apr 22 concord pioneer 2016
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Guy Bjerke didn’t think itwould happen like this. Whenhe was hired on as Concord’sDirector of Community ReusePlanning, he was just weeksaway from taking over the reinsfrom Michael Wright, who wasfinishing up the Master Devel-oper process for the city’sGolden Egg, the ConcordNaval Weapons Station. Thestaff had identified a clearleader — Catellus Corp. — ofthe two candidates, and the citycouncil, in closed session, hadagreed with the staff makingthat recommendation.
But now, more than sixmonths later, there is still nomaster developer, the recom-mended developer is no longerin the picture, and the remainingcandidate, Lennar Urban, is stillfacing tough negotiations withthe city to come up with a termsheet that will allow the city todevelop what council memberDan Helix calls ”a gold mine.”
“No, this has not gone atall like I expected,” Bjerkesaid. “But I’ve taken enoughbullets in my lifetime,” saidthe former Concord mayor.“I can handle it.”
The Catellus departure was asurprise for many in the city,who say that company’s termsheet was far superior to
Lennar’s. Some say Catelluswalked away, others say theywere pushed by a sense that theywanted a vote of confidencefrom the city.
Catellus and the City couldnot come to an agreement on alast-minute change in their termsheet that would have put thecity at risk, Bjerke said. Thecompany had asked that, ifselected, the City would reim-burse the company’s additional$350,000 deposit if it didn’tapprove a final contract withCatellus or reach an agreementwith the Navy. Catellus alsowanted to begin accruing fees 60days after its selection as masterdeveloper, which the city wouldpay in full if the contract werenever finalized.
Bjerke said those changeswould have shifted up to$700,000 in financial risk fromCatellus to Concord and was notfinancially prudent for Concord.They recommended that thecouncil reject the company’srequest and refund the $250,000deposit.
Despite Helix’s plea that thecity keep Catellus in the running,Mayor Laura Hoffmeister andCouncil member Edi Birsanagreed with Bjerke, and reim-bursed Catellus the deposit.Council member Tim Graysonhas recused himself from themaster developer section, andcouncil member Ron Leonelives too close to the reuse proj-
ect that it would be a conflict ofinterest for him to vote on thematter, according to state law.
“In my view, it was a mutualparting of the ways” Bjerke saidof Catellus’ departure.
But it seems ironic that now
the city is holding up the Catellusterm sheet as the one Lennarshould emulate.
BACK TO THE TABLEOn April 13, the city council
directed the staff working on the
CNWS to keep negotiating withLennar to work out a series ofconcerns they had on the termsheet, including funds foraffordable housing, off-siteroadway improvements, use ofbinding arbitration, the right to
develop future phases of theproject, and the firm’s use of alimited liability corporationstructure.
They also agreed to add in
Editor’s Note: This is the first ina three-part series on rental and hous-ing issues in Concord. Next up: Thepush for rent controls.
Steven Scott has been keep-ing his eye on the Concord realestate market ever since he andhusband Pat Hardy moved fromBoston a year ago.
They knew they wanted tobuy a home here. The weather,amenities, restaurants, BaldwinDog Park and the cute down-town around Todos SantosPlaza were all big draws, as wellas the proximity to BART. Prob-lem was, they weren’t the onlyones.
They bid on and lost threehouses in a highly competitivemarket, finding their new SunTerrace home only after the firstbuyer dropped out. “We came in
at the right moment,” he says.“We lucked out.”
Concord houses are beingsnatched off the market at arecord pace. “It’s hot right
now,” Scott says.But if it’s hot for buyers,
it’s blistering for those seek-ing rentals in Contra Costa’slargest city, city leaders and
real estate agents say.“We just don’t have a lot of
inventory, as we are built out,”says Concord City CouncilmanDan Helix. “Besides the promiseof the Concord Naval WeaponsStation development, we arenow looking at small islands, orinfills, on which to build.”
He remembers a very differ-ent time in the early 1970s when
See JetSuiteX, page 5
See CNWS, page 4
See Housing, page 2
The City Council held aworkshop a few Saturdays agoto take a close look at the pre-liminary Capital Budget. Notsurprisingly, we learned wehave far more capital needsthan the resources to meetthem. So that’s our challengegoing forward.
In past years, the CityCouncil passed both the Oper-ational Budget and the CapitalBudget in June, before the startof our fiscal year on July 1.Last year, we started a two-year
IT’S YOUR PAPERwww.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016 925.672.0500
Maintaininginfrastructure keygoal for city
See Mayor, page 6
insideCalendar . . . . . . . . . . . .21Community . . . . . . . . . . .3From the desk of . . . . . .6School News . . . . . . . .14Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10Performing Arts . . . . . .20
LAuRA hoffmeiSTeR
mayoR
From the desk of...
Farmers’ Market Savings Book
Inside
JetSuiteX begins commercial flightsto Burbank, Vegas from Buchanan
Scheduled charterspromise easefor travelers
Contra Costa County is tak-ing off, quite literally, as a newcharter jet service is roaring tolife at Concord’s BuchananField.
JetSuiteX, a new venturefrom private jet company Jet-Suite, launched their first flightsfrom Concord to Burbank earli-er this week. They will offerround-trips up to three timesdaily, as well as a weekend jauntto Las Vegas.
“This is a long overdue serv-ice to the community,” saidSupervisor Karen Mitchoff,who helped broker the dealwhen JetSuiteX approached thecounty in February.
“They said they wanted tolaunch in April, and I was
PhoTo CouRTeSy of JeTSuiTeX
a new company, JetsuiteX, launched its inauguRal flights fRom concoRd’s Buchanan field this week, with flights between the east Bay and Burbank, CA. There will also be a weekend flight to and from Las Vegas. The company hopes to tap into the dense business traveler population in central Contra Costa County.
Tamara Steiner/Concord Pioneer
Rents aRe Rising so quickly in concoRd that some landlords don’t even bother to changethe signs—just the amount, as seen here on this apartment building on Robin Lane.
Hot market keeps renters on edge
PEGGY SPEARConcord Pioneer
PEGGY SPEARConcord Pioneer
PEGGY SPEARConcord Pioneer
City, Lennar continue CNWS Master Developer talks
he served on the council. Developers would complain:“We don’t have enough lots.”
The council would approvenew building—without discus-sion, environmental reports orany other zoning issues, Helixsays. “Subdivisions were spring-ing up like wildflowers.”
UNUSUALLY HIGHPRICE JUMPS
With 32 years in the realestate business, Rob Baldwin ofCentury 21 and Baldwin Proper-ty Management has seen a lot of“ups and downs” in the localmarket. But today’s hot realestate market is unprecedented.
“Usually it’s a cycle,” he says.“You have people buying, thenthe prices go up, so there are
more rentals. That pushes homeprices lower, so people start buy-ing again.”
With banks tightening bor-rowing restrictions since theGreat Recession, he sees muchmore demand for rentals, fromyoung people to families. Focus-ing on single-family homes,townhouses and condos, he hasseen a huge leap in rental pricesin just the past year.
From Jan. 1 to April 1 2015,in Central Contra Costa County—Concord, Clayton, PleasantHill, Martinez and Walnut Creek—the average rental on a homewas $2,500. The lowest pricepoint registered with the ContraCosta Association of Realtorswas $1,350.
Just one year later, the aver-
age price of a rental is $2,784,with a median price of $2,650.
“And this is our slow sea-son,” Baldwin says. “Spring andsummer are usually much busierin the real estate business. Andwhile we’ll see inventory go up,we’ll see prices go up as well.”
He has a client who lived onArizona Drive in Concord, nearthe Clayton border, who hadbeen renting out her three-bed-room, two-bath 1,123 sq. ft.home for $1,700 a month. Afterher tenants moved out, she rent-ed it again for $2,300 a month.
“She could have got a lotmore, but she didn’t want togouge the renters,” he says.
INVESTIGATINGRENTAL HIKES
Inventory for rentals isextremely low. In the five citiesBaldwin looked at, there were
just 16 rental properties avail-able. In Concord, there wereonly four. Of course, manyrenters prefer to rent theirproperties via Craig’s List orother online sources.
He says that in the time hestated, the lowest rental was atwo-bedroom, two-bath condoon Kirker Pass Road thatended up renting for $1,750per month.
“It was only 833 sq. ft.,”he says. “A garage is about400 sq. ft.”
He didn’t even look at theapartment rental market, whichhas come under fire recently bylocal civic activists who areseeing low-income apartmentrental rates skyrocket.
Concord city staff is look-ing into these rental hikes, andHelix says that some type ofrent control may be needed.
“We’d need to look at andunderstand all the ramifica-tions,” he says.
“But that’s why it’s soimportant to get the rightdeveloper and developmentplans on track at the ConcordNaval Weapons Station,” headds. “We need affordablehousing mixed in with theother housing—not all high-priced homes in one place,and a low-income ‘ghetto’ inanother.”
He is a proponent of build-ing multi-housing units clus-tered around transit, wherepeople don’t necessarily need acar to get around.
Baldwin estimates thatprices may start going downafter the presidential election.“It’s a usual cycle,” he says.“But in this market, whoknows?”
Page 2 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016
camp concordneeds volunteers
Volunteer for a SpringWork Weekend at CampConcord in South LakeTahoe on may 6-8.meals and lodging forthe weekend are pro-vided. Work weekendconsists of organizing,cleaning, raking andhelping with cabin im-provements. The wholefamily is welcome. Campstaff will be onsite offer-ing activities for children.To register, contact CampDirector, Laura Bryan [email protected] or call (925)671-3006.
kops for kidsfundraiser
Run, Walk or Roll nextSaturday with ContraCosta Kops for Kids.
The 10K, 5K and 1-mile races on April 30start and end at the LazyDog Restaurant in theWillows Shopping Centerin Concord.
entry fee includes a T-shirt, goody bag, foodand drink and thechance to win prizes.Race entry fee begins at$25. Wheelchairs, handbikes, strollers and well-behaved dogs on leashesare welcome. Races startat 8 a.m. The event ben-efits Kops for Kids, anon-profit organizationof active and retiredpeace officers who men-tor at-risk teens.
The Willows is at1975 Diamond Blvd.,Concord. Register at con-tracostakopsforkids.org.for more info, call (925)827-1998.
In Brief...
continued next page
Housing, from page 1
1831 Elkwood Dr . . . . . . . . . $527,000 . . . . .1681 . . . . . .4/2 . . . . . . .3/23/161418 Indian Ln . . . . . . . . . . . $304,055 . . . . .966 . . . . . . .2/2 . . . . . . .3/18/161560 Talisman Wy . . . . . . . . $583,000 . . . . .2141 . . . . . .3/2 . . . . . . .3/17/164413 Arrowwood Ct . . . . . . . $616,250 . . . . .2130 . . . . . .4/2.5 . . . . .3/17/161426 Rosal Ln . . . . . . . . . . . $425,000 . . . . .805 . . . . . . .2/1 . . . . . . .3/16/162148 Bluerock Cir . . . . . . . . $580,000 . . . . .1572 . . . . . .3/2 . . . . . . .3/16/16
3042 Santa Paula Dr . . . . . . $715,000 . . . . .1459 . . . . . .3/2 . . . . . . . .4/8/161586 Placer Dr . . . . . . . . . . . $460,000 . . . . .2069 . . . . . .5/3 . . . . . . . .4/6/163155 Ameno Rd . . . . . . . . . . $435,000 . . . . .1088 . . . . . .3/2 . . . . . . . .4/5/16825 Oak Grove Rd #90 . . . . $410,000 . . . . .1447 . . . . . .3/2 . . . . . . . .4/1/165491 Florida Dr . . . . . . . . . . $575,000 . . . . .1232 . . . . . .3/2 . . . . . . .3/31/163733 Northridge Dr . . . . . . . $840,000 . . . . .2453 . . . . . .4/2.5 . . . . .3/28/162827 Monument Blvd #1 . . . $193,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1/1 . . . . . . .3/25/16
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Don HowardRealtor-Associate, Clayton Resident
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Diane and Bill HayesRealtor-Associate, Clayton Residents,
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SOLDSOLD
City objects to proposed restricted accessto Express Lanes from Hwy 242 to WC
Concord city officials don’tlike the proposed restrictions ona new Express Lane on Inter-state 680.
In a letter to the ContraCosta Transportation Authority,Concord city manager ValerieBarone questioned the installa-tion of a buffer zone that wouldrestrict access to the I-680Express Lane from Highway242 in Concord to North MainStreet in Walnut Creek.
Barone also asked the CCTAto consider ramp metering onHighways 4 and 242, suggestingthis would be a cost-effectiveway to smooth traffic flow dur-ing morning commute hours.
In response, CCTA execu-tive director Randy Iwasaki
assured the city the buffer zonewas the result of “significantstudy and discussions with Cal-trans and the MetropolitanTransportation Commission.”
“It was determined that abuffer zone should be includedbetween the I-680/(SR-4) inter-change and the I-680/NorthMain off-ramp to ensure theoverall system provides a safeand reliable travel experience forall users,” he said.
Iwasaki cited the difficultiesof safely merging vehicles from242 across multiple lanes of traf-fic on 680 in order to reach theHigh-Occupancy Vehicle/Express Lane (HOV/EL).
He said officials consideredramp metering, but it was ruledout in the detailed traffic model-ing studies. “Ramp meteringwould not make a difference
unless the SR-242 connector toI-680 was metered … during thepeak travel hours, essentially thesame number of vehicles enterthe SR-242 and I-680 merge,regardless of whether or notupstream ramp metering is usedfor individual onramps,” Iwasakitold the city.
The plan is part of the devel-opment of a 550-mile networkof Bay Area Express Lanes thatare free for carpools, buses,motorcycles and other eligiblevehicles. Solo motorists whochoose to pay a toll can also useExpress Lanes. The buffer isdesignated by a double whitestripe, which is illegal to cross.
The sheer number ofonramps in a relatively short dis-tance is another reason CCTAchose the buffer. In addition to242, traffic enters I-680 on Mon-
ument Boulevard and ContraCosta Boulevard in rapid succes-sion before vehicles will be ableto enter the HOV/EL at NorthMain.
“Concord is the largest cityin Contra Costa County,” saysConcord Vice Mayor RonLeone. “I don’t understand whythey’re denying access fromConcord and East County.”
Leone spoke against the bar-rier at a CCTA meeting lastmonth. He says the merge is notdangerous during the morningcommute, since traffic is movingso slowly. He disputed CCTAstaff who said it is not safe forHighway 242 drivers to weaveinto the express lane.
“All drivers have to weave toget to any HOV or ExpressLane,” Leone wrote in a columnfor the Pioneer. “They said this
situation is different because ofwhere they plan to place the bar-riers. I said, ‘Then don’t put upthe barriers there.’ ”
Leone noted that sinceCCTA isn’t placing any barriersfrom the Benicia Bridge untilHighway 242, they should elimi-nate the barrier until after Wal-nut Creek. “That would be moreequitable and help traffic flowbetter.”
Iwasaki’s suggests that EastCounty and Concord drivers useHighway 4 to enter 680, enablingthem to enter the HOV/EL atthat interchange. However, thiscould create an additional logjamon an already overused and anti-quated cloverleaf, Leone said.
Motorists can also access theHOV/EL from I-680 at Con-cord Avenue or Willow PassRoad in Concord.
JOHN T. MILLER
Correspondent
The Soroptimists of Dia-blo Vista celebrated thisyear’s Women of Distinctionlast month at the ContraCosta Country Club.
Emma Walsh received theViolet Richardson award forher non-profit Holding
Hearts, which improves thelives of children here andabroad through monetarydonations, supplies or activi-ties. Her first project was aschool supplies drive for aschool on Little Corn Island,Nicaragua, that she had visit-ed with her family. Locally,she organized and ran aValentine’s Day party at Mon-ument Crisis Center and hasprovided shoes for 60 low-income children in the Con-cord area.
Tatiana Vinzant, the MarieBroman award winner, is asingle mom attending DiabloValley College. She plans tobecome a preschool teacherand eventually open her ownday-care. She wants to helpother women so they canhave a safe, happy place fortheir children to learn. “Chil-dren are a constant rock inmy life,” Vinzant says. “I’vealways been around them andI see the effect I have onthem. I can give them thatspark that learning is fun.”
The Live Your DreamAwards assists women whoare the primary source offinancial support for theirfamilies by giving themresources to improve theireducation, skills and employ-ment prospects. This year’swinner, Princess Recosana, isenrolled in an acceleratednursing program. As a singlemother with a baby who wasborn with several severehealth issues, Recosana had asense of urgency about com-pleting her vocational educa-tion. Once she receives herLVN license, she plans towork for at least six monthsto gain experience and alsofocus on planning her daugh-
ter’s next big surgery. Shewants to continue her educa-tion to get a BSN.
Debbie Toth, CEO ofRehabilitation Services ofNorthern California, make adifference in our communitythrough service to seniorsand people with disabilities.The group’s mission is to“promote dignity and inde-pendence of people with dis-abilities and other specialneeds.” They serve more than600 people each year in itsfour programs in ContraCosta County.
After moving to the BayArea in 1999, Karen Jamesonjoined Soroptimist in Pleas-ant Hill. She has been clubpresident twice and is alwaysdependable, hardworking andfun-loving. Her people andorganizational skills make heran excellent role model andleader. Although she nowlives in Vallejo, she enjoys
staying involved with herfriends “over the bridge.”
Since starting Dress AChild Around the World fouryears ago, Carol Vogl hasprovided 6,000 dresses forgirls in 27 countries as well as1,000 pairs of shorts forboys. Volunteers gather atChrist the King twice amonth to sew the pillowcasedresses and shorts on 15donated machines. Vogl start-ed volunteering with anational organization butwent out on her own so shecould do more.
Mary Shepherd and Chris-tine Cardin have been work-ing together to improve lifein our community for morethan 20 years. Quietly, theyadopted families in the Mon-ument Corridor in Concord –providing food, clothes andgifts. Originally, their co-workers at the Contra CostaTimes shared the expenses.
After retirement, they savedtheir money and shopped allyear for bargains. In addition,they worked on holiday adop-tion programs for CambridgeCommunity Center and theMonument Crisis Center.They also helped Soroptimistof Concord and Diablo Vistaby judging the Women’sOpportunity Awards (nowthe Live Your Dream Award)for five years.
April 22, 2016 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 3
COMMUNITYRound up forcancer
Clayton’s AmericanCancer Society Relay forLife will kick off summeron June 11 with anevening of cowboy funat the easley Ranch onold marsh Creek Roadin Clayton. Generoussponsors have coveredthe full cost of the event,so 100 percent of theproceeds will benefit theAmerican Cancer Soci-ety. for tickets to theevent, go to Roundup-forRelay.wix.com or call925-609-4ACS
tea for momThe Concord histori-
cal Society will host theirannual Spring Tea at theDon francisco Galindohouse located at 1721Amador Avenue, Con-cord, on may 6, 7 and 8.There will be two sittingseach day, at 11:30 a.m.and 2 p.m. Call 925-229-0529 reservations.Tickets $35 a person.
Report mainte-nance problemswith new app
A new, free Smart-phone app for Androidand Apple devicesmakes it easy to reportpotholes, graffiti andother eyesores aroundtown. Concord Connectreplaces the old Civichero app that came outin 2014. With the newapp, users can mark thelocation of the problem,check the status of theirreport and follow up.Download the app fromthe Apple Store orGooglePlay. Visit thecity’s website at cityof-concord.org for moreinfo.
In Brief...
Assisting More Buyers & Sellers than Anyone Else**Statistics based on Clayton/Concord and Contra Costa County Closed sales by volume
(1/2014-12/31/2014). Data by Maxebrdi
"Like" us on - Windermere Clayton!
Lynne & Sylvia offer free staging on ALL LISTINGS
Antioch $399,900Meadow Brook — Beautiful tri-level home with one bed and bathon first level. 4 bedrooms, 3 fullbaths, formal dining and inside laun-dry room. Bright and open kitchenwith granite counters. Family room
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Clayton $599,000Chaparral Springs – Light & Bright 3 bedroom,3 bath townhome with a 2 car, attached garage.Beautifully maintained end unit with soaring ceil-ings, inside laundry & tile fireplace. Entertain onthe back patio with gorgeous views overlooking theOakhurst golf course.
Concord $399,000Clayton Valley Highlands – Attention Investors!There are unlimited possibilities with this handy-man special. Approximately 1,679 square feet in-cluding 3 bedrooms and 2 full bathrooms. Greatneighborhood near shopping and schools.
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Concord $779,000Ayers Ranch – Completely remodeled 4 bedroom,3 bath rancher on over a half acre. Gourmet kitchenwith Quartz countertops and stainless appliances.Gorgeous laminate flooring, dual pane windows, andcrown molding. Separated master retreat w/ walk incloset & a luxurious bathroom. Wonderful grounds,perfect for entertaining with pool, patio and deck.
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Clayton $549,000Diablo Ridge — Spectacular 3bedroom 2.5 bath townhome in-cluding a master suite with soak-ing tub and walk in closet. Lightand bright with gourmet kitchenand 2 way fireplace. Tranquil set-
ting on golf course with gorgeous views of hills.
