January 7, 2010

News

New hospital coalition moving forward

Alturas Mayor John Dederick has been elected a Chairman of the Modoc Frontier Healthcare Association.
The organization’s goal is to build a new hospital for Alturas and the surrounding community and consists of the City of Alturas, County of Modoc, Cedarville Rancheria, Fort Bidwell Tribe and Pit River Tribe.
In a six-hour work session Monday at Alturas City Hall, the Modoc Frontier Healthcare Coalition states it “began 2010 with significant steps toward assuring that Modoc County will have a new hospital by the time Modoc Medical Center is slated to close in 2020.”

Obituaries:

Jack L. Ochs
Former Alturas City Councilman and business owner, Jack Leslie Ochs passed away at home in Mt. Shasta on January 4, 2010, after a short battle with cancer. Memorial services will be held January 21 at 3 p.m. in Redding at the First United Methodist Church. Mr. Ochs’ obituary will be published in a future issue.

Norton D. Smith

Norton D. Smith passed away January 2, 2010 in Alturas, CA. He was born on October 14, 1920, the oldest of five children, to Alva and Bertha Smith. They were a pioneer family in Modoc County.
Visitation will be available at Kerr Mortuary on Thursday, January 7 from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m., with graveside services at the Alturas Cemetery on Friday, January 8 at 10:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the U.S. Veterans organization of choice.

Lincoln Covington

Lincoln “Linc” Ellis Covington passed away December 27, 2009 at his home in Carson City, NV after a long brave battle with cancer. He was born on May 27, 1937 in Sacramento, California. Linc graduated from Roseville High School in 1954 and earned a B.A. from Chico State University in 1960. A memorial service was held in the Carson City Brewery Arts Center Ballroom on Tuesday, January 5. Immediately following the memorial service, a Rosary was held at St. Teresa’s Church in Carson City. Marjorie and Linc used to come “home” to Alturas regularly, where they have relatives.

Sports

Wrestlers head to Anderson invite

Modoc’s wrestling team heads to the big Anderson Invitational Tournament this weekend, where they’ll run into most of the North Section rivals.
According to Coach Shaun Wood, about 45 schools are heading to the event, which he considers a good preview of what will probably shake out in ranking over the season.
Currently, Modoc’s Miguel Torres is the top ranked heavyweight in the North Section, with 171 pound Tyler Wood and 103 pound Alex Moreo each ranked second. With any luck, they’ll run into the top-ranked wrestlers this weekend.
Modoc is carrying 35 wrestlers on the team this season, making it quite the in-team tourney to earn the top 14 wrestler divisions at each event. Modoc has more than one wrestler in some weights.
Wood expects several other wrestlers to do well in Anderson, including Tyler Hammerness, Tyler Bushey, Mike Ponti, and Gustavo Chavez. Several other wrestlers are improving with each week, so Wood is optimistic.
The Anderson tourney runs Jan. 8-9.
Last weekend, a few of the Braves participated in Reno’s Sierra Nevada Classic, which drew 97 schools and 1,000 wrestlers.
Moreo at 103 pounds and Wood at 171 placed each placed sixth in the huge tourney while Torres placed eighth. Each of them had to wrestler nine matches over the two days.
Wood was very proud of the wrestlers. He said only two other North Section wrestlers placed at the Sierra Nevada.

Braves open SCL hoop play

Modoc’s basketball teams opened Shasta Cascade League play Tuesday against the Burney Raiders and are in Mt. Shasta Jan. 12. Weed comes to Modoc Jan. 15.
The boy’s varsity is still looking to first win of the season, but played competitively against Burney, losing 45-37.
“I was proud of our effort defensively, particularly with Chris McMaster,” said coach Keith Weber. “”He shut down the Raiders’ leading scorer, Ryan Phipps, holding him to two points in the first half. Unfortunately, we would not hit our shots in the fourth quarter.”
The Braves trailed 6-10 after one and 24-21 at half. They fought to trail 31-30 at the end of three, but Burney outscored them 14-7 in the final period. Ulysses Gonzalez led with 12 points, Jonathan Jones added nine and Kristopher Traylor had eight.
A rough fourth period also doomed the varsity girl’s team as the fell to the Raiders 42-29. Modoc trailed 15-12 in the first and 18-17 at halftime. The Braves stayed tight at 29-27 after three but only added two points in the fourth while Burney netted 13, nine of free throws. The girls are also looking for a first win.
“Burney was huge compared to us,” said coach Bill Hall. “We played man-to-man all night long and it seemed to work, with most of our fouls made during transition or non-threatening situations. We’ll work on that area.”
Cheyenne King led the scoring with eight points, Madison Halvorson and Rochelle Keller each had six.
While the varsity teams are struggling, Modoc’s junior varsity squads are putting things together well. The junior varsity girls are coming off a solid Block M championship and took care of Burney to open league 43-31.
The Braves came back from a 29-27 third period deficit to outscore Burney 16-2 in the fourth period. Jodi Boudreaux led the scoring with 10, Monica Eppler added nine and Telese Dowdy had eight.
“The team is really starting to sync together,” said coach Jennifer Slinkard. We go to Mt. Shasta and it’s always tough playing there. The girls are looking strong at this point and it will continue.”
The junior varsity boys used a full court press to drop the Burney Raiders 51-23. According to coach Kip Lybarger, the entire team got a lot of playing time.
Travis Johnson and Cam Anderson each scored 12. Daniel Martin, Matt Weber and Randy Schmid had sold effort on defense and rebounding.

January 14 , 2010

News

State offers help, if county refills coffers

The message coming from a meeting with state officials last week in Sacramento was “borrow the money to refill the restricted fund department coffers and we’ll help.”
The county’s consultant, Richard Arrow, told the Board of Supervisors Tuesday that it “was of critical importance” to restore the balance in the county treasury and those funds should be restored “as soon as possible.”
Arrow has been singing that same tune for months and is spearheading a plan to borrow millions of dollars over the long term to refill the treasury balances. Several departments, whose funds were tapped to keep Modoc Medical Center open would be replenished, including the Road and Public Health Departments,
Arrow, Supervisor Dan Macsay and acting county Chief Administrative Officer Rick Rudometkin visited with the State Controller, Department of Social Services, Cal Works and Senator David Cox and Assemblyman Jim Nielsen to seek advice and help for the county in its budget crisis.
All three said the trip was well worth the effort and all state departments are “willing to help” and are pleased the county is taking a passionate and active effort to restore the funds in the treasury.
“No one wants Modoc to fall off a cliff,” Arrow said.

State auditor filling new redistricting commission

As of Tuesday, no one from Modoc County had applied for the new statewide Citizens Redistricting Commission. Redrawing the district boundaries is very important to the north state.
Elaine Howle, California State Auditor, is hoping her office receives applicants from every county in the state and invites interested Modoc residents to apply.
“This is a very important commission and we would like a representation from throughout the state,” her office said this week.
What is redistricting?
She explained that every 10 years, after the federal census, California and every state in the country – must redraw the boundaries of its legislative and State Board of Equalization districts to reflect the new population data. How these boundaries are drawn affects how people are represented.
Previously, these boundaries were drawn by lawmakers, but when voters passed Proposition 11 (the Voters First Act) in the November 2008 general election, that responsibility transferred to the people in the form of a new Citizens Redistricting Commission.

New face in District 5 race

There is a new face in the Modoc County race for Supervisor in District Five, where incumbent David Bradshaw is retiring. So far, only he and Modoc Sheriff Mark Gentry have officially decided not to seek re-election in June.
David Porter Misso has entered the race in District Five, and this week Geri Byrne, of Tulelake, announced she is also going to run for the seat.
Bradshaw, of Lookout, said he wants to spend more time with his family and on the ranch.
Gentry will have served one term, holding the position of Undersheriff before the last election.
Former California Highway Patrol Officer Mike Poindexter, current Undersheriff Gary Palmer and Deputy Stacy Callaghan have announced they’ll run for the position. Poindexter narrowly lost to Gentry four years ago.

Proposed county motel tax has to go to voters

Modoc County Supervisors are considering whether to increase the Transient Occupancy Tax (bed tax on motels/hotels) from the current four percent up to 10 percent.
In the past, they could have simply done that by board vote, but the issue now will have to go to a vote of the people and a majority would have to approve for the increased tax to be implemented.
The County cannot place a tax on hotel or motels within the City of Alturas, so it would only affect those establishments outside the city limits and in other communities.

Obituaries:

Jack Ochs

Former Alturas City Councilman and business owner, Jack Leslie Ochs passed away on January 4, 2010, surrounded by his family in Mt. Shasta, CA.
He was born November 15, 1935 in Southgate, CA.
In lieu of flowers, the family would like any donations made to the First United Methodist Church and Mercy Mt. Shasta Hospice.
Memorial services will be held January 21 at 3 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Redding.

Dixie L. Broadhurst

Long-time Modoc resident Dixie Leah Broadhurst went to be with her Lord peacefully from her home in Alturas on January 9, 2010. Dixie was born to Josephine Mae Brooks and Alvord John Keesaman in Clinton, OK on November 10, 1924.
Services will be graveside at the Lookout Cemetery in the Spring. A notice of date and time will be published in the Record, at a later date.

Grave Crampton

Grace Crampton passed away on January 5, 2010, surrounded by her family.  Grace was born Grace Anita Morgan on August 28, 1920 in Eagleville on the Murphey homestead, Modoc County, CA .
A celebration of her life will be held on Sunday, January 17th at 2 p.m. at the Moose Lodge, 375 Lake Blvd, Redding, CA.  Memorial contributions may be made to the Mercy Hospice, 1544 Market, Redding, CA, American Heart Assoc. 28 Hanover Lane, Chico, CA,  Golden Umbrella Alzheimer’s Support Group 200 Mercy Oaks, Redding, CA.
  Ashes will be interred at the Williams Cemetery, Williams, CA at a later date.

Donald Penrod

Former Alturas resident Donald Wayne Penrod, age 77, of Redding, CA passed away the afternoon of December 23, 2009 at the Copper Ridge Care Clinic in Redding, with his family by his side. 
Don was born May 23, 1932 in Parkland, Oklahoma to Nolan and Ethel Penrod
Funeral services were held December 30, 2009 at Kerr Mortuary Chapel in Alturas. Interment was January 5, 2010 at the Alturas Cemetery.

Sports

Modoc wrestlers among favorites in Burney Invite

Modoc’s wrestling team will be among the favorites at the Burney Rotary Invitational tournament this weekend in Burney.
According to coach Shaun Wood, his team, the team from Shasta High, Trinity and Truckee will be tough. Modoc is recovering from a team-wide illness this week, but should be ready by the Burney tourney.
Last weekend, Modoc traveled to the big Anderson tourney, along with 49 other schools. Because of the illness, the Braves took just a few wrestlers.
Modoc’s 103-pound Alex Moreo had the top performance, taking a second place, losing the championship match by one point to a Red Bluff wrestler. Wood believes Moreo will be able to beat that wrestler the next time around.
Modoc’s Tyler Wood, 171-pounds, took fourth place, after injuring his shoulder. Wood had his son forfeit his final match because of the injury.
Miguel Torres, Modoc’s heavyweight, also was hurt in the tourney and forfeited his final round because of injury. He placed fourth.
Wood expects Tyler Wood to wrestle at Burney, but plans to hold Torres out for the needed recovery time. Wood also expects the remainder of the team to be recovered by Friday.
In Anderson, 130-pound Jesse Siva went 0-2, 152-pound Colton Reed went 0-2, and 215-pound Ethan Hass went 0-2.  Wood said he was pleased with their outings and each of them had tough divisions.
For instance, Wood said Haas’ 215-pound category had the number one and two ranked wrestlers in the state in the finals match.

Bears slaughter Braves’ varsity teams

Mt. Shasta’s Bears slaughtered the Modoc boy’s and girl’s varsity basketball teams in Mt. Shasta Tuesday night, keeping both the team winless for the season.
The boy’s game was an anomaly, with the Bears winning 80-15. A Modoc boy’s varsity team scoring 15 points in a game is not a record to boast about.
The Bears led 20-0 in the first quarter and 39-7 at halftime. By the end of three, the Bears led 63-12. Modoc could only add three points in the fourth period while the Bears pumped in 17.
Mt. Shasta only shot 53 percent from the floor, and had four players in double figures. They picked up 45 rebounds and had 16 steals.
The Modoc girl’s varsity team lost 59-18. While Modoc had a 5-1 lead early, by the end of the first period the Bears led 10-5. Mt. Shasta took a 23-10 lead at halftime and led 39-11 after three.
“Mt. Shasta is good,” said coach Bill Hall. “We hung close early, but as usual once I started subbing rotations for fouls, we got killed.”
Raelae Vickerman was hurt early with a knee injury. Rochelle Keller had seven points for Modoc; Cheyenne King added five.
Modoc has Weed at home Friday night. The Cougars are also struggling, with just one win for the season.
Modoc’s junior varsity girl’s team lost a tight one 31-30. Jodie Boudreaux led with eight points and Telese Dowdy added seven. Mt. Shasta has knocked off Fall River and Etna in league as well. Of all Modoc hoop teams; the junior varsity girls appear to be looking at the best overall record.
Mt. Shasta outscored Modoc’s junior varsity boys 23-7 in the third quarter Tuesday night on their way to a  64-38 victory over the Braves.  The Bears beat the Modoc defense down the floor for 22 points on breakaway lay-ups.
Jac Derner had nine points and Matt Weber contributed with four rebounds

January 21 , 2010

News

Modoc County Superintendent of Schools Gary Jones will run for re-election in June.
Jones made the announcement in a memo to staff Jan. 16. “I have tried to ‘see myself’ in an educational leadership position somewhere else,” Jones wrote. “Since I cannot see myself anywhere but Modoc County, I intend to file for re-election.” Jones is finishing his first four-year term.
Modoc County District Attorney Gary Woolverton has also indicated he will seek another four-year term. As of now, local attorney John Lawson has entered the race to challenge Woolverton.
District Five County Supervisor David Bradshaw, of Lookout, is not running for re-election and two people, both from the Newell-Tulelake area have entered the race. David Porter Misso and Geri Byrne are running for the position.
Modoc Sheriff Mark Gentry is retiring and former California Highway Patrol Officer Mike Poindexter, current Undersheriff Gary Palmer and Deputy Stacy Callaghan have announced they’ll run for the position.
The other offices on the June 2010 ballot include: Clerk-Auditor-Recorder, now held by Alice Marrs; Treasurer-Tax Collector Cheryl Knoch; Assessor Cheri Budmark. Knoch, and Budmark are seeking new terms. Marrs has not announced her intentions.
The County Supervisor seat of Dan Macsay in District One (Surprise Valley) is up for re-election. No opponent has emerged and Macsay will seek re-election.
Both Superior Court Judges, Frances Barclay and David Mason are expected to run for another term.

MNF Forest plan on hold

The Modoc National Forest Plan Revision effort has been suspended at this time. This decision is based on several factors which include the enjoinment of the 2008 Planning Rule by the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.
Based on this ruling the USFS reinstated the 2000 Planning Rule, with transition language for the use of the 1982 Planning Rule procedures.

Obituaries:

Patricia Clark

Patricia Ann Clark of Alturas passed away January 17, 2010 in Hemet, CA from the effects of a stroke. Catholic services will be held at 10:30 a.m. on January 25 at St. Francis deSales Church at 4268 Lime St., Riverside, CA 92501. Interment will follow at Olivewood Memorial Park, Riverside, CA.

Norene Garrison

Norene Edna Garrison of Cedarville, CA passed away January 9, 2010 in Redding, CA at the age of 76. Services will be held at the Jehovah Witness Kingdom Hall in Alturas on Saturday, January 23 at 2 p.m.
Born Norene Dees on July 9, 1933, in Tionesta, CA, she spent most of her life in Modoc County and graduated from Surprise Valley High School, Cedarville.

Walter Harold Talso

Former Alturas resident Walter Harold Talso of Clearlake Oaks, CA, passed away after a brief illness at the St. Helena Hospital, St. Helena, CA. on January 17, 2010. He was born on the Finnish Colony in Redwood Valley, CA, in 1925, to Knute and Lena (Muhonen) Talso. He served as Modoc Area Commander for the California Highway Patrol from 1973-1978 in Alturas.
It was his wish that no services be held. Donations may be made to The California Association of Highway Patrolmen Widows and Orphans’ Trust Fund, P O Box 161209, Sacramento, CA 95816-1209.

Bruce Berger

Bruce Allen Berger, son of Will and LuRay Berger of Alturas, CA, passed away at his home in Wolf Creek, OR on January 3, 2010 at the age of 51.
A Memorial Service will be held on January 23, 2010 at 11:30 a.m. at the Faith Baptist Church on Carlos St., Alturas. Pastor Rod Bodmer will be officiating. A potluck will follow the service.
Any donations may be made to the American Cancer Society, 31 West Sixth St., Medford, OR 97501. Hull and Hull of Grants Pass, OR has charge of arrangements.

