This is part of a continued series on the Annual Awards by the Antioch Chamber of Commerce.

On Friday night, Sept. 24 the Antioch Chamber of Commerce held its Gala Dinner, this year virtually, and honored the city’s most outstanding residents and organizations with their annual awards.

Hope & Healing – these are the two words that Fellowship Church feels God has given to them as a church. Hope for tomorrow and healing from yesterday. Pastors Shaun and Dianna Nepstad started Fellowship Church in 2002 with 22 people and today the weekly attendance has grown to over 5,000 people in two campuses. They believe that Jesus is the answer for humanity and their goal is to use the platform God has given them to express, in practical ways, the love and the life-giving message of Jesus to the world. Through the preaching of the Bible, worship, and great relationships, their hope is to engage a culture far from God to bring them into a relationship with Jesus.

2019 was an incredible year at Fellowship Church! They served 3,000 people a Thanksgiving dinner, and provided 679 children Christmas presents and a Bible. Fellowship Church reached many people in our city, through outreaches, both big and small. Internationally, they spread the gospel to 80,000 people on their trip to Peru.

Fellowship is believing God for more, asking Him to expand their reach, and show them, in 2020, how to pray, love, give, and serve like never before. For more information about the church visit www.tfcpeople.com.

In coordination with other Bay Ara counties

If the current restrictions don’t work “we are prepared for further restrictions” – Dr. Chris Farnitano, Contra Costa Health Officer during Friday afternoon press conference

On Thursday, California reached the unfortunate milestone of 1 million COVID cases statewide. With transmission and hospitalizations on the rise, health officers representing counties across the Bay Area are tightening local rules for high-risk indoor activities where the virus can spread more easily.

Contra Costa Health Services today issued an order to close, effective Tuesday, Nov. 17 at 8 a.m.:

• Indoor dining
• Indoor fitness centers
• Concession stands at movie theaters

Dine-in restaurant and gyms reopened at reduced capacities when the county entered the state’s red tier in late September. But recent increases in COVID cases and hospitalizations make the closures necessary to help contain spread of the virus.

“Indoor interactions at restaurants, movie theaters, and indoor gyms and fitness centers are high-risk activities,” said Dr. Chris Farnitano, Contra Costa County Health Officer. “And given what we’re seeing happen across the country and the region, we must act now.”

Diners at restaurants remove their masks to eat or drink, as do movie patrons when snacking on food from concession stands. People also breathe heavily while they exercise at indoor gyms, increasing the risk of droplet and aerosol transmission of COVID-19, which can be only partially reduced by wearing a face covering.

Contra Costa recently moved from the state’s orange tier to the more restrictive red tier because of an increasing number of cases in the county. Meanwhile, hospitalizations in Contra Costa have returned to levels not seen in several weeks. On Nov. 11, 50 people with COVID were hospitalized in the county – the highest number since September.

“I’ve said this many times before, but it’s so important I can’t repeat it enough: The best way to protect against COVID-19 is to wear a face covering whenever you are near people who do not live with you, and whenever you go in a building that is not your home,” said Dr. Farnitano.

Health officials are especially worried about people gathering indoors with the holidays coming up and may consider other closures in the days and weeks ahead. Contra Costa County, which is now in the red tier, could move into the state’s most restrictive tier, the purple tier, within the coming weeks. If the county moves into the purple tier, schools that haven’t reopened will have to remain closed until the county moves back into the red tier or until they receive a waiver from the state.

“Our hope is that this new health order will slow down the spread of COVID so schools will have a better chance to reopen,” Dr. Farnitano said.

Dr. Farnitano Press Conference

During a Zoom press conference Friday afternoon Farnitano was asked by the Herald, “Is this decision based on what’s actually happening in our county, or what’s happening in other Bay Area counties and elsewhere?” he responded, “We’re really looking at all of it.”

Where people are getting COVID, “many if not most cannot pinpoint any specific locations,” Farnitano explained. “But where we can identify, restaurants, gyms we are imposing restrictions.”

“Why can’t we just protect the vulnerable and allow the rest of us get back to living our lives?” the Herald asked.

“That would be an ideal strategy if it can work. But it can’t. The vulnerable can’t live in a bubble,” Farnitano stated. “We see it in our nursing homes. Those who work there go home, go shopping, and are with their families where they can be exposed.”

