NEWZGEEZER

HINA’S DREAM: Raise public awareness of sickle cell disease

2010-09-18T16:01:00.000-07:00

Hina Patel, right, and is shown with her mother, Bhavana, in Bakersfield Memorial Hospital shortly before her death.

Hina Patel lost her battle with sickle cell disease, but her family has not given up the fight.

Bhavana and Sanjay Patel, Hina’s parents, are forming a support group in their daughter’s honor and held a Sickle Cell Awareness Fair on Saturday, Sept. 18, in the parking lot in front of their pharmacy, Hina’s Homecare and Compounding Pharmacy.

No doubt the huge turnout for the event would have pleased the young woman, who died in May of complications from the disease.

The Patels estimate about 250 people in Kern County, Calif., have the inherited blood disorder, sickle cell disease. They hope to alert “at risk” people to the need to receive genetic counseling before they conceive a child. People whose ancestry is from Asia, Africa, South America and Mediterranean countries are “at risk” for carrying genes that allow sickle cell disease to be passed to their children.

And while couples may not realize they are “at risk,” families and health care providers also may not recognize the symptoms of the disease, resulting in treatment delays and increased pain for victims, said Bhavana Patel.

Creation of an awareness campaign and network of support was Hina’s dream. It was the project that earned Hina the Girl Scout’s coveted “Gold Award” when she was a Stockdale High School student. Her family is committed to making Hina’s dream come true.

The 20-year-old died on May 5 after developing complications from a bone marrow transplant performed in hopes of curing Hina’s disease.

Just three months earlier, Hina was the keynote speaker during Houchin Community Blood Bank’s recognition dinner in Bakersfield for blood platelet donors.

“Sometimes I ask, ‘Why me?’ But I know everyone faces bumps in the road,” Hina told donors that night. “I try to keep positive mentally and have hope. I have faith in God. ... Finding my match for platelets is difficult. Houchin has been able to do that.”

Hina received more than 80 units of platelets from Houchin donors during her years-long struggle with sickle cell disease and in the aftermath of the unsuccessful bone marrow transplant.

As her condition deteriorated and she was confined to an isolation room at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital, just weeks before her death, Hina agreed to an interview to talk about her disease, her struggle and the need for better services. Hina was later transferred to the hospital at the University of California, Los Angeles, where she died.

More than 600 people attended Hina’s services at Hillcrest Memorial Park. They included her high school, Bakersfield College and Girl Scout friends, as well as the many people she touched and inspired. Accepted into the University of Pacific’s pharmacy program, she hoped her condition would improve to allow her to attend.

Although both are pharmacists, with extensive knowledge of medicine, Sanjay and Bhavana Patel were stunned when a routine blood test revealed their baby girl, Hina, was born with sickle cell disease.

“I thought there had to be a mistake,” Bhavana recalled during an earlier interview. “We thought that was mostly an African American disease.”

But the young couple, who are both of Indian descent, learned that the hereditary disease also is found in people from many regions. Neither Sanjay, nor Bhavana knew they carried genes that could combine to inflict their baby with a potentially deadly disease.

“At first we were in denial,” Bhavana said, explaining that Hina appeared and behaved as a healthy, normal baby. But as Hina approached her first birthday, she had her first “pain crisis.” Her feet and hands swelled up. “It was very painful. All she did was cry. Then we knew it was real.”

As the years passed and Hina’s condition worsened, Sanjay and Bhavana began investigating the option of a bone marrow transplant for their daughter. Her severe and repeated pain episodes and the availability of a matching donor qualified her for the procedure, which was performed in 2008.

Despite her medical struggles, Hina did well in school. New medicines provided periods when her pain was controlled and she could join in activities with classmates. As a teenager, she excelled in her classes. But medical complications in her senior year required her to finish her studies at home.

Improving the quality of care and support for people with sickle cell disease was Hina’s reason for wanting to become a pharmacist, her mother said. Hina’s dream was to help the hundreds of people in Bakersfield who are suffering in silence.

A version of this story written by Bakersfield freelance writer Dianne Hardisty appeared in The Bakersfield Californian on Sept. 16, 2010.

Bakersfield Pastor Answers Call To Serve

2010-09-18T09:16:00.000-07:00

Horn named rear admiral, Deputy Chief of Naval Chaplains

Daughter Jessica ordained minister, joins Naval Chaplain Corps

Gregory Horn poses with daughter, Jessica, and wife, Katherine, at Jessica's 2008 graduation from Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena.

Every church needs a pastor. But what if the need is greater somewhere else?

The congregation of Westminster Presbyterian Church has confronted that question for years. When Minister Gregory C. Horn, whose sense of patriotism, long-held admiration for the Navy and desire to help defend his country, was called to minister to the spiritual needs of Americans fighting overseas, his Bakersfield church had a unified response: Go. They need you.

Those years of sacrifice are being honored Sunday when Chief of Naval Chaplains, Rear Adm. Mark L. Tidd, will travel to Bakersfield to thank Horn's family and church members for the 22 years they have supported their pastor and for their continued support after he is promoted next month to rear admiral in ceremonies conducted at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. He will become the Deputy Chief of Naval Chaplains (Reserve Matters) on Oct. 7 and discharge his new duties for three years, until his retirement in 2013.

When the newly minted Presbyterian minister became a U.S. Navy Reserve chaplain in 1988, the Pasadena native had just been named pastor at Westminster two years before.

Horn, who entered the Navy as a reserve lieutenant, knew it would be tricky to add two weeks of annual active military duty and monthly reserve drills to his already busy schedule, which included running a growing church and helping his wife, Katherine, raise their two young children -- daughter Jessica and son Evans.

But the balancing act became more than "tricky" after 2001, when terrorists attacked New York and the Pentagon on Sept. 11. It became a sacrifice for Horn, his family and the members of Westminster Presbyterian Church, who pulled together to support the U.S. military, including one of their own.

Horn's two-week annual military obligation stretched into months away from his family and church, as he was given increasing responsibilities and rose in rank. He was called to full-time military duty -- in response to the 2001 terrorists' attacks and again in 2003, when the U.S. invaded Iraq and he was named wing chaplain at the Marine Corps Air Station at Miramar, near San Diego.

His responsibilities at Miramar included managing casualty assistance programs and supporting military families as the dead and injured returned from the Iraqi battle field. He somberly recalls the many military funerals he conducted during his nearly a year of active duty.

Horn, 57, who credits the support of his family and church members for his ability to serve America as a Navy chaplain, has been assigned diverse tours of duty aboard ships, at the Naval Hospital in San Diego, with a naval mobile construction battalion, submarine fleet, armored reconnaissance battalion, and various Marine regiments.

Horn expects his increased responsibilities will require him to be away from his Bakersfield church occasionally, but said church members and staff generously step forward and pick up his duties when he is gone.

Following Dad's example

Sunday also will be the time another member of the Horn family steps forward to serve. The pastor's 28-year-old daughter, Jessica, a graduate of West High School and California State University, Northridge, will be ordained a Presbyterian minister. Like her father, Jessica completed graduate studies at the Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena.

And on Oct. 7, when her father is named to his new command post at the Pentagon, the Rev. Jessica Horn will be by his side. Horn's first official act as a rear admiral will be to swear his daughter into the Navy as a lieutenant (junior grade) in the Chaplain Corps. Gregory Horn predicts it will be "a bright moment for Navy chaplain recruiting, Westminster Presbyterian and Bakersfield."

"Growing up as the daughter of a pastor, who is also a Navy chaplain, I have always dreamed that I, too, could pursue a career with such a positive influence on individuals and on our country as a whole," said Jessica Horn, who now works as a resource teacher in a Compton school district.

"I am especially energized by the opportunity to serve servicemen and servicewomen of diverse faith backgrounds," she said.

Horn's wife, Katherine, concedes merging family, church and Navy life has been "a roller coaster." The demands of a rear admiral's wife will likely greatly increase the length of her "to do" list, she joked.

Adm. Tidd is scheduled to speak at Westminster Presbyterian Church on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. Jessica Horn will be ordained at 1:30 p.m. The church is located at 2080 Stine Road.

This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Sept. 18, 2010.

BC Professor Takes Entry Level 'Real World' Job

2010-09-13T17:04:00.000-07:00

Steve Hageman says his job is to make his students’ dreams come true. For most of Hageman’s Bakersfield College students, the dream is to become a craftsman, whose skills are coveted by businesses. It is to have a rewarding, creative, steady job.

Making those dreams come true is why Hageman, a woodworking professor, packed his bags last summer and headed to Montana.

“I kept seeing ‘help wanted’ signs wherever I went,” Hageman recalled during a recent interview. But when he asked business owners about their vacancies, he was repeatedly told they could not find skilled workers.

What were businesses looking for? Was he preparing his students for “real jobs?” Hageman decided to find out.

Hageman, who holds numerous college degrees and educational certificates, and whose impressive career includes being an administrator in area school districts, writing a special education textbook and working as an oilfield engineer, downplayed his resume and called a man he had met while fishing earlier in Montana. He asked Ray Plante to give him a summer job as an entry level cabinetmaker.

Plante recalled during a telephone interview that Hageman told him he was a teacher in California and needed practical experience for a course he would be teaching.

When Hageman pushed his last student through his classroom door in mid-May, he pointed his pickup truck toward Montana, where his parents, Ed and Carol Hageman, are living in retirement. Plante, a 62-year-old Vietnam War veteran, put Hageman to work at Plante Custom Cabinets in Ennis, Mont.

“I became just Steve Hageman in Montana. No one knew me. I lived with my parents. I was a 54-year-old guy in an entry level job. It was a humbling experience,” Hageman said, recalling that “I almost got fired the first week.”

Hageman’s first assignment was to build face frames for cabinets. He was given no instructions. He was just pointed to his work area and left on his own.

As the days of the first week went by, Hageman said Plante seemed to grow more angry. He found no fault with Hageman’s work. Instead, he was angry that Hageman’s near perfect results were achieved in a “different” way; not Plante’s way.

“When he came up to me on Friday, he was red in the face and was sweating,” Hageman recalled. “He told me, ‘Steve, this is my business. It has taken me 30 years to get this far. You are very good at what you do, but I want you to do it my way.’”

Hageman asked Plante if he was going to fire him. He said the shop owner admitted he was thinking about it.

Plante now says Hageman wasn’t in danger of being fired. He contends he was just offering constructive criticism. “I was just showing him other ways to do things. He took it personal. But we got past that.”

“Creative people, like Ray, are sometimes tough people to work for. You can’t understand all the stress a person who owns a business can be under,” said Hageman.

The first week rolled into a second. During the day, Hageman built cabinets. At night in his parents’ home, he tapped out his observations on a laptop computer. The college professor was writing a manual for his students that included the procedures Plante so prized, as well as tips for satisfying a demanding boss.

Hageman wrote in his manual, “Ray states that one of the elements of his craft that gets him up in the morning and into his cabinet shop is the reward at the end of a long day to not only see a project come together, but to witness the smiles on the faces of his clients when the job has been completed.”

A friendship developed between the men. They took breaks to go fly fishing. They ate lunch with Plante’s wife, Bernice, who manages the shop’s office. And when work was finished on Friday afternoons, the two men would share a couple of cold beers and talk about the week.

Eight Fridays after he was hired, Hageman gave notice that he was quitting and told Plante he needed to show him something important. He gave him a copy of the manual he had been writing about his experience working for Plante. He asked the shop owner for permission to share it with his students.

“He was surprised, and then he got choked up and had to leave,” Hageman recalled. “When he returned a few minutes later, he hardly had words. But he managed to say that he would be honored.”

“I couldn’t believe the things that he wrote,” Plante recalled. “Some of it was so personal. I hope I showed him some things that helped.”

Plante said he would gladly hire Hageman back. He said he was sorry to see him leave because he was a big help. “He worked 110 percent.”

Hageman used his Plante Custom Cabinets manual in last year’s BC woodworking classes. And he plans to do so again this year.

“I know that Ray and his crew wish you well in your career pathway,” Hageman writes as he introduces his students to the more technical parts of the manual. “Take the knowledge that you gain and expand upon it. Demand the most of yourself and respect the craft. Remember that the tradition continues with you.”

This story written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Sept. 7, 2010.

Whittling Away Your Time

2010-09-13T17:00:00.000-07:00

When Keith Turner retired from his job as a lineman for the telephone company, he thought retirement was going to be a blast. It wasn’t. Turner had nothing to do.

Steve Hageman’s long-time buddy was bored and depressed. Turner’s wife was concerned. She called the Bakersfield College woodworking professor for help.

Hageman and Turner go way back. Fresh out of Fresno State University with a degree in industrial arts, Hageman landed his first teaching job in Le Grand. To earn extra money, he taught an evening woodworking course at Merced College. Turner was in his class.

The men struck up a friendship and began carving duck hunting decoys. They became obsessive over their carvings, spending hours making the decoys look “real.” Hageman moved on to teaching jobs in Bakersfield. But the men stayed in touch.

Hageman continued to carve, but less intensively and mostly creating tiny Santa’s for relaxation. Turner stopped carving altogether.

When Hageman received the distress signal from Turner’s wife, he packed a knife, a couple of basic tools, a leather finger protector and a block of bass wood into a cigar box and drove to Merced County to see his friend.

“Keith, I want you to carve this and I am going to come back and check on your progress,” Hageman remembers telling Keith.

Turner resisted at first, but eventually picked up the knife and started to scrape away at the block. That was six years ago. He now makes little characters for gifts for his family, primarily for his granddaughter.

Hageman is inviting Turner to speak to students enrolled in his four-session “Introduction to Woodcarving” class that he is giving through the Levan Institute for Lifelong Learning at Bakersfield College in October.

“Anyone can carve,” Hageman said, offering his wife, Tracy, as an example. Tracy took up carving about a year ago when she encountered a health problem. Hageman and his wife carve and talk, finding it a good way to relax, have fun and socialize. His wife’s project, a pelican, is nearly complete.

“We will sit in the backyard or at Starbucks and catch up on her day and my day,” he said.

Hageman assumes most of his Levan Institute students will be looking for a hobby or an outlet to relax.

“Carving gives you one-on-one time, without something else interfering. As you are talking away about life, you will see the conversation reflected in your carving. You can set it aside for a while, and then pick it up again.

“Carving is a tangible object of a good time,” Hageman said.

This story written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian.

INFOBOX

What: Introduction to Woodcarving

Where: Levan Institute for Lifelong Learning

Bakersfield College

When: Fridays, 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

Oct. 8, 15, 22 and 29, 2010

Cost: $50 (includes fee and materials)

Enroll: Go online to www.bakersfieldcollege.edu/levaninstitute/

Beating Bakersfield’s heat and ‘global warming’ with $1 draft beer at Ethel’s

2010-08-29T14:46:00.000-07:00

John Hayes is served lunch at Ethel’s in Bakersfield by waitress Lauren Evans.

The joke around dusty, dry, hot Bakersfield, Calif., is that folks should be grateful that it’s a “dry heat,” not like other muggy places in the U.S. “Yes, it might be hot today, but it’s a dry heat!”

Well, from the grumbling heard around town on most summer days, this Chamber of Commerce spin on Bakersfield’s “heat” isn’t working. Hot is hot, and folks aren’t happy. That is, unless you hang out at Ethel’s Old Corral on Alfred Harrell Highway, in the northeast part of the city.

You won’t find a lot of moaning and groaning at Ethel’s when the temperatures climb over the triple digit mark. In fact, you will find people cheering the thermometer in hopes it climbs over 105 degrees.

That’s because the homey restaurant and bar drops the price of its draft beer as the temperatures climb. When they reach 100 degrees, draft beer drop to $2 a glass. When they hit 105 degrees, the price drops to $1 a glass. The regular price of draft beer at Ethel’s runs from $2.50 to $3 a glass.

“It gives people a reason to be glad it’s hot, rather that just complain about it,” said Natalie Mears, the restaurant’s owner. As Bakersfield’s “dry heat” got hotter in July, Mears cooked up her “beat global warming” idea. She has made good on her offer at least six times this summer, including last week, when temperatures crested the 110 degree mark. While they have dipped again this weekend, if history tells us anything, there will be another heat wave before Bakersfield settles into the late fall and winter cold fog.

“One dollar beer tones down the heat. It’s not so much a drudgery,” said Mears, who has owned Ethel’s for about six years. She bought the business from the estate of Ethel Beeson, who ran it for about four decades until she died.

“It’s a fun thing,” said John Hayes, a lifelong Bakersfield resident, who retired from Chevron. Hayes stops by Ethel’s for lunch nearly every day. Hayes and other “regulars” said they have been eating at the restaurant since they were kids with their parents.

Ethel’s is northeast Bakersfield’s equivalent to “Cheers,” the television bar, where regulars hang out and everyone seems to know your name. But even “newcomers,” like Mike and Loretta Schield, who moved to Bakersfield in 1996, find Ethel’s enduring.

“It’s one of Loretta’s and my very favorite places,” Mike wrote in a recent e-mail alerting customers to the $1 a beer offer. “On a Sunday afternoon (and lots of other times, too) you will find Lexuses, Caddies, horses, tall pickups, bikes and lots of us commoners’ cars in the parking lot. [There are] lots of regulars and old-timers and young folks and kids, too.

“The place has a lot atmosphere and a lot of history,” he wrote. “You can just feel it when the country music cranks up.”

The discount beer offer is based on the readings from a simple thermometer hung on Ethel’s patio.

“There’s nothing fancy at Ethel’s,” Mears said.

Author: A version of this story by freelance writer Dianne Hardisty appeared in The Bakersfield Californian.

FCIC takes economic meltdown inquiry to Bakersfield, Calif.

2010-08-27T09:59:00.000-07:00

Phil Angelides, left, and Bill Thomas at recent FCIC hearing.

The pain just doesn’t go away as the nation’s economic problems continue to devastate millions of American families. Members of the Fiscal Crisis Inquiry Commission will listen to real people’s pain on Sept. 7, when they hold their first “field hearing” in Bakersfield, Calif., in the heart of the foreclosure crisis.

The 10-member bipartisan commission was created by Congress last year to examine the causes of the financial meltdown. Its chairman is former California Treasurer Phil Angelides, a Democrat, and retired Bakersfield Rep. Bill Thomas, a Republican.

Wall Street financial giants, economists and federal regulators have been hauled before the commission during a series of often contentious hearings held this year in Washington, D.C., and New York. Commissioners have a Dec. 15 deadline to present their findings to Congress.

Commissioners announced Thursday that they intend to take their inquiry on the road, with their first stop being in Bakersfield, Thomas’ home town. Three additional field hearings have been scheduled: Las Vegas, Nev., on Sept. 8; Miami, Fla., on Sept. 21; and Sacramento, Calif., on Sept. 23. Sacramento is chairman Angelides’ home town.

The focus of the hearings and list of witnesses who will be called has not yet been announced. However, the hearings are intended to highlight how actions on Wall Street have affected life on Main Street. Plummeting property values, a persistently high unemployment rate, record-setting foreclosures and community bank failures are effects that are evident on the streets of Bakersfield, the city that will host the commission’s first field hearing.

The one-day hearing is expected to be filled with testimony from witnesses representing the financial and real estate industries. People who are victims of the financial crisis also will have an opportunity to testify and present written comment.

This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first on Hardisty's Examiner page.

Good old boys and Cesar Chavez farm worker advocates line lunch counter at Keene, Calif., café

2010-07-25T21:19:00.000-07:00

Kirk Roper, left, and Jackie Palik stand in front of the Keene cafe.

A peeling, weather-beaten sign that shouts “Keene…Eat…Deli…Gas” looms over what at first glance appears to be a small wooden shack.

If you have ever traveled on Highway 58, between Bakersfield and Tehachapi, you have seen the sign and likely just kept driving.

But mountain residents and travelers adventurous enough to pull off the highway at Woodford-Tehachapi Road have discovered the shack-looking Keene Café is a treasure trove of good food and local lore.

“It’s our country club,” said Margaret Miller, a wiry woman who doesn’t stand still long enough to answer a reporter’s questions. She can’t. She’s too busy taking orders and slinging food onto tables, while cooks Huberto Chavez and Christian Gutierrez are flipping “loop burgers” in the kitchen.

Miller has worked at the restaurant for only a year. But a 20-year resident of the area, she has been a long-time customer.

The Keene café is where everyone comes to eat, talk and just hang out, said Miller, who lives in Hart Flat. “I love it here.”

There’s the “men’s club,” a group of local “guys” who eat together every week at the cafe. A framed, yellowing Tehachapi News story hanging from the café’s wall also calls the group the “Swat Team,” for the men’s commitment to swatting flies at the diner.

And then there is the “women’s club,” a group of local women who call the Keene café their home away from home once a week.

Located next to a Kern County Fire Department station and Helitak pad, the café is the weekly gathering place for area firefighters.

Open seven days a week, from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Keene café is a magnet for just about anyone who passes by. Customers arrive on horses and Hogs, in sedans and pickup trucks. The point is: They just keep coming, with the big attraction being breakfast, which is served until 11 a.m. on weekdays and until noon on weekends.

“Their omelets are awesome,” said customer Jackie Palik, on a recent Saturday, as she and her friend, Kirk Roper, were climbing onto their motorcycles and getting ready to head back to their Tehachapi homes.

With the Union Pacific railroad tracks and famed “Tehachapi Loop” in spittin’ distance from the café, the menu’s trademark hamburger is called a “loop burger.” Customers also can find fancy entrees, like healthy salads, or gourmet dishes, like mushroom burgers, as well as hearty steaks and Mexican food on the menu.

Pies made by Tehachapi baker Charles Lewis using local fruit -- one pie with the intriguing name of Tehachaberry -- are encased in old-fashioned glass displays on the café’s counter. Miller insists that before customers can leave the café, they must cap off their meal with a slice of fresh pie.

Palik and Roper have been eating at the restaurant for around 15 years.

“It’s friendly and old-fashioned,” said Palik.

Roper, who also likes that it is “small and out of the way,” said he looks forward to the barbecues held on the patio out back in the summers.

Miller said she has had customers tell her that they have driven by the café for 20 years without stopping. And when they finally decide to stop, they become “regulars.”

One of the café’s regulars was the late Cesar Chavez. In 1971, Chavez’s farm workers organization bought 187 acres up the road from the café. The land was formerly Kern County’s tuberculosis sanitarium. It is now the National Chavez Center and the headquarters for the United Farm Workers union.

Monica Parra, conference and event manager for the National Chavez Center, recalled that Chavez and the café’s owner, Ruby Wood, would tease each other. She would ask Chavez when he was going to sell his land to her, and he would ask Wood when she was going to sell her café to him.

Chavez died suddenly at the age of 66 in 1993. A few years later, Wood’s health failed. As she planned to move to Oregon to be near family, Parra said she contacted the Chavez family. Remembering Chavez’s interest in buying the restaurant, she gave the UFW the right of first refusal before she put the café up for sale.

The UFW took Wood up on her offer, becoming the owners and operators of a refuge for bikers, good old boys and country folk.

“It’s a wonderful, cozy diner,” said Parra. “There are people who are in there every day. We have tweaked the menu and added some Mexican food, but we have kept it the way it has been for years.”

This article written by Dianne Hardisty was published first in The Bakersfield Californian on July 25, 2010.

U.S. AT WAR: Bakersfield ‘Cooks’ Witness Importance of Navy in Trip to Bahrain

2010-07-18T13:34:00.000-07:00

Admirals Bill Gortney, left, and Mark Fox answer reporters' questions.
A news junkie, I consider myself at least moderately informed about international events and the nation’s interests in such “hot spots” as Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran and east Africa. But reading news stories and watching television reports just isn’t the same as putting your boots on the ground.

Next year will be the 10th anniversary of the start of U.S. fighting in Afghanistan. It has become our nation’s most protracted war, now exceeding the duration of the Vietnam War. And June was its most deadly month. No one is predicting when the fight will be “over” and what “over” really means.

Earlier this month, I traveled with the Bakersfield-based Cooks From The Valley to Bahrain, the headquarters of the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command and Fifth Fleet, which oversees Middle East operations.

Headed by attorney Tom Anton, about 60 volunteers, most from Bakersfield, flew to the Persian Gulf to barbecue steaks for the troops on July 4. Since the terrorists’ attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, the “cooks” have barbecued around 130,000 juicy Harris Ranch steaks to show their appreciation for U.S. soldiers and sailors on ships, on domestic and overseas bases, and in hospitals.

This month’s trip sent volunteer cook teams and steaks to four locations – to the Naval Support Activity, Bahrain; Shaikh Isa Air Base, Bahrain; aboard the amphibious assault carrier USS Nassau at sea; and at Camp Lemonier in Djibouti, near the Somalia border.

It was hot – real hot. Temperatures were around 120 degrees, with the humidity pushing the heat index maybe 20 degrees above that.

But that’s not what I will remember most about the trip. Maybe it’s what I whined about the most. The most memorable thing was the realization that we are – really – at war. And our nation’s finest are out there fighting it so we can go about our business at home not giving it much thought.

Anton hits the nail on the head when he observes that our troops are sacrificing every day so that we can live as though it was Sept. 10, 2001 – so that we can forget terrorists attacked New York and the Pentagon, and forget more terrorists want to inflict more harm today. Regardless of Americans’ legitimate disagreements over sending U.S. troops to the Middle East, thousands of our young military men and women are serving in some of the world’s most dangerous places.

To say thanks for that, Anton has enlisted “cooks,” who buy thousands of pounds of fresh steaks and haul them around the world, grilling up a taste of home for those who may sometimes feel forgotten.

In addition to being a U.S. Navy headquarters, Bahrain is a “support activity,” where ships – aircraft carriers, mine sweepers, submarines, etc. – come into port for supplies and other “activities.” A few miles away at Shaikh Isa Air Base, additional multi-national forces, including U.S. units, are stationed.

Both Isa and NSA Bahrain are on the Persian Gulf, east of Saudi Arabia, giving them “strategic locations” to support troops fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq, to keep a watch over Somali pirates who infest the waters off the East African coast and to counter terrorism throughout the region.

America doesn’t flaunt its presence in Bahrain. No big Stars and Stripes fly overhead; military uniforms are not worn into town; and high security is posted at gates, with bomb-sniffing dogs checking vehicles that enter.

Homesick sailors and soldiers are anxious to talk to visitors – especially those grilling 12-ounce steaks. But their talk is general. The “when and where” of their activities are mostly secret.

About 1,000 miles away, on July 4, Gen. David Petraeus took command of the war in Afghanistan. In a roar of controversy, Petraeus replaced Gen. Stanley McCrystal, who resigned after publication of an embarrassing Rolling Stones magazine article.

The next day in Bahrain, less media attention was given to another important change of command. Vice Admiral Mark Fox relieved Vice Admiral William Gortney as commander of the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command. Gortney will become director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

In prepared remarks and to reporters after the ceremony, which the Bakersfield cooks attended, Fox stressed the importance of the Navy’s presence in the Gulf. He pointed out that the “amazing growth” of the global economy makes protecting trade routes and stabilizing the region a priority for all nations. He likened the sea lanes to the body’s life-giving circulatory system and Navy forces to “doctors” who must keep the veins from clotting.

Gortney noted in an earlier interview that the U.S. reliance on a global economy requires the free movement of oil, natural gas and goods. “Buying and maintaining a Navy is vital to our interests.”

As evidence that U.S. allies in the Gulf have “come closer together, growing stronger together,” Gortney told reporters after the ceremony, “We are working very closely with the Iraqi Navy and within two years we will be ready to turn over the entire mission of protecting their two offshore oil terminals to them.”

Fox addressed the threat posed by Iran, which is located less than 300 miles away and directly across from Bahrain in the Persian Gulf. Saber-rattling Iran has been sanctioned by the U.N. over its nuclear program.

“I certainly do not expect a clash. We are not in the business of looking for trouble, but if trouble appears, we know how to deal with it,” he told reporters.

After spending a few days with my boots on the ground in Bahrain, there’s no doubt in my mind that the Navy knows how to deal with trouble. I’ve seen some of the might they will bring to the fight.

Dianne Hardisty retired as The Californian’s editorial page editor last year. She and her husband, John Hardisty, traveled with the “Cooks from the Valley” to Bahrain this month. This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on July 18, 2010.

TUNNY ORTALI: Shell Beach Restaurateur Takes 'Busman's Holiday' to Bahrain with 'Cooks from the Valley'

2010-07-18T11:31:00.000-07:00

McLintocks co-founder Tunny Ortali barbecues with Cmdr. Steven Fuselier in Bahrain.

Talk about taking a “busman’s holiday.” Tunny Ortali, co-founder of the renowned McLintocks restaurant in Shell Beach, Calif., traveled this month with the “Cooks from the Valley,” a group of about 60 volunteer cooks.

Ortali and the other cooks hauled about 16,000 pounds of Harris Ranch steaks to U.S. troops in the Middle East and served a mouth-watering July 4 barbecue feast to homesick soldiers, sailors and marines to show their appreciation for the sacrifices the military is making to keep the U.S. and world safe.

