The three brothers who own Country Skillets in Antioch, Rahul, Raj and Shankar Sharma, invite you to celebrate their third anniversary with a $3 burger special, with purchase of a beverage throughout February. Stop by for breakfast or lunch at 3100 Contra Loma Blvd., in the SaveMart shopping center. For more information, visit www.countryskillets.com.

In February, the Antioch Historical Society welcomes Miniaturists from throughout Northern California as they present our third month-long exhibit of miniature vignettes, room boxes and doll houses.

Miniatures give us the opportunity to portray and preserve memories and history. They also allow us to use our imaginations to make our dreams a reality. While, for many of us, our first doll house as a child began our fascination with things small, the craftsmanship and quality of the displays will show you that these creations are definitely NOT children’s toys.

Bring the family – young and old will enjoy these delightful creations!

The Exhibit will be open on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 1 to 4 pm through February 26, 2014 at the Antioch Historical Society, 1500 W. Fourth St., Antioch.

Admission is free, but donations are welcome. Group tours may be arranged by contacting Carole Ann Davis at (510) 501-3957.

A collaborative group of nonprofits will once again host Antioch’s Black History Month exhibit. The free exhibit will provide a timeline of historical events featuring art, artifacts, literature, and creative arts that reflect the African American experience in America.

The timeline will highlight the homeland of Africa, slavery, the adaptation to plantation living, the Church, the emancipation of the slaves, adaptation to freedom, the civil rights movement, and end with the historic election of Barack Obama, the first African American President of the United States.  

The Black History Art & Artifacts Exhibit will be held through Saturday, February 15, 2014 at the Nick Rodriguez Community Center (multipurpose room) at 213 F Antioch, CA.  The Exhibit will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, 2/14 and Saturday, 2/15 with a closing Reception from 2-4 p.m.

The Exhibit will provide a great educational experience for families and elementary and high school student groups.  For more information, visit www.art4antioch.org/Black-History-Exhibit.asp.

The Antioch Lapidary Club will hold their annual Jewelry, Gem & Rock Show on Saturday and Sunday, February 15 and 16, 2014 from 10:00 a.m – 5:00 p.m. at the Contra Costa County Fairgrounds, 1201 West 10th Street, Antioch.

Attendees will enjoy seeing and buying jewelry, gems, findings, supplies, grab bags, exhibits and hands on projects for kids, plus an auction.

Admission is $4.00, children 12 & under, Scouts in uniform and active military with ID get in free.

For more information visit www.antiochlapidaryclub.com or contact Brenda Miguel 925-301-6957 or brenda.miguel@yahoo.com.

Omari Travis Clinches First Place and Earns Esteemed Title of Pokémon Regional Champion

After a weekend of head-to-head Pokémon video game battles, Omari Travis of Antioch, earned the esteemed title of Pokémon Winter Regional Champion at the 2014 Pokémon Winter Regional Championships. Held in Long Beach, CA on January 18th and 19th, Omari is among only five Masters Division Winter Regional video game Champions from across North America to earn the esteemed title. The Winter Regional Championships is the second of three Regional tournaments taking place throughout the U.S. and Canada in the 2014 Pokémon Championship Series season including the Spring Regional Championships taking place in April 2014. Players that achieve a top Championship Points ranking after the Spring Regional Championships will earn Travel Awards to compete at the 2014 Pokémon U.S. National Championships in Indianapolis this summer.

“Congratulations to all of the Pokémon Winter Regional Champions and a special thank you to the thousands of family, friends and Pokémon fans who attended the five events throughout North America,” said J.C. Smith, director of Consumer Marketing for The Pokémon Company International. “Winter Regionals brought out a strong turnout of competitive players and we look forward to what’s in store for the rest of the season, including the Pokémon TCG State Championships and Spring Regional Championships.”

Players of all ages and skills are encouraged to participate in Organized Play events. For more information on future tournaments including dates, locations, prizes, and tournament rules and regulations, visit www.pokemon.com/play.

Be sure to “Like” the official Pokémon Facebook page at Facebook.com/Pokemon and follow Pokémon on Twitter @Pokemon for the latest Pokémon news and fun!

About Pokémon

The Pokémon Company International, a subsidiary of The Pokémon Company in Japan, manages the property outside of Asia and is responsible for brand management, licensing, marketing, the Pokémon Trading Card Game, the animated TV series, home entertainment, and the official Pokémon website. Pokémon was launched in Japan in 1996 and today is one of the most popular children’s entertainment properties in the world. For more information, visit www.pokemon.com.