Hazel Mae Kirk
Former Alturas resident Hazel Mae (Siler) Kirk, age 82, passed away at Sonora Regional Medical Center in Sonora, CA on Sunday, January 17, 2010. Hazel was born on March 29, 1927, in Santa Fe, New Mexico to Eddie and Glesyner Siler.
A viewing will be held Friday, Jan. 22 from 2 p.m. – 6 p.m. at Terzich and Wilson Funeral Home, Sonora. A memorial service will be held Saturday, Jan. 23 at 11 a.m. at Sonora Baptist Church, Sonora, with a potluck lunch following the service

Sports

Moreo, Wood win at Burney

Modoc’s 103-pound Alex Moreo and 171-pound Tyler Wood won championships at the Burney Rotary Invitational last weekend.
The Braves finished third as a team with 129 points, with Lassen winning with 199 points. Truckee was second with 133, followed by Chester 114, Trinity 76, Mt. Shasta 67, Lassen II 57, Tulelake 51, Weed 45, Fall River 43, Modoc II 41, Etna 32, Burney 33, Dunsmuir 29, Big Valley 25, Redding Christian 19 and University Prep 8.
Jalen Estes placed second at heavyweight, with Collyn Server third. Modoc’s top heavyweight, Miguel Torres, was out, resting an injured knee. Tyler Hammerness took third place at 171 pounds and Ethan Haas took third at 215 pounds.
Colton Reed placed third at 152 pounds, with Tyler Kuhn taking fourth and Dusty Prevette taking sixth. Jake Cruse placed at 145 pounds.
Benny Bevil was fourth at 112 pounds and Mike Ponti took fourth at 160 pounds. Tyler Bushey was fifth at 142 pounds.
Modoc is off this weekend and then hits the prestigious Corning Invitational Jan. 30. The Shasta Cascade League tournament is scheduled for Feb. 5-6 in Burney.

Modoc can’t buy a win

Modoc’s varsity basketball teams remain winless following losses to Weed Friday at the Griswold Gym.
Modoc faced Fall River last night after presstime and travels to Etna Jan. 22. Trinity comes to Modoc Jan. 26.
The boy’s varsity lost 57-28. They trailed 11-6 in the first and 26-14 at halftime. They were down 42-25 after three and got outscored in the fourth 15-3.
The Braves shot just 25 percent from the floor, hitting just 11 of 44 and only 27 percent from inside six feet, 6-for-22. The Braves only made five of 16 free shots. Jonathan Jones led the scoring with 10 points.
The Modoc girls lost 43-34, after leading 21-19 at halftime. Rochelle Keller led the scoring with 21 and Cheyenne King added five.
The Shasta Cascade League standings for the girls is as follows: Fall River 4-0 (9-3); Mt. Shasta 3-1 (8-8); Weed 2-2 (2-9); Burney 1-1 (4-6); Etna 1-2 (10-6);
Trinity 0-2 (0-11); Modoc 0-3 (0-11).
The SCL boy’s standings are: Weed 4-0 (13-2); Fall River 3-1 (12-3); Mt. Shasta 3-1 (10-6); Burney 1-1 (7-6); Trinity 0-2 (9-6); Etna 0-3 (5-11); Modoc 0-3 (0-12).
Modoc’s junior varsity girls beat Weed 58-47. They took a 21-12 lead after the first period and led 36-24 by halftime. Jodi Boudreaux led the scoring with 15 points, Monica Eppler added 12 and Telese Dowdy had eight
Fall River came to Modoc Wednesday after presstime, and the Braves will be looking to avenge an earlier loss to the Bulldogs.
The junior varsity boys beat Weed 59-34 after building up a 45-14 lead. Modoc had 11 steals and 16 assists in the game, Riley Larranaga led with 24 points. Cam Anderson, Alex Torres and Jonathan Morgan combined for 12 rebounds

January 28 , 2010

News

County takes big steps to $10-12 million loan

The Modoc County Board of Supervisors took a big step towards going into major debt Tuesday morning.
Supervisors voted to hire David Glasser as a financial advisor and approved Brian Quint to provide bond counsel. They also changed the contract for financial consultant Richard Arrow from “consultant” to a formal position of “Chief Financial Officer.” Modoc has never had a Chief Financial Officer.
Glasser will be on a contingency of not more than $40,000 and the proposed contract for Quint would not exceed $50,000.
The two new financial officers were recommended by a committee chaired by Supervisor Jeff Bullock, under an action item by Assistant Chief Administrative Officer Darcy Locken.
Arrow, a retired Marin County Auditor, was originally brought into the County through the County Supervisors Association of California, CSAC to assist with the county budget crisis and was then hired as a consultant.
While the Board has never actually released, and may not know, an exact total they want to borrow on a long-term basis, it’s estimated to be between $10 and $12 million. That is on top of a short-term line of credit of about $2 million. The long-term loan will probably be paid back over a 20 to 30 year period and funds used from the line of credit must be repaid within the year. While no one knows for certain, the long-term repayment could be well over  $1.5 million per year. The loan will be secured by county-owned property.
County Counsel John Kenny advised the Board it needed to have professional people in these financial positions before they go out for the long term financing. He told the board it was clear the county has $12 million in deposits more than the cash in the treasury and the county needs to put that money back into the treasury.
The funds were apparently “borrowed” from restricted finds including road and public health. The funds were used primarily to keep Modoc Medical Center open.

Modoc jobless up to 14.5%

The jobless rate in Modoc County jumped from November’s 12.3 percent to 14.5 percent for December, according to the state Employment Development Department.
EDD reported a county labor force of 3,980 for December, down from November’s 4,100, but up 10 from December 2008’s 3,970. The jobless rate last December was 12.3 percent with 490 persons unemployed. In December, 2009, there were 580 people unemployed.

Wild Horse killing reward now $12,500

The Humane Society of the United States and The Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust are increasing the reward to $12,500 for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for killing a band of six wild horses found south of Cedarville, by Burnt Lake in northern Washoe County, Nev., in early December.
 The HSUS is adding $2,500 to the $10,000 reward the Bureau of Land Management initially offered, in the hopes that the substantial increase will encourage those with information to come forward.
Special Agent William Taylor stated that there have been no arrests made in this case, although the rumor mill may say otherwise.
“We do hope to have an announcement concerning this investigation within the next two weeks,” adds Taylor.

Obituaries:

Richard Schulter

Richard Schluter passed away January 21, 2010 in Redding, CA, where he had been the past few weeks. Richard was born August 23, 1939 in Alturas to Robert and Erma (Ash) Schluter.
Services will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alturas Country Jam.

Nellie Starkebaum

Former long-time Alturas resident Nellie Starkebaum passed away peacefully in Portland, OR on November 5, 2009.
Services will be held in the Spring of 2010 at Alturas Cemetery

Tanner E. Kinney

Tanner Erick Kinney, born January 21, 2010 in Klamath Falls, OR, passed away at Rogue Valley Medical Center in Medford, OR at 1:05 p.m. January 23, 2010. Services will be held at the Latter-day Saints Church in Alturas at 11 a.m. on Saturday, February 6.
Tanner is the son of Julie and Erick Kinney of Alturas and grandson of Kenneth and Florence Bordwell of Cedarville and James Kinney of Alturas and JoAnne Kinney of Ridgecrest.

Ronald Lake

Robert Donald Lake, Pastor of the Modoc Full Gospel Indian Church for the past 10 years, went home to be with the Lord Jan. 21, 2010, with his wife and grandchildren by his side at his home in Alturas, CA.
Services will be held today, Jan. 28 at 10 a.m. at the Full Gospel Indian Mission, 1010 Henderson St. in Alturas. Pastor Lake’s brother-in-law Rev. Clifford “Bill” Curten and the Rev. John Thompson will officiate. There will be a graveside service and a potluck will follow at the Federated Church in Alturas. Everyone is welcome to come to the services.

Grady Hart

Grady Gerrell Hart passed away peacefully in his sleep on January 19, 2010. He was born August 6, 1937, in LaGrange, Georgia to Samuel and Bertha Hart. Grady was raised most of his life in California by his mom and step-dad Joe Odom. He graduated from Lodi High School and shortly after joined the United States Navy
A graveside Memorial will be held (when it thaws) May 15, 2010 at Lake City. Donations can be made to the Back Country Horsemen in care of Sharon Enderlin, also a great friend.

Mildred Robison

Mildred Lucille Robison passed away at the Lake District Hospital in Lakeview, Oregon on January 20, 2010. She was 90 years old.
Mildred was born in Alturas, CA on February 18, 1919. She was born to Pete and Cordelia Weber. Mildred and her two brothers, Herman and John, were reared on the Weber Ranch near Alturas.
Services will be held Saturday, Jan. 30 at 11 a.m. in the Sacred Heart Parish Hall, 507 E. Fourth St., Alturas, with a reception following. Interment will be at the Alturas Cemetery.

Sports

Hoop teams still struggling

Modoc High’s varsity girl’s and boy’s basketball teams are still having trouble finding the hoop and getting into the win column. They have yet to win a game this year.
The Braves have Burney at home Friday and go to Trinity on Saturday. The Jan. 26 Trinity game has been moved to Feb. 18.
Modoc’s boys got beat by Fall River 61-32 Jan. 20. The Bulldogs got up 14-5 in the first and 27-16 by half. They outscored the Braves 17-9 in the third and 17-7 in the fourth. Jonathan Jones led with nine points, Ulysses Gonzales added seven and Austin Hoy had six.
Etna trounced the Braves 63-28, with Modoc pretty much out of the game in the first period, trailing 20-11. By halftime Etna led 36-15. The Lions outscored the Braves 27-12 in the second half. Jones led with 12 points.
The Braves girls didn’t fare any better, losing to Fall River 56-24. Fall River doubled up Modoc in the fist 18-9 and led 29-14 at halftime. They outscored Braves 13-2 in the third and 14-8 in the fourth.
Cheyenne King had eight points and Rochelle Keller added six.
Etna dropped the Braves 69-28 Jan. 22. The game was pretty much over after one 23-9 and 40-17 at half. Etna scored 29 to Modoc’s 11 in the second half. King led with 11 points, while Keller and Madison Halvorson each had six.

Rotary hosts Snow Blast

Sunrise Rotary of Alturas is sponsoring a Cedar Pass Snow Park Snowblast Feb. 6 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Ski races for all age groups will start at 12 noon. Younger skiers will have to have a signed parents’ consent form at the ski hill the day of the races or pick up a registration form from Seab’s True Value in Alturas or at Page’s Market in Cedarville. There is a $5 race entry fee and prizes will be awarded to first, second and third place finishers.
Cedar Pass will provide the public with half-off T-bar tickets, adults age 13 and up $7; children age 12 and under $5. First timers who are 12 and under will be provided free rope tow, equipment and lessons. Rentals will be provided at half off at $5 for boots and skis or boots and snowboards.
There will also be a tri-tip sandwich barbecue at the hill for $5 or $8 for the whole meal with chips and soda.

February 4th , 2010

News

The revised Modoc FEMA flood hazard maps will be into effect the first of June and residents in the flood plain could get hit with required flood insurance costing about $200 per month.
The Pit River running through Alturas is in that hazard area as well as a big residential area east of Main Street from Third Street south. Residents and business who believed the Pit River levee system would negate the flood hazard issue will be disappointed.
A representative from the National Flood insurance Program will be in Alturas April 21 at City Hall to answer questions and present information to the public. The flood insurance must be in place by the time the new FEMA maps take effect, or the costs for that insurance could double or triple.
On Tuesday, Judy Soutiere, Flood Risk Program Manager, Sacramento District U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, explained the issues concerning the Pit River Flood Control Project to the Modoc County Board of Supervisors.’
The news wasn’t good.

SVEC has temporary outage

Surprise Valley Electric will have a scheduled temporary outage on February 10 that affects the Fort Bidwell area.
The outage will be from 9 a.m. to 12 noon so SVEC can do repairs and maintenance work.

Obituaries:

Strother Boyd

John Strother Boyd of Alturas, died January 28, 2010 at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Reno, NV. A graveside service memorial with military honors, will be held at the Alturas Cemetery on February 16 at 10 a.m.

William Armstrong

Services for longtime Adin resident William E. “Bill” Armstrong will be held Saturday, February 6 at 11 a.m. at graveside at the Adin Cemetery.
Mr. Armstrong passed away January 29, 2010 in Redding, CA. He was 82.
Memorial donations may be directed to the VFW Post 7144 Scholarship Fund. Services are under the direction of Kerr Mortuary, Alturas.

William Doss

William (Bill) Anton Doss passed away on August 11, 2009 in Eagle Point, Oregon. Bill was born to Clarence and Annie (Jacobs) Doss on Dec. 27, 1918. Both parents were pioneer families in Modoc County. Burial will be in Cedarville Cemetery.

Tanner Erick Kinney

Tanner Erick Kinney, born January 21, 2010 in Klamath Falls, OR, passed away at Rogue Valley Medical Center in Medford, OR at 1:05 p.m. January 23, 2010. Services will be held at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Alturas at 11 a.m. on Saturday, February 6

Sports

Moreo wins Corning Invite; Braves seek 11th straight SCL title

Modoc’s 103-pound Alex Moreo won the Corning Invitational last weekend, besting a solid group of wrestlers.
Moreo will lead the Braves into the Shasta Cascade League tournament this weekend in Burney, where Modoc will be going after its 11th straight SCL wrestling championship.
Coach Shaun Wood expects a pretty good battle with Trinity for the league title this year.
“Our seniors were in first grade the last time Modoc didn’t win the wrestling title,” said Wood. “It’ll be a little tighter this year. Trinity has some good kids, but some of our younger, inexperienced wrestlers are really starting to do well. It’ll be a dogfight.”
In Corning, Modoc finished eighth out of a very tough 51-team tournament. “I was very pleased,” said Wood. “I would have been fine if we had finished in the top 20. But we had a lot of the guys really step up.”
Modoc 171-pound Tyler Wood took a second place, losing to a wrestler from Reno in a close final.
Heavyweight Miguel Torres also took a second, losing to a Pleasant Valley wrestler. The two have been alternating wins and number one and two seeds all season.
Wood said he was very pleased with Tyler Hammerness’ 7th place finish at 160 pounds. Hammerness went 4-1 in the event, losing his second match to the number one guy in the section.
Tyler Bushey wrestled well to finish in eighth place at 140 pounds and Collyn Server took eighth at heavyweight.
Wood said he was also pleased with the performances of Ethan Haas, Jesse Silva, Colton Reed, Mike Ponti and Tyler Kuhn at the Corning tourney.

Modoc Boys win game, JV girls win

Modoc varsity boys team got its first win of the season against Burney 53-44 Friday night, then traveled to Trinity Saturday where the wheels fell off again.
Modoc has Mt. Shasta at home Feb. 5 and goes to Weed Feb. 9.
Modoc actually played fairly solid basketball against the Raiders on the home court going up 13-6 in the first period, but trailed 19-18 by half. Neither team set the hoops on fire in the first and the game was tied at 26-26. The Braves scored 27 points in the fourth quarter for the win while Burney added 18.
Ulysses Gonzales led the scoring with 17, Kristopher Traylor added nine and Jonathan Jones had eight.
Trinity dismantled the Braves quickly, taking an 11-0 first period lead and led 31-6 at halftime. The Wolves led 45-10 after three and outscored the Braves 10-8 in the fourth. Jones had eight to lead Modoc.
The Shasta Cascade League standing for the boys are: Weed 5-1 (15-4); Fall River 5-2 (15-4); Mt. Shasta 4-2 (11-7); Trinity 3-2 (12-6); Etna 2-4 (8-12); Burney 1-4 (7-9) and Modoc 1-6 (1-15).
Modoc’s varsity girl’s team is still looking for a first win, dropping both games last week.
Burney’s Raiders beat the Braves 52-29 Friday night. Burney led 17-10 in the first and 28-17 by half. Modoc trailed 41-24 after three and Burney added 11 to Modoc’s 5 in the fourth. Madison Halvorson led the scoring with 11, Cheyenne King and Rochelle Keller each had five.
Trinity dropped Modoc 52-33 Saturday, even though the Braves played a better first half, leading 22-15 at the halftime buzzer. The Wolves pounced on the Braves 37-11 in the second half. King led with 11 points and Halvorson added eight.
The SCL girl’s standings are: Fall River 6-1 (11-5); Mt. Shasta 5-1 (10-8); Etna 5-2 (15-6); Burney 2-3 (5-8); Weed 2-4 (3-12); Trinity 2-4 (3-14); and Modoc 0-7 (0-15).
Modoc’s junior varsity girls beat Burney 30-23. Monica Eppler led all scoring with 13 points, Courtney Knoch and Jodi Boudreaux each had six and Telese Dowdy four.
“With this win we are looking very strong for the league title,” said coach Jennifer Slinkard. “Every team in league has at least one loss, with our two toughest opponents still to come here to play, Mt. Shasta and Etna.”
The JVs lost to Trinity 51-30, starting with only six points in the first half. Knoch led the scoring with 11, Eppler had eight and Boudreaux and Dowdy had four each.
The JV Boys have recorded a win and three losses to finish out January.  At home against Fall River the Braves trailed by 25 after three quarters, but closed the game on a 21-8 run to lose 59-37. 
At Etna, the Braves reversed a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter and had a chance to tie with a shot at the buzzer.  It fell short, and Etna won, 47-45.  Alex Torres had 12 points. 
Modoc beat the Burney Raiders on Friday and came from eight points down in the fourth quarter to a 50-46 win. Travis Johnston pulled down 19 rebounds and also had 8 steals.
On Saturday, the Braves played at Trinity and trailed by only four points in the first half. Modoc was outscored 50-20 in the second half and lost 73-39. Riley Larranaga scored 13 and Travis Johnston added  9.
The JV Boys are now 3-4 in league and sit in the middle of the pack at fourth place.

February 11 , 2010

News

The Modoc National Forest has conducted its first snow survey for the winter of 2009-2010. To date, a roughly average amount of precipitation was found in the local mountains with snowfall amounts average to slightly above average and water content was found to be average to slightly below average.
The Adin Mountain (Sweagert Flat) snow survey was completed on January 28.  Snow depth was 34.4 inches compared to the long-term average of 28.2 inches.  Water content was 8.2 inches compared to the long-term average of 8.2 inches. Last year, the site showed only 24.8 inches of snow containing 7.4 inches of water,
The Blue Lake Ranch snow survey was completed on February 1.  Snow depth was 24.4 inches compared to the long-term average of 24.8 inches.  Water content was 6.2 inches compared to the long-term average of 7.2 inches. In 2009, the area had 19.5 inches of snow with 5.8 inches of water.
The Cedar Pass snow survey was completed on February 2.  Snow depth was 36.6 inches compared to the long-term average of 34.6 inches.  Water content was 9.2 inches compared to the long-term average of 10.5 inches. Last year, the site had 27.1 inches of snow with 9.0 inches of water.
The next survey will be conducted during the last week of February or the first week of March.
The SNOtel sensor at Dismal Swamp showed 57 inches of snow Feb. 8, containing 16.1 inches of water. Last February, that site had 60 inches of snow containing 15.5 inches of water.