Ortali’s McLintocks and its companion, Steamers of Pismo, are well known to many of the deployed service members and their families. The Central Coast steak and fish food restaurants are favorite destinations for military families stationed at Lemoore Naval Air Station, in California’s San Joaquin Valley. Lemoore is the home base of many Navy aviation squadrons assigned to carriers and flying missions over Iraq, Afghanistan and other combat zones.

Both Vice Adm. Mark Fox, the incoming leader of the Navy’s Central Command and 5th Fleet in Bahrain, and Vice Adm. William Gortney, the man Fox replaced during a change of command on July 5, were stationed at Lemoore Naval Air Station.

“I was incredibly honored to be part of the Cooks from the Valley Middle East tour,” Tunny wrote after his return. “My heart is filled with pride and patriotism when I tell everyone I know what we accomplished and what the mission entailed.”

Ortali, whose restaurants are renowned for their steak dinners, gave special attention to preparing and barbecuing the tri-tip steak for Gortney and Fox at the barbecue in Bahrain. Other locations cooks visited to serve the July 4 feast included Shaikh Isa Air Base, also in Bahrain; aboard the amphibious assault carrier USS Nassau at sea; and at Camp Lemonier in Djibouti, near the Somalia border.

Headed by attorney Tom Anton, the Bakersfield-based volunteer “cooks” have barbecued around 130,000 juicy Harris Ranch steaks since the terrorists’ attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, to show their appreciation for U.S. soldiers and sailors on ships, on domestic and overseas bases, and in hospitals. The cooks buy the steaks and pay for their expenses out of their own pockets.

Author Dianne Hardisty, a freelance writer in Bakersfield, Calif., and her husband, John Hardisty, traveled with the "Cooks from the Valley" to Bahrain.

KATRINA 5 YEARS LATER: Bakersfield's Generosity Still Felt by Victims

2010-07-17T23:09:00.000-07:00

Little was left of a Biloxi, Miss., beach front after Hurricane Katrina

August marks the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the killer storm that buried New Orleans in the water that broke loose from the city’s levees and whose horrific winds ground away entire communities on the Gulf Coast.

The catastrophe touched residents in Bakersfield, Calif., who opened their wallets and hearts to help people in devastated Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Many contributed money and time through organized groups. Others went to the region, rolling up their sleeves and lending a hand.

Following on this blog are four stories of Bakersfield people and groups who responded in very personal ways. In no way do they represent a comprehensive picture of all the contributions Bakersfield people made. But they do demonstrate the generous and caring nature of our community.

Last spring I traveled to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast to report on how our efforts turned out.

I found tough, resilient people still coping with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Profusely grateful for the help and still amazed by Bakersfield’s generosity, they conceded they had not yet fully recovered, but they were making progress. They could see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Just a few days after I returned to Bakersfield, British Petroleum’s oil drilling platform Deepwater Horizon exploded, gushing out millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

As Ray Cox, the Wal-Mart manager in Waveland, Miss., told me: “The light at the end of the tunnel has gone from a bright flashlight to a penlight. But, we’ll be OK. It’s more aggravating than anything. It slows you down.”

Hurricane Katrina blew away Cox’s Wal-Mart five years ago. Like his customers, Cox also was left homeless by Katrina.

But they were persevering. The rubble had been cleared away. Cox’s Wal-Mart was rebuilt. Businesses were returning. Tourism, which depends primarily on fishing, had rekindled.

That was before the BP explosion, before the tar balls and oil-drenched animals started washing ashore, and before fishing prohibitions chased away the tourists.

Ellie Vasilopoulos in Biloxi, Miss., told me that she is so sickened by this latest disaster she and her neighbors have stopped watching television news reports. They are just too darn depressing.

And she noted there are similarities in the BP and Katrina disasters: The responses to both lacked coordination. “No one knows who’s in charge.”

“It’s a mess,” she said recently. “We are counting the days when they cap the well and clean up the oil.”

A version of this July 10, 2010 article written by Dianne Hardisty was one in a series that was printed in The Bakersfield Californian about the results of Bakersfield volunteer projects to help rebuild the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. Dianne Hardisty and her husband, John Hardisty, traveled to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in April 2010 to report on progress.

KATRINA 5 YEARS LATER: NPR Show Compelled Bakersfield Retiree to Help New Orleans Family

2010-07-17T22:43:00.000-07:00

Carolyn and Michael Mattios in front of their New Orleans home.

Michael and Carolyn Mattios and their teenage sons fought their way through streets clogged with cars and fear to escape the floodwaters filling New Orleans. They made their way to Baton Rouge, leaving behind their modest Deers Street home on the border of the Ninth Ward.

A room in a crime-infested motel became the family's "temporary" home. But the stay they hoped would be for only a few days stretched into months, as New Orleans' recovery efforts were overwhelmed by the devastation.

A dishwasher, whose job was washed away by Hurricane Katrina, Michael would sneak back into the barricaded city, camping out in the wreckage of his house to keep looters away.

Carolyn remained at the motel, struggling to keep her family together and her sons in school. The family's predicament grew desperate until one day she was interviewed by a reporter from "All Things Considered," a National Public Radio show.

Asked how she was doing, Carolyn didn't hold back. Insurance money was slow in coming and meager when it arrived. The contractors they hired to fix their house did shoddy work. She doubted they would ever be able to go home.

Thousands of miles away in Bakersfield, Jack Hendrix, a retired East Bakersfield High School counselor and part-time home repairman, listened to Carolyn's sad story. He decided to help.

Hendrix tracked down the Mattios family through the NPR reporter. He recruited Chris Thomas, a young friend with construction skills, and headed to New Orleans. They camped out in a budget hotel, working for six weeks to repair the Mattios' house. And when they were done, Hendrix rented a truck, drove to Baton Rouge and moved the family back into their home.

"We were so surprised," said Carolyn during a recent interview in New Orleans. "After the show, people started sending money. It wasn't a lot of money -- $20 here and there. But it really helped."

"We got more help from people -- perfect strangers -- than we got from the government. We were touched by God. They didn't know us from the man on the moon, but they opened up their hearts and sent us their hard-earned money. They were the heroes," said Michael.

"But Jack was the only one that showed up to help. He pretty much finished fixing up our house," said Michael, 74, who now is retired. Carolyn just turned 62 and is receiving disability retirement. Their two sons are now attending college. The family keeps in touch with Jack, whom they call their friend.

"They are such sweet people," Hendrix said.

Pulling away from the Mattios' home, I waved to workers from Samaritan Purse Disaster Relief who were repairing a house. But mostly the neighborhood was quiet. The families that once made Deers Street a lively community were gone, likely not to come back. There were no children playing in the streets or behind the fences that lined yards.

On the top step of a porch of a nearby house sat Joan Lewis. Before Katrina, she worked for the telephone company. She's retired now. She returned to the wreckage of her home and fixed it up. It's freshly painted. The lawn that stretches to the street is manicured. But the buildings on both sides are abandoned, boarded up and marked with the all-too-common spray painted warnings of the Katrina rescue crews.

"Does that bother you?" I asked her, getting out of my car to chat.

"Yes, it's forever reminding me," she said. "It reminds me of the power of God. But he didn't do this to be hateful. It also reminds me of the goodness of people; all those people who came to help.

"Now it's time to move forward."

This July 10, 2010 article written by Dianne Hardisty is one in a series that was printed in The Bakersfield Californian about the results of Bakersfield volunteer projects to help rebuild the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. Dianne Hardisty and her husband, John Hardisty, traveled to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in April 2010 to report on progress.

KATRINA 5 YEARS LATER: Bakersfield woman's family rebuilding lives

2010-07-17T21:51:00.000-07:00

Dawn Lusich stands with Ray Cox

Hurricane Katrina was bearing down on the Gulf Coast when Sandra Boswell in Bakersfield received a telephone call from her family in Mississippi.

“It’s a 5,” she heard.

At first she thought they were talking about the time of day. Then it hit her. They were talking about the strength of the storm. Katrina was a category 5 hurricane.

“Oh, my God. You all have to leave,” she pleaded.

Boswell knew the power of a category 5 hurricane. She rode out category 5 Hurricane Camille in 1969 and vowed “never again. It was terrifying.”

Boswell, a registered nurse who oversees the intensive care units at Catholic Healthcare West’s Bakersfield hospitals, has many brothers and sisters still living along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Her husband, Bill, also has family around Bay St. Louis.

The couple moved to Bakersfield in the 1980s so Bill could work in the oil industry. Bakersfield “grew on them” and they never moved “back home” to Mississippi.

When Katrina landed, Boswell’s brother and two of her sisters “lost everything.” Her sister Dawn Lusich, whose family had a catfish farm and oyster beds, stubbornly stayed to protect their business.

But as the churning ocean filled Lusich’s neighborhood with water, she and her two young children fled with neighbors into her home’s attic. Rain-filled winds ripped the roof from the house. Flood waters caused it to drift from its foundation.

When Katrina moved on and calm returned to the devastated city, Lusich, her children and neighbors were rescued from the attic rooftop.

“She thought she was going to die,” Sandra said.

Nearly 2,000 miles away, Sandra and Bill Boswell began collecting clothing and supplies for their families and friends in Mississippi. With the help of a Bakersfield television station, a collection point was set up. When the first tractor-trailer rig was filled, it headed east. Just a few days later, a second 18-wheeler was stuffed with supplies and sent to the Gulf.

“Sandra called and said Billie was on his way,” recalled Lusich. “When he arrived, I could not believe the outpouring of help from Bakersfield.”

A few weeks later, Sandra traveled to Mississippi. “We had no Gulf. It was all gone. It was horrible. All I did was cry,” she said.

The Wal-Mart in nearby Waveland, where Lusich worked in the customer service department, also was gone. Manager Ray Cox told his bosses at corporate headquarters in Arkansas that the place “looked like Hiroshima after the bomb was dropped.”

Company trucks began arriving with water, non-perishable food and supplies. For the next 30 days, Wal-Mart gave away — free of charge — life-sustaining medications. Tents housed a temporary Wal-Mart.

Meanwhile, Cox, who also lost his home, dispatched staff to check on employees. Using payroll records, they fanned out to account for everyone. Sadly, Edgar Bane, a worker on the loading dock, and his family of four had died in the storm.

Every employee received a $1,000 check to get them through the early days of the crisis. And when they were able to return to work, jobs were waiting for them. Eleven months after the storm, Waveland’s new Wal-Mart opened for business.

“Like everyone else around here, we pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps,” Cox said. “It’s made us stronger.”

Lusich credits Cox and Wal-Mart for getting her through the hard times.

She and most of her neighbors have rebuilt their homes. Lusich’s house is not as grand as her old one.

“Katrina took a lot from me, but it also gave me a lot,” Lusich said, explaining she is closer to her family and friends today.

I called Cox a few days ago to see how his community was fairing after the BP platform explosion. Many of his customers and neighbors are fishermen. They now work for BP. Instead of pulling shrimp and fish from the nearby waters, they are laying boom and sucking out oil.

“We’re persevering and just waiting to see what happens,” he said.

This July 10, 2010 article written by Dianne Hardisty is one in a series that was printed in The Bakersfield Californian about the results of Bakersfield volunteer projects to help rebuild the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. Dianne Hardisty and her husband, John Hardisty, traveled to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in April 2010 to report on progress.

KATRINA 5 YEARS LATER: Biloxi residents still live in trailers from Bakersfield

2010-07-17T21:10:00.000-07:00

David Brand, left, stands with David Davis.

Biloxi, Miss., insurance man David Brand was wading through water and rubble when he heard a "goofy" idea coming out of Bakersfield, Calif.

About the same time, Pastor Steve Truitt, contractor Jim Childress and a handful of Calvary Bible Church members were looking across an Arvin farm field cooking up the "goofy" idea.

The field Childress had recently purchased was littered with 50 weather-beaten, dilapidated trailer homes left over from the Bracero farm worker program of the 1940s and 1950s.

Childress' idea was to donate the trailers to his church, have volunteers fix them up, then haul the trailers back to the Gulf Coast to provide temporary housing for people left homeless by Hurricane Katrina.

Truitt recalled thinking: "This is something much bigger than my church."

And the project became just that -- much bigger. Other churches joined in, as did businesses. Rotary Clubs opened their wallets and provided manpower.

A loose-knit chain of church, charity and Rotary connections spread word of the project to Biloxi, where Katrina had ground away historic antebellum mansions, modest cottages, restaurants, businesses and resorts. First Presbyterian Church, where Brand was an elder, was the only church facing the water that was left standing.

"This place was decimated," Brand recalled recently. While the media attention was focused on New Orleans, which was flooded when the city's levees broke, the center of hurricane damage was the Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama coast.

"Ninety percent of my friends lost everything," said Ellie Vasilopoulos, a retired Kessler Air Force Base civilian employee. "You would ask someone, 'How did you do?'" She choked back tears when she recalled a friend told her, "Not even a teacup was left."

The damage was so widespread along the Gulf Coast that Brand, Vasilopoulos and their neighbors figured they were pretty much on their own.

"We didn't feel abandoned. We just never expected anyone to help," said Brand. "Why in the world would they come?"

But they did come. And "they" who came quickest were not from the government.

"I don't know what we would have done without all the help from all the communities," said Vasilopoulos, praising church and civic groups for their fast response.

Clothing and supplies arrived by the truckload. Quick-witted Brand became the "go-to guy" in Biloxi in the early days. So it's not surprising that he received the idea -- which he admits sounded pretty goofy -- to fix up and haul 50 aging trailer homes from Bakersfield to Biloxi.

Back in Bakersfield, church member Steve Ogden allowed a field behind his company, Concrete Cutting Unlimited on Well Tech Way in Rosedale, to be used as a staging area, where trailers would be repaired by teams of volunteers. It costs about $4,000 to repair and outfit each trailer. Many of the building supplies and furnishings were donated.

"The first month or two, we didn't know how we were going to pay the bills," Truitt recalled. But then money and donated supplies started pouring in. Area Rotary clubs did a lot of the fundraising. In Biloxi, Brand hustled money to transport the trailers.

Over the next eight months, as a handful of trailers would be fixed up, Bakersfield volunteers would hitch them to trucks and caravan them to Biloxi. They were given to families that had fallen through "FEMA's cracks" -- they did not qualify for federal housing or were on long waiting lists.

Families were handed the keys and told to pass the trailers along to another family when they no longer needed them. Today you can still find some of these trailers scattered about Biloxi's modest neighborhoods.

David Davis invited me into his trailer. The unit now rests on a permanent foundation and sports a front porch. It has been passed along by several owners. Like earlier residents, Davis is mighty grateful to folks in Bakersfield for their efforts.

"God gave us wisdom beyond all measure," said Truitt, adding that a lasting benefit of the trailer project was to bring area churches, groups and individuals together. Some of the same people who helped restore the trailers now work on similar missionary projects together.

As Biloxi rounded the corner into its fifth year since Katrina, Vasilopoulos boasted of the community's comeback. Storm wreckage had been cleared away. Homes and businesses were being rebuilt. Work on a museum, which Biloxi leaders hope will become a tourist attraction, neared completion. Things were definitely looking up.

But that was before British Petroleum's Horizon drilling rig exploded. While the oil has not yet hit the city's beaches, residents can smell it. Gloomy media reports and fishing restrictions keep tourists away.

"It's impacting everyone," Vasilopoulos said. "We are all very concerned. That's all we seem to talk about. And we are scared to death that a hurricane is going to come along and push the oil towards us."

This July 10, 2010 article written by Dianne Hardisty is one in a series that was printed in The Bakersfield Californian about the results of Bakersfield volunteer projects to help rebuild the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. Dianne Hardisty and her husband, John Hardisty, traveled to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in April 2010 to report on progress.

KATRINA 5 YEARS LATER: Bakersfield woman helps rebuild Lakeshore

2010-07-17T16:44:00.000-07:00

Pamala McCarver recalls that she was crying so hard she could barely see through her car's windshield as she drove along the back roads around Bay St. Louis, Miss.

It was six weeks after Hurricane Katrina ripped thousands of homes from their foundations and tossed many into the ocean. A registered nurse at San Joaquin Hospital in Bakersfield, McCarver traveled to the Gulf Coast to visit her Kern County fire captain husband, Randy, who was helping with recovery efforts.

"It was like the entire San Fernando Valley had been wiped out," McCarver recalled recently. "There were spots of hope, but mostly devastation."

McCarver turned down Lakeshore Road and stopped. The steeple of a church rested on the ground, pointing toward the heavens. Next to it was a tarp-like tent where food and clothing was being distributed.

She approached a young couple, telling them how sorry she was that the church was destroyed.

Pastor Don A. Elbourne Jr. and his wife, Courtney, assured her the Lakeshore Baptist Church had not been destroyed. Hurricane Katrina only destroyed its building.

That exchange kindled a friendship between McCarver and the Elbournes that continues today. Over the past five years, McCarver and her friends in Bakersfield have sent supplies and gifts to the Elbournes and their church members. Holidays are remembered. Telephone calls are exchanged. They have become family.

A new church has been built. Behind it is a distribution center where needy area residents still come for help. A food pantry and dormitories have been added. Under construction is another building, where counseling and job training will be offered.

With the help of people like Pamala McCarver, the little country church that dates back to 1911 has become Rebuild Lakeshore (www.rebuildlakeshore.com). It's a place where church groups from throughout the nation come to rebuild homes and help heal lives.

People spend a week or two, or maybe more, sleeping in dormitories at night, cooking their meals in the mess hall and toiling in the heat of the Mississippi sun as house-by-house, street-by-street, this coastal town is put back together.

"We were 'ground zero' when Katrina hit," the pastor explained when I recently visited. Only a mile from the coast, the community was left 30 feet under water. "Every home in the area was gone; more than 4,000 lost."

A poor area, where most family incomes come from the fishing or offshore oil industries, the people of Lakeshore had little to lose, and they lost even that.

The church's stubborn steeple and the tent relief city that sprouted up around initially "became a beacon of hope," Elbourne recalled. But as the weeks and months of recovery dragged on, it also became "a symbol of devastation." The church buildings, themselves, had to be rebuilt.

"We had to make ourselves a hopeful scene if we were going to be in this for the long-term," he said. "What the storm did will affect this community for generations. We are dealing with the community's psychological, as well as physical recovery."

"Some people have lived here for seven generations. Their lives and their incomes are tied to the coast," he said. "They aren't leaving."

And that makes the recent BP oil disaster and the spoiling of the fishing industry such a painful blow to this already fragile community.

When I called a few days ago, church secretary Joell Fricke reported that commercial fishing is at a standstill. The community's shrimpers are idle. The lucky ones have been hired by BP to clean up the oil.

This July 10, 2010 article written by Dianne Hardisty is one of a series that was printed in The Bakersfield Californian about the results of Bakersfield volunteer projects to help rebuild the Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. Dianne Hardisty and her husband, John Hardisty, traveled to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in April 2010 to report on progress.

Bakersfield to Bahrain: Unusual 'mission' for San Diego-based squadron VR-57

2010-07-14T17:29:00.000-07:00

Just hours after a 7.0 magnitude earthquake devastated Haiti in January, Bill Crump and his San Diego-based fleet logistics support squadron were in the air, flying non-stop airlifts of lifesaving supplies and personnel into the region.

It wasn’t the first international emergency Crump, the squadron’s commanding officer, has responded to. But it dramatically demonstrated the readiness and capabilities of his Navy reserve squadron, which has repeatedly won military commendations.

Crump, 44, who grew up in Cleveland, Tenn., said he was “extremely proud of the men and women of VR-57, who stepped up at a moment’s notice to make [the Haiti] mission happen.”

The long list of humanitarian missions the squadron has flown also includes airlifting New Orleans refugees from the flood waters of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and hauling rescue supplies and crews to the stricken Gulf Coast in its C-40A, which is a variation of a Boeing 737 that can be quickly reconfigured to carry cargo, passengers, or both.

While Crump describes his squadron’s primary mission as “bringing the fighter to the fight,” the crews’ readiness, the long-range reach of its aircraft and the unit’s flexibility provide frequent and unique challenges.

“You call, we’ll be there,” Crump recently told a reporter.

“There” may be airlifting warriors and weapons to hot spots in the Middle East, or “there” may be delivering the Harlem Globetrotters to a show on a military base. Legislators, diplomats and foreign officers have sat in the jump seat behind Crump in the cockpit as he has flown around the world.

But as he prepares to hand over command of VR-57 next month, Crump said one of his most unusual and gratifying missions was airlifting 15,000 pounds of fresh steak and the 58 volunteer cooks, mostly from the Bakersfield,Calif., to barbecues for troops in the Middle East on July 4.

The loosely-knit group that calls itself the “Cooks from the Valley” was airlifted with top-of-the-line Harris Ranch steaks to Bahrain, where teams of “cooks” were dispatched to four locations -- the Naval Support Activity (Bahrain), Shaikh Isa Air Base ( Bahrain), aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Nassau in the Persian Gulf and Camp Lemonier, a remote base in Djibouti, Africa, where troops stand watch over Somali pirates.

In temperatures pushed beyond the recorded 120 degrees by the humidity and heat from barbecue grills, the valley cooks served up a dinner that included a 12-ounce gourmet steak and all the traditional July 4 side dishes to homesick sailors, soldiers and marines. Volunteers paid for the steaks and their expenses out of their own pockets.

The idea behind the barbecues began two decades ago. Bakersfield attorney Tom Anton began boxing up prime grade steaks, hauling them to ships and barbecuing them for sailors as expressions of his appreciation for the military.

But after the terrorists’ attacks on the United States on Sept. 11, 2001, Anton’s barbecues grew into “Cooks from the Valley,” who travel like an invading army, barbecuing steaks by the thousands to weary troops, some deployed to the most dangerous and isolated regions of the world.

“We buy the steak, cook them and clean up,” explained Anton. “Anyone can give money. This is something we can do for the military that is allowing us to live today like it was Sept. 10, 2001. They are keeping us safe.”

Since Sept. 11, 2001, the valley cooks have barbecued more than 130,000 steaks for troops in military hospitals and on bases in combat areas, as well as stateside. On Christmas Day 2007, four cooks, including Anton, traveled to a medical outpost in Iraq to barbecue steaks.

“The need continues,” said Anton. “We are asking enormous sacrifices from these kids. We are creating ‘old young people.’ We have exposed these kids to things no one has seen, as these wars have dragged on and the U.S. has become the 911 responder for the world.”

Lt. Kendra Kaufman, a VR-57 pilot who flew legs of the valley cooks’ airlift, called the mission unique because of the “diplomatic and logistics requirements of bringing civilians into multiple combat zones, as well as the challenge of transporting perishable cargo” into an area in which the temperatures are well above 100 degrees.

Crump said he was honored to participate in the mission because he was “inspired by these ‘patriots’ not only giving of their time and money, but more importantly their genuine sincerity and appreciation of our forward deployed troops.”

The son of Olivia Crump of Cleveland and William Crump Jr. of Huntsville, Ala., the squadron’s commander is a graduate of Cleveland High School and Auburn University. He has been in the Navy for 22 years.

After several years of active duty, Crump transitioned to “reserve” status and began flying as a commercial airline pilot. He became a full-time reserve last year to serve as VR-57’s commanding officer.

Crump will remain in the reserves and resume flying for United Airlines after next month’s change of command. He and his wife, Carol, live in San Diego.

Dianne Hardisty is a freelance writer in Bakersfield, Calif. She and her husband, John Hardisty, traveled with the Cooks from the Valley to Bahrain for the July 4 barbecues. She wrote this story for The Cleveland Daily Banner in Cleveland, Tenn., the home town of the squadron's commanding officer, Bill Crump.

Captions: Top -- Cmdr. Bill Crump (left) and Lt. Kendra Kaufman are shown in the cockpit of their C-40A flying back to the U.S. from Bahrain. Center -- Cooks from the Valley, including Richard Wilson (center) barbecue steaks for the troops in Bahrain on July 4. Bottom -- Cmdr. Crump supervises the unloading of 15,000 pounds of steaks from his squadron's cargo plane in Bahrain.

TOM ANTON: A Call To Serve ... Meat

2010-07-12T23:24:00.000-07:00

Tom Anton, left, with Vice Adm. William Gortney in Bahrain.

Tom Anton’s barbecues began simply: A guy from Bakersfield, with a genuine fondness for the military, boxed up a bunch of prime cut steaks, hauled them to a ship and barbecued them for a bunch of sailors.

Anton’s first barbecue about two decades ago was followed by several more – just one man’s personal expressions of appreciation for the military’s sacrifices.

But after the terrorists’ attacks on the United States on Sept. 11, 2001, Anton’s barbecues evolved into a loosely-knit group of about 60 people, called the Cooks from the Valley, traveling like an invading army, barbecuing steaks by the thousands to weary sailors, soldiers and marines, some deployed to the most dangerous and isolated regions of the world.

To understand how a simple barbecue could become such a big deal, you have to go back to their beginnings, which make Anton laugh when he talks about them.

Anton says the closest he came to having a military experience was spending some time in a military school as a kid. The 65-year-old attorney was born and raised in landlocked Bakersfield, Calif. But he developed a fondness for the ocean, an interest in boats and a respect for the U.S. Navy. That led to Anton’s involvement in the local Navy League chapter, as its legal advisor.

“The most complicated issue I dealt with was whether or not we could have beer at an event,” recalled Anton during a recent interview. He admitted he was a bit bored by the assignment and pestered to go out on a ship. His pestering landed him with a ride on a ship bound for Seattle.

A Navy officer he met on that ship later became the executive officer of the USS Chandler, a guided missile destroyer. He invited Anton to ride the Chandler home to California from Hawaii. An avid barbecue chef, Anton decided to arrange a taste of valley cooking for the ship’s crew.

Before he flew to Hawaii to board the Chandler, he called a prestigious restaurant on the island and ordered 400 of its best raw steaks. But he hadn’t quite figured out how to get the steaks from the restaurant to the ship at Pearl Harbor.

“I tried to rent a car, but that wasn’t big enough. I tried to get a van, and that didn’t work out either,” he recalled. The solution was to hire a limousine.

Anton crammed boxes of steaks into every inch of the limousine, as Rocky, the driver, fretted that the steaks would bleed out of the boxes and onto the plush upholstery. “I told them they wouldn’t leak. Hell, I had no idea what would happen.”

The ship’s commander, Robert Natter, cleared Anton through the base gate. When the limousine pulled up next to the ship, a senior chief came down to inspect the meat. He ripped into a box, pulled out a slab of meat, and slammed it back into the box, declaring: “It’s not good Navy steaks; it’s too thick.”

A stunned Anton held back his anger. When he looked up at the ship’s bridge, he saw his friend, the executive officer, and Natter laughing at their joke.

Anton and his steaks set sail in a calm sea and beautiful weather. The barbecue was scheduled for the third day of the journey. By then “the weather had turned snotty,” Anton recalled, describing the strong winds and high waves that rocked the ship.

He thought the crew was kidding when they told him he would have to cook the steaks on steel plates in the galley. Instead, he went onto the deck and began preparing the barbecue coals. It was only after he asked to have the ship turned away from the wind that he was ordered to the galley. Anton’s first attempt at barbecuing at sea turned out to be a disappointing steak fry.

That was in 1980. The amicable, fast-talking Anton would not be discouraged. He finagled his way into staging more barbecues – one-man events, 400 to 500 steaks, on ships and bases, every year or two.

Then the terrorists attacked New York and the Pentagon in 2001.

The Chandler’s young commander had moved up the ranks. He was now an admiral, overseeing Atlantic Fleet operations.

Anton called his old friend and asked to do a really big barbecue on board a Navy aircraft carrier.

The admiral’s initial response: “What the [expletive].”

“I told him that he had no idea about the need for private citizens to do something for the military,” Anton recalled. But the admiral was doubtful about the logistics of hauling more than 5,000 steaks out to a ship and barbecuing them.

After some convincing, Natter and other reluctant Navy brass cleared the way for Anton’s barbecue aboard the USS John C. Stennis, as it sailed from Pearl Harbor to San Diego, just eight months after 9/11.

The 12-ounce steaks served to the Stennis crew came from Fresno County’s Harris Ranch. Most of the 50-plus cooks that Anton recruited to help came from Bakersfield. This eclectic group of lawyers, judges and business people paid for the steaks themselves and sweat over barbecue coals to bring a taste of home to the kids fighting the “war on terror.”

“We buy the steak, cook them and clean up,” explained Anton. “Anyone can give money. This is something we can do for the military that is allowing us to live today like it was Sept. 10, 2001. They are keeping us safe.”

Anton recalled that a young woman on the Stennis came up to the cooks, with tears in her eyes. She asked why they had done such a generous thing.

Anton admits that his response to the woman was a bit lame. But he gets emotional when he recalls what a Bakersfield businessman told her.

Ron Surgener was serving in Vietnam, when he was suddenly given orders to return home. Still in his military uniform, he arrived at the airport in San Francisco to jeers. He was stunned and hurt by the reception.

