. An environmental assessment on the proposal is now available for review by contacting the BLM in Alturas, (530) 233-4666, or on the internet at www.ca.blm.gov/ alturas. Comments must be forwarded to the Alturas office by Friday, Oct. 20.

"We have selected the sites to test the effectiveness of new, low-impact juniper harvesting equipment and methods being proposed by Honey Lake Power," Burke said. "We will carefully monitor these tests to determine the impacts on soils, cultural resources, hydrology and vegetation. If the tests are successful, we want to study opportunities to move forward with the company to explore the possibility of larger scale projects to thin stands of juniper, and help meet public demands for energy."

Expansion of juniper woodlands is a concern in many areas of public lands in the west, including some areas of northeastern California, Burke explained. When juniper woodlands become too dense, they crowd out grasses, shrubs and other plants important to wild-life and permitted live-stock. Juniper trees also use large quantities of water, which may reduce spring flows and impact important riparian (stream side) areas.

"Juniper trees when managed properly are an important watershed component. But landscapes dominated by juniper support less biodiversity. There is a reduced variety of plants and wildlife," Burke said. He explained that several factors, including fire suppression and historic grazing practices, have led to rapid expansion of juniper stands during the past 150 years.

Burke said there is widespread agreement among public lands stakeholders on the need to improve juniper management.

"The BLM's Northeast California Resource Advi-sory Council, a broad-based citizen group, has encouraged us to explore new juniper management methods," Burke said. "They have even formed a juniper management subcommittee to assist us."

The BLM will invite anyone interested to visit the test areas and review information when testing gets underway.

 

Record news for Oct. 10, 2000

 

• Snow shows up early for 2000
• Modoc has 5,418 registered voters for November 7
• What's that strange street work?
• CDF plans forest burns
• High Schools in line for state cash awards

 

Snow shows up early for 2000

Modoc residents woke up to a white surprise Wednesday morning when several inches of snow blanketed the high country and even showed up in the valleys.

Alturas, Likely and Davis Creek had wet snow falling heavily Wednesday morning, while Surprise Valley, Canby, Adin and Bieber reported rain. There was fairly heavy snow on Cedar Pass, as low as Thoms Creek Estates where four to six inches were reported and on Adin Pass where heavy slush was on the highway.

According to Bev Palmer at Davis Creek Mercantile, there were four inches of snow in town, with power outages reported and tree limbs breaking due to the weight. In addition, she said deer hunters were coming out of the high country and reporting snow depths of 18 to 24 inches atop Sugar Hill.

Phone and power problems were also reported in Alturas and surrounding areas plus Jess Valley, Likely, Thoms Creek Estates, Rush Creek and Davis Creek. Most of the problems are outages because of the weight of the snow, but none have been reported as long term.

There were no reports of any major traffic problems, although the Oct. 11 snow was early and came on the heels of a very warm weekend. The temperature in Alturas Saturday was 81 degrees and on Sunday was 80 degrees, with lows dipping into the high 20s. Tuesday, the high was just 43 degrees. The forecast calls for clearing and cold today and temperatures heading back into the 60s by Sunday. Another large storm is on the way by the middle of next week.

Modoc has 5,418 registered voters for November 7

Modoc County has 5,418 registered voters for the November 7 General Election, according to figures released by Modoc County Clerk Maxine Madison Wednesday. The final day to register was Tuesday.

The county is showing its conservative side as Republicans outnumber Democrats 2,517 to 2,036. However, the non-partisan view now makes up 606 voters, American Independent 169, Libertarian 29, Green 21, Reform 17, Natural law, six and miscellaneous 17 (Peace and Freedom and others). Those voters other than the two major political parties show a total of 825 registrations.

Madison said sample ballots are in the mail this week to voters who will go to the polls and official ballots are also being sent to mail-in only precincts.

Those voters who are in mail-in only include: Fort Bidwell, Lake City, Eagleville, Stateline/Willow Ranch, Davis Creek, Likely, Parker Creek, Canby, Adin, Lookout, and Day. Voters may vote their mail ballots at any time, but must insure they are returned to the clerk's office no later than 5 p.m. election day.

The polling place for all other precincts is printed on the sample ballot.

