Last week PG&E cut the rib-bon to its new $40 million,38,000 sf. electric distributioncenter in Concord. The center isthe second of three that willmanage and control the 140,000miles of electricity lines thatdeliver power to its 16 millioncustomers. The first of the threeopened in Fresno in 2014, Con-cord is the second and a thirdcenter in Rocklin will be onlineby fall of 2016.

The center uses state-of-theart technology that will giveoperators an “unprecedentedvisibility” of the grid, saidGeisha Williams, the newlyappointed president of PG&EElectric Operations. The newcenters replace the outdated

control centers built in the 1980swhere, Williams said “operatorsrelied on paper maps, push pinsand magic markers” to managemaintenance, outages and emer-gencies.

The 38,000 sf. center onDetroit Avenue is laid out in“pods”. Each pod is a definedwork area with the “leadership”pod in the center. The walls arelined with big flat screened tele-visions which display in real timewhat is happening everywhere inthe center’s Bay Area jurisdic-tion. The technology is redun-dant and the centers are net-worked. Operators in each cen-ter have immediate access towhat the other centers are con-trolling. Any image can beshared on any screen or wall. Inthe event of a disaster or majorstorm, any center can shift con-trol to another center, if needed.

Outages and repairs aremanaged in real time, allowingmanagers to balance the field

crew workloads.The redundancy and stan-

dardization of technology will

Concord’s Blue Devils didsomething they’ve never donebefore in their illustrious history atthe Drum Corp InternationalWorld Class finals earlier thismonth in Indianapolis. Therenowned drum and bugle corpswon their 17th World Champi-onship but did it in unprecedent-ed, come-from-behind fashion.

The Blue Devils placed fourthin the preliminary round of theWorld Class three-day finals. Thenext day they moved up to secondand then in Saturday evening’sfinals at Lucas Oil Stadium beforea record crowd of 22,085 the BlueDevils overcame Carolina Crownand the 10 other finalists to takehome the championship.

Executive Director DaveGibbs was a member of the BlueDevils when they won their firstfour DCI titles between 1976 and1980. He assumed his director’srole in 1991 and says the BlueDevils have been overtaken byother corps after winning prelimsand semis but never before hadthey been successful being thehunter rather than the hunted.

“This year the top five corpswere the most competitive” hecan remember. The Blue Devils

After 32 years in the lawenforcement business, ConcordPolice Chief Guy Swanger says hehas learned a few things.

One of the main things, hetold the Pioneer in a recent inter-view, is educating the public abouthow his police force addressescrime, which is why his unprece-dented presentation to the citycouncil on crime statistics earlierthis month was so important.

“We’re trying to raise aware-ness on how we cover crime, andwhy it’s happening,” he says, inpart addressing recent criticism ofincreasing crimes in Concord,especially in burglaries and autothefts. “There is crime, and thereis disorderly conduct, such asspeeding, homelessness activities,

and mischief in parks. How wedeal with those is very different.”

While “hard crimes” like rob-beries jumped from 77 in 2014 to91 in 2015, he says he is heartenedby more recent numbers on otherfronts: July 2015 statistics show adrop in burglaries from 77 a yearago to just 40 this year.

The same drop can be seen inlarceny, which dropped from 335in July 2014 to 240 last month.

Car break-ins have alsodropped, from 143 a year ago to103 last month.

Most of these have to do withwhat Swanger calls “good com-munity awareness,” everythingfrom educating residents not toleave valuables in cars to Neigh-borhood Watch groups and evensocial media. (See Chief Swanger’scolumn, page 7.)

Still, the raw crime statistics

concerned Mayor Tim Graysonand other council membersenough to ask for Swanger’s pres-entation. But Swanger and othercity officials said many issuescould be blamed on simple demo-graphics and location.

One such area is car thefts.City Councilman Edi Birsan said,“Most of the stolen vehicles aremore than 10 years old, and Con-cord has a lot of residents witholder cars, more so than in neigh-boring cities like Walnut Creek.”

Another concern for Concordresidents was a perceived uptick ingang activity, but Swanger,Grayson and Birsan all said thatwas largely a case of gangs fromoutlying areas like East and WestCounty converging on Concord,

Reporting to the Citizens ofConcord via a newspaper col-umn is a great opportunity toshare ideas, observations andgood news that reflects theexpanding role of Concord in avariety of venues and locations.

I recently witnessed ourInternational Champion Con-cord Blue Devils Drum andBugle Corps adding to theirastounding and historic recordof World Championship per-formances.

The three-day Drum CorpsInternational Competition,2015, was held at the Lucas OilStadium in Indianapolis, Indi-ana. Now that you know thefinal result, permit me to giveyou what newscaster Paul Har-vey used to call, “the rest ofthe story.”

Our Concord Blue Devilswere the first team to win thetitle after placing fourth in thefirst round. They have gar-nered 17 world titles; this yearthey entered the competitionas the defending champions.Last year they set a recordwhen they received the highestscore ever given by the judges.This year they received awardsfor the best Percussion Perfor-mance, Visual Performanceand Color Guard. The teamsof young people come fromthroughout the world and mustcompete throughout the sum-mer season in order to qualifyfor the international competi-tion. Finally, our Concord BlueDevils have three differentgroups: A, B, and C.

Now you know why I am soproud of these young people,their adult supervisors and themarvelously supportive parentalgroup. Our Concord Blue Dev-ils are very special.

Autonomous Cars. Recent-ly two of my council colleagues

IT’S YOUR PAPERwww.concordpioneer.com August 28, 2015 925.672.0500

InsideCalendar . . . . . . . . . . . .18Community . . . . . . . . . . .2From the desk of . . . . . .7School News . . . . . . . .14Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10Performing Arts . . . . . .19

TIM GRAYSON

MAYOR

Drum and BugleCorps brings it home

From the desk of...

See Blue Devils, page 6

See Mayor, page 6

See Crime, page 5

Blue Devils come from behind totake 17th World in fairytale ending

Parker Staten

FOR THE FIRST-TIME IN THEIR ILLUSTRIOUS HISTORY THE BLUE DEVILS RALLIED FROM BEHIND over the three days of the Drum CorpsInternational Championships in Indianapolis earlier this month to claim the Concord team’s 17th World Championship.Mellophone player Sena Narottama is one of the 150 members of the Blue Devils A Corps who wooed the judges and arecord 22,085 spectators at Lucas Oil Stadium with their “Ink” storybook performance.

Swanger: Involvement, education help curb crime

PG&E ‘nerve center’ opens in Concord

Photo courtesy of PG&E

THE NEW PG&E CONTROL CENTER IN CONCORD utilizes cutting-edge technology to giveoperators real time control over its 140,000 miles of electricity lines in California.

JAY BEDECARRÉ

Concord Pioneer

Hom

icid

e

Rape*

Robbery

Aggra

vate

d

Ass

ault

Burg

lary

Larceny

(all)

Auto

Theft

2015 2014PEGGY SPEAR

Concord Pioneer

TAMARA STEINER

Concord Pioneer

*The “Rape” numbers only include rape between a man and a woman, anddo not include sodomy, etc. That definition is in the process of being changed.

Crime StatisticsThese represent “raw” numbers oflocal crime in Concord from 2014and 2015. The 2015 numbershave not been verified by theUnified Crime Reporting website,and won’t be until 2016.

See PG&E, page 5

1033 Mohr Lane #B . . . . . . . $219,000 . . . . .877 . . . . . . .2/1.5 . . . . .7/28/15

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Clayton Valley Presbyterianchurch is welcoming the Rev.Dr. Barbara Barkley to thecongregation.

Rev. Barkley has worked forthe last 19 years as both a pas-tor and a musician. She has astrong commitment and pas-

sion for social justice and hasdone peace and assistancework in Brazil, Alabama,North Carolina, New Mexicoand with immigrants, womenand the homeless populationin the San Francisco Bay Area.

She values and appreciatesdifferent kinds of worship andhas started several Praise serv-ices and Taize services withindifferent congregations as wellas enjoying traditional worshipstyles.

Rev. Barkley loves workingwith children and often usesher music, dance, drama andsign language skills to engagethem. She is a parent to threechildren, ages 15, 12 and 10.While spending most of herlife in the San Francisco BayArea, she has also servedchurches in Arizona and Ohio.

Page 2 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com August 28, 2015

Lupus FoundationSupport the Lupus

Foundation of America,Team JMJ. Attend theirThird Annual FundraisingFish Fry from 12 to 4 p.m.on Saturday, Aug. 29 at3441 Thunderbird Drive,Concord. Admission is $20for the meal and raffleticket. Shop at theirSecond Annual GarageSale from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.on Saturday, Sept. 19 atthe same location. TeamJMJ also participates eachyear in the Walk to EndLupus Now event in SanFrancisco. The walk is onOct. 25 this year. TeamJMJ is going strong andcontinuing efforts tospread awareness aboutlupus and raising funds forthe Lupus Foundation ofAmerica to find a cure.Make a donation directlyto their team page bygoing to:http://lupus.donorpages.com/SanFranciscoWalk2015/TeamJMJ/. Contact Arnettaat 676-8356 for moreinformation.

Want to teachsomething?

The City of Concordis looking for new offer-ings to add to its programof classes available tothe community.

Those who offer class-es through the City areprivate contractors. TheCity offers space for theclass and lists classes inthe Activity Guide.Instructors submit a pro-posal form, help to mar-ket their class, and teachtheir class at the desig-nated time. The class feeis determined during theproposal process.

Instructors are neededfor classes not currentlyoffered, such as photog-raphy, carpentry andautomotive. If you have

CCOOMMMMUUNNIITTYYIn Brief...

Continued next page

Clayton Valley churchwelcomes new pastor

Making art is not the onlypriority for the Concord Com-munity of Artists. In fact, oneof the main tenets of the groupto engage with communityorganizations in ways thatenliven civic programs andenhance the vitality within our

city and among our residentsand visitors. One way the grouphas been doing that is by work-ing with the Concord Libraryon various projects.

“Libraries have become somuch more than books,” saysLynne Noone, Adult Services

Librarian for the ConcordLibrary. She says that peoplestill come to the library to getbooks, but once they getthere, they realize how muchis going on.

“Working with the Con-cord Community of Artists isa great example of communityin action. When I asked thegroup if someone was inter-ested in creating a ‘NEWBOOKS’ sign for the Con-cord Library, artist EmilyStepp generously donated hertime and talent to this projectand the result was spectacular.

“Working together, we sparkimagination, fuel potential andconnect people with ideas andeach other.”

Artists add new chapters to libraries

DR. BARBARA BARKELY

Moose Lodge memberLynn Clanin recently wasnamed a Chevalier (Knight) ofthe National Order of theLegion of Honor by decreeFrancois Hollande, Presidentof the Republic of France.

In July, Clanin received aletter from the Consulat gener-al de France of Los Angelesconferring the medal in appre-ciation for his role in the liber-ation of France during WorldWar II. Clanin was a pilot fly-ing B-29 bombers for the Unit-ed States Air Force.

Clanin has been a memberof the Concord Moose Lodge567 since 1987.

Concord veteran honoredby French president

LYNN CLANIN

59th Japanese Summer Festival draws large crowds this month

Jay Bedecarre

Each Office Is Independently Owned & Operated.

Food and entertainmentwere plentiful for the largecrowds at the 59th annualJapanese Summer Festival inConcord earlier this month.The spacious covered eatingarea was full both of theevent days with attendeesenjoying teriyaki, tempura,sushi and other offerings.

The Diablo JapaneseAmerican Club sponsoredthe free event.

There were cultural dis-plays and demonstrations ofIkenobo (flower arranging),calligraphy and bonsai.Entertainment on stage fea-tured kendo, judo, TaikoJapanese drums, folk singingand dancing, both classicaland folk. Sonoma Taiko(left) began Sunday’s stageperformances.

EMILY STEPP AND LYNNE NOONE

Kids in the Marclair neigh-borhood off Clayton Roadwere in for a free back-to-

school backpack shoppingspree last week.

The annual event is organ-

ized by Concord activist,Kathy Gleason. The back-packs and school supplieswere donated by friends,neighbors and communitymembers.

“These kids often don’thave new things for school,”Gleason explained. “I’m fortu-nate to have friends to donate.”

Even the toddlers got in thegame. The little ones received atote bag, coloring book,crayons and a story book.“They want to be like the bigkids and go to school,” Glea-son said.

Despite the triple-digittemps, the volunteers handedout over 70 backpacks.

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Tamara Steiner/Concord Pioneer

Two new arches mark the Willow Pass entrances to Todos Santos Plaza, giving the park avery finished look. The arches are set in stone columns and join the wrought iron fenceinstalled two years ago. Wrought iron letters spell out Todos Santos Plaza. The letters arebacklit at night. The gateways were funded by developer fees “back when we used tohave such development,” says Councilwoman Laura Hoffmeister. The money is usedspecifically for Art in Public Places and the projects are decided on by the City Council.Cost of the two arches was $125,000.

August 28, 2015 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 3

Continued next page

Arches give Plaza a new finished look

Marclair kids pack up for back-to-school

an idea for a class,please contactChristopher Roke at(925) 671-3319.

Disaster Prep FairAre you and your fam-

ily prepared for an earth-quake or other naturaldisaster? Come toConcord’s EmergencyPreparedness Fair onThursday, Sept. 3, 4 to 8p.m. for useful informa-tion and free giveawaysfrom local emergencyservice organizations.

The fair is in conjunc-tion with Concord’sThursday Music andMarket program in TodosSantos Plaza. TheFarmers’ Market is in theplaza from 4 to 8 p.m.;The Raveups, performingmusic made popular inthe ‘60s by the Yardbirds,perform on the TodosSantos stage beginning at6:30 p.m.

Demonstrations andinformation will be avail-able on fire extinguishers,hands-only CPR, 911Dispatchers, radio com-munications, CERT volun-teers and hazmat.Formore information, contactEmergency Services &Volunteer ManagerMargaret Romiti, (925)671-3184.

New Bicycle RacksDowntown

Six new bicycle rackshave been installed in thedowntown parkinggarages, three in theTodos Santos ParkingStructure and three in theSalvio Street ParkingStructure. Each of theracks can accommodatetwo bicycles and werefunded by a grant from511 Contra Costa. To finda map of city bicycleracks, visit www.cityofcon-cord.org/bike

In Brief...

Centre Concord’s large ball-room, which is generally bookedevery weekend day, will be quietduring the final four months thisyear as improvements are madeto the facility.

The city venue on ClaytonRd. adjacent to Clayton ValleyBowl will have upgrades totalingnearly $650,000 made while theCentre will be closed to allrentals of its ballroom fromSept. 7 through the beginning of2016.

The major project willreplace the two floor-to-ceilingmoveable walls which can dividethe 8,176 square foot ballroominto one, two or three separaterooms. The replacement wallswill utilize new technology. Allthe wall coverings in the ball-room will be changed as well.

The 23,000 square footfacility also includes a 2,500activity room adjacent to theballroom as well as a classroomat the front entrance side ofthe building.

The construction triggersupgrades for Americans withDisabilities Act compliancewhich include renovation to the

bathrooms in the lobby, replac-ing the front doors and parkingstall modifications. J-Walt Con-struction from Woodland wasawarded the contract on theproject.

The final large public eventbefore the closure is ConcordCon Toy & Collectibles Showon Saturday, Sept. 5.

The City converted a rollerskating rink into Centre Con-cord, opening in 1991 as itslargest indoor facility with a din-ing capacity of up to 400 whenthe entire ballroom is utilized.There is a full industrial kitchento serve the ballroom and otherCentre events.

Centre Concord programmanager Marla Parada explainsthat the facility takes rentals forthe ballroom one year inadvance. Over a year ago Citystaff began informing groupswho hold annual events at Cen-tre Concord of the closure sothat they would be able to findan alternate site for their events,especially during the busy holi-day season.

Parada adds that preschooland other recreation classes willcontinue during construction inother parts of the building.

Centre Concord shutsdown for improvement

JAY BEDECARRÉ

Concord Pioneer

CENTRE CONCORD’S LARGE BALLROOM will be closed from Sept.7 through December for renovations. The floor-to-ceilingmoveable walls are being replaced with new technologyand all the wall coverings changed in the ballroom. Therewill also be a number of ADA upgrades.

Jay Bedecarré

Page 4 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com August 28, 2015

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Save the Date forthe Clayton ValleyWoman’s Club FallFundraiser

Mike Spellman andElla Wolfe take the audi-ence on a musical excur-sion making them laugh,reflect and imagine from3:30 to 6:30 p.m. onSaturday, Oct. 24, atDiamond Terrace inClayton for the ClaytonValley Woman’s Clubannual fall fundraiser. Theclub presents a delightfulafternoon of music, appe-tizers and desserts.

Diamond Terrace is at6401 Center St., Clayton.Admission is $25.Reservations are requiredas seats are limited. Forreservation information,call Aleta Huck at (925)672-9448.

The Clayton ValleyWoman’s Club meets at10 a.m. on the secondTuesday of the month,except July and August, atSaint John’s EpiscopalChurch, 5555 ClaytonRoad, Clayton. Guests arewelcome to attend meet-ings and social events.For more information, goto claytonvalleywoman-sclub.org.

Swim into FallThe giant inflatable obsta-cle courses at ConcordCommunity Pool, 3501Cowell Rd., are now avail-able only on weekends.

Concord CommunityPool is open for Rec Swimfrom 1 to 4 p.m.Monday-Friday, and 1 to5 p.m. on the weekendsthrough Labor Day week-end. Rec Swim will con-tinue on the weekendsthrough the end ofSeptember.

For more info, contactConcord Community Poolat (925) 671-3480.

In Brief...

Continued next page

Off the Grid rolls into Todos SantosTrucks are on the streets

around Todos Santos Plaza,but rather than icky exhaustfumes, these trucks emit anamazing bouquet of mouthwa-tering delights, smells tied toculinary treats worthy ofextraordinary Zagat reviews.

Off the Grid has arrived.From now until early Octo-

ber, OTG will be serving theresidents of Concord everyMonday night. The foodtrucks feature festive décor andthought-provoking menus.These trucks offer big mealsand small bites, enticing you totry a little or try a lot. Theyhave gourmet personalities sofriendly and inviting, you feelas if you’ve just been invited toa super hip neighborhoodBBQ where the music is staticfree, the vibe is laid back, andeveryone has happily foundthat “something” they’ve beencraving.

From San Jose to SanAnselmo, San Francisco toConcord, and everywhere inbetween, OTG has a veryimpressive schedule creatinginventive meal-time destina-tions.

If you happen to see agathering of OTG trucks, it’snot by chance. These destina-tions are thoughtfully selected,as OTG’s Senior Director andIn-House Counsel Rob Kwantsays. OTG has a few basicprinciples: search out underuti-lized community spaces thatcan be transformed into festivedining settings, help foster eco-nomic vitality for local busi-nesses, and above all, create anenthusiastic environment that’sfocused on good eats and asense of community for indi-viduals to be together.

The chefs inside thesepetite eateries are as unique asthe menu items they offer.Amber Menge, of the GoStreatery food truck, has abackground that truly gave herthe tools she needed to man-age a four-wheeled diningestablishment. After operatingmilitary trucks for six years andworking in a Turkish restaurantin Redwood City, Menge part-nered with DanVy Vu almostfive years ago to create special-ized peasant food that GoStreatery is known for. Mengefinds herself and the truck“somewhere new daily,” butwouldn’t change her scheduleone bit. “Oxtail and Grits” is

one of their most populardishes, and from the line thatformed shortly after OTGopened its imaginary doors, it’splain to see that Go Streateryhas a serious following.

Jack Nugent, chef and pro-prietor of Pelican Poboys, isoriginally from Louisiana,where he draws inspiration forhis unique dishes. Nugent hasmore than 30 years of experi-ence in the restaurant industry.From time spent in NewOrleans and France, to TheRestaurant at Wente Vineyards,Oliveto’s in Oakland, and PaulaLeDuc Fine Catering based inEmeryville, Nugent has a widerange of experience that he’sthrilled to share.

“I’m really happy to be apart of the food truck commu-nity, bringing quality food andtop ingredients to my patrons.”Nugent’s gulf shrimp poboy isa favorite, not deep fried and

heavy like traditional poboysthat you would find in NewOrleans, but a lighter, cleanerstyle that has become his trade-mark.

And what do the foodiegroupies have to say aboutOTG? Roxanne, who lives onthe border of Concord andClayton, says that “BaconMania sounded too good topass up!”

Dana, mother of Ashlynand Preston, is pondering herselections, trying to decidewhere to eat. “Everythinglooks so good…we’re not real-ly sure where we should start.”

And Lillian, an Alamedaresident, says that she “wantsto order everything off theADOruBOwl menu.”

This is not the first timethat OTG has served Concord,as it recently operated out ofthe parking lot at the WillowsShopping Center, but a declin-

ing customer based likelycaused it to move, says Con-cord Vice Mayor LauraHoffmeister.

The new OTG gathering atTodos Santos Plaza is a joint,temporary project between thecity and the Todos SantosBusiness Association,Hoffmeister says.

“I think there is a lot ofinterest at first for food trucks,but sometimes people find thatthey’re not as convenient asgoing to a restaurant, whereyou can pay the same price fora sit-down meal,” she says.“We’ll just have to see how Offthe Grid works downtown.”

OTG trucks will be atTodos Santos on Grant StreetMondays between 5 and 9 p.m.

For more information, and acomplete schedule of where you canfind OTG marketplaces, visitwww.offthegridsf.com.

AT PELICAN PO’BOY, proprietor and chef Jack Nugent bringsa Louisiana-inspired cuisine that is lighter and more con-temporary than the traditional southern deep-fried fare.