Surgener told the young woman that he made up his mind that he would never let that happen to any other soldier. Surgener and his son, Lester, have participated in many of the Cooks from the Valley barbecues.

Since Sept. 11, 2001, the Cooks have barbecued more than 70,000 thick, juicy Harris Ranch steaks for soldiers, sailors and marines. The barbecues have been held aboard ships, in military hospitals and on bases in high profile areas, such as the Persian Gulf and Guantanamo Bay Naval Station, as well as stateside. On Christmas Day 2007, four cooks, including Anton, traveled to a medical outpost in Iraq to barbecue steaks.

This month, Anton’s Cooks from the Valley flew to the Persian Gulf with about 16,000 pounds of steaks. Volunteer cooks barbecued on July 4 for U.S. and coalition troops in four locations – at the Naval Support Activity and at Shaikh Isa Air Base, both in Bahrain; aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Nassau in the Persian Gulf, and at Camp Lemonier, a base in Djibouti, in the Horn of Africa, where troops stand watch over Somali pirates.

“The need continues,” said Anton. “We are asking enormous sacrifices from these kids. We are creating ‘old young people.’ We have exposed these kids to things no one has seen, as these wars have dragged on and the U.S. has become the 911 responder for the world.”

Anton explained the barbecues are able to come together because “I just happen to know a lot of guys who won’t hang up on me when I call them and ask for help.”

With her husband, John Hardisty, freelance writer Dianne Hardisty traveled with the Cooks from the Valley to Bahrain. She wrote about Tom Anton's barbecue quests for The Bakersfield Californian.

Bakersfield 'Cooks' Barbecue Harris Ranch Steaks for U.S. Troops

2010-07-12T17:43:00.000-07:00

Steaks are unloaded in Bahrain.

An army of 60 volunteers, mostly from Bakersfield, Calif., flew to the Persian Gulf and Africa to celebrate July 4 with U.S. soldiers, sailors and marines.

Cooks From The Valley dispatched teams to barbecue 12-ounce Harris Ranch steaks for U.S. troops at Bahrain Naval Air Station, Shaikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain, aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Nassau in the Persian Gulf and at Camp Lemonier, a base in Djibouti, in the Horn of Africa, where troops stand watch over Somali pirates.

It was the first time this loosely-knit group of volunteers had barbecued in four different locations, more than 1,000 miles apart, simultaneously on the same day.

The barbecues were staged to show America’s appreciation for the military’s sacrifices, particularly after the terrorists’ attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. They were intended to bring a taste of home to the troops. Volunteer cooks paid for the steaks and their own expenses.

Airlifting thousands of steaks and cooks to often remote locations, or aboard ships is a logistical challenge. But after barbecuing more than 70,000 steaks since the 9/11 attacks, these events are beginning to resemble the maneuvers of a well-trained army.

But even Tom Anton, who organizes the barbecues, admited this latest far-flung trip was more complex than earlier ones.

The cooks left Bakersfield by bus on June 28, traveling to Lemoore Naval Air Station in Kings County, Calif., where they boarded a military cargo plane. Their days-long trip to Bahrain required several fueling and crew-change stops in Europe. They returned to Bakersfield on July 7.

Many of those traveling to Bahrain had volunteered for several past trips.

Catherine Gay, who led the team in Isa, first became a cook in 2005 for a barbecue aboard the USS Ronald Reagan. She has since traveled to Dubai, Guantanamo Bay Naval Station, and to several stateside bases and ships.

“Those kids – and yes they are kids – are over there fighting for us. They deserve the best,” she said during interviews with several of the cooks before they left for Bahrain. “It makes you feel good. A lot of times, they don’t even know we are there until they come through the [food] line. They are so grateful. They are so polite.”

Gay found the experience so rewarding that her husband, David, joined her on later trips.

Like many of the cooks, David Gay is a Vietnam War veteran. He recalls that he “crawled home,” after his discharge from the military in 1970. He and the other cooks are committed to treating those fighting today’s wars differently.

“You meet some great kids out there,” said David Gay, who helped lead the team barbecuing in Bahrain. “They are amazing. You come back feeling very good.”

David Gay, Tom Anton, Rocky Spencer and Jeff Peters are so committed to the cooks project that they gave up their Christmas in 2007 to fly to Iraq to barbecue 600 steaks for an expeditionary medical group.

“I do it because I have a passion for it,” said Spencer, an avid cook, who also barbecues at many Bakersfield area fund raising events. But he said it is the appreciation of the troops and camaraderie of the cooks that keep his suitcase packed and him ready to say “yes” when Anton arranges another trip.

“You get such satisfaction from this. It is a privilege, an honor to serve our finest men and women in uniform,” Spencer said.

“It’s a small thing we can do to help bring a little bit of home to the people who are keeping us safe,” said Peters, who was on the team cooking at Camp Lemonnier.

J.J. Gianquinto, a Navy veteran, whose son is a Navy reservist, is leading the team barbecuing on the USS Nassau.

“Tom [Anton] has taken on a project of immense proportion,” noted Gianquinto. “To have four teams at four locations, all preparing steaks to be served at approximately the same time is, in itself, daunting. To have those locations spread as far apart as they are, with requirements as varied as they are is an amazing feat.

“We will be cooking on the flight deck of a carrier under way. Isa is a remote location that is in a very strict Muslim area. Bahrain base is a U.S. Navy installation. Camp Lemoneir is right next to Somalia … near one of the pirate bases.

“It is clear that the military is at war, but the rest of the nation is not. Those kids must be recognized and made to know they are appreciated.”

This story written by Dianne Hardisty, who traveled with the Cooks from the Valley with her husband, John Hardisty, appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on July 4, 2010.

National Chavez Center in Keene, Calif., adds retreat, conference center

2010-06-06T14:18:00.000-07:00

Paul Chavez poses in front of new conference center.

A dilapidated collection of buildings that once housed Kern County’s sick and fragile children has been transformed into a gracious retreat and conference center that likely would have warmed the heart of the late farm worker advocate Cesar Chavez.

Once known as the Preventorium, a county hospital and residential facility in Keene for under-weight children and children who had contracted tuberculosis, the horseshoe-shaped complex has been restored to its 1929 grandeur.

Nestled at the foot of Three Peaks, a rock outcropping on the northern border of the 187-acre National Chavez Center on Woodford-Tehachapi Road, the retreat and conference center is intended to advance Chavez’s legacy of peaceful advocacy for civil rights and the empowerment of disenfranchised people.

“Dad believed ordinary people can do extraordinary things,” said Paul Chavez, president of the Cesar Chavez Foundation. But to do extraordinary things, Chavez recognized that people need to be trained and inspired.

Assuming a life of self-imposed poverty, Chavez created a labor union, the United Farm Workers, and a social movement, now continued by the Cesar E. Chavez Foundation. The non-profit foundation operates the National Chavez Center in Keene, where Chavez, who died in 1993, is buried. It also oversees a national affordable housing program and a Spanish-language radio network.

“Here is a man who never made more than $6,000 a year. He died at 66 and left no money. But 40,000 people marched behind his casket,” recalled Marc Grossman, Chavez’s long-time spokesman and assistant.

“For 100 years before Cesar, people tried and failed to organize farm workers,” said Grossman, explaining Chavez succeeded by adopting new techniques and strategies, including boycotts and non-violence. Chavez created more than a union. He created a social movement “that has taken on a life of its own.”

In the 1960s, Chavez’s movement was headquartered in Delano, in the crossfire between powerful growers and union organizers. Searching for a more secure location for his family, union officials and volunteers, Chavez learned that Kern County was selling its shuttered tuberculosis sanitarium in Keene. He also suspected pro-agriculture county officials would not sell the property to him.

So instead, movie producer Edward Lewis, a wealthy union supporter, bought the property in 1971. He quickly turned it over to the non-profit National Farm Workers Service Center, which is now merged with the Cesar E. Chavez Foundation.

The compound, which was named Nuestra Senora Reina de La Paz, or more commonly La Paz, became Chavez’s refuge, as well as the hub of union organizing and training for more than two decades.

And that is what Chavez was doing – organizing farm workers in Arizona – when he died in his sleep in 1993.

“Mom came to us and said Dad always wanted to be buried at La Paz,” recalled Paul Chavez. “That meant we would never leave. That weighed on us. The buildings were old and dilapidated.”

The future of La Paz, as well as the movement Chavez created, became the focus of intense evaluation by members of Chavez’s extended family and supporters. The result was the creation of a master plan for La Paz, which included the creation of the retreat and conference center that will open this month.

Paul Chavez recalled that his father’s goal was to provide a place for individuals and groups to gather to work for social justice and civil rights, to learn the skills to organize and do “extraordinary things.” He said creation of a retreat and conference center furthers his father’s goal.

Funding for the retreat and conference center was partially provided by a $2.5 million grant from the California Cultural and Heritage Endowment of the California State Library. Project coordinator Dennis Dahlin estimates the total cost of renovating the former county hospital was $6 million, with matching funds contributed by the foundation and supporters. Professional services and supplies also were donated.

A similar state grant and contributions helped pay for the construction in 204 of a visitors’ center at the entrance to the National Chavez Center. The visitors’ center features Chavez’s office, library and courtyard, as well as the memorial garden, where Chavez is buried.

Chavez’s birthday, March 31, is recognized as an official holiday in 11 states, including California, with observations focused on community service. Educational and social service groups visit and tour the National Chavez Center in Keene year round.

A third phase of the National Chavez Center’s master plan calls for the creation of a cultural center, said Paul Chavez.

Training sessions and programs sponsored by the Cesar E. Chavez Foundation will be held in the new retreat and conference center. In addition, use of the center by groups and individuals for conference and social events, including weddings, can be arranged by calling Manager Monica Parra at 661-823-6271.

The retreat and conference center will officially open on Saturday, June 26, during a celebration from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the National Chavez Center, 29700 Woodford-Tehachapi Road, Keene, Calif.

This article appeared first in the June edition of The Bakersfield Californian’s MAS magazine and on Dianne Hardisty's blog. A condensed story was posted on June 6, 2010 on Dianne Hardisty’s Examiner page.

Thomas to Moody's, Buffett: ‘If if and buts were candy and nuts, we’d all have a Merry Christmas’

2010-06-02T16:12:00.000-07:00

Phil Angelides, left, Bill Thomas, right

Former California Treasurer Phil Angelides and retired Bakersfield, Calif., Congressman Bill Thomas aren’t exactly stand-up comedians. They are serious, brainy policy wonks.

And there’s nothing funny about the job Congress gave them to do.

But the imagery that emerged during a hearing Wednesday of their congressionally-created commission, the Fiscal Crisis Inquiry Commission, was both funny and accurate. And it cut to the heart of the Wall Street excesses that brought the U.S. economy to the brink of collapse.

Democrat Angelides and Republican Thomas co-chair the bipartisan FCIC, which is supposed to explain to Congress by Dec. 15 who did what to whom that led to the financial mess, and create a road map for Congress to better protect investors and the nation’s economy.

The 10 FCIC members were grilling representatives of the rating agency Moody’s, as well as its major stockholder, investment giant Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway, about the AAA ratings Moody’s gave to what turned out to be disastrous investment instruments, primarily involving subprime real estate loans.

When asked about the assurances Moody’s provided, a former company director told commissioners that Moody’s was focused on “market share,” meaning it was focused on making an increasing number of deals and bringing revenue into the company.

Traditionally, bankers would bring deals to the rating company a month or two before they closed, giving analysts time to evaluate risks and establish accurate ratings, which are used by investors in their buying decisions.

But as the market heated up, the deals came in just days before closing. Some even arrived after closing, according to FCIC testimony Wednesday.

To that, Angelides asked, “Did you ever see ‘I Love Lucy?’ That famous episode where she’s working in a chocolate factory and the conveyor belt just goes faster and faster? Did you ever feel like Lucy?”

Thomas went further with the chocolate analogy, likening the deals the bankers were making to putting chocolates in a box, with the best being those with solid deals and performing loans, and the questionable ones with creamy soft centers.

Buffett acknowledged that rating agencies “made the wrong call,” but noted that the entire American public believed housing prices would not dramatically fall.

He acknowledged that he did not recognize the significance. He pointed out that during his company’s annual meeting, he called the situation at “bubblette.” But it turned out to be “a four star-bubble,” Buffett told commissioners.

After sorting through a series of excuses expressed during the hearing, Thomas observed: “If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, we’d all have a Merry Christmas.”

Thomas has long been critical of the role rating agencies have played in the nation’s financial crisis.

Angelides noted Wednesday that these rating agencies were the “referees in a game that got out of control.”

About the author: Dianne Hardisty is The Bakersfield Californian’s retired editorial page editor. Now a freelance writer in Bakersfield, Hardisty interviewed former Bakersfield Congressman Bill Thomas in December on the eve of the first major Fiscal Crisis Inquiry Commission hearing.

Moody's, Warren Buffett on FCIC hot seat Wednesday

2010-06-01T11:30:00.000-07:00

Former Rep. Bill Thomas, R-Bakersfield, left

Watch for the sparks to fly Wednesday as the Fiscal Crisis Inquiry Commission turns its focus on the credit rating agencies, which many believe played a key role in the near collapse of the U.S. economy.

Financier Warren E. Buffett, chairman and chief executive officer of Berkshire Hathaway , and Raymond W. McDaniel, chairman and chief executive officer of Moody’s Corp., will be among those called to testify during the FCIC hearing.

According to Fortune magazine’s Carol Loomis, who is Buffett’s long-time friend, the editor of his newsletter and a shareholder, the financial giant refused invitations to voluntarily testify before the commission. Gary Cohen, the FCIC’s general counsel, confirmed Buffett was issued a subpoena to testify.

Still one of Moody’s biggest shareholders, Buffett began selling off his interest in the rating company last summer.

While most of the commission’s hearings have been held in Washington, D.C., Wednesday’s will be held at The New School in New York City.

The bipartisan commission, which was created by Congress, is headed by Democrat Phil Angelides, California’s former state treasurer, and former Republican Congressman Bill Thomas of Bakersfield, Calif.

In an interview with Dianne Hardisty, which appeared in The Bakersfield Californian in December, on the eve of the commission’s first major hearing, Thomas was highly critical of credit rating agencies in providing a false sense of security around risky investment schemes.

"What really happened was that all these large banks were carrying these strange instruments of consolidated mortgages. And all of a sudden they weren't worth that much,” Thomas told Hardisty. “Well, how much were they worth? We didn't know for sure. Moody's gave them a triple-A rating so they could sell them to other people. But if you look at the rating game, you pay for the rating. So you end up hiring one of the firms that gave you a triple-A.

"It's a lot like what happened to the accounting firms that recommended how and where you invested your money, and then went over the books and, guess what, they concluded that was a great place to invest your money. Except it blew up. You can't have people on both sides of a ledger when they are carrying out a function,” Thomas said.

"People were buying triple-A ratings. Maybe they weren't triple-A. Maybe they were junk. Banks had these on their books and they didn't know if they were worth anything. It wasn't that they didn't have enough money. They just didn't know what they had."

This week, New York Times columnist Ross Sorkin likened the system to restaurant reviews.

“Restaurant reviews might seem suspect if they were paid for by the restaurants being reviewed,” Sorkin wrote. “But that is essentially how things work in the credit rating business. Even now, after all we have learned, Moody’s, S.&P. and Fitch are still paid by the banks and companies whose securities they evaluate.”

During his December interview, Thomas noted that commissioners “are not out to embarrass people. We are out to find the facts. As the facts come out, a number of people will have to be embarrassed because they were in positions of responsibility and didn't do what people in these positions should do."

Commission Chairman Angelides told Fox Business’ Charlie Gasparino last week that so far, the vast majority of information the FCIC and its staff of about 40 investigators have found doesn’t fall into the “illegal” category.

“Most of what we see is not illegal activity,” he said. “What we are seeing is something that is actually more profound. These guys didn’t think they were doing anything wrong because of the use of risk to make money was universally celebrated on Wall Street.”

When the commission reaches its Dec. 15, 2010, deadline, the goal is to leave Americans with a book to explain what happened and a yard stick to measure the efforts of this Congress and future Congresses to fix the problems, said Thomas.

About the author: Dianne Hardisty retired as The Bakersfield Californian’s editorial page editor in 2009. She now is a freelance writer in Bakersfield specializing in business and government issues. Hardisty's articles often appear on her Examiner webpage.

'Steam' Building Over Proposed Route of California High Speed Rail System

2010-05-31T22:05:00.000-07:00

‘Steam’ is building throughout California over the proposed route of California’s high speed rail system. A futuristic transportation system that former California Gov. Gray Davis once dismissed as being something out of “Buck Rogers,” a recent allocation of about $2.6 billion in federal stimulus dollars and California voters’ passage of a nearly $10 billion bond in 2008 has moved high speed rail from “theoretical” to “possible.”

But with the system’s brighter hopes is coming controversy over details, including where the high speed train tracks will be laid.

In the May 30, Bakersfield Californian, reporter Steve Mayer wrote about the controversy over two proposed routes through the heart of his city. Both basically follow an existing railroad alignment.

The plan is for the route to enter Bakersfield from the northwest, stop at a downtown terminal and exit to the east on the way to the Antelope Valley and beyond to Southern California. Because of the speed, both routes deviate a bit – in a sweeping curve – from the existing railroad alignment. Likely historic homes and buildings will be in its path, causing controversy in the city.

Bakersfield is not alone in raising concerns about the path high speed rail will take. Farmers up and down the San Joaquin Valley are expressing objections. And battles have broken out in the Bay Area and Southern California.

“Bringing a high speed rail line through Bakersfield will be disruptive, as well as beneficial,” observed John Hardisty, the city’s retired development services director. John Hardisty now is a court mediator and planning consultant.

Issues of safety and noise will need to be addressed for any route, he said, adding that “rather than deciding that the exact alignment will be where the preliminary study lines have been drawn, the design engineers and environmental reviewers should be refining a route that would least impact the community. Wherever possible, they need to avoid schools, hospitals, homes, businesses and churches.”

Earlier this year, Hardisty wrote in a Bakersfield Californian opinion column about the need for the city to organize its efforts to become the site of a test track and heavy maintenance facility for the California High Speed Rail system. Several San Joaquin Valley cities, including Fresno, Merced and Bakersfield, are competing for the project, which will bring million of dollars in investments and thousands of jobs to the community that is selected.

But route selection for the entire system has become increasingly contentious.

“If you think getting a freeway alignment adopted is tough, you ain't seen nothing yet. This could be a bigger battle,” said Hardisty.

John Hardisty writes about high speed rail and other land-use issues on his Planning Beat blog.

About the author: Dianne Hardisty retired in 2009 as The Bakersfield Californian’s editorial page editor. She now is a freelance writer in Bakersfield with reporting specialties in business and government. Her work frequently appears on her Examiner webpage.

Blood donations to Houchin Blood Bank in Bakersfield, Calif., could end up on battlefields in Iraq, Afghanistan

2010-05-31T14:10:00.000-07:00

Houchin Community Blood Bank / John Harte

Writing in today’s Bakersfield Californian, Maureen Buscher-Dang reveals that people who donate blood at their local community blood banks may be helping U.S. soldiers on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan.

As an example, she notes that during the past 18 months, Houchin Community Blood Bank in Bakersfield, Calif., has sent six shipments – each containing 15 units of blood products – to the Armed Services Blood Bank Center in Tacoma, Wash.

The center’s primary mission is to support the nation’s military operations, explained Victor Shermer, the center’s donor recruiter and public affairs officer. Shermer also is a retired Army major.

Shermer told Buscher-Dang that within a week of being drawn from a donor in Bakersfield, or someplace else in the United States, a unit of blood may be helping a soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq.

The Armed Services Blood Program relies primarily on military personnel, military families, federal employees and participants in universities’ reserve officer training corps for blood donations. But like with their civilian counterparts, sometimes there is a special need for a rare blood type and inventories run low. The Armed Services Blood Program then sends out a call to purchase units from civilian centers, such as Houchin.

“December and January are the worse months of the year,” explained Shermer. “Soldiers go home on leave. They are not available to donate. When we do not have enough to meet our quota, we purchase it.”

Maureen Buscher-Dang is a Bakersfield public relations consultant, who represents Houchin Community Blood Bank. She is passionate about donating blood and supporting our troops. Until his recent retirement, her husband, Alex Dang, was a member of the Army Reserves and completed a tour of duty in Iraq.

About the author: Dianne Hardisty retired as The Bakersfield Californian's editorial page editor. She now is a freelance writer in Bakersfield. Her stories also appear on the Examiner webpage.

Hina Patel: Bakersfield sickle cell victim showed courage, sacrifice

2010-05-31T11:09:00.000-07:00

Hina Patel is interviewed at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital in February by Dianne Hardisty

Today is Memorial Day, when we remember those who have died who stepped forward – during the present wars, or earlier wars – to defend this country. Often we just look at this day as a day off work, or the beginning of the summer vacation season. But it should be a day to reflect on the sacrifices that have been made.

I do not intend to take anything away from the sacrifices of our veterans. That is what this day REALLY is about. But we can also spare a few minutes today to think about the sacrifices everyday people make for their country, neighborhoods and families.

Today I am thinking about a young Bakersfield woman, Hina Patel . In February, The Bakersfield Californian published a story by Dianne Hardisty about Hina and her brave battle with sickle cell disease. Born with the affliction, she lived two decades with sickle cell disease.

When she spoke at the Houchin Community Blood Bank's annual recognition dinner in February for platelet donors, she thanked the Bakersfield donors for their life-giving generosity. She had been sustained by frequent platelet transfusions.

And when she agreed to be interviewed for a follow-up story, she was very, very sick. In fact, part of the interview took place in an isolation room at Bakersfield Memorial Hospital But Hina and her mother, Bhavana Patel, gave up their privacy and some of their precious final minutes together because they were committed to having people better understand the devastation of sickle cell disease and the need for people “at risk” to be tested.

Hina died on May 5, 2010. Despite her illness, she graduated with honors from Bakersfield’s Stockdale High School, was enrolled at Bakersfield College and had been accepted into the University of Pacific’s pharmacy program. She was a brave and accomplished young woman.

About the author: Dianne Hardisty retired as The Bakersfield Californian's editorial page editor. She now is a freelance writer in Bakersfield.

Hunting for Bakersfield's 'historic character'

2010-05-30T14:28:00.000-07:00

Photo by John Hardisty

Jack Hendrix stands in front of the turn-of-the-century Bakersfield house he restored.

John Hardisty spent nearly 30 years guiding the city of Bakersfield, Calif., forward as its development services director. He managed the city’s Planning Department as Bakersfield grew to include about 143 square miles and serve a population of nearly 340,000 people.

During those years, his focus was on the present and the future. Now retired from the city and working as a planning consultant and court mediator, Hardisty’s focus is also on the past, as he writes an occasional column for The Bakersfield Californian.

Beginning with his May 23 feature on the turn-of-the-century home of the late Louise V. Olcese, a Bakersfield capitalist, Hardisty will write about the historic, significant and sometimes downright strange homes and buildings in Bakersfield.

Bakersfield, at the southern end of California’s San Joaquin Valley, has a rich history rooted in oil and agriculture. It also has a hard-scrabble reputation born of the struggles of the Depression-era Okies, who flocked to the community.

Known for its brand of Country Western music and Basque food, Bakersfield can be as sophisticated as any city – and mind you, it’s California’s 11th largest – but it can also be a bit quirky.

Hardisty’s occasional column will highlight such attractions as Bakersfield’s tallest building and explain why at 12 floors it was required to obtain a variance from the city’s height limitation. He also will interview the architect of Bakersfield’s futuristic-looking triangle building and recall the 1970s battle waged to get city clearance to build the “funny looking thing.”

At the center of what was once the city of Kern (east Bakersfield) is a sprawling, formerly elegant train station. He will tour readers through the now mostly boarded up and weather-beaten structure, which is used by the railroad to house a skeleton staff and store supplies.

“To keep moving forward, it is important for every community to understand its past,” said Hardisty, explaining the focus of his column. “To attempt progress without an understanding and respect for history is like building without a foundation.”

This sensitivity to history is particularly important to Bakersfield. The city was hit in 1952 by an earthquake that destroyed much of its downtown and many of its public buildings. Some contend Bakersfield’s historic character was turned to rubble by the earthquake. But if you look closely, you will find some remnants have survived.

Hardisty’s column will take readers on a treasure hunt for Bakersfield’s historic character.

About the author: Dianne Hardisty retired as The Bakersfield Californian's editorial page editor. She now is a freelance writer. This article appeared first on her Examiner page.

Bakersfield National Cemetery holds first Memorial Day

2010-05-30T13:59:00.000-07:00

Photo by Dianne Hardisty

Flags adorn graves at the Bakersfield National Cemetery

Bakersfield National Cemetery, located on 500 acres donated by the Tejon Ranch Co., 20 miles southeast of Bakersfield, Calif., will hold its first Memorial Day Ceremony Sunday, May 30, at 10 a.m.

Among those speaking during the ceremony were Steve L. Muro, acting under secretary for memorial affairs, and Congressmen Kevin McCarthy and Jim Costa.

The 130th national cemetery in a system that now includes 131, the Bakersfield National Cemetery opened in July 2009.

To date, the remains of 600 have been interred in the cemetery since its opening, according to director Cindy M. Van Bibber.

Nationwide, an estimated 1,000 World War II veterans are dying every day. The death rates for Korean War and Vietnam War veterans also are increasing. The system of national cemeteries has expanded to accommodate these veterans.

“I am surprised more people are not utilizing the Bakersfield cemetery,” said Van Bibber, who recent transferred to the facility from a similar one in Fort Bliss, Texas. “The setting is awe-inspiring.”

Bakersfield is one of three cemeteries in the system that utilize “water wise” landscaping. The other two are located in Phoenix, Ariz., and Fort Bliss. The Phoenix and Fort Bliss cemeteries are located in deserts, where cactus and similar vegetation are commonly found.

While Bakersfield is not located in a desert, the site lacks a source of water, preventing it from sprouting the carpet of grass found in most cemeteries.

To some, the Bakersfield National Cemetery may appear bleak and barren. But Van Bibber notes that landscaping still is taking shape. Native plants, including the oak trees and wild flowers that decorate the rolling foothills of the Tehachapi and Sierra Nevada Mountains will adorn the national cemetery.

She credits the cemetery’s support group with providing guidance and assistance as the cemetery provides a resting place for the men and women who dedicated themselves to preserving the freedom of the United States.

About the author: Dianne Hardisty retired as the editorial page editor of The Bakersfield Californian. She is now a freelance writer. This article appeared first on her Examiner page.

CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURE 'DRIVES HOME' ITS MESSAGE

2010-04-22T11:47:00.000-07:00

California has unveiled an agricultural “specialty license plate” that will do more than raise money for education. It will raise public awareness and some hope support for one of the state’s major economic engines.

In the state’s Central Valley, which is plagued by record unemployment rates, the agriculture engine is being threatened by water shortages and the erosion of farmland protection programs. Public understanding and support for the industry is critical, farmers contend.

“California Agriculture” license plates were introduced this week during the annual meeting of the Future Farmers of America in Fresno by A.G. Kawamura, director of the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

“What better way to show support for agriculture? Our young people benefit from an investment in their future, and that helps all of us as we strive for continued food security in the decades ahead,” Kawamura said.

The “California Agriculture” program needs 7,500 paid pledges by spring 2011 before license plates can be issued. People interested in obtaining the specialty license plates can go online to place paid orders. If sufficient pledges are not received by the deadline, participants can ask for a refund, or give state officials an additional year to collect pledges.

The cost of these specialty plates is added to annual vehicle license fees. An initial fee of $50 ($40 per year to renew) will be charged for a “California Agriculture” license plate with a random set of numbers; personalized license plates will cost $98 initially ($78 to renew). Money raised by the sales will fund agriculture-related education programs.

A recent analysis by The Modesto Bee revealed agriculture, particularly in the fertile Central Valley, has remained strong despite the state’s and region’s economic troubles. The University of Pacific’s Business Forecasting Center released a bleak economic outlook for the valley this week. Researchers concluded that California’s two-year recession appears to have ended last fall; however, the valley has only now just bottomed out. It likely will take four to five years to return to normal, pre-recession conditions.

Often at odds with California agriculture interests, even the National Resources Defense Council has acknowledge the critical role agriculture will play in the state’s economic recovery and environmental well-being.

Writing on his blog this week, Barry Nelson, an NRCD senior policy analyst, noted: “It’s important to acknowledge that keeping land in agricultural production helps reduce sprawl and greenhouse gas emissions from our cities. … Frankly, environmentalists don’t express their support for a strong, sustainable agricultural economy often enough.”

About the author: Dianne Hardisty of Bakersfield is a former business and editorial page editor. Her work also appears in The Bakersfield Californian and online.

BOOMERS HOPE LATINOS WILL BUY THEIR HOMES

2010-04-20T15:32:00.000-07:00

Who will buy your home?

Dowell Myers , a demographer at the University of Southern California, posed this question to urban planners during the annual American Planning Association conference in New Orleans.