In addition to the local elections, races for all national and state offices will be on the ballot. Additionally, there are eight initiatives on the ballot for the state.

Modoc voter registration has dropped since the last general election and has still not rebounded. There were 5,885 voters in 1998.

Three of the four school districts in the county have contested elections in November. Only Surprise Valley Joint Unified trustees will run unopposed. Three opponents filed in the Modoc Joint Unified School District where all three incumbents are also running. The challengers on the ballot are Sharon Ponti, Seab McDonald and Ken Fogle. They are running against Sean Curtis, Cindy Culp and Jeff Bushey.

The Big Valley Joint Unified School District has Katherine Banwarth challenging incumbent Wayne Wood in Adin and Ed Hammons challenging Leonard Larson in Lookout.

In the Tulelake Basin Joint Unified School District, one challenger, Ava Edgar has filed against incumbents Shelly Buckingham, Thomas Macy and Jerry LeQuieu.

The District One seat of Angie Benner will be contested between Kara Stevenson and James "Bucky" Harris. Benner chose not to run. Jim Hays of Alturas was unopposed for another term.

Bob Staton of Eagleville and Tony Darst of Lake City will retain their seats in the Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District where no challengers emerged.

The California Pines Community Services District has two elections -- the first for directors as well as a vote on whether to increase the size of the board from three to five directors.

Existing director Bill Roland is facing a challenge from Curtis Barber. If the issue passes to increase the size of the board, two positions will be added -- a two-year and four-year term. Running for the four year term are Jim Ganoe, Lucille Field and Les DuBose. On the ballot for the two-year term are Bob Lyon, Doreen LaGabed and Elizabeth Gladu.

The November 7 election also includes special district governing boards in the county including the Surprise Valley Hospital District, community service districts, irrigation, water and fire districts. If those special district elections do not have candidates, they are often appointed by the county Board of Supervisors.

What's that strange street work?

Oak Street has taken on a real different, and strange, look with the construction of the New Modoc Indian Health Clinic, but the city believes once everything is completed, it will make better sense.

Several local people have voiced opinions that it doesn't make sense regardless of the finished product.

As this moment, the new sidewalk and curb looks as though it sits near the middle of the street. Actually, coming south on Oak, drivers will have to pay attention or they will run into that sidewalk.

City Public Works Director Stacy Chase said he is aware it looks odd, but promises it will all come into place once the entire project is finished.

The city had an 80-foot right of way on Oak Street, said Chase, and abandoned 20 feet of it so the Modoc Indian Health Clinic could meet requirements for off-street parking.

What makes the project look more out of line is where the parking area ends and the sidewalk begins. In between those areas is a fairly wide section of dirt that will be used for landscaping. That landscaping area is what moves the curb and gutter further into Oak Street.

Chase said the street will actually be widened on the east side and will end up being a 40-foot wide street. There will be a jog in the street coming south, and Chase said the city may have to line the street to make it easier on drivers. Additionally, said Chase, the west side curb of Oak, for the length of the clinic will be painted red for no parking.

"We know it does look odd right now, but when it's all done, everyone's concerns will be alleviated," said Chase.

CDF plans forest burns

With a change in the weather pattern predicted for late next week, CDF in the Lassen-Modoc Ranger Unit is planning to conduct a series of prescribed burns over the next four weeks in the Whitehorse Flat area in Modoc and Siskiyou Counties.

The purpose of the burns is to reduce the brush and fuel loading that was the result of the 1977 Scarface Fire, a wildfire that burned 90,000 acres of commercial timber and range land. Since 1990 the Unit has treated 17,300 acres which have been replanted to ponderosa pine. This year's goal is to treat 3,000 acres in units of 500 to 700 acres. These project burns are being conducted under the CDF Vegetation Management Program with approved prescribed burn plans and smoke man-agement plans.

Hunters in the area are urged to be alert to the presence of CDF fire equipment and avoid the project area. Prior to any ignition, the project area will be over flown by the CDF helicopter and all hunters within the project area will be asked to leave. For further information please contact the CDF Fire Station at Bieber by calling (530) 294-5251.

Bring pumpkin treats for Fall Gathering prizes

The wonderful smells of fall would not be complete without something made from pumpkin with all the wonderful spices that create an aroma in the kitchen.