“To protect the most vulnerable in our society we need to keep the overall transmission to a minimum,” he added.

“What is the basis for closing indoor fitness centers and not other indoor activities,” he was asked.

“We have seen looking across the country and across the state there have been outbreaks in gyms and fitness centers,” Farnitano said during a press conference Friday afternoon. “People can exercise outside or at home. Outdoor fitness operations are still allowed. This current order doesn’t have an endpoint. When our hospital case rates come down…then we can reconsider these orders.

“Masks does not provide the same level of protection when youre around someone breathing heavily and exercising,” he added.

The actions are “due to the rapidly rising of rates in our community,” Farnitano explained.

One person asked about the county “moving the goal posts instead of enforcing existing rules”.

“The enforcement efforts have not proven sufficient,” Farnitano responded. “The more we can wear our masks and stay away from others outside of our households the sooner we can get past this upsurge.”

“Our case rate in the past seven days are already in the Purple Tier. We are testing at higher levels than state averages. Our adjusted case rate is even in the Purple Tier,” he said. “We have seen the case rate increase in the last several days in our hospitals.”

The county is issuing these orders, now so, “We can hope to blunt that wave, blunt that surge…to get us through a winter surge quicker and with less harm to the community as far as illness and death,” Farnitano explained.

“Are church services impacted further,” he was asked.

“Not at this point,” Farnitano responded. “We implemented restrictions on churches last week for the Red Tier. We are prepared to add additional restrictions in the future if our hospitalizations rise, in advance of state restrictions.”

“We are looking at all of our health care systems and how we can get through the latest wave,” he explained.

“Will it be enough? I am not sure. We will have to watch the data and see,” said Farnitano. “We all have to do our part, wear our masks, six feet of social distancing.

“But if it doesn’t we are prepared for further restrictions,” Farnitano added. “The state could move us into Purple the day after Thanksgiving.”

“Why don’t you believe in herd immunity,” he was asked.

“Herd immunity would take an enormous toll on the community and lead to enormous deaths, more than we’ve seen,” Farnitano responded. “We would need 70 to 80% levels of herd immunity. It would take uncontrollable disease for months and months and months and that would be too high of a toll for the community.”

Allen Payton contributed to this report.

 

 

Illegal drugs also confiscated from two suspects

By Antioch Police Department

Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2020 at about 1:00 pm, the POP (Problem Oriented Policing) Team was patrolling the 2200-block of San Jose Drive, when they spotted a vehicle parked in an awkward position, making it difficult for other cars to maneuver around. When officers investigated further, they saw the driver appeared to be asleep at the wheel with the car still in drive. One slip off the brake could have ended badly for all those around, so officers placed their patrol cruiser in-front-of the vehicle to prevent a tragedy. Officers tapped on the window and woke the driver, who was quite surprised to see a couple of officers at his window. They noticed he had “BAPE” satchel across his chest and asked for permission to search, which revealed a loaded firearm inside. Carrying a loaded firearm in a vehicle is not allowed in our state, so he was placed under arrest accordingly.

About four hours later, POP officers were patrolling West 10th and K Streets when they spotted someone they knew had an outstanding felony warrant inside of a convenience store buying a lottery ticket. Realizing his luck was about to run out, said individual got a sudden case of the munchies, and started purchasing various snacks. Officers met him inside to discuss the warrant (and proper snacking) but saw he had something unusual sticking out of his waistband – a loaded firearm. His criminal history prohibited possession of firearms, so he was placed under arrest on weapon and drug possession charges, along with the outstanding warrant.

And finally, Thursday at around 11:00 am, POP Team officers attempted a traffic stop on a vehicle for several violations near East 18th and Hillcrest. The driver failed to stop and began driving recklessly, so officers decided to stop their chase, but continued to check the area. It was then officers found the vehicle had collided with three parked vehicles on Merrill Street, but the driver was nowhere to be found. Antioch Strong community members stepped up and told officers not only which way he went, but what he was wearing. A swarm of blue uniforms converged on the area and found our man hiding in a backyard. A loaded 9 mm pistol was also discovered along his flight path, so was sent to the County Jail for evading an officer and weapon charges.