Struggling with neighborhoods filled with foreclosed and abandoned homes – the fallout of the nation’s subprime lending fiasco and resulting economic crisis -- planners were warned that more trouble looms ahead.

As baby boomers retire and want to downsize – move out of their homes into townhouses, “adult” communities, or assisted living – they will find few buyers. And the buyers they do find likely will come from a growing immigrant community.

The future financial well-being of the baby boomer generation – in terms of home sales, government services, medical care, etc. – is tied to the progress minority groups, particularly Hispanics in California, can make in their educations and career aspirations.

“In the 1970s, the baby boomers came of age,” Myers said, noting home prices and sizes rose as boomers moved up their career ladders. With boomers surfing through the market, it’s was no surprise that “sooner or later they would hit the beach.”

People born between 1946 and 1964 are considered baby boomers. The generation now is about 80 million strong (and graying.)

In California, alone, there were 9.7 million baby boomers between the ages of 40 and 49 in 2005. They constituted 51 percent of the prime working-age population.

By 2020, these baby boomers will be 55 to 74 years old – retired or nearing retirement. According to Myers, the ratio of retirees to “workers” – people 25 to 64 years old – will jump 30 percent, and an additional 29 percent by 2030.

The ratio of seniors to working-age people in California is about 250 per 1,000 today. Myers predicted the ratio will balloon to 411 per 1,000 in 2030.

Myers has written about this demographic time bomb in his book “Immigrants and Boomers : Forging a New Social Contract for the Future of America,” as well as in articles for the American Planning Association and other groups.

With significant population growth occurring primarily in immigrant groups, Myers told urban planners that efforts must be made to increase the educations and earning potentials in these groups.

If baby boomers want to sell off their major investments – their homes – they must “grow” a generation with the money to buy them. They must be willing to spend money to improve the schools that minority students attend and open economic opportunity doors.

“Every seller needs a good buyer,” said Myers.

IN THE EYE OF AN ECONOMIC STORM

2010-03-19T20:16:00.000-07:00

Stacy Carlson in her Treasury Building office.

Stacy Carlson’s life has taken many high-powered turns since she grew up in Bakersfield in the 1970s, graduated from Highland High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in economics from Cal State Bakersfield. But even Carlson was stunned and at times a bit overwhelmed when she landed in the middle of the U.S. economy’s “perfect storm.”

In “You, Me & the U.S. Economy,” Carlson writes about her experiences as former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson’s speech writer from 2007 to 2009, when the nation’s economy headed for meltdown and the stock market could rise and fall with every word she wrote. In her first book, Carlson also explains in a plainspoken manner about what caused the crisis.

Paulson, President Bush’s third and final treasury secretary, writes in the book’s forward:

“We knew that the words we chose would play an enormous role in determining whether we would be successful. My communications team at Treasury was essential to meeting this challenge, and my speechwriter, Stacy Carlson, was a pivotal part of that team. … it was very difficult, in the midst of an unprecedented financial crisis, to educate the American people about all of the complex subjects that caused the crisis.”

Carlson came to the Treasury Department job with an MBA from Stanford University and years of experience in the banking industry. In between, she was a lobbyist in Washington, D.C., founded the business writing firm Invisible Hand LLC, served as the executive vice president of global government affairs for the Motion Picture Association of America, and was a member of California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s senior Washington staff.

She cut her political teeth as a teenager in Bakersfield working on Republican President Gerald Ford’s 1976 reelection campaign. Her first paying political job was as an intern and later legislative assistant on Bakersfield Congressman Bill Thomas’ Washington, D.C., staff. In late 1984, she returned to Bakersfield to work as newly elected Kern County Supervisor Roy Ashburn’s chief of staff, before entering graduate school. She also worked on George Bush’s 2000 presidential campaign and was a member of his transition team.

Carlson knew her way around Capitol Hill and politics when a friend told her Paulson was looking for a speech writer in 2007. Although she admits the speech-writing experience on her resume was a bit thin, the man she replaced, who was leaving to go to law school, assured her the office pace “was pretty slow” and he often had months to work on projects.

Carlson was in for a rude surprise. Filling her book with a good deal of humor – much of it pointed at herself – Carlson wrote about the stress of keeping up with the dire, breaking news.

“I wasn’t an expert in anything, yet was expected to write expertly about everything,” she wrote, adding that there “were days when I chewed erasers off pencils and the inside of my cheek until it was raw. I smoked too much and swore I would quit, tomorrow.”

Economic warning signs had started to appear when Carlson was settling into her tiny Treasury Building office. But “we were still optimistic. People were working, buying houses, getting raises,” she wrote.

“Who knew that 15 months later, lack of trust and confidence would push us to the brink of financial meltdown?”

She recalled that by the summer of 2008, “We watched the housing market and thought it would bottom out soon. We expected to speed down the economic highway for the foreseeable future, and the August recess waved like a good friend with a beach house and a boat drink.”

But with the presidential election fully underway, home prices continued to fall, home mortgage lenders were going out of business and two Bear Stearns subprime mortgage hedge funds were about to go bankrupt. By the fall, the clouds over the U.S. economy were very dark.

As Paulson and others in the Bush administration scrambled to head off a catastrophe, Carlson wrote that she “was the silent scribe and witness to acts of courage, clarity and confusion.”

“At Treasury, the lead writer was called the person ‘with the pen.’ … I became [Paulson’s] pen: not his muse, not his advisor, not his whisperer. I needed to be quiet and to be confident. I needed to do my job.”

Carlson listened intently. She turned even some of the treasury secretary’s “throwaway phrases” into quotes that were repeated around the world.

“At one point [Paulson] put his hands on the table, leaned forward and said, ‘People are impatient; they want results.’ From that I wrote for his [U.S.-China talks] opening statement: ‘Americans have many virtues – we are hard-working, innovative people – but we are also impatient.’

“That sentence was the key news bite in the Dow Jones wire, the AP and in Time magazine’s ‘Verbatim’ column. I would never have captured that sentiment if I hadn’t listened differently.”

She admits in her book that she struggled with the complexities of some of the topics she wrote about. She draws on her Bakersfield roots to laugh at herself about that.

“What I knew about China, I’d learned in books, movies and my first job as a hostess at Bill Lee’s Bamboo Chopsticks in Bakersfield, California,” she wrote, recalling that Mrs. Lee “sat on a stool at the cash register and yelled at me in Chinese. I vaguely recalled Nixon going to China and something about ping-pong.”

“I would eventually write about every issue Treasury touched, yet wouldn’t ever be wholly a part of anything except the words,” she wrote. “Sometimes I was as much a translator as a writer, trying to turn policy wonkese, the dense language of experts, into understandable English.”

And that is what she tries to do with her 225-page book, which includes a glossary, or listing of definitions of sometimes mind-boggling concepts and alphabet soup financing programs.

In a recent interview, Carlson was asked to list four top lessons she hopes people will learn from reading her book. They were:

 “There is plenty of blame to go around. President Bush said ‘Wall Street got drunk.’ That’s true, but Washington, with reckless housing policies, and the failure to catch the problems through regulation, and Main Street, with reckless borrowing and debt, hoisted a few, too.

 “There are always economic cycles – what [the treasury secretary] used to call the ‘economic gravity’ of what goes up does come down. Don’t think we can defy economic gravity, but instead prepare for it by saving and keeping debt low so your entire personal wealth isn’t at risk.

 “There is no substitute for prudent risk management. That was a big failure at ‘regular’ (FDIC regulated) banks, investment banks, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac.

 “If we’re better informed about how banks and the economy works, then we’ll make better decisions, and demand our elected officials make better ones, too.”

Carlson acknowledged in her book that the country had grown tired of “Hank Paulson, George Bush and most all of us Republicans.”

But to the end of his tenure, Paulson continued to work hard and Carlson continued to write. “Hank’s last speech on Jan. 7, 2009, laid out possible treatments for ailing mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, treatments we wouldn’t be around to administer.”

With the change in administration, Carlson turned out the lights in her Treasury office for the last time in January 2009, turned in her security badge and returned to her Alexandria, Va., home to restart her freelance writing business.

The concluding pages of her book capture the mood. She recalled a reporter asked Paulson how he thought history would treat his tenure. Paulson responded that history will have to figure that out. All he knew was that he did his best.

“That included sweeping government intervention to avoid a complete financial collapse, which opened the door to bailouts and blame,” Carlson wrote. “Politics played a part in the final weeks, but not in the way you’d expect. President Bush said he felt ‘a sense of obligation to my successor…we’re in a crisis now…but I don’t want to make it even worse.’”

Carlson concluded, “We were well-intentioned and fallible. The country had sped down the economic highway with the windows down and the radio on, and ran into an inevitable wreck. As we survey the damage and its causes, I hope we learn the right lessons.”

This article by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on March 21, 2010.

TAKING ROOT: VETERANS FOR TREES

2010-03-14T15:58:00.000-07:00

Veterans for Trees, a non-profit organization based in Frazier Park, Calif., held its first tree planting event Saturday, March 13, 2010. Organizers hope their idea will sprout nationwide.

The idea is simple: Plant a tree for every U.S. veteran.

That could mean millions of trees will be planted and millions of veterans will be honored. The plantings are good for the environment and good for the soul.

Eleven small trees – blue spruces, autumn blaze maples and quaking aspens – were planted during a ceremony Saturday in Kern County’s Frazier Mountain Park. The plantings took place near the Brian Cody Prosser Veterans Memorial. The 28-year-old Prosser, who was well-known in the mountain community, was one of the first American soldiers killed in Afghanistan after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. Prosser was killed Dec. 5, 2001 by friendly fire.

Veterans for Trees is being spearheaded by Richard J.C. Sheffield, a retired U.S. Air Force technical sergeant, who is a licensed landscape and tree contractor. Sheffield and his wife, Tammy, own Antioch Nursery, Landscape and Tree Service in Lake of the Woods, a mountain community west of Frazier Park.

Veterans for Trees is headquartered in Frazier Park on about 15 acres of established incense cedar, redwood, gigantium, white fir, scotch pine and blue spruce trees. The property was formerly a Christmas tree farm.

In addition to growing larger-sized trees for the Veterans for Trees National Memorial Tree Planting Program, the headquarters property will be used to grow hundreds of thousands of jeffrey pine and pinion pine seedlings for planting in the Veterans for Trees California Wildfire Restoration Program.

According to the organization’s website, these seedlings will assist the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Forest Service, California Department of Forestry and National Park Service in reforestation efforts.

Sheffield told The Los Angeles Times that he plans to ask wholesale nurseries and retailers nationwide to offer veteran trees, which will have their trunks wrapped in red, white and blue, and will carry a tag containing information about the program. From each sale, $1 will go to Veterans for Trees to operate the tax-exempt, 501 (c)(3) organization.

“It’s a win-win for veterans and for the environment,” Sheffield told The Times.

For more information about the group and how you can honor veterans by planting a tree, go to www.veteransfortrees.org/

Dianne Hardisty
Bakersfield, Calif.
www.svs2help.com/

BOOMERS GET THIRD WHEEL

2010-03-14T09:50:00.000-07:00

The irony is not lost on those who ride them. As toddlers they started out on three wheels. As aging boomers, they have gone back to their trikes.

Often for health reasons, people in the boomer and beyond age bracket are shedding their two-wheel bicycles and motorcycles for more stable and “forgiving” trikes. It’s a trend that has been spotted and promoted throughout the nation, including in Bakersfield.

At the dealership on Merle Haggard Drive, salesman Mark T. Welch said the $30,000-plus three-wheel Harley-Davidson motorcycles are flying out the door. They can’t order them quick enough to keep up with the demand.

At Snider’s Cyclery, Olivia Snider said she is seeing an increasing number of people coming into her Union Avenue shop asking for trikes. Sales of three-wheel adult tricycles have climbed.

“People see it as easy mobility and a good way to keep in shape,” she said, explaining most trike customers are recovering from injuries or illnesses .

Snider manager Miguel Berger said most people are buying three-speed trikes, with coaster and hand-brakes in the $600 range. Recumbent tricycles, which are geared and designed for more advanced, competitive riders, sell for much more.

In February, Barney Padilla, 60, bought a head-turning high-gloss red 2010 Harley-Davidson Street Glide Trike from the Bakersfield dealership. A motorcycle rider since 1978, Padilla said he hopes his new wheels will keep him riding for many more years.

Padilla retired as the service manager of a local car dealership. After encountering health problems that required his heart to be assisted by a pacemaker, Padilla said he feared his riding days were over.

“I am not having any problems yet in riding, but I was not sure what would happen in the next five years,” he said, explaining that he worried about keeping his balance on a two-wheel motorcycle.

At first he considered modifying his motorcycle to add a third wheel for stability. But as modification costs added up, his interest turned to buying Harley-Davidson’s popular Street Glide Trike. The manufacturer also makes a pricier Tri Glide Ultra Classic.

While Padilla can still feel the wind on his face and the bugs against his teeth, his new wheels ooze luxury. These trikes, which are acquiring a lot of “street credibility” as more and more boomers head down the highway on them, are equipped with cruise control, optional reverse gear, GPS navigation, stereo speakers, hand warmers and headsets to ease communications.

Padilla and his wife, Eva, are planning some long-distance trips, the first being to Modesto to celebrate a friend’s 25th wedding anniversary. Arizona and Nevada destinations are also on the horizon.

Padilla said his adult children have never shown much interest in riding. But after he brought his trike home, his daughters are suddenly asking for rides. “It’s pretty tricked out.”

Carmen Mazzei is fighting a seven-year battle with cancer. It showed up first as a brain tumor and she beat it back. It returned in her spine. Again she was triumphant. Then it was her breast and kidney. Now she is being treated for lung cancer.

Mazzei, who looks 20 years younger than her age (which she will keep to herself) credits her athletic life for her ability to fight her grueling health battle. Before she became ill, she worked out regularly at a local gym, enjoyed water and snow skiing, taught her children how to ride motorcycles, didn’t smoke, ate good and kept her weight down.

She has a “won’t quit” attitude, believes “every day is a good day,” and can be heard telling people, “I have cancer, but I am not going to let cancer have me.”

But the side effects of her chemotherapy and related health problems, including a knee injury, kept her from her exercise routine. Mazzei’s son, Mike, talked her into buying an adult tricycle from Snider’s.

“Thanks to my precious son, I got this,” she said, grinning as she straddled her new wheels on the street in front of her northeast Bakersfield home. “He knows how active I want to be.”

Mazzei’s trike has a basket in back of the seat, where she carries her two pomeranian dogs on her daily treks through her neighborhood.

“I need to exercise. I’m not the type of person who can just sit around,” she said. But her medications throw her balance off, preventing her from riding a two-wheel bicycle.

“I feel so much better being able to ride,” she said. “At first I thought I would look silly. But I have fallen in love with it. I came alive when I saw it.”

Mazzei had no reason to fear looking silly on her trike. She only had to check out www.bicycle-riding-for –boomers.com to discover the wide range of cycling options that exist for boomers and beyond.

“There is an exciting re-awakening in the world of bicycle riding driven by boomer-aged riders looking for fun and fitness. Old line bike manufacturers are producing more products for mature riders and new manufacturers are appearing frequently,” according to the webpage.

Recognizing the demand for trikes as its customers aged, Harley-Davidson began manufacturing three-wheel versions of its popular touring bikes in 2009.

“Fifteen years ago, people didn’t know what to make of it,” Harley-Davidson’s chief marketing officer, Mark-Hans Richer, told The Associated Press earlier this year. “Now it’s become a form of personal expression. The stigma of three wheels is gone.”

This article by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on March 14, 2010.

JOHN HARDISTY: Dairy Farmers Tell Your Story

2010-03-13T21:05:00.000-08:00

John Hardisty of Bakersfield, a principal in the consulting firm South Valley Solutions, has posted on his blog http://johnhardisty.com an article supporting the California dairy industry’s response to attacks by animal rights groups, such as the U.S. Humane Society.

John Hardisty commends the decision by the state’s dairy farmers to join together in an oversight and standards verification program that will assure Californians that dairy cows are being treated humanely.

But John Hardisty believes the dairy industry must do more. An outreach center, such as the one at Fair Oaks Farms in Indiana, should be established to showcase California’s innovative dairy industry. City folks should be invited into the barns to be awed by the industry’s advances. He recommends such an information center be established in Bakersfield, which has some of California’s newest and most innovative dairies, and which is located close to urban Southern California.

To learn more about the Fair Oaks Farms information center click on to
http://tinyurl.com/FairOaksFarmIndiana

John Hardisty’s article can be read by clicking on to
http://tinyurl.com/yfqs2lm

WHAT'S NEXT FOR FLOREZ?

2010-03-13T13:21:00.000-08:00

Maybe the next governor will appoint him to an administrative post. Perhaps he’ll go back to investment banking.

Given his fight against Pacific Gas & Electric Co., he’d be an interesting choice for the California Public Utilities Commission.

Speculation flew Friday about what might be next for state Sen. Dean Florez after he dropped out of the lieutenant governor’s race as San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom announced he was running.

The Shafter Democrat said he was backing Newsom.

Newsom won precious name recognition in 2004 when he told the San Francisco city-county clerk to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. He had a significant lead in polling, Florez said, and it would take a lot of money to catch up. Florez had about $1 million in the bank at the end of last year.

“I don’t mind a good fight, but I had to ask myself, ‘At what point does the fight just become a distraction as opposed to a real competition?’” Florez said. “I concluded that it would have become just a very expensive distraction from the important work of creating a better California.”

And, Florez said, he likes Newsom.

With only nine months left in his state Senate career, the termed-out Florez, 46, will be looking for work after 2010.

What are his plans?

In the short term, he said, he’ll continue his legislative fight against childhood obesity, diabetes, animal abuse and “SmartMeter failures” and will work to fix the valley water supply and state budget problems.

He said he’ll also campaign for Newsom, gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown and attorney general hopeful Kamala Harris.

Beyond that Florez was far less certain except that he’ll be spending more time with his family and “staying in the same place for at least seven days in a row.”

“I haven’t done that in 12 years,” said Florez. “My daughter is the happiest person on earth right now.”

He ruled out a run for a different public office this year but said he could seek a higher-level elected post in the future. Florez said public service “has been in my blood,” noting he’s not only served in the state Assembly but was freshman class president at Shafter High School and UCLA student body president.

“Public service will always be an option and future elective office a possibility — as long as there is a problem to solve,” Florez said. “I believe my options are limitless.”

A consensus among Florez watchers is that he could nab a gubernatorial appointment if Brown wins. Former local Assemblywoman Nicole Parra said it’s telling that Florez announced he’ll be campaigning for Brown, Newsom and Harris.

“I see him really focusing on those big campaigns in the hopes of landing a spot within the Brown administration,” Parra said.

He could always hang onto his campaign cash for a future lieutenant governor bid, she said.

“He still has a million dollars in his account. Who’s to say he couldn’t run again in eight years with Newsom’s endorsement?” Parra said.

Florez said he plans to give his campaign money to other Democrats in upcoming elections, especially to take back the governorship and win other important races.

Parra said Florez wouldn’t win a future election in the valley because he moved so far to the left to generate statewide support. She cited Florez’s recent push for a new tax on sugar-sweetened beverages to fund anti-childhood obesity programs and on pet food to help support a registry of animal abusers.

Jimmy Yee, who owns a public affairs firm and has done some political consulting, said he hopes Florez is appointed to the Public Utilities Commission by the next governor — “whoever she may be,” he quipped. (Yee supports Republican Meg Whitman.)

Florez has demanded PG&E resolve customer complaints about their SmartMeters and check the technology itself.

“I think his advocacy on the issues of utility rates and the SmartMeters is commendable,” Yee said. “Think of what he could do at the PUC for consumers.”

Local political analyst and former Kern County Supervisor Gene Tackett said he’s heard Florez is in line for an appointment and that he is interested in a PUC post.

The governor appoints the five CPUC commissioners to staggered six-year terms. According to the commission’s website, two terms expire in January 2011.

Tackett said Florez would also make a good lobbyist. He would be in favor with pet lovers as a result of his animal protection legislation — the ban on cow tail docking and the recent proposal for an animal abuser registry, for example, he said.

“He knows how to get things done in government,” Tackett said. “He is a smart guy.”

Also going with the gubernatorial appointment or lobbying gig as possibilities was Allan Hoffenblum, co-editor of the Target Book, which analyzes state races.

“I’m sure he has mounds of contacts. And he’s not been an obscure back-bencher; he’s well-known and chaired several committees,” Hoffenblum said. “I’d be surprised if he had any difficulty finding a new position.”

Candi Easter, chair of the Kern County Democratic Party, noted Florez was an early supporter of Barack Obama’s and thought maybe a seat in that administration is in the offing.

She didn’t like hearing Florez that had dropped out of the lieutenant governor’s race.

“I think he had a good shot at it,” Easter said. “A lot of Democrats in the valley are disappointed.”

This article written by Government Editor Christine Bedell appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on March 13, 2010. Dianne Hardisty contributed to this report.

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY

2010-03-10T13:59:00.000-08:00

International Women's Day was celebrated in Kern County this week with honors bestowed on seven local women for their contributions to their communities, science, business, education, health and arts.

The women honored for their achievements during a dinner at the Petroleum Club in Bakersfield included:

Sarwa Aldoori, science. An Iraq-born doctor, Aldoori provides medical services in Arvin with Clinica Sierra Vista and operates the Walk-in Medical Health for All clinic, which is focused on underserved patients, particularly those of Arabic, Hispanic and other descents. During her medical training, the war in Iraq and Iran broke out. A specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, she delivered babies by candlelight in a very poor area near Baghdad. Her medical research has related to fetal medicine, ovarian cancer and obstetrics.

Ann Choung, business. Choung was born in South Korea and moved to the United States when she was a young woman. She is a sales associate for Stroope Realtors, where she was the local office's top sales person for 24 out of 25 years. She is one of the founders of the Korean American Association of Bakersfield and has helped implement programs for Korean youth groups, senior citizens and scholarships for Korean high school students. She promotes the learning of Korean traditional music and dance.

Kip Glazer, education. Glazer was born in South Korea. She earned a master's degree in curriculum and instruction. When she taught at Arvin High School, she developed and coached a team to participate in various Health Occupation Students of America competitions. Last year, she was named the Outstanding HOSA adviser for the national organization. She now teaches at Independence High School.

Chiuyee Ho, community service. Ho was born in mainland China. After completing her university education, she came to the United States and settled in Bakersfield. Her community service includes helping the local Chinese population, particularly recent immigrants. She has provided interpretation in the courts, hospitals and other agencies. She was one of the founders of the Chinese Christian Church of Bakersfield and has served on the board of Hoffman Hospice of the Valley.

Aniko K. Matis, health services. A medical doctor, Matis was born in Hungary. After arriving in Bakersfield, she obtained specialty training in internal medicine at Kern Medical Center. Recently retired from the Kern County Department of Public Health, Matis promoted free mammograms for low-income women and the Community Action Partnership of Kern Family Health Center. Awarded for this service, she was instrumental in CAPK being recognized by Gayle Wilson, wife of former California Gov. Pete Wilson, for the organization's service to the community. Recognized as the Health Department's employee of the year, she also was twice named physician of the year by the Kern Nurse Practitioner/Physician Assistants Association.

Nicole Saint-John, arts/entertainment. Saint-John was born in Germany, where she worked as a graphic artist. After arriving in Bakersfield, she opened an art gallery and was assistant curator at the Bakersfield Museum of Art. She has mentored local artists with developmental disabilities through her work for the Arts Council of Kern. During the Eye Gallery series, an annual celebration of art sponsored by The Californian and Bakersfield Museum of Art, she presented a painting and essay about growing up in the shadow of the Berlin Wall. She has received numerous honors and awards for her work.

Sharlu Myat Tusaw, community service. Tusaw was born in 1973 in Burma. She is a 2002 graduate of Cal State Bakersfield, where she earned a degree in political science. In 2007, she became a case worker for the International Rescue Committee in Bakersfield, helping resettle 150 refugees, mostly ethnic Karen from Burma. She has helped link the refugees to community services, find homes and feel at home in Bakersfield. Although the IRC's Bakersfield office closed last year, she continues to assist refugees and has written a book on the plight of the Karen refugees.

International Women's Day is the story of ordinary women as makers of history. It is rooted in the centuries-old struggle of women to participate in society on an equal footing.

The idea of an International Women's Day first arose at the turn of the century, a period of industrialization, expansion, turbulence, booming population growth and urban poverty, and humanist cries of hope and protest.

Like many things, this started in America. On March 8, 1857 women from New York City's clothing and textile factories protested poor working conditions and low wages. The protesters were attacked and dispersed by police.

The first National Woman's Day was observed across the United States in 1909. In 1975, the United Nations began sponsoring International Women's Day.

Bakersfield began celebrating International Women's Day in 2002, thanks to a collaborative effort by the League of Women Voters and the American Association of University Women.

This year's event was organized by Cal State Bakersfield, Kern Community College District, League of Women Voters, African-American Network, American Association of University Women, Bakersfield Korean American Association, Filipino Community of Bakersfield and Vicinity, Inc., Girl Scouts-Joshua Tree Council, Indo-Chinese Community, Kern County Superintendent of Schools, Latina Leaders of Kern County, Muslim Public Affairs Council, National Council of Negro Women, and Southeast Asian Community.

This story written by Dianne Hardisty first appeared in The Bakersfield Californian on March 10, 2010.

BOOMERS: GET SHINGLES VACCINE

2010-02-21T18:18:00.000-08:00

People who have experienced or witnessed the pain associated with shingles are rushing to obtain Zostavax, a vaccine manufactured by Merck & Co. Inc.

Kalpna Patel, a pharmacist in the Central California city of Bakersfield, says she has administered hundreds of doses at her San Dimas Pharmacy. As consumers have discovered in other California communities and other states, the vaccine can be administered in pharmacies and doctors’ offices.

But the vaccine is expensive, when not covered by insurance. It also must remain frozen until injected. As a result, some physicians and pharmacies do not make it readily available. But that is not curbing the increasing demand.

“Shingles can be very painful. There have been cases that have caused blindness,” said Patel, adding that the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends people who are over 60 years of age and who do not have disqualifying medical conditions receive the vaccine.

As people learn about the vaccine through the manufacturer’s advertising, or from their doctors, they are requesting it, said pharmacist Sylvia Ta, another Bakersfield pharmacist. Ta said anyone who has been exposed to chicken pox should be vaccinated.

Shingles is a viral disease that commonly strikes older adults. It is caused by the same virus that causes chicken pox in children. After exposure to chicken pox, the virus remains dormant, or “asleep” in nerve cells along the spinal column for decades.

As immune systems become compromised with age, or for other unknown reasons, the virus can reactivate, following a nerve to the skin’s surface, where it will appear as a painful rash.

Dr. Rafael Harpaz, a CDC epidemiologist, told National Public Radio that the painful blisters can travel to the face and into the eyes, where they can impair vision and even cause blindness.

“It can last for months and sometimes even years. It can be really life shattering,” he said. “I’ve heard stories of vibrant 62-year-old tennis-playing persons that end up being housebound and suicidal because of severe pain and not being able to interact socially and so forth.”

To hear NPR’s report, go to http://tinyurl.com/NPRshingles

Most people over the age of 60 have been exposed to the chicken pox virus. Although the vaccine to prevent chicken pox was developed in Japan in the 1970s, it wasn’t until 1995 that it was recommended for routine use in the United States.

Merck researchers estimate there are more than a million cases of shingles in the United States each year. The average person has a 30 percent chance of developing the condition in their lifetime.

Dr. William Schaffner, chairman of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt Medical School in Nashville, Tenn., gave this statistic perspective when he told NPR that almost half the people who reach 85 years of age will have experienced shingles at some point in their lives.

As with all vaccines, there is no guarantee that Zostavax will prevent shingles, said Patel. But its effectiveness has led the CDC to recommend it be given to people 60 years of age and older, who are more susceptible to shingles. It is uncertain if children now receiving the vaccine to prevent chicken pox will also carry the dormant virus and will need to be vaccinated to prevent shingles in their later years.

But a dose of Zostavax can be expensive if you do not have insurance, or your insurance does not cover the medication.

Because of the cost, the need to order the vaccine in volume and the need to keep the “live virus” vaccine frozen until it is administered, many local physicians and pharmacies to do carry it, Patel said.

Patel’s pharmacy is one of the few in metropolitan Bakersfield, where the vaccine can be purchased and administered. Patel said about 70 percent of the people who come into her pharmacy for Zostavax are covered by Medicare. Those who have not reached Medicare age and do not have insurance to pick up the cost pay $215 for the vaccine. Some insurance plans will only pay for the vaccine if it is administered by a physician.

At Ta’s pharmacy, a physician will request an order of Zostavax. When it arrives at the pharmacy, the patient will pick it up and take it quickly to the physician to be injected, or the pharmacy will deliver the medication to the doctor’s office so that it will be administered shortly after it arrives. This may require the patient to make two doctor’s visits.