The "Fall Gathering and Harvest Festival" Pumpkin Pie and Pumpkin-based treat contest will be just that and is open to local bakers, with prizes to be offered.

"We know there will be folks asking to enter at the last minute, so the only deadline we have is Thursday, October 19," explained Linda Thain, organizer of the upcoming event, which she and her husband Bob host at their Thom's Creek Ranch on Cedar Pass.

Anyone who would like to enter the contest is encouraged to do so by October 19. Entry is free and there is no age limit.

The adult division will offer two separate categories -- pumpkin pie and/or a pumpkin based treat, be it bread, cookies, cake or other. The junior division will be seeking entries for any type of pumpkin-based treat.

Treat entries must include a name, address and phone number on the bottom of the pan or pie plate, where it can not be seen by the many members of the public who will be tasting and judging the contests on October 19.

Winners' names will be posted Oct. 20-Oct. 22, for the public to see when they visit the Fall Gathering. Anyone who needs further information should call Linda Thain at (530) 233-4180.

For the second year the Thains are hosting the Fall Gathering and Harvest Festival at their ranch on Cedar Pass, for the public from October 20-22.

The event is for all ages and offers a pumpkin patch, scarecrow contest amid school classes this year, new and returning activities, craft sales, demonstrations and more.

Modoc Middle, High Schools in line for state cash awards

Teachers and certificated staff of Modoc Middle School and Modoc High School may be in line for a cash bonus this year, thanks to student improvement levels on the Academic Performance Index, API, released last week.

Both Modoc Middle School and Modoc High School exceeded their targeted growth in scores while Alturas Elementary fell back. Modoc Middle School showed an improvement from 610 last year to 703 this year while Modoc High School went up from last year's 620 to 665.

Alturas Elementary School dropped 43 points, from 753 in 1999 to 711 this year. The elementary school still scored higher than the other two, but because it did not show improvement, is not eligible for awards attached to the API.

According to Modoc Joint Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Kevin Jolly, the Middle School and High School are eligible for the Governor's Performance Award and the School Site Employee Performance Award.

Jolly said the Middle School may also be in line for a third cash award, the Certificated Staff Award, which could be significant. Those awards go from $25,000 each to $5,000 each per teacher, counselor or administrator at the school site.

Since both the middle and high schools met their target score, which was at least five percent of the distance from the original API to the score of 800, the schools will receive extra money.

In the Governor's Performance Award, the school site council gets $150 per student to be spent on any item the council and school board approve. This money is intended to be ongoing.

The School Site Employee Performance Awards also goes to the site council but at least 50 percent must be spent as a bonus salary for all certificated and classified staff at the school site. This is one time money and may not continue.

"The state is providing $350 million and two-thirds of all schools are projected to qualify," said Jolly. "I think that is about 350,000 staff, in which case every staff person will get $500. and another $500 per staff will go to the site council." Jolly said the state has not yet come to terms on the second award and it remains cloudy as to actual amounts.

He also points out that small schools, such as Warner, South Fork, Stateline and Arlington don't have large enough enrollments and at this point are not eligible for cash awards. The state is working on a formula for small schools.

"In support of the test, I have found that the vast majority of examples in schools in which I have worked, students who read, write and do math well in class also score well on the test," said Jolly. "Those who do poorly in those areas in class do poorly on the test. Of course, there are exceptions, but if over the course of a year students learn more in class, I believe they will do better on the current test."

While Jolly believes the current tests are painting a picture of the academic performances of the state and local schools, he sees it being more valuable when five years of data are available.

The API is the cornerstone of the 1999 Public Schools Accountability Act, which established a statewide accountability system for public schools. The API is a numerical index that ranges from a low of 200 to a high of 1000. The 1999 API established the baseline for each school's academic performance and an annual growth target. Each school's target is set at five percent of the difference between the school's API and the statewide performance target of 800.

In addition to establishing the API and annual growth targets for each school, the PSAA calls for cash awards for schools and staff based upon API growth, as well as assistance for schools not meeting their targets.

Results of the Stanford 9 test, given in spring 1999 and spring 2000 as a part of the state's Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program were used to calculate a school's 1999 API and 2000 API growth rates.

 

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