Plumas Bank rejects county credit line

Plumas Bank has denied a short-term line of credit application from Modoc County.
According to County Chief Financial Officer Richard Arrow, he was informed of the decision last Friday. Arrow told Supervisors Tuesday that Plumas Bank was concerned it was not protected strongly enough from a county bankruptcy proceeding. There were other questions concerning the county’s credit worthiness.
According to Arrow, both Bank of America and U.S. Bank in Alturas have expressed interest in providing a line of credit.

Obituaries:

Edward J. Bannan

Edward  Joseph Bannan, loving husband of Anna Bannan of Alturas, passed away February 9, 2010 at Modoc Medical Center, Alturas, CA. Mr. Bannan was born Dec. 29, 1933 in Marseilles, Illinois. Private family services will be held at a later date. Mr. Bannan’s obituary will be published in a future Record issue.
Arrangements are under direction of Kerr Mortuary.

John Strother Boyd

John Strother Boyd of Alturas, died January 28, 2010 at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Reno, NV. A graveside service memorial with military honors, will be held at the Alturas Cemetery on February 16 at 10 a.m.

Sports

Trinity stops Modoc wrestling streak at 10

The Trinity wolves did something last weekend that no one has been able to do for the past 10 years – they beat Modoc for the Shasta Cascade League wrestling championship.
“I thought I’d be really upset about losing the streak, but I was actually okay with it since our kids wrestled well,” said Coach Shaun Wood. “Honestly, if some of our experienced kids had continued instead of quit this year, we probably would have won fairly easily. Trinity had seven seniors in their lineup and we had just three.”
Team scores were as follows: Trinity 155, Modoc 140, Chester 127, Mt. Shasta 53, Burney 36, Weed 33, Tulelake 31, Etna 28, Big Valley 19, Fall River and Dunsmuir 18.
Modoc has the next week off and then heads to the Division III finals in Tulelake Feb. 20. Wood said Modoc, Trinity and Durham will compete for that title and he said his team has a better than even shot at winning. It will be tight.
Modoc had three champions at the SCL tournament. Alex Moreo won the 103-pound division; Tyler Wood moved up and won the 189-pound division and Miguel Torres won the heavyweight class.
Tyler Hammerness took second at 160 pounds.
Third places went to:  Tyler Bushey 140 pounds;  Colton Reed 145 pounds; Mike Ponti 171 pounds; Ethan Haas 215 pounds and Collyn Server heavyweight.
Taking fourth were: Benny Bevil 112 pounds; Austin Carreker 135 pounds; Jake Cruse 145 pounds; Tyler Kuhn 152 pounds; and Jalen Estes heavyweight.
Youth wrestling
Wood will start his youth wrestling program Feb. 22, with practice in the old Auto Shop at Modoc High School. Middle School age wrestlers will meet at 3:30 p.m. and elementary and under kids will being at 5:30 p.m.

Braves continue to struggle through SCL

Modoc Braves will finish a tough basketball season next week. They travel to Fall River Feb. 12, Etna comes to Modoc Feb. 13 and Trinity comes here Feb. 18. Both of the varsity teams are in the cellar of the Shasta Cascade League, with the boys winning only one game and the girls still winless.
The varsity girl’s basketball team lost to Mt. Shasta 52-27 Feb. 5.
The Braves led 9-6 after one, but the Bears took a 22-13 lead at half and led 38-20 after three. The Bears outscored Modoc 14-7 in the fourth.
Rochelle Keller led the scoring with 11 and Sarah Gibbons added seven.
The girls lost to Weed 51-17 Tuesday night there. Modoc never got started, with Weed leading 14-2 in the first and 25-10 by half, Weed outscored Modoc 15-6 in the third and 11-1 in the fourth.
Modoc’s boys varsity fell to the Bears 49-29. Mt. Shasta jumped out to an 18-3 first period lead and led 31-8 at halftime. Mt. Shasta led 37-16 after three.
Kristopher Traylor led with eight points; Ulysses Gonzales and Brett Boudreuax had five each.
The boys lost to Weed, playing a better game Tuesday, 57-43. Weed never trailed in the game, up 14-10 in the first, 32-21 by half, and 41-30 after three.
Jones led with 14 points, Brandon Bains added 12, Gonzales and Boudreuax had nine each.
The junior varsity boys lost to Mt. Shasta at home on Friday, 64-52 and beat Weed 44-15 Tuesday. 
In the Mt. Shasta game, a 20-10 run by the Bears in the second half sealed the loss. Cam Anderson led with 21 points and 14 rebounds.
Against Weed, the Braves allowed only four points in the first half as they went on to win. Anderson and Travis Johnston each pulled down 10 rebounds.
Modoc’s junior varsity girls lost to Mt. Shasta 32-26, as shots were just not falling.  High scorer was Jodi Boudreaux with nine and Monica Eppler with eight.  They played very well against Weed Tuesday, coming out in the first quarter with a 16 to 4 lead.  Modoc stayed strong until the third quarter, only scoring four points, but finished well, winning 44-27. Boudreaux led with 12, Eppler had 10 and Courtney Knoch had eight

February 18th , 2010

News

Wild horse herds can roam on land, “devoted principally but not exclusively to their welfare in keeping with the multiple-use management concept for the public lands,” Wild Horse and Burro Act, 1971.
Blade and his 176 Carter Reservoir wild horse herd mates were gathered and the herd downsized to 36 head, because according to the BLM, they were destroying the water holes and the environment.
Under the multiple-use concept the wild horses must share their 25,000 acres with other animals.
Steve Surian, BLM wild horse program manager and range management specialist explains how herd size determination is made, “We consider the size of the herd area, available water, and range conditions. We don’t consider deer or antelope present on the range, there’s not that many. We’ve never measured enough wildlife to make a difference in the range capacity.”
Yet one BLM document states that there are 4,000 antelope, 2,500 mule deer, 110 big horn sheep and a few elk in this same herd area. The document also states there are 758 head of cattle on the same lands.
BLM’s gather of 177 horses was based on, “the need to balance wild horse populations with wildlife, livestock, wilderness study areas values, cultural resources, soil and vegetation resources, and to protect the range from the deterioration associated with overpopulation of wild horses.”

Modoc puts skids to pot shops

It’s going to be a while before people in Modoc can purchase marijuana from a legal storefront.
Last week, the Modoc County Board of Supervisors approved a temporary moratorium on the establishment of medical marijuana dispensaries until Nov. 23, 2010.
The moratorium was presented by Kim Hunter, Modoc Planning Director, approved by unanimous vote and took effect immediately. The action dovetails with a stance the City of Alturas has taken.
She said that there have been “several inquiries into placement and operation of the dispensaries in the city of Alturas and in the County.
Hunter said it is “critical” that the county and city work together on the issue to “insure that the adopted codes regarding medical marijuana dispensaries are consistent and complementary to each other.”

Stanchina shocks court, own attorney

Robert Stanchina, who had pled guilty in December to assault with a deadly weapon charges in the October 2008 shooting of Martin Verhamme at the Rock House near New Pine Creek shocked the judge, the District Attorney and his own attorney Tuesday afternoon.
During the review hearing on his plea bargain and potential nine-year sentence, Stanchina told his Attorney John Lawson that he wanted to change his plea to not guilty. Lawson then reported that to the court, stating that he had just heard about the change from Stanchina in court Tuesday.
District Attorney Gary Woolverton indicated he would have liked more time to consider the change of plea, but Lawson reaffirmed he had just found out himself.
Superior Court Judge David Mason said he would bring the issue back in a hearing March 5, to determine whether he was required to accept the change.
All of these theatrics come after a hearing January 19 where Mason did not formally reject the plea bargain for Stanchina, but told lawyers on all sides he was leaning in that direction.

Obituaries:

Services Feb. 25:
Frances Arletta Burrell
A Celebration of Life service for Davis Creek resident Frances Arletta Burrell will be held, Thursday morning, February 25 at 11 a.m. at the Davis Creek Grange Hall. Mrs. Burrell, 91, passed away February 20, 2010 in Davis Creek, CA. She had made Modoc her home for the past 90 years, after being born in El Toro, CA on February 25, 1918.
She is survived by her children Karen Baldwin of Davis Creek, CA; Mark Burrell of Bakersfield, CA; sisters Laura Putnam and Juanita Sowles of Sacramento and foster daughter-in-law Lucy Wells. Her son Johnny, foster son Howard Wells and brother Bud Van Horn preceded her in death. Donations in her memory may be made to the Davis Creek Fire Auxiliary, P.O. Box 65, Davis Creek, CA 96108.

Strother Boyd

John Strother Boyd was born in Cynthiana, Kentucky on October 28, 1920 and grew up in Virginia, graduating from Draper High School in Drapers Valley, CA. He later graduated with a Masters in Christian Education from seminary at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. Strother volunteered for both World War II and the Korean War, serving with the U.S. Army and earning three Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star for Valor. He was retired as a Captain on April 1, 1953, due to his injuries. 
He passed away from congestive heart failure at the age of 89 on January 28, 2010, at the Veterans Administration Hospital (VA) in Reno, NV. The Rev. Ben Zandstra conducted his memorial interment at the Alturas Cemetery on February 16. He was honored by the Alturas American Veterans Post 2003, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Post 3327 and the American Legion Post 163. He was remembered with a fellowship at the Federated Church following the service.

Edward Bannan

Edward Joseph Bannan, loving husband for 51 years of Anna Bannan of Alturas, passed away February 9, 2010 at Modoc Medical Center, Alturas, CA. Mr. Bannan was 76. 
Private family services will be held at Forest Hills in Cypress, CA.

Dorothy G. DeRoos
Dorothy Gertrude DeRoos, 91, an Alturas resident for the past 35 years, passed away February 16, 2010 in Alturas, CA. She was born in Illinois on August 5, 1918. Burial will be at Sacramento Memorial Lawn in Sacramento, CA.

Lola (Conklin) Rogers

Lola passed away unexpectedly Sunday afternoon at home at age 72. She was born to Wilson and Lucille Conklin, the youngest of three children. She grew up in Alturas, CA, where she married and had three children.
Funeral services were held on Thursday, February 11 at 10:00 a.m.

Sports

Wrestlers at Division III finals

Modoc’s wrestling team is at the Division III finals this weekend in Tulelake and are led by Alex Moreo, Tyler Wood and Miguel Torres.

Basketball teams finish down season today

Modoc’s basketball season will come to a close tonight when the Braves host the Trinity Wolves. It has not been a season to remember.
Modoc’s girls  varsity will be looking to get one win this year as they face the Wolves. So far the girls are 0-11 in the Shasta Cascade League and 0-19 overall and have struggled in every game.
Last weekend the girls dropped two league games. Fall River beat them 62-29 Friday night. The bulldogs were up 14-7 in the first and 34-14 by halftime. By the end of the third period, Modoc trailed 50-19. Rochelle Keller led the Braves with 19 points.
Saturday, Etna dropped the Braves 51-28. Etna was up 15-5 after one and 31-15 by half. The Lions scored 20 and Modoc 13 in the second half. Keller had 15 points and Cheyenne king added nine.
The Modoc boys fell to Fall River 67-48. The Bulldogs led 18-11 in the first and 34-23 as the braves stayed competitive. However, Fall River scored 22 to Modoc’s 10 in the third to lead 56-33. Ulysess Gonzales led with 10 points and Brandon Bains added nine.
The boys lost to Etna 54-39, hurt by a slow first period wheer they trailed 14-4. By half, the Lions were up 30-16 and 41-29 after three. Jones led he scoring with 13, Gonzales added 11 and Boudreuax had eight.
The junior varsity boys lost to Fall River on Friday 58-39.  Riley Larranaga hit for 12 points and Alex Torres chipped in 9.
On Saturday, the Braves beat Etna with a come-from-behind 52-42 win over the Lions.  Riley Larranaga, Cam Anderson and Travis Johnston hit for 16, 11 and 10 points.  Drew Culp and Jac Derner added fine defensive efforts.
The JV Boys are now 5-6 in league and are in 4th place. 

Snowblast brings out skiers

Cedar Pass Snow Park exploded with excitement as skiers took to the hill to participate in the Annual Cedar Pass “Snowblast,” event sponsored by the Sunrise Rotary club.
The event took place Feb. 6 and many folks came out of hibernation to observe this fun-filled winter event.
Snowblast race winners: 
Girls ages: six and under, Bell Farnam (Big Hill); 7-8, Charly Simpson, 9-11 Joanie Gladwell, Henny Linker; 12-14 Josie Hanel. Boys ages:  6 and under Tre Larranaga, 7-8 Elias Antunez; 9-11 Zach Bickford; 12-14 Damond Goodwin; 15-17 Jesse Freeman; 21-35 Perry Copp (fastest time of the day), 36-46 Stephen Bratton; 47-up Guy Wendal; (Snowboarding) Jonathon Morgan.
The first "Snowblast" was in February of 1998, started as a Sunrise Rotary club function to benefit the kids of Modoc County and also stimulate interest and benefit the ski hill. It has occurred every year since that time, on the years the hill was open.

Middle school hosts tourney

The Modoc Middle School Boys Basketball Tournament is Friday and Saturday, Feb. 19th and 20th.   There will be an A division and a B Division. 
Teams from Lakeview, Gerlach, Big Valley, and Janesville will be joining the three Modoc teams starting on Friday at 11 a.m. with pool play and with tournament brackets on Saturday at 10 a.m.
 Trophy presentations will be at about 6:00 on Saturday evening

February 25, 2010

News

Supervisor Dan Macsay and County Chief Financial Officer Richard Arrow are cautiously optimistic following a meeting with the county’s bond counsel and financial consultant in San Francisco Feb. 12.
While nothing is set in stone at the moment, Arrow said he feels good about the progress and options available to Modoc to cover the about $12 million hospital debt through the sale of bonds.
On the table at the moment is an effort for the county to secure a credit rating and exploration of what types on bonds will be available. According to Arrow, bond counsel Brian Quint suggested tax-exempt bonds, which would have about a four percent lower interest rate. Quint is researching that path this week.
If Modoc can get a credit rating, bond repayment interest rates would be from six to eight percent and if not they could go as high as 12 percent. The difference in the county’s repayment would be substantial. The county is currently estimating a repayment of about $1.5 million annually.

Body of attempted murder suspect found off CR91

The body of a 67-year-old Japanese man, accused of attempted murder Feb. 4 in San Francisco, was discovered off the intersection of County Road 91-87 (Adin-Lookout Road) on Thursday. Identification is pending notice of next-of-kin.
According to Modoc Sheriff/Corner Mark Gentry, the man had shot his brother-in-law in San Francisco and an arrest warrant had been issued when he left the Bay Area. The victim was shot in the leg and is recovering.
Gentry said the death appears to be a suicide, but there are some extenuating circumstances that are perplexing. An autopsy performed in Redding Monday pointed to a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Board may set hospital election

The Modoc County Board of Supervisors may set a Hospital District election next week at its regular meeting.
While the agenda item called for the Board to order County Counsel John Kenny to complete title and description or a request to circulate a petition, which had been field Dec. 12, Kenny changed course.
He told the Board he felt it would be wiser for the Board to simply set an election, rather than force the Save Our Hospital Committee to circulate petitions to quality a ballot measure.
Basically, the Board agreed to bring the election issue back at next week’s meeting. It is possible for the Board to set the election, which means SOH would not have to circulate petitions.
According to SOH’s Jim Wills, the best available date to call for that Special Election is August 31 and that will be the request next week.

Obituaries:

Dorothy Reynolds

Dorothy Eileen (Payne) Reynolds suffered a massive stroke on February 18 and passed peacefully on Friday, February 19, 2010 in Chico, CA.
She was born on September 6, 1916 in Alturas, CA to Anna Toreson and Harry L. Payne.
A private family interment will be held at the family plot at the Alturas Cemetery on Mother’s Day, May 8. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Butte Humane Society. Condolences may be sent to 903 Karen Drive, Chico, CA 95926.

Arletta Burrell

A Celebration of Life service for Frances Arletta “Nook” Burrell will be held, Thursday morning, February 25 at 11 a.m. at the Davis Creek Grange Hall. Mrs. Burrell, 91, passed away at her home near Davis Creek, CA on February 20, 2010. She had made Modoc her home for the past 90 years.
Frances Arletta Van Horn, known as “Nook,” was born on February 25, 1918, in El Toro, CA to Franklin and Arletta Van Horn.
Donations in her memory may be made to the Davis Creek Fire Auxiliary, P.O. Box 65, Davis Creek, CA 96108. Lunch and refreshments will follow the Celebration of Life.

Charles Redding

Charles Edward Redding, 59, died February 12, 2010, at his home in Alturas, CA. He was born on September 9, 1950, to Charles A. and Eleanor M. Redding in Albany, CA. 
Services will be private.

Dorothy DeRoos
Dorothy Gertrude DeRoos, born August 5, 1918 in El Dorado, Illinois to Rolland Walker and Etta Fewkes Walker, died in Alturas, CA on February 16, 2010, where she had resided 33 years.
Memorial service was held at 10:30 a.m.  February 23, at Sacramento Memorial Lawn, 6100 Stockton Blvd., Sacramento, CA.