Jennifer Leischer

FROM NOW UNTIL FALL, EVERY MONDAY NIGHT TODOS SANTOS PLAZA WILL HOST OFF THE GRID,the eclectic food truck lineup that draws big crowds and hefty appetites. The trucks wererecently parked at the Willows Shopping Center where construction and declining cus-tomer base prompted the move to downtown.

JENNIFER LEISCHER

Correspondent

A long-awaited report to theContra Costa County Office ofEducation concerning chargesmade against Clayton ValleyCharter High School’s adminis-tration and governing board wasreleased this month and, ratherthan bringing long-standingissues to a conclusion, the reportcreated more controversy.

The report, issued the weekbefore students began theschool’s fourth year as a charter

with new principal Jeff Eben inoffice, had both critics of theschool and the CVCHS adminis-tration claiming victory.

While critics of the schoolsay the report validates theircomplaints, CVCHS administra-tors say the report did not fullyinvestigate the allegations anddidn’t seek information from theschool to rebut the accusationsof wrongdoing. It also did notfind any violations of the charteror law.

Full-service education lawfirm Dannis Woliver Kelley

was hired in January to investi-gate myriad charges madeagainst CVCHS, which includ-ed conflicts of interest, BrownAct violations, board electionprocedures, fiscal impropriety,hiring practices and athleticdepartment issues. DWS saysin its executive summary that“the report will not make fac-tual findings or determinationsregarding the validity of thefacts presented” yet then pro-ceeded to make 39 “critical rec-ommendations” based on alle-gations without determining

their validity.Both the factions making

charges against CVCHS and theschool’s executive directorDavid Linzey claimed the reportbuttressed their position.

CVCHS said in a statementafter the report was published,“In assuming the validity ofeach and every complaint made,the report presents CVCHS inthe worst possible light and in afashion of ‘guilty until proveninnocent by specific written doc-umentation’ – biasing the inves-tigation and report in the favorof the complainants.”

Both sides were well rep-resented at the packed Augustcounty school board meetingwhen the report was dis-cussed with over a dozenspeakers for each side includ-ing DWK lawyers who didthe investigation and attor-neys for the charter.

Following a prolonged pub-lic comment period each countyboard member made commentsthat instructed SuperintendentKaren Sakata, who commis-sioned the $138,000 report, tomeet with CVCHS administra-tion and governing board to seewhat the school is going to doabout the recommendations.

Board members seemed toagree with the report’s conclu-sion, “At this time and with

CVCHS’s cooperation, theissues appear largely resolvablethrough additional training,transparency, communicationand oversight.” There are nofindings that would lead to revo-cation of the charter, which theboard renewed for a maximumfive years last November.

CVCHS was in the headlinesagain when someone associatinghimself with the hacker andactivist group Anonymous sentemails and attachments to thecounty board and Sakata. “Wehave been made aware of cor-ruption and manipulation of alocal high school. We haveobtained documents that willshed some light on the truthbehind the manipulation andgreed surrounding Clayton Val-ley High School. This needs tostop,” the Anonymous emailsaid.

Linzey reported to ConcordPolice that his school emailaccount had been hacked. Theschool’s law firm instructedthose receiving emails fromAnonymous not to open them.

Concord police said its pre-liminary investigation by detec-tives determined “unknown sus-pect(s) obtained the emailaccount contents of at least oneCVCHS staff member.” Thepolice investigation is ongoing.

give PGE more flexibility inresponding to “unplanned” out-ages or to a major disaster. Newprogramming incorporatesadvanced electronic mapping toallow operators to pinpoint theexact location of an outage.Operators can also remotelycontrol equipment and workwith an automated “self-heal-ing” technology that has beeninstalled on electric circuitsthroughout the Bay Area. These“smart switches” can reroute theflow of electricity to restore out-ages in a matter of minutes.

For maximum functionality,the actual operators collaboratedon the design from the verybeginning. Williams called them

the “unsung heroes” of theproject.

In the event of a majorearthquake, the center is pre-pared. The servers are all springloaded and moveable and in theevent of a power outage, twoback-up generators can keep thecenter operational for 72 hoursbefore needing refueling.

Concord mayor TimGrayson praised PG&E forbringing “exactly the type ofhigh-tech, cutting-edge facilityConcord is encouraging for thecommunity.

“This investment helped cre-ate 250 construction jobs andother local, good paying jobsthat will provide a strategic serv-

ice to the delivery and reliabilityof our regions.”

The center will employ 80operators. “These are good,high-paying jobs,” Grayson said.

As part of the day’s celebra-tion, Williams presented Ygna-cio Valley Elementary Schoolwith a check for $20,000 to sup-port STEM (science, technolo-gy, engineering and math) edu-cation.

“STEM education is criticalto training future employees,”said Williams, who is an engi-neer. “It’s in middle schoolwhere kids get the ‘spark,’ thatsomething that gets their inter-est.” The funds will finance a sci-ence camp for fifth graders.

August 28, 2015 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 5

Support theConcord HistoricalSocietyThe Concord Museumand Event Center(Masonic Temple) is beingrenovated. With the sup-port and help of the com-munity and members, theConcord Historical Societywill be able to make boththe Galindo HomeMuseum and Gardensand the Concord Museumand Event Center self-supporting.

The Betty Barnes Trustis matching monetarydonations of $50 or moregiven for the building ofthe museum up to$200,000 through theend of 2015. Betty Barneswas a lifetime memberand staunch supporter ofthe Concord HistoricalSociety.

The grand openingand dedication of themuseum and center isOct. 17, 2016 featuringChris Brubeck.

Send donations to:Concord HistoricalSociety, P.O. Box 404,Concord, CA 94522.Write CMEC Project onthe memo line to qualifyfor matching funds. Go toconcordhistorical.org formore information.

In Brief...CVCHS begins fourth year amidst more controversyJAY BEDECARRÉ

Concord Pioneer

smack in the heart of the countyand easily accessible by freewaysand BART.

“We are the middle of thecounty,” Swanger says. “There isa saying, ‘where Concord goes,the county goes.’ In my fiveyears here, we have seen gangactivity go down, and a big partof that is education.”

He attributes that to bettereducation with the schools, andin particular the School

Resource Officer program rein-stated last year. “It is not illegalto be in a gang,” he says. “Butwe have been working to curbtheir illegal activities.”

He says that better educationand resources for students andcommunication with the familieshelps steer kids away from illegalgang activities. “It’s not theschools’ responsibility, it’s theentire community’s.” He said theone of his SRO’s is even starting

a parent education program tohelp families discourage illegalgang activities.

One thing that has been ban-tered about in law enforcementcommunities lately has been theuse of technology to curb crime,especially body cameras forpolice officers.

“I don’t think we’re at thatpoint yet,” he says. “We aren’t acity that has a lot of mistrust ofits officers. If we get to a pointwhere the community and offi-cers want them, I’ll be all for it.But it’s a big expense.”

However, he says that the

state may ultimately require allofficers to wear body cameras.“We’ll deal with that if and whenwe get there,” he says.

One concerning statistic inthe numbers he presented to thecouncil was the jump in burgla-ries. Of the 91 recorded lastyear, one-third used handguns.Does Swanger believe in guncontrol?

“That’s a national conversa-tion,” he says. “But I’m not a‘gun guy,’ even though I grew upas a hunter. I see that it’s way tooeasy for the wrong people to gethold of guns.”

Crime, from page 1

PG&E, from page 1

The PG&E Control Center brings more than 80 “well pay-ing jobs” to Concord, said Mayor Tim Grayson at the rib-bon cutting of the $40 million facility on Detroit Ave.

Concord Mayor TimGrayson is hoping to take thenext step up the state politicalladder, as he announced hewill seek the Assembly seatheld by Susan Bonilla in the2016 election.

A Democrat, he will face

off in the primary againstSatinder Malhi, District Direc-tor for Bonilla, and Mae Tor-lakson, board chair of theAmbrose Recreation and ParkDistrict in Bay Point and wifeof State Superintendent ofSchools Tom Torlakson. Morecandidates may throw their hatinto the ring.

Since he was elected to the

Concord City Council in 2010,Grayson has made a name forhimself not only in his home-town but throughout theregion as well, “helping buildunanimous consensus for poli-cies that are affecting the entireregion,” he said.

He was instrumental inbringing about the DaytimeCurfew ordinance to Con-cord, which has been adoptedby nearby cities, as well asbeing a driving force behindthe Community Court, whichhelps many juvenile offendersin the county avoid jail time.

His primary achievement,

he says, has been the establish-ment of the Family Justice Cen-ter in Concord, which helpsmediate domestic violence andother such issues. In the threemonths the FJC has been open,it has already served more than200 cases, he said.

“That not only helps thevictims, but it saves the citymoney in repeat police calls fordomestic violence,” Graysonsaid.

In terms of campaign cof-fers, Grayson has already sur-passed his opponents, raisingmore than $100,000 by June,2015, he said.

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Unfortunately for a city asdiverse as Concord, the demo-graphics listed on the city'swebsite don't adequatelyreflect the culture of the com-munity. The blame for that canbe put squarely on the way the2010 Census was conducted.

For instance, the censusform did not have a “race”option for Latinos, so manyLatinos chose “White” as their“race.” Additionally, they hadthe option of identifying them-selves “ethnically,” as “Latinoor Hispanic.”

Asians did not have thatproblem, as “Asian” was listedas a race, with subgroupoptions like “Chinese,” or“Japanese.”

Here is a breakdown of thecurrent demographic on thecity's website:

63.4 percent . . . . . .White32.2 percent . . . . . .Latino11.2 percent . . . . . .Asian

3.7 percent . . . . . .Black 0.7 percent . . .American

Indian or Alaskan native0.7 percent . . .Hawaiian

native or Pacific Islander

But if you add up the per-centages, it comes to just under112 percent. This, of course,reflects the inclusion of manyLatinos picking "White" astheir “race.”

Wikipedia has a differenttake for Concord demographics:50.3 percent .White alone30.6 percent . .Hispanic or

Latino (of any race)10.8 percent .Asian alone3.8 percent .Two or more

races alone3.3 percent . . . .Black or

African American alone0.6 percent . . . . .NativeHawaiian & Other Pacific

Islander alone0.3 percent . . .American

Indian & Alaska Nativealone

This adds up to 99.7 percentand seems to make more sense.

For the 2020 U.S. Census,many of us hope that it willoffer choices based more on“culture” than “race,” plus therewill be more ways for folks toidentify themselves.

There may be five “cultural”buckets: White, Black, Asian,Latino/Hispanic and Other.Under “White,” folks maychoose an ethnicity as well, e.g.,Irish, German, French, Mixed,etc. Categories of Black, Asianand Latino will also have subcat-egories of primary identifica-tion. For example, Latinos maychoose Mexican, Salvadoran,Brazilian, Mixed, etc.

The “Other” category wouldbe the one to offer the most newoptions. Here, people couldchoose a subcategory, such as,“Jewish,” “Bulgarian,” “Syrian,”“Pakistani,” “Russian,” or anynumber of other categories thathave led them to choose“Other” as their primary choiceof culture. Again, in the pastthey likely chose “white,” due tothe lack of alternatives.

The result of all this will givea truer picture of the demo-graphics of those in Concord orelsewhere, especially for the per-centage of those who considerthemselves “White.”

Hopefully, this process willnot be divisive. Hopefully, it willshow that more and more of usare becoming blended versionsof our ancestors.

For example, my dad was ofGerman extraction; he wassecond-generation. My motherwas born in Canada of parentsfrom England. But my motherchose coffee over tea, and myfather did not know a lick ofGerman.

I grew up “White,” in anera when things were, cultural-ly, more black or white.

I married a Latina. Our sonwill have decisions to make onthe 2020 Census. He may verywell make the cultural choiceof “Other,” with a subgroupidentification of “bicultural.”

Census skews raceoptions for Concord

GEORGE FULMORE

Correspondent

Grayson to seek Bonilla’s Assembly seat

EYE ON CONCORD . . .

PEGGY SPEAR

Concord Pioneer

and I visited with a 20-memberdelegation from Singapore,hosted by the Contra CostaTransportation Authority(CCTA), to discuss the Connect-ed Cars — Autonomous Carstesting at the Concord NavalWeapons Site.

They are testing cars in alimited, live area of Singapore.The delegation expressed inter-est in the testing efforts ofCCTA at the CNWS site, sinceit is one of the largest securedareas in the United States that isavailable for this unique kind ofResearch and Development.

Higher Ed. As a follow on,a delegation of Bay Area mayorsand entrepreneurs will be travel-ing to Beijing, China, to meetwith officials and investors alsointerested in partnering for R &D in higher education, whichties in with our desire to have acollege/university-level institu-tion on the CNWS property. Wewill be studying the model ofthe Chinese University/DukeUniversity. Though Concord’sinterest is in retaining ownershipof its property, this is a tremen-

dous opportunity for China toconsider being a tenant, partner-ing with the City of Concord, toprovide advanced educationaland employment opportunitiesfor our residents.

When I gave my first May-oral report to the citizens ofConcord in 2014, I said thatConcord may be a dot on theworld map, but we were going toupgrade that dot to a star on theglobe. I believe that the abovethree items indicate that we aretruly achieving that status.

We recently upgraded ourEconomic DevelopmentDepartment because we are incompetition with cities all overthe United States. In ContraCosta County more than 50percent of the retail sales hap-pen in Concord. Why is thisimportant? Let’s put it into adifferent perspective: Just incase you did not know, ContraCosta County is the fourthwealthiest county in California,and California is the seventhlargest economy in the world.Therefore, in my humble opin-ion, that has to be worth a star.

four most recent titles in 2009-10-12-14 all capped undefeated sea-sons. This year as the Blue Devilstoured from California to Buffaloand back to the finals in Indianathey won their share of competi-tions but not all of them.

The Blue Devils have madetheir mark in the drum and buglecorps world with shows “that arenot in the mainstream.” Gibbssays, “We always want to be enter-taining and intriguing.” This phi-losophy has paid off with at leastthree world championships ineach decade since the 1970s.

This year’s program was nodifferent. Right after winning the2014 DCI championship musicdirector-arranger Dave Glyde andprogram coordinator-choreogra-pher Scott Chandler began for-mulating ideas and a concept forwhat would become “Ink.”

The music of composersStephen Sondheim and GordonGoodwin combined with Chan-dler’s choreography for the pro-gram that featured storybookcharacters like Snow White andthe Mad Hatter and includedSondheim’s iconic ballad “Chil-dren Will Listen.” Blue Devilsstaff continually tweak the pro-gram on tour and made a keydecision at the beginning of DCIweek when they were in Buffalo.

They called 10-year-old ClaraMichaels of Walnut Creek, amember of their C Corps danceand color guard, to fly east andjoin the Blue Devils A Corps asthe 150th member for their DCI11-minute performances. Thelatter part of the programincluded Michaels as a young girlseeing the characters in herimagination.

Olivia Hanson of Concordis an A Corps color guard cap-tain. Her group won the captionaward as the best color guard atDCI for the eighth year in a row.BD also won caption awards fortotal visual performance andpercussion. The Blue Devils ACorps is primarily comprised ofcollege performers who age outwhen they turn 22.

The B Corps is for highschool members. They took sec-ond at DCI in Open Class whilethe C Corps is for pre highschool ages. Celeste Burns andAlyssa Welch are B Corps mem-bers from Concord, as are RickyLiedtke baritone horn and Con-nor Overfield trumpet.

Blue Devils also sent a corpsof aged out performers toEurope this summer for per-formances and clinics in theNetherlands, United Kingdom,Italy and Switzerland.

Blue Devils, from page 1

Mayor, from page 1

On Saturday, Aug. 15, theConcord Junior Giants Leaguecelebrated the conclusion ofanother successful season.This free, non-competitive, co-ed baseball program for under-served youth started in Con-cord three years ago as a newproject sponsored by Monu-ment Impact, a non-profitorganization serving the Mon-ument Community andGreater Concord.

“We wanted to bring JuniorGiants to Concord because itwas a real opportunity to share aknowledge and love of baseballwith our children and communi-ty, while at the same time pro-moting a healthy life style, via afree to low-cost physical activi-ty,” says Concord Junior GiantsCommissioner Ana Villalobos.“We are grateful to ConcordMayor Tim Grayson for helpingto support the program this yearvia a generous donation from

the proceeds of his annualMayor’s Cup.”

The Junior Giants League isabout more than baseball, how-ever. Players learn the JuniorGiants Four Bases of CharacterDevelopment: confidence,integrity, leadership and team-work, as well as the importanceof education, health and bully-ing prevention.

“It is about making newfriends, building confidence,working as a team, being a leaderand modeling integrity andrespect, core character buildingcomponents that the program isbased on” says Villalobos.

Parents like Ma YolandaGarcia love these additionalcomponents of the program,saying, “The values and sports-manship it helps to instill in thechildren is valuable to theireveryday life. I love that JuniorGiants doesn’t just teach thesport. It’s teaching the players tobe community leaders.”

As part of the healthylifestyle education componentof the Junior Giants program, aZero Tolerance Zone was intro-duced, whereby parents and chil-dren choose to avoid soda, othersugary drinks and unhealthysnacks during league practicesand games. The Concord JuniorGiants League was the first ofits kind to implement such aZero Tolerance Zone and now

more than 90 leagues in threestates have adopted this practice.

The Concord Junior GiantsLeague has doubled in size sinceits first year, with approximately300 boys and girls ages 7-13 par-ticipating in 2015. With growthcame the need for a new home,so in the off-season, JuniorGiants partnered with the Con-cord American Little League toplay at Olivera Field.

For those children who don’twant to play baseball, but whostill want to be part of theaction, the league, in collabora-

tion with the Mt. Diablo UnifiedSchool District CARES AfterSchool Program, launched anew project this year — theConcord Junior Giants Cheer-leaders. Ygnacio Valley HighSchool Cheer CARES Repre-sentative Allyn Monzon andClayton Valley Charter HighSchool freshman Paloma Barajastrained a group of 52 children tocheer on the Junior Giants atthis season’s games.

The 2016 Junior Giants sea-son will open for enrollment thefirst week of May next year. Inthe meantime, supporters canmake a tax-deductible donationto the program at www.monu-mentimpact.org. Volunteercoaches and coaching assistantsare also in high demand. Inter-ested parties should contactCommissioner Villalobos atana@monumentcommunity.org.

Many parents and childrencan’t wait until next year, though.Says Alex Gomez, Junior Giantscoach and parent, “Thank youfor everything you have done forthe children. We will be backnext year.”

Why is it important tomove 420 beds to the WestCounty Detention Facility(WCDF)? There are two mainreasons: 1) the Main Deten-tion Facility (MDF) in down-town Martinez (a maximumsecurity facility) has been over-crowded for many years and 2)vital mental health services canbest be provided at the WCDF.

The MDF was built in1978 and was designed as astate-of-the-art facility for thetime in that inmates would behoused in a single cell. This

was a safety feature for boththe incarcerated individualand the deputy guarding eachmodule. For a variety of rea-sons, a majority of inmateshave been double celled formany years. Because of theunique design of the MDF,there is limited space andsquare footage available forthe provision of services.

And a sad state of affairsis that our local jails (andprisons for that matter) havebecome de facto mentalhealth facilities.

When the WCDF wasopened over two decades ago,it was designed as a medium-security facility. The terms“maximum” and “medium” bythe way describe the securitydesign, not the type of inmateto be housed in either facility.As an example, inmates whoare not high security risk arehoused at the MDF becausetheir case is in trial at the Mar-tinez courthouses and it makesmore sense to keep them closefor transport. So the WCDFwas always planned, and

indeed the infrastructure isalready in place, to add spacewhen necessary and appropri-ate.

Opponents of movinginmates from MDF to WCDFhave coined this as an “expan-sion”: the Sheriff is notexpanding (increasing) theinmate population … the Sher-iff is proposing to moveinmates out of the crowded,double-celled MDF to space tobe built to accommodate thesame population. New con-struction would provide hous-ing for these inmates, a visitingcenter for families, and mostcritically, appropriate and ade-quate space to provide criticalmental health services.

Another argument againstthis construction is the countyneeds to provide $9 million inmatching funds to a grantrequest for $89 million andthat those matching fundsneed to be used for otherneeds in the community.Please know that this is a com-petitive grant proposal avail-able to all counties. The grant

funds will be appropriated, andI strongly believe that ContraCosta should receive one ofthe grants because we have realneeds here. To pass up a fund-ing opportunity is foolhardy.

The Board also heardimpassioned pleas about socialjustice and a disproportionatenumber of people of color injails. I concur with those con-cerns, but not building a much-needed facility will not correctthose issues. That is a discus-sion for another time andanother legislative venue.

While the grant applicationreceived a majority vote, itneeded four votes; and Super-visor Gioia did not support thematching county dollar funds.I am extremely disappointedthat Contra Costa’s applicationwill not receive the maximumpoints we could have receivedbecause we didn’t attain therequired 4/5th’s vote.

When I first arrived in Con-cord nearly five years ago, Imade a comment about socialmedia. I actually remembermaking it several times. I said,“No good can come fromFacebook.” I made the state-ment based on a number ofpeople I knew who got them-selves in hot water over Face-book postings.

I never understood thegamble. Letting somebodyknow how you felt, what thingyou were doing at that time

and place, or posting a pictureof a plate of food baffled me.And when one of your post-ings got people talking, dramafollowed and somebody con-sistently had their feelings hurt.Or the picture posted resultedin somebody getting into trou-ble, because the whole worldwas now in the know, literally.

But during the next fewyears, I was approached by sev-eral members in the policedepartment and the communi-ty about the upside of socialmedia. Concord Police had aNixel account but I don’tbelieve it was used that much.

As time changes, so dopeople. Nextdoor was intro-duced a few years back. I satthrough their presentationsand I could see how socialmedia played a role in crimeprevention by connectingneighbors in smaller groups. Iimmediately began to receivefeedback from communitymembers in some Concord

neighborhoods that Nextdoorwas a great way to get informa-tion out quickly. Some of myclosest friends were eventelling me about it. I was alsowatching a few of my peerpolice chiefs embrace socialmedia. The instant interactionwith community members andspeed to get crime info out wasimpressive.