Heather Gray (925) 765-3822RealEstatebyHeather.com
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Clayton $670,000Dana Hills — Large lot on quietcul-de-sac with fruit trees, flag-stone patio and partial view of MtDiablo. Single story with 4 bed-rooms & 2 baths, dual pane win-dows, hardwood flooring andstone fireplace in living room.
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Clayton $549,000Chaparrel Springs — Excep-tional, remodeled townhouse lo-cated in desirable OakhurstCountry Club community. Openfloor plan including 3 bedrooms &2.5 baths, “see through” fireplace,soaring ceilings and skylight. Backs
to the golf course with beautiful views. Closeenough to walk to town!
Michelle Gittleman, (925) 768-0352MichelleGittleman.com
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Soroptimists honor women for contributions to our community
Photo: Jo harlow
chRistine caRdin, maRy shepheRd, Princess Recosana, Tatiana Vinzant, Debbie Toth, emmaWalsh, Carol Vogl and Karen Jameson were named Women of Distinction by the DiabloVista Soroptimists.
The City Council hasapproved the appointment ofSusanne Meyer Brown as thenew city attorney. She replacesMark Coon who died last year.Brown has served as SeniorAssistant City Attorney since2012. Prior to joining the City,she was a partner in the lawfirm of Burke Williams andSorensen. She has 20 yearsexperience in municipal law.Her annual salary is $218,700.
Concordnames newcity attorney
susanne meyeR BRown
please sendcommunitynews items to editor@concord -pioneer.cominclude write up and high-resolutionphoto.
Beautiful Concord Ranch-Style homeon a quiet court, near Concord High School
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Page 4 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016
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COnStRuCtIOn
Broaden your research before buying a home
Q: We are about to buy ourdream home. This will be ourfirst house, and I get so excit-ed when I see a home thatseems to fit our needs. Whatare some things to considerbefore we are in a contract tobuy?
A: I assume that you haveanswered the large questionsbefore submitting your bid. Forinstance, number of bedrooms,yard size. Here are a few otherthings you might also consider:
1. Is there a homeowner’sassociation? If so, have you stud-ied its rules? Will the associationapprove your plans to put in adeck, spa or any out buildingsyou plan to build?
2. How will your furniturefit? Get the measurements ofevery room and measure yourlarger pieces of furniture,including the entertainment
center, sofa and beds. Sketchout the new rooms on graphpaper so you can see at aglance how and where yourfurnishings will fit. Most first-time buyers can’t afford to buyall new furniture.
3. What is the noise levelafter dark? The neighborhoodmay seem quiet during the day,but is it near a freeway or busystreet? Is there a fire station near-by? Consider a visit at night orduring rush hour to check outthe noise factor.
Q: We saved for a longtime before we were able tobuy our first home. Moving inwas sweet. We want to make itlook and feel like our ownstyle. The problem is that wehave little money left. Whatcan we do on a shoestring?
A: Plenty, says a friend ofmine who is a designer. Startwith clean, bare walls. A lightand neutral color will give youa fresh palette to start. Next,focus on one room at a timeand think of ways you canbring each to life.
Paint or restain dull cabinetsand/or update the pulls withnew hardware. If the room istoo boxy, try a portable island. Itadds a focal point as well as extrastorage and counter space.
Any bathroom can benefitfrom more light. A modern lightfixture is one of the least expen-sive ways to update your bath-room.
If you like, paint an accentwall in a vibrant color with con-trasting pillows thrown aroundthe living room to add drama. Alarge mirror will reflect light andcolor, and silk or real plants addelegance and charm.
For kid’s rooms, use a wallpa-per border in a pattern chosenby the child. You can add paint-ed furniture and toy storage bins.
For the master bedroom, usea plain white comforter with atwo-foot wide strip of colorfulfabric over the lower third of thebed. Use the same fabric to cre-ate a window valance.
Q: I have worked hard toget my house ready for sale.
What is one more thing that Ican do to spruce up my curbappeal?
A: Your front door is animportant place to focus. It isnice to come home to a welcom-ing front door.
1. Choose a front door thatreflects the style and personalityof your home. Paint or stain it tomake it a focal point. Red, blackor a nice stain are good choices.
2. Just like with any room inthe house, accessories are thefinishing touch. Consider doorhardware, house numbers, doorknockers, door bells, doormatsand lighting. Try to keep the fin-ishes and styles similar.
3. Keep the area neat.Sweeping up and wiping downwill usually do. Flowers andplants are a bonus. They bright-en up the area and show that youtake pride in your home.
Send your question and look foryour answer in a future column. [email protected]. French is thebroker/owner of Windermere LynneFrench & Associates. Contact her at672-8787 or stop in at 6200 CenterSt., Clayton.
Lynne fRenCh
Real answeRs
ideas Helix suggested, includingproviding information abouthow Concord could act as itsown master developer or form ajoint powers authority — per-haps with the Mt. Diablo Uni-fied School District — to devel-op the former military base ifthe city, ultimately, is unable toreach an agreement with Lennar.
Helix — who said he cameback to the council in 2011 andwas reelected in 2012 because ofhis experience working with thestate’s Base Realignment andClosure Commission (BRAC)— was adamant that this “cityjewel” be redeveloped in a waythat most benefits Concord.
“This is a once in a lifetime,unparalleled, opportunity todeliver a world-class develop-ment and to generate revenuefor the City,” Helix said. “Wemust, and I expect will, get 100percent of what is available forus or chalk up this process toexperience and start over.”
His main sticking point washis concern about Lennar’s cre-ation of a Limited Liability Cor-poration to be the legal masterdeveloper and hold title to theland. This would put the city atrisk should the project run intofinancial problems.
Lennar representatives saythis is how they have handledother big projects.
“If Lennar wants to have anLLC with other builders andsub-contractors I don’t care,” hesaid. “But when Lennar con-tracts with us concerning infra-structure, affordable housing,off-site roadway constructionand public benefit projects, Idon’t want them to back out
claiming they can’t perform andthat their liability is limited.”
As Helix told Lennar at lastweek’s meeting, “To put it inplain English, if you don’t haveenough confidence in your abili-ty to guarantee the terms youpromise to fulfill in an amendedTerm Sheet, then why should wehave any confidence in you?”
Lennar Urban presidentKofi Bonnar has said he is will-ing to accept most of the city’sproposed terms.
REBUILDING TRUSTBonner was put on the hot
seat when Birsan brought up theelephant in the room: Donationsto Council member TimGrayson’s Assembly campaignby companies and individualswho work with Lennar.
In the Jenkins Report, theindependent counsel’s account-ing of the situation, Bonner wasfound to have orchestrated thecampaign to get companies todonate to Grayson’s bid, a situa-tion that has eroded the trust inthe company in the eyes ofmany city residents.
“You’ve heard the audiencehere and elsewhere talk aboutthe ‘original sin’ in donating toa council member’s Assemblycampaign” Birsan told Bonner.“There is a pitchfork and tarand feather outrage in thecommunity with many peoplefeeling that alone should dis-qualify you from the process.
“How do we go forwardwith this ‘original sin’?” Birsansaid.
While Bonner did not apolo-gize for his company’s actions,he did say he regretted what had
happened. “They were well-intentioned,” he said but alsostated that had he known thatsuch actions would have beenseen in such a light, at least inlegal parameters, he would nothave done what he did.
He said he himself is a“political animal” of sorts andthat as a resident of ContraCosta County — he lives in Wal-nut Creek — he was interestedin supporting a man he knewand respected.
The $4000 contributionscame from companies that areassociated with Lennar, butBonner himself did not make acontribution to Grayson’s cam-paign.
Still, he called the contribu-tions a “personal action” thathad nothing to do with Lennaras a company. “Lennar doesn’tgive political contributions,” hesaid, adding that it made charita-ble donations instead. The con-tributions, he said “were not aLennar issue.”
Grayson has denied know-ing that any of the contribu-tions were associated withLennar, and quickly gave backall of the funds.
But the damage had alreadybeen done. “You have caused aninnocent person to be unfairlymaligned,” Helix said, referring
to Grayson, “and that’s not toyour credit.”
Mayor Laura Hoffmeisterlater underscored Helix’s com-ment.
Helix did not mince wordsin the past month, at bothmeetings and in interviewswith the Pioneer, about hiswariness with Lennar follow-ing a winter that saw CatellusCorp. leave the selectionprocess, despite what Helixcalled a far superior termsheet, as well as an independ-ent investigator’s report thatfound Lennar engaged in inap-propriate lobbying with a citycouncil member.
The meeting was a continua-tion of a special meeting held aweek before, and between thetwo sessions nearly 100 peoplespoke up about their support forLennar, their concerns withLennar, and other issues rangingfrom hiring local labor to ensur-ing there was enough wateravailable for the project.
Now, the process of select-ing a Master Developer— whichBjerke and many others expect-ed to be completed last Septem-ber—will be pushed back to atleast May 3, if not later, as citystaff and Lennar hammer outthe sticking points of the onlyterm sheet they have left.
CNWS, from page 1
guy Bjerke, directorof community Reuseplanning
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GREGORY LANE & TRELANY ROAD • MAY 7 - NOV 12
GREGORY LANE & TRELANY ROAD • MAY 7 - NOV 12
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skeptical that it could happen,”she said. “But it did.”
Mitchoff says the “scheduledcharters” are a great option forbusiness travelers in the countywho usually rely on flights fromOakland, San Francisco or evenSan Jose airports, fighting rush-hour traffic.
LOW PRICES, SHORTER LINESThe planes are refurbished
American Eagle jets, accordingto Keith Freitas, director of air-ports at Buchanan Field and theByron Airport. They will serveup to 30 passengers at a time.
The inaugural price will be$109 one-way and go up to$300 as demand increases anddepending on the day of theweek, said Gareth Edmond-son-Jones, a spokespersonfor JetSuiteX.
At Buchanan, passengerswon’t have to endure long TSAscreening lines. “But that doesn’tmean the travel is unsafe,”Edmondson-Jones said.
Passengers will be screenedto make sure they are not on the“no-fly” list and be checked forany explosive devices. He saidthere will be other security meas-ures in place, but he was not atliberty to go into detail.
“But rest assured, there willbe visible and invisible securityall around,” Edmondson-Jonessaid.
Freitas and Edmondson-Jones downplayed the noise levelthat the jets will create. “Wealready have charter jets takingoff from Buchanan, so it willonly be about four more flightsper day,” Freitas said. Edmond-son-Jones said the JetSuiteXplanes were “some of the qui-etest” out there.
JetSuiteX has plans to refur-bish the old PSA terminal at theairport, which was, in essence, adouble-wide modular building,Freitas said.
SERVING THEUNDER-SERVED
The decision to begin servicefrom Buchanan was a “no-brain-er,” Edmondson-Jones said.“There’s a sizeable amount ofpeople who fly for businessbetween Southern Californiaand the Bay Area each day, andmany come from Contra CostaCounty.”
He says that the idea camefrom a Jet Blue model, whichlooked at underused airports inurban areas – specifically LongBeach and JFK in New York –and saw how there were “mil-lions of people who lived nearthese airports and didn’t takeadvantage of them becausethere weren’t services they need-ed.”
After Jet Blue started offer-ing flights, there was a huge revi-talization in Long Beach. “JetBlue made a go of Long Beach,and JetSuiteX wants to do thesame thing here, ” Edmondson-Jones said.
The weekend trips to LasVegas, which leave Friday andreturn Sunday, are sure to bepopular – attracting those whowant to get away for a little fun,Edmondson-Jones noted.
Although JetSuiteX did nottake students into account, thePioneer found that college-agepeople may want to make thejaunt home from Southern Cali-fornia schools.
“My daughter Rose will lovethis,” said Walnut Creek’s RuthSeabrook, whose daughterattends school in the Los Ange-les area.
HELPING THECONCORD ECONOMY
The plan makes sense toKish Rajan, the former directorfor the Governor’s Office ofBusiness and Economic Devel-opment (GO Biz). He sees eco-nomic advantages for both Con-tra Costa and Burbank. Rajan,who lives in Walnut Creek butworks with the Southern Califor-nia Leadership Council, says hewill travel on the flights severaltimes a week.
“Flying into Burbank is somuch easier,” he said. “LAX is amonster. Plus, Buchanan is rightnear my home, so I don’t have tofight traffic coming from Oak-land or San Francisco.”
He said that these types ofscheduled charters are the waveof the future. “It’s almost likethe Uber-ization of air travel,”he said. “We’re repositioning ourassets in a new way.”
But perhaps the biggestimpact will be on the economyof Concord and surroundingcities, Mitchoff said.
“We are much closer to thewine country and other attrac-tions here at Buchanan,” shesaid. “It makes sense for thetourists who want to come and
not pay top-dollar San Franciscoprices and can enjoy what Con-tra Costa and the surroundingareas offer.”
John Montagh, Concord’smanager of Economic Devel-opment, agrees. “This will be aboon for Concord’s own touristefforts, as we have the hotels,restaurants and other amenitiesthat people can enjoy.”
It is also a boost forBuchanan Field, Freitas said.“We do a lot to educate the com-munity about what we offerhere,” he said. “This will allow usmore visibility and show what agem we have.”
The county operatesBuchanan Field as well as the air-port in Byron. The AirportsDivision is self-funded and gen-erates revenue for the county,schools and other community-related agencies. The AirportsDivision works with tenants atboth airports to provide thecommunity with a wide range ofservices, from flight schools toskydiving to private hangarrental, Freitas said.
It remains to be seen howconsumers will greet the newservice, but Edmondson-Jonesis positive about the response sofar. “We’re in it for the longhaul,” he said.
For more information, contactContra Costa Airports by calling844-Fly-ToUs or visit online atwww.ContraCostaAirports.org.
April 22, 2016 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 5
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A few months back, mystaff and I met with the moth-ers of three homicide victims.They had asked for the meet-ing to demand answers ontheir respective cases.
They wanted to know whytheir children’s killers had notbeen brought to justice. Theyspoke little, if no English – butthere was so much pain ontheir faces.
They had reached out to acommunity resource specialistwith the Mt. Diablo SchoolDistrict and she asked me tomeet with them. They werefrustrated with the investiga-tive process. They cited a lackof communication andprogress in the cases.
I know my staff was talkingwith them and/or other family
members, but this situation didnot call for factual or legalexplanations. Although therewere language and some cul-tural challenges, we were deal-ing with a larger issue: How dowe communicate with victimsand their families and not jeop-ardize the criminal investiga-
tion? And a bigger question:How do we improve this com-munication process with vic-tims of other crimes, such asburglaries, robberies anddomestic violence cases?
The criminal justice systemis a mammoth of processes.There are legal issues, proto-cols, procedures, safety con-cerns and countless other com-ponents that can make youdizzy. All of them can be con-fusing and frustrating forsomeone outside looking in.
But we can significantlyimprove how this informationnetwork goes both ways. Weneed to make sure the policedepartment embeds this intoour operating culture.
The topic of sharing infor-mation with victims came up in
the last City Council workshop.The City Council meets everyspring to discuss priorities.This is critical, as it allowsdepartment directors and othermanagement staff to strategizearound the issues most impor-tant to the council. Public safe-ty is one of their five priorities.
The public safety priorityhad four areas of focus: focusall city departments on publicsafety; focus on preventativemeasures that enhance long-term public safety; reduce crim-inal activity in Concord, payingspecial attention to homeless-related and juvenile-relatedcriminal activity; and assure thecontinued success of the Fami-ly Justice Center as part of thecounty’s regional approach towrap-around services.
This year, the council addeda few more focus areas to publicsafety, including paying specialattention to gangs to reducecriminal activity. This is animportant move, as Concordexperienced a wave of gang vio-lence last fall. The council alsodiscussed improving the com-munication of information withvictims and victim’s families.
Procedural communication
for crime victims and/or theirfamilies will become an impor-tant part of our police culture.As we move forward, my hopeis the next meeting with acrime victim or their familyregarding their case willrevolve around the results –and not the process.
Page 6 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016
From t he d esk o f . . .Communicating with victims, families a priority for police
Guy SWAnGeR
police chief
Guy Swanger is Concord’s Chief ofPolice. Send questions or comments [email protected].
Residents are invited tostroll around Todos SantosPlaza, Salvio Pacheco Squareand downtown Concord whileenjoying fine wines, craft beersand appetizers — as well asviewing art for sale producedby two dozen local artists.
The Concord branch of theAmerican Association of Uni-versity Women (AAUW) willhost the event 1-4 p.m. Satur-day, May 7. Mt. Diablo UnifiedSchool District students willperform family-friendly musicon the Todos Santos stage,along with live bands on thepatio of Vinnie’s Bar and Grilland acoustic musicians visitingparticipating businesses andrestaurants.
The idea for the AAUW-Concord Art and Wine (andBeer!) Walk crystalized in 2013,as members brainstormedideas for a signature event toraise money for the scholarshipfund. The club realized Con-cord was one of the few citiesin Contra Costa County thatdid not host an annual art andwine walk. The group thoughtit would be a great way toshowcase downtown Concord,highlight the city’s vibrant craftbeer and arts scenes and fea-ture regional wineries – allwhile raising money for a goodcause.
The funds raised are usedto send seventh-grade girls toTech Trek, a summer campgeared toward igniting interestin science, technology, engi-neering and math. The walkalso provides scholarships to
local women who have com-pleted their AA degrees andhave been accepted to four-year universities.
The AAUW hopes the walkpromotes downtown Concordas a destination, with attendeesbecoming regulars at partici-pating restaurants and busi-nesses. Downtown businesseslike Game Time Sports Bar &Pizzeria are looking forward tothe walk, noting that past par-ticipation generated new busi-ness.
“We received a lot of repeatcustomers after they discov-ered us when we participatedin the 2015 walk,” said ownerMichael Guy.
The walk starts at the cor-ner of Salvio and Grantstreets, outside of E.J. PhairBrewing Company-ConcordAlehouse. Growing in size andattendance each year, the eventnow features nine wineries andfive breweries, with 20 busi-nesses and restaurants whereappetizers, beer and wine andartwork for sale will be avail-able. A complete list of partic-ipating breweries, wineries andbusinesses is at http://con-cord-ca.aauw.net/
Sponsors include BartonChiropractic, Claycord, theClayton/Concord Pioneers,Diablo Valley-Defying Expec-tations, Pacific Service CreditUnion, PG&E, SunvalleyShopping Center and Assem-blywoman Susan Bonilla.
Obringer is chair of theAAUW walk committee. For moreinformation, [email protected] or (925) 324-9595. Tickets are $22 throughnoon on May 6 at http://concord-ca.aauw.net/activities/programs/purchase-here, $25 at the door.
Downtown stroll featuresart, wine...and beer
CARLyn oBRinGeR
planningcommission
Carlyn Obringer is a member ofthe City of Concord Planning Commis-sion. Professionally, she focuses on Cal-ifornia education issues as an Educa-tion Policy Analyst. Carlyn resides inConcord with her husband, Justin, anddog Crystal. Contact her by email at [email protected].
MDUSD student profile a keyto long-term success
The Mt. Diablo UnifiedSchool District recognizesthe need to provide a world-class education and to offerexperiences that include arts,athletics, languages and com-munity service.
We have many career path-ways, including engineering, edu-
cation, sports medicine andcomputer engineering. Gradua-tion rates have increased at all ofour high schools, ranging from90 percent to 97 percent. Ourcollege acceptance rates are ris-ing as we partner with universi-ties and community colleges.
Part of the reason is the vari-ety of specialized programs weoffer, as well as a solid founda-tion of skills K-12. We believethat offering a wide variety ofcourses increases engagementand best prepares the studentsfor the variety of challenges inthe ever-changing workplace.
Mt. Diablo has created a stu-dent profile in collaboration withcommunity and business leaders.We developed a criterion forwhat we want our seniors to beable to do upon graduation,including important qualitiesthat our business partners saidwere needed to be successful incareers and college. Those quali-ties include being an effectivecontributor, community collabo-rator, complex thinker, effectiveand ethical user of technology,self-directed learner, global citi-zen, responsible worker andhealth and wellness advocate —
which is a quality that isn’t alwayslisted as an educational goal.
These critical skills requirestudents to go beyond memo-rization and to participate inclasses and in the community.Schools have aligned classworkand student projects to our crite-rion. MDUSD believes that thisis a critical part of teaching theskills necessary to achieve bal-ance that will lead to success anda strong, well-rounded life.
DR. neLLie meyeR
mdusd supeRintendent
Dr. Nellie Meyer is Superintendentof Schools for MDUSD. Email questions or comments [email protected]
Operational Budget and thisyear a two-year Capital Budget.This allows a look two yearsahead on alternating years, andwe can spend more time exam-ining each budget.
We’ve made a start on roadrepairs, but we need to figureout how to maintain our infra-structure of roads, parks, facil-ities, sewers and storm drains. Ipreviously reported that we setaside $22 million for futureroad projects, with $11 millionto be spent this summer. Wewill discuss allocation ofanother $8.9 million in pave-ment improvements at the May24 budget workshop, where wewill be working on a two-yearCapital Budget that will bepassed in June.