Sports

Trio of Braves win Small Schools titles

The standard bearers of the Modoc Braves wrestling team did their jobs last weekend, each winning a North Section Division III title in Tulelake.
Alex Moreo, at 103 pounds, won his weight division and will be seeded fourth in the Feb. 26-27 Masters tourney in Redding. Moreo, who went to state last year, is in a good spot to move on again this season.
Tyler Wood won the 171-pound division in Tulelake and goes into the Masters as the number one seed. He is expected to advance to the state championships.
Miguel Torres won the Small Schools heavyweight title and is seeded second for the Masters. He should qualify for state. The top three finishers at Masters move onto state.
In order to move onto the Masters tourney, wrestlers had to finish in the top four at the small schools tourney.
“Overall, we had some kids do really well, and I expect we’ll take three to state this season,” said Modoc coach Shaun Wood.
Modoc’s Tyler Bushey placed fourth at 140 pounds, Tyler Kuhn was fourth at 152 and Mike Ponti took a fourth at 189 pounds. They have all wrestled very well this season.
Taking fifth places in Tulelake were Jesse Silva at 125 pounds and Benny Bevil at 112 pounds. Both will go as alternates to the Masters tourney.
Durham won the small schools title with Trinity second, Willows third and Modoc fourth. Modoc was missing two of its top wrestlers in the event.
Youth wrestling notes
Modoc’s Youth Wrestling program will run Thursday this week and return to Monday next week. There is still time for young wrestlers to sign up for the program. Call coach Wood at Modoc High School or show up on Monday for practice and be able to register.

Painful hoop season comes to an end

Modoc High School’s painful basketball season came to an end Thursday, much the way it started -- with a loss.
The Modoc boy’s varsity team finished with a 70-52 loss to the Trinity Wolves. Modoc fell behind 25-8 in the first period and by halftime trailed 45-15. The Braves added 17 points in the third and 12 in the fourth period, while Trinity put up 15 third period points and 10 in the fourth. Jonathan Jones led with 14 points; Brett Boudreaux and Austin Hoy each had 12.
Modoc won just one game all season and finished in the cellar of the Shasta Cascade League. Final league standings are as follows; Weed 9-3 (19-6); Mt. Shasta 9-3 (16-8); Fall River 8-4 (18-6); Trinity 8-4 (17-8); Etna 6-6 (12-14); Burney 1-11 (7-16); Modoc 1-11 (1-20).
Modoc’s varsity girl’s team didn’t win a game all season and lost to Trinity 38-22 Thursday. The Wolves were up 11-2 in the first and 17-8 by half. They led 21-12 after three periods and outscored the Braves 15-10 in the fourth. Rochelle Keller led the scoring with 12.
The final SCL standings for the girls are: Etna 10-2 (20-6); Fall River 10-2 (15-6); Mt. Shasta 10-2 (15-9); Weed 5-7 (6-15); Burney 4-8 (7-13); Trinity 3-9 (3-19); Modoc 0-12 (0-20).
The junior varsity girls finished the season with a strong win against Trinity. They lost by 19 in the first meeting this season.  The score was close the entire game at 26-28 Trinity by half. Modoc outscored the Wolves 15-9 in the forth quarter, with Courtney Knoch setting the pace with three-3's.  She finished with 13 and Monica Eppler led with 14. The girls were 8-4 in league and overall 9-8. 
The junior varsity boys ended the season with a loss to league champion Trinity by a score of 59-34.  The Braves could not buy a basket in the first half and trailed 25-11 at halftime.  Cam Anderson pitched in with 5 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals for the Braves.
The final league standings are: Trinity 12-0, Fall River 9-3, Mt. Shasta 9-3, Modoc 5-7, Etna 4-8, Weed 2-10, Burney 1-1

March 4 , 2010

News

An agenda item on the Modoc County Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday from Assistant Chief Administrative Officer Darcy Locken asked to increase the contract amount for Richard Arrow from $60,000 to $135,000.
Arrow, who started his tenure in Modoc as a consultant on budget matters through the County Supervisors Association of California, was later placed under county contract at the $60,000 and then designated recently as the County Chief Financial Officer.
The request on Tuesday met with some disagreement and also, as listed on the agenda would have created a major conflict of interest. Locken indicated that the additional $75,000 would “be budgeted out of due to other funds . . . from revenue/bond proceeds).”
It would not be legal for Arrow to personally gain financially through the bond program since he is the county’s CFO.

Deadline nears for June 8 candidates

The deadline for filing candidate papers for the June 8 election is March 12.
County Superintendent of Schools Gary Jones, District Attorney Gary Woolverton, Treasurer-Tax Collector Cheryl Knoch, Assessor Sherrie Budmark, Auditor/Recorder/Clerk Alice Marrs, Superior Court Judges Francis (Fritz) Barclay and David Mason and Supervisor Dan Macsay of Surprise Valley are all seeking re-election.
District Five County Supervisor David Bradshaw, of Lookout, is not running for re-election and two people, David Porter Misso and Geri Byrne, have entered the race.
Local attorney John Lawson is challenging Woolverton for the DA position. No one else has expressed interest.
Former California Highway Patrol Officer Mike Poindexter, current Undersheriff Gary Palmer and Deputy Stacy Callaghan have announced they’ll run for Modoc County Sheriff. Sheriff Mark Gentry is retiring.
There are also two seats up for election on the Alturas City Council, John Dederick and Keith Jacques, as well as the position of City Treasurer held by Kathie Alves. All are seeking another term. Onalea Sweeney has entered into the City Council race.
The period to file candidate in-lieu petitions is from January 4 to Feb. 25 and the time to declare candidacy and pay the fee is from Feb. 15 through March 12. If an incumbent does not file for re-election, the nomination period is extended five days.

Huge Twin Peaks wild horse gathering in the works

The Eagle Lake field office of the Bureau of Land Management is proposing to gather approximately 1,800 wild horses and 180 burros off its 798,000 acre Twin Peaks herd management area.  This area is northeast of Susanville, east of Hwy 395 and in Lassen Co., Calif. and Washoe Co., Nev.
It is currently home to an estimated 2,300 horses and 250 burros. The gather is scheduled to be held in Aug. and Sept. to bring the wild horse herds within BLM’s appropriate management level.
At a recent Resource Advisory Council (RAC) meeting held in Cedarville BLM ecologist Jennifer Mata of the Eagle Lake Field Office presented their assessment team’s findings concerning the need for the upcoming proposed gather. The validity of these findings were questioned by several members of the audience to the extent of possible misrepresentation of the data on which the gather is based.
It was suggested that BLM employees drawing these conclusions be educated in equine behavior or be accompanied in the field by horse experts when doing their studies.
The 30-day public scoping period ends on Friday March 5. Comments or questions concerning this gather may be sent via email to twinpeaks@ca.blm.gov .

Obituaries:

Larry G. Holdaway, Sr.
Larry Glenn Holdaway, Sr., longtime resident of Madeline, went to be with his Lord in the early morning hours of Sunday, February 14, 2010. Larry had only two years ago moved to Hawthorne, Nevada to be near his parents, Glenn and Shirley Holdaway.
. Graveside services were held in Hawthorne NV, at 3:00 p.m. Thursday, February 18, 2010. Arrangements by Gunters Funeral Home, Hawthorne, NV.

Sports

Braves send 3 wrestlers to state

Three Modoc Brave wrestlers qualified last weekend at the Masters Tournament in Redding for the state championships March 5-6 in Bakersfield.
Leading the way is heavyweight Miguel Torres who won the Masters North Section title by pinning his finals opponent in the third round. He and his Pleasant Valley opponent have shared section number one and two rankings all season, with Torres coming out on top Saturday. Both wrestlers will go to state.
Tyler Wood, at 171 pounds, took a second, losing 5-4 in triple overtime, on a questionable call. He also heads to state. Wood’s brothers Josh and Travis were also state qualifiers, with Josh finishing fourth in the state finals last season. Josh is currently wrestling at Utah Valley University. Travis is an assistant coach at Durham High School.
Modoc’s 103-pound Alex Moreo finished in third place, working his way through the tough side of the brackets. Moreo also qualified for state last season and will take that experience with him this year.
Modoc Coach Shaun Wood said he expects the trio to win several matches at the state level and could finish in the medals. Three ties the record for the most Modoc wrestlers ever going to the state finals.
Wood said he was pleased with the Shasta Cascade League’s performance, sending nine wrestlers to state, well more than any other league in the North Section. Trinity, who won the SCL and stopped Modoc’s league championship run at 10 years, will also send three to state, with Fall River, Mt. Shasta and Chester each sending one.
Wood said four other Modoc wrestlers did well at the Masters, but did not place: Tyler Bushey 140 pounds; Tyler Kuhn 154 pounds; Jesse Silva 125 pounds and Benny Bevil 114 pounds.

March 11 , 2010

News

So, what happens if the effort to obtain revenue bonds to cover Modoc Medical Center’s $12 million debt to the county fails?
That’s a question that’s been asked, but not answered several times. On Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors did respond to a request from Fix It First’s Doug Knox who put the item on the agenda.
Supervisor Patricia Cantrall said she hadn’t been told what would happen if the bonds don’t materialize, but said she felt the repayment plan payments were “astronomical” and beyond Modoc’s ability to pay.
County Chief Financial Officer Richard Arrow said the county might not be able to get the entire $12 million funded. He said if they got half or $6-7 million in revenue bonds, the county might be able make up the remaining six million by selling revenue bonds to the Modoc Treasury. That, he said, was a “creative” concept and plan.
If those can’t happen, Arrow said they would have to go to the State Controller’s Officer and try to work out a plan for repayment of the debt. He said that might require asking Modoc’s legislative representatives to step in and help with the situation. In essence, Modoc would set up a plan to repay itself.
Interestingly, that was always the plan over the past few years, once the hospital started making money. The hospital has been able to repay part of the loan over the past year and is now operating in the black on a month-to-month basis.

Closing Canby school on MJU agenda

The potential of closing Arlington Elementary School in Canby is on the Modoc Joint Unified School District Board of Trustees agenda March 16, 7:30 p.m.
MJUSD Superintendent Lane Bates said the Board is requesting public input on the issue. There will be ample time for public discussion, and Bates said the Board can take action to either close or keep the facility operating at the meeting. The issue has been under consideration for months.
There are 13 students attending Arlington, but nine of those are from Alturas. Bates said closing the facility will save about $74,000, plus other costs associated with the facility.

Local WASP pilot honored by Congress

Virginia Pierce, 89, of Alturas is one of a very select and dwindling cadre of women in the United States and on Wednesday that group, the Women’s Airforce Service Pilots, WASP, of World War II was finally honored by the U.S. Congress.
Pierce was not able to go to the Washington D.C. ceremony where each of the surviving 300 pilots was presented a Congressional Gold Medal for their service, the highest honor Congress bestows. However, that medal will be presented to her Saturday at the Brass Rail in Alturas, 10 a.m.

Obituaries:

Loren Ambers

Loren Walter Ambers of Alturas, CA, retired U.S. Forest Service career employee and Contracting Officer, passed away in Roseburg, Oregon on March 3, 2010, after contracting a massive heart infection and pneumonia. Mr. Ambers had undergone open heart surgery in September 2009. He had joined his wife in Roseburg, OR, following his surgery.
A Celebration of Life will be held Saturday, March 13 at 2 p.m. at Benny’s in Alturas.
Memorial donations may be made to the High Plateau Humane Society, P.O.Box 1383,
Alturas. 96101

Melanie Widener

Melanie D. (Macut) Widener, 32, passed away on March 1, 2010 in Sherwood, Oregon. Mel was born in California on June 11, 1977, to John and Deborah Macut. She attended Modoc High School in Alturas, CA A Memorial Gathering was held at Sherwood Elks Lodge March 6 at 3 p.m. Online condolences to www.anewtradition.com.

Connie Voth

Connie Frances Voth, 41, of Alturas, passed away on March 4, 2010, at Warnerview Convalescent Hospital, Alturas, CA, where she had been a resident the past few months. She had been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer nine years ago
A graveside memorial service will be held Friday, March 19 at 1:00 p.m. at the Alturas Cemetery. Arrangements by Kerr Mortuary.

Norman Ziemer

Norman David Ziemer, 66, passed away on March 5, 2010 surrounded by his family in the home he built with his wife and family near Lake of the Woods. The home, fondly referred to as “The Mountain House” was a welcoming place for his family to gather and build memories. Friends and family are invited to attend a memorial service at 10 a.m. on Saturday, March 13, in the chapel at Memory Gardens Mortuary, 1395 Arnold Lane, Medford, OR. Viewing will be from 3-7:30 Friday, March 12, and one hour prior to the services on Saturday.

Sports

No places for wrestlers at state

Modoc’s three wrestlers ran into some tough opponents at the California State Championships last weekend in Bakersfield, but competed well.
Tyler wood, at 171 pounds, went 2-2 in the tourney. He won his first match 16-6 and pinned his next opponent. He lost his next match 6-0 to the kid who placed fourth and his final match 12-1. Wood finished the season at 32-9.
Heavyweight Miguel Torres went 1-2 losing his first match 3-1, won his second 9-3 and lost his third 2-0. Torres final record was 39-11.
Alex Moreo, at 103 pounds went 0-2 in the state finals, losing by pin in the first match and 9-4 in the second. His season record was 40-10.
“Overall, we placed 107 out of 280 teams,” said coach Shaun Wood. “Only six guys from our section placed. I was hoping we could get a sixth or seventh place finisher, but it was tough and part of it depends on the initial seeding.”

Kids hit wrestling mats Saturday

About 300 kids will descend on the Griswold Gym Saturday for the annual Modoc youth wrestling tournament.
Weigh-ins will start at 6:30 a.m. with the under six age wrestlers hitting the mats at 9 a.m. and the older ages starting at 10 a.m. There are divisions for under six, under eight, under 10, under 12 and under 14 age groups.
Wood expects youth wrestlers from throughout northern California, southern Oregon and Nevada to take part Saturday.
According to Wood, he has about 70 youth wrestlers participating in the Modoc Youth wrestling program.
Wrestling will continue throughout the day Saturday with title matches in the afternoon.

Modoc softball starts March 16

Modoc’s softball team will open against Bonanza here March 16 at 1 p.m. under new coach Jodie Larranaga.
The new coach said the team appears to be strong, with good talent and experience.
Returning this year are seniors Kendall Cockrell, Alyssa Axelrod, Amber Randall, Deonna Garcia, and Carly Potter. Juniors are Rochelle Keller, Sarah Mason and Sophie Hamann. Sophomores this year are Ashley Conner, Cheyenne king, Telese Dowdy, Monica Eppler and Dorothy Long. New this year are Olivia Peters, Courtney Knoch, Jodi Boudreaux, Katelyn Dewitt and Rylee Pedotti.

March 18 , 2010

News

The process of obtaining revenue bonds to cover Modoc County’s projected $12 million “debt” is still moving forward, but is stalled because of delays in getting the 2007-08 and 2008-09 outside audits completed.
The new audits were ordered after the State Controller’s Office rejected the previous independent audits of those two years because of deficiencies.
While the new 2007-08 audit was supposed to be done earlier, and was then projected for April 15 at the last Board meeting, that date has been pushed out to the end of April. The 2008-09 audit should be completed on time May 31.

Modoc jobless rate jumps up to 17.9%

The Modoc unemployment rate for January jumped up to 17.9 percent, according to the state’s Employment Development Department. That’s a three-point increase from December’s 14.9 percent and higher than last January’s 15.6 percent.
The number of unemployed people increased by 110, from January 2009’s 570 to January 2010’s 680. It also increased by 110 from December 2009. The Modoc labor force numbered 3,820 in January 2010, up from 3,690 in 2009. Government jobs account for 41 percent of jobs in the county.
The 17.9 percent jobless rate ranks Modoc 41st out of the state’s 58 counties for highest unemployment. Siskiyou ranks 49th at 19.3 percent and Lassen ranks 34th at 16.6 percent. Mono County had the lowest rate at 8.1 percent and Colusa the highest at 27.4 percent.
The state unemployment rate for January stood at 13.2 percent and the national rate was 10.6 percent.

Obituaries:

Nadine Harbert

Nadine M. Harbert was born in Oakland, CA on Dec. 06, 1923 to Carlton Dunn & Henrietta Boettger Dunn.
The family would like to thank Mayers Memorial Hospital, Intermountain Hospice and all the family and friends who assisted us with her care the last five months of her life. Donations in her honor may be made to Intermountain Hospice, P.O. Box 459, Fall River Mills, CA  96028. Memorial services will be held a later date.

Connie Frances Voth
A graveside memorial service for Connie Frances Voth will be held Friday, March 19 at 1:00 p.m. at the Alturas Cemetery.
Connie passed away at the age of 41 on March 4, 2010, in Alturas, CA.

Sports

20th Modoc youth wrestling event attracts 300

The 20th Annual Modoc Youth Wrestling Tournament Saturday filled the Griswold Gym with more than 300 competitors from throughout the northstate, Oregon and Nevada.
“It was packed and I can’t say enough about the amount and quality of volunteer help we received,” said coach Shaun Wood. “Modoc High’s wrestlers did a great job officiating the matches and the parents and kids who participated were great. It was impressive and we were all very pleased.”
Modoc had 55 wrestlers on its team and there were also 55 wrestlers who competed in the under six category.
The Modoc results by division are as follows:
Under six: all firsts, T.J. Robbins, Christian Givan, Basil Vickerman, Harley McLaughlin, Cooper Gallaher, Sean Jones, Jonathon Ashby, Bodey Northrup, Wesley Gray, Conner Fisher, Case Picotte, Christopher Ware, Tre Larranaga, Jake Hallmark, Troy Lewis, Conor Boyle and Owen Fabela.
Under 8: Tucker Lowrey 2nd; Dillon Valencia 3rd, Lance Jayo 4th, Jess Talbott 3rd, Chance Galvin 1st, Bodey Northrup 4th, Brett Waterman 4th, Kristen Bickford 3rd,  Tre Larranaga 2nd, Hardy Ingram 3rd, Case Picotte 4th, Logan McLaughlin 2nd, Gage Northrup 3rd, Scott Lewis two 2nds, Hunter Williams 4th.
Under 10: Chance Galvin 2nd, Leonard McLaughlin 4th, Brandon Hays two 2nds, Lane Galvin 2nd, 3rd, Wyatt Larranaga 1st, 3rd, Josh Vierra 2nd, 3rd, Jordan Royce, 5th, Jeff Curey 5th, and Jess Picotte 3rd.
Under 12: Tim Reed 5th, Chantz Albrecht 4th, 2nd, Kyle Royce 5th, 4th, Alex Valencia 1st, 3rd, Anthony James 2nd, Jarett Royce 2nd, Tyler Ewing 4th, 3rd, Chris Swindel 5th, Marlana Torres 5th, Tristen Osborne 5th, Robert Dowdy 3rd, 5th.
Under 14: Travis Northrup 2nd, Ethan Dunn 3rd, Rafael Munguia 4th.