Concord Police CaptainGarrett Voerge and LieutenantTim Runyon put a social mediaworking group together andwithin a few months, ConcordPolice had a Facebookaccount. We also began push-ing out information via Nixel,Twitter and Nextdoor. Thiseffort is being led by CorporalChris Blakely, assisted by Offi-cers Ollie Sansen and DarenBillington.

We were recently lookingfor an assault suspect that wasa wanted sex offender. He wastaken into custody by a neigh-boring police department after

an alert citizen connected ourNixel alert and the suspect wasapprehended within 24 hours.

Nixel is a great tool/resourcefor law enforcement. It pushesout real time alerts and notifica-tions (wanted persons, road clo-sures, etc.). Community mem-bers can sign for Nixel by textingtheir zip code to 888777 toreceive texts, or simply go towww.Nixel.com and sign up forfull service. In order to sign upfor Nextdoor, go towww.nextdoor.com and followthe prompts. It is the modernday method for neighbors tocommunicate via social media.

I admit that I have beenreluctant to embrace the socialmedia craze but I am now afirm believer in its ability tobring positive results to crimefighting. Welcome to the 21stcentury.

KAREN MITCHOFF

COUNTYSUPERVISOR

August 28, 2015 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 7

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Directory of Advertisers

GUY SWANGER

POLICE CHIEF

Guy Swanger is Concord’s Chief ofPolice. Send questions or comments toContactCPD@cityofconcord.org.

From the desk of . . .

Crime solving is right Nextdoor

Grant for new WCDF fails by one vote

CARLYN OBRINGERPLANNING COMMISSION

Karen Mitchoff is Contra CostaCounty District IV supervisor. Emailquestions or comments tokaren.mitchoff@bos.cccounty.us

Carlyn Obringer is a member ofthe City of Concord Planning Commis-sion. Professionally, she focuses on Cali-fornia education issues as an EducationPolicy Analyst. Carlyn resides in Con-cord with her husband, Justin, and dogCrystal. Contact her by email atcarlyno@yahoo.com.

Junior Giants program is a hit

THE JR. GIANTS ended anothersuccessful season this month.This young Giant swung hardat the ball but came away fromthe season with more than justa base hit.

Please let our advertisers knowyou saw them in

the Concord Pioneer

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Page 8 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com August 28, 2015

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DISCLAIMER: To the extent The Pulse of Concord reflects, suggests or implies a view-point, it is not intended or represented to be the viewpoint of the Concord City Council,the City of Concord, or city staff or officials (living, dead or undecided). Nor was this sur-vey or the results created, distributed, tabulated, evaluated or analyzed by the ConcordCity Council, the City of Concord, or its staff or officials. Finally any placement of shoeleather in one’s mouth is most likely the fault of Edi Ersalesi Birsan – or whatever othervariation on that theme may be in vogue, acting as an individual(ist).

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www.PulseOfConcord.com

Should Concord votersdirectly elect their mayor?

The time has come for thevoters of Concord to decide ifthey want a directly electedmayor. This is an item that canbe put on the ballot in Novem-ber 2016 and, if passed, willtake effect November 2018.

Concord is the largest cityin the county, yet cities muchsmaller, like San Ramon andMartinez, have directly electedmayors.

As a General Law City, ourmayor does not only have acertain ceremonial role, butalso represents the city onregional bodies. The mayor canput items on the agenda, theonly member of the city coun-cil that can do that unilaterally.The mayor runs the meetings,

makes assignments of standingcommittees and regional repre-sentation. The mayor does notget paid any more than anyother council member and hedoes not have the ability tovote to break ties. Neverthelessthe position is a matter ofinfluence and focus for the res-idents and should be chosen bythe people.

At least one city in thecounty has a defined rotationof the mayors to prevent polit-ical backroom dealings. Thathas been roundly defeated asan idea here in Concord. Infact, while some may propose awhiff of an argument thatthere is rotation, the reality isthat we do not. Look at the last

choice of mayors over this lastdecade or two and try to deter-mine by reverse engineeringwhat the rotation rules are.

I broke with long-standingtradition when, at my inaugu-ral, I spoke about the selectionprocess and said that if there isonly one candidate they willhave my full support. If thereare two candidates then theone who has not been mayorthe longest will get my vote.

Currently the mayor is cho-sen for a two-year term by thecouncil members everyDecember. The question maybe asked “If it is not brokenwhy fix it.” To this I havealways said:

“If you wait till it’s broken,

then your leadership hasfailed.” To me, this system isvery flawed.

Throughout the summerand fall there is never an itemto discuss the selection ofmayor. The first Tuesday ofDecember it is on the agendato vote for mayor after whichthere will be reception paid for

EDI BIRSAN

PULSE OF

CONCORD

See Pulse, page 15

Oh, Dell! It’s time to get techieAs the new school term fast

approaches I start to desire, likeevery other year, to improve mymind. I promise myself everyyear I’m going to take a class andlearn something new. I’m posi-tive there’s more room in mybrain even after 67 years of fill-ing it. The truth is I haven’t eventouched my brain’s potential. I’mblessed to still have pretty goodthought processes.

So this year I’m going tobecome computer savvybecause I have no doubt mycomputer hates me. I can’tunderstand it. I’ve even decorat-ed it with gold, black and silverstick-on jewels. It’s a beautifulcomputer, even though it’s anungrateful wretched thing. Thefeeling is mutual. I’d be devastat-ed without it. Garbage in,garbage out points out the fact

that a computer can do onlywhat it is programmed to do andis only as good as the data itreceives and the instructions it isgiven. If there is a logical errorin software or if incorrect data isentered the result will be awrong answer or a system crash.Hmmmmm. I still hate it.

I remember thinking I waspretty hot stuff in 1960 becauseI’d just received a transistorradio. It was blue. I loved italmost as much as my pinkprincess phone. Well, technolo-gy has made a few strides sincethen but I’m still operating ontransistor radio mentality. Turn iton, turn it off. Turn the volumeup or turn the volume down.Select a station. Put in a 9-voltwhen the battery dies. My com-puter is a little more complicatedthan that.

I don’t mean to imply Ihaven’t acquired some knowl-edge since 1960 but there is somuch more to know. We have avery smart man at our seniorcenter who teaches computerclasses. I’m going to pick hisbrain until it is no longer pick-able. I’m tired of viruses sneak-

ing into my system, cherishedpictures vanishing and of all thepoints I’ve earned playing agame disappearing into theozones. Where the heck are theozones located anyway? Is thatwhere the other sock alwaysends up? I’m determined thistime. I will not waiver. Thismachine will not defeat me. I’mgoing to evolve into the Com-puternator. It will behave once itrealizes who’s really incontrol...right?

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 atconcord.ca.us

Q. I have a close friendwho is planning on selling herhouse. When I went over tohelp her get it ready for saleand took a good look at it Iwas shocked. I think myfriend is a hoarder. She hascollections of what I wouldconsider junk that she won’teven let me touch. Forinstance, she has stacks ofnewspapers that are five yearsold. What do you think I cando to help her? Do you thinkit would help to get a realtorinvolved? She is not eager tolet one come in. She has tosell her house for financialreasons and she is so delight-ful otherwise.

A. Yes, if you get a realtorinvolved they have access to ateam of professionals that theycan call on who specialize in var-ious fields such as deep cleaning.In my business I have had some“hoarders.” It is always a shock.

Some hoarders don’t evenrealize they have a problem.Hoarding is a mental conditionthat affects two to five percentof the U.S. population in arecent survey. Be compassionate

when dealing with the hoarder.Everything in their home carriesemotional attachments. Don’ttreat them as a lesser person. Asyou work with the hoarder saythings like “our realtor told methat we’ll need to clean up thisspace in order to maximize thesales price.”

If it is possible, clear every-thing out of the house, thenclean and add back in certainstaging items to warm up eachroom.

Before adding anything backinto the home have completeinspections done, such as astructural pest report (termite

report) and a home inspection atthe least. You never know whatyou will find under the itemsthat have been sitting in one spotfor a very long time.

Two more things to remem-ber are that this sale cannot bedone quickly. Everything willmove along slower than in a nor-mal sale. The other thing, andthe most important thing, is thatyou are dealing with a humanbeing that has talents and abili-ties just like yours. If getting thehouse ready for sale is just toomuch for you hand it over toanother friend who is moreequipped for the job.

Q. I am fortunate enoughto be a homeowner in the BayArea. I achieved this with alot of help from family. It alsowas easier to do several yearsago. I have several friendsthat want to move here andown a home and others whowould just be happy livinghere and renting. How canthey do it with rental rates sohigh and it seems they aregetting higher?

A. I don’t have a good solu-

tion for your friends. I am sorryabout that. I do have an opinionthough and some statistics. Myopinion is that the rental crisisthat we are in can’t sustain itself.I will probably make some ene-mies but it started with greedylandlords. People need places tolive. So it has gone from under athird of income for housingexpenses to now over one-halfin some places. These are higherpayments than if they had amortgage. The bad thing aboutthat though is the banks keeptightening up their qualificationsso people can’t afford to buy.

Those struggling most seemto be the middle class familiesearning between $45,000 and$75,000. I think these rents willwork themselves out. As morepeople can’t afford the rentsthen the landlords will have tolower their rents. Sort of like arental housing bubble.

The Greater ConcordChamber of Commercerecently welcomed JustinBarker to the staff as the new

Membership Services Coor-dinator.

He received his Bachelor ofArts in Political Science fromUCLA in the summer of 2012.After graduating, Barkermoved back to Concord andserved as an intern for Con-gressman John Garamendi inhis Walnut Creek districtoffice. Barker then went on toserve as a district representa-tive for State Senator MarkDeSaulnier, primarily handlingissues related to small businessand state licensing.

Barker says he enjoyedworking in government as itprovided an opportunity tohelp constituents resolve awide range of issues, and meet

outstanding residents through-out the region.

Barker spent the past year

working for the City of SanDiego and is excited to be backin Concord. He is looking for-ward to being out in the com-munity as much as possible,and to meet both businessowners and residents through-out Concord. In his free time,Barker enjoys reading bookson political theory, psychologyand history. He can be reachedby phone at 925-685-1181 oremail at jbarker@concord-chamber.com.

August 28, 2015 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 9

P.O. Box 1246

6200 Center Street, Suite H, Clayton, CA 94517

TAMARA AND ROBERT STEINER, PublishersTAMARA STEINER, EditorPETE CRUZ, Graphic DesignPEGGY SPEAR, Copy Editor JAY BEDECARRÉ, Sports Editor PAMELA WIESENDANGER, Administration, Calendar Editor

STAFF WRITERS: Peggy Spear, Pamela Wiesendanger, Jay Bedecarré

CORRESPONDENTS: Cynthia Gregory, Patricia Romero, KaraNavolio, John Jackson, John T. Miller

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The Clayton Pioneer and theConcord Pioneer are monthlypublications delivered free tohomes and businesses in 94517,94518, 94519 and 94521. ZIPcode 94520 is currently served bydrop site distribution. The papersare published by Clayton Pioneer,Inc., Tamara and Robert Steiner,PO 1246, Clayton, CA 94517.The offices are located at 6200Center St. Suite H, Clayton, CA94517

LLEETT UUSS KKNNOOWW Weddings, anniversaries,

births and deaths all weavetogether as part of the fabric ofour community. Please let us knowof these important events. We askonly that the announcement befor a resident in our home deliveryarea. Submit on our website andbe sure to attach a JPG photo thatis at least 3 MB.

Also on the website are formsfor calendar items, events & pressreleases.

LLEETTTTEERRSS TTOO TTHHEE EEDDIITTOORRBoth Pioneer newspapers

welcome letters from our readers.

As a general rule, letters shouldbe 175 words or less and submit-ted at least one week prior to pub-lication date. Letters concerningcurrent issues will have priority.We may edit letters for length andclarity. All letters will be publishedat the editor’s discretion. Pleaseinclude name, address and day-time telephone number. We willnot print anonymous letters. E-mail your letter toeditor@concordpioneer.com.

Letters must be submitted viaE-mail.

CCIIRRCCUULLAATTIIOONN The Concord Pioneer is deliv-

ered monthly to 30,000 homesand businesses in 94518, 94519and 94521. Papers are deliveredby carriers for ABC Direct aroundthe last Friday of the month. Tostop delivery for any reason, callthe office at (925) 672-0500 .

If you are NOT receiving thePioneer, please check the distribu-tion map on the website. If youlive in the shaded area and arenot receiving the paper, please letus know. If you are not in theshaded area, please be patient.We will come to your neighbor-hood soon.

The Clayton Pioneer is deliv-ered by US Mail to 5,500 homesand businesses in 94517 aroundthe second Friday of the month.

SSUUBBSSCCRRIIPPTTIIOONNSSTo subscribe to either the

Clayton Pioneer or the ConcordPioneer, call the office at (925)672-0500. Subscriptions are$35/year for each paper,$60/year for both.

MELISSA REA

CHAMBER OFCOMMERCE

For more information on becom-ing a member of the ConcordChamber of Commerce, please visitwww.concordchamber.com or call(925) 685-1181.

Justin Barker tapped for Chamber postBUSINESS

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Hoarder’s home sale poses unique problem

Send your question and look foryour answer in a future column. EmailLynne@LynneFrench.com. French isthe broker/owner of WindermereLynne French & Associates. Contacther at 672-878 7or stop in at 6200Center St., Clayton.

LYNNE FRENCH

REAL ANSWERS

Changes are afoot at Con-cord’s Gehringer Park Recre-ation Club. This past April anewly expanded board ofseven members was elected,and new Board PresidentKevin Cabral has a vision offamily and community that hebelieves other Concord resi-dents share. Cabral wants tocreate an integrated recreationhub of swimmers, gardenersand all-around healthy citizens.

Cabral, General Manager atRenaissance ClubSport in Wal-nut Creek, also happens toreside in the Dana Estatesneighborhood. When he heardthere were plans to sell thecommunity garden lot, heknew he had to do something.

“It’s too much of a localtreasure for me to sit by andwatch it be sold off,” he said.The swimming club, incorpo-rated as a non-profit organiza-tion since 1965, has been a sta-

ple in Concord since its incep-tion. The addition of the com-munity garden in 2009 wasspear-headed by MichaelGuthrie and Tony Spears onthe adjacent 2.25 acre lot.

Located at 1790 LynwoodDrive, at the heart of the DanaEstates Neighborhood, therecreation club held their Sev-enth Annual Harvest Festivalon Aug. 15. The festival is heldas a fund-raising event tomaintain the club’s buildingsand a portion of the proceedsgoes to support E.R.I.C., EarlyRecognition is Critical, anational non-profit that usesUltimate Frisbee and clinics toteach youth about body aware-ness, cancer symptoms, earlydetection, and the overallimportance of healthy living.

Approximately 1,000 peo-ple attended this year’s festival,held at Gehringer Park andopen to the general public.This year’s event was beingthrown in hopes of raisingenough funds to repair the

facility’s roof. Adult admissionwristbands cost $15, andincluded wine and beer tasting,six bands on two stages , sixfood trucks, and access tomore than 30 local merchants.Children’s admission bandssold for $5 and included life-guard supervised swimming, aBBQ kids meal and games.

Concord resident andGehringer member FatmaCoban Platt joined in the funwith family and friends. “Wehad a great time. We hung outwith friends, some of whomaren’t members of the club, sothat was cool.”

Platt added that, “Therelaxed atmosphere made itfun to walk around the gardensand check out vendors. Themusic and food were reallygood, and the event wasn’toverrun like many wine festi-vals. We certainly enjoyed it!”

Gehringer’s board is all-vol-unteer, including the unofficialeighth member, an independ-ent accountant whom the club

hopes to be able to start payingwithin a year. They firmlybelieve that maintaining inde-pendent financial accountabili-ty is a crucial part of the club’sveracity. Cabral hopes to uniteswimmers and gardeners asone integrated community,possibly by linking club mem-bership to gardening leases inthe future. The communitygarden plots are 20-by-25 ftparcels that have access to anonsite well. The garden has notbeen too negatively affected bythe drought, although they arewatering much less than in pre-vious years.

Cabral is optimistic aboutthe club’s future. Since hebecame the board’s president,many new volunteers havecome aboard to help get thingsdone. “The Community isjumping up and pitching in,”he says. “It’s been awesome!”

For more information, or to jointhe Gehringer Gators, contactsignup4gehringerpool@yahoo.com.

New board makes a splash at GehringerPATRICIA ROMERO

Correspondent

Two Concord high schoolfootball teams—-Concord andMt. Diablo—begin play thisweek with new coaches whiletwo others—-Clayton ValleyCharter and De La Salle—-setout looking to defend theirNorth Coast Section champi-onships against highly-ratedopponents on the road.

Adding to the local luster,Ygnacio Valley, Northgate andBerean Christian were in the2014 playoffs as well, the firsttime all seven local schools havebeen in NCS football post-sea-son play in the same year.

CLAYTON VALLEYCHARTER

Clayton Valley Charter’s UglyEagles football team has enjoyedunprecedented success the pastthree years, culminated lastDecember by an appearance inthe CIF Division II State cham-pionship game in Southern Cali-fornia, losing in bitter fashion34-33 to Redlands East Valley.

They begin this season Fri-day at state DI champs Folsomand coach Tim Murphy and hisstaff will be working to blendreturning starters with newcom-ers and 2014 varsity backupplayers. Murphy’s wing-gunoffense has averaged almost 10yards per carry over the pastthree years. The running attack,which last year was the mostprolific in all of high schoolfootball over the past 15 sea-sons, gained a remarkable 7051yards rushing last season. Bycontrast opening game oppo-nent Folsom passed for nearly6000 yards.

A quintet of departing sen-iors and all-league quarterbackNate Keisel, who has movedwith his family to Utah, account-ed for over 5000 yards of theClayton Valley rushing total. Thecoach expects all-round athleteLouis Ramos, Gavin West whogained nearly 728 yards in limit-ed duty last year as a sophomore(“great vision and power”) andtransfer Ray Jackson (who satout last year after being all-league as a sophomore at Col-lege Park) will be backfield fac-tors this fall.

Other returning startersinclude juniors Koti Vaisima and

Jalen McKenzie (lineman whohas grown one inch and lost 30pounds), Jamel Rosales, all-league defensive back Jake Peral-ta, Isaias Padilla and NateEwing.

CONCORDBrian Hamilton was hired

away from Concord this monthas the offensive quality controlcoach for the California GoldenBears. He was the head coachand director of athletics at Con-cord for the past 11 years wherehe led the Minutemen to theDivision II NCS title game inthree of the past five seasons

including a section crown in2010. He came to Concord fromClayton Valley High where hebegan coaching under HercPardi.

Recently-appointed interimhead coach Mark Bywater hasbeen coaching nearly 30 years,including stints at his alma materSkyline of Oakland, Miramonte,Campolindo, Dublin and lastyear with Hamilton at CHS.

The new coaching staff thatincludes returning coordinatorsJon Bell, Randy Coddington andJon Koven must make up for thedeparted trio of quarterbackMitch Daniels, wide receiver

Mason Knight and runningbackMalik Blackburn.

Bywater counts on seniorsVaseem Shah, Jose Rivera, Bran-don Espinoza and RembertSison to provide the example foryounger teammates includingjuniors Deandre Morgan,Damaria Capers and IzaiahAustin and sophomore NickNunez. Sison, Capers and Riveraearned all-DVAL honors a yearago.

DE LA SALLEPerennial Texas power Trini-

ty is hosting De La Salle this Sat-urday in a game broadcast

nationally on ESPN2. Trinitywas 12-2 last year, losing in thestate 6A playoffs 30-27 to Allen,eventual state champions and,like DLS, a top five nationalteam in 2014.

Third-year coach JustinAlumbaugh has a roster loadedwith veterans including 5-Starrecruits and pre-season all-America selections Devin Asiasiand Boss Tagaloa. In discussingthe season opener the Spartanscoach told MaxPreps.com,“When you talk about highschool football, Texas naturallycomes up. It’s exciting.”

Alumbaugh has a 28-1record in his two years at thehelm after replacing legendarycoach Bob Ladouceur. He has apair of 1,900-yard rushers inAntoine Custer and AndrewHernandez to spur the offensethat will be quarterbacked byAnthony Sweeney.

The Spartans at-large sched-ule also includes a trio of gamesagainst Southern Californiapowerhouses—Servite, OrangeLutheran and Long Beach Poly(reprising their legendary 2001and 2002 games) —and two ver-sus Sacramento area schools,Del Oro and Granite Bay.

MT. DIABLOThe area’s oldest high school

played its first football game onJan. 1, 1910. This season Mt.Diablo will be playing on the all-new FieldTurf field that was stillbeing installed this week as partof a $2.9 million project fundedby Mt. Diablo Unified SchoolDistrict’s Measure C.

In addition, leading the RedDevils on the sidelines will beDerek Clements who wasnamed head coach last springreplacing athletic director BryanShaw.

Clements was also an assis-tant under Hamilton at ConcordHigh the last two years aftercoaching for 16 years at CollegePark, so he has a good handle onplay in the Diablo Valley Athlet-ic League. His biggest chal-lenge—-just as it was for Shawand his other recent MDHSpredecessors—is competingagainst the other DVAL schoolswith a roster much smaller thantheir opponents.

MDHS is fielding varsity andfrosh-soph teams. Clementspromised to have varsity, JV and

frosh teams in 2016.The Red Devils were 2-3 in

non-league games last seasonbut only defeated Ygnacio Valleyin five league games. They werein the NCS Division III playoffsfor the first time since 2009 butwere eliminated in the firstround by Las Lomas.

