Joanne Bilbo is applauded by family and friends and presented with a plaque as the 2025 Antioch Citizen of the Year for Lifetime Achievement by Antioch Chamber of Commerce Vice Chair Dominique Coleman and Chair Jim Becker during the annual Gala, Friday, March 27, 2026. Photo by Allen D. Payton
“I’m an honorary doer. I think that’s a better title for me.”
By Antioch Chamber of Commerce
During the Antioch Chamber of Commerce’s annual Gala, Friday night, March 27, 2026, Joanne Bilbo, a lifelong resident of Antioch, was honored as the 2025 Citizen of the Year for Lifetime Achievement in recognition of her unparalleled dedication to her community. At 96 years young, Joanne’s life is a shining example of volunteerism, leadership and service.
She joined the Catholic Young Ladies at age 16 and has been a devoted, long-standing member of Most Holy Rosary Church. Affectionately known as the “Dessert Lady,” Joanne has spent decades delighting parishioners with her famous bundt cakes at church events, always serving with joy and generosity.
Her commitment extends beyond the church: she has been a dedicated board member of the Antioch Historical Society, earned the affectionate title of “Ticket Lady” for managing museum event tickets for countless community events, and was honored in 2023 as a Community Leader by the Sports Legends Hall of Fame Museum, where she served on the board for more than a decade.
Joanne’s impact on Antioch reaches into every corner of the community. She and her husband, Marshall Bilbo, married in 1960 and raised two children while owning and operating Ernie’s Liquors for many years. She has been a vital presence in the Antioch Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club of Antioch, contributing her time, energy, and leadership to countless initiatives.
As a board member of Antioch Friends of the Arts, she oversaw the purchase and dedication of the Cannery Lady statue on W. First Street in historic, downtown Rivertown, celebrating Antioch’s rich history and culture. In 2003, she joined a philanthropic organization dedicated to raising scholarships for women, further extending her impact on future generations. Through her decades of volunteerism, her warm presence, and her unwavering commitment to community, faith, and service, Joanne Bilbo has become a beloved and inspiring figure in Antioch—truly deserving of the title Citizen of the Year.
See video of Joanne’s speech during the Gala in which she said, “I’m an honorary doer. I think that’s a better title for me.”
Antioch Chamber of Commerce Chair Jim Becker presents Allison Norris with her plaque recognizing her as the 2025 Antioch Citizen of the Year for Most Impact during the annual Gala on Friday, March 27, 2026. Photo by Allen D. Payton
By Antioch Chamber of Commerce
During the Antioch Chamber of Commerce’s annual Gala, Friday night, March 27, 2026, Allison Norris, founder of the charitable organization Snug As A Bug, was honored as the 2025 Antioch Citizen of the Year for Most Impact for her extraordinary dedication to improving the lives of those in need.
Through her organization, Allison provides handmade quilts and bags to children, teens, adults, and veterans, offering warmth, comfort, and a tangible reminder that someone cares. Over the years, she has supported hundreds of individuals in Antioch and surrounding communities, creating meaningful connections and helping people navigate moments of hardship. In 2024 Allison tirelessly created quilts for veterans and contributed to the Antioch Stand Down on the Delta, an event supporting those who have served. Her outreach extends to local schools, hospitals, police departments and social service agencies, where she ensures that foster youth, families facing crisis and individuals experiencing trauma receive the physical comfort of a quilt and the emotional support that accompanies it.
Allison’s impact reaches far beyond the quilts she creates. She continuously volunteers her time at the Woman’s Club of Antioch, her church, and local schools, using these partnerships to bring other volunteers into the fold and create meaningful opportunities for community engagement. Through her dedication, she strengthens the social fabric of Antioch, demonstrating the power of compassion in action. Guided by her motto, “Building Community with Community,” Allison never seeks recognition for her work, choosing instead to focus on the real, lasting impact she makes every day. Her unwavering commitment, generosity and leadership have touched countless lives, inspiring others to give back, reinforcing a culture of care, resilience and community in every corner of Antioch.
George Nikolas Carasis, lovingly known to both family and friends as “Pappou” (Greek for Grandpa), passed away on March 16th, 2026, at the age of 96, after a long and full life defined by resilience, humor, and deep love for his family.