Some residents have askedhow projects are identified andwhat criteria are used when wechoose one capital project overanother. Various city depart-
ments identify needs, and wealso receive requests from thepublic. Here are a few of theconsiderations used in the staffand City Council evaluation:• Does the project address
critical health and safetyneeds?
• Is the project needed to sat-isfy regulatory complianceissues (i.e.: state mandates)?
• Is the project primarilyfunded with grants, enter-prise or other restrictedfunds?
• Does the project increaseability to provide serviceeffectively?
• Does the project generatenew resources or add ongo-ing costs?
• Does the project implementone or more council initia-tives?
During the workshop, wealso reviewed the key City
Council priority areas relatedto the Capital Budget for infra-structure maintenance: • Maintain existing infrastruc-
ture and facilities in a safeand operational condition.
• Implement strategies thatoptimize all modes of travelthrough the city.
• Implement strategies thataddress sewer and stormwa-ter needs and state man-dates.
• Implement strategies thataddress pavement and road-way needs.
• Implement strategies thataddress park infrastructuremaintenance needs.
We also obtained informa-tion regarding our currentidentified needs: • Facility/building mainte-
nance: $6.6 million identi-fied in needs, with onlyabout $1.1 million available.The need is about $1.6 mil-lion annually.
• Parks have $34.9 million in
projected needed improve-ments over 20 years. Of this,$19.7 million is backloggedneeds, and only $280,000 isavailable in this year. Theneed is $1.3 million annually.
• Roads have $10.5 millionin needs annually, withonly $2.4 million available annually.
We carefully weigh thecommunity benefits, seek outevery opportunity for grantfunding and do our best tomatch needs with resources.Prioritizing all the competingneeds through the evaluationprocess helps identify what wecan do with the funds avail-able, including grant funds –which have restricted uses.
I assure you that the CityCouncil takes this challengeseriously and we do all we canto reinvest in and maintain ourinfrastructure.
Please contact the mayor [email protected].
Mayor, from page 1
The first week of May istraditionally National SmallBusiness Week, but manyplaces, including Concord, cel-ebrate all month.
Every year since 1963, thepresident of the United Stateshas issued a proclamation rec-ognizing the many contribu-tions of America’s small busi-ness owners. The U.S. SmallBusiness Administrationannounced that this year’stheme is “Dream Big, StartSmall.”
During National SmallBusiness Week, small business-es across the country are rec-ognized for the contributionsthey make in their communi-ties by creating jobs, drivinginnovation and increasingAmerica’s global competitive-ness.
There are many reasonsthat entrepreneurs start smallbusinesses, but one commonreason is passion for theirproduct or industry. Passiongives them the extra energythat’s required to be a success-
ful entrepreneur, particularlywhen things don’t go accord-ing to plan.
BY THE NUMBERSAccording to Forbes.com,
there are almost 28 millionsmall businesses in the UnitedStates and more than 50 per-cent of the working popula-tion in America works in asmall business. Small business-es have generated more than65 percent of the net new jobs
since 1995. More than 543,000new businesses are startedeach month. These days, 52percent of small businesses arehome-based — a sector thatappears to be increasing inpopularity each year.
It’s difficult to calculatethe fastest-growing sectors fornew small businesses. PerInc.com 2015 saw increases inaccounting services, IT sup-port, consulting, architectfirms and specialty food
stores. A few other sites usedstatistics from sageworks.comand said that the two fastestgrowing small business sec-tors were general freight/trucking companies and build-ing/construction.
LOCAL RECOGNITIONThe city of Concord and
the Greater Concord Chamberof Commerce will recognizetwo Concord small businessesat a City Council meeting inMay.
Tower Grille, owned byGordon Clarke, opened inMarch 2011 in downtownConcord and has become apopular spot. Clarke says hetruly loves what he does andthat his passion rubs off on hisemployees and customers, whoalso love the Tower Grilleexperience.
Epidemic Ales is a newcraft brewery in Concord. Thejoint venture began as ahobby for the six partners.The idea behind a hobby isyou have to love it — and theydo. They opened the taprooma few months ago and areexcited to be a part of thegrowing craft beer industry inour community.
Celebrate small businessesby supporting them in yourcommunity. And if you have apassion and want to start yourown business, remember to“Dream Big, Start Small.”
In an effort to bring unifor-mity and a more modern lookto one of the oldest shoppingcenters in the Contra Costaarea, the Concord DesignReview Board has establishedguidelines and streamlinedprocedures to assist tenantsand owners in upgrading build-ings at the Park and Shop.
The guidelines are designedto ease the design approvalprocess, provide conceptualguidance for exterior designand signage and create a moreinviting venue for customersand owners.
“We’re hoping this will pro-vide incentive for owners andtenants to invest in the Parkand Shop in order to keep itvital and provide a much-need-ed facelift,” said Concord sen-ior planner Afshan Hamid.
The guidelines are especial-ly aimed at smaller and medi-um-sized store owners whowould not have to go to theDesign Review Board, savingtime and money. A store withmore than 10,000 sq. ft. wouldstill need approval from theboard.
Because Park and Shop hasabout 30 owners and about thesame amount of tenants, acomplete overhaul could takemany years. Hamid noted thatthere is no timeline for the
improvements. “When the tenant or owner
decides to remodel or reno-vate, then these guidelineswould help them with theprocess,” he said.
The Park and Shop centerwas developed in the mid-1950s. It was the go to placefor shoppers in central county,with stores such as J.C. Penney,Rhodes, and Woolworths.
“After Sunvalley, the bigstores moved away and Parkand Shop developed into aunique shopping center, withmany owners having quite anarray of different-sizedparcels,” said Kirk Shelby, vicechair of the Design ReviewBoard.
“The array of owners andtenants have different needs,and a move toward concertedimprovement was difficult,” headded. “The city is hoping the
design guidelines will encour-age owners to upgrade or ren-ovate their shops in a uniformmanner.”
Shelby compared the Parkand Shop to Walnut Creek’sBroadway Shopping Center.“Walnut Creek was able tocome together and adapt to thefuture. But so many differenttypes of businesses and owner-ship models in the Park andShop makes it difficult to cometo agreement,” he said.
April 22, 2016 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 7
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Immediate Openings forCable Installers!
No experience Necessary. We will Train.$2000 new hire bonus. Bonus increased to $5000with sufficient experience. Must have clean DL.
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For LeaseConcord – Commercial OfficesActive business complex featuring a variety of commercial businesses. Wellmaintained with friendly atmosphere. Ex-cellent location including ample parking.
Contact Maureen (925) 685-0324
Clayton FairProperties
epidemic ale cRew Jason Lindow, Raina Schally, erin Schally, Akkis manoglou, holly Brown,Brian Wang and goRdon claRke of toweR gRille (right) were recognized by the Chamberduring Small Business month.
City hopes reducing restrictions and streamliningprocesses will encourage the 30 owners to upgradethe six-decades-old center on Willow Pass
New rules aim to promotePark and Shop facelift
JOHN T. MILLER
Correspondent
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Declan Woods 925.216.2679Clayton Resident
Declan Woods 925.216.2679Clayton Resident
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Page 8 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016
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Ghost hunters seek the spirits at Galindo Home
Although this doesn’t havemuch to do with history, it haseverything to do with history.
On a recent Saturday, I wasa docent at the Galindo Homewith two others while paranor-mal investigators came to studythe house.
Laura Johnson led theeight investigators, who areaffiliated with Bay Area para-normal and ghost huntergroups. They have visitedmany historic houses in theBay Area, however, this was
the first time for all of us.They carried K2 meters,
used to detect electromagneticfields by getting the spirits torespond to questions by turn-ing on lights. They also haddigital-audio recorders torecord pitches that may behigher or lower than thehuman ear can hear, as well asdigital thermometers to detecttemperature changes the spiritscreate. They set their flash-lights to be off and on at thesame time, so the spirits mayturn them on when asked spe-cific yes and no questions.Their experience ranged fromtwo years to 30 years of spiritseeking.
CONNECTING WITHTHE BEYOND
We gathered in the kitchenand a prayer was said. We weretold we must be quiet and still.If we had to say something orour stomachs growled, we hadto say out loud “stomach” or“talking” or “moving,” because
the sounds may sound likespirits on the tape.
As we moved into the RoseParlor, they placed their equip-ment around the room and saton the floor in the dark. One
by one, they asked questions ofthe spirits around. “Did youenjoy Christmas in this room?”“How many are there ofyou?” “What’s your name?”“Do you like what has been
done to your home?”Sometimes the flashlight
would go on and off, or thetemperature would fluctuate.But the most interesting partwas listening to the recordingafter each investigator hadasked a couple rounds of ques-tions. As they played the tape,the investigators heard thingsthat we hadn’t.
Ruth Galindo’s brotherHarold was one of the spirits.During questions about theGalindo Home, a voice on therecording whispered “house.”It was replayed several timesand everyone heard it. Igasped, because we had dis-cussed at length whether weshould call it the GalindoHouse or Galindo Home. Wechose home because it sound-ed more welcoming.
GUESTS WITHGOOD MANNERS
We went to the Green Par-lor, dining room and kitchen,then upstairs to Harold’s bed-
room, Ruth’s bedroom and thehallway. We spent a half anhour in each place and thentalked about what they hadheard or seen.
We ended in the kitchenonce again for prayer andthanks. It ended at 11 p.m.,which is early for these investi-gators. The group memberscompile results of their househunts, but there isn’t any for-mal research published.
Paranormal investigatorshave become sophisticated,and there is a TV show withepisodes of investigations. TheGalindo Home investigatorsasked questions and treated thespirits as if they were actuallyat their home for a visit. I wishwe all could be that comfort-able around the unknown.
CARoL LonGShoRe
yesteRyeaR
Carol Longshore has been a Con-cord resident since 1950. She is a com-munity leader and current president ofthe Concord Historical Society. Sendcomments and suggestions for future top-ics to [email protected].
Photo courtesy of Concord historical Society
the don fRancisco galindo house (pre-restoration photo)was built in 1856 and has been restored by the Concordhistorical Society. Ghost hunters say the spirits of Galindodescendants may still be present in the home.
Weather plays into baseball stats
Spring has arrived and callsto “play ball” echo from littleleague fields to major leaguestadiums.
With the crack of a bat, abaseball is propelled into theair. The temperature, atmos-
pheric moisture, air pressureand wind speed at the time thebat contacts the ball all impacthow far it will travel.
Newton’s laws of motiondescribe the physics of the tra-jectory of a batted ball. Once aball is in motion, it will contin-ue to move unless acted uponby external forces like gravityor friction. The force of gravi-ty is constant near the earth’ssurface, but frictional forcesvary.
Friction is the result of theresistance of the molecules in
the air, commonly referred toas air density. Near the surfaceof the earth, air densitychanges are mainly due to vari-ations in weather conditions.
Warmer air has a lowerdensity than cooler air, assum-ing that atmospheric pressureand relative humidity readingsremain constant. For example,air density is about 7 percenthigher at a cool 50 degree nightgame than a warm 90 degreeafternoon contest. A battedball stroked hard enough totravel 350 feet at night would
travel about 365 feet during theday.
Calculating the effects ofincreasing relative humidity is abit trickier. A commonassumption is that moist air isheavier than dry air and, there-fore, more dense. Actually, theopposite is true. The molecularweights of nitrogen and oxy-gen, which make up 99 percentof our atmosphere, are 38 and32 atomic units, respectively.Water vapor (H2O) only has anatomic weight of 18 atomicunits. Increasing the humidity,
which means adding watermolecules to replace dry airmolecules, actually results inless dense air.
Compared to temperaturechanges, the effect ofincreased relative humidity isslight. At a constant tempera-ture of 70 degrees, a ball hit350 feet will travel about onefoot farther if the relativehumidity is increased by 30percent. If the air becomesextremely moist, the ball couldabsorb some of the moistureand gain weight — lessening
the distance it would travel.Change in atmospheric
pressure can have a large effecton the flight of a baseball. Airpressure decreases with eleva-tion, so a good example is tocompare the distance a ball willtravel at a stadium located nearsea level to one located in themountains — assuming similarair temperature and relativehumidity levels. A ball hit inOakland or San Francisco thattravels 350 feet would land
woody whitlatch
weatheR woRds
See Weather, page 19
“You are being sued,”screams the headline on theemail you just received. Itcontinues to say you haven’tpaid your bill, so legal actionis being taken against you.
Being sued usuallyrequires notification from aprocess server. But you’re
only human, so you open theemail.
“Unpaid Invoice No.81721 for $1,827.32” toutsthe subject line of your email.You are curious and want tocorrect the record, so youopen it. The message indi-cates the amount they say youowe; just click the file to viewyour overdue invoice. Youdo, all the while thinkingwhich member of the familywas dumb enough to run up abill, not tell anyone and try toskip paying for it.
Or how about the onethat says: “You’re qualifiedfor a free credit card.” Allthey need is your approvaland you will have a card inthree days. Great deal, right?So, you open the email and
give them your name.I’m sure you’ve heard the
old saw, “If it sounds toogood to be true, it probablyis.” Well, right here, rightnow, I am officially reframingthat phrase to be: “If it’s toobad to be true, it is a scam.”
We are all prone to give into our feelings. Scammersknow this and take advantageof our feelings by saying out-rageous things. Your naturalinstinct is to react to set the
record straight.My all-time favorite is,
“Hi I’m from Microsoft andyour computer is infected;just call this number forMicrosoft support.” Let mebe perfectly clear: Microsoftwill not contact you. Ever.They don’t have reps thatlook for viruses, and theydon’t have techs who willremotely access your com-puter to help you out.
If you open one of theseoutrageous emails and per-form any task, like looking atthe fake invoice or calling theMicrosoft support line fortechnical assistance, you havejust been scammed. Enough!Stop it.
April 22, 2016 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 9
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FuneralsOuimet Funeral Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .682-4242
Health and WellnessKomor, Peter – DDS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .689-5055
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Directory of Advertisers
Obituary or Memoriam$190 for 200 words; $50 for photo; 90 cents/word over 200.Example: A 350 word obituary with a photo is $385 ($200basic plus $135 for 150 words extra and $50 for photo.
Send text and photo to [email protected] Or call (925) 672-0500
Joe Ronco/Owner 925-872-3049jaroncoconstruction.comJoe Ronco/Owner 925-872-3049jaroncoconstruction.com
35 years Clayton/Concord residentLic#844344
The Brown Act sits in ahaze on most residents’ memo-ries of civic education. Yet it isrevered as the cornerstone ofopen/transparent governmentand the bulwark against cor-ruption and backroom deals.
The act was mostly ignoredin small city government foryears, until a combination ofpolitical and legal changesstarting in the ’70s ramped upthings. A couple of recentevents have put it on steroidsin Concord. Like most thingsin government regulations thatare intensely applied, there isroom for head scratching
about how it affects the cur-rent City Council.
A key example is how itapplies to council memberstalking to other members out-side of an agendized publicmeeting of the full council.Two members can have a greatconversation on a topic. I havecoined the phrase “the desig-nated Brownie.” But threemembers cannot talk, nor canthe two communicate with anyof the others.
Typically, there will be twosets of two people who candiscuss between themselves —and one person is always leftout. This causes a narrowing ofchoices on who to be your des-ignated Brownie. And thatchoice matrix reveals a perva-sive problem: Do you chooseto talk to the person you thinkis most opposed to convincethem to flip? Do you choosethe person you think is closestto your views and with whomyou can cement an alliance?
Do you choose the personsomewhat opposed, or the per-son somewhat in favor?
Invariably, a minimax gamesolution is that you eliminatepicking the person opposed orin favor. In one case, the oddsof conversion are small. Andin the other, the odds are goodthat you will get their supportanyway. The official thenmeasures the probability ofsuccess with the two in the“somewhat” category andmakes a choice.
The effect is that politiciansbegin to condition themselvesto ignore those who havestrongly opposed views. I don’tthink this is a good long-termsolution in a democracy. Weneed to exchange views withthose who oppose us for thesimple reason that it helps ushone our perspectives andenhances the choices involved.
Instead, we get the oppo-site camps entrenched so theybattle it out in public. We have
a public debate where twosides have no communicationbeforehand. There is less flexi-bility in position and less timeto work out a consensus.
If officials want to be pas-sive-aggressive about theBrown Act’s Brownie provi-sions, they become the perpet-ual outsiders. Then when anissue comes up, they immedi-ately engage one of the possi-ble leaders of the issue in a dis-cussion. This takes them out oflegally being able to talk to any-one else on the council on thesubject.
There was a Little HooverCommission last year thatstudied this and recommendedthat people be allowed to “dis-cuss” but not decide. It fell ondeaf ears. So we have to dealwith an honor system that asks,“Who is your Brownie?”
Bike to Work Day is theBay Area’s biggest and mostinclusive bicycling event.
Anyone can participate,whether you prefer slow-rolling on your cruiser, climb-ing hills on your morningworkout or cargo-biking thekids to school.
On May 12, bikers can stopby an Energizer Station for afree Bike to Work Day bag.This handy canvas tote is filledwith snacks, coupons andinformation for a bike com-mute. Station hosts will offerrefreshments and high fives tocheer on the morning com-muters.
Bike Concord is alsothrowing an after-work cele-bration in downtown Concord.Stop by Salvio Street alongTodos Santos Plaza to meetother local bicyclists, enjoymusic, get free bike repairs and
check out a bicycle transporta-tion fair. Visitors can test ridedifferent kinds of bicycles,including e-bikes and cargobikes set up for carrying gro-ceries, children or other pre-cious cargo.
If you can’t make it May 12,come by the Bike Tent anyother Thursday evening at theTodos Santos Farmers Marketfor a free bike tune-up spon-sored by John Muir Health.
There are 130 EnergizerStations throughout the EastBay; visit BikeEastBay.org/Energizer. Here are the Ener-gizer Stations in Concord:
• Monument Corridor Trailacross from Mohr Laneat Monument Boulevard,7-10 a.m. and 4-7 p.m.,hosted by city of Con-cord and AssetMark.
• Front of 1371 DetroitAve, (Meadow HomesElementary School),7:30-8:30 a.m., hostedby Monument Impact.
• Front of 1135 LaceyLane (Cambridge Ele-mentary School), 7:30-8:30 a.m., hosted byMonument Impact.
• Outside the AcademicServices Lobby at CalState East Bay Concord,7:30-9 a.m. and 4:30-6p.m., hosted by CalState East Bay Concord.
• Meadow Homes Park atthe corner of DetroitAvenue and SunshineDrive, 3:30-5:30 p.m.,hosted by MonumentImpact.
If you already commute bybike, make this day special for anew bicyclist by getting acoworker, friend or familymember in the saddle. Or ifyou’ve been thinking of ridinga bike for errands or tripsaround town, try it out on May12. Bike East Bay has a funvideo at BikeEastBay.org/NewBicyclists with easy stepsfor making your first trip abreeze.
Who will be my Brownie?
edi BiRsan
pulse of
concoRd
Send comments to [email protected] or 510-812-8180or visit www.PulseOfConcord.com
Join the crowd and rideyour bicycle on May 12
Cynthia Armour is ProjectManager with Bike East Bay.Email her [email protected], or call510-845-7433, ext 5
CynThiA ARmouR
Bike concoRd
It’s a scam – it says so right in this email
WiLL CLAney
tech talk
See Tech Talk, page 15
• A Full Service Funeral Home offering• Cremation and Burial Services• Celebrations of Life• Reception Packages• Worldwide Shipping & Pre-Planning
Berths in the North CoastSection playoffs are at stakeas athletes and teams in localhigh school spring sports arewell into Diablo Valley andEast Bay athletic league sea-sons.
BASEBALLDefending DVAL and
NCS champion College Parkwas 2-0 in its first leagueaction while Northgatejumped off 4-0 and ClaytonValley Charter was 3-1 in thefirst two weeks of home andaway matchups. Leaguegames continue until May 19with a one-game tiebreakerplayoff set (if needed) May20.
Every DVAL schoolexcept Mt. Diablo earned aSection playoff berth lastyear. The NCS playoffs beginMay 24-25 with the finals setJune 3-4. The Falconsdethroned De La Salle in theNCS Division I finals lastJune but this year the Spar-tans are 4-0 in EBAL andranked No.1 in the Bay Area.
BOYS GOLFThe DVAL tournament is
May 2 hosted by College Parkat Contra Costa CountryClub. Northgate is thedefending league championbut College Park has beenundefeated and knocked offCVCHS last week. The NCSDivision I qualifier is May 9at San Ramon Golf Courseand DII is same day in SantaRosa. The DI championshipis May 16 in Antioch atRoddy Ranch, one weekbefore the NorCal champi-onships. De La Salle won theNCS team championship ayear ago.
LACROSSEBishop O’Dowd boys and
Piedmont girls (again) areboth undefeated in DVALplay. League play continues
until May 3. Clayton ValleyCharter boys are second toO’Dowd while College Parkis second on the girls side.NCS tournament runs May11-21.
SWIMMING & DIVINGNorthgate’s boys made
history a year ago winningthe first California Statechampionship after sweepingthrough the DVAL and NCSfields. The Bronco girls werealso DVAL champions.