Lineman Charlie Alofaki is areturning all-league defenderand will be a two-way stalwarton the line with his friend andfellow senior Jarreck Leafa. TarifRivers will be starting as a widereceiver and defensive back.Senior Ronnell Hicks and soph-omore Fernando Perez are com-peting for the starting quarter-back position in the Red Devilsspread offense. Clements saysboth will get an opportunity atQB.

YGNACIO VALLEYPhilip Puentes begins his

fourth year in charge of theWarriors coming off theschool’s first NCS playoffappearance since 2010.

He lists seniors Jesse Guz-man, Drew Leonard, CristianRamirez, Zak Ferris and HodariCooper and juniorsCJ Garcia and Jovanny Ceballosas key returnees. Guzman was afirst team all-DVAL running-back last fall.

Top new varsity playersinclude a quintet of juniors—Tony Rodriguez, Darius McVay,Kionte Zerai, Oscar Solis andBryce McGuire.

The Warriors were 3-2 in thepre-season before going winlessin five DVAL games in 2014.They lost in the opening roundof the NCS DIII playoffs toCampolindo, who simply wenton to win the State Division IIIChampionship last December.

Page 10 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com August 28, 2015

SSPPOORRTTSSNew coaches, high expectations for Concord prepfootball teams as season kicks off this weekend

Jay Bedecarre photos

AFTER COACHING NEARLY THIRTY YEARS, MARK BYWATER was named interim head coach atConcord High this summer when Brian Hamilton was hired on Sonny Dykes staff at CalBerkeley. Bywater says he’s confident going into the season because the existing staffcoordinators—Jon Bell, Randy Coddington and Jon Koven—-remain in place for theMinutemen.

JAY BEDECARRÉ

Concord Pioneer

DEREK CLEMENTS

6 Diablo FC teams claim Jenna Betti Memorial championships

Diablo FC celebrated itssecond annual Jenna BettiMemorial Tournament by win-ning six championships in theall-girls event honoring formerclub player Betti. The host club

had captured three titles in theinaugural Betti Memorial a yearago and doubled that total thismonth.

The under 12, 13, 14 and 17Diablo FC Premier NPL Acad-emy teams each won premierdivision Betti championships.Diablo FC 02 Blue won the

U13 silver division while DFC99 Blue took the U16 goldcrown.

Diablo FC 02 Premier NPLAcademy team defended itsBetti title with a 5-1 victoryover Impact 02 in the U13finals. The team was also sec-ond at the Pleasanton Rage

Showcase last month. The U13silver division was claimed byDiablo FC 02 Blue with a 2-1win over DeAnza Force 02Yellow. The team had wonthree games prior to winningthe finals.

The U12 DFC 03 PremierNPL Academy team blankedMartinez-Pleasant Hill FCLightning 4-0 in the finals,their fourth consecutiveshutout.

Diablo FC 01 girls also shutout all four teams at the Bettitournament to take first placein a lightly contested U14 pre-mier division. Earlier the teamwon the premier division titleat the prestigious PleasantonRage Showcase Tournamentby blanking all four opponentsat the end of July. Going intoSunday’s game, the team need-ed a win or tie to advance tothe finals and they did thatwith a scoreless draw with SanDiego Surf Academy. Theythen won a narrow 1-0 cham-pionship mach over hostPleasanton Rage U14 ECNLteam.

The U16 gold division wasanother competitive bracketwith Diablo FC 99 Blue win-

ning the championship in athree-way tiebreaker.

The oldest Diablo FC titlistat the Betti Memorial was DFC98 NPL Academy in the U17premier division.

The Jenna Betti MemorialTournament honors Jenna Betti, a

Diablo FC player who tragicallypassed away in March of 2014.Proceeds benefit #hersmile, anorganization established by the Bettifamily to help people survive andthrive despite life’s harshest circum-stances. Visit hersmile.org fordetails.

Photos courtesy Diablo FC

COACH SCOTT ALEXANDER’S DIABLO FC 01 NPL ACADEMY under 14 girls won the second annu-al Jenna Betti Memorial Tournament and the prestigious Pleasanton Rage ShowcaseTournament. The team includes, bottom row from left, Kaitlin Niedziejko, Brianna Murray,Serena Connel, Julia Betti, Sarah Smith, Sophia Salimpour; back row, Tori Gray, KaitlynSheffield, Ariana Chavez, Carly Oshel, Darby Dresdow, Sienna Berdan, Alexus Zandonella-Arasa, Carissa Capinpin, Cassia Souza, Chloe Taylor, Natalia Leroux and Logan Silva.

DIABLO FC 02 PREMIER NPL ACADEMY team won its secondconsecutive title at the Jenna Betti Memorial this month.The under 13 team includes, front row from left, MeganGherlone, Alexys Canas, Lauren “LJ” Utne; middle row,Rylie Velez, Molly Maxwell, Andraya Spyrka, OliviaKreamer, Kylee Gregory, Alexa Avelar; back row, coach JTThompson, Maddie Thompson, Ryan McNevin, JennyLinderman, Caleigh Olgeirson, Hailey Fanner, Kali Myers,Miranda Fedrizzi-McGlasson, coach Tafa and Dena Betti,mother of Jenna Betti. Not pictured, Evelyn Martinez.

JAY BEDECARRÉ

Concord Pioneer

A record-breaking season came to aclose this month with Forest Park SwimTeam of Concord winning the Division IIchampionship at the 55th Contra CostaCounty Swimming Championships oneweek after the Flyers finished second toperennial winners Dana Hills Swim Team ofClayton at the 49th Concord City SwimmingChampionships.

Dana Hills won its 23rd Concord CityChampionship in 24 years at Concord Com-munity Pool with Otters and Forest Parkswimmers dominating the proceedings.Seven swimmers from each team won highpoint awards in A Division at City Meet.Dana Hills swept the two outstanding relayawards while DHST swimmers set eight ofthe 13 meet records and Forest Park estab-lishing the other three.

FLYERS SET BUNDLE OF RECORDSForest Park coach Jeff Mellinger has

been in charge of the team for 16 years. Heguided the Flyer A swimmers to secondplace and the B team to a city championship,just as they’ve done for several years.

Topping that excellent performance aweek later Forest Park won the County Divi-sion II championship, which they alsoaccomplished in 2012 and three times in the1970s and 80s when it was called Communi-ty Division. Forest Park totaled 823 points inDivision II to finish ahead of Larkey Sharksand Meadow Swim Team in second andthird in the County Meet at Acalanes Highin Lafayette.

Forest Park’s Vince Della Santina (6 &under) and Arie Vanhoven (13-14) werehigh point winners at city and county. OtherFlyer high-point swimmers at City Meetwere Andrew Dawson (7-8), JuliannahColchico-Greeley and Tommy Martin (9-10), Airiana Dargan (11-12) and RaynaStanziano (13-14). Dawson tied for third incounty high point.

Dargan (100 individual medley and 50breaststroke), Vanhoven (50 freestyle and 50breast) and Stanziano (50 breast) set new

City Meet records. At county Vanhovenbroke the 50-yard freestyle record in 21.46seconds.

Forest Park racked up lots of countymeet points with high finishes from both 9-10 girls and 13-14 boys relay teams, 6 &under girls free relay and 15-18 girls freerelay. Emily Morgan, Dawson, Vanhovenand Della Santina posted high individual fin-ishes.

Jacob Soderlund of Walnut Country seta 29.80 meet record in the 11-12 breast atcounty while also taking sixth in 50 back totie for third in high point. Walnut Country’s6 & under boys relays both finished sixthand Dylan Washmera in that age group wasthird in 25 free.

Local high-point at City Meet B Divisionwere Jayla Kluver (6 & under), Maddy Jarrett(13-14) and Maddie King (15-18) fromYgnacio Wood, Makena Cooper (9-10) ofSpringwood, Benjamin Rodriguez (6 &under) and Josh Sandy (9-10) for WalnutCountry, Brett Huston (15-18) from BishopEstates and Ralphy Beltran (7-8) and SamuelWofse (13-14) of Gehringer Park.

CITY MEET TEAM SCORESA Division: Dana Hills Otters 1,720,

Forest Park Flyers 1,201.50, Walnut Coun-try Stingrays 651.50, Springwood Sprint-ers 544.50, Forest Hills Beavers 424, Bish-op Estates Barracudas 369, GehringerPark Gators 358, Ygnacio Wood Seahors-es 307, Oakhurst Orcas 287.50, Crockett-iles 160, Vista Diablo Dolphins 129.

B Division: Forest Park 525, DanaHills 417.50, Oakhurst 363, YgnacioWood 349.50, Forest Hills 344, GehringerPark 343, Walnut Country 334.50, Spring-wood 271.50, Bishop Estates 207, VistaDiablo 128, Crockett-iles 108.

CITY MEET INDIVIDUAL RESULTSTop 3 finishers from Concord teams

Bishop Estates: Kyla Joseph, ElizabethTurner, J.P. Ellis, Leslie Maier, Donovan Bal-lot, Alexa Huston, Dawson Wood, LukeRyan, Brett Huston, Leah Gillmore, NathanAnderson, Spencer Christensen, GabbyMazzuca, Dillon Knipstein, Anthony Frasi-

er, Justin Ellis.Forest Park: Kaylee Whitmer, Andrew

Dawson, Alicia Contreras, JuliannahColchico-Greeley, Evalinne Vecchio, EldenHuynh, Tommy Martin, Airiana Dargan,Emma Merrill, Rayna Stanziano, MicahJohnson, Arie Vanhoven, Drake Freeman,Carly Spilman, Jacob Hosking, Emily Mor-gan, Austin Johnson, Zachary Smith,Kameron Borruso, Tyler Shelley, IsabelRagland, Anthony Viano, Jordan Barnes,Juliana Della Santina, McKenna Gross,Mark Nolan, Conor Halley-McCarty,Danielle Ware, Lars Bergen, Lisa Repetto,Max Freeman, Evan Stanziano, Paige Burns,Lola Medina, Connor Griffin, Zack Stili-novich, Chase Burns, McKenzie Acton,Caitlin Biles, Ben Duran, Jameson Larsen,Kayla Farmer, Mikayla Brown, Cameron

Photo courtesy Kern family

SISTERS KELLY AND KATIE KERN competed in the pole vaultat the USATF Junior Olympics National Track and FieldChampionships this month in Jacksonville, FL. St. AgnesSchool eighth grader Kelly Kern (above) was ranked No.1 in the country for 13-14 girls and upheld that rankingwith a gold medal vault of 11 feet, 2 inches (3.4meters). Sister Katie Kern, a senior at Carondelet whofinished eighth at North Coast Section last spring, was20th among 40 vaulters in the oldest 17-18 age groupfor coach Chris Moore.

KKeellllyy KKeerrnn wwiinnss JJrr..OOllyymmppiiccss ppoollee vvaauulltt

August 28, 2015 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 11

JAY BEDECARRÉ

Concord Pioneer

“SPW 4 Life” is the answer MonteGardens Elementary fifth grader Make-na Cooper gave when asked what sheenjoys about competing with heryounger sister Abbi on the SpringwoodSwim Team each spring and summer.This month Makena Cooper earned theConcord City Meet B Division 9-10

girls high point award for the Sprinters.This is her sixth year on the team andrates the breaststroke and backstroke asher favorite events, which is surprisingbecause those were the two events shedid not swim at City Meet because wasleaving for camp the day they werescheduled! Cooper was third in bothbutterfly and freestyle and fifth in theindividual medley (a race with all fourstrokes) to claim high point. This is hersixth year on the team and she says set-

ting a team relay record and makingcounty are other highlights in the pool.Her mom Christy adds, “Springwood isour second home. The kids swimtogether up to six days a week foralmost four months; bonds are formedand lives are changed. The coaches pro-vide a mentorship that is difficult tofind in other sports. We love Spring-wood.” Away from the pool MakenaCooper loves art, dance (jazz, hip hopand tap), shopping and hanging outwith her BFF Jaidyn.

The Concord Pioneer congratu-lates Makena and thanks AthleteSpotlight sponsors Dr. LauraLacey & Dr. Christopher Ruzickawho have been serving the Claytonand Concord area for 25 years atFamily Vision 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 sports@concordpioneer.com.

Athlete Spotlight

Makena CooperAge: 10Team: Springwood

Swim Team

Photo: CSK Photography

Forest Park captures Division IICounty Swim Meet championship

Jay Bedecarre

FOREST PARK SWIM TEAM HAD A GREAT AUGUST with veteran coach Jeff Mellinger’sFlyers capping the season by winning the Contra Costa County Division IIchampionship. The Concord team also was second in A Division and first in BDivision at both the Contra Costa Valley Swim Conference and Concord CityMeet. Among the high scorers at these season-ending meets for the Flyerswere, from left, were Rayna Stanziano (13-14), Airiana Dargan (11-12), VinceDella Santina (6 & under) and Andrew Dawson (7-8). Arie Vanhoven (13-14) isnot pictured but he matched Della Santina as high point at both city & county.

Photo courtesy by Sammy Handler from J & H Media

JACOB SODERLUND of the WalnutCountry Swim Team seemed on hisway to a new record and the meet’shigh-point award for 11-12 boys atthe Concord City SwimmingChampionships when he was properlydisqualified in the preliminaries of hisspecialty, the 50-yard breaststroke.Undeterred he took his other twoConcord City Meet gold medals withhim to the Contra Costa SwimmingChampionships a week later and shat-tered the 50 breast county record in29.80, two and one-half secondsfaster than the runner-up. He also wassixth in the 50 back to finish tied forthird in the high point standings.

See Forest Park, page 12

Ipsen acquires 12thnational diving title

De La Salle grad KristianIpsen took sixth and seventh inhis two events at the FINAWorld Championships in Rus-sia late last month as diversfrom around the globe beganthe lead up to the SummerOlympics next August in Riode Janeiro. He then wentdirectly to Orlando for theUSA Diving ATT NationalChampionships and won thethree-meter springboard cham-pionship.

The 3M title was his 12thsenior national champi-onship—five individual andseven synchro titles. He alsohas 16 US junior national goldmedals.

Ipsen was second after the3M prelims in Orlando but ledthrough the semi-finals andfinals.

He combined with his newpartner Sam Dorman to takeseventh in the World Champi-onship men’s synchronizedthree-meter final. The Ameri-can pair scored 405.99 points,while China’s Cao Yuan andQin Kai took gold after finish-ing with 471.45 points. Ipsenand Dorman were in sixthplace through four rounds, buta miss for just 67.20 points ontheir reverse 3 ½ tuck in roundfive dropped them to ninth.

“You miss one dive andyou’re out, but we had fun. Iwent over on my gainer. It hap-

pens, but you’ve got to moveonto the next dive,” Dormansaid. After the miss, the paircame back with 82.95 pointson their final dive, a reverse 1½ with 3 ½ twists, to movethem back up to seventh. Theywere only 2.67 points behindthe fifth-place team fromCanada.

“(The finals) went prettywell. Our timing feels reallygood. We just missed one diveand in a contest like this that’lltake you out of it,” said Ipsen,a 2012 Olympic bronze medal-ist in synchronized 3-meterwith Troy Dumais. “I feel likewe have a lot more in store forus in the future.”

Ipsen finished sixth in themen’s one-meter competition.He was in 10th place with oneround to go before finishingwith 86.40 points on a reverse1 ½ with 3 ½ twists to moveup to sixth in the final stand-ings.

“I’m pretty satisfied, but Idid leave a little bit on the tablewith my fifth dive. I can dothat dive (reverse 2 ½ pike)better, and I thought I wasgoing to hit it. I was movingreally fast, but I got a little tooexcited,” Ipsen said. “Overall,I’m really happy with both theprelims and finals on 1-meter,but I could have done

USA Diving provided materialfor this story.

Photo courtesy MDSA

MDSA PHOENIX TOOK FIRST PLACE in the White Division at the 10th annual Soccer By The Bay tourna-ment this month. Team Phoenix allowed only one goal in their four games while scoring nine. Theywon the title game 2-0 over San Francisco Vikings Courage White. MDSA team includes, front fromleft, Sophia Sinclair, Laine Moraes; standing, coach Chris McNevin, Kaitlyn McNevin, Juju Bellamy(honorary member), Brooke Stanton, Brook Rickenbacher, Katelynn Brown, Melia Fabriquer,Sarandon Kamrud, Hawah Opeyany, Ashlyn Albert, Emily Beeson, Jacklann Bellamy and coachHeidi Brown. Not pictured Mipo Okeowo.

MDSA Phoenix girls top their division at Soccer By The Bay

With only two games left inthe NFL preseason, both theOakland Raiders and San Fran-cisco 49ers are making adjust-ments and scheme tweaks toprepare for their season openers.The Raiders open the season athome against the CincinnatiBengals on Sept. 13. The 49ersopen the season at Levi’s Stadi-um the next day against the Min-nesota Vikings in a Mondaynight game.

Here is a brief outlook oneach team:

Raiders – The Raiders arefinally starting to look like acompetitive team. GM ReggieMcKenzie has had his ups anddowns, but he’s assembled a ros-ter with a lot of young, talentedplayers that he expects will satis-fy diehard Raider Nation at O.coand on the road.

Derek Carr has been sur-rounded with weapons in hissecond season as the Raiders sig-nal caller. Despite a historicallybad running game and weakreceiving corps last season, Carrstill put up respectable numberswith 21 touchdown passes and3,270 yards through the air.Carr’s growth this year is goingto be pivotal. He now has theNo. 4 overall draft pick Amari

Cooper, Michael Crabtree androokie tight end Clive Walfordas targets.

On the defensive side of theball new coach Jack Del Riohopes Khalil Mack is a terror foropposing teams after beefingup 20 pounds in the off-seasonand moving to defensive end.

49ers – The 49ers have a lotto prove coming into this sea-son. The majority of the coach-ing staff turned over and ownerJed York promised the San Fran-cisco faithful that his changeswill equate to a winning team.

New head coach Jim Tomsu-la was given the short end of thestick to start his tenure. The49ers lost Mike Iupati, FrankGore, Crabtree, Dan Skuta andPerish Cox in free agency. Line-backers Patrick Willis and ChrisBorland retired, as well as offen-sive tackle Anthony Davis. Ontop of all this, the 49ers releasedtroubled linebacker Aldon Smitha few weeks ago and then widereceiver was suspended sixgames by the NFL.

If the 49ers are going tohave any chance of being com-petitive this year, Colin Kaeper-nick has to step up and becomea consistent quarterback. Freeagent Torrey Smith will be a

great deep-threat weapon, but itis up to Kap to be more accurateon deep throws. In 2014,Kaepernick completed only 33.3percent of his passes 20 or moreyards downfield.

Page 12 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com August 28, 2015

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 tyler@con-cordpioneer.com.

Forest Park,from page 11

DIABLO FC FALL REC SEASON

TAKING SIGNUPSDiablo FC is holding its fall rec league Sept.

1 through Oct. 20 in Concord at Newhall Park.Training for boys and girls under five, U7 andU9 age groups with parent coaches and profes-sional Diablo FC staff is on Tuesdays withgames on Saturdays Sept. 12-Oct. 24. For moreinformation and schedule visit diablofc.org.

CONCORD AMERICAN FALL BASEBALL

TAKING SIGNUPSConcord American Little League is taking

signups for its fall league programs. There willbe four skills clinics for boys and girls 4-7 yearsof age in Sept. Baseball and softball leagues forboys and girls 8-12 will begin with practice inAugust and games on Saturday afternoons inSept. and Oct. For more information emailDanny Wallace coachdanny14@gmail.com.Registration is open now at callbaseball.org.

ST. AGNES CYO BASKETBALL

SIGNUPS END SEPT. 5Registration for St. Agnes CYO basketball is

now being accepted online and at walk-in regis-tration day on Saturday, Sept. 5, from 10 a.m. –1 p.m. at Cauchi Hall on the school campus inConcord. Girls and boys in second througheighth grades who live within the St. Agnesboundaries are eligible to play. Player evalua-tions will be held in September. Email CharlieCunningham at crc22369@gmail.com withquestions or visit stagnescyo.com.

CLAYTON VALLEY LITTLE LEAGUE

FALL BALL COMING SOONClayton Valley Little League Fall Ball pro-

gram is accepting boys and girls for baseball (8-12 years old) and softball (12 and under). Thethree-month program starts this month and willinclude 11 practices and 13 games with a focuson fundamentals. For more information and toregister visit cvll.org.

FALL, WINTER PROGRAMS OPEN

AT ALL OUT SPORTS LEAGUESFall and winter programs for youth and

adults are now open in Clayton offered by AllOut Sports Leagues. Youth basketball and vol-leyball begins at the end of September. Thanks-giving and Christmas break basketball clinicsfor boys and girls in first through 10th gradesare accepting signups. There’s a basketballshooting lab every Sunday from 9-10 a.m. atClayton Community Gym. For complete infor-mation on All Out Sports programs, visit alloutsportsleague.com.

FINAL CONCORD ADULT SOFTBALL

LEAGUE REGISTRATION OPENTeam registrations are being accepted for

Concord fall adult softball leagues. Men’s,women’s and co-ed divisions are offered onvarious nights throughout the week, Sunday

through Friday. Concord softball’s fall league isa seven-game season with playoffs in Septem-ber and running through early November.Registration and information packets are avail-able online at teamsideline.com/concord orcall 671-3423.

TERRAPINS FALL CLINIC, YEAR-ROUND

PROGRAM TAKING SIGNUPSThe renowned Terrapins Swim Team will be

hosting its annual Fall Stoke Improvement Pro-gram from Sept. 14 to Dec. 11 at ConcordCommunity Pool. The program offers recswimmers six-year-olds through high school theopportunity to train under the professional Ter-rapin staff for three months. Limited clinic reg-istration is now being taken online at terrapin-swim.com. The Terrapins year-round USASwimming program is also accepting applica-tions now for its fall season that begins Aug. 31.Call 680-8372 for more info or visit the clubwebsite.