George was a man who loved the simple joys in life – tending to his garden, fishing and hunting, caring for animals, and walking his loyal German Shepherd, Bobo, well into his nineties. His pastimes truly reflected his steady grounded spirit, which carried him from a small village in Greece to a full life in America.
Born in 1929 in the village of Pasa, Greece, George was raised in a one-room home by his parents, Nikolas and Efrosini, alongside his six siblings: Sotiria, Panayiota, Eleni, Dimitri, Tasos, and Alexandra. His childhood was shaped by rural village life, and he lived through extraordinary historical events, including the Italian and German fascist occupations of Greece and the Greek Civil War. Yet even in hardship, his early years were filled with stories that he enjoyed telling for decades – from being given a flock of sheep as punishment for skipping school, to the long and mountainous trek by horseback with his father to see a medicine man when he mysteriously lost all of his hair (a remedy that seemed to work, as he managed to keep a full head of hair for the rest of his life). As a teenager in Greece, George apprenticed as a barber and even opened his own shop in his village, before serving as a military barber in the Greek Army.
In 1955, however, with only a few dollars in his pocket and no knowledge of English, he boarded an airplane for the first time and immigrated to the United States. California became his new home, joining his uncle Alex in the Bay Area. He began working in a canning factory in San Leandro, before eventually making his way into the restaurant industry, where he began his successful career as a restaurateur.
He began his first establishment inside of the Pittsburg Clover Club, opening the night club each morning for a daily breakfast that he barely broke a profit on. Determined to stick to it, he later founded the first restaurant of his own in Pittsburg, which he aptly named George’s, and building on that success, went on to open the Matchmaker in Antioch, and, finally, a new George’s Restaurant in Antioch. He became known community-wide for his hospitality and exceptional food and was frequently stopped in public well into his retirement years when people recognized him as the owner of the restaurants that held so many classic memories for them.
Together with his first wife, Claudette, he raised three children: Arthur, Alexandria, and Nick, who were the pride of his life. George was also blessed to have gotten many years with his grandchildren- Nikki, Christina, Alexandria, Katrina, Randy, George, and Cecilia, as well as his great-grandchildren- Basil, Liberty, Calliope, Indigo, and Elizabeth.
He treasured going on outings for milkshakes and fries with his great-granddaughters and proudly led Greek dances at his granddaughter’s wedding. He even got to attend his eldest great-grandchild’s high school graduation.
Though he endured the unimaginable loss of all three of his children before his own passing, as well as the loss of his wife Patricia, he had a love for his family that was unparalleled. After the death of his daughter, he stepped into the role of caregiver to raise his granddaughter, Christina, during his retirement years. In doing so, he was able to pass on the connection to his Greek heritage and language to her, and to her children, which is something she will cherish forever.
Deeply proud of this heritage, George found great joy in seeing his family reconnect with their ancestral homeland. After a 28-year absence since his previous visit, he chose to spend his final weeks in his family’s village, reconnecting with loved ones there one last time. He was buried on March 17th, 2026 in the Pasa village cemetery, alongside his sister Eleni, his brother Taso, their parents, and grandparents.
In the Greek tradition, we memorialize those who have passed by saying, “αιώνια η μνήμη του”, or “may his memory be eternal.”
In the life he built, the stories he told, the family he nurtured, and the legacy he leaves behind, George’s memory will indeed be eternal.
Although his funeral was held in his home village in Greece, a memorial service with 40th day prayers will be observed at 3:30pm on April 19th at St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church, 1955 Kirker Pass Rd., Concord, CA.
All are welcome to attend, and a memorial gathering with light refreshments will be offered in the hall following the prayers, for all those who loved him here in California.
45-year-old in stable condition, 41-year-old in critical condition
By Acting Lt. Gary Lowther #4032, Antioch Police Field Services Division
On Sunday, March 29, 2026, at about 5:30 p.m., Antioch Police officers responded to reports of gunfire in the 4200 block of Lone Tree Way, near Mokelumne Way.
Officers arrived within minutes and searched the area, but no victims were initially located.
A short time later, Antioch Police Dispatch was notified that two adult men arrived at a local hospital with gunshot wounds. Officers were able to confirm that both individuals, a 45-year-old man and a 41-year-old man, were involved in the earlier shooting.
Both men were transported to a trauma center. One is listed in stable condition, and the other remains in critical condition.
The incident has been labeled an attempted homicide and the Antioch Police Department Investigations Bureau is actively investigating the incident.
Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Antioch Police Detective Ricardo Angelini at (925) 437-6056 or rangelini@antiochca.gov.
This preliminary information was provided by the Field Services Division. Any additional updates will be released by the Investigations Bureau.
Including over 6,900 calls for service handled by patrol
By Antioch Police Department
March 28, 2026 – In the last 30 days, Antioch Police officers and dispatchers have been hard at work serving our community:
• 6,931 calls for service handled by patrol
• 978 cases documented and investigated
• 131 arrests made
• 15,500 phone calls answered by dispatch
Break that down:
• Nearly 10 calls for service every hour
• Over 21 phone calls every hour handled by dispatch
• A new case roughly every 45 minutes
With 84 sworn officers on the force, according to Officer Joseph Amiri during a presentation to the Downtown Antioch Association on Wednesday, March 25th.
This isn’t just numbers, this is constant demand. Every hour. Every shift. Every day.
Newly apppointed Contra Costa County Superior Court Judges Hann Fakhoury and Amanda Karl. Photos: Office of the California Governor
By Office of the California Governor
Governor Gavin Newsom announced on Friday, March 27 2026, his appointment of two more Superior Court Judges in Contra Costa County, Hanni Fakhoury and Amanda Karl.
Hanni Fakhoury, of Contra Costa County, has been appointed to serve as a Judge in the Contra Costa County Superior Court. Fakhoury has worked as a Partner of Moeel Lah Fakhoury since 2021, where he works in white collar and federal criminal defense as a trial attorney and mediator. He served as an Assistant Federal Public Defender at the Federal Public Defender for Northern District of California from 2015 to 2021. Fakhoury worked as a Staff Attorney and Senior Staff Attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation from 2011 to 2015. He worked as a Trial Attorney at the Federal Defenders of San Diego from 2007 to 2011.
According to his Linkedin profile, “Fakhoury is an accomplished litigator who represents individuals and companies in criminal prosecutions and government and regulatory investigations. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and a Northern California Super Lawyer. In addition to litigation, Hanni serves as a mediator in the Northern District of California’s ADR (Alternative Dispute Resolution) program and is a co-lecturer at UC Berkeley School of Law.
According to his bio on his law firm’s website, Fakhoury is a “Bay Area native” and “proudly serves the Northern District of California as a member of its Criminal Justice Act (CJA) trial panel, representing indigent criminal defendants. He was also selected by the Northern District bench to serve on the court’s Standing Committee on Professional Responsibility, Criminal Rules and Practice Committee, and CJA Administration Committee.”
“A sought-after teacher, Hanni…co-teaches a seminar on white collar crime. He has presented and lectured at over 100 legal conferences to wide audiences, including judges, attorneys and the public at large.”
Fakhoury received a Juris Doctor degree from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law. He fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Charles S. Treat. Fakhoury is a Democrat.
Amanda Karl, of Alameda County, has also been appointed to serve as a Judge in the Contra Costa County Superior Court. Karl has worked as a Partner at Gibbs Mura since 2022, where she also worked as an Associate from 2016 to 2021. She served as a Law Clerk at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California from 2015 to 2016 and at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from 2014 to 2015.
According to her profile on the Gibbs Mura website, Karl “represents consumers, employees and others who have been harmed by corporations. She has prosecuted a wide range of complex cases, including product defect, failure-to-warn, wage and hour, data breach, sexual assault, and securities cases, within a variety of industries. In 2024 she was honored as a Rising Star by Law360, a highly selective award that recognizes top attorneys under the age of 40.
Karl received a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law as a member of the Order of the Coif, a national honorary scholastic society, which extends invitations to the top 10% of Berkeley Law’s graduating J.D. students by grade point average. . She fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Charles B. Burch. Karl is a Democrat.
The annual compensation for each of these positions is $244,727.
The location for the Antioch Rotary Bunny Hop 5K Run/Walk race has changed! The event will now be held at the Worth Shaw Community Park, 801 James Donlon Blvd., Antioch.
Please update your plans accordingly.
Registration will be open until Race Day. Special Thanks to the Rotary Club of the Delta for preparing a free Pancake Breakfast for everyone on Race Day! If you like to be part of community video, please email your picture to rdeloso@yahoo.com. Like us and see up to date notices on Facebook @AntiochBunnyHop5K.