In recognition of thataccomplishment Northgateco-coaches Jeff Mellingerand Tommy Ortega havebeen named Northern Cali-fornia Swim Coaches of theYear and will be feted in Juneat the California CoachesAssociation annual awardsbanquet. DVAL dual meetsconclude this week. TheBroncos new aquatic centerwill host the DVAL champi-onships next week, April 29-30. Concord CommunityPool will again host NCS May12-14 with the Clovis WestAquatic Complex site of thesecond CIF State meet May22-23.
SOFTBALLNorthgate took advantage
of its early-season scheduleto jump out to a 4-0 record,matching CVCHS. ConcordHigh won the league title lastyear by a half-game over Col-lege Park. The Minutemensplit a pair of one-run gameswith the Eagles to get theirtitle defense underway. Bere-an Christian was 3-1 early inthe DVAL season.
The Minutemen wereNCS DII champions in 2010-12-13. DVAL games continueuntil May 19 with a one-gametiebreaker playoff set (ifneeded) May 20. CollegePark, Berean (DIV semi-finalist) and Northgate alsowere in NCS last year. TheNCS playoffs begin May 24-25 with the finals June 3-4.
BOYS TENNISMatches wrap up for
DVAL schools this week. TheDVAL championships areApril 26-28. DVAL singlesand doubles are May 6-7 atCVCHS with the Sectionteam championships May 10-12-14. College Park wasundefeated in DVAL last yearto earn the NCS team berthand the Falcons beat North-gate last week 5-2.
TRACK & FIELDNorthgate won the DVAL
boys and girls track meets lastyear with CVCHS second inboth. League dual and tri-meets conclude next week.The DVAL championships willbe on the all-weather track at
Ygnacio Valley May 5-7 withthe top three finishers in eachevent advancing to the NCSmeet May 21 at Foothill HS inPleasanton. The State Meet isin Clovis June 3-4
BOYS VOLLEYBALLBerean Christian is 5-0,
CVCHS 4-1 and defendingchamp College Park 4-2 inDVAL as the league movestowards the finish of playMay 5. CP advanced to theDI quarterfinals (De La Sallewas a finalist in DI), North-gate was a semifinalist in DIIand Berean made it to theDIII volleyball finals.
NCS play runs May 11-21.NorCal championships areMay 24-28.
United States partnersMariya Koroleva of Concordand Anita Alvarez from NewYork added to their 2016medal haul at the China OpenSynchronized SwimmingChampionships last week, win-ning the gold medal in duetfree. The tandem will representAmerica at the SummerOlympics in Rio.
Koroleva and Alvarez wonthe event with 86.7667 points,followed by Brazil andMalaysia.
“We’ve learned a lot fromthis competition,” Koroleva,also a 2012 Olympian, said.“We have added difficulty toboth of our programs, so itwas good to test out thosechanges on the internationalstage.”
The duo also won silver induet tech earlier at the ChinaOpen, finishing second to hostChina.
“They had a great techswim and we were pleased withtheir scores,” U.S. SeniorNational Team coach LolliMontico said. “We’ve addedmore difficulty to this programsince the Olympic qualifier andit’s been well-received by thejudges.”
The national team mem-bers have won four medals ininternational competitions thisyear, including bronze at theGerman Open and FrenchOpen.
Koroleva will be one of 15athlete ambassadors who willlead the charge for the 2016edition of Team for Tomor-row, a community outreachprogram born in 2008 that hassince featured 59 Americanathlete ambassadors – alongwith many of their Olympicand Paralympic teammates –volunteering more than 500volunteer hours.
The Walnut CreekAquanut swimmer has beenwith the U.S. Senior NationalTeam since 2007 and hasserved as the Athletes’ Exec-utive Council President onUSA Synchro’s Board ofDirectors for the past two
years. She is a Stanford grad-uate currently pursuing amaster’s degree at the Univer-sity of San Francisco.
The role of Teamfor Tomorrow athlete ambas-sadors is to serve as philan-thropic representatives of theU.S. Olympic and Paralympicteams, spreading awarenessabout the importance of liv-ing a healthy and activelifestyle, and leading the waythrough volunteerism andgoodwill.
“Even in a Games year,the athletes of Team USAremain dedicated to causesthat transcend sport,” saidAlan Ashley, USOC chief ofsport performance. “Teamfor Tomorrow provides avehicle for our athletes togive back to the communityby visiting local sport clubsand making donations toinspire the next generation ofOlympic and Paralympic ath-letes.”
Similar to the program’s2014 focus, this class of Teamfor Tomorrow athletes willwork with the Boys & GirlsClubs of America and theYMCA – both multi-sportorganizations within the U.S.Olympic family – and otherlocal community and sportorganizations to coordinateathlete visits. Sport equipmentdonations will be made onbehalf of the program bothleading up to and following theRio 2016 Olympic and Para-lympic Games.
USA Synchro contributed to this story.
SPORTSDVAL’s final season leads into Section competition
JAY BEDECARRÉConcord Pioneer
Page 10 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016
Photos courtesy Clayton Valley Charter baseball
clayton valley chaRteR high school BaseBall team played in two tough pReseason touRnaments including the St. franciselite 8 as they readied for the DVAL season which began home and away weekly series against crosstown rival Concordhigh. The teams split one-run decisions. Senior Scott meylan (left) is part of a strong pitching staff for coach Casey Coak-ley’s team. Junior shortstop Billy Ralston is another returning all-league performer for perennial north Coast Sectionqualifiers with CVChS seeking its 18th straight post-season berth.
concoRd olympian maRiya koRoleva
Photo courtesy Concord AySo
concoRd united eXtReme 01 undeR 14 giRls coached by Gina Gentry and Anita Luttrell last month traveled to the AySoWestern States Championships at the edge of the Colorado River in Bullhead City, AZ. The Concord united girls wereamong the top teams from four AySo Sections. The local squad took fourth in their division out of teams from oregon,Washington, nevada, Alaska, California and Arizona. in order to qualify for the Western States Championships the girlsplayed the BAfSL u14 Tournament in orinda (3 games) and then single playoff games in Concord, Cupertino andSaratoga. Representing Concord AySo Region 305 the players competed in Arizona against teams from Long Beach andWoodland hills in 90 degree heat. extreme included, front row from left, Christina Adin, Keeley mcCabe, mirandafedrizzi-mcGlasson, Arianah Lopez, Jayme Luttrell, Gisselle Pulido; back row, Kenzie owen, marisol uribe, JazmineRojas, myriam mendoza, Devyn Colgan, Jocelyn Villatoro, niya Taseva, Ruth Acevedo and Sydney fedrizzi-mcGlasson.
Concord’s Olympian Koroleva,partner claim China Open gold medal for Team USA
Concord United Extreme 01 bring home hardwarefrom U14 AYSO Western States Championships
JAY BEDECARRÉConcord Pioneer
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A Super Bowl championfrom the Oakland Raiderswill be among the five ath-letes, two coaches and a teamcelebrated when Ygnacio Val-ley High School holds itsfourth annual Athletic Hall ofFame induction dinner onSaturday, May 14, at TheClubhouse at Boundary OakWalnut Creek.
Dave Tamori (Class of1967 wrestling) won a pair ofNorth Coast Section champi-onships as a Warrior as a PEteacher at the school encour-aged him to try out for theteam after he took part in hisfirst wrestling during theclass. While his father servedin the US Army during WorldWar II in Europe both hisparent’s families wereinterned in the United States.He became a Northern Cali-fornia wrestling champion atDiablo Valley College andthen chose to attend ChicoState because of its smallsize. He won two Far WestConference championships,was twice the school’s out-standing wrestler and wasinducted into the college’sathletic hall of fame in 2004.He is a veteran of seven yearsin the U.S. Army Reservesand retired after nearly 40years in education and wasalso head wrestling coach atOroville High School. He was1992 California Art Educa-tion Secondary Art Educatorof the Year.
Minet Roach Gunther(1982 volleyball and basket-ball) began her high schoolcareer at Pleasant Hill Highbefore that school closed in1980. She attended YgnacioValley as a junior and senior.She played two years of varsi-ty basketball and volleyball atYVHS. She was first-teamvolleyball all-league fouryears. She helped PleasantHill to the league champi-onship as a sophomore andthe Warriors to DVAL titlesthe next two years. She wasall-North Coast Section vol-leyball as a junior and senior.Capping her career she ledthe Warriors to the 1981 NCSchampionship. Her exploitsearned her a scholarship toOregon State. She was teamcaptain for the Beavers andthree-year letter winner. Theytook second place in NorPacand reached the NCAA Divi-sion I tournament in 1983.She’s been teaching healthand physical education atConsumes River Collegesince 1997 and is currentlydepartment chair.
Rich Martini (1973 foot-
ball and baseball) was fortu-nate to play for YVHS Hallof Fame coaches for DickRyan, Bob Burkhart and KentRobie in football and base-ball. He was all-league twoyears in baseball and as a sen-ior in football. He playedfootball at UC Davis for Col-lege Football Hall of Famecoach Jim Sochor. Martinialso played baseball for theAggies and was inducted intothe college’s hall of fame in1987. He was the Far WestConference baseball player ofthe year in 1977 after batting.411 with seven home runsand 26 stolen bases. As areceiver for Aggies footballhe caught 37 passes for 613yards and two touchdowns.He was drafted by the Raidersin 1977 in the seventh roundahead of UC Davis teammateRolf Benirschke and afterdefensive backs Mike Davisand Lester Hayes. He playedtwo seasons for the Raiderswho won Super Bowl XVwhile he was there catching23 passes and scoring a cou-ple TDs. He finished his NFLcareer the next year on theNew Orleans Saints.
Jim Anderson (1968football and track) playedfootball and ran sprints allfour years at Ygnacio. He wasa three-year all-DVAL run-ning back and a league cham-pion in the 100- and 200-yard. The Warriors were Val-ley Division II NCS co-cham-pions with Pittsburg his sen-ior year. He earned a scholar-ship to the University ofOregon. There he was a full-back in the backfield with NFLHall of Famer quarterbackDan Fouts from San Franciscoand tailback Bobby Moore(Ahmed Rashad) who wasnamed to the College FootballHall of Fame. Andersonplayed all 11 games for theDucks varsity for three yearsgaining nearly 900 yards andscoring four TDs. Other Ore-gon Duck backfield teammateswere quarterbacks NorvalTurner from Alhambra Highand Mike Sullivan, another for-
mer YVHS standout.
Chuck McGinnis (1984football and baseball) playedthree years of football andbaseball, earning all-leaguehonors in both sports eachyear. As a junior and seniorhe was first-team all-leaguestrong safety, he also earnedsenior honors as a running-back. He was the 1984 YVHSathlete of the year in additionto being second-team all-NorCal defensive back. HEwent on to play baseball atDiablo Valley College leadingthe Golden Gate Conferencein batting with a .420 averageas a freshman breaking a 35-yeard-old record. As the teamMVP he led the Vikings inbatting average, hits, doubles,total bases and RBIs. He wassecond-team all-WAC for SanDiego State as a first base-man, lettering for two yearsand leading the Aztecs draw-ing walks in 1988.
Rich Mohr attend Uni-versity of San Francisco andplayed basketball for theDons, including two years asa starting guard. He played inBill Russell’s first collegegame in 1953. He led RiordanHigh to the San Franciscoschool’s first Catholic Athlet-ic League championship. Hebecame Ygnacio Valley’s firstbasketball coach and wasnamed the league coach ofthe year. His Warriors wereDVAL champions in 1966and he got Contra CostaTimes coach of the yearrecognition. He coached atYVHS from its opening in1962 through 1968.
Bob Burkhart is a prod-uct of Kellogg, Idaho, andwas a standout for Washing-ton State football and signeda contract with the Green BayPackers as a quarterback andpunter despite missing hissenior year due to injury. Hebegan his high school coach-ing career at Mt. Diablo Highbefore moving to YgnacioValley when the new schoolin Concord opened assistingRyan on the football teamuntil taking over the headreins in 1974 and turned theteam over to Robie a fewyears later. He was at theschool or three decades.
1972 Baseball started theseason with only one win anda tie in five pre-season gamesand then lost the leagueopener to Pittsburg beforetaking off with 18 consecu-tive victories to end the sea-son 19-4-1. There were noNCS playoffs in basketballfrom 1932-75 so the red-hotWarriors didn’t get a chanceto culminate their season
with the section champi-onship.
4TH HALL DINNERThe Ygnacio Valley Ath-
letic Hall of Fame began in2013 with a new class eachyear since.
Social gathering at Bound-ary Oak May 14 is at 5:30p.m. with dinner at 7 o’clock.People interested in attendingshould contact Debbie Carlinby phone (925) 518-8455 oremail [email protected].
Photo courtesy St. Bonaventure Cyo
eighth gRadeR gRace Zodikoff has her sights set on shat-tering the oakland Diocese Cyo softball throw record forSt. Bonaventure at the season-ending track and field cham-pionships may 6-7. At a preliminary meet last weekend shethrew the softball 196 feet, which is about 19 feet over the1992 Diocese meet record of 177-1 by Kenya ibarra of St.Augustine-oakland. her goal is beat that record at theDiocese Championships at James Logan high in union City(may 6) and Granada high in Livermore (may 7) whereover 40 teams will be competing. Besides the softball throwshe will run the 800, 200 and be part of the St. Bonnies 4x100 relay for coaches matt and holly Tillman. She alsoplays softball for the u18 norCal Storm. Zodikoff is ineighth grade at hope Academy for Dyslexics in Concord.
The glow of winning the NorthCoast Section soccer championship wasstill surrounding Jonathan Negrete ashe took up a new sport this spring:sprinting for the Ygnacio Valley trackand field team. Besides running in the100 meters he’s become a part of the4x10M and 4x400M relay teams. Thejunior was an integral part this winter as
the Warriors captured the new DivisionIII NCS soccer title while scoring 22goals for coach Cesar Chavez. It hadbeen 11 years since the last YVHS Sec-tion championship team. He wasnamed first-team all-Diablo Valley Ath-letic League as the Warriors finishedsecond to Clayton Valley Charter in aclose race to the league title. Chavez
says, “Jonny is a very hard-workingyoung athlete. He leads by example. Hethe first one to practice and last one toleave.” He also plays club soccer forHeritage Cosmos. After high school,Negrete wants to attend college, majorin kinesiology and pursue a career inphysical therapy. That’s a subject ofwhich he’s familiar. He was injured midsoccer season his freshmen year andthen as a sophomore he tore his ACL inclub soccer and had to sit out the entirehigh school season and spent sevenmonths rehabbing the injury.
The Concord Pioneer congratu-lates Jonathan and thanks AthleteSpotlight sponsors Dr. Laura Lacey& Dr. Christopher Ruzicka whohave been serving the Clayton andConcord area for 25 years at FamilyVision Care Optometry.www.laceyandruzicka.com
Do you know a young athlete who shouldbe recognized? Perhaps he or she has shownexceptional sportsmanship, remarkableimprovement or great heart for the sport. Sendyour nomination for the Pioneer Athlete Spot-light today to [email protected].
Athlete Spotlight
Jonathan NegreteGrade: JuniorSchool: Ygnacio Valley High
Sports: Soccer, Track
April 22, 2016 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 11
Five Starson Yelp
925.348.5609Nick Eisenbart
Owner/Service ProviderConcord resident
Serving all of Contra CostaCounty for 15 years IncludingMarsh Creek, Morgan Territory
Photo courtesy mDSA
mdsa select Boca JunioRs won three, lost one and drew one in a busy weekend lastmonth to reach the championship game at the Pleasant hill Soccerfest Tournament.The final against the mountain View earthquakes was a tight affair. Boca Juniors hadtheir chances hitting the crossbar early but eventually fell short 3-1 and settled for sec-ond place. The mDSA team includes, front row from left, Charles Covin-Rossi, Joel Car-doso, Christian nomellini, francisco Ramos, Leandre Pepito; standing, coach Roberthelena, Colby Grewe, Gabriel Luk, Aidan nolan, marques Wirth, Jason Shin, evanhunter, Jason Zimmer and coach Luano nomellini.
MDSA Boca Juniors Soccerfest finalists
Ygnacio Valley Hall of Fame Class of ‘16honoring special athletes, team, coaches
St. Bonaventure thrower expects to shatter OaklandDiocese track and field record
JAY BEDECARRÉConcord Pioneer
chuck mcginnis
RED DEVILS GOLF CLASSIC RETURNS JUNE 24The Red Devil Golf Committee is holding its 21st annual Red Dev-
ils Golf Classic on Friday, June 24, at Diablo Creek Golf Course inConcord. Proceeds help athletic and academic programs at Mt. Dia-blo High School. Registration starts at 11 a.m. followed by lunch, golf,dinner and raffle/silent auction. For more information contact LouAdamo (212-9332 or [email protected]) or Ralph Vallis (825-7593 or [email protected]).
COUNTY SWIM CHAMPIONS FOREST PARK SWIM TEAMREADIES FOR SEASON
Last year’s Contra Costa County Division II swimming champi-ons Forest Park have begun practice under the watchful eye of headcoach Jeff Mellinger in his 17th year with the Flyers. For more info onthe team email [email protected] or call Tina (510) 912-2316. Sign-ups are being accepted online atforestparkswimteam.com or email [email protected].
MT. DIABLO HIGH SCHOOL HAS VOLLEYBALL, CROSS COUNTRY COACHING POSITIONS OPEN
Athletic director Bryan Shaw has announced that Mt. Diablo highSchool has head varsity coaches opening this fall for its cross countryand girls volleyball teams. If you are interested in either opening con-tact Shaw by email [email protected] or phone (925) 682-4030ext. 87428.
CLAYTON VALLEY FOOTBALL CAMP JUNE 13-16 Two-time State championship finalist and Northern California
Bowl winner Clayton Valley Charter High School hosts its FutureChampions Youth Football Non-Contact Camp June 13-16 from 5-8p.m. at Gonsalves Stadium on the Concord school campus for playersin second through eighth grades. Camp Director Michael Dominquezand Eagles head coach Tim Murphy explain that the camp has indi-vidual and group instruction (including safer blocking and tacklingtechnique) and team competition with fundamentals and techniques offootball taught by the CVCHS staff. To register, [email protected] or visit claytonvalleyfootball.com.
DE LA SALLE CAMPS OFFERED ALL SUMMERDe La Salle High School will host athletic camps in football, water
polo, baseball, track and field, wrestling, volleyball, basketball,strength and conditioning, swimming, soccer and lacrosse. The campsare open to boys and girls in fourth through ninth grades. For com-plete information call (925) 288-8100 ext. 7090 or email [email protected]. Registration is open now at dlshs.org (athletic tab).
2 BASEBALL CAMP SESSIONS AT CLAYTON VALLEYClayton Valley Charter High School coach Casey Coakley has put
together a staff of current CVCHS coaches and players as well asEagle alumni to provide baseball instruction to youngsters 5-14 yearsof age. The summer baseball camp will consist of instruction in thefundamentals of hitting, throwing, fielding, catch play and otheraspects of the game. Summer baseball school sessions will be held atthe school June 13-17 and June 20-24. Each daily session runs 9a.m.–1 p.m. To reserve a baseball school spot or to get more infor-mation email [email protected].
BEREAN CHRISTIAN SCHEDULES SUMMER CAMPSBerean Christian High School is offering boys basketball, girls soc-
cer and softball and FCA football camps featuring NFL and collegeplayers and coaches as instructors will be offered in June or July. Bas-ketball, softball and football camps are open to third through ninthgraders while the soccer camp is for all ages. Registration is takenonline at bereaneagles.org under athletics/camps.
REGISTRATION UNDERWAY FORALL OUT SPORTS LEAGUES SUMMER PROGRAMSSummer programs offered by All Out Sports Leagues in Clayton
are now taking registrations. The upcoming programs include adultsoftball and volleyball leagues plus youth basketball and footballcamps and youth leagues for volleyball and basketball. For completeinformation on All Out Sports programs, visit alloutsportsleague.com.
AQUANUTS HOST CELEBRATION OF CHAMPIONSAUCTION, FUND FUNDRAISER MAY 21
Walnut Creek Aquanuts are on the Road to Rio during thisOlympic year. They will bring some Olympic flair to their annual syn-chronized swimming exhibition and fundraiser. Their own Aquanutand coach Mariya Koroleva and her duet partner Anita Alvarez arerepresenting America at the XXXI Olympiad in Rio de Janeiro this sum-mer. Koroleva, Alvarez and the entire USA National team will performat this year’s event on Saturday, May 21, sponsored by BMW of Con-cord and Mini of Concord. The event will include a live auction andworld class synchronized swimming from 4-9 p.m. at Clarke MemorialSwim Center in Heather Farm Park, Walnut Creek. For more info andtickets visit aquanuts.org.
GEHRINGER PARK GATORS TAKING SIGNUPSGehringer Park is accepting online registration through June 13
for boys and girls 4-18 years for their summer swim season. For moreinfo on the Gators email [email protected] or go onlineeteamz.com/gehringerparkgators.
CONCORD AYSO FALL REGISTRATION MAY 7Concord AYSO has an in-person registration day for fall league on
May 7, at Concord High multi-purpose room from 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.for boys and girls up to 18 years. For info email [email protected] call (925) 603-3861.