Pharmacists and insurance providers urge people to read and understand their coverage before getting vaccinated. Medicare and many insurance plans will cover this relatively new vaccine. But how to get insurance companies to pay up may be hidden in the “fine print.”

With Vanderbilt’s Schaffner calling the vaccine a “major public health advance” for the 60-plus age group, Patel said getting an injection of Zostavax is worth the effort.

This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Feb. 21. 2010.

ADULTS MISS VACCINATIONS

2010-02-21T18:15:00.000-08:00

Nearly 50,000 adult Americans die each year from diseases that could have been prevented by vaccines, according to a report released this month.

“Adult Immunization: Shots to Save Lives,” a report prepared jointly by the Trust for America’s Health, the Infectious Disease Society of America and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, tracked illnesses and adult vaccination rates in each state.

“This country does not have an effective strategy for immunizing adults against infectious diseases,” said Jeffrey Levi, executive director of Trust for America’s Health, as the report was being released. The report can be read at www.healthyamericans.org/

“Thousands of lives could be saved each year if we could increase the number of adults who receive routine and recommended vaccinations. We need a national strategy to make vaccines a regular part of medical care and to educate Americans about the effectiveness and safety of vaccines,” Levi said.

Researchers noted that the systems in place to vaccinate America’s children are “first rate.” But too often adults fall through the cracks. Adults may not have access to medical care, or are not aware of the need to be vaccinated.

Community health officials are confirming this shortcoming in adult vaccinations. Dr. Claudia Jonah, the health officer in Kern County, Calif., agreed that more needs to be done to vaccinate adults.

Noting the demand among adults in her rural Central California county for H1N1 (swine flu) vaccinations, Jonah said vaccination rates will increase when a case is made for the need.

“This is a very important discussion people should be having with their doctors,” she said, pointing out that the Kern County Health Department primarily is called upon to vaccinate adults who plan to travel. The vaccination records of these adults and the risks found in countries they plan to visit are evaluated, and shots administered.

According to Jonah, adults should be vaccinated for pneumonia, tetanus, diphtheria, hepatitis A and B, and seasonal flu. Tetanus and diphtheria require booster shots. If an adult has received the complete polio series as a child, no booster shots are required.

In many cases, young women also will be urged to receive the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, she said.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the failure of American adults to be vaccinated adds about $10 billion annually to the cost of health care.

States require children to be vaccinated before they can enroll in school. Veterinarians send out reminder cards to have dogs and cats vaccinated to be licensed. But little is done to alert adults to the need to be vaccinated.

“We give a lot of attention to protecting our children,” said Jonah. “More needs to be done for adults.”

This article by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Feb. 21, 2010.

CARPETBAGGERS: DO VOTERS CARE?

2010-02-20T20:56:00.000-08:00

Carpetbagger describes opportunistic Northerners, who moved to the South after the Civil War to loot, plunder and politically manipulate the defeated states for personal gain.

The word applies today to a politician who runs for public office in an area in which he is not from, or in which he has lived for only a short time. Depending on the politician, the area and the circumstances, the word can either enrage voters, or make them yawn.

Campaigns in the 30th Assembly District and the 16th state Senate District – two sprawling political jurisdictions that include portions of Kern County, as well as neighboring counties – have attracted candidates some might call carpetbaggers. But the candidates’ residencies will likely cause more yawns than outrage, according to political observers.

Former Kern County Supervisor Pete Parra has rented an apartment in Hanford, and moved his residency and voter registration from Bakersfield to that city to run in the June Democratic primary for the 30th Assembly District seat being vacated by Republican Danny Gilmore of Hanford. Parra will face Fran Florez, a Shafter city councilwoman and member of the California High Speed Rail Authority, for the Democratic nomination.

Phil Wyman, a former Republican assemblyman and state senator, has moved his residency and voter registration from his Tehachapi ranch to Hanford to seek the Republican nomination to succeed 16th District Sen. Dean Florez, a Democrat, who is termed out of office. So far, Wyman is the only Republican in the race. He is expected to face Kern County Supervisor Michael Rubio, a Democrat.

Likely both Parra’s and Wyman’s opponents will raise residency as an issue. Both men are prepared to respond.

Parra points out that he grew up in east Bakersfield, which is included in the 30th District. His Bakersfield home is only one mile outside its boundaries. As a former Kern County supervisor and before that as the head of the county’s jobs program, and now as a member of regional organizations, such as the eight-county California Partnership for the San Joaquin Valley, he says he is tuned into the concerns of district residents.

Wyman calls his move to Hanford a return home. He lived in the Kings County city for three years – from 1993 to 1995 – when he represented the 16th Senate District after the Legislature redrew district lines, shuffling politicians into new areas.

In those years, so many candidates were moving around to run for offices that The Californian mocked four of its elected representatives -- Wyman, former Sen. Don Rogers, former Kern County Supervisor and later Assemblyman Roy Ashburn, and former Assemblyman, Senator and now Congressman Jim Costa -- by depicting them in a cartoon riding a gypsy cart dressed in gypsy costumes.

Wyman, who claims election fraud blocked his reelection to the 16th Senate seat, which he lost to Costa, says he is very familiar with the people and needs of the district.

But why move to Hanford?

“People in Kern County know me well,” said Parra, explaining he is not as well known in the northern part of the district. Parra’s daughter, Nicole, represented the 30th District until she was termed out of office in 2008. She, too, embraced Hanford as her home as a candidate and later as an assemblywoman. Both Parras were attracted to the picturesque, tree-filled city because it is located in the heart of the district.

Wyman explained that traveling to the far reaches of the 16th District would take hours if he had just moved to Bakersfield, instead of Hanford, to satisfy residency requirements. A base in Hanford gives candidates quick access to voters in Kings, Fresno, Tulare and Kern counties.

“Voters don’t seem to mind where candidates live,” said Bakersfield government consultant Gene Tackett, who pointed out residency in a district is not required to hold a seat in Congress. “People seem to vote more by party, or ideology. I am not sure [residency] is that important to voters.”

Tackett noted that Tom McClintock represented Thousand Oaks in Southern California in the state Senate until he moved in 2008 to Northern California to successfully run for the 4th Congressional District, a vacancy created when Rep. John Doolittle decided not to seek re-election.

McClintock, a Republican, responded to carpetbagger charges: “I think most people are far more interested in where one stands than where one lives.”

McClintock had plenty of examples to back up that claim. They included the recent relocation of Dan Lungren, a Republican state and federal lawmaker who represented the Long Beach area before becoming California attorney general. In 2004, Lungren leaped from Southern California to successfully run for Congress in Northern California.

Former Rep. Richard Pombo, R-Tracy, who lost his seat in 2006 to Democrat Jerry McNermey, has launched a political comeback campaign. But he won’t be taking on the man who beat him. Instead of running in his “home” district, Pombo is seeking the Republican nomination in a neighboring district. So far he is facing Sen. Jeff Denham and former Fresno Mayor Jim Patterson to replace retiring Rep. George Radanovich, R-Mariposa.

“Sometimes moving into a district to run for office doesn’t work,” said political scientist Sherry Bebitch Jeffe at the University of Southern California. “And sometimes voters just don’t care. Voters will decide if it is important.”

“The real hostilities come when candidates use fake addresses and actually live outside the district,” she said.

Robert Stern, president of the Center for Governmental Studies, a Southern California-based non-partisan think tank, said he doesn’t “get all worked up” about candidates moving into districts to run for office. But questions about residency can make races tighter, he said, noting residency requirements, particularly for state legislative seats, can be a little arcane.

But Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley does get all worked up about residency. In recent months, he has started investigations of city, county and state lawmakers, including Sen. Rod Wright, D-Inglewood, and Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alarcon, for allegedly not living in the districts they represent.

“You have to have a residency requirement,” said Bakersfield Republican political consultant Stan Harper. “How do you represent a district you don’t even live in? I would have a hard time supporting a candidate who just moved into a district to run, like McClintock. Carpetbagging is wrong.”

But Republican political consultant Cathy Abernathy of Bakersfield has a more tolerant view, noting the distance a candidate moves might make a difference.

“If someone from San Francisco ran in the 32nd Assembly District, it would bother the voters a lot,” she said. “You are supposed to elect someone who knows the district and its people.”

Abernathy noted that until recently, the drawing of political district boundary lines was done by the Legislature. A ballot measure in 2008 transferred the redistricting job to a “citizen committee.” But in previous redistricting, the majority party sometimes intentionally carved the homes of minority party incumbents out of their districts.

“It’s a cute gimmick. Sometimes you have to be cute back,” Abernathy said.

This article by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Feb. 21, 2010.

HISTORIAN HAS DEEP ROOTS

2010-02-17T19:03:00.000-08:00

Lynn Hay Rudy and husband, Jerry, harvest a tree on their farm.

When Lynn Hay Rudy looks out the window of her Sonoma County farm house, she sees ocean waves crashing down on the Northern California coast. Her home is hundreds of miles away from where she grew up. Her life experiences have taken her to other nations. But her focus has remained on her roots in Bakersfield.

Rudy, a descendent of Kern County pioneers and a published historian, will speak Saturday, Feb. 20, 2010, during a luncheon meeting of the Kern County Historical Society at the Stars Theater, 1931 Chester Ave.

Rudy is the author of three local history books: “A Brief History of the Hay Family of Bakersfield, California,” “Granddad: Hugh A. Blodget in Early Bakersfield,” and “Old Bakersfield: Sites and Landmarks, 1875 – 1915.”

Her Saturday presentation will focus on downtown Bakersfield from 1860 to 2010, and will include a rough architectural history.

Rudy was born and raised in Bakersfield, graduating from East Bakersfield High School in 1951. She earned a degree in art from Stanford University, pursuing a lifelong career as a biological illustrator. She and her husband, Jerry, a marine biology professor at the University of Oregon, lived for 20 years along the Oregon coast, traveling to various countries conducting research projects.

Upon their retirement, they returned to California, settling on a small coastal farm in Sonoma County, where she is a volunteer and history writer at Fort Ross State Park.

She credits her teenage years in Bakersfield, where she became her family’s genealogist, for her passion for history.

“I have always loved history,” she explained during a recent interview. She described the hours she spent pouring over tract maps and census data to piece together her family’s Kern County story.

Her relatives started moving to Kern County in the mid-1800s. Grandfather George Hay arrived on a train from Indiana in 1892 to work in the mines in the mountains east of Bakersfield. Tiring of eating beans, he moved to “the city,” where he worked first for the county treasurer and later went into real estate, she said.

The Hay Building, a prominent downtown landmarks that bore his name, was just one of Hay’s many holdings. The building was a department store, living quarters and offices complex. For several years, it was the home of artists’ studios. It is being converted into loft apartments.

Grandfather Hugh A. Blodget arrived on a train in 1874 as a 19-year-old boy with a certificate in bookkeeping. He pursued a career in banking, becoming the cashier at the Kern Valley Bank, one of many U.S. banks to fail in a 1912 crash.

Rudy said her grandfather Blodget “lost it all” and left Bakersfield in 1918, moving to San Francisco, where he was able to restore his career and a comfortable life.

During her Saturday presentation, Rudy will discuss several prominent and historically significant downtown Bakersfield buildings, including those tied to her family. She will discuss restoration efforts in Bakersfield and elsewhere, noting the challenges that confront most communities attempting a downtown renaissance.

The mother of three adult daughters, and grandmother to six, Rudy has maintained her close ties to Bakersfield, where her brothers, nieces and nephews live.

This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Feb. 18, 2010.

ECONOMIST RESPONDS TO HARDISTY

2010-02-16T08:08:00.000-08:00

Mark Evans, an economics professor at California State University, Bakersfield, criticizes both Dianne Hardisty and the column she wrote about former Congressman Bill Thomas, R-Bakersfield, about the reappointment of Ben Bernanke to head the Federal Reserve. You can read Evans' opinion column, which appeared in the Feb. 16, 2010 edition of The Bakersfield Californian, at http://tinyurl.com/yfvp99b/

Thomas, who now is co-chairman of the congressionally appointed Fiscal Crisis Inquiry Commission, was interviewed by The Californian's former editorial page editor, Dianne Hardisty, about the economy, its meltdown and the role of federal regulators, including Bernanke. Read Hardisty's column at http://tinyurl.com/ydy8svf/

Mark Evans claims Thomas' criticism and the Hardisty column unfairly blamed Bernanke. He also claims the deeply divided Senate confirmation vote on Bernanke's continued leadership of the Fed threatens that agency's independence.

SICKLE CELL: A BATTLE FOR LIFE

2010-02-14T11:23:00.000-08:00

Not yet 30 years old and with pharmacy degrees in hand, Sanjay and Bhavana Patel moved to Bakersfield, Calif., to start new careers and a family. A promising future loomed ahead for the attractive young couple.

That was two decades ago. Bhavana became pregnant with the couple’s first child, a daughter they named Hina. But a routine blood test – one given to all newborn babies in California – headed the family down a tortuous life-and-death path.

Ten days after Hina was born, the pediatrician called. Hina had sickle cell anemia.

“I thought there had to be a mistake,” Bhavana now recalls. “We thought that was mostly an African American disease.”

But the couple, who are both of Indian descent, learned that the hereditary disease also is found in people living in Mediterranean countries, such as Italy, as well as India. Neither Sanjay, nor Bhavana knew they carried genes that could combine to inflict their beautiful baby daughter with a potentially fatal disease.

“At first we were in denial,” Bhavana said, explaining that Hina appeared and behaved as a healthy, normal baby. But as Hina approached her first birthday, she had her first “pain crisis.” Her feet and hands swelled up. “It was very painful. All she did was cry. Then we knew it was real.”

Initially common pain relievers, such as Tylenol, gave baby Hina relief. But as pain crisis followed pain crisis, stronger drugs were administered.

“The pain became so severe,” Bhavana said, recalling staying day and night at her daughter’s side. Trips to hospital emergency rooms and to Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles began.

For the first three years, Hina’s treatment required frequent blood transfusions. But doctors at L.A. Children’s Hospital warned that these transfusions could cause a dangerous build-up of iron in the toddler’s system.

As the years passed and Hina’s condition worsened, Sanjay and Bhavana began investigating the option of a bone marrow transplant for their daughter. Her severe and repeated pain episodes and the availability of a matching donor would qualify her for the procedure.

Despite her medical struggles, Hina did well in school. New medicines provided periods when her pain was controlled and she could join in activities with classmates, including going to Camp KEEP, an outdoor environmental camp for area school children. As a teenager, she excelled in her studies at Stockdale High School. But medical complications in her senior year required her to leave the classroom and finish her studies with the help of at-home teachers. Still, she graduated with a 4.1 grade point average.

After a second consultation at Stanford Hospital, which indicated an 80 percent chance of success, a “family decision” was made in 2008 for Hina to have a bone marrow transplant at L.A. Children’s Hospital.

The procedure was successful and Hina’s sickle cell disease was believed to be cured, said Bhavana. But donor cells and Hina’s cells began fighting each other – a condition referred to as graft versus host disease.

Initially fearing the transplant had failed, Hina’s medical team, which expanded to include the staff at the Children’s Hospital in Seattle, Wash., once again began applying new therapies, which the family hopes will beat back the transplant threat. Hina and her family are now consulting with medical staff at the University of California, Los Angeles, hospital.

Sustaining her in this fight have been more than 80 units of platelets that Houchin Community Blood Bank donors in Bakersfield have provided.

“We owe her life to you,” Sanjay told platelet donors being honored at a recent Houchin dinner. “Because of you, we will see her get better.”

“Sometimes I ask, ‘Why me?’ But I know everyone faces bumps in the road,” Hina told donors. “I try to keep positive mentally and have hope. I have faith in God. … Finding my match for platelets is difficult. Houchin has been able to do that.”

Some of the donors honored at the Houchin dinner had given up to 630 units of platelets, a component critical to blood clotting. Donating platelets differs from donating whole blood in that the procedure takes longer. Based on medical considerations, fewer people are qualified to donate.

“Giving platelets to someone you don’t know is a sterling example of selflessness,” Sanjay told Houchin donors.

Just days after Hina and her family spoke to donors, Hina was admitted to Bakersfield Memorial Hospital, where once again she relied on platelets from Houchin to stay alive and fight off an infection. She has returned home to continue her recovery.

While Hina fights to keep her bone marrow transplant, she is taking online college courses through Bakersfield College. The 19-year-old honors student has been accepted into the University of Pacific’s pharmacy program. The university has promised to keep its admission offer open until Hina recovers.

She will be following in her parent’s professional footsteps, although Bhavana placed her career on hold after her daughter’s diagnosis. “If you have a child with sickle cell, you become a stay-at-home mom, you become an advocate, staying on top of her treatment,” Bhavana said, offering no regrets for her career decision.

And her advice for other parents: “Especially if you are African American, always test yourself. Otherwise, you can pass this along to your offspring.”

Following genetic testing, Sanjay and Bhavana had a second daughter, Amie, who is now 16 years old and a student at Stockdale High School. Bhavana said Amie carries her mother’s gene for the disease, but not her father’s. While Amie does not have sickle cell disease, Bhavana says her daughter will need to consider the risks when she marries and has children.

To learn more about sickle cell disease go to www.sicklecelldisease.org

This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Feb. 14, 2010.

BLOOD PLATELET DEMAND INCREASES

2010-02-14T11:18:00.000-08:00

Marci Hayes and Judith O’Brien are buddies. Before retiring, they taught school together at Walter Stiern Middle School. Leonard Zasoski and Daniel Reed work together at Colombo Construction. Florn Core and Gary Leary are neighbors.

They were among the many men and women sitting together at tables jammed into a banquet room at Hodel’s Restaurant on Knudsen Drive recently. They all were being honored for giving generously and compassionately of themselves. They were platelet donors being recognized by Houchin Community Blood Bank.

Many were buddies, coworkers, neighbors and classmates. Most became platelet donors after donating whole blood for years. And many became the backbone of Houchin’s donor network after a family member or friend experienced a medical crisis requiring a lifesaving transfusion.

Leonard Zasoski began donating blood two decades ago to help his father. Eventually he was urged to donate platelets, a more time-consuming procedure requiring donors to have well-structured blood veins and no limiting medical factors.

Zasoski has donated 169 units of platelets. The blood-clotting attributes of platelets help fight many diseases. Transfusions of platelets often are required in the treatment of cancer patients.

“Think about it. How would you feel if you had a loved one who needed a transfusion and no one would donate?” Zasoski said, explaining why he continued to donate long after his family’s immediate needs were met. “And you feel good about donating. You are helping someone out.”

Leary began donating blood when he served in the Marine Corps. In the years that followed, family and friends needed transfusions, and Leary generously stepped forward. Joking about his large, healthy veins, Leary eventually was asked to donate platelets. Leary, whose wife, Deborah, is active in the American Cancer Society, knows about the increasing local need for platelets and has donated 93 units, so far.

Platelets are among the several components found in blood donated at Houchin, explained charge nurse Bronny Mullen. Plasma also is a common component retrieved from donors.

An automated system draws blood from donors at Houchin’s Truxtun Avenue center. With whole blood donations, the procedure is basically a “gravity flow” and relatively quick. However, harvesting components can take about 90 minutes to process and separate blood though the automated system. This includes the time required to interview and screen donors before blood is taken.

The need for donations of whole blood, platelets and plasma continues to grow as the area’s population increases and advanced medical procedures, such as those for cancer treatment, become available in the community, said Mullen.

As an example, she noted that the opening of a burn center at San Joaquin Hospital increased the need for plasma, which is critical to healing therapies.

Information about donating whole blood, or components, such as platelets, can be obtained from Houchin Community Blood Bank’s website www.hcbb.com or by calling 323-4222.

This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Feb. 14, 2010.

VYING FOR LATINO VOTES

2010-02-09T21:28:00.000-08:00

The 20th Congressional District, which includes Kern, Kings and Fresno counties, was identified by last year’s “Measure of America” survey as the poorest in the nation. Represented by Democrat Congressman Jim Costa of Fresno, the district came in “dead last” for poverty, poor health and school dropouts.

Few who have worked with the poor in the southern San Joaquin Valley were surprised by the findings, which also explain why minority communities, where new immigrants often struggle just to survive, see little participation in the political process.

“It’s the hierarchy of needs,” said Kern County Supervisor Michael Rubio, whose 5th District includes some of the poorest neighborhoods of Bakersfield, Lamont and Arvin.

“The first thing many people think about is, ‘Do I have a job today? Am I making a living wage? Do I have health care?’ They don’t have time to read campaign material. The hierarchy of needs means they have to fend for themselves first,” he said.

“Many are too busy trying to survive and pay next month’s rent,” said Magda Menendez, administrator of the Mexican American Opportunity Foundation in Bakersfield.

Sen. Dean Florez, whose 16th state Senate district overlaps the 20th Congressional District, agreed. He also blamed confusing ballots, which are cluttered with complex and sometimes contradictory propositions, for discouraging widespread voter participation.

“People have to have a reason to vote, to come out and take the time to express their choices,” said Florez, who is running for California lieutenant governor. “I’ve spoken to people who simply feel that the ballot is too complicated and it feels like it’s somewhat of a test that you would get in school.”

“There are too many important issues affecting minority communities for people not to participate,” said Nicole Parra, who represented Kern County’s 30th Assembly District until she was termed out of office in 2008.

Now a Fresno-based government consultant, Parra noted that the Central Valley struggles with persistent poverty issues. The valley’s average per capita income is 32.2 percent lower than the rest of the state; college attendance is 50 percent below state average; and the unemployment rate is among the highest.

To mobilize “voters, people need to feel like they make a difference, they are part of a team,” said Parra. “Most importantly, voters want to know that the elected official cares about their needs and their concerns.”

The Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association (APAPA) has been meeting with Kern County activists in hopes of encouraging minority voters to participate in this year’s critical elections.

“It’s a matter of empowering people to get involved with their government at the national, state and local levels,” explained Danny Lee, president of APAPA’s Central Valley Chapter.

Les Fong, vice president of APAPA’s Central Valley Chapter, said his organization is planning to hold a May 2010 town hall meeting in Bakersfield to bring local and state candidates before Kern County voters. A voter education program also is being developed. Fong, a Stockton advertising executive, can be reached by e-mail at les@kenfongassociates.com.

According to estimated U.S. Census data, Latinos in 2008 comprised 47.1 percent of Kern County’s population, with non-Latino whites comprising 41.1 percent. Blacks were 6.4 percent, with the remainder of Kern County’s population of 800,458 being comprised of various other minority ethnic groups.

Yet, non-Latino white voters have the political clout in California. The Public Policy Institute of California reported last fall that while Latinos make up about 32 percent of the state’s adult population, they are only 17 percent of the registered voters most likely to turn out in elections. By contrast, whites constitute 47 percent of California’s adult population, but 68 percent of the state’s likely voters.

Many Latinos and other ethnic minorities are not citizens and therefore not eligible to vote. U.S. Census estimates for 2008 indicate about 68 percent of Kern County’s 155,938 foreign-born residents – and that population figure includes children and immigrants who are legally in this country -- are not U.S. citizens.

But even removing the citizenship factor, Latinos and most ethnic minority groups in California and Kern County have a low voter turnout rate, according to researchers and political observers.

Lee explained that many new citizens come from countries that have repressive governments. Voter participation is not understood or considered relevant. “They are not involved. They stay within their families. They keep to themselves.”

Recent gains by Latino politicians, who have been elected to local and state offices, should not be overestimated, warned Florez.

“Yes, you have Latinos who are taking on greater and more significant roles in government, but that was not always the case, even 10 years ago,” he said. “There is a nascent rise in political power among Latinos … [but the Latino community] is growing astronomically in California.

“We are entering a period where California will become the most integrated, multi-cultural population ever in the history of the world and it’s all been accomplished relatively peacefully,” he said. Minority participation in the political system is “a big deal because this integration is important to our survival as a society.”

Citing the findings of Bakersfield researcher Jesus Garcia, Menendez noted Kern County has 113,000 “high propensity voters” – people who have voted in three of the last five elections. Of these, 35,000, or about 32 percent, are Latino.

Of the 10,000 new voters in Kern County, 4,000 were Latinos – 43 percent registered Democrats, 20 percent Republican and “a whopping 30 percent were declined to state. [That sends] a big message to the Democratic and Republican parties, don’t you think,” she said.

Rubio suggests the political clout of minority communities could be awakened in 2010.

While people are focused on survival, “in times of great stress, as we currently are in, pressure builds for change,” said Rubio, who is running for the 16th state Senate seat and hopes to replace the termed-out incumbent. The 2010 elections could be about change.

This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in Mas Magazine on Feb. 7, 2010.

MAKE IT COUNT!

2010-02-09T21:03:00.000-08:00

Everyone – citizens, residents and undocumented immigrants -- will gain, or lose from the results of the 2010 Census.

Based on the count of people living in the United States in 2010, about $400 billion in federal funds will be distributed to communities. Public services, ranging from police protection to medical care, will receive federal support based on population estimates. And representation in federal congressional districts, as well as local government bodies will be determined.

For a variety of reasons, including fear of the government and the desire to make “political statements,” some people will not participate in this U.S. Constitution-mandated national population count.

Some of the very people who may be tempted to avoid the Census are the ones who will lose the most from not being counted, noted Reyna Olaguez, U.S. Census spokeswoman for Kern and Tulare counties.

These are the people who may be most in need of public services, or whose voices should be heard and heeded by elected government officials.

Latinos and Asian immigrants are among those most likely to avoid being counted.

Olaguez explained some fear information collected on Census questionnaires will be shared with other government agencies. But federal law prevents this from happening. Answers and other information about respondents are confidential.

The Coalition of Latino Clergy and Christian Leaders has launched a boycott of the U.S. Census in an attempt to force Congress to reform immigration policies.

“We urge members of Congress to pass a fair, decent and humane comprehensive immigration reform bill. Though such efforts have been stalled, we must continue to preach and insist: legalization before enumeration,” the Rev. Miguel Rivera, the coalition’s president, said in a January press release.

This has sparked a reaction from other Latino leaders. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, as well as representatives of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund held a press opposing the boycott and urging people to participate in the Census.

They called having an accurate count of everyone living in the United States – regardless of their immigration status, or ethnic background – a “civil rights issue.”

“A full count of immigrants will ensure that their communities get the resources they need to address the economic and educational needs of the residents,” said Rosalind Gold, senior director of policy research and advocacy for the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials.

Census questionnaires will be mailed out in March and are to be mailed back by April 1, Olaguez said. Between April and July, Census workers will go door-to-door to households that did not return questionnaires and to seek responses.

This year’s Census questionnaire contains only 10 questions. It is much shorter than the forms used by the Census in 2000. That year, some households received a lengthy American Community Survey, which included lifestyle questions.

Hiring of part-time enumerators for the door-to-door phase of the Census will get into high gear in February, said Olaguez. Enumerators will work flexible and part-time hours from April until July, earning about $11 to $19 an hour.

Go onto the Internet at http://2010.census.gov/2010censusjobs/ or call 866-861-2010 for hiring information.

This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in Mas Magazine on Feb. 7, 2010.

BRAVO FARMS IS WORTH THE STOP

2010-02-08T21:25:00.000-08:00

Likely you have driven by Bravo Farms, on the east side of Highway 99, about six miles south of Kingsburg, without giving it a thought. Maybe the 1950s Nash Metropolitan poking out from a rooftop caught your attention. But unless you needed gas, you probably never thought about stopping.

Well, think about it. If you stop once, you will make it a favorite “destination” on your trips north.

The Bravo Farms complex includes a gas station, market, restaurant, gift shop and gourmet cheese factory. But it’s much more.

It’s a jumble of antiques and collectables. It’s a petting zoo, private park, garden patio, meeting place and Old West town. Tomorrow it will be something else, as the visionary and eclectic owners add to their menagerie.

Like most people, I stumbled upon Bravo Farms on my way to someplace else. I left Bakersfield, driving north on Highway 99, heading for a conference in Lake Tahoe. About 90 minutes into the trip, I was already hungry and I needing to find a restroom. The Traver offramp looked promising.

My plan was to get quickly in and out. Instead, I spent nearly two hours savoring the house special – a Bravo cheeseburger – poking around the gift shop, sampling cheese and watching cheese being made through a factory display window.

It was so much fun that I didn’t mind being two hours behind schedule. Those traveling with small children would find this an entertaining place to let the kids blow off some steam.

Bravo Farms’ restaurant is not a mere hamburger joint. It has a large menu that includes a variety of American and Mexican dishes. And if you have a sweet tooth, there also is an ice cream and coffee house.

What began in the 1970s as a Highway 99 fruit stand midway between Bakersfield and Fresno has evolved into a “field of dreams” for an old-time Visalia dairyman and a young Cal Poly San Luis Obispo graduate.

Jonathan Van Ryn, who grew up on his father’s Tulare County dairy, studied cheesemaking as a Cal Poly student. After he graduated about five years ago, he laid plans to build a cheese factory.

Bill Boersma operated a small dairy near Visalia, where he milked cows and produced handmade cheese he branded as Bravo Farms. With demand for his cheese increasing, Boersma needed a new, bigger location for his factory.