How can you contact POP Team for help with crime near your home or business? I have two ways for you – you can email them at popteam@antiochca.gov or send an anonymous text tip to 274637 and use the keyword ANTIOCH.

Fans of APD – what do you think about the POP Team’s efforts to reduce crime and keep Antioch safe? #antiochpdca #apdpopteam #antiochstrong

 

“Racism exists in our county and in our county department” – Supervisor Federal Glover

“Racism is a public health crisis” – Contra Costa Health Department Director Anna Roth

County COVID-19 ranking lowered to Red Tier as health officials warn about holiday season upsurge

By Daniel Borsuk

The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2020 unanimously passed a proposal to create a county funded Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice to address increasing concerns about rising issues of racial inequality and social injustice especially in how the county delivers health services to people of color.

The nonprofit San Francisco Foundation will provide the biggest donation of $75,000 to help launch the formation of the new office.  Other organizations providing funding are the Contra Costa Regional Health Foundation, $20,000; East Bay Community Foundation, $10,000; John Muir Community Benefits, $10,000; Dean and Margaret Lesher Foundation, $25,000; Public Health Advocates, $25,000; Republic Services, $25,000; Richmond Community Foundation, $5,000: The California Endowment, $25,000 and Y&H Soda Foundation, $25,000.

Before supervisors voted to start the planning process to potentially launch a county Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice, supervisors had unanimously approved a resolution Declaring Racism as a Public Health Crisis.  Some of the resolution’s 12 clauses were:

“WHEREAS, disproportionately higher rates of chronic disease, shorter life expectancy, maternal and infant mortality, and health inequities for Black/African Americans and other racial groups are widely recognized and documented, yet continue in particular as well as other communities of color; and

“WHEREAS the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated racial and social inequities by disproportionately impacting the Latinx community as well as other communities of color; and

“WHEREAS Contra Costa Health Services cares for and improves the health of all people in Contra Costa County, and yet as a system has perpetuated racism and anti-black racism; and

“WHEREAS the Contra Costa Health Services cares for and improves the health of all people in Contra Costa County, and yet as a system has perpetuated racism and anti-black racism.”

If Contra Costa County moves ahead in to create in the 2021-2022 fiscal year an Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice, the county will join San Francisco and Oakland that had both established similar offices in 2019.

“Racism exists in our county and in our county department,” said Supervisor Federal Glover of Pittsburg, who along with Gioia pushed for the formation of the new county office.

“I have always attacked the health disparities, particularly when it impacts our low income communities,” said the supervisor who was reelected last week to a seventh  four-year term in a runoff election last week against Contra Costa County Assessor Gus Kramer.

“Racism is a public health crisis,” concurred Contra Costa Health Department Director Anna Roth. Roth said there exist ethnic-economic-racial-social inequities in health care throughout Contra Costa County.

“This is a major issue no matter if it is intentional or unintentional,” said District 1 Supervisor John Gioia of Richmond. “We have seen it all in our own county.”

“I support the eventuality of a Contra Costa County Office of Racial Equity,” said Supervisor Karen Mitchoff of Pleasant Hill, who at one point disputed with Gioia over how to fund the operation of the proposed new office if it reaches that point by next May. Both supervisors agreed to not bring up the funding issue until May when supervisors will review the 2021—2022 budget.

County Returns to COVID-19 Red Tier With More Restrictions 

The 2020 holiday season is around the corner and Contra Costa County Public Health officials are sparing no time in ramping up efforts to advise residents to wear face coverings, maintain social distances, use disposable dining ware and stay outdoors instead of indoors during the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors were informed Tuesday. County health officials announced the public safety measure as the county’s COVID-19 tier ranking was lowered Tuesday from purple tier to red tier.

County health officials saw a 200 percent boost in the number of COVID-19 cases during the past two weeks, Contra Costa Health Department Director Anna Roth said. Even with news on Monday that Pfizer Inc. has developed a vaccine that has notched a 90 percent safety record, Roth said the county reported an increase in COVID-19 cases over the past two weeks, 20,166 cases and 46 deaths.

“With the holiday season approaching, we recommend, keep it small, keep it outside with no more than 13 persons and lasting no more than three hours,” Roth said. In addition, Roth said persons should wash hands and faces frequently, remain outside as much as possible, wear face coverings, and maintain six-feet separations.