Modoc runners do well at Nor-Cal Distance Championships

More than 30 local runners, ranging in ages from five to 60, competed at the Nor-Cal Distance Championships this past March 6.
Middle and elementary school runners came home with $450 in prize money, one team championship, and two second place finishes. In addition 15 runners earned individual medals in their races.
In the sixth-eighth grade division Modoc finished second to U-Prep by a mere eight points. This was the closest eighth grade finish in the 10-year history of the meet. The Braves were lead by Nando Alcala with a 10th place finish. He was followed by Mike Blankenship, Alan Weber, Paden Smith, Sean Anderson, Wes Williams, Mike Bratton, and Cameron McCarty. Braves girls were lead by Beth Derner. She was closely followed by Emily Lowrey, Haley McPeek, Pricila Madrigal, Izzy Cervantos, Madelyn Binning, Cindy Cohen, Stephanie Gouveia, Mattee Vickerman, Kelsey Sphar, Sklie Almanza, and Larrel Smith.
Modoc won the third-fifth grade division. The team was lead by Collin Martin’s first place finish. He was followed by Tucker Lowrey, Jeff Gouveia, and Logan VanSickel. All four boys medaled. The girls division was lead by Kameron Slinkard’s first place finish. She was followed by Hailey Hopkins who also medaled. She was followed by Marlee Pervette, Alena Vickerman, and Maci Larranaga.
The kindergarten-second grade team finished second in their division. They were lead by Jacklyn VanSickel’s first place finish. She was followed by Tre Larranaga who missed a medal by one place, Basil Vickerman, and Max Blankenship.
Steve Bratton finished 14th in the 45-49 year old division for the 10-mile. Don Mason won the 55-59 year old division. Karla Mason finished fifth in the 55-59 year old division. Ronda Christie was sixth in the 50-54 year old division. Bill Gouveia was eighth in the 45-50 year old division. Gerese Weber and Joymarie Bratton were seventh and eighth in the 40-44 year old division. Beth Derner, Paden Smith, and Larrel Smith also ran the three-mile where they all medaled. Coach Mason was very pleased with their performance especially Beth Derner’s exceptional performance where she earned first in her age group.
Mason noted that he was extremely pleased with his runners’ performance. He noted that if the meet directors had used regular high school scoring rules, Modoc would have easily won the eighth grade division. He also noted that every kid who competed last year and this year improved their times greatly. He would also like to thank the Modoc S.E.A.L.S. Program for its support and especially the parents of the kids.
This is not a school-supported program and without the support of the parents this could not occur. Mason also noted that cross-country has a very bright future in the Modoc community.

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March 25 , 2010

News

Last week, Modoc Joint Unified School District Superintendent Lane Bates said he was notified by County Treasurer Cheryl Knoch that the schools would not be getting their April property tax apportionment until June.
He explained to the Board of Supervisors Tuesday that deferred payment amounted to about $1.3 million cash loss to the MJUSD. This week, the county opted to change the deal and will pay the schools 25 percent in April and 25 percent in June.
Modoc County Superintendent of School Gary Jones said county and school officials met Wednesday morning to discuss the funding issue. He called the meeting positive, but cautioned the 25 percent payment may not be firm.
Modoc County Schools, the Surprise Valley Joint Unified and Tulelake Basin Joint Unified School Districts are also impacted.

Former SV superintendent arrested

Former Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District Superintendent Henry Bietz was arrested Wednesday by the Lassen County Sheriff’s Department alleging conflict of interest and perjury.
He was arrested on a warrant filled by the California Attorney General’s Office.
The charges stem from Bietz’s work with the Westwood Charter School while he was the Westwood Unified School District Superintendent.
Bietz is currently free on a $5,000 bond and arraignment is set May 5, 8:30 a.m. in Department Two, Lassen County Superior Court.
More on the case next week.

Obituaries:

Ronald Simmons

Ronald Jefferson Simmons, 64, died of natural causes on March 10, 2010 in San Luis Obispo, CA.
Mr. Simmons was born October 10, 1945, in Hanford, CA, to Jefferson and Cecilia Simmons.
Father Alphonso Van Guilder conducted graveside services at 2 p.m. March 15 at the Arroyo Grande Cemetery Memorial donations may be made to the Boy Scouts of America or Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW).

Katherine Linderman

Katherine Jane Linderman, Kay, was born in Pittsburgh, PA on January 23, 1919 to parents Emerson and Nellie Hess.
Kay went to the Lord peacefully, March 7, 2010, on a beautiful Sunday morning with a full blue sky and bright sunshine.
A memorial service for Kay will be held in Canby at the ISOT Tabernacle, County Road 203, on Sunday, March 28, at 11:30 a.m. She was a great lady, loved by many all over the country, and will be missed very much.

Ida Wilson

Lifelong Modoc County resident Ida Geary Wilson passed away peacefully at home on the XL Ranch on Monday, March 22, 2010. There will be a Wake Friday evening with services to follow Saturday, March 27 at 10 a.m. at the Indian Full Gospel Church on Henderson St., Alturas. Burial will be at the XL Reservation Cemetery following the service. Obituary to follow. Arrangements with Kerr Mortuary.

Martin (Hank) Messner

Martin H. “Hank” Messner, 77, died at the lake District Hospital in Lakeview, OR, after a hard fought battle with cancer on January 6, 2010. A private family committal will be at a later date in the Eagle Point National Cemetery.
Hank was born to Karl and Lillian (Caldwell) Messner in Adel, OR on June 13,1932.
Contributions in Hank’s memory may be made to the American Cancer Society, 2350 Oakmont Way #200, Eugene, OR 97401-6108 or to a charity of the donor’s choice. Desert Rose Funeral Chapel is in charge of the arrangements.

Sports

Modoc girls start with pair of wins

Modoc’s softball team got off to a good start to the season with 11-0 and 12-0 wins over Bonanza March 16. They travel to Lost River March 30.
Ashlie Conner got the win in the first game, getting eight strikeouts while allowing just one hit and one walk. Olivia Peters led the offense going 4-for-4 with a triple. Cheyenne King went 3-3, Rochelle Keller and Amber Randall were 2-3 and Conner was 2-4. Monica Eppler had an inside the park home run. Keller and Randall each had a triple.
“We played very solid defense with no errors,” said coach Jodie Larranaga. “Ashlie Conner pitched a great game and we had strong hitting.”
Keller got the win in the second game, allowing two hits, one walk while fanning five.
King led the offense, going 3-3 at the plate with Eppler going Kendall Cockrell going 2-2. Peters was 2-3 and Sophie Hamann was 1-1. Eppler, Hamann, Cockrell and Randall had doubles and Keller punched out a triple.
Larranaga said Keller pitched very well and the Braves’ offense was solid.

Baseball splits with Bonanza

Modoc batters struck out 12 times against Bonanza’s pitching in the first game of a doubleheader March 16, but the Braves managed to win 4-3.
While many of Modoc’s hitters struggled in the opener, Tee Wilson did not, going 3-for-3 with a home run and a triple. He had three of the Braves’ five hits.
While Modoc’s offense was down, pitcher Brett Boudreaux kept the game tight, taking a no-hitter into the fifth inning. Boudreaux allowed one run on one hit, struck out four and walked three. He was relieved by Jalen Estes, who allowed two runs on two hits, struck out three and walked one.
Modoc scored two in the first inning and added one in the third for a 3-0 lead. Bonanza scored one in the fifth and two in the sixth to tie the game at 3-3. Modoc scored in the bottom of the seventh for the win.
“I was extremely pleased with the defense,” said coach Tim MacDonnell. “Boudreaux was outstanding on the mound. It was tough to see him get a no-decision, but it was great to come away with the win.”
The Braves dropped the nightcap 4-2. Tyler Kuhn got the loss, going six innings, allowing three runs on six hits, struck out 11 and walked one.
Bonanza took a 1-0 lead in the third and went up 3-2 in the fifth and added one in the seventh. Modoc scored two runs in the fifth. Austin Carreker went 2-for-3 at the plate for Modoc.

April 1st , 2010

News

While March came in a bit softly, it went out with a roar as a series of major storms slammed the area. And the nasty weather doesn’t take a break for April.
March did end up with good precipitation levels, showing 1.59 inches, above the average of 1.22 inches for the month. Most of that water, 1.25 inches, came in storms scattered over five days in March.

APD, CHP out of drug task force

Both the Alturas Police Department and the California Highway Patrol have pulled out of the Modoc County Interagency Narcotics Task Force. Without those two agencies, the “Interagency” label disappears.
The agencies remaining in the Task Force are all Modoc County entities: the District Attorney’s Office, the Sheriff’s Office and Probation Office.
The Task Force is under the direction of the District Attorney Gary Woolverton’s Office.
Chief of Police Ken Barnes pulled his department out of the Task Force because of what he perceives as a lack of communication and cooperation from the Sheriff’s Office.
Woolverton said he disagrees with Barnes’ assessment of the problems and is looking forward to the April 14 meeting. He will have further comment following that meeting.

Obituaries

Gerald La Tulippe

Gerald George La Tulippe, 75, recently of Oakridge, Oregon passed away March 20, 2010. He was the fourth child born to Roche Joseph and Luella Mae (Vaughn) LaTulippe in Madeline, California on December 28, 1934. He spent his formative years in Alturas.
Cremation by Andreason with Inurnment on June 26th at Lane Memorial Gardens.
Remembrances may be made to a local SPCA in lieu of flowers.

LaFawn Brooks

LaFawn “Fawnie” Jean (Green) Brooks passed away in her Lakeview, OR home on March 25, 2010, at the age of 65. She was born to Millard and Laverne Green on June 15, 1944 in Mt. Hood, OR.
Desert Rose Funeral Chapel handled arrangements. There will be no service. Memorial donations may be directed to a charity of your choice.

Sports

Golf team chasing Weed squad

Modoc High School’s golf team may end up chasing a talented Weed Cougar team all season.
After two weeks in the season, Weed is in the league lead with a 20-0 record while Modoc is second at 18-4, followed by Mt. Shasta 12-10, Trinity 10-12, Fall River 8-14 and Etna 0-0.
Weed won the last match with a net team score of 405, with Modoc netting 490, Mt. Shasta 516, Fall River 540 and Trinity 565.
Jonathan Morgan led the Braves with a 91, while Drew Morgan shot 92, Bradley Widby shot 95, Mathew Weber shot 97, Alex Moreo had a 115 and Gabe Kerr a 123. Weed’s J. West won the event with a 71 and Weed had five of its six golfers under 90.
This year’s golf team has seniors Dejah Montague, Alex Moreo, Drew Morgan and Rosario Salas; sophomore Bradley Widby and freshmen Gabe Kerr, Alex McQuarrie, Jonathan Morgan, Dusty Prevette and Mathew Weber.

Weather-

The weather took its toll on Modoc High School sports this week as most events were postponed.
On tap are:
Baseball, softball at Trinity April 2
Track at Mt. Shasta April 1

April 8 , 2010

News

Modoc Medical Center has been hit hard again with a Medicare overpayment.
According to Chief Executive Officer Bob Duncan, Medicare has informed the hospital that they had overpaid MMC $675,000 for fiscal year 2009-10. That comes on top of an overpayment of $755,000 for fiscal year 2008-09, totaling $1,430,000.
The hospital must reimburse Medicare. Duncan said MMC had enough cash on hand to pay $220,000 of the 2009-10 overpayment, dropping that total to $455,000. The hospital has been repaying the 2008-09 in monthly installments.

SVJ looking at $150,000 in cuts

In March, Surprise Valley Joint Unified School District Superintendent Don Demsher presented board members with a list of recommendations from the administration regarding budget cuts.  He asked them to prioritize the list and come back in April ready to take action.
“The State has slashed funding for education, forcing virtually every school district in the state to reduce spending while trying to preserve the important basic educational programs,” said Demsher in a March letter sent to local residents. “Our district is no exception.”
He wants the district to reduce the next fiscal year budget by $150,000. Community members, parents and staff are invited to join the Surprise Valley Joint Unified District’s Governing Board at its monthly meeting on Thursday, April 15. Meetings begin at 7:00 p.m. in the library at Surprise Valley High School in Cedarville.
Board President Robert Staton (Eagleville) and members Bill Bostic (Lake City), Alissa Fee (Fort Bidwell), Penni Borghi and Terry Miller (Cedarville) are expected to tackle some challenging issues and register several significant votes during the meeting.

Obituaries:

Robert A. Barclay

Former Superior Court Judge of Modoc County, Honorable Robert A. Barclay, also a former Modoc Justice Court Judge died at his home in Hilmar, CA the morning of Wednesday, April 7, 2010. The Record will publish information as it becomes available from his family.

 

Warford A. Green
Former Alturas resident Warford A. Green, 94, of Maumelle, Arkansas, passed away Sunday, April 4, 2010 at Baptist Springhill Medical Center in North Little Rock Arkansas. He was born September 8, 1915 in Modesto, California.
Visitation will be Saturday, April 10, from 1:00 p.m. until the funeral service time at 2:00 p.m. both at Montecito Mortuary in Colton, CA. Interment will follow the service in the Montecito Memorial Park Cemetery, under the direction of Huson Funeral Home in Little Rock.
Sign an online guest book at www.husonfuneralhome.com

Alena Caldwell
Alena Caldwell, 92, of Canby passed away on April 3, 2010 in Placerville, California.  She had been staying near Placerville to be near her daughter for a few months during the winter. 
Alena was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1917 and moved with her family to Los Angeles at the age of 4.
There will be a viewing on Friday, April 9, 2010, from 2-7 p.m. at the Kerr Mortuary chapel, 400 West Second St., Alturas, California. Services will be held in the chapel at St. Michael’s Episcopal Church, 310 North St., Alturas, California, at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 10, 2010. Bill Hamby of St. Michael’s Episcopal Church will officiate. Burial will take place at the Alturas Cemetery immediately following the service. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that memorial donations may be made to the Modoc County Historical Society to which Alena contributed many articles (600 S. Main St., Alturas, CA 96101); or to the Modoc County Senior Center where Alena had many enjoyable times (906 W. 4th St., Alturas, CA 96101).

Dorothy Asher Carlisle

Dorothy Della Asher Carlisle, 79, died peacefully March 25, 2010 at Shasta Regional Hospital in Redding, CA, after a lengthy illness. She was born to Neva and Charlie Asher on November 2, 1930 and raised in Alturas, CA.
At her request, no service will be held.
Burial will be at the Northern California Veteran’s Cemetery west of Redding, CA. Please sign the guestbook at http://obituaries.redding.com

Sports

In sports—

Weather continues to create havoc with the high school sports schedules.
Modoc baseball and softball teams are in Tulelake April 13 and have Mt. Shasta here April 16.
The Modoc Track team travels to Central Valley April 17.

April 15 , 2010

News

The Modoc County Board of Supervisors Tuesday formally approved the long-term financing plan that will now be forwarded to the California State Controller’s Office.
The plan is designed to replace the restricted funds used to fund Modoc Medical Center over the past several years and bring the county’s budget in line. The hospital debt is at about $12.5 million.
Within that plan is a timeline, but the timeline could be fluid. One big part of that schedule is contingent on the outside 2007-08 and 2008-09 audits being completed soon. While the 2007-08 is expected in draft form today, the 2008-09 is not expected until May 29.
The county is pursuing a plan to issue Certificates of Deposit (revenue bonds). A team of county officials, an independent financial advisor, bond counsel and underwriter is spearheading the effort.

Senior Apt complex approved by planning commission

The Canyon Ridge Senior Apartments project in Alturas was tentatively approved by the City of Alturas Planning Commission following a public meeting April 7.
The project will go to the Alturas City Council in a special meeting the second week of May for final approval once planning commissions mitigation measures are addressed. The council meeting will be a public meeting and a firm date and time will be published once it’s set.
One item addressed at planning commission is the requirement that the apartment complex remain as senior housing for at least 30 years. That’s part of the contract with Housing and Urban Development. That clause means it will not turn into low-income general housing.

Obituaries:

Robert Barclay

Robert Arthur Barclay, age 76, born in Oakes, North Dakota, passed away April 7, 2010 at Emanuel Hospital in Turlock, CA, after a short illness.  His wife Norene was by his side
A “celebration of Bob’s life” will be held on Saturday May 8, 2010 from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Dan Ramos Community Center, 20079 Falke Street, Hilmar, CA.   A memorial celebration will also be held in Alturas on Saturday May 29, 2010 at 2:00 p.m. at the Federated Community Church, 307 East 1st St., Alturas, Ca.  Please consider a donation to a charity of your choice in Bob’s name.
Condolences may be sent to Norene Barclay, 19667 American Ave., Space 85, Hilmar, CA 95324 or to P.O. Box 171,

Julienne Apple

Julienne Virginia (Jacobs) Apple was the daughter of Kenneth and Eva Jacobs. She was born in Lake City, CA on April 26, 1932 and died in Redding, CA on December 7, 2009 at the age of 77 years, seven months, and 11 days.
Pastor Ryan Washburn will conduct a graveside memorial service for Julienne in Lake City on April 24 at 11:00 a.m. A luncheon and time for visiting will follow at the fire hall.
We all miss her greatly but it is comforting to know that God has given her peace and rest.