The young man with lots of ideas and the older man with years of experience became partners, moving Bravo Farms into a factory built at the former Traver fruit stand. Last year, the factory turned out 400,000 pounds of award-winning cheese. This year, Bravo Farms expects to produce and sell 600,000 pounds, according to Ryan Davis, who oversees business operations at the manufacturing and retail complex.

“If you are a big cheese lover, you know about Bravo Farms,” said Van Ryn, during a recent interview. Bravo Farms cheeses have won awards at national and international competitions. They are served in five-star restaurants, and sold in gourmet shops, farmers’ markets, chain supermarkets and over the Internet (www.bravofarms.com). “They are very well known in the Bay Area. You can find them in Bakersfield in Save Marts.”

Davis says the top seller is Bravo Farms’ Chipotle Cheddar cheese. This cheese and Bravo Farms’ Silver Mountain, a 13-pound clothe-bound wheel of cheddar, have won raves and awards at numerous competitions.

Van Ryn explains Bravo Farms cheeses are produced the “old fashioned way – all raw milk, nothing pasteurized and a lot of natural flavors.” The cheese is produced from milk that comes from a Pixley dairy operated by Van Ryn’s uncle, Gary de Graaf. It takes about a gallon of milk to make a pound of Bravo Farms cheese.

Visitors can watch cheese being made through a large viewing window or by arranging a tour by calling Davis at 559-897-4634. Bravo Farms cheese is made in three 500-gallon vats. After processing, the blocks are aged for up to nine months before being sold to customers.

Boersma brought his time-tested recipes into the partnership. Van Ryn brought his production knowledge and marketing ideas.

“In four years, we have quadrupled our business,” said Van Ryn. That business expansion has included opening a restaurant and cheese store at the Preferred Outlets Mall in Tulare last fall.

It’s a steady, cautious growth. The partners recently purchased an additional acre of land adjacent to their Traver complex, where a wine retail outlet may be added to complement Bravo Farms’ cheeses.

“We have a lot of dreams,” said Van Ryn. “But we have to make sure Tulare does well first. A lot of people want to do things with us.”

Van Ryn’s father, an antique collector who moved his Tulare County dairy to New Mexico, is credited with bringing many of the collectable items to the Traver complex.

“He doesn’t play golf. This is his hobby,” said Van Ryn, explaining his father collects nostalgic signs, statues, furniture and just plain “stuff” that are on display and for sale at Bravo Farms.

And what about the Nash Metropolitan on top of their building? There’s no deep meaning. Like a lot of the stuff at Bravo Farms, it’s just there for the fun of it.

This article appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Feb. 7, 2010.

BRAVO FARMS – TRAVER

Located – Along Highway 99, about six miles south of Kingsburg

Services – Restaurant, gift shop, petting zoo, Old West town, garden patio, gas station, cheese factory

Highlight – Watch cheese being made through a viewing window or call 559-897-4634 for a cheese factory tour.

Cheese – The factory produces award-winning Bravo Farms cheeses, which are sold at the Traver complex, as well as in gourmet shops, farmers markets, supermarkets and over the Internet at http://www.bravofarms.com/

HIGH SPEED RAIL 'PRIZE' AWAITS

2010-02-04T20:42:00.000-08:00

In the Feb. 3, 2010 Bakersfield Californian Opinion Section, planning consultant and mediator John Hardisty (Jack) wrote an article urging community leaders to organize a campaign to compete for a test track and heavy maintenance facility for the high speed rail system. (See “High-speed rail prize awaits the valley community that has its act together,” http://tinyurl.com/HSRbakersfield/)

No doubt we can argue until we are blue in the face over the long-term future of high speed rail, and whether or not it should be built. But California getting $2.3 billion in federal economic stimulus dollars, combined with $9 billion in bonds voters approved in 2008, means at least some of the system will be built.

Part of that “some” will be a test track and heavy maintenance facility. It will be built somewhere in the Central Valley. Fresno leaders believe it should be built in Fresno. Merced leaders believe it should be built in Merced. So far, there are 15 sites being proposed, including two in Kern County – Shafter and Wasco. Attached to this post are pdf files containing both proposals.

But the bottom line is that construction and operation of a heavy maintenance facility and test track to support high speed rail will mean thousands of jobs and millions of dollars coming into the community that wins this “prize.”

Kern County needs to get its promotional act together before it’s run over by this high speed train.

Bernanke, Fed lousy watchdogs

2010-01-27T22:05:00.000-08:00

Long before Republicans scored a surprise victory in Massachusetts and long before some Democrats started backing away from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Bakersfield, Calif.’s former Republican Congressman Bill Thomas expressed doubts.

Thomas, who now is the vice chairman of the congressionally established Fiscal Crisis Inquiry Commission, was interviewed in December about the commission’s upcoming hearings on the nation’s economic meltdown. The interview appeared in The Bakersfield Californian on Dec. 26, 2009. It can be read online at http://tinyurl.com/ThomasFCIC

A lot of Thomas’ heat was directed at federal regulators, including the “watchdogs” at the Federal Reserve, who let Wall Street banks run amuck, creating schemes that included bundling of undervalued and sometimes worthless mortgages, and reselling them to investors.

“Everyone kept talking about how great Ben Bernanke was because he had studied the Great Depression, and how he wasn’t going to let that happen twice,” Thomas said. “But the problem with the Great Depression was one of liquidity. They puckered up. So when they made runs on the banks – and these were banks that were perfectly sound – no one carried the cash-deposit capability to meet everyone wanting their money all at once. And they couldn’t get loans.”

The lack of liquidity did not cause the latest meltdown. Instead, the cheap money Bernanke and the Fed allowed to pour into the economy was pouring “gas onto the fire,” Thomas said.

Thomas criticized Bernanke and the Fed, which is the nation’s central bank that manages the money supply and supervises commercial banks, for allowing the housing bubble to inflate and then drag the economy down when it imploded.

Bernanke’s four-year term as the Fed chairman ends Jan. 31. Nominated in 2005 by Republican President George Bush, Bernanke has been nominated for a second term by Democratic President Barack Obama.

Many are interpreting last week’s Republican victory in Massachusetts’ special election to fill the seat of the late Sen. Edward Kennedy as evidence of growing voter anger over the economy. Bernanke’s Senate confirmation has been swept up in the political fallout.

Since the Fed was created in 1913, the Senate has never rejected a president’s nominee for chairman. The last time a nominee faced significant opposition was in 1983, when then President Carter’s Fed chairman, Paul A. Volcker, faced reappointment. Volcker won a second term by a vote of 84 to 16.

Several Democrat and Republican senators have declared their opposition to Bernanke’s continued leadership. But leaders in both parties and President Obama are running to his rescue. A vote on Bernanke’s reappointment could come as early as today.

But even Bernanke’s supporters are lukewarm. They warn rejecting Bernanke would destabilize the stock market and send a disastrous message to global partners. Besides, candidates waiting in the wings to replace Bernanke may not be any better. Most critics and supporters agree that when Bernanke and the Fed finally acted to shore up the economy last year, bigger problems were averted.

Under Bernanke’s leadership, the Fed failed to respond to signals that the economy was in trouble. Even now, many believe Bernanke has done little to acknowledge or atone for the unresponsiveness, and has turned a deaf ear to jobs creation and banking reform.

While Bernanke likely will be confirmed, doubts have been cast over his political independence and his ability to set the brakes.

Thomas noted that it is the Fed’s job to “take the punch bowl away from the party.” Instead, Wall Street bankers were allowed to just keep drinking. Thomas is concerned that as the initial crisis has passed, banks are returning to their same old tricks.

Will Bernanke in a second term be more vigilant, responsive and politically independent?

“It’s always easy to be a Monday morning quarterback,” said Thomas. “Clearly there was an unwillingness to stop this structure because it appeared to be okay and it was very lucrative.”

Thomas’ commission will shine an intense light on the meltdown players, including Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who headed the New York Federal Reserve Bank during the meltdown run-up. Its findings will help Congress and the president identify causes and craft safeguards.

Americans vowed “never again” after the Great Depression. But memories and political will faded as the good times followed. The punch bowl was left too long at the party.

This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Jan. 28, 2010. Contact Hardisty through her webpage at http://www.svs2help.com/

GADGET MAN GIVES ADVICE

2010-01-22T17:07:00.000-08:00

Dave Waterman is the "Gadget Man." Some might say he is addicted, or at least obsessed by the electronic devices that are purported to make every aspect of our lives easier. But the 69-year-old Bakersfield man claims he is just "extremely interested" in gadgets and that he actually is restrained in his buying.

The Roomba robot that vacuums his bedroom, the cameras and electronic picture frames that capture his memories, the computers, cell phones, PDAs, GPSes, notebooks, "smart shopper" -- you name it -- that he owns are all necessary and thoughtful purchases.

Waterman knows so much about gadgets and owns so many that he gives lectures about them. Last summer, he gave a series of lectures -- how to buy gadgets and how to use them -- for the Kern County Library's baby boomer program. More recently, he spoke to the Bakersfield branch of the American Association of University Women about gadgets.

"You only should buy something that you honestly need, rather than something you just want," Waterman said, noting that too often purchases are made on the basis of peer pressure, glitzy advertising and impulse. And after the novelty wears off, many of our gadgets are left to collect dust on our shelves. We also may be too embarrassed or intimidated to admit we don't know how to use them.

Industry analysts estimate that the average American household spends $1,200 a year on new electronics. Our televisions, mobile phones, computers, etc., eat up 15 percent of our home's electricity use. The International Energy Association predicts by 2022, that figure will double. And by 2030, it will triple.

Our insatiable appetite for gadgets and their rapid obsolescence are creating mounds of e-waste. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports Americans dumped 205 million computer products, more than 100 million cell phones and PDAs, and 27 million TVs in 2007, the most recent year for e-waste disposal statistics. Only about 16 percent was recycled, with much of the remainder finding its way to the nation's landfills. A decade ago, e-waste wasn't considered a problem. Now Congress is crafting laws to "control it."

As technology advances, consumers can do little to curb the energy their gadgets use. Besides, today's gadget actually may be replacing yesterday's energy-hogging machine. Consumers also can do little to control obsolescence.

Just this month, manufacturers gathered in Las Vegas for the world's largest consumer electronics show. The fastest, sexiest, most eye-popping gadgets -- making this Christmas' hot sellers obsolete -- were unveiled. Tomorrow's mouth-droolingly must-have gadgets are on the drawing boards, getting ready to be unveiled at next year's show.

So what's a consumer to do?

Waterman offers his audiences three tips:

Do not buy impulsively

"Make sure you understand why you are buying a gadget and are certain you need it. I don't buy everything I see and want," he said.

Don't be the first to buy the latest gadget

You won't catch Waterman sleeping outside Best Buys to make sure he is the first through the door to snatch up the latest iPhone.

"I like to read the reviews. I want to know what people who bought it first think about it," he said. "Often manufacturers will discover the screen is too small or something. They will upgrade the next version and drop the price.

"I refuse to pay the beginning price. People who have to be the first to own something are paying for the R&D (cost of research and development). They are paying too much."

Do your research.

"Research what you need and what else is available to do the job," he said, noting that we often buy more technology than we plan to use. For example, rather than buying a "fully loaded" cell phone, we might be better off buying a less sophisticated and cheaper version, and complement it with a less expensive PDA.

Waterman says he takes his advice, spending a lot of time on research before deciding if he should spend his money and what he should buy.

Waterman has an electronics background that helps with that research.

After earning an associate of arts degree in electronics from San Diego Community College, Waterman worked for more than two decades for the Navy as an electronics technician at the North Island Naval Air Station. He later worked in communications for Union Pacific Railroad and for Lightspeed in Bakersfield.

Now retired, he volunteers to teach beginning computer classes at Emmanuel Lutheran Church in east Bakersfield.

The message he spreads in his gadget classes: You are never too old or too uninformed to learn how to use and enjoy the latest gadget. Just make sure you need it before you buy it.

And when one of Waterman's gadgets breaks or becomes obsolete, what does he do? He takes it apart to see what made it tick.

Like he said, he's not really a gadget addict. He's just "extremely interested."

This story written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Jan. 22, 2010. See South Valley Solutions at http://www.svs2help.com/

WORLD WAR II PILOT SHARES MEMORIES

2010-01-16T16:34:00.000-08:00

Don Westfahl looked across a barren field on the airport in Shafter. From a layer of fog poked weather-beaten buildings, the leftovers of World War II. They stirred memories of a time that changed Westfahl’s life.

A 19-year-old farm boy from Perry, Okla., Westfahl was sent with thousands of other young men by the Army Air Corps to Minter Field, just east of Shafter, Calif., to learn how to fly fighter planes and bombers during World War II.

“It was enjoyable to be there as a cadet,” the 85-year-old Westfahl recalled during a recent interview. “We were treated well. The food was excellent. Honey, butter and a case of milk were always on the table. The mess sergeant would save the best steaks and he would put on a banquet at the end of training.

“They demanded discipline, but they were more interested in getting us to be pilots than in changing us. It was a good group of guys who had a lot of fun flying.”

Minter Field also was where Westfahl met his wife of 55 years, the former Lee Becker of Bakersfield, which is just south of Shafter. Westfahl and Becker met during a Junior Women’s League dance for cadets in 1944. Becker worked in a medical office on the base. The young cadet was just passing through.

Westfahl spent 10 weeks of his 40-week aviation training course at Minter Field, the Army Air Corps’ largest “basic training” base on the West Coast. After leaving Minter Field, he went on to advance training at bases in Texas, South Carolina, Georgia and Oklahoma.

But that dance in the “rec hall” sparked a romance kept alive through letters. “I still have letters I won’t let anyone see,” Westfahl confessed with a sly chuckle.

The couple married in June 1944 and Lee followed her husband from camp to camp until he was sent overseas a year later. From a base in India, Westfahl flew weather reconnaissance flights to support pilots navigating the dangerous “Hump,” a death-defying route over the Himalayas used to supply Chinese troops fighting the Japanese.

At the war’s end, Westfahl came “home” to Bakersfield, where his bride and a young son he had never seen were waiting for him. He was hired by a local refinery and worked his way up to assistant manager, before moving to Sunland Refinery, where he wound up a 40-year career as its manager.

The couple raised three children – Donald Jr., the oldest, who teaches English in Saudi Arabia; Patricia, a travel agent in Torrance; and Michael, who lives in Bakersfield and is retired from an oil equipment sales career. Westfahl’s bride died 10 years ago.

About six months after retiring from his refinery post, Westfahl said he “got nervous.” He went back to work as a part-time plumbing and electrical salesman at a Lumberjack home improvement store until it closed a few years ago.

In 1999, a man Westfahl knew from his refinery days came into the store. Talk bounced around various topics and somehow Westfahl mentioned he had been stationed at Minter Field during the war. The man he was talking to was a volunteer at the Minter Field Air Museum.

“I didn’t even know there was a museum,” Westfahl recalled. That was 10 years ago. Not only was Westfahl recruited as a volunteer, he became the “go-to guy” when people want to tour the old base, and learn about its war memorabilia, restored aircraft and various World War II-era military vehicles.

Westfahl is the museum’s only docent who actually served at the base. His first-hand knowledge is treasured by volunteers and visitors.

“Most of the board members can give a good tour, but only he can tell you where the buildings were on the field. He can point out the ready room,” said Dean Craun, a retired television marketing executive, who volunteers as the museum’s public relations contact.

“You never know who will pop through the doors,” said Craun, explaining museum visitors include local residents and those from far away.

“A few years ago, we were contacted by a guy who had been adopted. He wanted to learn more about his father and knew he had been based at Minter Field,” said Craun. Volunteers sorted through documents, including past issues of the base newspaper, the Echelon. They found a photo of the man’s father, had it enlarged and sent it to him. The man later visited Minter Field. “He was quite moved by the experience.”

“Not long ago, a couple of guys from England had been visiting military museums in the Bay Area and then driving to Arizona. They pulled off the highway to see the Minter Field Air Museum,” said Craun.

“It is important to preserve Minter Field,” said Craun, noting that more than 11,000 pilots were trained at the base during World War II.

It was named after Lt. Hugh C. Minter, a member of a locally prominent family and World War I pilot. Minter, the commander of the 73rd Pursuit Squadron at March Field in Southern California, died in a mid-air collision in 1932 over that base.

In historical documents, Minter Field is described as a “city within a city,” with about 7,000 personnel at any given time. The primary training aircraft at the base was the BT-13 Consolidated Vultee Valiant, affectionately known as the “Vultee Vibrator” because it shook during certain maneuvers.

“The museum honors the Greatest Generation – people who put it on the line for their country in the 40s,” said Craun. “The military is downplayed in schools. There isn’t much taught about World War II, Korea or Vietnam.”

Craun is putting together a video library commemorating the generation at the museum. So far, he has assembled more than 900 hours of World War II videos. A library of Minter Field and World War II records also is being archived in what was once the base’s original fire station.

The museum is a non-profit organization dependent on fundraising and donations. Major events conducted by the museum include a February founder’s day banquet, a spring Warbirds air show and an October military vehicle show.

The museum is open to the public and for touring on Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. By special arrangement, tours at other times can be arranged. Call 654-9159 or e-mail mfam@minterfieldairmuseum.com.

The museum is located 12 miles north of Bakersfield at 401 Vultee St., Shafter, Calif.Exit Highway 99 at Lerdo Highway and drive west. Admission is free.

This article written by DIANNE HARDISTY first appeared in The Bakersfield Californian on Sunday, Jan. 17, 2010. You can see more articles written by Dianne Hardisty by going to www.svs2help.com

ABOUT MINTER FIELD

Dedicated Feb. 7, 1942

Named after Lt. Hugh C. Minter, a member of a locally prominent family and World War I pilot who died in a mid-air collision in 1932 over March Field

The largest Army Air Corps base during World War II on the West Coast for “basic” air cadet training

More than 11,000 combat pilots were trained at Minter Field

Minter Field Air Museum is located at 401 Vultee St., Shafter. Exit Highway 99 at Lerdo Highway and drive west. Admission is free.

Museum is open Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tours at other times can be arranged by calling 654-9159 or e-mail mfam@minterfieldairmuseum.com.

Go to www.minterfieldairmuseum.com for more information.

JOHN HARDISTY ELECTED

2010-01-14T16:49:00.000-08:00

John Hardisty of Bakersfield has been elected 2010 vice chairman of the Kern County Bar Association’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Section.

A mediator and land-use planning consultant, John "Jack" Hardisty also is associated with the Central California Better Business Bureau’s mediation program. Most of his mediation work is done in the Kern County Superior Court.

His Bakersfield consulting company, South Valley Solutions, is described on his website www.svs2help.com

John Hardisty earned a masters degree in dispute resolution from Pepperdine University Law School. He also holds certificates in dispute resolution and mediation from Pepperdine University Law School and San Diego Mediation Center.

John Hardisty is a veteran public administrator, retiring in 2004 as the City of Bakersfield’s development services director.

He holds a bachelor of science degree in urban planning from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and a masters degree in public administration from California State University Bakersfield.

He is a frequent contributor to The Bakersfield Californian, writing primarily about mediation, planning, environment, transportation and energy issues. He also contributes to various national publications. A sampling of his articles can be read on his blogs http://johnhardisty.com and http://planningbeat.com

MEDIATE WEDDINGS FROM HELL

2010-01-06T20:09:00.000-08:00

Bakersfield mediator John Hardisty writes in The Bakersfield Californian about two weddings that turned out bad -- real bad.

In their wake, the participants -- brides, grooms, mothers-of-the-bride, etc. -- headed to the courts to sue. Both cases were settled by mediation. But they contain lessons for those who are planning weddings.

Read John Hardisty's observations at http://tiny.cc/BmKWY

WRITER'S 'NICHE' -- SIX FEET UNDER

2010-01-03T09:23:00.000-08:00

Lisa Kimble has been a story teller her entire professional life, first as an Emmy award-winning broadcast journalist and now as a freelance writer for magazines and other publications.

So the Bakersfield, Calif., journalist’s latest venture – offering her services as a writer of obituaries – isn’t as odd a career move as some might think. After all, she’s still writing about everyday folks. The only difference: These life stories have an ending.

The mother of three and wife of Bakersfield attorney Craig Edmonston is hanging out her “shingle” as an obituary writer, launching a company she calls A Life’s Story. (See www.alifesstory.com or e-mail alifesstory@hotmail.com)

Before anyone gets the wrong idea, Kimble isn’t a morbid or gloomy person. In fact, the Mount St. Mary’s College graduate is warm and upbeat. She’s likely the last person you would cast in the role of a Munster Family member.

“Obituaries are not stories of death. They are stories of life,” Kimble says. “They are rich tapestries woven from the fabric of people’s lives. They are windows through which we can understand how lives were lived. They are opportunities for us to learn wonderful life lessons.”

It is the rare journalist who can escape being assigned to write an occasional obituary. But in recent years, Kimble also has picked up the task of writing obituaries for family and friends who have died.

A few months ago, she received a call from a mortuary asking her to help relatives of two murder victims as they struggled with their profound grief to write an appropriate farewell to their loved ones.

“I began to realize what a big need there is for a professional writer to help families,” she said. “At the time of a death, families are dealing with so many decisions. They often have difficulty thinking clearly. But they want to write something that will be a fitting legacy, a tribute.

“At these times, a professional writer – a neutral, but compassionate person – can guide them through this important task,” said Kimble, calling it a “great honor” to write obituaries.

Obituaries are among the top-read features in most newspapers. Kimble admits obituaries often are the first thing she reads when she picks up her newspaper.

But the art of obituary writing has evolved over many decades. The once flowery tomes of a century ago became choppy formula-written articles, as the assignment fell to rookie reporters, or clerical staffs on many newspapers.

Author Marilyn Johnson in “The Dead Beat” noted that obituaries had a rebirth in the 1980s, when experienced story tellers, such as Kimble, began taking an interest.

In her 2006 book, Johnson writes about Jim Nicholson, an investigative reporter for The Philadelphia Daily News, who began writing obituaries in 1982 to “brighten” the pages of his newspaper.

Mixed in with Nicholson’s obituaries about big newsmakers who had died were stories of “ordinary people whose lives had been considered dull as linoleum to the general public,” Johnson wrote. Nicholson offered them up “as heroes of their neighborhood and characters of consequence.”

“Everyone is important,” agreed Kimble, explaining her interest. “Everyone’s story is unique.”

Most of the obituaries we read in the newspaper are written by people left behind to mourn the dead. The authors are mostly family members, who piece together the deceased’s life from their memories and perspectives.

“It is important for people to leave behind information about their lives. Like safe deposit boxes, you are the only one who has the key,” said Kimble, who also envisions helping the “living” prepare obituary information that can be left with their pre-need funeral arrangements.

But at the very least, talk to family members about the important aspects of your life, she said, adding that she has encouraged her own father to assemble his biographical information.

Some people want to have the final word; they want to write their own obituaries. Kimble said a professional writer can help with that, as well.

Self-written obituaries can leave readers with tears in their eyes, or laughing their bellies off. Take, for example, the man who wrote in his 2002 Winston-Salem Journal, N.C., obituary: “I’ve got some bad news for you (besides the fact that I am dead). … just as I had always suspected, God is a Republican.”

Susan Lane, a former New York fashion model, wrote in her 2003 obituary, “Susan was an eternal optimist, an unapologetic liberal and a delightful dinner and party guest. She was never a member of the NRA, or the Republican Party.”

In November, 52-year-old David Allen Palmer wrote touchingly in his Bakersfield Californian obituary about his life that ended when he lost his battle with the “evils” of pancreatic cancer.

Many obituaries do not include the cause of death, opting to focus on the deceased’s life. But Palmer, who worked for Kern County’s Waste Management Department, decided to share that information. However, he devoted most of his obituary to celebrating the life he lived, the friends he cherished and the lessons he learned.

“In lieu of flowers or gifts, those wishing to make any type of contribution may donate to the American Cancer Society on behalf of all people everywhere. Tell them Dave Palmer sent you,” he wrote in an obituary that welled more than a few tears in readers’ eyes.

Some companies prepare obituaries in anticipation of key staffs’ unexpected deaths. However, not all these efforts go smoothly, or are taken seriously. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Bill Janz wrote about being ordered decades ago by a crusty old editor to pen his own obituary in case he croaked.

“I couldn’t decide whether to begin it by saying, ‘The sweetest, nicest person who ever lived died yesterday,’ or be more modest and just say ‘the nicest,’” Janz wrote, recalling that a colleague who covered environmental issues, wrote that he was known “throughout the state for his grasp of sewage.”

In the case of newsmakers who are getting a bit long in the tooth, or who are plagued by health issues, newspapers may prepare obituaries in advance. Knowing these stories are being written, newsmakers often have publicists or representatives supply biographical information, putting their own spin on the obituary.

Obituary writing is receiving so much new attention that a fledgling organization has formed to hone the craft. At www.obitwriters.org, you will find tips on writing obituaries, stories about obituary writers, new technology, such as vobits (video obituaries), and the hilarious blog www.obituaryforum.blogspot.com. Among the postings on the blog is a video of Jon Stewart presenting his RIPpy Awards, which this year honored the most stupid Michael Jackson death stories.

If you really get into this obituary writing thing, you can join the Society of Professional Obituary Writers and attend its 2010 convention in Philadelphia in April. Organizers report the convention will begin with a “kickoff dinner.” That sounds about right.

As for Kimble, she is planning on writing her own obituary – mainly because she is certain those she leaves behind will leave out what she believes are some “important” things.

A version of this story written by Dianne Hardisty was published in The Bakersfield Californian on Jan. 3, 2010.

AMERICA'S SKIES GOING GRAY

2009-12-30T08:10:00.000-08:00

Early most mornings, you will find Delbert Williams climbing into the cockpit of his Air Tractor, snapping on a helmet and roaring down the runway at the Wasco Airport.

At 73 years old, Williams is an oddity. He is likely Kern County's oldest, regularly flying cropduster -- or preferably "ag pilot" to those in the business.

Age is no big deal to Williams, who commutes from his ranch in Woody to operate Tri-Star Agrinautics in Wasco. He says his hero is Al Grouleff, an 85-year-old San Joaquin cropduster who continues to fly.

But age is a big deal in an industry that has amazed us on the ground for nearly a century with its graceful aerial ballet. This air force of private pilots is getting older. Most pilots now are in their 50s and 60s. It is the exceptional pilot who is healthy enough and willing enough to fly beyond that age.

For the sake of the industry they serve, and the increasing world demand for the food they help grow, many aging pilots now wonder who will fill their seats when they finally are grounded.

"We're in the 911 business," Williams said as he prepared to take off one recent morning. "When the pest control advisor goes into a field, when all alternatives have been tried, when the bad bugs are out-eating the good bugs, they call us in."

Skimming the tops of plants while dodging power lines, skillful cropdusters plant fields, fertilize crops and drop mixtures from the air that help fight the "bad bugs." Safety rules have restricted where and how these pilots work.

Changing crop patterns -- particularly the trading of "king cotton" for tree-planting in the valley -- has reduced the need for their services. And the bigger carrying capacity of today's aircraft has resulted in doing more with less.

But still the need for cropdusters exists and the looming shortage is troublesome.

The California Agricultural Aircraft Association estimates ag pilots in the state log more than 100,000 hours in flight time a year. Terry Gage, the association's president, estimated there are 400 fully licensed ag pilots in California, but only 300 are actively flying.

Many of the old-timer pilots turned their military aviation experience into flying-by-the-seat-of-their-pants civilian jobs upon discharge. But much more is demanded of today's ag pilot. He or she must be an "applicator" first and a pilot second.

Licenses from a wide range of alphabet-soup regulatory agencies and the Federal Aviation Administration, as well as extensive training and apprenticeships, are required.

"Part of the challenge is finding the right individual," Gage said. "It's more than flying low over fields. We need people serious about agriculture."

"We don't wear ties and suits to work. We wear jeans and carry lunch buckets. But we are professional, skilled aviators," Williams said.

It's not just the education, licensing and experience requirements that keep new pilots from entering the industry. It's also the high cost of insuring a plane flown by an inexperienced pilot.

Williams learned how to fly when he was a Bakersfield High School student. He said he paid for his lessons by washing and fueling airplanes for Roy Pemberton at Meadows Field. He completed a tour in the Air National Guard. His experience in agriculture began with mixing chemicals and loading cropdusters.

But likely the professional breaks Williams was given as a young pilot he could not afford to give a newcomer today. In fact he said he advises pilots wanting to get into the business to spend some years in the Midwest, where restrictions and the physical challenges may be less and opportunities greater. Then return to California as a more seasoned aviator.

When I called to San Joaquin to check up on Williams' hero, Al Grouleff, he was out flying with his 18-year-old grandson, Greg Grouleff Jr. Greg's father, Greg Sr., answered the phone at the cropdusting business the family has operated for 67 years.

Greg Jr. has the flying bug. He wants to be a cropduster. When his grandfather isn't dusting crops or joyriding in his Stearman biplane, Greg Sr. said he is teaching the youngster the ropes.