By Sergeant D. Bittner #3252, Antioch Police Field Services Bureau

On Wednesday, February 12, 2014, at 4:52 AM, an Antioch police officer attempted a traffic stop on a stolen vehicle and the driver refused to stop. The officer pursued the stolen vehicle for several miles. As the stolen vehicle approached the intersection of Lone Tree Way and Davison Drive, the driver of the stolen vehicle entered the intersection against a red light. The stolen vehicle collided with three other vehicles in the intersection. The driver and the two occupants of the stolen vehicle, which included two adult males and one adult female, fled the scene on foot and were later apprehended.

An occupant of a vehicle involved in the collision sustained an injury as a result of the collision and was transported to a local hospital. The occupants of the other two vehicles involved in the collision were not injured.

Deadline for Applications is February 28, 2014

OAKLAND, CA, Feb. 10, 2014 . . . Interested in a paid summer internship? High school sophomores, juniors and graduating seniors in the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area are encouraged to apply for paid summer internships in the transportation field. The Metropolitan Transportation Commission’s (MTC) annual High School Internship Program seeks student applicants for summer internship positions in local transportation agencies throughout the region (Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Solano and Sonoma counties). “The program’s purpose is to introduce students to career opportunities in transportation,” said Steve Heminger, executive director.

Students must be at least 16 years old by the start of the program this June and have completed the 10th grade. Additionally, students must live and go to school in the county where the position is offered. Students graduating in 2014 are eligible to apply for the internships. The deadline for submissions is Friday, February 28, 2014.

The program’s flexible schedule allows students to be employed either full-time or part-time for up to ten weeks between June 16 and August 29. Students will work with local public agencies in a department related to transportation planning or engineering, public works or public transit. Hourly pay is $10.75. Some 35 paid internships are available. A list of internship opportunities and the online application are available at: http://jobs.mtc.ca.gov/InternshipOpportunities/jobinternship.html. Program requirements can be found at: www.mtc.ca.gov/jobs/high_school/. MTC’s high school internship coordinator, Yulee Kim, can be contacted at 510.817.5807 for further information.

Students applying with a minimum unweighted grade-point average of 2.8 or above must submit one letter of recommendation. Applications from students with grade-point averages below an unweighted 2.8 will be considered if accompanied by two letters of recommendation. “This is an opportunity for students throughout the entire region,” commented Ann Macaulay, program manager. “We especially need student applications for positions in the northern Bay Area counties.”

Applications will only be accepted online. To apply, submit the completed application, along with a one-page response that describes, in the applicant’s own words, a transportation problem in their community and what the applicant thinks could be done to resolve it. A letter (or letters) of recommendation from a teacher, principal, counselor, religious leader or employer must also be included. Applications must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. Pacific time, February 28, 2014. In some counties, the deadline may be extended until the internship positions are filled.

MTC is the regional transportation planning, financing and coordinating agency for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area.

Publisher’s Note: Although this candidate’s announcement was mentioned in a previous article, the complete news release was not published on this site, until now.

Following Congressman George Miller’s announcement on January 13, that he will retire and not seek re-election, retired Judge Tue Phan-Quang announced his candidacy for California’s 11th Congressional District. The district covers a large portion of Contra Costa County including the northern and western portions of Antioch.

Judge Tue is married with four sons and eight grandchildren. He and his wife have been residents of Danville, since 1995. Judge Tue immigrated to the United States after the fall of Saigon in April, 1975. A trained attorney in Vietnam, he completed his law studies at Drake University Law School in Des Moines, Iowa. He was a Hearing Officer with the Iowa Department of Job Service for four years. He was appointed Assistant Attorney General with the Iowa Department of Justice in 1987.

Judge Tue moved his family to California in 1988. He was a trial attorney with the Immigration & Naturalization Service, District Counsel Office in San Francisco from 1988-1993. From 1993-1995 he was an Administrative Law Judge with the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board in Sacramento. He was then appointed Immigration Judge In March 1995 in San Francisco where he served until his retirement in December 2012, to run for Congress.

Tue is a Republican. The only other candidate in the race, currently is State Senator Mark DeSaulnier, a Democrat.

For more information about Judge Tue, view this video made for his 70^th birthday by clicking here, or contact Van Phan by email at vaphan@pacbell.net or (925) 984-0980.