Larry E. Plemmons

Larry Eugene Plemmons, 67, died April 9, 2010 at home in Gardnerville, NV. He was born in Oakland, CA, February 18, 1943, to Ervin and Vera Plemmons. Vera’s name later changed to Lassegues.
At his request, no services are planned.  Donations in his name may be made to the Douglas Pop Warner.

Robert E. LaGabed
California Pines resident Robert Edward LaGabed, 74, passed away at his home on April 9, 2010. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 1 at 1 p.m. at Veterans’ Memorial Hall, So. Main St., Alturas. Arrangements are with Kerr Mortuary, Alturas.

Sports

Softball takes pair for Tule, Bears here Friday

Modoc’s softball team took a pair of games from Tulelake April 13, 12-1 and 7-0. They will face Mt. Shasta here Friday with a 2 p.m. start.
In the opening game, Ashley Conner got the win, allowing just three hits, walked a pair and struck out nine.
The Braves hit the ball well in the opener, with Olivia peters and Telese Dowdy slamming triples, while Monica Eppler, Jodi Boudreaux, Rochelle Keller, Katelyn Dewitt, and Dorothy Long had doubles.
In the second game, Keller got the win, striking out three, walking one and allowing three hits.
Peters led the hitting with a 2-for-4 effort including two triples. Conner and Laureen Summers each had doubles. Cheyenne King had two solid games as catcher.

Braves split double bill with Tulelake

Modoc’s baseball team split a double header with Tulelake April 13, winning the first game 3-2 and dropping the nightcap 12-5. The Braves host Mt. Shasta here Friday with game time at 2 p.m.
The Braves trailed 1-0 in the first two innings but scored a pair in the third to lead 2-1. The Honkers tied it with a run in the sixth and Modoc won it with one run in the seventh. Modoc had three hits and one error, while Tulelake had seven hits and six errors.
Tulelake jumped out to a 4-2 lead in the first inning of the second game, added one in the second, two in the fourth and five in the fifth. Modoc added one run in the fourth, fifth and seventh.
Tulelake hitters tagged Modoc pitching for nine hits while the Braves pounded out seven hits in the game.
Brett Boudreaux got the win for Modoc in the first game, going seven innings, and allowing five hits, as he struck out eight and didn’t walk a batter.
According to coach Tim MacDonnell, Boudreaux “was outstanding on the mound and our defense played very well.” The defense committed one error.
Tee Wilson led the offense with a 2-for-3 game, and drove in the winning run, Ty Hammerness, in the seventh with two outs. Following an outstanding play by Jalen Estes in the bottom of the seventh when he threw out the tying run at the plate, Boudreaux struck out the next batter for the win.
Tyler Kuhn got the loss in the second game. He went four innings, allowed eight runs on five hits and walked six. He struck out six.
Webb Dun went 2-3 at the plate and Wilson went 3-4.
MacDonnell said the team got itself in trouble with two many walks and errors (four total) and couldn’t catch a break in the bottom of the fifth as Tulelake pulled away.

Young runners lead Braves track team

Some young runners are leading the Modoc Braves track team around the oval for the 2010 season. The Fair Weather meet in Mt. Shasta April 1 had some strong showings.
The track team is at the John Frank Memorial April 17 in Central Valley.
Freshman Ashley Hoy won the varsity girls 800 meters in 2:49.60 and the 1600 meters in 6:12. In both races she was nearly a half lap ahead.
Lisa Orsbun was second in the 200 meters at 33.1 and fourth in the shot at 23-04.5. Celeste Yamagiwa placed fifth in the 300 hurdles at 1:03.2. Courtney Yamagiwa was sixth in the 800 meters at 3:19.4 and in the 400 meters at 1:18.4.
Modoc junior varsity boys won the event with Zach Goulden winning the 100 meters in 12.0 and the 200 meters in 24.9. He also placed second in the long jump at 16-9.
Landon Aarstad won the JV 800 meters in 2:27.2 and was second in the 400 at 1:00.1, and fifth in the 200 meters at 26.1. Daniel Martin won the 3200 meters in 13:37.7 and was fourth in the 1600 meters at 6:06.5. Jeff Larsen was second in the 3200 meters at 14:33.9 and fifth in the 1600 meters at 6:33.8. Brandon Bains was second in the 300 hurdles at 50.0 and sixth in the 400 meters at 1:04.8. Cam Anderson was third in the 300 hurdles at 52.7, fifth in the 400 meters at 1:03.1 and sixth in the 200 meters at 26.50. Corey West was fifth in the 300 hurdles at 53.6. Dae Kim was sixth in the 3200 meters at 18:52.5.
Chris McMaster had the top finish in the varsity boys division with a third in the discus at 91-08. Nick McMaster was seventh at 72-06. Justin Lee was sixth in the 800 meters in 3:03.8.

Modoc tops Lakeview in golf

Modoc High’s golf team topped the Lakeview crew 471-550 at Arrowhead April 7. The Braves travel to Fall River April 15.
Drew Morgan played very well shooting a three-under-par 69 on the home course. Jonathan Morgan shot 89, followed by Matthew Weber 94, Alex Moreo 106, Gabe Kerr 113, Alex McQuarrie 121, Dejah Montague 121 and Dusty Prevette 124.
Collin Samples led Lakeview with an 86, followed by Daniel McKenzie 97, Evan Mullen 104, David Collins 130 and Jared Seehawer 133.

April 22 , 2010

News

Robert Stanchina, who admitted to the Oct. 27, 2008 shooting of Martin Verhamme at the New Pine Creek Rock House, was sentenced to nine years in state prison following a hearing April 13.
Instead of attempted murder, Stanchina was charged with felony assault with a deadly weapon, being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Stanchina had entered a guilty plea on Dec. 8, 2009, and tried to withdraw that plea during a hearing in January. Last week, the motion to withdraw the guilty plea, filed by attorney John Lawson, was denied by Superior Court Judge David Mason.

Stolen plane in repair shop

 A recovered stolen Piper Cherokee PA 128-40 airplane that landed in an alfalfa field when it ran out of fuel east of Cedarville on March 9 was flown to Lampson Field in Lakeport (Clearlake).
The plane had been transported by trailer to the Cedarville Airport until arrangements were made to fly it to a qualified repair shop. 
The aircraft has been inspected and both wings suffered damage typical of having landed in a rough field. The cost of repair is still undetermined. The plane owner, Candice Brown Elliott of Sebastopol, Ca. had the plane taken to Lakeport where there is a shop that specializes in major repair of aircraft.
Susan Alexandria, age 27, the woman who admitted taking the plane from a Santa Rosa airport has a court date on April 22. Sonoma County prosecutors have charged her with aircraft theft and grand theft, both felonies. A plea bargain may be offered in the case.
The case created issues here when the Modoc Sheriff’s Office failed to respond to calls in a prompt fashion.

Obituaries:

Robert LaGabed

Robert “Bob” Edward LaGabed passed away April 9, 2010, at his home in California Pines. He was born July 20, 1935 to Charles and Irene LaGabed in Walcott, New York. After graduating from high school, he entered the Navy, where he served 10 years and achieved a rank of E7.
In celebration of his life, there will be a Memorial Service held at the Veterans’ Memorial Hall in Alturas, May 1 at 1 p.m. A potluck will follow, hosted by the American Legion Ladies Auxiliary #163.
Memorial donations  to any charity of choice or to American Cancer Society.

Julienne Apple

Pastor Ryan Washburn will conduct a graveside memorial service for Julienne Virginia (Jacobs) Apple in Lake City on April 24 at 11:00 a.m. A luncheon and time for visiting will follow at the fire hall.
Julienne was born in Lake City, CA on April 26, 1932 and died in Redding, CA on December 7, 2009 at the age of 77 years, seven months, and 11 days.

Kenneth M. Gloster
Kenneth Michael Gloster of Alturas died April 19, 2010 in Alturas, CA. He was born July 20, 1946 in Klamath Falls, OR. At the family’s request, no services will be held. Arrangements by Kerr.

Sports

Braves split with Bears, Bulldogs here Friday

Modoc’s baseball teams split with the Mt. Shasta Bears last Friday in Alturas, losing the first game 4-3 and winning the second 12-7. The Fall River Bulldogs come to town this Friday with game time set at 2 p.m.
In the opener, the Bears scored two in the third and two in the fourth to lead 4-2. Modoc added one run in the seventh but couldn’t get over the hump.
Tyler Kuhn was on the mound for six innings, allowing four runs on eight hits, fanned four and didn’t walk a batter. Ty Hammerness closed out the game in the seventh, allowing no hits, no walks, no runs and struck out one.
Grady Server led the offense, going 2-for-3 Brett Boudreaux went 2-4. Server had a double and a pair of RBI.
The Braves got out early in the nightcap, taking a 4-1 lead in the first inning and led 7-2 in the third. Modoc added two in the fourth, two in the fifth and one in the sixth. The Bears scored one in the second and five in the sixth.
Wyatt Valena got the win for Modoc, going six innings, allowing seven runs on 10 hits, striking out three and walking three. Hammerness finished the seventh by striking out the side.

Braves softball drops pair to Mt. Shasta

The Mt. Shasta Bears beat the Modoc Braves softball team 4-2 and 7-1 in Alturas last Friday. The Braves meet a strong Fall River team Friday.
The Braves couldn’t figure out the Bears pitcher in the first game, who came into the game with 190 strikeouts in 17 games. Monica Eppler and Cheyenne King each had a hit.
“Our girls mentally beat themselves at the plate,” said coach Jodie Larranaga. “We played five innings of solid defense, but in the sixth had some errors that cost us the game. The Bears were playing their 19th game and we were playing our fifth. I’d liked to have faced them later in the year. I honestly believe we were the all-around better team that had early year jitters.”
Ashlie Conner got the loss for Modoc, but tossed a solid game, striking out seven, walking one and allowing four hits. King was solid behind the plate.
Rochelle Keller got the loss in the second game, going four innings with four strikeouts, two walks and eight hits. She was relieved by Conner who struck out three and allowed one hit.
King went 2-3 at the plate and Olivia Peters and Keller each had a hit.

Modoc track team at CV

Modoc’s track team competed well at the huge John Frank Invitational in Central Valley last weekend and will travel to Burney May 7.
The top finisher at Central Valley was junior varsity’s Ashley Hoy, who won the 800 meters in 2:42.25. She also placed fourth in the 1600 meters at 6:04.56.
Junior varsity’s Zach Goulden placed sixth in the long jump at 18-04.
No varsity athlete placed in the event.

April 29, 2010

News

The Modoc County Farm Bureau is hosting Candidates’ Nights for the upcoming June 8 election.
The events started April 26th at the Adin Community Hall, followed on April 28th at the Brass Rail in Alturas and April 29th at Newell Elementary from 7-9 p.m.
The Adin and Newell consist of: Auditor, District Attorney, Sheriff, and District Five Supervisors.
The traditional format will be used. Each candidate will be given a maximum of 5 minutes for an introductory statement. Following opening remarks, written questions from the audience will be submitted to the moderator. After the question and answer session, the program will conclude with two minute closing statements from the candidates.
The Surprise Valley Chamber of Commerce is hosting a Candidates’ night Sunday, May 2 at the Senior Center in Cedarville beginning at 6:30 p.m.,
The race for Modoc County Sheriff includes former California Highway Patrol Officer Mike Poindexter, current Undersheriff Gary Palmer and Deputy Stacy Callaghan.

Communities step up for parks

The Chambers of Commerce in Adin and Alturas presented the Modoc County Board of Supervisors with good budget news Tuesday, and that was a welcome change.
County Public Works Director Rick Hironymous told the Board its Parks, Recreation and Maintenance department had pretty much disappeared with the budget crisis.
The Chambers are coming to the rescue, however. The Alturas Chamber has assumed the responsibility for mowing and landscape maintenance at the Alturas Veterans Park and the Modoc Museum and the Adin Chamber is doing the same for the Adin Community Park. The cost to the county? Just the use of the county’s mowers and equipment.
The Modoc Museum is opening next month under an agreement with the county, River Center and Alturas Chamber who will share the space.
The Board also enthusiastically approved Eagle Scout candidate Taylor McPeek’s project to install new steps and a disabled person ramp to the rear of the Veteran’s Hall.

Obituaries:

Norma J. English
Norma J. English, 78, of Santa Maria, CA, passed away peacefully Sunday, April 25, 2010 in Santa Maria.
Arrangements are under the direction of Dudley-Hoffman Mortuary, Crematory and Memory Gardens, 805-922-8463

Sports

Fall River beats Braves in doublebill

The Fall River Bulldogs took a pair of Shasta Cascade League games from the Modoc Braves last Friday 7-0 and 9-5. Modoc faces Trinity here today and Burney here on Friday, game times at 2 p.m.
In the opener, the Bulldogs scored two in the first, two in the sixth and three in the seventh while allowing Modoc just five hits. Modoc batters struck out 10 times.
Brett Boudreaux got the loss for Modoc, going seven innings, allowing seven runs, 12 hits, struck out 12 and walked one. Jonathan Jones went 2-3 at the plate while Tee Wilson, Grady Server and Wyatt Valena each had one hit.
“It was a great game,” said coach Tim MacDonnell. “They just broke it open in the late innings. Brett pitched an outstanding game, we just couldn’t get the bats going to give him any support.”
In the second game, Fall River took a 2-1 first inning lead and went up 5-1 in the second. Modoc added one in the third and Fall River two in the fourth and two in the seventh. Modoc pushed across three runs in the seventh.
Tyler Kuhn got the loss, going all seven innings, allowing nine runs on 15 hits, walked seven and struck out five.
Webb Dunn led the offense, going 3-4, Austin Carreker was 2-3, Jalen Estes was 2-4 and Tyler Hammerness, Valena, Wilson, Server and Jones each had a hit.
“Fall River is a well-coached, solid team on both sides of the ball,” said MacDonnell. “There is a reason they’re on top of the league. But, both these games were closer than the scores show. Our guys battled right with them for most of the games. We played solid defense; we just need to do a better job of putting runs across the plate.”
The standings in the SCL are a follows: Fall River 7-1 (13-3), Mt. Shasta 7-1 (9-8); Tulelake 5-1 (13-5), Trinity 3-1 (7-11), Etna 2-4 (10-12), Modoc 2-4 (3-5), Weed 1-7 (5-12), Burney 1-9 (2-16).

Braves golf team sits in second place

The Modoc Braves golf team sits in second place in the Shasta Cascade League, behind unbeaten Weed.
On April 15, the team played at Mt. Shasta under cool and windy conditions, finishing second in both 9-hole matches and guaranteed themselves a second place finish in league with two matches remaining. The final league match has been moved to May 3 at Arrowhead.
“Although the conditions were tough, the kids played well at Mt. Shasta,” said coach Harold Montague. “Four of our team members played under 100. I’m looking forward to see how we play on our home course.”
Leading the way in Mt. Shasta was Drew Morgan who fired an 85, Bradley Widby shot 86, Alex McQuarrie 97, Matthew Weber 98, while Jonathan Morgan shot 102 and Alex Moreo 114.
On April 23, the Braves played a non-league match at the Running Y Resort in Klamath Falls against nine other teams and finished eighth. Teams scores were as follows: Weed 315, Klamath Union 319, Shasta 328, Pleasant Valley 331, Enterprise 337, Foothill 337, Henley 338, Madras 363, Modoc 368 and Lakeview 407.
Drew Morgan again topped the Braves with an 81, Widby shot 89, Moreo a 96, Weber, 102 and Jonathan Morgan 103.

Braves split with Fall River, host Wolves, Raiders

Modoc’s softball team split with the Fall River Bulldogs Friday 7-5 and 4-6 and will host Trinity here today and Burney here on Friday with games starting at 2 p.m.
In the opener against the Bulldogs, the Braves were down 5-0 in the fourth, but rallied late to win. In the fourth, Rochelle Keller started things off with a double and Laureen Summers and Sarah Mason were able to drive in three runs.
Modoc held Fall River scoreless and in the sixth Summers popped one over the fence to tie the game. Cheyenne King drove in two more runs in the sixth.
“The girls had a slow start with their bats, but turned it on in the middle of the game,” said coach Jodie Larranaga. “The played great defense and Telese Dowdy has been playing outstanding in centerfield.”
Summers went 2-3 in the game with the homer, Olivia Peters was 3-4, Monica Eppler 2-4 with a triple ad Keller was 2-4.
Ashlie Conner got the win for Modoc, with five strike outs, three walks and allowing 10 hits.
Fall River came back to win the second game 6-4. Keller started and allowed seven hits, two walks and struck out one. Conner relieved her in the top of the fourth, struck out one and allowed eight hits.
Larranaga said the team struggled on offense and made a couple of costly errors on defense in the game.
Peters went 4-4 in the game with a triple and a double, and Telese Dowdy was 3-4. Sarah Mason doubled.
“We just didn’t have any room for mistakes in that game,” she said. “Eppler played a great game at third and Peters made some outstanding plays,” she said. “It’s frustrating to see anyone beating this team because they’re so solid on defense. We are struggling at the plate and we’ll be working on that part of the game.”
The Shasta Cascade League standings are: Mt. Shasta 2-0 (16-2-1); Etna 5-1 (19-5); Fall River 6-2 (10-6); Burney 4-4 (5-12); Modoc 3-3 (5-3); Weed 1-3 (4-7); Trinity 1-5 (4-13); and Tulelake 0-4 (4-7).