Roth reported that a county sponsored COVID-19 test event held in San Pablo on Saturday, Nov. 7 was a success because 673 persons were tested. Eighty-five percent of the test takers were first-time participants. A majority of those participating in the free tests were residents of Latinx descent.

Count health officer Dr. Chris Farnitano said the county is prepared to store the Pfizer vaccine that has been reported to be 90 percent effective but requires extreme cold refrigeration. “The county has purchased the ultra-cold storage capability to story up to 70,000 doses,” Dr. Farnitano informed supervisors. The storage unit can keep the vaccine cold at 70 degrees below zero.

 

Antioch Police, Contra Costa Sheriff’s Deputies and CHP Air Unit thwart burglars

By Antioch Police Department

Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2020 at about 9:07 am, APD officers were dispatched to a residence near Mt. Isabel and Rogers Canyon Roads to investigate a burglar alarm. When the first officer arrived, he saw two individuals exiting the residence that appeared quite shocked at his presence. Both ran from the scene and a containment perimeter was quickly established by additional responding officers.

A yard-to-yard search was conducted with the assistance of a canine from the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office and air support from CHP – Golden Gate Division.

During the search, a car was seen exiting our perimeter with both suspects inside. The CHP Air Unit kept eyes on the vehicle and directed officers to where it was headed. Officers stopped the vehicle at a gas station near Lone Tree Way and Golf Course Road, where both suspects were taken into custody.

Officers recovered two firearms that were discarded by the suspects during their flight, including an AR pistol and a .40 caliber handgun. A 20-year-old male from Oakland was sent to the County Jail for residential burglary, parole violation, and gun charges. A 16-year-old male was sent to Juvenile Hall for residential burglary and gun charges.

APD would like to thank area residents who assisted us, and for their patience while we searched for the suspects. We would also like to thank the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office and CHP Golden Gate Air Operations for their assistance! APD is committed to keeping your neighborhoods safe and appreciate the partnership we have with our community.

#antiochpdca

 

Honor 2020-21 Antioch Veteran of the Year and Veteran for Lifetime Achievement

By Allen Payton

The residents of Antioch, under the lead of J.R. Wilson and the Delta Veterans Group, honored local veterans during a unique, drive-in Veterans Day Celebration Wednesday morning. Bill Ridle was announced and introduced as the 2020-21 Antioch Veteran of the Year and Jimmy Bean was honored with the Veterans Lifetime Achievement award.

In addition, Tom Menasco was honored for his volunteer service with the Veterans Banner program.

Those in attendance, sitting in their cars, showed their appreciation by honking their horns.

Dr. Dan Helix, Major General (Retired) of the U.S. Volunteers, the honor guard that officiates funerals of U.S. military veterans, provided the following keynote speech:

Veterans Day 2020

By MG Dan Helix, USV (Ret.)

How great is it that we finally get to celebrate this new memorial? Looks good, doesn’t it? And I would like to personally thank Mayor Sean Wright, Mayor-elect Lamar Thorpe (Navy Veteran) and the entire City Council of Antioch in allowing the vets of this city to be so involved in the undertaking of building this tribute.

Let me start out today with a famous quote:

I did my fact checking on this quote, and it is now widely debunked as actually to have been said by the first President, George Washington, but this is one of those cases where if he didn’t say it – he should have because this is the Quote:

“The willingness with which our young people are likely to serve in any war, no matter how justified, shall be directly proportional to how they perceive the Veterans of earlier wars were treated and appreciated by their nation.”

That was just too good to pass up.

It is an honor for me to speak to you today and represent the 21.8 million veterans in this country on this occasion. (and those are just ones we have with us today) 21.8 million veterans may sound like a lot, until you dig a little deeper into the math. There are 326.7 Million people in this country which puts the percentage of those who ever served in one of our country’s uniforms, and that includes the vets of War II and Korea and Viet Nam up through the current Action in Iraq and Afghanistan, at 6.7%. My dad used to say that only one in 10 Americans ever served in a uniform and the other nine are glad they did. Can’t say that anymore. 6.7%. And that dwindling percentage of the population has special knowledge of what it takes to complete the sacrifice of raising one’s hand swearing to protect and defend the constitution of the United States, and in turn the citizens of this great country. This day is not about politics. This day is not about a Commander in Chief, this day is not about elected officials. This day is about the willingness of a relatively small group of United States citizens who, despite the inherent dangers involved, who refuse to let down the guard necessary to maintain a safe, democratic, and free country.