ST. BONAVENTURE CYO CROSS COUNTRY NOW TRAINING

St. Bonaventure CYO cross country beginsits season training Monday. The program isopen to boys and girls in 2nd-8th grades in theSt. Bonaventure attendance area. Cross countryis a short, family-oriented season with practicesMonday, Wednesday and Friday at 5:30 p.m.Parents are highly encouraged to run too. Meetsbegin in late September on Friday evenings withthe Oakland Diocese meet in mid-October. Theteam meets at Newhall Park near children’s playarea. Signups will be taken at practice or visitstbonaventurecyo.com for more info.

SHUFFLE THE CARDS FOR

CVCHS FOOTBALL BENEFIT OCT. 3Clayton Valley Charter football is hosting its

fourth annual Texas Hold ‘Em Poker Tourna-ment and dinner on Saturday, Oct. 3, benefitingUgly Eagles football program. Prize money ofup to $500 for first place will be offered for thetournament. Tickets for poker and dinner ordinner only are available now. Dinner begins at5:30 p.m. with poker tournament at 8 o’clock atShadelands Arts Center in Walnut Creek. Din-ner is catered by Lisa V and Dee-Licious. Tick-ets available at claytonvalleyfootball.com. Call348-3452 or 260-8304 for more information.

ST. BONAVENTURE CYO BASKETBALL

TAKING SIGNUPS UNTIL SEPT. 18Online registration will be active until Sept.

18 for St. Bonaventure CYO basketball for boysand girls grades two through eight. Player feesgo up $10 after Aug. 31. If you have any ques-tions or would like to coach or volunteer, pleasecontact Tim O’Hara at 672-5774. The seasonruns from September through February withpostseason playoffs. All registration is beingdone online at stbonaventurecyo.com.

Sports Shorts

NFL season rightaround the corner

Terrapins place 3rd at Long CourseFar Western Swim Championships

The Terrapins of Concordearned their highest team plac-ing—-third—-in many years atthe Long Course Far WesternUSA Swimming Champi-onship at the beginning of themonth.

The host Santa Clara SwimClub and Palo Alto StanfordAquatics finished 1-2, eachwith a roster much larger thanthe Terrapins. Terrapins at FarWesterns set 117 personal life-time best swims during themeet.

TERA swimmers andrelays won 25 events set twoFar Western and Pacificrecords in the process led byhigh point age group swim-mers AJ Fong (10 & underboys), Emily Lo (13-14 girls)and Andrew “Arod” Rodriguez(13-14 boys).

The 13-14 boys swimmersRobert Mitchell, Cal Brown,Rodriguez, Garrick Coloma,Andrei Minakov and Matt Fet-terman combined to win allfive relays in their age group.The swimmers broke FWSTand Pacific records in both the400 medley and 400 free relays.

The Terrapins last monthhosted the Pacific SwimmingLong Course Junior OlympicChampionships at the Con-cord Community Pool withover 890 swimmers repre-senting 57 teams from north-ern California and Reno com-peting in 106 individualevents.

The Terrapins were led bytwo boys who each won

seven events, 10-year-old AJFong and Adrian Dulay, 12.Other Terrapins winningmultiple events wereRodriguez (14), Minakov (13),Mitchell (14) and Fetterman(14). Terrapin Junior Olympicchamps in one event were

Michal Zlya (18), Sasha Liu(14), Samantha Coloma (17),Max Bottene (17), JessicaLarson (14), Toshiki Taka-hashi (17), Emily House (16),Coloma (13) and DevinMasongsong (12).

Photo courtesy Terrapin Swim Team

THREE MEMBERS OF THE TERRAPINS SWIM TEAM earned high-point honors in their age group at the Long Course FarWestern USA Swimming Championship at the beginning ofthe month in Santa Clara. TERA high point age swimmerswere, from left, Andrew “Arod” Rodriguez (13-14 boys),Emily Lo (13-14 girls) and AJ Fong (10 & under boys). Thetwo boys are from Concord.

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Gehringer Park: DanielVale, Austin Fiene, Lilly Weires,Hannah Jacobs, Haylie Jacobs,Kaylee Pond, Damien Donado,Anthony Johnson, Emily Mon-roe, Quincy Sewell, SamuelWofse, Elisa Vale, Amelia Chaix,Zay Brisson, Nicole Dodge,Kateri Alvarez, Cameron Pap-pas, Casey Flores, Ralphy Bel-tran, Isabella Jimenez, DanielButticci, Marina Delaluna, Gar-land Miller, Andrew Platt,Leilani Mestas.

Springwood: Tyler Swen-son, Mateo Gonzalez, ShawnCanada, Damik Van Fanos,Grace Pugh, Makena Cooper,Amelia Bascom, Mia Van Fanos,Abbi Cooper, Mary Richard,Dominic York, Ronnie David,Karlee Kronquist, Emily Wagn-er, Gabriella Caputi, Enric Win-ters.

Vista Diablo: Ryan Stagmi-er, Diego Montesinos, NathanStagmier, Zach Malmstrom.

Walnut Country: Anja Per-reira, Mason Wendler, JacobSoderlund, Theodore Wu,Daniel Lewis, Nathaniel Wu,Olivia Wirig, Grace Soderlund,Troy Beckon, BenjaminRodriguez, Brody McNally,Dylan Washmera, MasonWendler, Marco Tredinnick,Aiden Huckestein, Joaquin Her-nandez, Kai Perreira, AynsleyByrd, Armando Martinez, JoshSandy.

Ygnacio Wood: KatelynSmith, Maddie King, Olivia Pat-terson, Lindsey Tellefsen, JaylaKluver, Logan Schaefer, TommyMeriam, Maddy Jarrett, ArianaDavis, Vernon Smith, KaleighDiaz, Sophia Castillo, AinsleyCastillo, Marcus Manuel, KayaAndresen, Robbie O’Sullivan,Becca Marin, Clara Decker,Andrey Pristinsky, NicoleMcNab, Michelle House.

The Wellness City Chal-lenge presented a most enter-taining Iron Chef-style show-down during the “Music &Market” series in Todos SantosPlaza on July 23.

Before an estimated crowdof 3,500 onlookers, six mayorsand city council members fromContra Costa County teamedup with a restaurant in theircity to compete.

The objective of the May-ors’ Healthy Cook-off Chal-lenge is to bring awareness tothe importance of healthy eat-ing. By pairing local leaderswith popular restaurants, Well-ness City Challenge founderCindy Gershen hopes todemonstrate that good tasteand high quality don’t have tobe sacrificed in the “health

food” arena.Contestants are asked to

create nutrient-dense disheswithout any added sugar, uti-lizing natural spices andherbs found at the farmersmarket happening justbehind them.

Each team consisted ofthree participants. One rep-resentative from the city, one

from the restaurant, as well as asous chef from the Mt. DiabloHigh School Culinary Pro-gram. Working with masterchefs allowed the culinary stu-dents to learn valuable tips andcooking instruction.

A “grab bag” of items wasprovided to each team, whichincluded fresh chicken, oils,and grains from Grocery Out-let of Concord and seasonalproduce provided by the Pacif-ic Coast Farmers Market. Judg-ing was based on healthiness,taste, presentation and creativi-ty. Although the same ingredi-ents were provided to all, eachrestaurant managed to maketheir own unique dish.

A variety of techniqueswere used to prepare thechicken portion of the meal.Chef Gerardo Wence, ownerof Wence’s in Pleasant Hill,prepared a savory blackenedchicken, while head chef

Scott Wall of Lark Creek inWalnut Creek decided toincorporate flavors of theSouth by creating Cajun-spiced chicken breasts. Anti-och’s Lone Tree & EventCenter stuffed their bird withquinoa, while Danville’s ThePeasant & The Pear prepareda crispy seasoned chicken.

Creative juices flowed end-lessly as the teams showcasedthe fruit they were given in anew way, ranging from LarkCreek’s colorful fruit salsa thatgrew plump in its own sweetjuices, to The Peasant and ThePear’s peach cobbler that wasmade with a healthy twist usingingredients such as hemp seedand almond butter to form thecrust.

Every participant was awinner in this competition:Concord shared 1st place withPleasant Hill in Presentation,Clayton and Danville shared1st place for Creativity, andWalnut Creek and Danvilleshared 1st place for Healthi-ness. But there could only beone winner overall, to whichAntioch took the prize in bothtaste and overall winner.

Pioneer editor Tamara Stein-er said to Antioch’s crewbefore the winner wasannounced, “If the people hada vote, you would definitely

win!” She then pointed to her-self and two others beforelaughing, “We are the people!”

Antioch presented animpressive dish for the judgesand lucky guests from thepress, winning the contest forthe second year in a row. Theirmain entrée was stuffed chick-en breast with quinoa and leeksthat was served with a smokedcherry tomato sauce. Along-side the chicken they servedeggplant stuffed with grilledtofu, goat cheese and creamyGreek yogurt topped withAnaheim chilies and a balsamicreduction drizzle.

A roasted red beet salad fullof greens from the farmersmarket rounded out the meal.It was tossed with goat cheese,lemon zest and a fragrant cit-rus vinaigrette. Saving the bestfor last, everyone raved aboutthe grape and peach dessert“shooter” – a small clear glassfilled with a combination ofsliced red and green grapes,

peaches, red plums, red beetjuice and a touch of coconutoil.

By using fresh fruit fromthe farmers market they wereable to rely on the fruit to bethe star of the dessert, which itcertainly was, requiring noadded sugar.

The Mayors’ HealthyCook-off has proven to beboth fun and educational forall. Learning that peach cob-bler could be made with hempseed, or that “plain” grapescould be paired with summerfruit to produce a delightfuldessert, were among the high-lights of this competition, andtasting them was the grandfinale.

Mayor’ Cook Off gives new meaning to ‘fast food’August 28, 2015 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 13

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RICHARD EBER &WHITNEY FLORES

TASTE AND TELL

Rich Eber is a local columnist forthe blog Halfway to Concord and aself-described “foodie.” He teams upwith daughter, Whitney, a Concordnative, student, and avid cook andtaster. Email comments or questions toeditor@concordpioneer.com

TWO-TIME CHAMPS: Once again, Antioch’s Lone Tree Golf and Event Center walked awaywith the top prize at the Wellness City Challenge Mayor’s Cook Off with a chicken andquinoa dish. From left: Restaurant Manager Abdon Aguilar, Antioch Mayor Wade Harper,MDH Sustained Hospitality student Juan Gutierrez and Chef Juan Aguilar.

Don’t gripe about earlytable grapes this season

Mounds of colorful tablegrapes can be seen at yourfarmers market this month.They arrived early this season,in rapid succession behindapricots. As they sit in the sunnext to peaches and plums, weare reminded that the continu-ing drought is still with us.Many varieties of fruits andvegetables arrived four to sixweeks earlier than average.

Table grapes, as opposed towine grapes, are availablethrough December and comein an array of brilliant colorsand sweet flavors. The greenThompson seedless and pur-plish-red Red Flame grapes arethe most common varieties,but also try the deep blueThomcord, a cross betweenthe Thompson seedless andthe Concord grape. Look forthe blue/black Autumn Royalwith a deep rich grape flavor orthe Red Globe, a smaller roundgrape with wonderful sweetflavor.

Grapes are harvested onlywhen fully ripe. Use color as aguide to the sweetness of thefruit. Green grapes shouldhave a yellow cast or strawcolor with a touch of amber,when fully ripe, not an opaquegrassy green color. Red grapesshould be a deep crimson, not

a milky or pale red. Blue grapesshould be darkly hued, almostblack, not pale or tinged withgreen.

Grapes should be plump,so avoid any that have lots ofunderdeveloped, very greenfruit. You can always judge thefreshness of grapes by thestem. The greener the stem,the fresher the grapes. Grapesshould always be firmlyattached to their stems.

Today, California wine,table grapes and raisins areimportant agricultural com-modities, with approximately700,000 acres planted in vine-yards. In the US, 99 percent ofcommercially grown tablegrapes are from California.

Here’s one of my favoritelate summer grape recipes:

SMOKED SALMON WITHGRAPES & PRAWNS

6 oz. smoked salmon slices

6 oz. grapes6 oz. cooked prawns2 Tbsp. mayonnaiseLime slices, fresh dillLine four ramekins with the

slices of smoked salmon, leav-ing the edges hanging over thesides. Cut each grapes in fourpieces.

Mix the seedless grapes andprawns with the mayonnaise.Season with salt and pepper ifdesired. Spoon the mixtureinto the ramekins, and fold theflaps of smoked salmon overthe top.

Refrigerate for at least onehour. Run a knife round theinside of each ramekin andcarefully turn the molds ontoindividual plates. Garnish witha wedge of lime and a sprig ofdill.

A FloralExperience

Mitzie Richardson 925-705-3088flowersbymitzie@gmail.com Facebook/afloralexperience.biz

Mitzie Richardson 925-705-3088flowersbymitzie@gmail.com Facebook/afloralexperience.biz

Flowers for all

occasions

DEBRA MORRIS

Pacific Coast Farmers Market

The Concord Farmers Market is inTodos Santos Plaza Tuesdays &Thursdays. See ad page 6 for hours.

This school year at YgnacioValley High School, we areexcited to continue our effortsin building a strong, positiveclimate and culture. I am hon-ored to be the principal ofsuch a welcoming and diversehigh school.

For the second year, we willbe facilitating our Week ofWelcome, planned and coordi-nated by our amazing staff.Each day will consist of a vari-ety of activities, workshopsand guest speakers that pro-mote our Warrior Way. During

our Week of Welcome, staff,students and communitymembers will be learning andimplementing our missionsto: Be Safe, Be Responsible,Have Integrity, and BuildCommunity.

As we finish up registeringour students for the schoolyear, we look forward to whatthis year has to offer. And weopen our arms to more oppor-tunities, resources and eventsthat provide our students withlife skills that allow them to beempowered, become educatedand be positive role models forour community.

Mount Diablo High Schoolis looking forward to our bestyear yet. As a Wall-to-WallAcademy comprehensive highschool, everyone on our staffis dedicated to providing anexciting, challenging andrewarding learning environ-ment for all of our students.

We are delighted to wel-come two new vice principalsto our administrative team.Jaime Colly comes to us withmany years of teaching andadministrative experience in aneighboring district. Nichole

Hackett is a former StudentServices Coordinator and Spe-cial Education teacher at Col-lege Park High School. Theirunique talents and abilities aregoing to enable us to continueto provide high quality supportto our students, parents andteachers.

Another positive additionto our staff is the hiring of twoacademic counselors. AdrielBriscoe and Khany Figueroawill be providing all of our stu-dents equitable access to com-prehensive counseling services

focused on academic success,personal and social develop-ment, and career and collegeguidance. Mr. Briscoe will beworking with students in ourACME and DSA academiesand Ms. Figueroa will be work-ing with students in the IHTA,MBTA, and World Academy.

There are many ways foradults to participate as parentleaders and community volun-teers at MDHS. Parent TeacherStaff Association meetings,ELAC (English Learner Advi-sory Committee) meetings,Sports Boosters and LatinoParents Meetings are just a fewof our many opportunities.

I’m confident that withthese amazing new staff mem-bers, our excellent existingstaff members, and our parentand community partners, ourstudents are going to have aterrific 2015-16 school year.

I just started my senior yearat Northgate High School.Suddenly, I have become theleader of my school. I am nowthe person that those youngerthan me aspire to be, the guythey look up to, the role model.After three years, I have madeit to the top of the high schoolfood chain.

In my time spent at North-gate, I have found my place atthe school and discoveredways to get involved — and Iam hitting the ground run-

ning. I am fortunate enoughto be one of the school'sHead Rally Commissionersthis year. Literally speaking, Iam the voice of school spiritand involvement on campus. Iam helping run my Leadershipclass as a senior officer, hope-fully leading to a successfuland student-oriented year.

However, there are obviousdownsides with being a highschool senior. To capture it allin one word: college. Senioryear may be the last year of

high school, but it is also thelast year to prepare for thisnext step of our lives, andwhether we are planning ongoing to a four year university,community college, or anyother possibility, this year is allabout preparation for this nextstep. Personally, I just see it asa year of anxiety. I am going tospend the fall finishing college-prep standardized testing andapplying to colleges; I amgoing to spend the winter deal-ing with financial aid andapplying for scholarships forcollege; I am going to spendthe spring worrying aboutwhether or not I got into theschools I wanted to get into.

It seems that the only timeI'll be able to truly enjoy mysenior year is once it's over.

As principal of NorthgateHigh School, I get to see whatwe could call “excellence” ondisplay each day here at school.But I know that the dedication,the professionalism, the kind-ness that supports this “excel-lence” doesn’t happen on itsown. It happens because peoplecare.

As I start my second yearhere at Northgate I continue tobe impressed with the generosi-ty of spirit from teachers, staffand students. But there isunsung source of generositythat often gets overlooked. I, ofcourse, am speaking of our par-ent community. So much of

what makes this school specialcan be directly seen in the waysthat committed parents con-tribute to the betterment of theschool facility, the support ofour athletic programs and thecontinual enhancement of whatteachers can do in the class-room.

For example, consider ournew pool. This was an amazing,parent-led effort to finally bringa beautiful pool facility to whathas always been a stellar, albeititinerant, aquatics program.

In the classrooms, parentcontributions are enhancing ourcurricular integration with theCommon Core State Standards

as well as supporting our teach-ers with enhanced trainingopportunities. In addition, par-ents have helped broaden ouroffering of cross-curricularclasses with both Global Per-spectives as well as AmericanThreads courses being team-taught through social studiesand English teacher partner-ships.

Also, parents have made itpossible to not only extend ourtechnological offerings such asiPad and Chromebook integra-tion across the curriculum, buthave also supported our abilityto both stabilize and expand ourWiFi capacity throughout theschool.

Thanks to this Northgatecommunity, we are making hugestrides towards making this greatschool even better. Thanks tothis Northgate community, weare increasingly able to ensurethat we can actually see excel-lence for, and from, all ofNorthgate’s students.

The oldest and newesthigh schools in the Mt. Dia-blo Unified School Districteach unveiled new multi-mil-lion dollar athletic facilitiesthis week as the new schoolyear began Tuesday.

Mt. Diablo High, thegrand dame of area schools,has a new turf field and all-weather running track at HartFairclough Stadium in down-town Concord. NorthgateHigh, opened in 1974 theyoungest high school in thedistrict, has culminated along-term drive to have anall-purpose aquatics center inWalnut Creek.

The pool at Northgatewas used the last couple ofweeks of the spring swimseason for practice by Broncoswimmers. It was put to gooduse as the Northgate boysdefended their North CoastSection team championshipsand then a week later won thefirst-ever CIF State Swim-ming Championships.

The pool is 25 yards by 40meters and will accommodateswimming and diving compe-tition as well as water polomatches. The center alsoincludes new mechanicalroom, restrooms, 3139 squarefoot sports medicine build-ing, sport lighting, score-board infra-structure, deckequipment and site-requiredinfra-structure improvementsnecessary to support the newproject (bio-swale, electrical,sewer, paving, fencing, etc.).

Measure C funds con-tributed $7.3 million and theNorthgate Community PrideFoundation raised over$560,000 to complete fundingof the $7.9 million projectthat was over a decade in themaking.

The pool will be officiallychristened with the first homeboys and girls water polomatches on Sept. 1 againstBenicia.

RED DEVILS’ NEW DIGSThe new FieldTurf surface

for football and soccer at Mt.Diablo were receiving finishing

touches this week. New headfootball coach Derek Clementswas biting at his chops to gethis team on the field for prac-tice before their opening homegame this Friday evening at 7o’clock against Mt. Eden ofHayward.

Large red MDHS lettersstretch between the 40-yardlines in the stadium that hasbeen on the campus for nearly80 years and was dedicated in1939.

Measure C director TimCody says the $2.9 millionproject funded entirelythrough Measure C also con-sists of replacing the existingrunning track with a new all-weather track surface, newADA accessible pathways aswell as improvements to exist-ing storm drainage.

Cody says, “These projects(and so many others) are notpossible without the communi-ty support expressed by the2010 Measure C bond.Melanie Koslow of MDUSDwas project manager at bothsites.

Page 14 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com August 28, 2015

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Senior yearisn’t for slackersMick Ucciferri

NORTHGATECORRESPONDENT

Northgate H igh

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New staffadds toMDHS success

Send comments and questions toeditor@concordpioneer.com

Send comments and questions toeditor@concordpioneer.comSend comments and questions to

editor@concordpioneer.com

Liane CismowskiMDHS PRINCIPAL

Parents areNorthgate’sunsungheroesMichael McAlister

NORTHGATEPRINCIPAL

YVHS teachesstudents theWarrior Way

Efa HuckabyeYGNACIO VALLEY

PRINCIPAL

Jay Bedecarre

MEASURE C FUNDS PAID FOR A NEW ARTIFICIAL TURF FOOTBALL-SOCCER FIELD and an all-weatherrunning track plus areas for field events at Mt. Diablo High School. The project was dueto be completed early this week so that the Red Devils can host their first home game ofthe season in Hart Fairclough Stadium Friday evening against Mt. Eden of Hayward. The$2.9 million project also included new ADA accessible pathways, rails separating thetrack from the spectator area as well as improvements to existing storm drainage.

MDHS and Northgate start year with new athletic facilities

Mick Ucciferri is a senior at North-gate High School. Reach him ateditor@concordpioneer.com.

JAY BEDECARRÉ

Concord Pioneer

Clayton Valley CharterHigh School welcomes ournew and returning students,teachers and staff as the UglyEagles are poised for anotherexciting and promising school

year. For myself, it's a first

chapter as CVCHS's newprincipal. I'm hopeful tobring my knowledge andexperience to continue the

fine traditions and academicachievements of this out-standing charter high school.