May 6th, 2010

News

Modoc Medical Center reported a net profit of $63,903 for the month of April and for the year-to-date, since last June 30, it is $351,000 in the black.
Supervisor Dan Macsay reported the positive numbers at Tuesday’s Board meeting. He stressed that the hospital was going to have to continue in the black and be able to weather any ups and downs.
“I have stressed to the hospital administrator Bob Duncan that they need to be very serious about their performance,” Macsay said. “The county will not have the money to support them and cannot support them in the future. If they have a downturn, they are going to have to make some cuts to make ends meet. This next year is going to be tough. There is no money.”
The Board approved a two-month extension to Duncan’s contract as Interim Hospital Chief Executive Officer Tuesday, with Macsay voting against.

Obituaries:

Dee Monson

Dee Ann Monson of Alturas, was one of the American women iconically portrayed as Rosie the Riveter during World War II. Ms. Monson, an Alturas resident for many years, passed away March 19, 2010 in Reno, NV. She was 83.
Born Aldien Kneebone near Spencerville, CA on August 28, 1926, she was the daughter of James and Mary (Pisani) Kneebone.
A private memorial was held in Fallon, NV.
The Country Jam in Alturas will dedicate the Monday, May 10, 2010 evening to the Memory of Ms. Monson.
Memorial donations may be made to the High Plateau Humane Society, P.O. Box 1383, Alturas, CA 96101.
Condolences may be sent to Yvonne Foote care of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Fisk, 3995 Alcorn Rd., Fallon, NV 89406

Beatrice Spencer
Beatrice “Bea” Spencer, 92, of Alturas, passed away April 22, 2010 at Warnerview Convalescent Hospital in Alturas, where she had 21 years of seniority and was well liked as a resident.
Born Beatrice Whisnand on August 16, 1917 in Texas, she married Orvil Spencer in her homestate in June of 1937. The couple relocated to Lindsay, CA, then San Jose where they reared their children before moving to Clearlake Highlands J. Bingham, Moriyah Bingham and Kaylee Spencer, Salem, OR.
A family  memorial service will be held at time of inurnment at Rest Lawn Cemetery in Salem, Oregon.

Grady Hart

A graveside memorial service for Grady Hart, who passed away January 19, 2010, will be held on Saturday, May 15, 2010, at 2:00 p.m. The service will be held at the Lake City Cemetery, weather permitting, otherwise the service will be held at the Lake City Church.

Kenneth Gloster

Kenneth Michael Gloster was born in Klamath Falls, Oregon on July 20, 1946, and died at his home in Alturas, CA on April 19, 2010. He lived in Modoc his entire life and definitely loved the Modoc lifestyle; hunting, fishing, camping, riding motorcycles, quads and snowmobiles.  At his request, no services will be held.
Donations in his memory may by sent to the High Plateau Humane Society, P.O. Box 1383, Alturas, CA 96101.

Stuart Smith

Stuart Mitchell Smith passed away on April 9, 2010, at the family ranch in Grass Valley, California, at the age of 77.  Stu first came to Modoc in the late 1960’s, and remained a rancher here throughout the next two decades. 
A Memorial Service will be held on May 15 at Nevada County Fairgrounds at 2 p.m.

Sports

Modoc girls moving up in SCL

Modoc’s softball team is finding its legs and is moving up in the Shasta Cascade League race, winning four games last week. They may not be able to overtake formidable Fall River, Etna, and Mt. Shasta.
The Braves met Etna Tuesday and are at Weed May 7 to finish the regular season. Modoc lost the opening game to Etna 11-2, but came back in the top of the seventh to win the second game 4-3. No stats were available for the games and will be printed next week.
The standings for the SCL girls are as follows: Mt. Shasta 7-1, Etna 8-2, Fall River 9-3, Modoc 8-4, Burney 4-8, Weed 1-7, Trinity 1-7, and Tulelake 0-6.
On Friday the Braves beat Burney 9-2 and 9-4 in Alturas, under fairly nice skies. The day before, they beat Trinity here in an on-and-off spring blizzard.
In the opening game against Burney, Modoc scored one in the first and one in the third, but Burney tied it at 2-2 in the fourth. Modoc added a run and then scored six in the bottom of the sixth for the win.
Ashley Conner got the win, going seven innings, allowing two runs on four hits, struck out seven and walked a pair. Rochelle Keller was 3-4 batting, with Olivia Peters and Cheyenne King 2-4. Telese Dowdy, Monica Eppler, Conner and Courtney Knoch each had a hit.
Burney took a 1-0 lead in the first inning for the nightcap; but the Braves scored four in the second, two in the third to lead 6-1 and added three in the fourth. Burney scored one run in the fourth, fifth and seventh innings.
Conner pitched five innings, giving up three runs on five hits and Keller pitched two, allowing one run in two hits. Conner got the win.
Dowdy, Keller, Carly Potter and Peters each went 2-4 while Eppler, Conner and Dorothy Long each had one hit.
“The girls were much more aggressive at bat and we worked on some batting changes last week at practice and it paid off well,” said coach Jodie Larranaga. “We had no one strike out in this game. The girls are working very hard and take their games seriously. Ashley Conner pitched 26 innings for us in two days and never let up. Cheyenne King also caught 28 innings in those two days.”
Against Trinity in the opening game, the Braves took a 6-0 lead after three and added one in the fifth and sixth for eight while Trinity scored one in the fourth and three in the sixth for four.
Conner got the win, going seven innings, allowing four runs on two hits, walked three and fanned 10. Keller was 3-3 at the plate, with Eppler 2-4, Conner 2-3 and Peters 1-3.
Conner also pitched the second game shutout, going all seven, striking out eight, giving up five hits and walking three.
The Braves scored four in the first, four in the fifth and one in the sixth. Peters and Eppler went 3-4, Alyssa Axelrod was 2-3, Keller 2-2 and Dowdy had one hit.
“Despite playing in a snowstorm, the Braves played a no error defensive game,” said Larranaga. “The girls have been making great plays all year and Ashley Conner has been pitching so solid for us, allowing few hits and fanning many batters.

Braves take extra innings to drop Raiders

The Modoc Baseball team used a late inning comeback and one run in the ninth to beat the Burney Raiders 9-8 Friday in Alturas.
Modoc trailed 6-2 in the third and 8-3 in the fifth, but scored three in the sixth and tied the game at 8-8 with a two-run bottom of the seventh. Neither team scored in the eighth and Modoc pushed across the winning run in the ninth when Collyn Server doubled, Wyatt Valena bunted him to third and Webb Dunn lined a single up the middle for the win.
Brett Boudreaux tossed the entire nine for the Braves, getting the win. He allowed eight runs on 11 hits, fanned six and walked one.
Tyler Hammerness led the offense, going 3-4, while Boudreaux was 4-5, Webb Dunn 4-6, Wyatt Valena 2-4, Grady Server 2-5 and Jalen estates 2-5.
Modoc dropped the opening game of the doubleheader against Burney after taking a 3-0 through four. Burney scored six runs in the fifth and added one in the seventh to win 7-3.
Tyler Kuhn got the loss, going seven innings, allowing seven runs on 10 hits, walked a pair and struck out nine.
Hammerness went 3-4 at the plate with Dunn 2-2, Server 2-4, Tee Wilson, Jonathan Jones and Boudreaux each getting one hit.
The Braves dropped two games to Trinity here on Thursday, never in the first game. Trinity won the first game in five innings 10-0 and the second 14-6.
The Wolves scored two in the first, five in the second, one in the third and two in the fourth while blanking the Braves all five innings. Hammerness was on the mound for the game, allowing 10 runs, on sixth hits (three home runs), walked four and struck out nine.
Estes went 2-2 in the game, with Dunn, Grady Server Boudreaux and Hammerness each getting one hit.
The Braves opened the second game with a 2-0 lead in the first and held that lead through four. But Trinity scored nine runs in the fifth (four home runs) and added five in the seventh. Modoc scored two more in the fifth and sixth.
Valena went five innings, giving up nine runs on 10 hits (four home runs), walked one and struck out one. Drew Culp, who allowed five runs on eight hits, relieved him.
Boudreaux went 3-4 at the plate; Dunn, Austin Carreker, Wilson and Collyn server each tagged a hit.
Modoc lost two games at Etna Tuesday.
In the first game, Boudreaux got the loss, going three innings, allowing nine runs (three earned), on seven hits, struck out seven and walked one. Etna jumped up 3-1 in the first and led 9-1 in the third. Modoc added a run in the fourth and fifth.
Wilson went 2-4 at the plate with a double and Dunn also doubled.
In the nightcap, with a score looking more like football, Modoc lost 22-17. Etna had 22 hits in the game and Modoc had 17. Modoc committed just four errors and Etna three.
Kuhn got the loss, going three innings allowing 10 runs (seven earned) on 10 hits, walked two and struck out one. Etna was up 10-0 in the third inning, but Modoc scored nine in the fourth. The Lions came back with a five-run fourth, added three in the fifth and four in the sixth. Modoc scored five more in the fifth, two in the sixth and one in the seventh.
Leading hitters for Modoc were Dunn 4-5, Grady Server 2-3, Boudreaux 2-3, and Jones 2-3. Hammerness drove in three runs while Jones, Wilson, and G. Server each pushed across two.
Modoc will complete the season at Weed May 7.

Braves finish league season amid Arrowhead gales

“Monday’s match at Arrowhead was the most windy we have had to play in for several years,” said coach Harold Montague. “Scores were considerably higher for the majority of the competitors due to the difficult playing conditions.  Bradley Widby led all Modoc scorers.  Matt Weber and Alex McQuarrie turned in good scores despite the weather.”
Modoc finished the league season in second place behind Weed High School and now moves on to play at the Division II Championships in Chico (Butte Creek Golf and Country Club) on Tuesday, May 11 beginning at 1:00 p.m.  The top two teams and any individual scoring 79 or lower at this championship advance to the NSCIF Championship at Fall River Golf and Country Club on May 18th.
Drew Morgan earned an All-League selection and Bradley Widby received Honorable Mention for their efforts in league play.
The Modoc scores for the May 3 match were: Bradley Widby 90, Matt Weber 94, Drew Morgan 95, Alex McQuarrie 95, Jonathan Morgan 104, and Alex Moreo 113.
Weed’s top golfer Jake West led all scorers with a 71 and Robert West shot 87. Weed won the event with a score of 440 and Modoc came in at 478, Mt. Shasta shot 515, Trinity 525, and Fall River 563.

Tracksters do well at Burney Invite

Several Modoc High School track athletes did well at the May 3 Burney Invitational. Complete results will be published next week.
Ashley Hoy dominated by winning the girl’s varsity mile, 800 meters and discus. Chris McMaster won the boy’s shot put.
Zach Goulden won the junior varsity 100 and 200 meters. Daniel Martin won the mile and Landon Aarstad won the 400.

May 13, 2010

News

The Modoc Joint Unified School District Board of Trustees will be discussing and making decision on cuts to athletics at its May 25, 7:30 p.m. meeting.
Superintendent Lane Bates said the Board is looking for public input at that meeting and will be open to ideas and suggestions. He will be presenting recommendations aimed at cutting between $25,000 to $28,000 out of the district’s athletic budget. That amounts to about 20 percent.
Bates said there will be a variety of ideas, including cuts to the Modoc Middle School sports programs, cuts in the last sports offered including golf and cross country and deciding whether to offer all spring sports or cut out one or more.
Discussion will also include the cost of travel, what other schools in the league are doing and even a “pay to play” option.

Senior complex could be real boost to city

The Canyon Ridge Senior Housing complex proposed for Alturas could bring with it some serious benefit for the residents of Alturas as well as local government.
The project was on the City Council agenda last night after Record presstime for tentative site plan and tentative use permit approval.
Developer Melvin Morris, of Hawthorne, Ca. is proposing to build the 200-unit apartment complex on a 13.71-acre site located behind the U.S. Forest Service Building on 12th Street (SR299). It is designed to meet the needs of senior citizens both locally and regionally. It will provide subsidized rental units, based upon tenants’ income and circumstances and would remain senior housing for 30 years.
According to the plan, it will have 11 apartment buildings, a club house, manager’s residence, open space including gazebo, covered parking for 200 units, maintenance building, guest parking and covered trash enclosures.
The one and two bedroom apartments will average 600 to 800 square feet. The City is also requiring bus stops.
The project meets the land use designation and the zoning requirements. The City has also attached several mitigation measures on the project that will be the responsibility of the developer. If the City approves the tentative plans, the issue goes back to the developer for his acceptance or review.
While there is some minor opposition to the apartment complex brewing, most City officials feel the project would be beneficial.
“This is not a political issue, it’s a legal issue,” said Mayor John Dederick. “We can’t stop it if it’s done right, and that’s what we’re doing now, make sure it’s done right. I believe this project could be good for our seniors as well as the City.”

Obituaries:

Jerome Lange

On May 7, 2010, Jerome Milton Lange of Alturas went to be with the Lord.  He was born June 18, 1930 in Berkeley, California.  He is survived by his wife of nearly 55 years Marilyn Lange of Alturas; his son and daughter-in-law Edward and Michelle Lange of Colorado and their children, Bryce, Aimee and Eric; his daughter and son-in-law Marianne and Ken Kaufman of Alturas, CA and his son Mike Lange of Colorado.
A Celebration of Life service will be held at Christian Life Assembly Church, West B St., in Alturas, CA on Tuesday, May 25, 2010 at 11 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Mr. Lange’s memory may be made to any of the following: American Cancer Society, Bethany College Scholarship Fund through Christian Life Assembly, 225 West B. St., Alturas or to the Veterans Administration to help local veterans in Redding, Reno or Susanville.

Sumner Nash

Sumner Allan Nash passed away at the Surprise Valley Hospital in Cedarville, CA on April 29, following a battle with cancer. His wife Penny and three of his children were with him at the hospital in his last days, and all five of his children, his sister and numerous close friends were able to spend extended periods of time with him following his diagnosis in August 2009.
Sumner was born in Los Angeles on March 22, 1944, the son of Robert and Margaret White Nash. The family moved to nearby Sierra Madre where he was raised. After attending Pasadena High School, he enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps
A funeral will be held Saturday, May 15, 2010, at Lake City Cemetery near Cedarville. A memorial service will also take place on the Oregon Coast later in the year. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Access Adventure, P.O. Box 2852, Fairfield, CA 94533; www.access-adventure.org.

Esther E. Russell

The family of Esther Russell of Alturas, CA, formerly of Redding, a member of the McDaniel and Curl families, would like you to join them in celebrating Esther’s life this Saturday, May 15 at 1 p.m. at the American Legion Hall on Vallecito St. in Shasta Lake City. Esther was preceded in death by her husband Wayne, son Gordon, grandson Blake, one sister and two brothers.
She is survived by son Wayne and wife Marilyn Russell of Marysville, CA; six grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren, one great-great grandchild, three sisters, three brothers and numerous nieces and nephews. - Jan.3, 1928 – Dec. 23, 2009

Sports

Modoc softball plays way into the playoffs

Modoc’s softball team won seven of its last eight games, and worked themselves into a solid playoff spot.
Coach Jodie Larranaga said the girls really put the offense together in the last two weeks, having played solid defense all year long. The Braves’ pitching is strong with Ashley Conner doing the bulk of the work.
“We had the best defensive team in the league,” said Larranaga. “ I think if we could have been more solid at the plate no one would have beaten us. I’m very pleased with the season. We had a great season and are looking forward to the playoffs.”
Modoc completed the  regular season with a pair of wins at Weed Friday.
Modoc won the opening game 5-0, with Conner getting the win. She allowed five hits, no runs, struck out four and didn’t walk a batter. Rochelle Keller and Telese Dowdy each went 3-4 at the plate and Sarah Mason was 2-3.
Modoc won the nightcap 13-4 with Conner again getting the win. She allowed five hits, struck out three and didn’t walk anyone.
Olivia Peters led the offense going 4-5 with a double and triple, Keller went 3-5 with a double and triple, Dorothy Long was 2-3 and Amber Randall was 2-2. Cheyenne King, Randall and Mason had doubles.
“Our bats were much stronger in this game,” said Larranaga. “Monica Eppler had a very solid game at third, kicking down everything that came at her. We were able to get 15 girls in to see some playing time and they all did a good job.”
The Braves split with Etna last week, losing the first game 11-2 in what Larranaga called their “Bad News Bears” outing. “We couldn’t do much right this game,” she said. “We had several errors and struck out 11 times.
Conner got the loss, giving up 11 runs on seven hits, four walks and fanned five. Mason and Keller went 2-3 at the plate, with doubles and King had a triple.
The Braves came back to win a tight one 4-3 in the second game. Conner allowed just six hits, walked one and struck out four. Mason went 2-3 and Peters went 2-4. Peters had two doubles, King had one and Mason had one. Etna is the top ranked team in the division, and the Braves played a solid second game.
Modoc started with a two run first inning and led 2-0 through three. Etna’s top hitter popped one out of the park to score a pair in the fourth tying the game. The game was tied after six at 3-3. In the top of the seventh, Jodie Boudreaux singled and moved to second. Peters lined a base hit and scored Boudreaux. The Braves protected to 4-3 lead in the seventh by putting Etna down in the batters.
“I was so pleased the ladies came back so strong after our first game,” said Larranaga. “The dugout support was great. They played great softball and had fun. This was a big win for our girls in the division standings.”