YGNACIO VALLEY’S FUTURE WARRIORSFREE FOOTBALL CAMP JUNE 6-9
The free Ygnacio Valley Future Warriors football camp is open tostudents entering fifth through eighth grade. The free camp is gearedto help educate and enhance the community with the basic knowledgeto be prepared to be successful. Camp is held at Ygnacio Valley HighJune 6-9 from 5-7 p.m. and is run by the YVHS football program toprovide a positive experience for all campers. For any questions, con-tact head coach Phillip Puentes at [email protected].
DIABLO FC RECREATION LEAGUE UNDERWAYDiablo FC is offering a spring recreation league through June 4
for girls and boys born from 2007 to 2012. The program includespractice on Tuesdays at Newhall Park and Saturday morning games atthe same park. The competitive club’s professional coaches will beconducting practices in conjunction with volunteer parent coaches.The program focuses on more touches on the ball and 1v1 offenseand defense. Under 6 teams are co-ed while the U8 and U10 boysand girls teams are balanced. For more information contact coachBrian Voltattorni [email protected] or visit diablofc.org.
CONCORD CUP XXIII SOCCER COMING MAY 14-15The area’s largest annual youth soccer tournament, Concord Cup,
returns for its 23rd season at a variety of local parks. Boys and girlsclub and recreation teams from under 10 through U19 are eligible toparticipate. Visit concordcup.com for complete information and toregister a team or referee to participate.
CONCORD HIGH SCHOOL HASFALL COACHING POSITIONS AVAILABLE
Concord High School is seeking a boys varsity head water polocoach and girls varsity and JV volleyball coaches. All three positionscome with a stipend. Coaching requirements include MDUSD finger-print, current TB and First Aid/CPR, coaching principles course, con-cussion course and sudden cardiac arrest course. Interested coachescan send resume to CHS athletic director Megan Coddington at [email protected].
DIABLO FC TEAMS ACCEPTING TRYOUT APPLICATIONSThe area’s competitive soccer club, Diablo FC, is accepting online
tryout registration for its United States Development Academy under12-14 boys teams and its U15-U19 girls and boys teams. Diablo FCPremier teams compete in the National Premier League of US ClubSoccer and participate at several college showcase tournaments eachyear. For more information on the club, USSDA and premier teamsand tryouts for all ages contact director of coaching Zach Sullivan [email protected] or visit diablofc.org.
CONCORD COBRAS FOOTBALL SIGNUPS SATURDAYConcord Cobras tackle football program is taking signups for its
fall season on Saturdays, April 23 and May 14, at Round Table Pizza,Port Chicago Highway at Olivera Rd. in Concord. In-person registra-tion will be from 12 noon – 3 p.m. both days. The football programis open for youth five to 14 years of age. For more info email [email protected] or visit concordyouthfootball.com.
WALNUT COUNTRY SWIM TEAM REGISTRATIONSTILL OPEN FOR SUMMER PROGRAM
Walnut Country is a community-based, competitive summer recre-ational swim team in Concord. The Stingrays host the Crossings Chal-lenge Invitational, the premier swim meet in Contra Costa for “B”swimmers. Visit wcstingrays.com for details on Stingrays events andonline registration.
JR. EAGLES SIGNUPS FOR YOUTH FOOTBALL, CHEERCVAA Jr. has opened registration for its 2016 football and cheer
squads. Two of their cheer teams won national championships in Jan-uary at the JAMZ Nationals in Las Vegas. Visit their website cvaajrea-gles.com for more information and to register.
SPRINGWOOD SWIM TEAM ACCEPTING APPLICANTSSpringwood Swim Team offers a Mini-Sprinter program for young
kids 4-6 years-old who are learning how to swim. The summer recre-ational team is open to girls and boys 4-18. The season runs throughAug. 7. For more info go to springwoodswim.com.
BISHOP ESTATES SWIM TEAM SIGNUPSThe Bishop Estates Swim Team offers competitive and non-compet-
itive learning as well as private lessons in a family setting. Online reg-istration is open at bestswimteam.com. The first meet is May 21. Formore information email [email protected].
YGNACIO WOOD SWIM TEAM TAKING REGISTRATIONSThe Ygnacio Wood Swim Team for girls and boys 4-18 years of
age has begun practice for the summer season. For more info andonline registration visit ywst.org.
CONCORD RECREATION HOSTINGVARIETY OF SUMMER SPORTS CAMPS
Concord Parks & Recreation Department is offering a wide varietyof youth sports camps, clinics and classes this summer including Gym-nastics + More, Kidz Love Soccer, Make Me A Pro camps in cheerlead-ing, flag football and basketball, Pee Wee Cheer, Skateboard Camp,many Skyhawk camps, Water Polo Camp and World Cup Soccer. Con-cord Rec has on-going sports classes like swim lessons, junior tennis,Taekwondo (Little Dragons) and more. For more information on anyof these youth sports programs, visit concordreg.org.
VISTA DIABLO DOLPHINS SWIM SIGNUPS NOWThe Vista Diablo Dolphins are accepting swimmers’ online regis-
tration now. Girls and boys ages 3-18 years (as of June 15) can jointhe VDD recreation swim team. They offer a mini Dolphins program(for those who cannot swim unassisted) in addition to Dolphin swim-mers. For information and two register visit vistadiablodolphins.com.
Page 12 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016
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Daniel L. DuReeEstate Planning Attorney
Please call today for acomplimentary consultation
(925) 210-14001535 N. Main St., Walnut Creek
• Wills • Trusts • Healthcare Directives• Powers of Attorney • Probate
Buckle-up and enjoy beingwitness to the best regular-season team in NBA history.What the Golden State War-riors did transcends whatmere words can describe.
The Dubs finished theNBA regular season with a73-9 record, the best inleague history, much to thechagrin of many NBAgreats.
All the hate from old-timers like Isiah Thomas,Oscar Robertson and CharlesBarkley is absolutely ridicu-lous. Pro basketball has cer-tainly evolved and changed,but that doesn’t merit thecriticism that the Warriors area “finesse-only” team thatwould get bullied by MichaelJordan’s 1995-96 Bulls, whoheld the previous best regu-lar-season record of 72-10.
Granted, the Warriorsgreat run will all be a sweptunder the rug if they don’twin the NBAFinals again this summer. Butwho can possibly stop theWarriors run as of now, espe-cially with MVP Steph Curryleading the charge?
Curry is the playmakingcatalyst of the Warriors andhe is impacting the game in away that hasn’t been seensince Jordan.
He finished the seasonhitting 402 three-pointers,demolishing his own previ-ous record of 286. He aver-aged over five makes fromdowntown a game during theregular season, which is prac-tically inhuman (it has neitherbeen confirmed nor denied,but Curry might just be arobot programmed to shootperfectly from anywhere onthe court). He is almostunguardable.
If you trap Curry at mid-court, he can pass the ball toa multitude of skilled ballhandlers, primarily Dray-mond Green and AndreIguodala.
If Curry isn’t trapped,then he gets a one-one-oneopportunity against somepoor soul who will most like-ly end up on Sports Cen-
ter’s Not Top Ten, afterCurry breaks the defender’sankles and does a 360, one-legged three-pointer thatbanks in off the backboard.
If you press Curry in aone-on-one situation, he hasthe speed and agility to driveby almost any defender in theleague and he can either fin-ish in the lane with a gracefulteardrop or dish the ball to ateammate for an easycorner three.
Curry is developing intothe most lethal offensiveplayer in NBA history, butcredit needs to be given to hissupporting cast as well.
Green has solidified him-self as one of the best powerforwards in the game. He canguard any position, shootthe three and handle the balllike a point guard, finishingseventh in the NBA forassists.
Klay Thompson has alsobeen instrumental in the War-riors historical run. He start-ed off the year a little shaky,but he’s found his stroke andis lighting it up from behindthe arc. He finished second inthe league in made 3’s, with276.
The Warriors are soloaded with talent it is almostunfair to the rest of theNBA. They have three All-Stars this season in Curry,Green and Thompson. Theyalso have the best bench inbasketball, with Iguodala,Shaun Livingston, MoSpeights, Festus Ezeli andBrandon Rush.
This Warriors team is des-tined to go down as one ofthe greatest of all time. Itmay be hard to realize now,but down the road in 15 to 20years all Dubs fans will know“I witnessed something spe-cial.”
It wasn’t déjà vu for the DeLa Salle High School basketballteam last month in Sacramentowhen the Spartans lost 70-50to Chino Hills in the CIFOpen Division State Champi-onship game. Chino Hills wonits first CIF state title andcemented its consensus nation-al ratings title in the final USAhigh school basketball game ofthe year.
Last December De La Salleplayed for the State OpenDivision championship againstan undefeated Huskies team
from Southern Californiaranked No. 1 in the UnitedStates featuring an offense ofepic proportions that hadracked up eye-popping statis-tics.
That time the Spartansfootball team went up against ateam with the national highschool coach of the year on itssideline. DLS figured out a wayto slow down Centennial ofCorona’s fast-paced style ofplay (holding them 35 pointsunder their average) and theConcord school came awaywith its seventh CIF footballcrown in the past 10 years, 28-21.
This time, North CoastSection and NorCal championDe La Salle with a first-yearhead coach faced anotherreigning national coach of theyear leading a Huskies teamthat was undefeated in 34games, beating opponentsfrom eight states as well as thecream of the crop in SouthernCalifornia and scoring over100 points 18 times.
The Spartans smartly exe-cuted their game plan in thefirst half to hold a 30-28advantage at the intermissionover Chino Hills. New headcoach AJ Kuhle looked to slowdown national player of the
year Lonzo Ball and his twobrothers (all of whom whohave committed to UCLA) andthe other Huskie stars.
After scoring 20 points inthe first quarter the Spartanstotaled just 15 combined in thenext two quarters and onlysome garbage time scoresallowed them to tally 15 in thefourth quarter while ChinoHills broke the game openwith a 19-5 third-quarteradvantage.
De La Salle won state bas-ketball championships in 2000and 2006 and now has lost four
De La Salle finishes second to nation’s No. 1 hoop team at state
tyleR lehman
spoRts talk
Tyler Lehman is a senior at SanFrancisco State University and a2012 CVHS graduate. He is major-ing in print/online journalism andwants to be a sports writer. Email yourcomments or questions to [email protected].
Warriors seekrepeat title afterbreaking singleseason all-timevictory record
JAY BEDECARRÉConcord Pioneer
See De La Salle, pg 13
The decision to spay orneuter your pet is an importantone. It can be the single bestdecision you make for yourpet’s long-term well being.
Getting your pet spayed orneutered will reduce the num-ber of homeless pets beingkilled, improve your pet’shealth, reduce unruly behaviorand save money on pet care.
There are homeless petseverywhere. In the UnitedStates alone, an estimated 6-8million animals enter animalshelters each year. Barely halfare adopted; the rest are killed.These are healthy, sweet petswho would have made greatcompanions.
Spay/neuter is the only per-manent, 100 percent effectivemethod of birth control forcats and dogs. It is also impor-tant for their good health. Partof the shorter lifespan of unal-tered pets can be attributed totheir increased urge to roam,exposing them to fights withother animals, getting hit bycars and other mishaps.
Unspayed female dogs andcats have a far greater chanceof developing pyometra (afatal uterine infection), uterinecancer and other cancers ofthe reproductive system. Male
pets who are neutered elimi-nate their chances of gettingtesticular cancer and it isthought to lower the risk ofprostate cancer.
Spaying and neutering canalso curb undesirable behav-iors. Unneutered dogs aremore assertive and prone tourine marking (lifting his leg)
than neutered dogs. Althoughmarking is generally associatedwith male dogs, unspayedfemales may also do it. Spayingor neutering your pet shouldreduce or eliminate urinemarking.
The urge to spray isextremely strong in an intactcat, and the simplest solution is
to get your cat neutered orspayed. Neutering solves about90 percent of the problem,even in cats who have beendoing it for awhile. It can alsominimize howling, the urge toroam and getting in fights withother males.
Please understand thatwhile getting a pet spayed or
neutered will go a long waytoward curbing bad behaviors,it will not change your pet’sfundamental personality.
April 22, 2016 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 13
PETS
Saturday April 30, 1 p.m.Harvest House Health Food Store 2395 Monument Blvd., Concord
925-407-0888You must reserve a seat to attend
This FREE, one-hour doctor presentation on what you can do to reestablish normal blood glucose levels NATURALLY, will be hosted at the
Harvest House Health Food Store, Saturday afternoon @ 1 p.m.
state finals (1996, 2004, 2011and 2016). Chino Hills wasstunned in the State Division Ifinals last year by San RamonValley High in the Huskiesfirst-ever title game appear-ance.
ALL-EAST BAY AWARDSKaylie Collins of Caron-
delet was selected East Baygirls soccer player of the year.The Cougars goalkeeper, whois headed to UCS this fall, had10 clean sheets and 112 saveswhile her team went undefeat-ed all the way to overtime ofthe NCS championship gamebefore they were upset by EastBay Athletic League rival SanRamon Valley.
Her teammate Jade Rafallowas a first-team all-East Bayselection as the Cougars cap-tain and centerback.
Clayton Valley Charter’sdefensive mainstay SavannahPomeroy was second-team all-East Bay selection. The Eaglesblanked half their teams andwon their back-to-back DiabloValley Athletic League title.
Carondelet also had ErinOspeck on first team withChelsea Bailey and MaddieDuncan on second team. KatieHoyt, sister of US Nationalteam star Chris Wondolowski,was honorable mention forCarondelet.
BOYS HONOREESOn the boys side, Clayton
Valley Charter’s Osbaldo Soliswas a first-team selection whileteammate Pablo Hernandezwas third team for the DVALchamps. NCS DIII championYgnacio Valley placed juniorJose Diaz, the DVAL defensiveMVP, was second team.
In basketball, De La Salle’sJordan Ratinho was the EastBay player of the year. The 6-5senior, who is going to USFnext year, averaged 18.7 pointsper game as the point guardand the team’s most versatiledefender. During the EBALseason he won his secondMVP award. DLS was unde-feated against Northern Cali-fornia teams while compiling a31-3 record.
His Spartan teammatesEmeka Udenyi and NikhilPeters were second team all-East Bay.
Carondelet won the EBALand NCS. Vanessa Cruz of theCougars was third team all-East Bay.
De La Salle,from page 12
Spaying, neutering lead to overall better pet health
Debbie DeMello is a dog trainerand owner of Who’s TrainingWho in Walnut Creek. Contacther at [email protected]
DeBBie DemeLLo
pause foR pets
Italy, 3, is a shy but sweetlittle girl. Once she warms upto you all she wants to do ismelt in your lap. She loves to
chew on toys and play with herdoggie friends. Italy is lookingfor a best friend to spend herdays with, and she would love
to go on a walk around theblock or just go shoppingdown town! Italy has a positivehistory with other dogs. We
recommend Italy take a Wall-flowers class where she canbuild confidence and bondwith a new guardian. If youhave small children, we recom-mend bringing them for a meetand greet before adopting Italy.She currently weighs 11pounds.
The adoption fee for adultdogs is $250 and includes a dis-count on the first six-week ses-sion of a manners class.
8-month-old Alabaster is agorgeous boy who loves pet-ting and playtime! He needslots of playtime with interac-tive toys, like cat wands, andwould do well with someonewho wants a busy, loving, play-ful smart cat!
The adoption fee for adultcats is $75.
Meet your forever friend atTony La Russa’s Animal Res-cue Foundation, 2890 MitchellDrive, Walnut Creek, duringadoption hours: Noon to 6 pmWednesday & Thursday, Noonto 7 pm Friday, and Noon to 6pm Saturday & Sunday.
Would you like to be part of theheroic team that saves the lives ofrescued dogs and cats? Can youshare your talents to connect peopleand animals? ARF volunteers aremaking a difference! For more infor-mation see our website,www.arflife.org, or call (925) 256-1ARF.
Italy and Alabaster are this month’s ARF stars
italy alaBasteR
It’s been a difficult time atNorthgate, with the recent lossof science teacher Jim Wright.
As sad as it’s been, many ofus have been moved by the wayour community has cometogether. Teachers, studentsand staff have supported eachother with grace and compas-sion. Our loss has brought uscloser.
Grief in tow, we are stillapproaching this year’s homestretch with a mix of grit andanticipation. Students areengaged in project-basedlearning experiences as well aschallenges like the fast-approaching AP tests. In addi-tion, students are readyingthemselves for our CAASPPtesting in the next two weeks.We are hoping this willincrease Northgate’s ability tosupport our students’ ability to
think and reason their waythrough both English andmath curricula.
Meanwhile, I’ve traveled tothe Google Campus withNorthgate Help Desk studentsto watch them meet and solvedesign challenges with industryprofessionals. I’ve also had thepleasure of watching the live-streaming of our jazz band asthey won their competition atMonterey’s Next GenerationJazz Festival.
It all reminds me how pow-erful it is to be involved in edu-cation. I get to watch amazingpersonal growth among a com-munity of people that I bothadmire and respect. It’s a con-tinual reminder that despitelife’s heartaches, there aremany blessings.
Heartachesand blessingsat Northgate
“Anything can happen if you letit.” — Mary Poppins.
And everything is happen-ing at YVHS’s production ofDisney and Cameron Mackin-tosh’s “Mary Poppins,” theEast Bay debut by a highschool performance company.This is a huge production. Stu-dents, parents and communitymembers alike have all steppedup to the plate. The sets wereall hand designed and builtfrom scratch by parents. Thecostumes are turn of the cen-tury pieces contributed by twoprominent designers in thetheatre community. AndMary’s wig was hand designedand styled especially for thisproduction. The show was castin January, with actors fromtwo different middle schoolsand an elementary school join-ing the cast, and everyoneinvolved has been balancingrehearsals, sports and intern-
ships as well as maintaininggrades while learning to tellthis story.
I personally have theopportunity to play the part ofthe iconic Mary Poppins. Thiswill be my fourth musical atYVHS. I have been fortunateenough to have the same direc-tors every year, and each year Ilearn something from themthat has helped lead me towhere I am now. Geoff Carterhas been the music director forthe productions at Ygnacio formore than 25 years, and begancollaborating with our directorand choreographer, KellyCooper, who began musicaltheatre as his student manyyears ago.
Being Mary Poppins, I havealso had the chance to interactwith the cast in a different waythan I have before. I am aleader but more importantly afriend to all the cast. The entirecast is very close knit and we
all take care of each other. It’samazing how this shinesthrough on the stage — chem-istry is everything, and we are afamily.
I have also learned moreabout Mary Poppins as awoman — her motivations andher influence. I really feel as ifI’m walking a mile in someoneelse’s shoes. There is more toMary Poppins than meets theeye — yes, even more thanmagic. Everyone who meetsMary loves her. She holds theinterest of others above herown and always has a few fun
tricks up her sleeve. I believewe can all learn from MaryPoppins.
Performance dates are April 23at 2 p.m. and 7:30; April 29 at7:30 p.m. and April 30 at 2 p.m.at Ygnacio Valley High School,750 Oak Grove Rd., Concord.Tickets are $12 for adults and $8for students for evening shows, and$10 and $5 for matinees. Ticketsare available online atyvhs.mdusd.org.
Page 14 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016
Ygnac i o Va l l ey H i g h
Send comments and questions to [email protected]
A spoonfull ofsugar and manyhands brings MaryPoppins to YVstageclaire Rader
ygnacio valley
coRRespondent
SCHOOLS
Send comments and questions to [email protected]
michael mcalisternoRthgate pRincipal
A college acceptance let-ter is not as elusive as themedia may lead you tobelieve. According to theNational Association for Col-lege Admission Counseling,the average acceptance rate in
the United States is about 67percent.
However, competition isreal – especially at more selec-tive colleges – so you do needto play the game correctly toimprove your chances. If youfollow these guidelines, youshould end up at a college oruniversity that is a natural fitfor you:
Find schools that share your val-ues. Colleges have different per-sonalities and seek out stu-dents that will fit in. Spendsome time on colleges’ web-sites, reading brochures andtalking to admissions reps atcollege fairs to find out whatthey find important in appli-cants. Do not try to mold your-
self to fit in, but instead findschools where you are already anatural fit.
Demonstrate interest. Asidefrom the highly selectiveschools, colleges are very con-cerned about their yield – orpercentage of accepted stu-dents who will actually enroll.On average, about one-thirdof students will choose toenroll in a particular school.Colleges have determined thatstudents who have made con-tact with them are more likelyto enroll. Therefore, theschool is more likely to acceptthat student in the first place.Show your interest by goingon a student-led tour of theschool, calling or emailing the
admissions rep for your area,agreeing to do optional inter-views, talking to reps at col-lege fairs and applying EarlyAction, if available.
Do what you love. Don’t over-load yourself with classes andactivities designed to impresscolleges. Pick activities thatmean something to you andthen give it your all. Select APand Honors classes where youwill shine, rather than signingup for everything your schooloffers. Colleges are looking forquality, not quantity. Too manysports, camps, communityservice projects or college prepsummer programs looks inau-thentic and doesn’t give theschool a sense of who you are
and what really matters to you.Lisa Spencer is an independent
college consultant, career counselorand owner of Next Phase College
& Career Advising. You can reachher at [email protected] or 925-726-1209. For more information,go to www.next-phase.net.