Each school year is uniqueand 2015-16 is no exceptionat CVCHS.

We welcomed the Class of2019 with an extremely suc-cessful Freshman TransitionProgram providing ournewest students with a week-long camp designed to pre-pare them for the high schoolexperience. The followingweek, our upperclassmenjoined the new group of stu-dents sharing advice and tipsfor a smooth and spirited

opening to the school year.We look forward to show-

casing to the community thegreat work of our students,teachers and staff at through-out the year.

Observations around ourcampus showcase a numberof student groups underway,including the Clayton ValleyCharter Marching Band.These talented student per-formers can be seen – andheard – every day afterschool. We also encouragethe community to join us onFriday nights for Ugly Eaglefootball as we march toward

another championship seasonand trip to the CaliforniaState Title game.

And finally, CVCHS willwelcome our school commu-nity back officially at ourBack to School Night at 7p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 3. Ilook forward to meeting eachof our students and theirfamilies as we collectivelywork together for an excitingand promising school year.

This school year, ConcordHigh is making room for sev-eral new academic programs.One such academic programon Concord’s campus isAVID (Advancement viaIndividual Determination.)This program is all abouthelping students excel. Themission statement of AVIDis ”to close the achievementgap by preparing all studentsfor college readiness and suc-cess in a global society.”Through this program, edu-cators hope to have a strongimpact on students’ futures.This program focuses on stu-dents in the middle or stu-dents who hold a 2.0-3.5GPA, have academic poten-tial, and are interested inattending college.

Concord High’s AVIDprogram is offered to fresh-men and sophomores whomeet these requirements.AVID is an elective classoffered at Concord High. Itgives students access to

resources such as tutors whomentor and help themachieve academic success.AVID also helps studentsmaster skills, which they canuse in their academic classesand eventually master CCSSor Common Core State Stan-dards. It supports criticalthinking and encourages stu-dents to accept academicchallenges.

The program is beneficialto those students who wantto strive for better. AVIDdirector at Concord, LeahDarby says, “Teaching AVIDmeans I will have the awe-some honor to encourage,instruct, mentor, inspire,praise and guide students torealize their potential and besuccessful in high school, col-lege and hopefully life”.

At Concord High, we arerejuvenated by the excitementthat the new school yearbrings. The campus is burst-ing with change, as it boastsseveral aesthetic upgradesand approximately 150 morestudents than last year. Sever-al school facility improve-ment projects are still inprocess and the anticipationof a transformed environ-ment is on the minds of stu-dents, parents and staff.These changes will help us toprovide more opportunitiesfor our students to engagewith technology, have pridein their community, andaccess academic and emo-tional support.

This year Concord Highteachers and staff will befocusing on empowering stu-dents to believe in their ownindividual potential as wehelp them to become college-and career-ready. All teacherswill spend the first two daysof school in classroom activi-ties that support our academ-ic and developmental goals(PRIDE), while also layingthe foundation for strong stu-

dent-teacher relationships.Students will participate inlessons about optimism, grat-itude, responsibility, initiativeand self-advocacy (ProblemSolver), self-control, honestyand integrity (ResponsibleCitizens), social intelligenceand kindness (Inclusive Lead-ers), curiosity and grit (Dedi-cated Learners), and concise,clear communication and col-laboration (Effective Com-municators). Students willalso have the opportunity tolisten Hoan Do, a formerAmerican Ninja Warriorcompetitor and now highlysought-after motivationalspeaker.

In the words of SimonSinek, a motivational speakerinspiring leadership throughanswering the question“why?”, “Success is whenreality catches up to ourimagination.” Concord Highis on its way to even greatersuccess through teamwork,creativity and always puttingstudents first. Go Minute-men!

August 28, 2015 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 15

New chapterfor CVCHSprincipal

New AVIDprogram putsemphasis onexcellence

Aasim Yahya is a sophomoreand student body vice president. Hehas a passion for basketball andplays on the school team. Send com-ments to editor@concordpioneer.com

Concord Hightakes PRIDEin students

Rianne Pfaltzgraff

CONCORD HIGHPRINCIPAL

Aasim YahyaCONCORD HIGHCORRESPONDENT

Concord H igh

Jeff EbenCVCHS

PRINCIPAL

Send comments and questions to edi-tor@concordpioneer.com

Send comments and questions to edi-tor@concordpioneer.com

Clayton Val ley Charter H igh

Construction was complet-ed on the Science, Technology,Robotics, Engineering, Art andMathematic (STREAM) Inno-vation Center on Aug. 1 at DeLa Salle High School. Theschool celebrated the grandopening on Aug. 23.

“The STREAM InnovationCenter is not just about havingbetter place for our currentprograms,” says school Presi-dent Mark DeMarco.

Brother Robert Wickman,FSC, the school’s principal,says, “A school cannot developa science program in the twen-ty-first century without refer-ence to the Next GenerationScience Standards. Students

will become competent inthese cutting-edge standardsand will be able to demonstratetheir understanding of corescientific principles throughthe ability to use the practicesof science and engineering.”

The three-story building isnow the largest building oncampus. Crews started prepar-ing the site in June of 2014 andcompleted the building in just14 months. Funding for the$20.5 million building wasmade possible by generousdonors and foundations. Thebuilding was delivered on timeand on budget.

For more information, go todlshs.org.

De La Salle High School STREAMInnovation Center complete

DE LA SALLE HIGH SCHOOL completed construction on its28,000 square foot STREAM Innovation Center this month.

Performing arts charterschool charging ahead

The curtain is rising on theEast Bay’s newest performingarts charter school. Sincereceiving its authorization inJuly, the new Contra CostaSchool of Performing Arts puta governing board in place andagreed on a Memorandum ofUnderstanding with the ContraCosta County Board of Edu-cation.

Executive Director NeilMcChesney said the search fora temporary home is ongoingfor the school that expects toopen next August. McChesneyis looking at local sites to beginoperating next summer whilehe continues to work with theCity of Concord about thepossibility of a permanent sitefor the charter school on thegrounds of the Concord Pavil-ion.

The governing boardappointees are Gabriela Row-

land, Alison Bacigalupo, JimWickware, Lisa Kingsbury andSherrie Sarna. They beganmeeting this month.

Bacigalupo worked withMcChesney at Clayton ValleyHigh School, was involved inthe conversion of CVHS toClayton Valley Charter andserved on its founding govern-ing board.

Rowland co-founded withanother parent an afterschoolenrichment program, Drama-Mama Productions, whichworked with middle school andelementary school children. Asa director and owner of thetheater program, she workedwith the Mt. Diablo UnifiedSchool District and City ofConcord.

Additionally the charter hasan advisory council that cur-rently includes Janet Gower,Kristin Avila, Donn K. Harrisand Milton Reynolds.

A month after receiving amaximum five-year charter

authorization from the countyschool board, McChesney wasback before the board thismonth to seek approval of aMOU. “This agreement essen-tially sets forth the conditionsfor us to open,” McChesneysaid.

He was quizzed by boardmembers about how theschool will be funded. McCh-esney explained that the schoolis seeking donations and grantsbut will rely on a factoring loanbased on the expected dailyattendance funds that willcome from the state once theschool opens next fall.

The expectation is for atleast 300 students spreadacross grades 6-10 in the firstyear. Ultimately the organizersproject 750 students fromgrades 6-12.

For more information and tocontribute to the school’s fundraisingdrive visitcharthousepublicschools.org.

Supporters of RocketshipPublic Charter ElementarySchool are refueling theirefforts to bring the school toConcord’s Monument Corri-dor after the Mt. Diablo Uni-fied School District denied thecharter.

The staff of Rocketshipand their supporters said theywill file an appeal with theContra Costa County Board ofEducation, hoping to gain anapproval similar to how Clay-ton Valley Charter HighSchool obtained theirs after anMDUSD denial.

Despite a signature signed

by 1,000 parents and a strongshowing of support at theMDUSD board meeting, dis-trict officials turned down therequest, with board presidentCheryl Hansen saying the pro-posal was “out of date” anddid not seem to have been indi-vidualized for MDUSD. Shealso expressed her concernthat Rocketship has overstatedits students’ success.

If approved, the new ele-mentary school would beRocketship’s first in Concordand Contra Costa County, andcomes after extensive advocacyand relationship building in thecommunity with parents andlocal organizations, said Rock-etship spokesperson Zoe

Woodcraft. Many parents expressed

their disappointment in theMDUSD decision. “I was sad-dened by MDUSD’s decisionto deny the petition. I knowthat MDUSD is not doing allthey say they are doing in theirschools —not for Latinos inthe community. They don’tencourage us or prepare us togo to college,” said MariaBarojas, a parent in Concord.“I had a chance to see formyself that Rocketship doesjust that. Rocketship motivatesstudents to reach for more andhelps them succeed. Parentsfrom our community shouldhave the option to send ourkids where we want to send

them.” The nonprofit network of

elementary schools, founded in2007 in San Jose, is dedicatedto eliminating the achievementgap. Rocketship schools — thenine already open in the SouthBay and a 10th scheduled toopen in Redwood city — serveprimarily low-income studentsin neighborhoods where accessto high-performing schools islimited. Each Rocketshipschool focuses on a three pillar

Everyone has a “type.”Whether it’s tall and skinny, ormuscular with a sharp jawline,everyone has something thatsuits their fancy.

For Colin Singleton, histype is Katherine. In “AnAbundance of Katherines” byJohn Green, Colin has dated19 girls named Katherine, andwith all of them, he found nolove and no luck.

While of a road trip, Colintries to prove that with the helpof the “Theorem of Underly-ing Katherine Predictability,”he can predict the outcome ofany relationship that the futureholds for him and hopefully,help him map out how he isgoing to obtain the girl of hisdreams, whether or not hername is Katherine.

It’s a great story; plus, thereare so many beautiful quoteswoven into this novel. Myfavorite one is: “…but therewas no denying her smile. Thatsmile could end wars and curecancer.”

Even though this bookwasn’t my favorite by JohnGreen (that would be “Look-ing for Alaska”), it still packedquite a punch. I’ve always thor-oughly enjoyed reading any-thing by him and this storysurely met my expectations. Ican’t wait to see what elseGreen has in store for us in thefuture.

Emily York is a junior atCVCHS.

EMILY YORK

TEEN READS

Determiningthe right type of‘Katherine’

JAY BEDECARRÉ

Concord Pioneer

Rocketship changes course, appeals tocounty after MDUSD denies charter

PEGGY SPEAR

Concord Pioneer

See Rocketship, pg 17

and organized by the newmayor. This happens weeks ifnot months before the vote!When I was elected to thecouncil in November, 2012, itwas no different except theplanning took place before theelection. Are we witnessingsome strange act of E.S.P.?

Well if it stands for Extra Spe-cial Politics, then maybe we are.All the more the reason thepeople should decide in anopen election who is themayor.

When I introduced the itembefore the current council atour last Spring Council Work-

shop, it got no support. It isunderstandable that those whocurrently decide will not wantto give up their power todecide for others. Some see itas their duty to decide who isthe mayor and that they knowbetter than anyone who itshould be. Another reason totake back the power and give itto the voters.

It can be done two ways:The council to pass a motion

to put it on the ballot for thepeople to decide if they want adirectly elected mayor. Or, apetition that has over 5,700voter signatures can force thematter on to the ballot.

So what is it going to be?For more information, or per-haps sign a petition, contactme at EdiBirsan@gmail.comor 510-812-8180 or visitwww.PulseOfConcord.com

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Pulse, from page 8

Family biking tips and tricks

In Concord, families comefirst. That can be true for bikingas well. Biking together can pro-vide some quality family timeoutside of the car and home andhelp strengthen ties to eachother and our community.

Getting started biking withfamily is easier than it seems, anddoes not have to be an expensiveor time consuming hassle. Asschools start up again, ask your-self if you could take your kidsto class by bicycle.

There are two keys for suc-cess: practice and routine. If you

want your kids to be excitedabout bicycling, start ridingtoday and set the standard. Ifthey’re not old enough to ridebeside you, there are easy waysto add seats to your own bike.And as for most things, themore you do it, the easier it’ll get.

HERE’S HOW TO START:Get the Kids on BikesThere are three main ways to

accommodate an extra passen-ger on your bike: seats thatmount on your bike, bike trailersand trailer bikes. There is no one“best” method; just your prefer-ence and what works best foryou. Visit a local bike shop orsee the guide referenced belowfor suggestions. If you have akid bike that needs some repair,bring it to the Thursday bike tentat the Todos Santos Plaza farm-ers market and Bike Concordwill fix it for free.

FIND A ROUTEFind a safe, flat route to

practice on, whether you’re rid-ing with kids on your bike or

they’re riding on their own.Don’t know where to start? Trythe great Iron Horse Trail, theContra Costa Canal Trail, a resi-dential street with little traffic, ora local park. In time you canincrease distance, incline,amount of traffic and exploremore streets and trails.

TEACH STREET SAFETYKids learn by doing and see-

ing. Practice basic skills like brak-ing and avoiding potential haz-ards like potholes before gettingstarted. Make sure they knowthe rules of the roads and knowto respect them to stay safe.Make sure you set the rightexample and help them learn byexperience.

If you don’t know where tostart, the San Francisco BicycleCoalition has put together anextensive family guide atwww.sfbike.org/family_guide,which suggests kid seats andtrailers and addresses the chal-lenges of biking with kids ofvarious ages.

Now that you’re riding

together, making the shift to bik-ing to school and work withyour kids is easy. The mostimportant part is finding a goodsafe route to school. The payoffis great quality time out of thecar, no cell phones or techinvolved, and your kids willarrive happier and ready for agood day at school.

Are you already riding, orready to ride and want to seehow other families are ridingtogether? Bike Concord isorganizing a Kidical Massevent on Sept. 19. It’s a family-centered ride meeting at Pleas-ant Hill BART at 11a.m. andfinishing at Todos SantosPlaza. It’s also no-drop, whichmeans Bike Concord volun-teers will ensure no one is leftbehind and will provide anybasic maintenance needed toget everyone home safely.

Public asked to help plan two new parksResidents can put their

mark on two of the East Bay’snewest parks, a 2,540-acreexpanse of grassy hills and oakwoodlands at the former Con-cord Naval Weapons Station,as well as Clayton Ranch, aproposed 4,200-acre regionalpreserve located betweenBlack Diamond Mines Region-al Preserve and Mount DiabloState Park.

The district is seeking thepublic’s help in transforminglongtime military operationinto a regional hub for trailsand open space. The property,which comprises about half ofthe former base, lies south ofHighway 4 and straddles thehills between Concord andPittsburg. It will provide linksin several regional trail systems,including the Contra CostaCanal Trail and De AnzaNational Historic Trail, as wellas trails in Mt. Diablo StatePark, Black Diamond MinesState Park and beyond.

The new park will alsoinclude a visitor center focus-ing on the Port Chicago disas-

ter of 1944, in which morethan 300 mostly African Amer-ican sailors died in a munitionsexplosion while loading ships.The center, a partnership withthe National Park Service, willalso feature exhibits on the roleof the Naval Weapons Stationin four wars, the contributionsof veterans, and the rich histo-ry of Concord and the DiabloValley.

The public’s help is alsoneeded to pick a name for thepark. It’s currently called Con-cord Hills Regional Park, butplanners hope to replace the

name with something moredynamic. A few suggestions sofar: Todos Santos, after theoriginal name for Concord;Los Medanos, after the officialname of the hills east of Con-cord; and Rancho del Diablo,after one of the Spanish-eraland grants in the area.

To learn more about the projectand contribute ideas, visitwww.ebparks.or g/about/plan-ning/cnws.

PARK DESIGNPLANNING

Meanwhile, on Sept. 9,EBRPD will present a prelimi-nary park design concept andan update on the planningprocess for Clayton Ranch.With its natural beauty, stun-ning views and valuablewildlife habitat, the preserve isa precious resource benefitingsurrounding communities andthe greater Bay Area. The pub-lic is invited to share ideas forthe preserve and to help identi-fy issues to address in the landuse plan and environmentalreview documents. The meet-

ing will be held from 6:30 to 8p.m. at the Clayton Communi-ty Library, Hoyer Hall MeetingRoom, 6125 Clayton Road, inClayton.

The public does not needto attend the meeting to partic-ipate. Comment letters mayalso be mailed or e-mailed toRaphael Breines, Park Planner,EBRPD, Planning & GIS Ser-vices Dept., 2950 Peralta OaksCourt, Oakland, CA 94605, orto rbreines@ebparks.org.Residents can also contact theEBRPD with ideas, questions,comments or to be put on themailing list for this project at510-544-2325.

This is the first publicmeeting on this project. In2016 staff will release a draftplan and other documents forpublic review. These docu-ments will be presented at afuture public meeting and willbe available on the EBRPDwebsite under the “Park Plan-ning” link at www.ebparks.org.

CYNTHIA ARMOUR

BIKE CONCORD

CAROLYN JONES

PARK IT

Bike Concord is an organizationof local residents working to makebicycling a safe, convenient trans-portation option in our community.Cynthia Armour is a local residentwho works with Bike Concord.

Carolyn Jones is the public informa-tion supervisor at EBRPD. Email her atcjones@ebparks.org.

Families that have adoptedchildren or stepchildren whohaven’t been legally adopted faceunique estate planning chal-lenges. Additional considerationmust be taken when a familyincludes an unmarried couple ina long-term relationship and oneperson has biological or adoptedchildren. If your family’s make-up is as such, it’s important tounderstand your estate planningoptions.

TREATED AS EQUALSAdopted children are placed

on an equal footing with biolog-ical children in most situationsfor estate planning purposes.Thus, adopted and biologicalchildren are treated the sameway under a state’s intestate suc-cession laws, which controlswho inherits property in theabsence of a will.

In addition, adopted childrengenerally are treated identicallyto biological children for pur-poses of wills or trusts that pro-vide for gifts or distributions to aclass of persons, such as “chil-dren,” “grandchildren” or “line-al descendants” — even if thechild was adopted after the willor trust was executed.

NO INHERITANCE RIGHTSUNLESS ADOPTED

Stepchildren generally don’thave any inheritance rights withrespect to their parents’ newspouses unless the spouse legal-ly adopts them. If you havestepchildren and want them toshare in your estate, you shouldeither adopt them or amendyour estate plan to provide forthem expressly.

Of course, estate planning

isn’t the only reason to adoptstepchildren. Adoption alsogives you all of the legal rights ofa parent during your life.

Before you adopt stepchil-dren, however, you and yourspouse should consider thepotential effect on their ability toinherit from (or through) theirother biological parent’s rela-tives. In most states, when achild is adopted by a stepparent,the adoption decree severs theparent-child relationship withthe other biological parent andhis or her family. That means thechild can’t inherit from that bio-logical parent’s branch of thefamily — and vice versa —through intestate succession.

SECOND-PARENT ADOPTIONCONSIDERATIONS

A growing minority of statesnow permit second-parentadoptions, in which an unmar-ried person adopts his or herpartner’s biological or adoptedchildren without terminating thepartner’s parental rights. Howev-er, in states that recognize sec-ond-parent adoptions, their

intestate succession laws maynot provide for a child to inheritfrom the “second parent.”

For unmarried couples whocan’t obtain a second-parentadoption, or choose not to,estate planning is especially criti-cal — if they want the “nonpar-ent” to have custody of the childshould the “parent” die orbecome incapacitated and if thenonparent wants the child toinherit from him or her.

First, the parent should con-sider using a power of attorneyfor parental authority andappointing the nonparent as aguardian to ensure that he or shecan act on the child’s behalf andhas priority over the parent’sblood relatives in the event theparent dies or becomes incapac-itated. Second, both partnersshould amend their wills. Theparent’s will should name his orher partner as the child’sguardian, and the nonparent’swill should spell out any proper-ty to be inherited by the child.

SPELL OUT YOUR WISHESIf you have adopted chil-

dren, stepchildren who youhaven’t legally adopted or areunmarried but in a long-termrelationship and your partnerhas biological or adopted chil-dren, clearly address your inten-tions in your will or living trust.Your estate planning advisor canhelp you understand youroptions.

approach to closing theachievement gap: excellentteachers and leaders, personal-ized learning, and engaged par-ents. For the third year in arow, Rocketship is in the top 5percent of CA school districtsserving low income students,Woodcraft said.

While more than 75 per-cent of students in ContraCosta County are on gradelevel, seven out of 10 stu-dents in the Monument Cor-ridor are behind grade level,Woodcraft said. Only 15 per-cent of Latino students in thecounty graduate high schoolhaving completed the requi-site coursework needed togain acceptance into a UCuniversity. “This means ofthe 606 Latino students who

graduated in 2013, only 91were college ready,” she said.

“We’re committed to elim-inating the achievement gapin the Monument Corridor

community by building anexcellent school for elemen-tary students,” said DavidKuizenga, vice president ofRocketship in the Bay Area.“We want the parents andfamilies we’ve been workingwith to be heard.”

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Rocketship, from page 15

Ginochio family helpedcultivate modern Concord

The picture you see wastaken in 1905 on the land thatis now Cowell Road, includingthe Cowell Pool and St. FrancisPark, and Babel Lane. Thethree men on the left are sonsof Antonio and MarcellaGinochio, who had arrivedfrom Italy in l867. John, Luisand Peter are their names andthey are pictured with twoworkers hauling hay.

Antonio and Marcella hadnine children: five boys andfour girls. They lost theiryoungest son early on but theother four farmed the land.

John, Luis and Peterfarmed large acreage on Cow-ell of mostly vegetables andvineyards, eventually enlargingthe families holdings and oper-

ations to include cattle-raising,wheat farming and walnutorchards.