But even with a family business to back up his dream, Greg Jr. is being urged to be cautious.

"We want him to have a backup plan," said his father, who has encouraged his only son to enroll in Fresno State and major in agriculture.

Even the old-timers worry about the uncertainty of their industry.

"I think there will always be a need for us," said Allan Bittleston, who runs Vince Crop Dusters Inc. in Buttonwillow. But he admits the need is shrinking.

This article written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian in July 2009.

BILL THOMAS TARGETS MELTDOWN

2009-12-27T15:39:00.000-08:00

Bill Thomas isn’t out to get anyone. Rather Bakersfield’s tough, smart and powerful former Republican congressman is on a crusade to get the truth.

Thomas is vice-chairman of the 10-member Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, created by Congress and President Obama to explain how the nation’s financial institutions ended up in today’s mess.

The bipartisan commission is headed by Democrat Phil Angelides, California’s former treasurer. But leadership and administrative duties are shared by both men. As the commission shifts into “high gear” next month, with the first of eight public hearings scheduled and teams of investigators swarming over Wall Street financial records, Thomas and Angelides are presenting a firm, unified front.

Innovative and complex Wall Street financial schemes brought the nation’s and world’s banks to the verge of collapse, and plunged the economy into the deepest recession since the Great Depression. People are losing their homes, businesses and jobs. Billions upon billions of tax dollars have been spent to shore up banks that are “too big to fail.”

The commission’s job is to explain how that happened, and to create a repository of information that can be used by the president, Congress and others to help fix problems and keep them from happening again.

“The fact is that late in 1929, people were throwing themselves out of windows on Wall Street. This year, they’re lining up for bonuses. There has been no serious self-examination on Wall Street of what has occurred and what should be in the future,” Angelides told economists and policy-makers at a conference in Washington, D.C., last month.

Some people on Wall Street now acknowledge that they were not comfortable about the activities they engaged in, Thomas said during a recent interview with The Californian.

“But they said, ‘The music was playing and if I had not played along, I would be out of a job because there were people who were making money on paper. We could not be highfalutin and sit it out,’” Thomas recalled being told. “So in other words, somebody had to hold them responsible. You would like to think to a certain extent there were certain morals and mores that bankers would follow. But obviously the Fed relied on self-regulation to a certain extent. People could not help themselves. ‘Stop me before I loan again.’”

The commission’s job is to examine why Wall Street firms did not stop themselves and why regulators didn’t stop them.

Both Angelides and Thomas agree that the commission’s job is to shed light, not heat on the Wall Street scandal that has left many Americans struggling just to make ends meet. But the commission’s fact-finding mission also has teeth. If corporate giants, or government regulators are uncooperative, commissioners have been given subpoena powers to compel cooperation. If evidence of wrongdoing merits it, cases can be referred to law enforcement.

“We are not out to embarrass people,” said Thomas. “We are out to find the facts. As the facts come out, a number of people will have to be embarrassed because they were in positions of responsibility and didn’t do what people in these positions should do.”

But when the commission reaches its Dec. 15, 2010 deadline, the goal is to leave Americans with a book to explain what happened and a yard stick to measure the efforts of this Congress and future Congresses to fix the problems.

Thomas is commuting to Washington from Bakersfield to get the commission up and running. He also serves as a visiting fellow with the American Enterprise Institute and a senior advisor to Buchanan, Ingersoll and Rooney, a Washington, D.C., law firm.

He sat down with The Californian during a holiday break to discuss the commission’s work and the crisis that led to its creation.

Q – Some people are comparing the Fiscal Crisis Inquiry Commission to the 1930s Pecora Commission, which investigated the causes of the Great Depression. Is that a good comparison?

A – “[Ferdinand] Pecora was a Senate staffer. It was an on-again, off-again Senate inquiry. The guy was pulling stunts. He wanted to embarrass the Wall Street folks. He wanted to make a name for himself and others. There wasn’t a lot of legislation that came out of that commission.”

Thomas contended much of the legislation credited to Pecora’s probe, such as creation of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., was already in progress before the Senate hearings. The FCIC’s work will be a wide-ranging search for causes and will be the basis for legislation beyond the commission’s life.

“Part of our job is to explain to people what happened and why,” he said. “Some people still can’t figure it out. They just know that they are in real trouble with their housing. We are going to try to write a book that will be fairly easy reading. It won’t be like the 9/11 Commission book, because they were forced to maintain a degree of secrecy. There were things they could not write about. But it will be along those lines.”

Q – It doesn’t seem important to ask “why.” The president and Congress already are proposing financial reforms. They aren’t waiting for the commission to tell them “why.”

A – “They can’t wait. They have problems to face and the president is talking about changes. If the focus is on explaining what happened, they think they know what happened, as well. We are going to try to provide a comprehensive analysis of what happened. At the time we publish, we can take it as a yardstick and measure what Congress has done.”

Noting Congress moves slowly, Thomas predicted few reforms will be in place before the commission’s reporting deadline.

“You can be very cynical and say that the reporting date in the legislation is Dec. 15, 2010, right after the election, so Congress can say it’s waiting for the commission to give up the specifics if it can’t get anything done.”

Q – Some people -- inside and outside the government -- contend the big problems are behind us. Is that true?

A – “There are a number of folks [on Wall Street] going right back to practicing, to a large extent, what they were practicing prior to the collapse. And they have short memories because they now say they didn’t need to take the TARP money. Well they took it. They still got rescued. The life ring was thrown. They grabbed it. And we pulled them out.

“They want to pay the money back and play the old game. I think it is dumb of them, frankly, to want to go back to making money the old way. They still have those instruments. They modified them slightly, but not enough. They are creating an animosity toward them not unlike the way people have felt about other institutions in the past and that has to be reckoned with.

“And it is getting more complicated now that Congress is getting some of that money returning back. Now they want to spend it, instead of regarding it as the payback of the taxpayers’ money that was used to float the loans in the first place. They just think it is found money and they are going to be using it for all types of purposes.”

Q – What new or ongoing issues should concern us?

A – “What really happened was that all these large banks were carrying these strange instruments of consolidated mortgages. And all of a sudden they weren’t worth that much. Well, how much were they worth? We didn’t know for sure. Moody’s gave them a triple-A rating so they could sell them to other people. But if you look at the rating game, you pay for the rating. So you end up hiring one of the firms that gave you a triple-A.

“It’s a lot like what happened to the accounting firms that recommended how and where you invested your money, and then went over the books and, guess what, they concluded that was a great place to invest your money. Except it blew up. You can’t have people on both sides of a ledger when they are carrying out a function.

“People were buying triple-A ratings. Maybe they weren’t triple-A. Maybe they were junk. Banks had these on their books and they didn’t know if they were worth anything. It wasn’t that they didn’t have enough money. They just didn’t know what they had.”

Thomas equated the Wall Street schemers to “mad scientists,” who were not sure what they were creating. They just knew they were making lots of money.

“One of the ways to deal with rating agencies is to say OK, if this is a triple-A document, you have to put some of your own money in so that you will be at risk. One of the biggest problems is that people with these products had no risk. They could shop the risk. And those who were willing to cover the risk thought there were no risks, so they were willing to make ‘free money.’ Everybody was making free money until reality set in.

“It is partly the job of the Federal Reserve to take the punch bowl away from the party. Clearly there was an unwillingness [at the Fed] to stop this structure because it appeared to be OK and it was very lucrative.”

Q – Should some banks be “too big to fail?”

A – Two presidents, Congress and regulators “knew if these structures collapsed, it would be like dominos. Don’t hit the first one. The others might not stay up. The time frame was such that you had to just pump money in it. It’s what you do in triage with people coming in. First you have to keep them alive. Then you figure out what their problem is. And then you figure out what you have to do to solve the problem. The massive infusion of money was to keep the patient alive. Did some of it go where it shouldn’t have gone? Of course. But it was to keep them alive. They are now back and making money. But we are concerned because we don’t fully understand them and they don’t either.”

Q – How will the commission unsnarl this financial maze?

A – “We are looking at holding eight hearings. We would like to have 20, but we don’t have time for that. We have a very short time frame.”

Thomas said the first hearing will be held in mid-January over two days at the Capitol. The chief executive officers of some of Wall Street’s major financial institutions will be called to testify. Future public hearings will be announced, with the investigation continuing and information compiled for both the final report and the repository, which will be housed in the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

The law creating the commission specified 22 areas of study. Thomas acknowledged the commission’s scope will be wide-ranging and consider both domestic and international implications.

“People were surprised that this went so quickly around the world as a conflagration. Internationally, finances are completely intermingled. Nation states are an anachronism when it comes to today’s international financial structures. So that has to be addressed, as well.”

Q – How much will this inquiry cost?

A – “The 9/11 commission started out with $3 million and ended up spending $16 million. We started at $8 million. You can always do it with what they give you, but it might take a little bit more only because of the timeframe we are in. We have a lot to do in a shorter period of time.”

Thomas said staff from other departments also will be assigned to help with the work.

Q – Why did you agree to take on this huge inquiry?

A – “It is an impossible job in an impossible time frame. But friends of mine, who are leaders in the House, came to me and asked me to do this. They said they could not think of anyone else who could do this.”

Thomas admitted he was reluctant at first. But as the other members were appointed and as Democratic Chairman Angelides voluntarily agreed to share the commission’s powers with Thomas, a Republican, Thomas has gained confidence that the inquiry will be thorough, honest and fair.

“I felt the pursuit of what happened actually had a chance.”

This article written by Dianne Hardisty first appeared in The Bakersfield Californian on Dec. 27, 2009.

LIVING TO 100 NOW 'POSSIBLE'

2009-12-27T12:55:00.000-08:00

Babies born today stand a good chance of living to be 100 years old. That is, if they are able to dodge the unexpected truck or overcome the unexpected illness.
Their chances of living that long also will be enhanced if others in their family live long, healthy lives.

That was the conclusion of Danish researchers, who reported this fall that medical advances and lifestyle changes are causing the life expectancy in the United States and Western Europe to stretch. Today’s babies are likely to become tomorrow’s centenarians.

Ruth Strom of Bakersfield, Calif., and her daughter, Betty Jones, hope these babies will prepare themselves for the challenges of old age. They hope these babies will be able to afford to live those 100 years.

Ruth celebrated her 100th birthday in August. She says she never expected to live that long. But she should have. Her mother, a Minnesota farmer’s wife from tough Norwegian stock, lived to be 101 years old. And with the exception of family members who smoked, Ruth’s brother and sisters have lived into their late 80s and 90s.

Betty, who retired a few years ago as a Bakersfield elementary school teacher, looks after her mother, who lives in a spacious northwest Bakersfield house she shares with five elderly women. Ruth’s rent, assisted care and other expenses are eating away at her savings and pension. Ruth is fortunate. Her health is good, requiring little outlay for medicines, and she has lived conservatively, keeping money worries to a minimum.

But Betty, who is on the leading edge of the tsunami of baby boomers heading into retirement, worries that many in her generation and those younger have no clue what old age will cost and who will pay for it.

“It’s a big challenge. People need to be better prepared. They need to start putting money away for their retirements,” said Betty, who receives a teacher’s pension. Her husband, Trent, retired about five years ago, after selling his family’s plumbing company, Gundlach’s.

The MacArthur Research Network on an Aging Society this month released a report contending the U.S. Census Bureau and Social Security Administration have grossly underestimated the average lifespan of Americans.

For decades, the agencies’ life expectancy predictions have been reasonably accurate. The life expectancy of a man born in 1900 has gone from 60 years old to 74 years old for a male child born in 2005. But government analysts predicted the returns on medical advances would taper off, rather than continuing to add years to Americans’ lives at an astronomical pace.

MacArthur researchers and those at the Danish Aging Research Center disagree. Medical research is on the cutting edge of attacking even more diseases, they noted. And while the “fountain of youth” remains elusive, anti-aging research has increased.
Just this month, for example, the Buck Institute for Age in Novato, Calif., received a nearly $1.6 million grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine to focus on stem cell research to develop treatment for illnesses, such as Alzheimer’s disease.

Like their Danish counterparts, MacArthur researchers predict Americans are going to live from three to eight years longer than expected by 2050. While that may not seem to be a lot longer, it likely will cost government agencies and families trillions of dollars more to provide services for aging Americans.

“The economic implications for the U.S. economy are huge,” said S. Jay Olshansky, the study’s co-author, who estimated by 2050 the U.S. will be spending $3.2 trillion to $8.3 trillion more in today’s dollars than currently projected.

And by the middle of the next decade, those over 60 will outnumber those under age 15. This explosion of the elderly means new methods of transportation, medical care, living arrangements and retirement planning must be developed.

Healthy lifestyles and medical advances are a double-edged sword. While these trends are helping Americans live longer, they also are helping them live better – maintaining their quality of life, while containing the cost of providing services.

Researchers look to people, such as Ruth Strom, to help us travel the path to longer living. They contend centenarians share common traits that can become guide points for the rest of us. These include: having a family history of long life; adapting to life’s setbacks; being self-sufficient; engaging in intellectual activity; having a sense of humor; holding religious beliefs; connecting to other people; keeping blood pressure low; not smoking or drinking heavily; playing musical instruments; enjoying simple pleasures; controlling diet; exercising regularly; having a positive attitude; and looking young.

During a recent interview, Ruth discussed these traits:

Self-sufficiency – “I am sure of my decisions. I am confident something is what I want to do. I am practical and have common sense.”

Sense of humor – “I can surely catch a joke,” she said with a big grin and laugh.

Simple pleasures – “I loved working in the yard and homey things.”

Low blood pressure – “I have no physical problems. I have been very healthy.”

Smoking – “I never smoked,” she said, admitting that she tried it and didn’t like it.

Drinking – “No, I tasted it. The whole family doesn’t drink.”

Music – “I played piano, but not very well.” When she lived in Arroyo Grande, before moving to Bakersfield to be near her daughter, she and her sisters formed a singing group. “I like to sing. If there is a singing group going on, I like to be in it.”

Diet – “I fight it all the time. I seem to be always on a diet.”

Self-esteem – Betty, who called her mother humble, said Ruth usually put other people first. “We did not approve of bragging,” Ruth added.

Exercise – Before moving to Bakersfield, she and her sisters would walk together every day.

Intellectual activity – Ruth was a teacher in Minnesota, before marrying a farmer. The couple later moved to Ventura and she became Grover Beach’s part-time librarian. An avid bridge player, Ruth’s favorite topics of conversation are the news and religion.

Young looking – After studying about 2,000 people aged 70 and older over several years, Danish researchers concluded people who look younger seem to live longer. Ruth looks 10, maybe 20 years younger than her 100 years. Betty credits her mother’s youthful appearance to her daily application of Pond’s cream.

Religion – Religion and family have been central to Ruth’s life. She belongs to the First Presbyterian Church in Bakersfield.

Amazed she is alive and well at 100 years old, Ruth observed, “I’m sure glad to be alive.” But she added when God is ready to take her, she will be glad of that, too.

A version of this story written by Dianne Hardisty appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Dec. 27, 2009.

Foreclosure is problem for everyone

2009-12-15T11:43:00.000-08:00

Retired city planning, John Hardisty, who now mediates settlement of civil cases in superior court, has a front row seat on the unfolding "foreclosure crisis." Day after day, he watches homeowners hauled before judges as part of a process to evict them from their homes that are being foreclosed by banks.

Most of these people have not bought about their ability to pay. These are people who have lost their jobs in this brutal economy, their homes are no longer worth what they paid for them, and banks refuse to modify their loans. In many cases, homeowners complain they cannot even get their banks to discuss loan modification.

He wrote about this recently in an opinion article published in The Bakersfield Californian (see "As Foreclosure Crisis Keeps Growing, Lenders, Borrowers Need Mediation" by John Hardisty http://tiny.cc/u71uc ) The article urges legislators to begin a program in California similar to one already implemented in more than a dozen states. It requires mediation to be a part of the foreclosure process.

Foreclosure is not just a crisis for individual home owners. Foreclosures are blighting communities. They are endangering the life of that firefighter who must rush to extinguish a blaze in an abandoned home. They are causing public health and law enforcement problems. They are lowering home values in every neighborhood.

He plans to keep writing about this national crisis and wants to hear what is happening in your neighborhood, city and state. Is the foreclosure problem growing? What should be done? Please post your comments on this journal or write John Hardisty directly at planningbeat@yahoo.com. Thanks!

YOUNG, SCARED, BUT NOT ALONE

2009-12-10T16:18:00.000-08:00

Cassaundra Friedberg was 8 years old when she was first taken to the Jamison Center, Kern County’s emergency children’s shelter. When police arrived at her family’s front door, they found filth and little food. Cassaundra’s parents had gone out of town, leaving an older brother to care for his four siblings.

The five children were snatched away from the Bakersfield home and deposited into the Jamison Center. The two oldest boys were kept together, as were a younger sister and brother. Cassaundra, the middle child, was housed separately.

“I was very scared. I was crying. I felt isolated,” Cassaundra, who is now 22, recalled during a recent interview. “Every night, I would get my pillow and blanket and crawl under a desk in the room. That’s where they would find me in the morning. I still remember that room. I would cry and cry in school. It was very emotional.” In about a week, Cassaundra and her brothers and sister were returned to her parents. “I was relieved to go home.”

Five years later, Cassaundra and her two younger siblings were sent back to the Jamison Center. Cassaundra is a bit sketchy about the details of this incident, but she recalls police were summoned to check on conditions in a neighboring house. Instead, they went to Cassaundra’s, where they again found squalor.

By then, Cassaundra’s father, who had a lengthy criminal record, had died of a heart attack. Cassaundra’s mother was not sending her children to school. Police and social workers stepped in, removing the children from the home. After two months, the children again were returned to their mother.

Two years later, Cassaundra returned to the Jamison Center a third time, when her mother was arrested on drug charges. This final visit resulted in Cassaundra and her siblings being assigned to foster care.

“As a teenager, you are scared, angry and depressed. You are angry at the situation. You feel the social workers are picking on you. When you live in a situation, like I did, you justify it to yourself. My parents didn’t do anything wrong. Everyone’s parents did drugs.”

Cassaundra grew close to her foster parents’ adult daughter. Eventually she moved in with the woman, who adopted her last year as an adult. “She is my mom. She will always be my mom.”

Cassaundra graduated from Liberty High School and went on to earn a bachelor of arts degree in criminal justice from California State University, Bakersfield. She now is working on a master’s degree in public administration from CSUB.

And she has returned again to the Jamison Center -- this time as a staff member, helping and comforting the shelter’s children.

Why return if her memories are so painful?

“To confront my fears,” she said. “I like Jamison. We are here to do a lot of good. But it is a scary process for a child to be taken away from parents and isolated.”

Working at the Jamison Center and pursuing a career in criminal justice is her way of helping vulnerable women and children.

Conditions at the Jamison Center on Shalimar Drive in northeast Bakersfield have changed since Cassaundra was that young child hiding under a desk. No longer is the center overcrowded, with children sleeping several to a room on cots and on couches.

“We went to school in shifts,” Cassaundra said, recalling when she lived at Jamison Center there were more than 60 children living there. “It was crazy, insane.”

Jamison Center overcrowding has been relieved by the establishment of a network of emergency foster homes, explained Carl Guilford, the center’s director.

“We try to make Jamison as child-friendly as we can, but it is an institution,” said Guilford. “We try to get children into a family situation as quickly as we can.”

On the day Cassaundra was interviewed, the Jamison Center housed only 28 children. Most were in the 7- to 12-year-old age range. The center’s staff was about 50, with teachers, medical workers from Kern Medical Center and mental health personnel on site. Most children now stay at the center for a matter of hours and days, rather than weeks and months.

“If a child does get here, social workers try to quickly find them homes,” said Guilford, noting that keeping the number of children at the Jamison Center low allows fragile children to receive more individual care.

“Because I have lived here, I know where these kids are coming from and I try to help,” said Cassaundra. “These kids are going through a scary process. Jamison is better than when I lived here. But these kids are still scared.”

(In photo, above, Cassaundra comforts a small child at the Jamison Center.)

This story written by DIANNE HARDISTY was posted first on The Bakersfield Californian's Website (www.bakersfield.com) on Dec. 10, 2009. It was published in The Bakersfield Californian on Dec. 13, 2009.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

2009-12-10T16:16:00.000-08:00

Miriam A. Jamison Center
1010 Shalimar Drive
Children who live at the Jamison Center, Kern County's emergency children's shelter, have many needs. Some cost money; some cost time. Cassaundra Friedberg, 22, and Stephanie Ortega, 20, two former center residents, and Carl Guilford, the center's director, sat down recently to discuss these needs and how people in the community can help.

Volunteer

From helping with an art project, or just cuddling a toddler, time adults spend with Jamison Center children can make a difference in the children's lives. To volunteer, call Blanca Anderson, volunteer coordinator, at 631-6717.

"Children are like barnacles," Guilford observed. "They will attach to anyone who will stand still long enough."

Friedberg and Ortega fondly remembered Pat. "He was the old guy who came twice a week," recalled Ortega, who was removed from her family when she was 6 years old because of abuse. "I loved that old guy. He knew me by my name. He was so sweet and genuine."

Gifts

Toys and other gifts are appreciated at Christmas. But not all these toys will be showered on the children in December. Guilford noted that children live at the center all year long. There are birthdays to be celebrated. Gift also are needed to stock the "KC Store," where each week children who have been good are rewarded with a prize.

"You need something to feel loved when you are here," Friedberg said.

Clothes

New socks and underwear are a constant need. Note that not all the children at the Jamison Center are small. Often living in the shelter are teenagers, who can stretch to more than 6 feet tall and weigh over 200 pounds. Lightly worn outer clothing and shoes in all sizes also are needed, as are disposable newborn diapers.

"When children come to us, it may be right from their homes, schools or a hospital," Guilford said. "They might not bring anything with them." When they leave the Jamison Center to be placed in a foster home, they are sent with three sets of clothing.

Money

Donations of money can be made to the Jamison Foundation, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization. The foundation's money is used on special projects, including building projects, and other activities not included in the county's budget. Send donations to the Jamison Center Foundation at P.O. Box 1574, Bakersfield, CA 93302.

Money can be donated directly to the Jamison Center and placed in a separate county account. This money will be used to pay the cost of such things as outings for the children. Send these donations to the Jamison Center at P.O. Box 511, Bakersfield 93302.

"It was always good to get out of here," Ortega said, fondly remembering her outings to the movies or to a fast-food restaurant. "Sometimes when I was here, I felt I was not part of the world. These trips made me feel like I was still a part of society."

GROUP TARGETS MINORITY VOTERS

2009-12-07T12:56:00.000-08:00

Latinos are California’s fastest growing minority community and by 2042 are expected to be the racial/ethnic majority in the state.

Yet they are among the least likely to vote, allowing California’s political decisions to be made by white non-Latino voters and more organized, mobilized ethnic minority groups, researchers have concluded.

As the 2010 political campaigns already are beginning to come alive in California, the Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association has scheduled a meeting in Bakersfield on Friday [Dec. 11] to map out a strategy for encouraging minority communities to participate in Kern County’s political process.

A non-profit organization, APAPA’s mission is to educate the public, ethnic minorities in particular, about the importance of voting, explained Nia Lavulo, at the association’s Sacramento headquarters.

“It’s a matter of empowering people to get involved with their government at the national, state and local levels,” explained Danny Lee, president of APAPA’s Central Valley Chapter.

The purpose of Friday’s meeting is to develop voter participation strategies and to begin planning for a May town hall meeting in Bakersfield that will focus on the June 2010 primary election, Lee said. Friday’s meeting will be held in the second floor Tehachapi Room of the University Square Building, 2000 K St., Bakersfield from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Using estimated U.S. Census data, Latinos in 2008 comprised 47.1 percent of Kern County’s population, with non-Latino whites comprising 41.1 percent. Blacks were 6.4 percent, with the remainder of Kern County’s population of 800,458 being comprised of various other minority ethnic groups.

Yet, white voters have the political clout in California. The Public Policy Institute of California reported this fall that while Latinos make up about 32 percent of the state’s adult population, they are only 17 percent of the registered voters most likely to turn out in elections. Asians make up 13 percent of the state’s population, but only 6 percent are likely to vote. Blacks comprise both 6 percent of California’s population and the voter turnout.

By contrast, according to institute surveys, whites constitute 47 percent of California’s adult population, but 68 percent of the state’s likely voters.

Many Latinos and other ethnic minorities are not citizens and therefore not eligible to vote. U.S. Census estimates for 2008 indicate about 68 percent of Kern County’s 155,938 foreign-born residents – and that population figure includes children and immigrants who are legally in this country -- are not U.S. citizens.

But even removing the citizenship factor, Latinos and most ethnic minority groups in California and Kern County have a low voter turnout rate, according to researchers and political observers.

Lee explained that many new citizens come from countries that have monarchies or repressive governments. Voter participation is not understood or considered relevant.

“They are not involved. They stay within their families. They keep to themselves,” he said.

Two of Kern County’s high profile Latino politicians were asked to weigh in on the finding that minority groups are not participating in California’s political process.

“There are too many important issues affecting minority communities for people not to participate,” said Nicole Parra, who represented Kern County’s 30th Assembly District until she was termed out of office last year.

Now a Fresno-based government consultant, Parra noted that the Central Valley struggles with persistent poverty issues. These issues include the Central Valley’s average per capita income being 32.2 percent lower than the rest of the state; college attendance being 50 percent below state average; and the unemployment rate being among the highest.

To mobilize “voters, people need to feel like they make a difference, they are part of a team,” said Parra. “Most importantly, voters want to know that the elected official cares about their needs and their concerns.”

“People have to have a reason to vote, to come out and take the time to express their choices,” said Democrat state Sen. Dean Florez, who represents Kern County’s 16th District and who is running for California lieutenant governor.

“For the most part, people don’t vote because the ballot oftentimes is confusing. It’s cluttered with propositions,” he said. “I’ve spoken to people who simply feel that the ballot is too complicated and it feels like it’s somewhat of a test that you would get in school.

Recent gains by Latino politicians, who have been elected to local and state offices, should not be overestimated, warned Florez.

“Yes, you have Latinos who are taking on greater and more significant roles in government, but that was not always the case, even 10 years ago,” he said. “There is a nascent rise in political power among Latino … [but the Latino community] is growing astronomically in California.

“We are entering a period where California will become the most integrated, multi-cultural population ever in the history of the world and it’s all been accomplished relatively peacefully,” he said, crediting the nation’s Founding Fathers for creating a system that fosters integration and power sharing.

Minority participation in the political system is “a big deal because this integration is important to our survival as a society,” he said. If minority communities “give up, become isolated and don’t participate, such a situation could evolve into the type of conflicts that we have been able to avoid.”

This story written by DIANNE HARDISTY first appeared in The Bakersfield Californian and the newspaper's Web site www.bakersfield.com on Dec. 8, 2009.

RETIREES SPREAD CIVIC EDUCATION

2009-12-05T14:13:00.000-08:00

Carol and Bill Hatcher spent decades in Kern County schools, rising to the top of their careers in education. When Bill retired in 2004, he was superintendent of the Kern High School District, based in Bakersfield in California's southern San Joaquin Valley. When Carol retired a year earlier, she, too, had been a school district superintendent, before moving to the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office, where she coordinated the history and social studies curriculum.

After toiling away in local classrooms and dealing with the pressures of school administration, Carol and Bill were entitled to enjoy a “good life” retirement that included plenty of international travel to exotic destinations.

And that’s exactly what they have. But their idea of travel is not what most retirees have in mind. It’s certainly not what cruise lines and tour companies describe in their promotional brochures.

Their destinations include war-torn and third world nations. Their hotels aren’t “five star.” In fact, most might not even qualify for one star.

“My sister thinks we’re nuts,” said Bill, acknowledging the Hatchers’ retirement focus might seem odd to many people. “She doesn’t understand why we go to unsafe countries; why we don’t go to spas.”

Bill and Carol Hatcher are spending their retirement years spreading democracy and encouraging emerging nations to foster “civic involvement.”

“We retired, but we will never retire from civic education,” Bill said during a recent interview.

Bill is on the board of the Center for Civic Education, which is funded primarily by federal grants. Carol coordinates the center’s international programs that focus on Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Ghana. As part of the center’s international program, the couple has traveled to the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, the Philippine Islands, Mexico, Argentina, Morocco, Jordan, South Africa, Ghana, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Their travel – often requiring repeat visits to dangerous, emerging nations – is at the countries’ request. Their work in-country focuses on teaching teachers how to teach civic involvement.

As an example of their work, consider the Hatchers’ trip to the Philippine Islands, where they found a culture strong in extended family ties, but weak in civic involvement. A team from the center, which included the Hatchers, was invited to teach teachers how to get students involved in solving problems for the country’s “greater good.”

The Philippine Islands has a strong educational system, Bill explained. But there is government corruption. Unless people look beyond their extended families, the nation’s problems and corruption will not be addressed.

After the fighting ended in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Hatchers and a team of educators from the center were invited to the region.