Tips for getting into the college that’s right for you
LiSA SPenCeR
college Bound
Many high school athletesdream about taking the next stepand playing at a collegiate level.It’s a huge honor, but also a gate-
way to an education at universi-ties across America.
Becoming a professionalathlete is a long shot, however,
obtaining a first-class collegeeducation is a far more reason-able goal.
Concord student De’AndreMorgan has proven that thework in the classroom is equallyas important as the work on thefield. De’Andre is a junior atCHS with a 4.0 GPA. Hisinvolvement at CHS goesbeyond sports, as he’s theschool’s rally commissioner, aleadership student and a mem-ber of show choir.
De’Andre grabbed the atten-tion of scouts during his juniorseason and has been offeredfour football opportunities,including at Harvard and Yale.Ivy league schools do not hand
out athletic scholarships butrather offer admission to poten-tial collegiate athletes.
At CHS, student athletesmust have a 2.0 GPA to play inafter-school sports. For CHSteachers, staff and coaches, it’snot about meeting the require-ments but rather exceedingthem to prepare for the future.
“All my hard work has finallypaid off, and I have the opportu-nity to make a better life for myfamily,” De’Andre says.
Academics andAthletics winningcombination forthis student
Aasim Yahya is a sophomoreand student body vice president. Hehas a passion for basketball andplays on the school team. Send com-ments to [email protected]
aasim yahyaconcoRd high
coRRespondent
Concord H i g h
fReshman calan RadeR makes his yVhS stage debut as thelovable Bert when “mary Poppins” opens at yV Apr. 23.
The Northgate communitywas recently hit with the devas-tating news of the passing ofMr. Jim Wright. Mr. Wrightwas known to be a kindheartedand enthusiastic biology andzoology teacher at the schoolwho constantly made peoplesmile with his love of modernslang and Beyoncé imperson-ations. He was a mentor, awonderful teacher, and a loyalfriend to many and I, alongwith the rest of Northgate, amdevastated by his passing.
On Saturday, March 26, Mr.Wright was hit by a BART trainand was pronounced dead onthe scene. While there has beenmuch speculation behind theincident, it has been confirmedthat the death was, in fact, asuicide. The school wasextremely disheartened by it,and while we wanted to mournthe death of our dear friendand teacher, our administrationfelt that it would be good to
also use this occurance as away to spread suicide aware-ness and prevent more peoplefrom taking their lives.
On the Monday that schoolcame back into session afterspring break, administration atNorthgate set up many ways tohelp students who were at alow point in their lives. Therewere many crisis counselors onsite to help students who need-ed to talk, whether about Mr.Wright’s death or about theirown personal crises as well.There were comfort pets in thelibraries such as service dogsand cats to help cheer up andcomfort those in need. Theschool worked together to notonly honor Mr. Wright, butalso to make sure no studenthad to feel the need to taketheir own life.
Workingthrough our grief
mick ucciferrinoRthgate
coRRespondent
Northga te H i g h
Mick Ucciferri is a senior at North-gate High School. Send questions andcomments to [email protected]
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One of the benefits ofbeing a high school principalis witnessing the excitementof students as they plan theirfutures.
CV students boast animpressive 97 percent gradu-ation rate with 96 percent ofthem going on to college,into the military or into voca-tional training.
This year marks a specialmilestone for CV. This year’sgraduating seniors were theincoming freshmen for CV’s
inaugural year as a conversioncharter high school. We’reproud and excited about thefutures for each of these rockstar students.
It was also the first yearthat CV sponsored a uniqueadventure to explore sevenuniversities in four days.Campuses included UC SantaBarbara, Cal Poly, UCLA,USC, CSU San Diego, UCSan Diego, and CSU LongBeach.
Led by CV teacher, Sarah
Lovick, and guidance coun-selor, James Hamilton, thegroup of AVID, Link Crewand National Honor Societystudents visited two collegeseach day. Examining a combi-nation of private, UC andCSU schools enabled the stu-dents to compare and con-trast the requirements for eli-gibility as well as what they“felt” on each campus.
Often within the first 30minutes visiting each campusa student was able to tell ifthis was a school they wereinterested in exploring fur-ther, or if it just “wasn’t theright fit for them.” Studentsspent approximately twohours on each campus andparticipated in guided tours.
Parents were updated two orthree times a day via the“Remind” education app thatallowed Lovick to mass textall parents and providedupdates and highlights.
Students will have achance to express what theylearned from the trip at ournext school board meeting.Many are already telling theirfriends about the experienceso that they can begin to planfor next year’s trip. I’m grate-ful for Lovick and Hamiltonfor providing our studentswith the opportunity toexplore their dreams.
April 22, 2016 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 15
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Soaring towards the future
Jeff ebencvchs
pRincipal
C l ay ton Va l l ey Char ter H i g h
Last year, 96 percent of CVChS graduating seniors wenton to higher education or into the military.
For Clayton Valley seniorswho exercised leadership roles atschool, being a leader has helpedprepare them for the future.
“I’ve grown as a person, stu-dent, friend and, most impor-tantly, a leader,” says HosnaOpeyany, Clayton Valley’s Asso-
ciated Student Body president.“Leadership has become part ofme, and I want to be able to con-tinue being a leader in an educa-tional environment as long as Ican.”
Many students are planningto attend four-year universitiesafter high school. While someare anxious about adapting to anew environment, others lookforward to the opportunity.
“I am extremely excited touse the skills I have learned inleadership in college,” says sen-ior class president Andrew
Legault. “I even plan to becomeinvolved in Associated Students,a leadership program at the UCsystem.”
Gregory Rosewell, ASBteacher, is confident the seniorswill continue to be leaders intheir future endeavors.“Whether it be at a university, inthe community or as part of theworkforce, Clayton Valley stu-dents will continue to thrive andlead by example,” Rosewell says.
CV studentleaders readyfor the future
tommy voteen speak
Tommy Vo is a senior atCVCHS. Send comments to [email protected]
If they say they are goingto sue you, let them. Theythreaten your credit rating –OK, bring it on. Fight thesescams with intelligence,patience and a great deal ofskepticism. Then just ignoreit, press delete and eradicatethe email bearing such ridicu-lous information.
Don’t open emails frompeople you don’t know. As ahuman, I know this is toughto do, but stiffen yourresolve.
This week has been espe-cially harsh to users openingemails, more than I have everseen or heard. They rangefrom scams like those aboveto ransomware. Scammersprey on your feelings ofinjustice or curiosity. Butwhen you fall for it, you losemoney – gobs of it in somecases.
Here’s a special alertabout getting hit with a cryp-to locker virus, when all yourdata is held hostage. But theysay you can get it back – justpay the ransom. So now theywant your trust.
Like quicksand, they suckyou in. They are going tomake it better if you justsend money for an unlockkey. They get your credit cardnumber and give it to a Bit-coin center for (wink-wink)secure processing. Then theysay they will send it to thescammer in untraceable cur-rency and request a key.
Well, you just gotscammed. Your credit cardnumber is now all over theInternet, your data may neverbe recovered and you’re out500 bucks. But that’s not theend of it.
So what can you do? First,don’t open emails from peo-ple you don’t know. Second,get a backup system and usethe grandfather, father, sonbackup scheme (Google it).And, lastly, be suspicious ofeverything. It’s up to you tobe vigilant.
William Claney is an independenttech writer and former owner of Com-puters USA in the Clayton Station.Email questions or comments to [email protected].
Tech Talk, from page 9
4-year university48.0%
Full-time Work/Other4.0%Military (gI bill – deferral College)
3.5%
trade/tech College1.8%
2-year College42.7%
Here are some trends forthis spring and summer sea-son:
Beach Chic. For spring,designers were inspired bythe ultimate beach bum. Ifwe can’t actually quit our cor-porate gigs to bartend in Balior make jewelry in Maui, we’llat least look like we did –thanks to the batik, tie-dye,beach-type pullovers, buckethats and loose linen comingdown the pike.
The Cold Shoulder, alsoknown as the Bare Shoulder.More than a few designersshowcased tops and dresses
with bare shoulder silhouettesfor this spring and summer.
The Puffy Shirt. Design-ers may have been catching
up on “Seinfeld” reruns whileconceptualizing their springlines. White ruffled blouses –reminiscent of the show’sinfamous “puffy shirt” –made numerous runwayappearances.
Say Goodnight. Pajamadressing was taken to new,and very literal, level at NewYork Fashion Week – evi-denced by the amount ofsleepwear-as-daywear. Fromcrisp PJ-style sets and lin-gerie-inspired pieces atGivenchy to nightie dresses,we’ll all be sleeping in ourclothes this summer.
Pump up the Volume.We’re used to seeing over-the-top pieces on runwaysthat often employ laughableproportions. But forspring/summer, designers aremanaging to fuse structuredhigh-fashion volume withwearability.
Big Sur or Bust. Thespiritual retreat that played anintegral part in the “MadMen” series finale is a realplace in Big Sur, called theEsalen Institute. Throughoutthe 1970s, it was a haven forpost-hippie dwellers. Design-ers were looking West forspring/summer, creatingdozens of looks that capturethe prairie-peasant vibe asso-ciated with the “spiritual but
not religious” crowd in 1970sCalifornia. Ohmmmm.
Go Blue (and Orange).These two colors had astrong showing during NewYork Fashion Week. Bringout your Giants gear for thatperfect orange. Wear itproudly, as you are trendingthis year.
Golden Girl. Once upona time, shiny gold attire mighthave been too glitzy. Howev-er, thanks to an especiallystrong showing on spring2016 runways, shiny gold fab-ric is poised to be a seasonalstandout. A gold sequin dresspaired with flat sandalsaccentuates its wearability.
Actual Shirt Dressing.Test out the mega-trend of
shirts layered under sleevelessdresses.
Fun Fringe. We saw itlast spring and again this fall,and it looks like fringe issticking around for springand summer 2016. Severaldesigners employed it to trimskirts and dresses. The beautyof fringe lies in its softness.Think of the ends of a velvetscarf or macrame rather thanWestern-style fringe.
Whatever the trend, makeit your own.
Page 16 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016
Azalea plants are buddingand blooming throughout ourClayton Valley landscapes.
Most garden lovers can rec-ognize an azalea plant. They arefamiliar, dark green leafed
shrubs, with spring through earlysummer orchid shaped flowersof many different colors.
Azalea plants need a goodbeginning. They are best whengrown in a light, compostedsoil. When installing or trans-planting azaleas, prepare the soilby adding compost and using aplanting mix by the roots.
Make sure to give your azal-ea the proper light. They thrivein bright shade, filtered sun ormorning sun. Too much sunwill burn the blossoms. Withtoo much shade, your plantwon’t bloom.
Azaleas need to be fertil-ized at the right times with theproper mix. This time of year,feed with a product that hasmore phosphorus than nitro-gen. Pay attention to the num-bers on the products. Use a 2-10-10, 3-20-20 or a 0-10-10 tofeed the bloom and the roots.After the flowers have faded,fertilize to encourage growth
and green. Use a fertilizer witha formula designed for acid-loving plants, applying every 4-6 weeks. Occasional doses ofiron may be needed as well. Ifyou have a drip system, use awater-soluble fertilizer. If youwater with sprinklers, get agranular product.
It’s important to evaluatethe azaleas in your landscapeor garden at this time of year.Azalea plants can appearwoody; this is natural. Check
the soil around the plants. Cul-tivate the area to work oxygeninto the ground, and add alayer of soil conditioneraround the plant’s drip line.This layer will help hold thefertilizer in place while itbreaks down.
When choosing an azaleafor the garden, consider whereit was grown. Nursery tagsoften list the name and city ofthe grower. Plants grown inhot and dry environmentswith frost will do much betterin our Clayton Valley land-scapes than the ones grown ina greenhouse in Southern Cali-fornia or Oregon.
The variety also matters.Some azalea plants arestronger than others. AzaleaRed Bird is a sturdy, brightpinkish red flower that hasdouble the traditional petals. Itsurvives well here. So doesPhoenicia with its lavenderbloom, Mistral with its large
pink bloom and Happy Dayswith double purple flowers.
Azaleas are staple plants inour Clayton Valley landscapesand gardens. Give them loveand reap the rewards.
niCoLe hACKeTT
gaRden giRl
Nicole is the Garden Girl at R&M Pool, Patio, Gifts and Garden.You can contact her with questions orcomments by email at [email protected]
Lush azaleas a natural for Concord gardens
SuSAn SAPPinGTon
clothes up
Susan Sappington is the AreaDevelopment Manager and WardrobeConsultant for ETCETERA Cloth-ing of New York. Send comments [email protected].
Play it cool with these summer fashion trends
no need to Be a slave to fads, but a passing nod to the current trends can keep your lookfresh and current. This spring the bare shoulder look and the blue and orange colorcombo are both chic and trendy.
five clayton gaRdens, showcasing drought tolerantplants, perennials, imaginative hardscape and color areshowcased on this weekend’s Clayton historical SocietyGardens Tour. April 23 and 24, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Purchase ticket at the Clayton museum, 6101 main St.in downtown Clayton.
clayton gardens tour
Typically, an estate planincludes accommodations foryour spouse, children, grand-children and even future gener-ations. But some members ofthe family can be overlooked,such as your parents or in-laws.Yet the older generation mayalso need your financial assis-tance, perhaps even more sothan Millennials who are off tosuccessful starts in theircareers.
5 STEP ACTION PLANHow can you best handle
the financial affairs of parentsin the later stages of life?Incorporate their needs intoyour own estate plan whiletweaking, when necessary, thearrangements they’ve alreadymade. Here are five criticalsteps:
Identify key contacts. Just likeyou’ve done for yourself, com-pile the names and addressesof professionals important toyour parents’ finances andmedical conditions. This mayinclude stockbrokers, financialadvisors, attorneys, CPAs,insurance agents and physi-cians. Keep the contact list in asafe place where it can bereached quickly, perhaps in adigital file.
List and value their assets. Ifyou’re going to be able to man-age the financial affairs of yourparents, you must know whatthey have and how much. Listtheir investment holdings, IRAand retirement plan accounts,and life insurance policies,including current balances andaccount numbers. Be sure toadd in projections for Social
Security benefits. When all issaid and done, don’t be sur-prised if their net worth ishigher or lower than what you(or they) initially thought. Youcan use this information to for-mulate the appropriate plan-ning techniques.
Open the lines of communica-tion. Before going any further,have a frank and honest discus-sion with your elderly relatives,as well as other family mem-bers who may be involved,such as your siblings. Makesure you understand your par-ents’ wishes and explain theobjectives you hope to accom-plish. Understandably, theymay be hesitant or too proudto accept your help, so somearm twisting may be required.Remember that this is a sensi-tive issue and should be han-dled delicately.
Execute documents. Assumingyou can agree on how to moveforward, develop a plan incor-porating several legal docu-ments. If your parents havealready created one or more ofthese documents, they may
need to be revised or coordi-nated with new ones. Someelements commonly includedin an estate plan are:
Wills. Your parents’ willscontrol the disposition of theirpossessions, such as cars andjewelry, and ties up other looseends. (Of course, jointly-owned property with rights ofsurvivorship automaticallypasses to the survivor.)Notably, a will also establishesthe executor of your parents’estates. If you’re the one lend-ing financial assistance, you’reprobably the optimal choice.
Living trusts. A living trustcan supplement a will by pro-viding for the disposition ofselected assets. Unlike a will, aliving trust doesn’t have to gothrough probate, so this mightsave time and money, whileavoiding public disclosure.
Powers of attorney. This doc-ument authorizes someone tolegally act on behalf of anoth-er person. With a durablepower of attorney, the mostcommon version, the authori-zation continues after the per-son is disabled. This enablesyou to better handle your par-ents’ affairs.
Living wills or advance medicaldirectives. These documentsprovide guidance for end-of-life decisions. Make sure thatyour parents’ physicians havecopies so they can act accord-ing to their wishes.
Beneficiary designations.Undoubtedly, your parentshave filled out beneficiary des-ignations for retirement plans,IRAs and life insurance poli-cies. These designations super-sede references in a will, so it’simportant to keep them up-to-date.
Spread the wealth. If youdecide the best approach forhelping out your parents is togive them monetary gifts, it’srelatively easy to avoid gift taxliability. Under the annual gifttax exclusion, you can giveeach recipient up to $14,000without paying any gift tax,doubled to $28,000 per recipi-ent if your spouse joins in thegift. Any excess may be shel-tered by the generous estateand gift tax exemption of$5.45 million in 2016.
Be wary, however, of givinggifts that may affect eligibilityfor some government benefits.Generally, availability of thesebenefits varies from state-to-state (see the sidebar “Stringsattached to family gifts?”).
SEEK PROFESSIONAL HELPEstate planning for elderly
parents, which is complex in itsown right, is intertwined withyour own finances. Contact anestate planning professional tohelp develop a comprehensiveplan that addresses the entirefamily’s needs.
Not long ago in a commu-nity news blog, a report turnedup about a rattlesnake in a localpark. One alarmed commenterrecommended that visitorsshow up in the park with ashovel to dispatch it.
An update a few days laterreferred to the local rat-tlesnakes as “deadly creatures,”and a commenter wrote thatwe should “kill off every dan-gerous rattlesnake” and replacethem with gopher snakes,which aren’t poisonous.
In this same time span, one
of my colleagues on the moun-tain came across a hiker whowas armed with a shovel to killrattlesnakes in Mt. Diablo StatePark – a reserve set aside toprotect wildlife.
Like other native Californiacritters – bears, mountain lions,wolves, coyotes, even bobcatsand foxes, rattlesnakes havebeen demonized as aggressive,mortally dangerous beasts thatwe’d be better off without.The truth is almost wholly theopposite, and our local rat-
tlesnake may be the most mis-understood of all.
Carl Nielson retired lastsummer after 25 years spent asa ranger in Mt. Diablo StatePark. During his tenure, therewere “only two rattlesnakebites in the park that affectedpeople, and both were on thehands when park visitorspicked up the snakes.”
California is home to eightnative rattlesnakes, but onlyone lives in Northern Califor-nia: the Northern Pacific rat-
tlesnake. Our rattler is arguablythe most passive of the bunch,as Nielson’s long experienceshows.
A rattlesnake can’t afford towaste its venom – its meal tick-et – or to risk injury and deathby tangling with you. Peopleare big, unpredictable, inedibleand truly dangerous. However,like every other animal (includ-ing you), a snake will try todefend itself if threatened.
It will almost always warnyou before it strikes, giving youa chance to steer clear. Toattack you is a last resort, not afirst.
Hikers will have no prob-lem with these remarkable rep-tiles if they wear boots, keephands out of rock crevices andtree roots, don’t try to pick upa snake and use commonsense.
In turn, the snakes willfocus their appetites on rats,mice, rabbits, ground squirrels,frogs, toads, crickets andgrasshoppers. Larger predatorswill, in turn, nab them. If
you’re a regular hiker, it’s agood bet you’ve spotted a red-tailed hawk in flight with a fatrattler squirming in its talons.
April 22, 2016 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 17
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Staci Hobbet is a docent withthe Mt. Diablo Interpretive Associ-ation. You can send email to her [email protected]
Have you addressed elderlyparents in your estate plan?
RichaRd littoRno
insight on
estate planning
Richard A. Littorno is an at-torney specializing in estate plan-ning. He has offices in WalnutCreek and Pittsburg. Please sendyour questions or comments to [email protected].
Medicaid is one form of assistance for the elderlythat is based on financial thresholds. Therefore,large financial gifts to a Medicaid recipient can havenegative implications. For instance, an elderly par-ent frequently can’t have more than $2,000 in assetsto become eligible for Medicaid. Other potentialbenefits that may be cut if a person has too muchincome are Supplemental Security Income (SSI) pay-ments to some elderly, blind and disabled people,Social Security Disability, food stamps, and certainforms of clinical services.Thus, giving large gifts to a relative may increase
the value of his or her assets for these purposes.Similarly, the law discourages parents from giftingto other family members so they can squeeze underthe threshold for Medicaid. Under a “look-backrule,” gifts made within five years of the applicationare subject to penalties. Bottom line: consider all theangles when giving gifts.
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I’m thinking of a piece offurniture. It easily endures thewear and tear of kicked-up feeton movie night. This piece offurniture sometimes quietlynestles at the end of a bed orloudly jumps for joy in a rain-bow of colors in the kids’ play-room. It’s happy to be the cen-ter of attention in a great roomor decoratively stored as a pairunder a console table.
Pouf, cube, bench, stool –its name varies depending on
where it’s placed. Whethertufted in fabric or leather,round, square, rectangular,oval, with castors or feet,ottomans are an all-aroundessential piece of furniture toincorporate into just about anyliving space.
HERE, THERE … EVERYWHERE
When describing anottoman, some might think ofthe coordinating foot rest thatoccasionally comes with alounge chair. This typicalottoman is functional andcomfortable, but ottomans canbe so much more.