Soon they owned the Con-cord Meat Company, a retailbutcher shop located in theM.E. Lyon Building on Mt.Diablo Street. Being a trio thatknew how to run a business,they opened a second shop inthe Foskett and ElworthyBuilding.

Meanwhile David, thefourth brother, farmed inde-pendently, cultivating a walnutorchard and poultry farm.

The girls, Mary, Lena,Angelina and Azalia, helpedthe family and they all married.Mary married Anthony Fregu-lia and her baby sister Azaliamarried Joseph Fregulia, whileLena married John Bisso andAngelina became Mrs. VictorGuerisoli.

The reason this family isso important to the richnessof Concord’s history is, astime went by, David’s land

was acquired by the City ofConcord, and in 1960 theCowell Community Park wasbuilt with it’s Olympic-sizeswimming pool, tenniscourts, playground, grouppicnic sites and fields forbaseball and softball and soc-cer. The three other brothers’parcel that cultivated the veg-etables and vineyards becameSt. Francis Park, which laterbecame on of the more

expensive housing develop-ments to accommodate Con-cord’s growing population.Construction began in l950sby the DeRosa Land Devel-opment Company to developthese hillside homes.

This area of Concord iswell planned and developedwith the citizens of Concord inmind.

Tips for including stepchildren,adoptees in wills and trusts

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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 editor@concordpioneer.com.

Photo from ‘Images of Concord’

Members of the Ginochio Family, early Concord settlersfarmed land which is now St. Francis Park and Cowell Pool

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Fall funis here!

IN CONCORDPPaavviilliioonn CCoonncceerrtt SScchheedduulleeThe Concord Pavilion is located at 2000 Kirker Pass Road,Concord. theconcordpavilion.com. Shows start at 7 p.m. unlessotherwise noted.

SSeepp.. 66,, KKBBLLXX HHoott SSuummmmeerr NNiigghhtt,, 4 p.m.SSeepp.. 1199,, CChhrriiss BBrroowwnnSSeepp.. 2200,, CCoouunnttiinngg CCrroowwss

MMoonnddaayyss OOffff tthhee GGrriiddRotating lineup of eight food trucks; live music from local musi-cians. Food trucks 5 – 9 p.m.; music 6 – 8 p.m. Grant Streetbetween Salvio Street and Willow Pass Road, Concord. offthe-gridsf.com.

TTuueessddaayyss FFaarrmmeerrss’’ MMaarrkkeettTuesdays year round. 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Todos Santos Plaza,downtown Concord. cityofconcord.org.

TThhuurrssddaayyssMMuussiicc aanndd MMaarrkkeettThursday night live music and farmers’ market. Music: Sept. 3,The RaveUps; Sept. 10, Lafayette Studio Big Band; Sept. 17, TheBest Intentions. Market 4 – 8 p.m.; music 6:30 – 8 p.m. TodosSantos Plaza, downtown Concord. cityofconcord.org.

33rrdd SSuunnddaayyss AAnnttiiqquuee FFaaiirreeAntiques, collectibles, handmade arts and crafts. 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.Todos Santos Plaza, downtown Concord. Free admission. concor-dantiquefaire.com.

AAuugg.. 2299 –– 3300GGeemm aanndd JJeewweellrryy SShhooww aanndd SSaalleeGems, jewelry, minerals, fossils, meteorites, tools and equipment.Demonstrations, kids’ activities, door prizes, café. Sponsored bythe Contra Costa Mineral and Gem Society. 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.Centre Concord, 5298 Clayton Road, Concord. $6; kids under16 free with adult. Go to ccmgs.org for more information anddiscounts; 289-0454.

SSeepptt.. 1111VViivvaa LLaass VVeeggaass CCaassiinnoo NNiigghhttVegas games, food, drink, live entertainment. Sponsored by theGreater Concord Chamber of Commerce. 6 – 10 p.m. WillowPass Community Center, 2748 E. Olivera Road, Concord. $40.concordchamber.com.

IN CLAYTONSSaattuurrddaayyss tthhrruu SSeepp.. 1199,, eexxcceepptt SSeepptt.. 55FFaarrmmeerrss’’ MMaarrkkeett8 a.m. – 12 p.m. Diablo Street between Main and Center streets,downtown Clayton. pcfma.com/clayton.

AAuugg.. 2299,, SSeepptt.. 1122SSaattuurrddaayy CCoonncceerrttss iinn tthhee GGrroovvee6 – 8:30 p.m. Aug. 29, Forejour and historic marker dedicationto The Grove; Sept. 12, East Bay Mudd. The Grove park, down-town Clayton. Free. cityofclayton.org.

SSeepptt.. 33TThhuurrssddaayy CCoonncceerrttss iinn tthhee GGrroovveeCrossman Country. 7 - 8:30 p.m. The Grove park, downtownClayton. Free. cityofclayton.org.

SSeepptt.. 55DDeerrbbyy aanndd CCaarr SShhoowwClayton Community Church’s 12th Annual Labor Day event. Kids7 – 14 race derby cars down Main Street. Car show and parade.9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Main Street, Clayton. Free. Register kids at clay-toncc.com and cars at claytonderbycarshow.org.

SSeepptt.. 111199//1111 RReemmeemmbbrraanncceeA flag and information about each firefighter and police officerlost in 9/11 will be placed in the lawn at Clayton Fire Station 11.The public is welcome and encouraged to visit and pay theirrespects. 6500 Center St., Clayton.

ON THE MOUNTAINMount Diablo Interpretive Association programs listed are freewith the exception of park entrance fee. Go to mdia.org and clickon Events Calendar for more information.

OOnnggooiinnggTTaarraannttuullaa HHiikkeessSearch for Mount Diablo’s giant arachnids. Check the website fortarantula hike dates and times. Reservations are required and fillup fast.

SSeepptt.. 2200TThhee CCaalliiffoorrnniiaa TTaarraannttuullaaCome have a close encounter with these fascinating and totallyharmless spiders. 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Summit Museum.

EVENTS & ENTERTAINMENT

TThhrruu SSeepptt.. 55““LLeett MMee HHeeaarr YYoouu SSmmiillee””A comedy revolving around the difficulties of love and marriagethrough youth, menopause and senility. Onstage Theatre at theCampbell Theatre, 636 Ward St., Martinez. $10-$15. onstageth-hm@aol.com. 518-3277.

AAuugg.. 2299JJaazzzzAug. 29, Martin Taylor and Bucky Pizzarelli. 5 and 8 p.m. LesherCenter for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $40. lesher-artscenter.org. 943-7469.

AAuugg.. 3300““TThhee GGoollddeenn FFoolllliieess 22001155””Performed by the spectacular senior performers, The GoldenFollies. 2 p.m. El Campanil Theatre, 602 W. Second St., Antioch.$12-$25. elcampaniltheatre.com.

SSeepptt.. 44 –– OOcctt.. 1100““TTeennddeerrllyy””Triumphant musical about legendary Rosemary Clooney. LesherCenter for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $37-$63.centerrep.org

SSeepptt.. 1111“Improv 9-1-1”Presented by Trapped in a Rumor. 8:15 p.m. Lesher Center forthe Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $15. lesherartscenter.org.943-7469.

SSeepptt.. 1122““IImmpprroovv CCoommeeddyy CCoorrnneerr””Presented by Commander Doug Productions. 8:15 p.m. LesherCenter for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $15. lesher-artscenter.org. 943-7469.

SSeepptt.. 1133““IInn MMyy LLiiffee””A musical theatre tribute to The Beatles. 2 p.m. Lesher Center forthe Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $39-$90. lesherartscen-ter.org. 943-7469.

SSeepptt.. 1188 -- 1199““DDaannccee SSeerriieess OOnnee””Presented by Smuin Ballet. Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 CivicDr., Walnut Creek. $56-$73. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.

SSeepptt.. 1188,, 2200““PPiieedd PPiippeerr ooff HHaammeelliinn””Presented by El Campanil Children’s Theatre. El CampanilTheatre, 602 W. Second St., Antioch. $8-$12. elcampanilthe-atre.com.

SSeepptt.. 1188 –– OOcctt.. 1111TThhee WWhhoo’’ss:: ““TToommmmyy””Presented by OMG, I Love That Show! Productions. Lesher Centerfor the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $39. lesherartscen-ter.org. 943-7469.

SSeepptt.. 1199CCoommeeddyyPerformance by Shang. 8 p.m. California Theatre, 351 RailroadAve., Pittsburg. $18. pittsburgcaliforniatheatre.com. 427-1611.

SSeepptt.. 1199DDeellttaa BBlluueess FFeessttiivvaallMusic, arts, crafts, gift items, food. 12 – 7:30 p.m. Antioch’sRivertown District, off 2nd Street between G and I streets. Freeadmission. deltabluesfestival.net.

SSeepptt.. 1199,, 2277““AArroouunndd tthhee WWoorrlldd iinn 8800 MMiinnuutteess””Performed by Contra Costa Chamber Orchestra. 2 p.m. Sept.19, El Campanil Theatre, 602 W. Second St., Antioch. $7-$15.elcampaniltheatre.com. Sept. 27, Lesher Center for the Arts,1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $10-$30. lesherartscenter.org.943-7469.

SSeepptt.. 2200““PPaassssppoorrtt ttoo tthhee WWoorrlldd””Opening night of the California Symphony. 4 p.m. Lesher Centerfor the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $75. lesherartscen-ter.org. 943-7469.

SSeepptt.. 2211SSttaanndd UUpp CCoommeeddyyHeadliners from the Bay Area hosted by Mean Dave. 7:30 p.m.Vinnie’s Bar & Grill, 2045 Mt. Diablo St., Concord. Free. Must be21 or older. vinniesbar.com. 685-9515.

SSeepptt.. 2277““FFllaammiinnggoo CCoouurrtt””A slice-of-life comedy presented by The Vagabond Players. 2p.m. El Campanil Theatre, 602 W. Second St., Antioch. $10-$15.elcampaniltheatre.com.

CHURCHES AND RELIGION

AAuugg.. 2299CCoonncceerrttPerformance by New Life Band benefiting their school in EastAfrica. 7 p.m. Concord United Methodist Church, 1645 West St.,Concord. Free will offering. concordumc.org. 685-5260.

SSeepptt.. 1166RRoossiieessHear the personal stories of the Rosies who are honored for theircontributions to WWII. 11 a.m. Sherrill Hall, Concord UnitedMethodist Church, 1645 West St., Concord. Free.concordumc.org. 685-5260.

SSeepptt.. 1199SSeenniioorr IInnffoorrmmaattiioonn FFaaiirreeOver 20 local agencies provide information on services availableto seniors and their families. 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. St. Bonaventure,Large Hall, 5562 Clayton Road, Concord. Free. For more infor-mation, call Carol at 672-4383.

FUNDRAISERS

22nndd aanndd 44tthh SSuunnddaayyssPPaannccaakkee BBrreeaakkffaassttVeterans of Foreign Wars serve breakfast to the public: Eggs,pancakes, sausage, beverage. 8 – 11 a.m. VFW Post 1525,2290 Willow Pass Road, Concord. $5, $3 children under 12.vfwpost1525.org.

OOcctt.. 33PPookkeerr TToouurrnnaammeennttTexas Hold’em poker tournament benefiting Clayton ValleyCharter High School football. 5:30 p.m. dinner; 8 p.m. tourna-ment. Shadelands, 111 N. Wiget Lane, Walnut Creek. $35 din-ner; $75 dinner and gaming. claytonvalleyfootball.com.

AT THE LIBRARYThe Concord Library is at 2900 Salvio St. Programs are freeunless otherwise noted. See full schedule of events at ccclib.org or646-5455.

AAuugg.. 2288 –– 2299,, 3311 –– SSeepptt.. 55:: BBooookk GGiivveeaawwaayy,, 9 a.m. – 4:30p.m. at Library Administration Shipping Parking Lot, 75Santa Barbara Road, Pleasant Hill.

AAuugg.. 2299 -- 3300:: CCoonnccoorrdd AArrtt AAssssoocciiaattiioonn AArrtt SShhooww aanndd SSaallee.. 10a.m. – 5 p.m. Sat; 1 – 3 p.m. Sun.

SSeepptt.. 33:: OOrriiggaammii ffoorr kkiiddss aanndd tteeeennss,, 4 – 5 p.m. Registration required.

SSeepptt.. 88:: AArrtt DDeemmoonnssttrraattiioonn,, 12 – 3 p.m. SSeepptt.. 1144:: MMaarrsshhmmaallllooww EEnnggiinneeeerriinngg,, 7 p.m.

Registration required.SSeepptt.. 1155:: MMiinneeccrraafftt,, 3:30 – 6 p.m. Registration required.SSeepptt.. 1188 –– 2200:: BBooookk SSaallee,, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Fri. and Sat; 1 – 3

p.m. Sun.SSeepptt.. 2211:: MMoovviiee NNiigghhtt,, 7 – 8:30 p.m.SSeepptt.. 2244:: TThhee PPssyycchhoollooggyy ooff SSppeennddiinngg,, 6 p.m.;

7:30 p.m. in Spanish

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.

Sept. 12: Hypertufa Workshop, 10:30 a.m. Sept. 13: Stargazing, 7 p.m. Sept. 14: Clayton Knits, 1:30 – 4 p.m.Sept. 28: Clayton author Gary Carr, 7 p.m.

GOVERNMENT

11sstt,, 22nndd aanndd 44tthh TTuueessddaayyssCCoonnccoorrdd CCiittyy CCoouunncciill6:30 p.m., Council Chamber, Concord Civic Center, 1950Parkside Dr. cityofconcord.org.

11sstt aanndd 33rrdd WWeeddnneessddaayyssCCoonnccoorrdd PPllaannnniinngg CCoommmmiissssiioonn7 p.m., Council Chamber, Concord Civic Center, 1950 ParksideDr. cityofconcord.org.

Page 18 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com August 28, 2015

PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR COMMUNITY CALENDAR EVENTS BY 5 P.M. SEPT. 16 FOR THE SEPT. 25 ISSUE. ITEMS MUST BE SUBMITTED BY EMAIL TO newsandcalendar@concordpioneer.com

CCAALLEENNDDAARR

Meeting dates and times for local clubs andorganizations are listed atconcordpioneer.com. Click on ‘Links’

San Francisco’s GoldenThread Productions, the coun-try’s first theater companyfocused on the Middle East, isannouncing the fall showing ofits popular ReOrient Festivalof Short Plays.

ReOrient 2015, runningSept. 10–Oct. 4 at Z Belowand Z Space, 450 Florida St.,San Francisco, will turn theBay Area into a Mecca forinnovative, spirited andthought-provoking theater

from and about the MiddleEast. The festival of shortplays and the accompanyingtwo-day forum of panels anddiscussions features perform-ances and artists from Arme-nia, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Israel,Lebanon, Palestine, Syria,Turkey, the United Kingdomand the U.S.

“Nowhere else in the U.S.,and certainly not anywhere inthe Middle East, will you beable to see such a diverse col-

lection of plays from andabout the Middle East on onestage,” says Founding ArtisticDirector Torange Yeghiazari-an. “But at the end of the day,ReOrient is more about ushere in the U.S. than a changingMiddle East that is thousandsof miles away. Bay Area audi-ences of all backgrounds willfind themselves reflected inthese intelligent and warmplays.”

ReOrient 2015 is muchmore than just a festival ofshort plays. With talkbacks,panels, roundtable conversa-tions, a family show, and arecital for Arabic music lovers,ReOrient 2015 is an artistic cel-ebration and political explo-ration of this transformingregion for curious and engagedtheater lovers and those pas-sionate about internationalthemes.

For a full list of ReOrientevents and to purchase tickets andpasses, visit their website atgoldenthread.org/reorient2015.

If you love stand-up come-dy, check out the local talent atVinnie’s Bar & Grill, 2045 Mt.Diablo Blvd., in Concordbeginning at 7:30 p.m. on Sept.21. Produced by Concord resi-dent Kathryn McCarty, themonthly comedy night hasbeen making local audienceslaugh out loud for more thantwo years. Host Mean Davehas performed with the showfor a year and a half. Like manyof the other comics he travels“a few hundred miles a week”performing. The show blendslocal comedians with featuredperformers. For more informa-tion, call 925-685-9515 or gotowww.vinniesbar.com.

Onstage Repertory The-atre presents the spirited com-edy “Let Me Hear You Smile”through Sept. 5 at the Camp-bell Theatre, 636 Ward St., inMartinez. The play followsHannah, her husband Neil andher brother Willy as they dealwith life from youth to old agebut in reverse order. The audi-ence first meets the charactersas they prepare for retirementin the 1970s. The play thengoes backwards to the 1940sand ends in the early 1900s

when the characters are chil-dren.

Helen Means directs withSheilah Morrison as Hannah,Sal Russo as her husband andWayne McRice as her youngerbrother.

“I knew I wanted to castolder performers who wouldhave to become younger ratherthan the other way around,”says Means. “It makes for a realchallenge for the performers.”Call 925-518-3277 for reser-vations.

California ShakespeareTheater offers up CharlesLudlam’s campy homage to thehorror genre in “The Mysteryof Irma Vep.” Directed byJonathan Moscone in his finalproduction as Cal Shakes’Artistic Director, the showruns through Sept. 6 and fea-tures Danny Scheie and LiamVincent. With essential split-second timing, the two actorsplay eight different charactersas they enact the story of LordEdgar and his new bride LadyEnid against DouglasSchmidt’s elaborate drawingroom set. Right out of a Goth-ic novel, the elaborate settingincludes a secret door in thebookcase and a sinister paint-ing of Lord Edgar’s first wifeover the massive fireplace.Equally impressive is the Act IIchange of locales to an Egypt-ian tomb. Who knew princess-es over 2,000 years old hadshoes to rival Imelda Marcus?

Beginning on a “Dark andStormy night,” the satire pokesfun at Hitchcock’s “Rebecca,”“The Mummy’s Curse” andmore.

“I’m so happy to get somesilly on at the Bruns,” saysMoscone. “This is an endless-ly inventive literary-cinemat-ic-theatrical mash up.” For

more information, call 510-548-9666 or visit www.cal-shakes.org.

Here’s a chance to seebehind the legend of a remark-able woman and singer inCenterRep’s “Tenderly: TheRosemary Clooney Musical,”running Sept. 4 – Oct. 10 atWalnut Creek’s Lesher Centerfor the Arts. The beloved actress and singer charmed

America for almost fivedecades. This inspiring newmusical follows her rise to Hol-lywood stardom, her struggleswith life’s unexpected chal-lenges and the triumphantresurgence that made her a leg-end. The show features two ofmy favorite actors, Lynda DiV-ito as Clooney and Mark Far-rell as the doctor. Jenny Sulli-van directs with Steve Blum asmusic director. For tickets, call925-943-SHOW or go towww.lesherartscenter.org.

August 28, 2015 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 19

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 sallyhogarty@gmail.com

Summer brings comedy, Clooney

Diablo Ballet will open its22nd season of the “Power ofDance” on Nov. 13 at the DelValle Theatre with a DiabloBallet premier of the pas dedeux from “TchaikovskyDances” set to the score fromthe opera “Eugene Onegin.”

The new season featuresworks by George Balanchine,Val Caniparoli, alumna TinaKay Bohnstedt and a new pro-duction of “Carnival of theAnimals” by resident choreog-rapher Robert Dekkers.

To usher in the holidays,the company will bring a newtake on an old favorite with “ASwingin’ Holiday” performedby the Diablo Ballet SwingOrchestra Nov. 13-15.

For the full season informationgo to www.DiabloBallet.org. Forseason subscription information, callDiablo Ballet, (925) 943-1775 orto purchase tickets to individual per-formances, go toLesherArtsCenter.org or call(925) 943-7469. The Del ValleTheater is at 1963 Tice ValleyBlvd., Walnut Creek.

photos Sally Hogarty

Sheilah Morrison with Sal Russo and Wayne McRice run theclock backwards in Onstage’s ‘Let Me Hear You Smile,” atthe Campbell in Martinez through Sept. 5.

Linda DiVito is RosemaryClooney in CenterRep’s‘Tenderly’

Mean Dave hosts Concordcomedy nights at Vinnie’s.

Robert Dekkers inDiablo Ballet’s “Apollo”to return in 2016.

Aris Bernales

New works, classics and the return offavorites mark Diablo Ballet 2016 season

ReOrient Festival showcases Middle East themes

American ConservatoryTheater (A.C.T.) kicks of its2015-16 season with StephenAdly Guirgis’ outrageousPulitzer Prize-winning comedy“Between Riverside andCrazy.”

Starring stage and screenstar Carl Lumbly, “BetweenRiverside and Crazy” is a hilar-ious and timely story that tack-les gentrification, recovery,faith, sketchy houseguests andthe saving grace of family.

It will be performed Sept. 2through 27 at A.C.T.’s GearyTheater.

The winner of the 2015Pulitzer Prize for Drama,“Between Riverside andCrazy” tells the story of ex-cop and recent widower Walter“Pops” Washington (portrayedby Lumbly, last seen onA.C.T.’s Geary Theater stage in“Let There Be Love”), who isdesperately trying to hold on tohis prime piece of real estate— one of the last great rent-stabilized apartments in NewYork City — while simultane-ously battling his innerdemons. His landlord wantshim and his newly paroled sonout; his cop friends are begginghim to back down from a law-suit against City Hall; the localliquor store has closed; and abeautiful, mysterious Santeriapractitioner promises salvationin the midst of all the chaos.

Tickets go on sale July 27 andare available at the A.C.T. BoxOffice at 415-749-2228 or onlineat www.act-sf.org.

‘Crazy’ startto A.C.T.’snew season

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Tom Cruise just keeps onrunning. The cumulative totalof miles run by him in all hisfilms must total over 50. Inthe fifth installment of his“Mission Impossible” fran-chise, titled “Rogue Nation,”Cruise is back as IMF AgentEthan Hunt. As Hunt, Cruise

spends a lot of the film (andthe franchise) chasing afterbad guys, often on foot. At 53,Cruise has not slowed down;he still does most of his ownstunts.