Baseball ends season with Weed split

Modoc’s baseball team finished the season with a split in Weed Friday, losing the opening game 14-4 and winning the second 3-0.
The Braves wound up with a 4-10 Shasta Cascade League record was 5-11 overall. The SCL standings are: Fall River 11-3 (18-5), Tulelake 9-3 (17-70), Trinity 9-3 (13-13), Mt. Shasta 8-6 (10-13), Etna 6-6 (14-14), Modoc 4-10 (5-11), Weed 3-9 (7-14), Burney 2-12 (3-19).
In the opening game against Weed, the Cougars jumped up 4-1 in the fourth and Modoc cut it to 4-3 in the fifth. Weed added three in the bottom of the fifth and seven in the bottom of the sixth. Modoc added one in the sixth.
Tyler Hammerness went 3.1 innings. He allowed nine runs on seven hits, walked one, and struck out three. Brett Boudreaux tossed two innings, giving up two runs on two hits, walked one and struck out two.
Hammerness, Webb Dunn, Jalen Estes and Austin Carreker each had two hits while Wyatt Valena and Tee Wilson each had one.
Tyler Kuhn tossed a one-hit shut out to give the Braves the second game 3-0. He went all seven innings, allowed one walk and struck out nine.
“Kuhn was dominant throwing a one-hit shout-out,” said coach Tim MacDonnell. “We played some great defense behind him. Dunn made some outstanding plays in centerfield.”
Collyn Server went 3-3 at the plate while Boudreaux and Dunn were 2-3. Hammerness, Wilson, Estes and Patrick Danley each had one hit.
The Braves do not have a senior on the team and should be stronger next season.

Morgan ties for first at Division II

Modoc’s Drew Morgan shot a blistering 80 at the Division II Golf Championships at Butte Creek Golf and Country Club in Chico, tying rival Jake West of Weed who led the league all year.
Bradley Widby shot his best score of the year, an 82, and Jonathan Morgan also had his best day with an 86. Weed won the tournament shooting 441 while Modoc was second at 440.
Modoc’s Matthew Weber shot 101, Alex Moreo shot 101, and Alex McQuarrie shot 116.
Both teams will now play in the North Section Championships in Fall River May 18.

Modoc track heads to SCL meet

Modoc’s track team will compete in the Shasta Cascade League championships May 14 at College of the Siskiyous in Weed.
The following are the results from the Burney Invitational.
In the varsity girls division, Ashley Hoy dominated by winning the 800 in 2:23.07, the 1600 in 6:04.66 and the discus at 85-4.5. Celeste Yamagiwa was second in the 100 hurdles at 20.70 and fourth in the 300 hurdles at 1:01.77. Courtney Yamagiwa was third in the 300 hurdles at 1:01.03 and in the 400 at 1:15.75. Lisa Orsbun placed third in the 100 at 15.53, in the 200 at 33.34 and in the shot at 24-01.5.
For the varsity boys, Chris McMaster won the shot at 37-09.75 and was fourth in the discus at 99-0. John Beck was third in the shot at 36-04.5. Willie Hamann took fourth in the 1600 at 5:35.19 and sixth in the high jump at 4-8. Nick McMaster was sixth in the discus at 82-03.
Zach Goulden led the junior varsity boys by winning the 100 in 11.9, the 200 in 24.86, placing second in the long jump at 17-09 and third in the triple jump at 31-06. Daniel Martin won the 3200 in 12:35 and was fourth in the 1600 at 5:47.16. Landon Aarstad won the 400 in 1:01.45, was second in the 800 at 2:23.27 and fourth in the 200 at 26.32. Jeff Larson placed sixth in the 1600 at 6:00.66. Cam Anderson was second in the 300 hurdles in 50.04, third in the 110 hurdles at 20.20 and third in the high jump at 5-04. Cory West placed firth in the 110 hurdles at 20.56 and Brandon Bains was sixth at 22.61. Bains was third in the 300 hurdles at 50.91. Jermey Brandstead was second in the shot at 38-08 and in the discus at 100-10.

May 20 , 2010

News

The Alturas City Fire Department’s recently acquired 75 foot ladder truck was purchased from the Dulles Airport in Virginia. The purchase of this vehicle had been authorized at the City Council meeting of February 9, 2010.
The lack of an aerial ladder truck was noted in the last Insurance Services Office (ISO) audit. The ISO rates fire departments based on equipment, response time, jurisdictional building characteristics and several other criteria. The Alturas City Fire Department currently has a rating of four, which is considered excellent for a volunteer fire department. By putting this ladder company into service the fire department will gain enough points to continue the four rating well into the future. Without this aerial device, the fire department rating was in extreme danger of dropping to a five which could cause as much as a 20 percent increase in homeowner insurance rates.

Plumas Bank restructures to reduce expenses

In an effort to improve financial results that have deteriorated over the last several years, Plumas Bank has implemented a bank-wide reorganization.
The restructuring includes reductions in staffing levels by 10 percent through retirements, attrition, and voluntary and involuntary layoffs.  Each of Plumas Bank’s six county service areas was affected.
These changes, in addition to a variety of other cost cutting measures, will result in expense reductions in excess of $1 million in 2010 and will help return the bank to a position of strength and profitability. 
Andrew Ryback, interim president and chief executive officer remarked, “These are challenging times for all of us.  Nevertheless, management remains confident that with our sustained focus, commitment, and action, the bank will continue to move toward a return to financial strength to grow and thrive in the post-recessionary environment for the benefit of our customers, employees and shareholders alike.”

Obituaries:

Edward A. ‘Ed’ Staub

Edward Allen Staub, 75, of Alturas, Alturas businessman and founder of Ed Staub and Sons, passed away after a valiant battle, on May 19, 2010 in Lakeview, OR. Services were pending at presstime, but the family expects to hold services Faith Baptist Church in Alturas next week. For service update, time and date, please call the recorded message at the church at 530-233-2015. Mr. Staub’s obituary will be published soon

Gwen Hoskins

Alturas resident Gwen Hoskins passed away May 17, 2010, here in Alturas. Private family services will be held. The Record will publish Mrs. Hoskins’ obituary in a future issue. Arrangements are with Kerr Mortuary.

Bill Busch memorial

A memorial barbecue will be held in memory of Bill Busch on May 29 at 1 p.m. Turn east at the Likely Saloon, drive 6.2 miles, road is on the right. It will be marked with a sign.
Please join us for good food and bad stories about Bill. Meat will be provided. Please bring your own chairs. Call Johnnie, 708-1469 or 233-2382 for information or questions.

Jerome Lange

A Celebration of Life service for Jerome Milton Lange of Alturas will be held at Christian Life Assembly Church, West B St., in Alturas, CA on Tuesday, May 25 at 11 a.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Mr. Lange’s memory may be made to any of the following: American Cancer Society, Bethany College Scholarship Fund through Christian Life Assembly, 225 West B. St., Alturas or to the Veterans Administration to help local veterans in Redding, Reno or Susanville.
Mr. Lange is survived by his wife of nearly 55 years Marilyn Lange of Alturas; his son and daughter-in-law Edward and Michelle Lange of Colorado and their children, Bryce, Aimee and Eric; his daughter and son-in-law Marianne and Ken Kaufman of Alturas, CA and his son Mike Lange of Colorado. In addition he is survived by his niece Peggy Metcalf and nephews Jamie and Michael Metcalf, as well numerous other family members in California, Oregon, Washington, Montana and Nebraska.

Robert A. Barclay

A memorial Celebration of Life for Robert A. Barclay, a retired Modoc Superior Court Judge, will be held in Alturas on Saturday, May 29 at 2:00 p.m. at the Federated Community Church, 307 East First St., Alturas, CA. He passed away April 7, 2010.

Sports

Drew Morgan heads to NorCal tourney

Modoc’s Drew Morgan shot a 77 during the Tuesday North Section championship match at Fall River and advances to the NorCal Championships at Diablo Grad Resort Golf Club in Patterson, Monday.
Morgan is only the second players in Modoc golf history to advance to the NorCals, the other being Jeff Solomon in 2009.
“Drew played very well Tuesday under difficult playing conditions,” said coach Harold Montague. “He has been playing well of late and is peaking at the right time. This is a great accomplishment for Drew and the Modoc Golf team. Drew has worked very hard to achieve this honor and I am very pleased to see all of his hard work and dedication rewarded in this manner.”
Morgan will be competing against 96 golfers, and the top six individuals will advance to State Championships on June 8.
Weed’s Jake West was the top finisher at Fall River shooting a 70. With Pleasant Valley’s Jessie Stephens shooting 76 and Morgan third at 77. Weed High School won the team competition.
Other scores were Modoc were: Jonathan Morgan 91, Bradley Widby 94, Matt Weber 98, Alex Moreo 106 and Alex McQuarrie 112.

Braves fall to East Nic in playoffs

Modoc’s Braves fell to the East Nicolaus Spartans, 6-0, in the second round of the North Section Softball Playoffs Tuesday at East Nicolaus.
Modoc got a bye in the first round when Los Molinos dropped out and that put them in the second round against the number two ranked Spartans.
The Braves collected only four hits while striking out 12 times in the game. Losing pitcher Ashley Conner pitched a solid game, but allowed 11 hits while striking out seven and walking one.
“We were not outmatched at all,” said coach Jodie Larranaga. “ We had four innings of a 0-0 ballgame. We just didn’t play our regular game. In the fourth inning, our errors allowed East Nicolaus to get three runs and three more in the sixth. We had five errors in our infield, which is something we haven’t seen all year. We were nervous at the plate.”
Getting one hit each for Modoc were Cheyenne King, Olivia Peters, Telese Dowdy and Courtney Knoch.
“Of course, I wish we would have came out and played our usual game, but you just have those days. Overall, I’m so pleased with the girls’ season. They were a terrific group of girls and I look for them to be very solid next year.”
Modoc loses seniors Carly Potter, Lareen Summers, Amber Randall and Deonna Garcia.

Hoy wins SCL mile for Modoc

Modoc freshman Ashley Hoy ran a 5:55.2 to win the varsity girls 1600 at the Shasta Cascade League meet in Weed May 14. She was the only varsity athlete to win an event.
The Braves junior varsity boys team ran away with the title with 162 points, compared to second place Mt. Shasta’s 90.
Leading the junior varsity boys was Zach Goulden and Landon Aarstad. Goulden won the 100 meters in 12.0 and the 200 meters in 24.17. He was on the wining 4x400 meter relay with Aarstad, Brandon Bains and Cam Anderson. Aarstad also won the 400 meters in 57.09, the 800 meters in 2:18.58. Goulden also took third in the long jump at 18-5.25.
Other junior varsity boy’s champs were: Anderson in the 300 hurdles at 46.64, Jermey Brandstead in the discus at 93-09, and Daniel Martin in the 3200 at 12:05.94.
The other place finishers by event in the JV boys division were: 400 meters, Taylor McPeek, 5th, 1:16.45; 1600 meters, Martin 3rd, 5:29.59, Jeff Larson, 6th, 5:39.22; 110 hurdles, Corey west, 2nd, 19.05, Anderson 3rd, 19.77, Brandon Bains 4th, 21.09; 300 hurdles, Bains 2nd, 47.38, West, 3rd, 49.96; high jump, Anderson, 2nd, 5-6; long jump Bains, 4th, 16-10.5; triple jump Martin 4th, 28-09.
Leading the boy’s varsity was Chris McMaster who placed second in the shot put at 39-017 and fifth in the discus at 99-08. John Beck was fifth in the shot at 38-02.5 and sixth in the discus at 94-10.
Jordan Nolan placed third in the 400 for the varsity girls at 1:08.81, third in the long jump at 11-11.25 and fourth in the 200 at 32.90. Hoy was third in the discus at 79-0. Lisa Orsbun was sixth in the 100 at 15.87, fifth in the 200 at 33.27, and fifth in the shot at 24-07.25. Celeste Yamagiwa placed fifth in the 300 hurdles at 1:02.28 and seventh in the 100 hurdles at 20.92.
For the JV girls, Courtney Yamagiwa placed third in the 400 meters in 1:15.04, the 300 hurdles in 1:02.28

MMA starts racing this weekend

The Modoc Motorsports Association opens the 2010 Summer Series racing season in Cedarville May 22-23.
There are eight series races on tap, with the rest scheduled as follows: June 26-27; August 28-29; and September 18-19. All the races are at the Modoc County Fairgrounds track in Cedarville.
Sign-ups on each race day are at 7 a.m. with practice starting around 8 a.m. For more information on the races or MMA, contact Pat Reese at 708-0116 or Debbie Bagwell at 233-2750; or check out the website at: modocmotorsports.com.

May 27th, 2010

News

Campgrounds across the Forest are scheduled to open for Memorial Day Weekend except for those in the Medicine Lake area due to late, heavy snow.
The recent warm weather has melted the snow in the higher elevations of the Warner Mountain, Devil’s Garden and Big Valley Ranger Districts and the campgrounds are now accessible to vehicle traffic. Changes in weather conditions may cause some of the remote campgrounds to become inaccessible. Please use caution as roads are still soft and vehicles pulling trailers may be difficult to maneuver or create resource damage.
Blue Lake, Mill Creek, Soup Springs, and Howard’s Gulch campgrounds have potable water available and fees are $6.00 to $7.00 per night. 
For more information on recreation and current road conditions, please call any of the following Forest offices:
Supervisor’s Office, 233-5811
Warner Mountain Ranger District, 279-6116
Big Valley Ranger District, 299-3215
Doublehead Ranger District, 667-2246

Obituaries:

Evelina Lawrence

Evelina B. Lawrence, a renown artist who successfully took up her artistic expression later in life, passed away May 15, 2010, at Sky Lakes Medical Center in Klamath Falls, OR. She was 93. Mrs. Lawrence was a dearly loved resident of California Pines.
Born Evelina Baldwin on December 29, 1916, she grew up on the family’s ancestral farm in Kennetit Square, Pennsylvania during the 1920s. The ancestral home and property was deeded to Evelina’s ancestors by William Penn in the 1600s.
Family and friends will gather for a celebration of life party, tentatively set for mid-June at the California Pines Lodge.

Gwen Hoskins

Gwen Hoskins passed away unexpectedly on May 17, 2010. A private family service will be held on Friday, May 29th.
Gwen was born on June 18, 1925 in Fostoria, Iowa to William and Bernise Terry.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations be made to the charity of choice.

Olsen Memorial
A memorial service for Veronica Olsen, long time resident of the Madeline Plains and former Alturas teacher, will be held Wednesday, June 16, 11 a.m. at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 815 High Street, Klamath Falls, OR. Burial will follow at Mount Calvary.

Broadhurst Memorial
A memorial service for Dixie Leah Broadhurst will be held graveside at the Lookout Cemetery on Saturday, May 29, 2010 at 2 p.m. Dixie passed away peacefully at her home in Alturas on Saturday, January 9, 2010.

Robert Barclay

A memorial Celebration of Life for Robert A. Barclay, a retired Modoc Superior Court Judge, will be held in Alturas on Saturday, May 29 at 2:00 p.m. at the Federated Community Church, 307 East First St., Alturas, CA. He passed away April 7, 2010.
Bob is survived by his loving wife, Norene of Hilmar, CA; and nine children: Fritz (Joan), Alturas, CA; Joan (Pete), Redding, CA.; Mary (Joel) Sonoma, CA; Lori (J.T.), Redding, CA; Suzy (Rick) Cool, CA.; Michael (Debra) Incline Village, NV; Patti, Pittsburg, CA; Peggy (Steve), Merced, CA; and, David (Sue) Manteca, CA; 11 grandchildrenfive great-grandchildren: one great-great-grandchild: Neptune Carter; Dee Barclay, Napa, Ca., mother of Bob’s four children, Fritz, Joan, Mary and Lori; five sisters:  Shirley Rude, El Dorado Hills, CA.; Joanne Malmberg, Oakes, ND; Barbara Kronaizl, Vermillion, SD; MaryBeth Barclay, Portland, OR; and Susan Barclay, Minneapolis, MN; and many special nieces, nephews.

Sports

 

Morgan shoots 83 at NorCal

Modoc’s Drew Morgan shot an 83 at the CIF NorCal Golf Regionals last weekend. He did not qualify to advance to the state finals. Morgan was only the second Modoc golfer to qualify for the regionals.
“Drew struggled having difficulty settling into a consistent swing and left himself with difficult approach shots to the green,” said coach Harold Montague.  “I know he was disappointed in how he played, but he had a great season nonetheless and made a valiant effort at the NorCal Championship on a day when he didn’t have his best game.”
Alex Franklin of San Rafael was the top qualifier, shooting a 65 and 69 was the cut off for state.

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Hoy moves on to large schools

Modoc’s Ashley Hoy won the North Section Small School’s mile in 5:59.21, qualifying for the large school finals in West Valley this weekend. Second place’s Kerstin Bree of Mt. Shasta, clocked 6:20.67.
Hoy is the only Modoc runner to qualify for the full North Section meet.
Modoc’s junior varsity boys won the small schools title with 145 points, compared to East Nicolaus’ 70.
Landon Aarstad won the 400 in 58.39 and the 800 in 2:22.77 for the JVs. Zach Goulden won the 200 in 24.61, the long jump at 18-10.25 and was second in the 100 at 11.94.
Cam Anderson won the 100 hurdles in 18.19 and the 300 hurdles in 46.81. He was second in the high jump at 5-4. Daniel Martin won the 3200 meters in 11:48.28, was third in the 1600 meters in 5:27.04 and was fourth in the triple jump at 27-11.
Brandon Bains was second in the 300 hurdles at 47.50, with Corey West fourth at 51.74. West was sixth in the 110 hurdles in 21.06. Jermey Brandstead was second in the shot at 38-10.5 and in the discus at 90-02.
In the varsity boys division, Chris McMaster was second in the shot at 40-01.
For the varsity girls, Hoy was third in the discus at 82-10 and Jordan Nolan was seventh in the long jump at 11-06.
The junior varsity girls were led by Courtney Yamagiwa who won the 300 hurdles in 57.96, was second in the 100 hurdles at 19.64 and was third in the 400 at 1:15.93