They can anchor seatingarrangements by taking overthe job of a traditional coffeetable. They can be stylish andfunctional when placed at theend of a bed or inside a walk-in closet and used as a com-fortable place to sit and put onshoes, or when they poke outfrom under a piano for extraseating.
Think of them for ministorage solutions in the kids’playroom, outside on thepatio, as extra seating in theliving room when the ladiescome for cocktails or as achic accent in the powderroom for holding guests’purses. The ottoman can beplaced just about anywhere,inside and out, and provide afunctional purpose.
SECRET STORAGESome ottomans have hol-
low interiors, which makethem great little storage units.Larger, coffee table sizedottomans are perfect to storeboard games or cozy throws inthe great room. Or use abench-sized ottoman at theend of a bed to house extrasheets and pillows.
Cube ottomans are usuallyabout 18 inches by 20 inchessquare. Some are hollow forstorage, and some also havereversible tops. One side is likethe upholstered body, and oneside has a flat table-top surface.These ottomans are great clus-tered in place of a traditional
coffee table for smaller livingspaces, as they provide a dualfunction.
LEATHER OR OUTDOORFABRIC
When adding an ottomaninto your living space, selectthe upholstery based on howthe ottoman will be used –just like any other piece offurniture. If the ottoman ismore for decorative purpos-es, you don’t need to be over-ly concerned with the dura-bility of the fabric. But ifyou’re considering a largecoffee table sized ottomanthat will probably be nearfood, lounging feet and
shoes, a more durable uphol-stery is best.
Leather is always a goodoption for an ottoman thatwill receive a lot of use, aswell as outdoor fabric madeof synthetic fibers. Manypopular retailers are offeringoutdoor fabrics as upholsteryoptions for outdoor andindoor use because of thewide range of colors and tex-tures, resistance to stains anddurability.
Don’t trip over the ottoman – just use it wisely
JennifeR LeiSCheR
design & décoR
Jennifer Leischer is the owner ofJ. Designs Interior Design based inClayton. Contact her with questions,comments and suggestions [email protected].
This spring,switch up yourcleaning routine
Spring is the perfect timeto get last year’s dirt out ofyour home. If you are aboutto dig into that sometimesdreaded chore, start by mak-ing a switch. Or several.
SWITCH …The Mattress. Turn it over,
and then switch the top ofthe mattress to the bottom ofthe bed. This reduces con-cave areas and should berepeated every six months.Vacuum mattresses using theupholstery attachment onyour vacuum cleaner.
Ceiling Fan. Turn theswitch on your ceiling fan sothe blades are moving count-er clockwise, pushing the airdownward. Dust the top andsides of the fan blades with amicrofiber cloth.
Storm Windows. Take outyour storm windows andreplace with screens. Washwindows inside and out usinga drop of liquid dish soap pertwo gallons of water and agood squeegee. You will getthe best results if you washwindows on a cloudy, notsunny, day because sunlightdries the glass quickly, caus-ing it to streak.
Baking Soda. It’s time totake out the old baking sodafrom your refrigerator andreplace it with a new box. Toclean the inside of the fridge,use a cleaning solution of1/4 cup baking soda to 1quart of warm water. Don’tforget to wipe down the rub-ber gasket around the edge ofthe door.
Your Wardrobe. Exchangewinter clothes for summerones. Call your local charityand donate any clean,unwanted clothing.
Your Child’s Toys. If the toybox is overflowing, take outseveral toys that won’t benoticed and store them in theattic or another out-of-the-way spot. In the fall or after abirthday, take out the storedbox and switch those toyswith others in the toy box.
Spices. Replace spices thathave not been used in morethan a year. Spices tend tolose their potency over time.Wipe clean the interior of thecabinets with warm waterand a mild detergent. If youfind a lot of crumbs or foodparticles, vacuum cupboardsand drawers before cleaning.
Air Filter. Change yourfurnace filter so it is ready fornext winter.
Clayton resident Karen Bred-benner is a cleaning expert and theowner of the Maids in Concord.For more information about theMaids, go to www.maids.com orcall Karen at 925-798-6243.
KARen BReDBenneR
keep it clean
Most animated comediesdo not tackle deep, societalissues. They can be typicallytaken at face value, with char-acters overcoming some sortof personal struggle.
It is difficult to balancelaughs with genuine socialcommentary. But co-direc-tors and co-writers ByronHoward (“Tangled,” “Bolt”)and Rich Moore (“Wreck-itRalph”) largely pull off a per-fect mix in “Zootopia.” Hir-ing quality actors to do thevoices always helps.
Rabbits, while always cute,are often the funniest charac-ters in animated fare.Thumper, Bugs Bunny andRoger Rabbit are some of themost iconic bunnies fromcartoons, so Judy Hopps
(flawlessly voiced by GinniferGoodwin) has big shoes tofill.
All she’s ever dreamed ofis becoming the first rabbitpolice officer in Zootopia.Always told she’s too smalland weak to make it as a cop,Judy perseveres. Yes, Judymust surmount the odds inher personal struggle. How-ever, the writers make it notonly about an entire speciesattempting to conquer per-ceived deficiencies, but aboutwomen as well.
Throughout her journey,Judy keeps a level head –endeavoring to find thehumor among her many try-ing situations. Upon arrivingin Zootopia, she gets griftedby a fox, Nick Wilde (JasonBateman in another excellentcasting choice). In a clever,funny game of one-upsman-ship, they both figure out theother isn’t so bad after all.Goodwin and Bateman havea lot of chemistry together,even as animated characters.
As the friendship buildsbetween Judy and Nick, theytry to solve a case believed tobe unsolvable. A visit to theDMV elicits some heartychuckles. But at this point,the film becomes more of a
whodunit than a comedy. It’snot until the third act that themovie delivers its most pow-erful message.
“Zootopia” sacrificeslaughs for lessons as the filmmoves toward its climax. Thecity has been living in com-plete harmony. Predators andprey live together in a civi-lized society. No one tries toeat anyone. When it comes tolight that someone is causinga handful of predators torevert to their primal form,protests and chaos ensue.
Should an entire speciesof animals be judged on even
the chance that a scant few ofthem may return to their pri-mal state? If parents are ableto decipher this message fortheir kids after they leave thetheater, the creators havedone a great service.
“Zootopia” is one ofthose rare movies that is atonce funny, sweet and social-ly conscious. B+
‘Zootopia’ blends laughter, life lessons
a Bunny and a foX (voiced by Ginnifer Goodwin and JasonBateman) deal with a DmV-working sloth in Disney’sZootopia.
Jeff meLLinGeR
scReen shots
Jeff Mellinger is a screen writerand film buff. He holds a BA inFilm Studies and an MFA in filmproduction. He lives in Concord.Email comments to [email protected].
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Few galleries will exhibitnudes, and many artists do notunderstand why.
For the new “Nude NotNaked” exhibit at the aRt Cot-tage, most of the artists havebeen painting together formany years in a studio art set-ting. Most of the works arefrom the Jody Mattison Group.
The artists work fromposes done by draped as wellas nude models. Some of themodels are from the Bay Area
Model Guild and are also usedby colleges around the area.
Artists have been workingwith nudes, whether painted inabstract style or lifelike, sincethe beginning of time. Theylook at the human body as abeautiful landscape with manyinteresting shadows, shapesand lines.
“Nude not Naked” will beopen at 2238 Mt. Diablo St.,Concord, for the month of
May. There will be a receptionto meet the artists 1-5 p.m.Saturday, May 7. This is thesame day as the Concord Art,Wine and Beer Walk. aRt Cot-tage is the last stop on themap.
April 22, 2016 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 19
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At the insistence of his par-ents and because of his ownbudding love of music, DonHartsell sat down at a piano in1930, at the tender age of 5, tobe taught his first lesson by thegrocer’s wife.
After extensive musicaltraining, he enjoyed a longcareer as an organist and musicdirector. He and his wife of 53years, Nanna, also taught atseveral schools in ContraCosta County.
Don has been volunteeringfor the past eight years as thepianist for the Monday Sing-a-Long Group at the ConcordSenior Citizens Club. He playsa mean piano, thrilling his lis-teners with a variety of popu-lar old tunes – from “BeautifulDreamer” to “Roll Out theBarrel” and every genre inbetween. The singing groupalways begins its sessions with“Hail, Hail the Gang’s AllHere” and ends their timetogether with “God BlessAmerica.”
They all sing at the top of
their lungs and love everyminute of it. Newcomers arealways welcome to join, andgroup members don’t give ahoot if you can carry a tune ornot. They are there for thefriendships that are forged andthe joyful noise made.
For $14 a year, residentscan become a member of the
Concord Senior Citizens Club.The senior singers meet afterlunch every Monday at noon.The gifted piano player willtransport you to that magicalplace where only beautifulmusic can take you.
The group meets at theConcord Senior Center, 2727
Parkside Circle.
don haRtsell at the piano, has Been leading the monday singing group at Concord Sen-ior Center for 8 years. The group is open to all, no auditions required.
ChRiSTine KoGuT
savvy senioR
Christine Kogut is a marketingdirector for the Concord Senior Citi-zens Club. She has lived in the areafor 40 years and formerly worked forthe Contra Costa Times.
To find out more about the Con-cord Senior Center, call (925) 671-3320 or see the city’s website at concord.ca.us
Pianist the driving force behind senior singers
Margaret Atwood’s firstnovel, “The Edible Woman,”was published in 1969. At 30,Atwood was then hailed asone of the first feminist-themed novelists of modernliterature.
But Atwood denies theclaim, saying that a statementon women’s rights was nother intention. Nevertheless,as a product of its time,social themes rise like creamto the top of this edgy fictiondebut.
To read “The EdibleWoman” is to be transportedback in time. Forty-plus yearsago, “girls” had entered theworkforce to stay. They worebinding girdles, deferred tothe men in the company andwere expected to resign whenthey became engaged and leftmaidenhood behind. Still,they were there, earning theirway.
In this story, MarianMcAlpine is “The EdibleWoman.” She works in theresearch division of an adagency. As a “modern girl,”she is college-educated andself-sufficient. What setsMarian apart from “the officevirgins” is her steadyboyfriend, Peter, and her flat-mate, Ainlsey.
Even though Marian is aworking professional, womenand men in her company aresegregated. Figuratively andliterally, men occupy thefloor above. Marian defers toPeter and his assumed superi-ority, as social conventionsrequire. When Marian andPeter become engaged, shewaits to reveal the good newsat her office – knowing shewill be fired because marriedwomen, and those on thecusp of matrimony, “areunreliable.”
Sexism exists in ways thatseems antiquated today.When Ainlsey decides thatshe wants a baby and notnecessarily a husband, shecreates a strategy to find theperfect donor. She plots theseduction of her candidate,Len, by letting him thinkshe’s an innocent teenager.She gets him so roaringdrunk that he doesn’t remem-ber the deed. When Ainsleytells Len the good news, hebellows, “This is what hap-pens when you educatewomen!”
Marian’s friend Clara hasjust given birth to a thirdbaby in four years and swearsthat when it’s over, she’sgoing on the pill. If feminismwasn’t thriving in 1969, it wasbeginning to build steam.
From the moment Marianaccepts Peter’s proposal, hersubconscious begins torevolt. She becomes involvedwith a graduate student shemeets in a launderette, mak-ing excuses to rendezvousfurtively while justifying herfickle behavior to herself. AsPeter assumes more authorityover her life, she develops aneating disorder, thus physical-ly beginning to fade.
At first she finds steak,with its blood and texture,intolerable. Then she findsthe relationship to the beaksand feathers of chicken andeggs disgusting. When she isreduced to consuming onlycoffee and toast, breadbecomes inedible when shecompares its air pockets tosmall clusters of lungs.
Marion doesn’t quitebreak it off with Peter asmuch as display increasinglyneurotic behavior, forcingPeter to call off the engage-ment. This is disappointing,because a reader wants theprotagonist to have evolvedby the end of a story. ButMarian, like the culture inwhich she existed in 1969,was making the best progressshe could.
If you are familiar withAtwood’s later work, this novelis a must-read. Ditto, if you areat all curious about 1960sNorth American culture.
CynThiA GReGoRy
foR the Books
fRoGARD
aRt scene
Cynthia Gregory is a NorthBay nonprofit leader, writer of shortfiction, and author of a blog. Emailcomments and questions to Editor@Concord Pioneer.com
Today’s readers can learn alot from 1960s ‘Woman’
about 25 feet farther in themile-high city of Denver.
All the weather-relatedeffects of baseball flight dis-tances I discussed were calcu-lated in still air. Winds are sel-dom calm, and the velocity ofthe wind doesn’t have to bestrong to have a significantimpact on the distance a balltravels. A 5 mph wind blowingout to center field can addabout 10 percent to the dis-tance of a ball hit well enoughto travel 350 feet in calm air.
Spring is a season for avariety of outdoor activities,including going to a baseballgame and watching kids of allages trying to hit a ball into theair. How well a ball is hit ismainly a function of the bat-ter’s skill, but weather condi-tions help determine how farthe ball will travel.
Weather, from page 8
Woody Whitlatch is a meteor-ologist retired from PG&E. Emailyour questions or comments to [email protected]
Exhibit examines the body as art
FROgard Butler is the theowner of aRt Cottage, 2238 Mt.Diablo St. in Concord. Email herat [email protected]
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Leave it to the EugeneO’Neill Foundation to find acreative way to present eventsdealing with O’Neill’s prolificwritings.
The Foundation and theNational Park Service pres-ent “O’Neill: The Rhythmsof His Soul” April 30-May 15at the Old Barn at TaoHouse. Located in Danville,Tao House was O’Neill’shome from 1937-1944 andthe place where he wrotemany of his most famousplays. It is truly a magicalplace to watch or perform inone of his works.
This event, however, isnot one of his masterpieces
but rather a lively musicalrevue featuring more than 70songs imbedded in his 51plays. Written by foundationdirector emeritus DanCawthon, the revue featuressongs collected by TravisBogard, a former member ofthe foundation’s board ofdirectors. It includes earlyAmerican popular music, seashanties, songs from Ireland,familiar music hall tunes fromthe turn of the century andsongs about misbegottenlove.
Directed by Rachel Robin-son, the production includesa cast of four singers/dancers, Billy Raphael, LisaWoo, Eric Carlson, KateMetroka, and Brad Crookeras Eugene O’Neill.
Tickets may be purchasedat www.eugeneoneill.org orby calling 925-820-1818.
Pittsburg CommunityTheatre presents LarryKramer’s award-winningdrama “The Normal Heart” 8p.m. May 13, 2 and 8 p.m.May 14 and 2 p.m. May 15 atthe California Theatre indowntown Pittsburg.
Steven Mergogey-Contidirects the powerful workabout public indifference tothe AIDS plague and oneman’s lonely fight to awakenthe world to the impendingcrisis. Nathan Bogner playsNed Weeks, the activist whoconfronts an indifferent pressand gay community. The castincludes Clarisse Edwards,Jason Best, Greg Lynch, Gio-vanni Vidrio, Joseph Saam,Tim Biglow, Keala Freitas,Alex Schepers and Ian Lustre.
For tickets, call 925-427-1611 or go to www.pitts-burgcaliforniatheatre.com.
It’s the last chance to seeClayton Theatre Compa-ny’s “Rumors,” which closesApril 23 at Endeavor Hall,6008 Center St., Clayton. TheNeil Simon comedy is onelaugh after another as friendsarrive for a 10th anniversaryparty. But the hostess isnowhere to be found, and herhusband is indisposed with agun shot wound to the ear.Rumors fly as the policearrive to take this hilariousfarce up another notch.
La Tonya Watts directs,with Roxanne Pardi as assis-tant director. “We’ve set theshow in present-day NewYork to give it a fresh, mod-ern-day feel,” says Watts, whonotes that the couples in theplay “bring new meaning tofamily dysfunction.”
The cast includes TeresaGrosserode, NathalieArchangel, Terry Tracy,Peggy Scalise, Ron Craven,Bill Dietz, James Bradley,Terese McGregor and new-comers to the theater compa-ny, Clayton resident ChipRenner and Tamara Coore-man. For tickets, go to Clay-tontheatrecompany.com or
www.Brownpapertickets.com.
There’s still time to catchCenter Repertory’s “Art” atWalnut Creek’s Lesher Centerfor the Arts. Yasmina Reza’saward-winning comedy con-tinues through April 30.
Michael Butler directs aseamless, fast-paced produc-tion utilizing the excellentcomedic skills of CassidyBrown (Yvan), J. MichaelFlynn (Marc) and Liam Vin-cent (Serge). All create fasci-natingly different characters.Brown is especially effective
with his breathless mono-logue about his impendingnuptials.
The story follows thefriendship of the three men,which reaches the breakingpoint when Serge spends alarge amount of money foran all-white painting. NeitherYvan nor Marc can fathomwhy their friend would dosuch a thing. The comedygoes way beyond a discussionof art and delves into howfriendships form and the lifechoices that people make asthey mature.
Scenic designer JoshuaLipps creates a very effectivewhite monochromatic colorscheme (with a large splash ofcolor in the red-toned car-pet), beautifully accented byKurt Landisman’s colorfullight cubicles. Call 925-943-SHOW or go to www.lesher-artscenter.org.
Page 20 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016
THE ARTS
SALLy hoGARTy
stage stRuck
Sally Hogarty is well knownaround the Bay Area as a newspa-per columnist, theatre critic andworking actress. She is the editor ofthe Orinda News. Send commentsto [email protected]
Musical revue features songs from O’Neill plays
Diablo Ballet presents thefinal program of its 22nd sea-son, honoring the power ofdance with “Celebrated Mas-ters” May 6-7 at the Del ValleTheatre in Walnut Creek.
The performances includethe highly anticipated pro-duction of “Carnival of theImagination,” choreographedby Robert Dekkers and set toCamille Saint-Saëns’s famous“The Carnival of the Ani-mals.” The ballet follows a
young child named Seven ona magical journey through theworld of make believe. Filledwith dragons and unicorns,pixies and panda bears, aphoenix and a jackalope, thiscoming-of-age adventure cel-ebrates creativity and inspiresimagination.
“Celebrated Masters” willbe at 8 p.m. May 6 and 2 and8 p.m. May 7 at 1963 TiceValley Blvd., Walnut Creek.Each performance is fol-
lowed by an interactive Q&Awith the dancers and chore-ographers, and includes acomplimentary dessert andcoffee reception, with anopportunity for the audiencemembers to get up close andpersonal with the artists.
For tickets, call 925-943-SHOW or visit www.lesherartscen-ter.org. For more information, visitwww.diabloballet.org.
Charles Perrault’senchanting fairy tale springsto life in “Sleeping Beauty,”an hour-long ballet set toTchaikovsky’s exhilaratingscore on May 13-14.
The staging and choreog-raphy highlights the talentsof the Contra Costa BalletCompany, along with fea-
tured guest artists JackieMcConnell as Princess Auro-ra and Christian Squires asPrince Florimund.
The company is a region-al, pre-professional, youthcompany. Sponsored by thenon-profit Contra Costa Bal-let Foundation, it producestwo high-quality productions
annually at the Lesher Centerfor the Arts: “Spring Rep”and “The Nutcracker.”
“Sleeping Beauty” is at theHofmann Theatre, 1601 Civic Dr.,Walnut Creek. For tickets, call925-943-SHOW or visithttps://lesherartscenter.showare.com/eventperformances.asp?evt=522.
‘Sleeping Beauty’ is pareddown version of the classicDiablo Ballet’s ‘Celebrated Masters’
draws on childlike imagination
Performing in her seventh“Wish Upon a Star” show,high school senior JordanBen-Shmuel is sentimentalabout this year’s production.
“This year is special forme because I get to play PeterPan as a graduating senior inthe 10th anniversary show,”says Ben-Shmuel, a senior atClayton Valley Charter HighSchool.
The Peter Pan Foundationis performing their signatureoriginal musical at DiabloValley College in PleasantHill on Memorial Day week-end. Proceeds benefit Chil-dren’s Hospital Oakland. Theshow follows Peter Pan andfriends on an enchantedmusical journey through clas-sic stories, featuring belovedfairytale characters withprincesses, heroes, villainsand more.
President and founderLeslie Noel says the founda-tion was inspired by its origi-nal Peter Pan, the late SteffenRyge, to encourage childrento reach their personal poten-tial and find the best versionsof themselves, on and offstage. “They are instilled withconfidence, develop strengthof character and enhance cre-ativity, all the while engagingin philanthropy,” Noel says.
“The Peter Pan Founda-tion has been a huge part ofmy family’s life for eightyears, and it’s an honor to bea part of this,” Ben-Shmuelnotes of the anniversaryshow.
She also participates inthe drama department of theClaytonArts Academy, threechoirs and community serv-ice groups. Through ClaytonValley, Ben-Shmuel has per-
formed in more than 15shows, including Audrey in“Little Shop of Horrors” andOlive in “The 25th AnnualPutnam County SpellingBee” this year. She plans toattend Portland State Univer-sity in the fall to study theaterart.
Noel has a theory aboutwhy “Wish Upon a Star” is soendearing. “I think this showtouches so many peoplebecause everyone has a littlePeter Pan inside – a childwho never truly grew up, butwho has the power to teachthe world to fly.”