At times, it is tough tokeep up both with him andthe script for “Rogue Nation.”Writer/Director ChristopherMcQuarrie lets the film bogdown occasionally with toomuch exposition. However,the top-notch actionsequences and the chemistrybetween the veteran actorsmake the film worth the priceof admission.

The film opens with Hunthanging on the door of a giantplane during take-off. His fel-low agent, Benji Dunn (SimonPegg) hides in the brush, try-ing to get the door open by

hacking into the plane with aniPad. The sequence is expertlyfilmed but the banter betweenHunt, Dunn and a sidelinedAgent Brandt (Jeremy Renner)forms the real backbone ofthe scene. These three actors

clearly have spent enoughtime together off-screen tomake all their characters’interactions overcome any

Page 20 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com August 28, 2015

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This time of year our sum-mer landscapes surrenderthemselves to the swayingplums of ornamental grasses.These grasses can be seenthroughout our city providingtexture, movement and gracewhere ever planted. Unlikeflowers, groundcovers andmany trees, the slightest breezebrings an ornamental grass tolife. Installing ornamentalgrasses to a landscape, hillsideor container will add muchneeded interest to the site’soverall look.

Red Fountain grass is quitepossibly the most popularornamental grass installationfor the entire area. Folks adorethe reddish brown foliage androse-colored plumes. Pennise-tum Setaceum “Rubrum” isthe botanical name for thisfountain-like ornamental. Atmaturity, you should expectRed Fountain grass to reachfive-feet tall and wide. RedFountain grass dies back dur-ing the winter months. Theblades become brown and dry.This is part of its cycle. Resistcutting your Red Fountaingrass back until the middle ofMarch, if you can. The dryfoliage protects the center ofthe plant from taking on toomuch winter rain water. Occa-sionally, extended period offreezing temperatures may killyour Red Fountain grassentirely. It won’t happen everyyear, and the summer successmakes that ornamental almostirresistible and worth the risk.

Mexican Feather grass is atrendy ornamental grass with asilky, thread-like texture. Thisselection provides tons ofmovement in the landscape.Many use Mexican Feathergrass to highlight a walkway,dry river bed, oversized boul-ders or retaining walls. Stipatenissima is the botanical namefor Mexican Feather grass andyou can expect your clumps togrow almost two-feet tall and12-18-inches wide. It likes fullto partial sun and is droughttolerant once established.

Karl Foester Calamagrostisis commonly called FeatherReed grass. This selectionmakes an awesome hedge orscreen, reaching six-feet tallwhile in bloom. The purplishplumes of Karl Foester pairsnicely with its deep greenfoliage. This ornamental grassis both deer and drought toler-ant. Karl Foester Calama-grostis grows from the centerout, and will need to be divid-ed every few years to preventthe hole-in-the-doughnut

effect. It may sound like extrawork, but the results are worthit.

Blue Fescue and severalselections of Carex grasseshave become quite the ragesince many are removing theirlawns and opting for water-wise plant material. Blue Fes-cue is a predictable ornamentalgrass, depending on the selec-tion you can expect growthfrom 8-16-inches tall and wide.The color of the foliage iswhat sells the Blue Fescue. Thebluer the better. Look forselections such as BoulderBlue, which has a metallic bluecolor, or Elijah’s Blue which isa true blue. Carex is available ingreens, variegated, bronze andorange.

Folks get ornamental grass-es and grass-like plants con-

fused. Phormium, also knownas New Zealand Flax, andCordyline, known commonlyas Yucca, are not ornamentalgrasses. Rather they are ever-green plants with grass-likefoliage.

Ornamental grasses incor-porated in a landscape adds alot of interest to the area. Theyare readily available, droughttolerant and easy to grow. Readup on mature sizes of yourconsiderations, and also if youshould expect and self-sowing,just to make sure you are com-pletely happy with your selec-tions.

Mix up those grasses for drought-tolerant drama all year around

NICOLE HACKETT

GARDEN GIRL

Nicole is the Garden Girl at R&M Pool, Patio, Gifts andGarden. You can contact her withquestions or comments by email at Gardengirl@claytonpioneer.com

Fountain and Mexican Feather grassesmassed together for maximum effect.

Ruth Ware’s debut novel,“In a Dark, Dark Wood”(Gallery/Scout Press; August,2015), possesses all the bestelements of a thriller: a remotecountry estate, a bacheloretteparty and a group of frenemiesthat really, really should havescrubbed their email lists andleft each other well enoughalone after those terribleschool days. But then, where’sthe pleasure in that?

The story is narrated byNora, an author who special-izes in crime thrillers. Back inschool, she was called Lee,short for Leonora. Only oneperson ever called her Leo, andit was her first love, James. Butthen he broke up with her —via text — and she moved on.Ten years later, Nora is mostlyokay, writing novels and livinga fine, urban single life.

Then one day out of theblue, she receives an invitationto an old friend’s wedding. Sur-prised, she feels a little sorryfor Clare, thinking that maybeshe has no other girls to invite,having to dredge back 10 years

for her bachelorette do. Norais undecided about whether ornot to attend the hen, but herinvite is followed quickly by anemail from Nina, who is alsowary of Clare’s motives. “Ifyou go, I will,” she says. Noraagrees and they somehow windup traveling to the remoteEnglish countryside together.

Nina hates the country andmisses her girlfriend, and Norais straightway filled with dreadby their accommodations: amodern glass box droppedunceremoniously in a meadowat the edge of a dark and men-acing wood. The housebelongs to Flo’s aunt and feelsto Nora like a dangerous cage,though it is only a countryestate, complete with a shot-gun hung over the living roomfireplace.

Miles from anywhere, cellreception is sketchy and therevelers are coolly irritable.When Clare announces toNora that the reason she wasinvited to the hen and not thewedding is because the groom-to-be is the infamous James,

the weekend really takes a turn.It doesn’t help that Flo’s henparty games involve embar-rassing details about the brideand groom, shaming andhumiliating Nora repeatedly.And then it snows. And thenthe land lines go out and thehen fete devolves into a churl-ish clutch of drunken, para-noid hostages. Fun.

When the phones go down,Melanie decides to bail, a wel-come excuse to return home toher infant son. Flo is alternate-ly weepy and aggressive towardanyone who isn’t into the spiritof the weekend. Tom wouldrather be home with his hus-band but stays on, drinking ginand taking well-aimed shots atNina and Nora. Clare plays ref-eree, keeping anyone fromcoming to actual blows.

After two days of slowlyescalating hell, Nora wakes upin a hospital confused, horriblybruised, and under policewatch. She is suspected ofmurder, but she can’t remem-ber what happened. The hard-er she tries to recall, the more

the truth evades her.Novelist Ware has created a

deft and ominous page turnerin this fabulous thriller, repletewith plot twists, red herringsand a truly scary villain. Ifyou’re still looking forprovocative poolside readingto finish the summer, thisnovel should do nicely.

CYNTHIA GREGORY

FOR THE BOOKS

JEFF MELLINGER

SCREEN SHOTS

Cynthia Gregory is a NorthBay nonprofit leader, writer of shortfiction, and author of a blog. Emailcomments and questions toEditor@ConcordPioneer.com

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Cruise’s Mission: Keep on running

See Mission, page 21

At 53, Tom Cruise has lost none of his edge, as heproves in the latest Mission Impossible, ‘Rogue Nation.’

shortcomings in the script.They balance the gravity ofeach situation with equaldoses of both seriousness andwit. It’s a shame that Rennerspends half of the film on theother side of the world, as hischaracter deals with theC.I.A.’s absorbing of the IMF.After seeing him run aroundas Hawkeye in the Marvelfilms, it’s tough watching himsit in courtrooms and officesopposite Alec Baldwin’s C.I.A.director Hunley. Once Rennergets into the game, along withVing Rhames’ Luther, the filmtruly picks up.

With the IMF disbanded,all the agents are recalled. Weassume they have hundreds ofagents, but we only see ahandful. Of course, Hunt istoo wrapped up in a case toreturn. He has been kid-

napped by members of “TheSyndicate,” a shadow organi-zation Hunt believes isresponsible for most of therecent calamities across theglobe. After an exciting escapesequence, Hunt convinces hisfellow agents to come to Lon-don to try and help him final-ly bring down The Syndicate.Hunt and the gang get them-selves into, and out of, somevery tight spots in someextraordinary ways. Cine-matographer Robert Elswittakes full advantage of the lat-est in camera technology tofilm several elaborate, hard-to-believe action pieces.

“Rogue Nation” featuresan assassination attempt at anopera, an underwater escapeand a lengthy motorcyclechase. Nothing less should beexpected from a “Mission

Impossible” film. As well, theaudience should expect anyTom Cruise character to bebrought back to life afterdying…because, well, he’sTom Cruise. At least a briefmention is made of how Huntprobably shouldn’t be drivingmere minutes after beingshocked back to life. Yet,without that questionabledecision, we would not havethe incredible car chase thatfollows. Despite a few ques-tionable decisions with thescript, “Rogue Nation” is thesecond best film in the fran-chise after “Ghost Protocol.”Hopefully, Cruise has manymore years of running ahead.B+

Logic tells us to be practicaland not waste money on fash-ion trends that are here todayand gone tomorrow, particular-ly when it comes to expensivejewelry. Let me assure you, acolossal cascading necklace,bedazzled choker, chandelierearring or chunky bracelet thatwill take your Plain-Jane outfitto show-stopping brilliance isindeed available in your pricerange and is both a sensibleand sensational addition toyour accessory wardrobe.

Statement jewelry is anyjewelry that makes a bigimpact. How do I know that itis here to stay? Stylish womenhave worn fabulous jewelry,both real and faux, throughouthistory. Hollywood and thecelebrity elite are as close as wein the U.S. come to royalty, andmany stars have adorned them-selves with precious jewels.

As a society, we tend toadopt the trends we see in themedia, the movies, magazines,and on the concert stage.

Big, bold and beautifulpieces are not just for the run-ways or red carpets. Whatcould be better than layering a

sparkly necklace over tee-shirtand jeans? Everyday outfits gofrom dull to brilliant when wemix in a statement necklace.

The white button-downshirt is a staple in everywoman’s wardrobe. Not onlydoes it go with every skirt, pairof pants or jeans, but also thevariety of necklaces we canwear with it is almost endless.Open the collar to expose apeek of your necklace or weara long pendant outside the col-lar. The choice is yours.

Jewelry can transition yourclothes from day to night orPTA to Cocktail Hour in theblink of an eye. If you do nothave time to run homebetween events, take youraccessories with you andchange on the fly.

Rather than rememberingrules when it comes to jewelry,a better bet is to think aboutsome great tips. One good ruleof thumb to remember is:High neckline, long necklace;low neckline, short necklace.

Let’s take a look at neck-lines. While just about anythinggoes, if you are conflicted or

not quite sure, these tried andtrue pairings work:

V-Neck: You can select anecklace that fills the space.Shorter pendants will bring theeye to the collarbone and neckarea, while longer necklaces andlayered strands can emphasizethe cleavage. Just make sure yournecklace rests above or belowthe base of the “V”— you willnot want the necklace to getcaught behind the fabric.

Boat: Try long multi-strands or pendants almost tothe waist.

Cowl: No necklace, go forthe statement earrings.

Crew: A bib or collar neck-lace always works.

Halter: Slim pendants lookbest.

Scoop: Fill the space withfeminine details – pearls, gem-stones.

Square: Angular lines areyour friend, or a short choker.

Strapless: Big and boldnecklace, or none at all and gofor statement earrings.

Turtleneck: Substantialpendants, chains, beads. Avoidlooking dated and frumpy with

too dainty and delicate. Neck-laces should be bold andchunky or multi-strand.

Have fun and try differentlooks. I hope I started yourwheels turning and thinkingabout ways to use beautifulstatement pieces to youradvantage.

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The “master” bathroom:That’s such a fancy name for abathroom. With a title like this,you would think the plumbingfixtures were gold-plated andCarrera marble covered everyvisible square inch.

The term “master” bath-room might make you thinkof amenities found in a luxu-rious spa or five-star resort.Think of a large, open show-er with a variety of showeringheads and body sprays. Ormaybe a free-standingbathing tub placed majestical-ly in the niche of a bay win-

dow with a hand-blown Ital-ian glass chandelier dazzlingabove. For a little relaxation,a cedar-lined, infrared saunasits just steps away from acottage-sized, walk-in closet.Or imagine strategicallyplaced windows covered withnatural woven Roman shades,floor-to-ceiling mirrors withhand-carved frames, andfluffy, white organic cottontowels, rolled into happy lol-lipop shaped swirls, sittingperfectly in thick, handwoven sea grass baskets.Where does this gloriousmadness end?

Whether you have amplesquare footage to accommo-date any amenity you canimagine, or just enough spacefor the basics, your masterbathroom has the potential tobe fabulous. Period.

STEP ONE: LOOK FORTHE POSITIVE

Physically, or mentally,clear out your master bath-room from area rugs to art-work. Take notice of the pos-

itive aspects and work withthem; a bay window callingfor a decorative windowtreatment, an open wall thatmight hold a decorative orfunctional piece of furniture,or the space above your vani-ty that could potentiallyaccommodate a really fantas-tic mirror. If you’re lookingfor a bigger bang for yourmaster bathroom, look foradditional square footage in anearby closet that canbecome a shower, a tub, anextra large vanity…the listgoes on.

STEP TWO: REPLACEDATED WITH CLASSICIf you follow any online

design blogs or peruse homedesign magazines, it’s plain asday what an updated bathroomlooks like. Yes, the projects ondisplay may be heavily acces-sorized with expensive art andantiques, but if you look at thebathroom itself, more oftenthan not, the color scheme ispretty basic: shades of white ornatural stone in an array of

textures and sheens with really,really good lighting. If a masterbathroom remodel is in yourimmediate future and you’renot sure about a color scheme,or concerned that a specificcolor scheme is permanent,consider this same design path,and then add layers of colorand personalization.

STEP THREE: SERIOUSLYACCESSORIZE

Depending on theambiance you are hoping tocreate in your master bath-room, your accessoriesshould reflect that specificfeeling. For example, if you’rehoping for a spa-like experi-ence, visit your favorite spaand take note of the details,like decorative glass contain-ers and woven baskets filledto the brim with cotton ballsand q-tips, and a big, bearhug-looking robe that hangscasually on a shiny chromehook. Or check out the teakbench sitting in the walk-inshower, while a scent ofLavender lingers. Accessories

do not need to blow thebudget, but they do need tobe selected with a thoughtfuleye and purpose, and aboveall, delight and sparkle.

August 28, 2015 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com Page 21

Three steps to a sparkling master bath

JENNIFER LEISCHER

DESIGN & DÉCOR

Jennifer Leischer is the owner ofJ. Designs Interior Design based inClayton. Contact her with ques-tions, comments and suggestions atjenna@j-designs.com.

Clayton residents since 1959

6160 Center St. Suite #C, Clayton

925-693-0757 (Main) � 925-693-0752 (Fax)

ACTIVE LISTING

925-766-6745mazzeirealty@yahoo.com

Matt Mazzei, Jr.Broker/Owner

DRE# 01881269

Paula JohnstoneBroker Associate

DRE# 00797857

925-381-8810heypaula10@gmail.com

Rula MasannatSales Agent

DRE# 01923757

415-310-2905rulawithmazzei@yahoo.com

� 5111 Paul Scarlet Dr. Concord $620,0006 Bed, 3 Bath,

Approx. 2631 sq.ft.

Listing agent: Matt Mazzei

� 5143 Sutherland Dr. Concord $535,0003 Bed, 2.5 Bath + Den,

Approx. 2021 sq.ft.

Listing agent: Paula Johnstone

mazzeirealty.net

PENDING

� 40 Carquinez Scenic Dr. Martinez $760,000Fourplex unit,

2 Bed, 1 Bath

Listing agent: Paula Johnstone

� 50 Carquinez Scenic Dr. Martinez $760,000Fourplex unit,

2 Bed, 1 Bath

Listing agent: Paula Johnstone

� 513 Falling Star Dr. Martinez $519,000

3 bed, 2.5 bath

Approx. 1572 sq.ft.

Listing agents:

Matt Mazzei/Kyle Garcia

� 415 Bay Crest Dr. Pittsburg $295,000

3 bed, 2.5 bath

Approx. 1643 sq.ft.

Listing agent: Paula Johnstone

� 3822 Shasta Cir. Pittsburg $254,900

3 bed, 1.5 bath

Approx. 1053 sq.ft.

Listing agent: Matt Mazzei

Choose statement jewelry for impact

SUSAN SAPPINGTON

CLOTHES UPSusan Sappington is the Area

Development Manager and WardrobeConsultant for ETCETERAClothing of New York. Send com-ments to susan@etcstyles.com.

Jeff Mellinger is a screen writerand film buff. He holds a BA inFilm Studies and an MFA in filmproduction. He lives in Concord.Email questions or comments toEditor@ConcordPioneer.com.

Mission, from page 20

Page 22 Concord Pioneer • www.concordpioneer.com August 28, 2015

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Our hot, dry summer daysare perfect for growingzucchini . . . often too manyzucchini if you don’t watch it.

If you happen to be on afirst-name basis with zucchini(singular: “zucchina) youshould know that’s only one ofits monikers. When I wasgrowing up, we called it greenItalian squash. In fact, it wasthe Italians who developed thisvariety of squash from theseeds Christopher Columbusbrought back to the Mediter-ranean from his New Worldjourneys. Zucchino, or smallsquash, is very popular in Italy.It was avoided in France for

centuries until cooks startedusing the smaller varieties (zuc-chini as large as seven-feetlong, weighing 70 lbs. havebeen grown). The Frenchcourgette is also a term used byBritish and other Europeancooks. The actual term“squash” came from a NativeAmerican term skutasquash,meaning “green thing eatengreen.”

A relative of the cucumberand watermelon, zucchini isabout 95 percent water. Theother 5 percent is prettyremarkable — a standard size(six-inch) zucchini has about20 to 25 calories, has morepotassium than a banana, andis loaded with beta-carotene,lutein and lots of vitamins.

I side with the French andbelieve that smaller zucchiniare better and tastier than largeones. And don’t forget theflowers — stuff, batter anddeep fry them for an unusualbut tasty hors d’ouevre. How-

ever, if you do end up with abaseball bat in your garden,grate it and drain it, which willmask its otherwise watery,insipid flavor.

ZUCCHINI FRITTERSServes 8

4 zucchini, grated orshredded

2 tsp. salt½ cup flour½ cup grated Parmesan

cheese4 cloves garlic, minced2 eggs, beaten4 Tbsp. olive oil

Place grated zucchini in acolander over the sink. Addsalt and gently toss to com-bine; let sit for 10 minutes thentransfer to a clean dish towel orcheese cloth and squeeze outall moisture.

In a large bowl, combinezucchini, flour, Parmesan, gar-lic and egg; season with saltand pepper to taste.

Heat a large skillet over

medium high heat. Add oliveoil and add tablespoonfuls ofbatter, cook until goldenbrown on the bottom, flip andcook the other side, about 4minutes total. Drain on papertowels and serve.

Zucchini isn’t just a side dish;it’s also delicious in desserts andall manner of baked goods. Oneof my favorites is chocolate zuc-chini bread.

CHOCOLATE AND YOGURTZUCCHINI BREAD

Makes 2 loaves2 eggs1 cup sugar1/3 cup olive oil½ cup yogurt1 ½ cups flour1/3 cup cocoa powder1 ½ tsp. baking powder¼ tsp. salt1 tsp. vanilla extract3 cups grated and

squeezed zucchini(measured aftersqueezing)

Optional: 1 cup choco-late chips

Preheat oven to 350degrees. Grease two loaf pans(8 ½-inches x 4 ½-inches) andset aside.

In a large bowl, beat theeggs, vanilla and sugar. Add inthe olive oil and yogurt andmix well. Add cocoa and mixwith a spatula.

In a separate bowl, mixtogether the flour, salt andbaking powder. Sift into theegg mixture and stir until justmoistened.

Add the prepared zucchiniand use a spatula to stir intothe batter until just incorporat-

ed. Do not overmix. If usingthe chocolate, gently fold in ¾cup of the chips.

Split the batter evenlybetween the two prepared loafpans. If using, sprinkle theremaining chocolate chips overthe tops of the two loaves.Bake for 65 minutes (untiltoothpick comes out clean).

The loaves must ideallycool completely before slicingand serving.

Gad-Zukes! It’s zucchini season

LINDA WYNER

FOOD FOR

THOUGHT

Linda Wyner owns Pans on Fire,a gourmet cookware store and cookingschool in Pleasanton. Send suggestionsor questions to lwyner@panson-fire.com

Where to go for LOCAL newsFor fast, on-the-spot coverage of the latest police action, traffic jams,emergency information and chat, social media and local blogs are oftengood sources of breaking news. For more complete, in-depth coverage oflocal news, readers turn to their independently owned community newspa-pers. With news that people care about – local politics, schools, sports,events and stories about their friends and neighbors, the community news-paper is social media the old fashioned way.To find out what is happening in neighboring cities, check out these ContraCosta Community News Group newspapersClaytonClayton Pioneer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .claytonpioneer.comConcordConcord Pioneer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .concordpioneer.comPleasant Hill, MartinezCommunity Focus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ourcommunityfocus.comLafayette, Orinda and MoragaLamorinda Weekly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .lamorindaweekly.comSan Ramon, Danville and AlamoValley Sentinel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .valleysentinel.com

The Contra Costa Community Newspaper Group is a consortiumof independent, locally newspapers with a combined circulation ofmore than 150,000. To advertise in all five papers with just onephone call, go to www.cccommunitynewsgroup.com or call844.457.7665