“Teachers there never had to teach civics,” Carol recalled, noting that “where kids were once taught how to handle a rifle, teachers were now expected to teach kids how to live in a democracy, how to live with compromise.”

The center’s team of educators worked with the region’s teachers to develop a curriculum to instill an understanding of how a democracy works and how citizens can become involved in their government.

“Citizenship and civic education are more than just hanging a poster on a classroom wall,” said Bill, explaining the need to develop an educational program to build understanding and inspire young people to become involved in their governments to solve national problems.

Similarly Bill was invited by the King of Morocco as part of a multi-country team of educators to incorporate democratic principles in the North African nation’s monarchy and elevate the status of women. Cultural sensitivity was required to craft recommendations for this predominantly Muslim nation.

“We take for granted what we have here at home,” said Carol. “It is humbling to go to a country where the people want to learn about our democracy. They are working so hard to obtain what we have.”

The Hatchers have long been involved in bringing democratic principles to life.

Through their classroom experiences – Carol’s mostly involving local elementary school children and Bill’s involving Kern’s high school students – the Hatchers learned about the Los Angeles-based Center for Civic Education and its U.S. programs.

People may be more familiar with the center’s “We the People” program, which tests high school students’ knowledge of the U.S. Constitution and how it applies to solving practical problems and controversies.

Teams of students from Kern County high schools have repeatedly won this difficult annual competition. The success can be credited to dedicated students, educators and community volunteers who spend countless hours every year preparing teams for the competition.

“I was impressed by how the program changed kids’ lives,” Bill said, explaining that even as a school administrator he spent hours helping prepare student teams. As a retiree, he now is advising his granddaughter’s “We the People” team at Bakersfield's Centennial High School, where Bill once was the principal.

Whether a student is Democrat or Republican, liberal or conservative, he or she realizes through the “We the People” program how the Constitution will affect and protect their lives, said Bill.

Carol recalled her days in the 1960s as a high school student in Indiana, where social studies was confined to “book learning.” The subject was dry and seemed to have little application to students’ lives.

“This program applies social studies and the Constitution to students’ lives,” she said. “It is much more meaningful.”

Through her involvement in the center’s international programs, Carol has arranged a teleconference between Foothill High School students in Bakersfield and their counterparts in Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. On another occasion, she linked up Bakersfield third graders with elementary school students in Sarajevo. The students compared notes and were amazed by the differences in the everyday challenges they face.

“We have met some of the most interesting people in the world,” Bill said. “Our experiences have been heartwarming. We believe we are making a difference.”

Carol choked back emotion as she recalled an early visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the mid-1990s. The guns had just been silenced by a fragile peace accord. A government official thanked her for helping and told her: “Nationalism has filled our graves. Democracy has filled our souls.”

This story written by DIANNE HARDISTY first appeared in The Bakersfield Californian on Dec. 6, 2009.

CIVIC EDUCATION - GET INVOLVED

2009-12-05T14:09:00.000-08:00

You do not have to be an educator to volunteer with the Center for Civic Education, and help teach U.S. and international students about democracy and civic involvement.

Through the center’s programs, such as “We the People,” students in this country learn about the U.S. Constitution and its application to their everyday lives. The annual competition recruits teachers and people in the community to coach teams of high school students.

The Los Angeles-based Center for Civic Education, which is funded primarily by grants from the federal government, also trains educators in emerging democratic nations to prepare citizens to get involved in their governments. The center recruits volunteers for its international teams.

For more information about the Center for Civic Education, e-mail Carol and Bill Hatcher, retired Bakersfield educators who serve on the center’s governing board and are active in the international program. E-mail cahatcher4@yahoo.com. More information about the Center for Civic Education can be obtained from the Web site www.civiced.org.

PUT LAUGHS IN CHRISTMAS LETTERS

2009-11-27T17:29:00.000-08:00

Still picking meat from the bones of the Thanksgiving turkey and nursing the wounds we received while shopping on Black Friday, many of us may have started thinking about writing our "traditional" Christmas letter -- those dense little tales filled with all sorts of family accomplishments and perfect vacation vignettes.

However, before we write, perhaps we should embrace the spirit of my disaster-prone friend whose letters are the highlight of my holiday season. Rather than the insufferable bragging that usually fills those missives, my friend fills hers with 12 months of hysterical (to others, but maybe not her hapless husband) calamities, as well as the customary bragging.

One year she wrote about her stolen cars, and her husband and son mistakenly arrested for stealing the cars. Another year she wrote about her version of a scene from "The Godfather," involving the mauling of a rodent and her blood-splattered terrier. And still another year, she wrote about how she exploded her car when she steered it into a flooded intersection.

I can't wait to receive this year's Christmas letter, since she already has given me a sneak preview. After receiving her e-mail, I have a feeling her calamities are increasing in intensity and hilarity as this fellow boomer gets older and maybe, like the rest of us, more distracted.

She reported that her husband, Tony, a lawyer, loving husband and father, had "suffered" a few health problems.

"First, he did something to his back and has been in incredible pain for about three weeks now," she wrote. "It has been so bad I've had to get him a special cane and drive him to the Bay Area so he could catch a flight back to Illinois for a week on a case. Then I picked him up from the airport ... and we spent three days in Carmel recouping.

"He pretty much just laid around and took pain pills, which didn't seem to help at all. Anyway by the third evening, he said he thought he could sit through a movie. I yelled 'yeah' and got him ready to drive to the movies.

"As he gently walked to the garage and gently began to back into the passenger seat of my big BMW, I noticed I'd left all the windows down in the car, and it was freezing out. So being the thoughtful wife, my first instinct was to get those windows rolled up so he would be comfortable. I cut the middle finger of his left hand almost completely off in the car window.

"We both thought we were in a horror movie as blood was running down the car window and he was screaming at me."

Panic-stricken, my friend raced her husband to a nearby hospital emergency room. By the time they arrived, he wasn't speaking to her, leaving her to wonder if he had gone into shock or if he was just really angry.

At the ER entrance, she found a cluster of wheelchairs and wrestled him into one. In her frenzy to get Tony help, she forgot to release the chair's brake. One big push catapulted the poor slob into the air.

Abandoning the wheelchair, she walked Tony and his blood-spurting hand into the ER. "They got him on morphine, me on Lorazepam and got a plastic surgeon in to sew the finger back on. ... Now he's on super duper pain pills and, guess what, the finger's so [expletive] painful, the back seems better."

That happened on a Sunday evening. Despite his middle finger wrapped in an apparent profane exclamation, the following Tuesday he managed to keep 10 court appearances with a lot of help.

As for my friend, "I've been cooking a lot of home-cooked meals and keeping the house really, really clean. We're still not quite able to laugh about it all, yet."
But the trauma my friend inflicted on her husband made his back worse. An MRI revealed a slipped disc resting on a nerve. Tony was scheduled for back surgery.

While this story was funny enough, I waited a couple of weeks after the surgery to check up on Tony. I could only imagine what my friend could do to a truly helpless husband.

"I'm really trying hard not to cut anything else off," she said, reporting that Tony was on the mend and back to work. "But he's now really afraid of windows."

I'll have to wait for her Christmas letter to find out the rest of Tony's story, as well as her other 2009 disasters. But I'm betting hers will again be the most memorable Christmas letter that arrives at my house this season.

This article written by DIANNE HARDISTY appeared in the Nov. 29, 2009 Bakersfield Californian.

HOW TO WRITE A CHRISTMAS LETTER

2009-11-27T17:26:00.000-08:00

Are you ready to begin writing your family's annual Christmas letter but don't know how to start? There are a lot of websites with writing tips and templates for publication. Do a Google search for "writing Christmas letters."

Some of the sites you will find include www.squidoo.com, www.howtodothings.com and www.ehow.com.

A compilation from these sites and comments from online contributors yields the following suggestions to consider before you begin writing:

Start with a festive greeting. Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, whatever. It's a good place to start. If you have an odd sense of humor, you may wish not to show it in this beginning line. Keep it nice.

Be yourself. Write like you speak. Maybe include quotes from family members to make your letter sound conversational. Of course, if you speak roughly, or the quotes from your family should, uhhh, stay in the family, you may wish to clean that up. Again, keep it nice.

Make a list of the highlights of the family's year. Include vacations, home renovations, births, weddings and other happy news. You might want to keep the list short. Believe it or not, no one really cares to know about everything that happened to you or your family this year.

Ask each family member for a list of five things they would like to share about themselves in the Christmas letter. Yes, it's not all about you. Be inclusive. Who knows, maybe the husband, wife and kids might have a different perspective on what happened this year.

Don't brag. It's OK to write about something good happening. But keep it low-key; don't present your life, or your family's life, as perfect. One Web page contributor wrote that her family was so fed up with bragging Christmas letters that they held a reading at the end of the season and voted on the most obnoxious letter. She and her family then burned the "winner."

Be creative. Some folks use puzzles, or multiple-choice questions as formats for letters. Others write in the "voices" of their non-speaking babies, or dogs. Of course, being too "cute" can be a turn-off.

Be colorful. Include photos or other artwork to dress up your letter. Remember, a picture is worth 1,000 words.

Have fun. Try to entertain, as well as inform. Include funny or bizarre stories if you have them.

If your year has been lousy, tone it down. It's appropriate to make reference to problems, but try to find some good things that have happened to you. One Web page contributor wrote that he spit his coffee across the room when he read his mother's Christmas letter. She wrote about his lousy love life and the fact that he had lost his job. Months later, when the mother and son resumed speaking, she agreed to show him future letters before they are sent out. Christmas letters should not be "tell all" memoirs.

It's not "all about you." Add some personal warm wishes for the recipients of your letter.

At the end, add a personal note and personal signature.

For what you really should not do, check out the book "Christmas Letters from Hell: All the News We Hate from the People We Love."

POW GROUP GETTING SMALLER

2009-11-26T21:34:00.000-08:00

Once there were more than 30. Now there are only two. And when they are gone, likely the Cessna-Sergeant Chapter of the American Ex-Prisoners of War will cease to exist.

There is a faint hope that the Bakersfield organization of mostly World War II veterans will be "saved" by comrades stepping out of the shadow of obscurity and signing up for membership.

But the reality is that World War II veterans are dying off at a national rate of more than 1,000 a day, according to the federal Department of Veterans Affairs. It is unlikely that a veteran of that war -- a veteran who also happens to be a former prisoner of war -- is living in our midst, just waiting to join the Cessna-Sergeant Chapter.

American former prisoners of war from any conflict can join. But the majority of the U.S. captives came out of World War II, when more than 130,000 were taken prisoner on European and Pacific battlefields. In the Korean War, about 7,100 were reported captured and interned. After the Vietnam War, when 725 were reported captured, the number of American POWs dwindled to single digits in subsequent wars. The numbers are higher if "missing in action" are included.

Former World War II Army Air Corps gunner Edwin Joe and former Army infantryman James Wilson are the only remaining former POWs in the Bakersfield chapter.

Veterans' widows, sons and daughters also can be members. The Cessna-Sergeant Chapter is headed by Richard Ornelas, the son of Korean War POW Isaac Ornelas, who died five years ago. But to be recognized by the national organization (see www.AXPOW.org), the unit must have former POWs as members.

"We will keep going as long as they want to keep going," said Ornelas, explaining the chapter is like an extended family, helping and supporting veterans, their relatives and survivors.

Ornelas is convinced there are former POWs living in Kern County, but "they are taking care of their own situations on their own."

Seeking camaraderie, Joe joined the chapter in the mid-1970s, shortly after it was formed. Wilson joined in 2000, when his wife, Mary, spotted a meeting announcement in The Californian and thought the unit would be a good place for her husband to get help.

In the chapter, both men say they found the support and understanding that only can be given by comrades who have experienced the same horrors of war and imprisonment. Both say they miss their friends and brothers who have passed away.

Joe, 88, and Wilson, 87, know when they are gone, the book likely will be closed on the Cessna-Sergeant Chapter. It is a story that is being told nationwide. The Air Force Times recently reported that two to three chapters a month are closing. In addition to the loss of support, the closures mean the loss of a public reminder of the sacrifices POWs made for their country.

Born in China, Joe was brought to Bakersfield as a 2-year-old to be reunited with his father, who ran a combination pharmacy and gambling hall on 21st Street. The father and son lived in a basement under the business.

He graduated from Bakersfield High School in 1940, the same year Joe said police cracked down on gambling, prompting the pair to move to Mississippi, where his father re-established his gambling business. Joe soon moved to Houston, where he became a cook in a restaurant. After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in 1941, Joe joined the Army Air Corps.

Joe wanted to be a pilot. Instead he was sent to a week of training and became a tail gunner on an A-20 bomber.

As part of a three-man crew, he flew 55 missions in an airplane named Built for Action.

On Sept. 29, 1944, the crew volunteered for a mission over Bitburg, Germany. Returning to their base in England, their plane was hit by anti-aircraft guns. The pilot crashed and died in the plane. Joe and the turret gunner parachuted to safety.

Joe said the pair became separated, with the turret gunner being attacked and killed by German townspeople when he landed. Joe managed to hide for seven days until he was discovered by German troops. He and other captives were hauled in coal cars to Stalag IV, near the border of Poland, where he was held for 10 months.

As the end of the war neared, the German guards marched the POWs for 83 days before they set them free. Soon Joe and his comrades found the allied lines, and they were on their way home to the U.S.

Joe received shrapnel wounds in his leg in an earlier air battle. When he was captured, his feet were frostbitten and he had to be carried. In recognition of his injuries, he was awarded two Purple Hearts.

Although Joe reluctantly gives details about his captivity, his daughter, Kathy, notes that he was forced to sleep in a dirt trench under a metal grate and was given potato water to drink. He lost 25 pounds from his already slight frame.

"All I wanted to do is eat," Joe recalled of his release.

Joe was discharged from the service in Houston. He met his wife, Gloria, on a trip to New Orleans. After the couple married, Joe and his bride moved to Bakersfield, where he opened a grocery store. For a short time, he also operated a Hawaiian restaurant with a partner. A stroke forced his retirement and the closure of Eddie's Market on East Brundage Lane.

Gloria and her twin sister, Lorraine, also joined the service during the war. Five of their six brothers were already in overseas service.

Edwin J. Joe (also known as Jeong Shew Wing) and Gloria Toy Gim Jee are included in the book "Duty & Honor: A Tribute to Chinese American World War II Veterans of Southern California."

Gloria died last year. Edwin uses a wheelchair. The walls of his northeast Bakersfield home are filled with pictures of their three adult children, and their many grandchildren and great grandchildren.

No doubt his family's presence accounts for the nearly constant smile on his face.

This article written by DIANNE HARDISTY appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Nov. 8, 2009.

WAR HORRORS STILL FRESH

2009-11-26T21:28:00.000-08:00

James Wilson can't bring himself to talk about it. He can talk about growing up in New York and enlisting as an 18-year-old in the Army infantry. He can even talk about being discharged from the Army in 1945, getting married, moving to California, raising two children and working as an auto mechanic after the war.

But the Bakersfield man just won't, or can't, talk about his experiences fighting in North Africa, being taken prisoner by the Germans, being held in Italy, escaping, being alone and hiding for seven months as he searched for allied forces. In fact, just thinking about those years makes him grimace.

Wilson's wife, Mary, says he has been having flashbacks and nightmares about his war experiences. After years of sealing his memories tightly away, the pain of his war experiences is seeping to the surface.

Like most others who returned from the war, Wilson heard his nation's applause for a job well done. But he heard few offers of help.

In a document filed in support of his application for veterans benefits, Wilson reported that combat left him with ringing in his left ear from an explosion. He has constant pain from the damage done to his back and knees from German guards striking him with the butt of their rifles.

"When I received my discharge, I told the doc about my ear, my back and about my knees," Wilson wrote. "All he said was not to worry about that. I would be A-OK. [It] never happened."

During a recent interview, Wilson said he just sucked it up and moved on with his life. But now 87 years old, Wilson's health has further deteriorated. He relies on a walker for mobility.

He will talk about the affects of his physical injuries. His wife talks about the emotional damage.

Mary and James Wilson married in 1991. His first wife had died. His two grown children were living miles away. He was soon to retire from his job in the auto shop at Sears. An advertisement he placed for a pen pal attracted Mary's attention.

She was divorced. Her two children were grown. She was living in San Bernardino County and working as a medical transcriber in a hospital. The couple exchanged letters. Then they met. Wilson said it was "love at first sight."

"The good Lord sent her to me," he said, claiming they have never had an argument in their 18 years of marriage.

After moving to Bakersfield, Mary spotted a notice in The Californian that a local organization of former POWs was meeting. She urged her husband to attend, hoping he would find the support he needed to deal with his physical and emotional problems.

His fellow veterans encouraged him to file for VA benefits relating to his injuries. She said he also received emotional support from a group of men who understood what he had experienced in the war.

But unlike some of the veterans, Wilson said he could not talk about his experiences.

"I would leave the room when they started. I couldn't understand how they could talk about it like that," Wilson said. And he still can't.

Growing quiet when he was asked about it,Wilson would only respond that when his ship landed in North Africa, "I met the enemy. I'm not going to touch on the war. It's too hard.You will have to figure that out for yourself. I was in five major campaigns."

Wilson is not alone in not wanting to talk about his war experiences, but being haunted by them. Veterans Affairs psychologists report an increasing number of elderly veterans are being identified during clinic visits with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

The Department of Veterans Affairs National Center for PTSD estimates that 1 in 20 of the nation's 2.5 million surviving World War II vets may suffer from the disorder. Symptoms include nightmares, flashbacks, anxiety and emotional numbness. Information about PTSD can be found on www.ptsd.va.gov.

Some believe World War II veterans suppressed their memories while they pursued their careers and raised their families. But as they age, they lose their spouses, their health deteriorates and they have an abundance of time to dwell on the past.

Their coping mechanisms are being stripped away. Dementia, which robs the elderly of their short-term memories, while sharpening their long-term memories, also is a factor.

By studying and helping World War II veterans experiencing PTSD, veterans' advocates hope they will be better prepared to intervene with the aging veterans from wars in Vietnam, the Gulf, Iraq and Afghanistan.

"So many vets thought that if they didn't think about it, didn't talk about it, in time they'd get over it," VA psychologist Edgardo Padin-Rivera told The Cleveland Plain Dealer this summer. "A lot of what we get from them is that they've been suffering in silence for 60 years."

This article written by DIANNE HARDISTY appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Nov. 8, 2009.

GILMORE'S TOUGH FIRST YEAR

2009-11-26T20:34:00.000-08:00

The California state budget was awash in red ink and legislators were bitterly battling over program cuts this spring when two Bakersfield mothers walked into Danny Gilmore's Sacramento office.

One mother pushed a frail young boy in a wheelchair. The other was accompanied by her autistic daughter. They begged the first-term Republican assemblyman from Hanford not to cut critical medical services for their children and others like them.

When the mothers left, "I closed my office door and cried," Gilmore recently recalled, noting that during the height of the budget battles, "every 20 to 30 minutes I had people coming in pleading with me not to cut programs."

Gilmore is no stranger to state government. He served more than three decades as an officer with the California Highway Patrol. And he is no stranger to making tough decisions. Before retiring from the CHP, he was the assistant chief of the Fresno district.

But what he calls the "horrid" cuts he and other lawmakers have had to make to education, fire and public safety, plus his frustration with partisan bickering and Democrats' response to California's economic problems, have driven Gilmore to prayer.

"I pray every day. I have doubts about whether I am making a difference," he said. "I have sleepless nights. I wake up at 2 or 3 in the morning. I thought those nights ended when I was assistant chief."

Gilmore spends those sleepless nights with his wife, Cindi, in a 40-foot motorhome the couple set up in an RV park in northeast Sacramento. "I don't know what I would do without her," he said, explaining his appreciation for his wife's willingness to accompany him to Sacramento when the Legislature is in session.

'THE WAY THE SYSTEM WORKS'

On Dec. 1, 2008, his 59th birthday, Gilmore was sworn in to represent the 30th Assembly District, which includes parts of Kern County and Bakersfield. After a tough campaign, Gilmore defeated Democratic candidate Fran Florez, a Shafter City Council member and the mother of state Sen. Dean Florez, D-Shafter, to succeed termed-out Democratic Assemblywoman Nicole Parra.

Gilmore was the lone Republican in the November 2008 election to win a seat in the California Legislature previously held by a Democrat.

The Democratic leadership "doesn't get over that," observed veteran Sacramento reporter Vic Pollard, The Californian's former Sacramento bureau chief. Pollard and most other Capitol insiders were not surprised that revenge would be quickly doled out. "That's the way the system works."

Gilmore and his staff were relegated to the "doghouse" - a cramped 391-square-foot office, where staff members and the assemblyman were squeezed together and visitors had to wait in the hall. Although the office has long been used by legislative leaders to punish "offending" lawmakers, Gilmore's assignment was sloughed off as the luck of the draw.

Even Gilmore tried to take the assignment in stride. "It has heating and air conditioning. A lot of the people I represent don't have that." Gilmore moved into a bigger Capitol office recently when Assemblyman Michael Duvall of Orange County abruptly resigned in the wake of a sex scandal.

But what Gilmore doesn't take in stride is the Democrats' refusal to allow him to have a field office in Bakersfield. Gilmore established his primary field office in his hometown of Hanford. His Democratic predecessor had offices in both Hanford and Bakersfield. Most of Gilmore's legislative colleagues, even those with much smaller districts, have multiple field offices.

"I can't even get a post office box in Bakersfield," said Gilmore, who sets up tents in parks to meet with constituents. His field representatives work out of their cars, using laptop computers. Gilmore declines to use campaign contributions to fund a Bakersfield office because he believes his Kern County constituents are entitled to the same service people living in other legislative districts receive.

"I use it to show what is wrong with Sacramento," he said. "They are more interested in partisan political games than in coming together."

Shannon Murphy, Assembly Speaker Karen Bass' spokeswoman, denies the leadership's refusal to fund Gilmore's Bakersfield office is "political." It's just fiscal belt-tightening, she said.

She said spending taxpayers' dollars for Gilmore to have a second field office would be "excessive and inappropriate" in light of California's 12 percent unemployment rate, skyrocketing foreclosures and other economic problems.

"His treatment has been no different than anyone else's," she said. "The Assembly, just like the rest of the state, is doing more with less."

Political observers take another view. They note Bakersfield and rural Kern County communities have the bulk of Democratic registration in the district. By denying Gilmore a second field office in Bakersfield, 30th District constituents are alienated and Gilmore's reelection chances are weakened. Democrats are targeting Gilmore, with Fran Florez expected run again for the seat.

But former Assemblywoman Parra predicts the ploy will backfire. Parra angered leaders in her own party when she refused to vote for a Democratic budget plan last year and when she later endorsed Republican Gilmore to replace her. Speaker Bass didn't just relegate Parra to the "doghouse." She kicked her completely out of the Capitol building, assigning Parra to a small office in another building.

Parra believes Gilmore's tent meetings have received so much favorable news coverage that his image and popularly in Kern County have increased. She also gave Gilmore points for attentiveness.

"If there were two people in a meeting, he was there. This is what people care about."

Gilmore's harsh treatment has not been limited to the assignment of a small Capitol office and denial of a second field office. Some Democratic colleagues, at least initially, have been downright rude.

One Republican legislator recalled introducing Gilmore around when he first arrived in Sacramento. Some Democrats refused to shake his hand.

"He came up here very humble and hardworking," said 32nd District Assemblywoman Jean Fuller, R-Bakersfield. "It is exceedingly demanding to be in a targeted seat. I admire him. He is even-tempered and persistent. Democratic leaders have been unfair to him for political reasons."

State Sen. Roy Ashburn, R-Bakersfield, noted that denying Gilmore a field office in Bakersfield can hurt people in Kern County. "A big chunk of our job is taking care of constituent requests and problems. The voters voted. Why should people now receive less representation? It's not Danny Gilmore who is suffering. It is the people."

WORKING ACROSS THE AISLE

Gilmore said he also is frustrated by the apparent disconnect Democrats have with the struggles of small businesses and workers, and their push to impose costly regulations.

He cited one of his few legislative successes - when he teamed up with Assemblyman Tony Mendoza, D-Norwalk - to roll back a costly reporting requirement affecting struggling timber mills. Rather than submitting 300-page annual timber plans, companies now only have to submit these plans every three years. In other states, the plans are much less detailed and are submitted every 10 years.

Despite Gilmore's attempt to reach across the aisle and make Democratic friends, he admits that most of his bills have been DOA - dead on arrival. "I can whine and snivel all I want about legislation. But I know why it doesn't go forward," he said.

But the legislator who most people describe as "an awful nice guy" is quick to identify Democrats he enjoys working with. One is Fresno Assemblyman Juan Arambula, who left the Democratic Party in June to become an independent. "I love that guy," Gilmore said, admiring Arambula's independent streak.

Assemblyman Isadore Hall, D-Compton, is a Los Angeles County reserve deputy sheriff. Gilmore, who gave Hall a tour of the CHP academy, considers him a buddy. He also has worked with Joe Coto, D-San Jose. He reached out to Assemblywoman Alyson Huber, D-Lodi, who like Gilmore is in a "targeted seat." Republicans are attempting to derail Huber's reelection.

The Californian placed calls to Arambula, Hall, Mendoza, Coto and Huber for comment for this story. Three did not return calls. Two asked for questions to be sent in advance and then did not return calls.

If you think Gilmore has gotten the cold shoulder during his first year in office, it will only get worse as he seeks reelection, Parra predicted, explaining Democrats who have co-authored bills with him or who have otherwise been helpful, won't be so helpful. They will back away.

"This has been the most frustrating year of my life," Gilmore admits. "That place is far beyond anything I imagined. It is broken."

This article written by DIANNE HARDISTY appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Oct. 17, 2009.

NEVER TOO LATE TO GET INKED

2009-11-26T20:24:00.000-08:00

Three years ago, Gary DeSutter made a promise to his grandson. It was a promise he hoped the Bakersfield, Calif., boy would forget. But Patrick McCord, who graduated in June from Stockdale High School, remembered and held DeSutter to his word.

DeSutter recalled, “When he was 15 years old, he asked me, ‘Papa, will you get a tattoo with me when I turn 18?'”

DeSutter, a retired truck driver, said he would. When McCord recently turned 18, he and his 66-year-old grandfather went down to the Sacred Gypsy Tattoo & Art shop on 19th Street in downtown Bakersfield, where artist Ronnie Corbitt etched a guitarist on McCord's arm and Roman numerals signifying the pair’s birthdates on DeSutter’s arm.

“That's it,” said DeSutter, who had been tattoo-free. “I won't be getting another one.”

DeSutter, who retired in 2006 and moved from Bakersfield to a senior mobile home park in Oceano, Calif., said his wife of 47 years, Beverly, was OK with him having a tattoo. But he admitted to squirming when his Bible study session recently discussed the book of Leviticus: “You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you. I am the Lord!” He said his pastor, who knew about his tattoo, reassured him the New Testament is more forgiving.

DeSutter has plenty of senior and baby boomer company these days when it comes to getting tattoos. A 2008 Harris poll concluded 20 percent of Americans 40 years of age and older have at least one tattoo.

Researchers involved in the Harris poll, as well as earlier ones conducted by Scripps-Howard and Ohio University, and the Pew Research Center reported the biker-lawbreaker stigma of having a tattoo is giving way to acceptance.

Rocket, who insists that is her only name, is the receptionist at the Sacred Gypsy. She reported seeing more boomer-age people coming into the shop to get their first tattoo. Many of these customers are women.

“Girls are tougher,” Corbitt said. “They can handle it better.”

Shop owner Justin Foss recalls tattooing a 90-year-old woman who always wanted to have a tattoo. She came in with her daughter and granddaughter, who also got their first tattoos as a “sort of final thing they could do together.”

“Attitudes are changing. It is much more socially acceptable,” Foss said, crediting celebrity tattoos and media exposure for the acceptance.

Retired Bakersfield junior high school teacher Susan Reep treated herself to a tattoo for her 60th birthday. She had been thinking about getting a tattoo for more than a decade and decided to do the deed at a tattoo expo at the Bakersfield Convention Center. She had the image of a blue and green gecko etched on her shoulder, which she explained is the least likely spot on her body to sag. She plans to have a raven tattooed on her other shoulder.

While she was tight-lipped at school about her tattoo, some students found out and spilled the beans at her retirement party two years ago.

How did her family react? She said her husband approved, but “my father doesn't want to look at it. He thinks it's creepy. My (adult) kids accept that mom has always been a little different.”

Neither DeSutter nor Reep have had problems with their tattoos, although Reep conceded the procedure hurt like crazy. But whether they are getting a tattoo out of love for a grandson, or to fulfill a dream, boomers are warned there could be complications.

Shops must have a permit from the Kern County, Calif., Environmental Health Department and artists must be registered. Explaining this is to assure a level of care and training, Environmental Health

Director Matt Constantine said his department has received complaints about bacterial infections and about tattoo shops being operated illegally.

This article written by DIANNE HARDISTY appeared first in The Bakersfield Californian on Aug. 10, 2009.