Performances are 2 and 7 p.m.May 28-30 and 10 a.m. May 29at the Performing Arts Center, 321Golf Club Road, Pleasant Hill.For tickets, visit peterpanfounda-tion.org.
Following the wildly suc-cessful concert version at theGeary Theater in spring 2015,American Conservatory The-ater (ACT) will present a new,fully staged production of“The Last Five Years” May 11-June 5.
Jason Robert Brown, theTony Award–winning compos-er of “Parade” and “Honey-moon in Vegas,” brings us thispowerful and intimate musicalabout two twentysomething
New Yorkers. Strugglingactress Cathy and rising novel-ist Jamie dive headfirst into amarriage fueled by the opti-mism that comes from finding“the one.”
The musical features aunique structure in whichCathy’s journey is sung fromending to beginning, andJamie’s from beginning to end.The lovers’ individual accountsreveal that, in a city where pro-fessional and personal passions
collide, navigating the watersof love and matrimony canprove daunting.
Packed with humor, ravish-ing romance and an exuberantscore, “The Last Five Years”takes an unforgettable look atthe hope that love will endurethe test of time.
The theater is at 415 Geary St.,San Francisco. Single tickets rangefrom $20 to $105 and are availableat 415-749-2228 or www.act-sf.org.
clayton theatRe company BRings neil simon’s “RumoRs”to endeavoR hall in Clayton. Cast in the rowdy romp are(standing) Terese mcGregor, Bill Dietz, Teresa Grosserode,Ron Craven, James Bradley, nathalie Archangel; (Seated)Tamara filener, Terry Tracy, Peggy Scalise
KevinBerne.com
J. michael flynn, cassidy BRown and liam vincent in Center Rep’s award-winning comedy, “Art,”now playing through April 30.
After 10 years, ‘Wish Upon aStar’ still charms audiences
Play explores marriage in musical style
April 22, 2016 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 21
in concoRdTuesdays Farmers’ MarketTuesdays year round, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Todos Santos Plaza,downtown Concord. cityofconcord.org.
ThursdaysMusic and MarketThursday night live music and farmers’ market. Music: May 19,Tom Rigney and Flambeau; May 26, Concord High Jazz Band.Market 4 – 8 p.m.; music 6:30 – 8 p.m. Todos Santos Plaza,downtown Concord. cityofconcord.org.
3rd SundaysAntique FaireAntiques, collectibles, handmade arts and crafts. 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.Todos Santos Plaza, downtown Concord. Free admission. concor-dantiquefaire.com.
On Sale NowConcertsThe Concord Pavilion is located at 2000 Kirker Pass Road.livenation.com. Concert schedule for 2016:
apr. 29, luke Bryan, 7 p.m.may 17, Bad company, 7 p.m.may 29, kBlX stone soul concert, 12 p.m.June 12, spirit west coast, 4 p.m. June 13, slipknot, 6:30 p.m. July 9, Bryan adams, 8 p.m. July 12, taste of chaos, 6:30 p.m.July 28, sublime, 6:35 p.m. aug. 19, disturbed, 6:30 p.m. aug. 28, snoop dogg, 7 p.m.sept. 18, daryl hall and John oates, 7 p.m.
Apr. 23Convoy of HopeCollaborative effort to bring hope to a city through free groceries,health screenings, job services and more. 10 a.m. MeadowHomes Park, 2199 Sunshine Drive, Concord. Free.convoy.org/concord. 458-9100, ext. 143.
Apr. 23Earth Day 2016Join the city of Concord to clean up the community and celebratethe planet. 8 a.m. – 12 p.m. Newhall Community Park, 1351Newhall Parkway, Concord. Register at signupgenius.com/find-asignup and search by [email protected].
May 7MomDay Celebrate Mom and enjoy the All Area Music Festival. 12 – 5p.m. Todos Santos Plaza, downtown Concord. cityofconcord.org.
in claytonApr. 23Clayton Cleans UpHonor Earth Day with a town spring cleaning. 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.Clayton City Hall, 6000 Heritage Trail. Register atcityofclayton.org. Call Pioneer with questions at 672-0500.
Apr. 30 – May 1Art and Wine FestivalArts, crafts, food, music, wine. Sat. 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. Sun. 10a.m. – 5 p.m. Main Street. Free admission. claytoncbca.org. 672-2272.
May 7, 21Saturday Concerts in the GroveMay 7, Retromaniax; May 21, Larry Lynch and the Mob. 6 – 8:30p.m. Grove Park, downtown Clayton. Free. cityofclayton.org.
Saturdays, May 7 thru Sept. 24, except Sept. 3Farmers’ Market8 a.m. – 12 p.m. Diablo Street between Main and Center streets,downtown Clayton. pcfma.org.
on and aRound the mountainBlack Diamond Mines Regional Preserve programs are availablefor registration through ebparks.org. Parking fees may apply. Foradditional information, contact Black Diamond Visitor Center at(510) 544-2750 or [email protected].
Apr. 22Full Moon Cemetery WalkCelebrate Earth Day with moonlit climb to Rose Hill Cemetery. 6– 8:30 p.m. Meet at Black Diamond Mines Upper Parking Lot.
Apr. 23Morgan’s ManzanitasEnjoy some of California’s unique botanical treats. 9 a.m. –1:30 p.m. Meet at Morgan Territory Road Staging Area.
Apr. 30Somersville to Stewartville HikeWalk through once-lively pioneer mining towns. 10 a.m. – 2:30p.m. Meet at Black Diamond Mines Upper Parking Lot.
Mount Diablo Interpretive Association programs listed are freewith the exception of park entrance fee. Go to mdia.org and clickon Event Calendar for more information.
Apr. 29Curry Canyon and Windy Point HikeThis hike features great views of the Diablo Summit and NorthPeak. 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Meet at Curry Point Trailhead.Reservations required by Apr. 26: [email protected].
May 8Mother’s Day Wildflower WalkSee many wildflowers on the way to Twin Peaks. 9 a.m. – 12:30p.m. Meet at Mitchell Canyon Visitor Center. Reservations re-quired: [email protected].
May 13Twin Peaks Wildflower HikeClimb up to Twin Peaks via Mitchell Rock Trail and return viaEagle Peak Trail. 10:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. Meet at MitchellCanyon Trailhead.
Save Mount Diablo programs listed are free unless otherwisenoted. Go to savemountdiablo.org and click on Activities/GuidedHikes for more information. 947-3535.
Apr. 30Mangini Ranch Family HikeFour-mile hike with one strenuous climb. 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. Meetat 5318 Crystyl Ranch Drive, Concord. Reservations required.
events & enteRtainmentThru April 24“Jungle Book”Hear the incredible tale of Mowgli, a young boy raised by wolves.El Campanil Children’s Theatre, 602 W. Second St., Antioch. $8-$12. elcampaniltheatre.com.
Apr. 29 – May 1“The Music Man, Jr.”Presented by Poison Apple Productions. Lesher Center for the Arts,1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $20. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.
Apr. 30Jazz EnsemblePerformed by The Commanders U.S. Air Force Band. 7 p.m. Cali-fornia Theatre, 351 Railroad Ave., Pittsburg. Free, but must havea ticket. pittsburgcaliforniatheatre.com. 427-1611.
Apr. 30The Ray Charles ProjectA tribute to the genius of Ray Charles. 8 p.m. El Campanil The-atre, 602 W. Second St., Antioch. $25-$27.elcampaniltheatre.com.
May 1“Alice in Wonderland”Performed by The Ballet Company of East County. 2 p.m. ElCampanil Theatre, 602 W. Second St., Antioch. $12-$15. elcam-paniltheatre.com.
May 5 – 8 “Wizard of Oz”Presented by Fantasy Forum Actors Ensemble. Lesher Center forthe Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $14. lesherartscenter.org.943-7469.
May 6 – 7“Celebrated Masters”Performed by Diablo Ballet. Del Valle Theatre, 1963 Tice ValleyBlvd., Walnut Creek. $44. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.
May 7House of FloydThe music of Pink Floyd. 8 p.m. El Campanil Theatre, 602 W.Second St., Antioch. $25-$27. elcampaniltheatre.com.
May 8“A Grand Finale”Performed by California Symphony. 4 p.m. Lesher Center for theArts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $42-$72.lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.
May 13 – 14“Nunsense”The Little Sisters of Hoboken put on a variety show. BrentwoodCommunity Center, 35 Oak St., Brentwood. thebrentwoodthe-ater.org.
May 13 – 14“Sleeping Beauty”Presented by Contra Costa Ballet. 7:30 p.m. Lesher Center for theArts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $35. lesherartscenter.org.943-7469.
May 13 – 15“The Normal Heart”Searing drama about AIDS plague. California Theatre, 351 Rail-road Ave., Pittsburg. $10-$25. pittsburgcaliforniatheatre.com.427-1611.
May 14Nelson FreirePianist. Presented by Chamber Music San Francisco. 2:30 p.m.Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek.$51. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.
May 14“Royal”An afternoon of musical adventure that is perfect for your royalfamily. 2 p.m. Saint Matthew Lutheran Church, 399 Wiget Lane,Walnut Creek. $10-$20. diablowomenschorale.org.
May 14Spring ConcertPresented by Winds Across the Bay Youth Wind Ensemble. 7:30p.m. Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek.$12.lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.
May 14 - 15“Coplandish”A celebration of Aaron Copland’s works presented by ContraCosta Chamber Orchestra. 2 p.m. May 14: El Campanil Theatre,602 W. Second St., Antioch. $7-$15.elcampaniltheatre.com. May15: Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek.$10-$30. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.
May 14 - 15“Girls Night Out II”An evening of music with the Sincerity Girls Ensemble. Presentedby Music Repertoire. Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr.,Walnut Creek. $13.lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.
May 15“In Praise of Music”Performed by the Contra Costa Chorale in celebration of its 50thanniversary. 5 p.m. Walnut Creek Presbyterian Church, 1801 La-cassie Ave. $20-$25. brownpapertickets.com.
May 15May ConcertPresented by Diablo Wind Symphony. 7:30 p.m. Lesher Centerfor the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek.$10. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.
May 20 – June 5“Esperanza!”A pirate romance. Onstage Theatre at the Campbell Theatre, 636Ward St., Martinez. 518-3277.
May 20 – June 25“Rock of Ages”Musical featuring big bands, big egos and even bigger hair.Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $37-$65. centerrep.org. 943-7469.
May 21“Spring 2016: The Best of the Beatles”Presented by The Blackhawk Chorus. 8 p.m. Lesher Center for theArts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $25. lesherartscenter.org.943-7469.
May 21The DiamondsClassic Rock and Roll with today’s attitude. 2 p.m. El CampanilTheatre, 602 W. Second St., Antioch. $25-$27. elcampanilthe-atre.com.
May 22Danzon and TrombonePresented by Contra Costa Wind Symphony. 7:30 p.m. LesherCenter for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $17. lesher-artscenter.org. 943-7469.
May 22“Kindred Spirits”Presented by Diablo Symphony Orchestra. 2 p.m. Lesher Centerfor the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek.$33. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.
schoolsMay 6 – 22“Clybourne Park”Unforgettable new story about race, class and real estate inAmerica. Diablo Valley College, 321 Golf Club Road, PleasantHill. $16-$21. dvcdrama.net.
chuRches and ReligionMay 19 – 21Rummage SaleProceeds benefit church’s outreach programs. May 19 – 20, 9a.m. – 5 p.m. May 21, 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Concord UnitedMethodist Church, 1645 West St., Concord. concordumc.org.
fundRaiseRsApr. 23 - 24Clayton Gardens TourBeautiful gardens on self-guided tour in Clayton area. BenefitsClayton Historical Society. 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Clayton Museum,6101 Main St. $30; $35 day of event. claytonhistory.org.
Apr. 27Spaghetti FeedSponsored by the Clayton branch of the American Association ofUniversity Women to raise funds to send three students to TechTrek. 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. Endeavor Hall, 6008 Center St., Clayton.$10 adults; $5 children. Call 672-1316 for more information.
Apr. 30Baking for a CureBake sale for Relay For Life Clayton. 8 a.m. – 12 p.m. Starbucks,Clayton Station.
Apr. 30 – May 1Open Studio SaleHosted by Generous Nature Pottery. A portion of the proceeds goto the Groebner family to help pay Katie Grace’s medical ex-penses and to the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano. 10a.m. – 4 p.m. Ellen Sachtschale’s studio, 17 Eastbrook Court,Clayton. [email protected].
May 6, 7, 15“The Brilliance of Broadway”Performed by vocal and hand bell ensemble Tapestry. May 6: 7p.m. Walnut Creek United Methodist Church, 1543 SunnyvaleAve. May 7: 7:30 p.m. Clayton Valley Presbyterian Church, 1578Kirker Pass Road, Clayton, May 15: 4 p.m. St. John’s Parish,5555 Clayton Road, Clayton. Free will donation benefitingSwords to Plowshares. tapestryringersandsingers.org.
May 7Plant SaleClayton Valley Garden Club’s annual plant sale. 8 a.m. – 1 p.m.Endeavor Hall, 6008 Center St., Clayton. claytonvalleygarden-club.org.
May 7 Rummage SaleProceeds benefit Boy Scout Troop 370. 8 a.m. – 3 p.m. The Sal-vation Army, 3950 Clayton Road, Concord. To donate items, con-tact Marina by May 6 at 234-3470 or [email protected].
May 7The RepeatlesPizza and music. Proceeds benefit Concord Moose outreach pro-grams. 3 – 6 p.m. Concord Moose Lodge #567 Family Center,1805 Broadway St., Concord. $10. 798-0887.
May 21The Road to RioThe Walnut Creek Aquanuts bring Olympic flair to their annualfundraiser. 4 – 9 p.m. Clarke Memorial Swim Center, 1750Heather Drive, Walnut Creek. $20; $25 at the door.aquanuts.org.
at the liBRaRyThe Concord Library is at 2900 Salvio St. Programs are free unlessotherwise noted. See full schedule of events at ccclib.org or 646-5455.
Thru Apr. 30: Art, Craft and Writing display from local artistsApr. 22 – 24: used Book Sale, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Fri. and Sat.;
1 - 3 p.m. Sun.Apr. 30: Spring Art Show, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. may 3: Cinco de mayo, 3:30 – 5:30 p.m. Registration req. may 14: Rosie the Riveters, 1 p.m.may 26: Adult Coloring and Storytime, 6 – 7:30 p.m.
The Clayton Library is at 6125 Clayton Road. Programs are freeunless otherwise noted. See full schedule of events at claytonli-brary.org or call 673-0659.
Apr. 24: Civic Arts Jazz Band, 2 p.m.Apr. 28: Visit firefighters and fire Truck, 11 a.m.Apr. 28: Push, Pull, Crash, 4 p.m. Registration required.may 7: Children’s Book Week Storytime, 10:30 a.m.may 21: ACT Practice Test, 10 a.m. Registration required.may 26: hats! hats! hats! 4 p.m.
goveRnment1st, 2nd and 4th TuesdaysConcord City Council6:30 p.m., Council Chamber, Concord Civic Center, 1950 Park-side Dr. cityofconcord.org.
1st and 3rd WednesdaysConcord Planning Commission7 p.m. Council Chamber, Concord Civic Center, 1950 ParksideDr. cityofconcord.org.
PleASe SubMIt yOuR COMMunIty CAlendAR eventS by 5 P.M. MAy 18 FOR tHe MAy 27 ISSue. IteMS MuSt be SubMItted by eMAIl tO [email protected]
CALENDAR
Page 22 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com April 22, 2016
Nancy Bennett, Realtor @ Keller Williams Realty#1 Realtor in Concord, #1 Team, Keller Williams East Bay#5 Team Nationally (U.S. & Canada) Keller WilliamsAgent Leadership Council, Mentor, Faculty Member and Community Sponsor [email protected] 925.606.8400 BENNETTBETTER.COM
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Local ripe, juicy strawber-ries have always welcomedspring in my book. Perched ontop of ice cream, cooked into ajam, marinated and grilled,chopped into a salsa … oh,yum.
But wait. Did somebodysay the strawberry isn’t a berry?Yep, it’s true. Part of the rosefamily, the strawberry is an“accessory aggregate fruit” –one that forms from multipleparts of a flower rather thanjust one seed. Speaking ofseeds, all of them are on theoutside of the strawberry.There’s about 200 on average.
This fruit is nutritious. Justeight strawberries providemore than 100 percent of therecommended daily Vitamin Cand some folic acid, potassiumand fiber. A cup of strawber-
ries is only 55 calories. They’re also prolific. An
acre of plants will yield about50,000 pounds of strawberries.With about 6,000 acres undercultivation, Oxnard growsabout 300 million strawberrieseach year.
There’s some debate on the
origin of the name. Centuriesago, vendors sold strawberriesstrung on grass straws. A com-mon planting practice involvedplacing straw around the baseof the plants to protect thestrawberries as they ripen. Thatmethod has been mostlyreplaced with plastic-coveredraised beds. Another widelyheld belief is that the fruit isstrewn around the plant, mak-ing them “strew-berries,”which eventually morphed intostrawberries.
Fresh strawberries wereonce used as toothpaste,because the juice can clean dis-colored teeth. Strawberry juicealso can take the sting out ofsunburn and other skin inflam-mations.
There’s a centuries-old cus-tom that says if you break a
double strawberry in halfand share it with some-one, they will fall in love.
Strawberries don’tripen after they arepicked. Many peoplebelieve you shouldn’t washstrawberries you just pur-chased because they will breakdown and get mushy in notime at all. I beg to differ. I popthem into a bowl of water with2 T. white vinegar. After aminute or so, I take them outand air dry them completely ona towel, then refrigerate in anairtight container. They’ll stayfresh upwards of 4-5 days. Thevinegar and water remove themold and mildew spores and“sanitizes” them.
Most folks remove thegreen top and core out or“hull” the white center of the
straw-berry. If you’re using them in asmoothie, you don’t need to doeither.
Adding a little sugar tosliced strawberries will deepentheir color and give off theirjuice, a process called macera-tion. That makes them greaton ice cream or cereal. I’ll addsome balsamic vinegar ratherthan sugar to strawberries for asweet-tart flavor. Better yet,
dipthem in
b a l s a m i cvinegar and roll in granulatedsugar and grill over high heatfor a few seconds a side tocaramelize the sugar and youhave a real treat.
And don’t forget to makesome jam to store up spring’sgoodness to enjoy all year.
Habitués of farmers mar-kets understand the attractionof interesting and unusual pro-duce that can only be foundthere. Squash blossoms are oneof those wonderful finds.
Connoisseurs and homecooks alike look forward eachyear to their appearance. Theytake home these edible blos-soms to create flavorfulrecipes.
Squash blossoms areextremely perishable, lastingfrom just a few hours to maybea day or two, so few supermar-kets bother to carry them.
The beautiful deep yellowflower grows to form a zucchi-ni, yellow squash or winter
squash. Both male and femaleblossoms can be picked. Theyare often harvested with thetiny immature squash stillattached. They are such a
delight to look at that you maynot want to eat them, butplease do because they’re deli-cious. The flowers have a sub-tle flavor, reminiscent of
young zucchini, and can beeaten raw or cooked.
Look for producers thatalso offer zucchini and othersummer squash to have thesedelectable blossoms in Mayand June. Asian specialty grow-ers and other squash growerswill carry them in early sum-mer. Visit J&M Farms fororganic blossoms, BorbaFarms and Oya Organics forzucchini blossoms and myriadother local farmers with blos-soms.
Talk to the farmers abouthow to prepare them. Theyhave extensive knowledge oftheir product and would loveto discuss blossoms with you.
Here is a recipe fromCookin’ the Market ChefMario Hernandez.
SQUASH BLOSSOMQUESADILLAS
½ c. Oaxaca-style cheese,shredded
Unsalted butter, for cook-ing
1 c. mushrooms, thinlysliced
1 clove garlic, smashed,but left in the jacket
1 poblano pepper, roast-ed, peeled, seeded anddiced
10 individual fresh squashblossoms, cleaned thor-oughly
Cilantro, finely choppedSalt and freshly groundblack pepper, to taste
4 corn tortillas
Heat butter in large sautépan. Sauté the garlic, mush-rooms and the roasted poblano
pepper for 5 minutes, until themushrooms are brown and thepoblano is soft. Add thesquash blossoms and stir. Addcilantro and cook for anotherminute, until blossoms havewilted. Season with salt andpepper. Set aside to cool.
Place two tortillas on a flatsurface. Distribute the cheeseequally on both tortillas. Then,spread filling over cheese.Cover with the other tortillas,place on heated griddle or non-stick sauté pan with butter andcook for 3 minutes on eachside. When golden brown oneach side and cheese has melt-ed, remove and cut into quar-ters.
LinDA WyneR
food foR thought
Linda Wyner owns Pans on Fire,a gourmet cookware store and cookingschool in Pleasanton. Send suggestionsor questions to [email protected]
DEBRAMORRIS
Pacific Coast Farmers Market
The Concord Farmers Market is inTodos Santos Plaza Tuesdays &Thursdays.
Celebrate spring’s non-berry berry
Spring squash blossoms a farmers market treat