Today we celebrate those who put others first for the sake of that freedom. While it may true that not everyone has a purely altruistic reason for raising their hand, signing the blank check of their lives over to the people and ideals of this great country, no one escapes that deep sense of the sacrifice once they have completed their term of service, be it three years or a whole career.

You know, it is common today for folks to tell us vets, when we are wearing a hat or a shirt identifying us as proud military veterans, to say “thank you for your service”. And while that is appreciated, usually because it is quite apparent that it is sincere, I find it peculiar that the group that says it more than any other is the vets themselves, one to another. I have been in several states that are very outwardly friendly toward to the military and vets, and in one state, when were out for a meal as a unit, in unform, we ran up a $300 bill. When I went to pay the bill, the cashier told me it was all taken care of, and “thank you for your service”. Wow, that was nice. But later that day, still in uniform, as I passed by a Viet Nam vet as I could see from his 4^th Infantry Division hat, he looked at me and said, “Thank you for your service, sir”. All I could think of was “wow, that came from a place few could claim”. The tide has turned since the time when I was going to college. In fact, I think I know when it started to turn.  In 1983, there was still backlash at our Viet Nam vets, though it was subsiding from the mid 70’s, it was still apparent, especially where I got my commission from, the only university in the country that got combat pay – UC Berkeley.  (a little vet humor there) But seriously, things were turning from vilifying those that were simply following orders, many of whom had no choice because they were drafted.

In October 1983, American forces went to Grenada to liberate many American citizens that were going to medical school there and had been taken captive by the Cuban Army.  They were successful. The next day the Daily Cal newspaper ran a headline saying, “Thank God for the U.S. Army Rangers and the United States Marine Corps”. Clearly, they identified as students, that our forces saved lives and freed innocent people from the attempt of a tyrannical dictator to assert his will and greed in a place he thought would be inconsequential to the US. But he miscalculated the will of a free country to protect its own.

Now, I have to insert a personal story here. I was the Battalion Executive Office, less than two months away from commission when this happened. When it first happened I was called and told not to come into the unit in uniform, but rather “mufti” – civilian clothes. It was then we learned of the headline I just spoke of, and the COL decided we would conduct training as usual the next day.

The next, at the beginning of training, as I was in front of the battalion formation, I noticed a rather “non-military” appearing individual off to my left. I gave the command for the unit commanders to move their units out to training, they saluted me, I returned their salute, and this guy starts walking towards me. Well, from my previous experience on campus… I thought –  uh oh –  here it comes. My three Company Commanders saw this too and they started running towards me, thinking I was going to get myself into trouble. When this bearded individual with rather long hair, a tie dye shirt and sandals got within about ten feet of me he stopped. As I braced for the torrent of profanities that usually accompanied this proximity of Berkeley students this guy said “Man, I wouldn’t do what you do for a million bucks, But I sure am glad you’re doing it.” I mumbled a shocked, “Thanks” and turned around and went on his way. When my 3 Company Commanders got to me it was all over and they asked what he said. I just shook my head in disbelief. In my experience, that is when it turned. Now, my little story might sound a bit myopic, but I do not think it is unique. America has come around to understand that its service members and veterans 1. Answered a call bigger than themselves, 2. All of us come back changed, and that in and of itself is a sacrifice, and 3. Some of what we do has nothing to do with personal agreement or disagreement –  we follow orders, and that is what signed up to do –  for the sake of freedom, for the sake of others, for the sake of our democracy and its citizens.

This is what Veterans’ Day is all about. Selfless, sacrificial service for ideals that this country still stands for.

One last thing. I do not know if you are aware how involved with serving homeless vets the VSO’s of the area are. I have to give a shout out to my comrades in the VFW, American Legion DAV and especially the leadership of JR Wilson and the DVG. These organizations have banded together to help out so many veterans with life sustaining assistance. And the service they provide to getting homeless veterans off the street is impressive. My day job is as a Case Manager for Shelter, Inc, an organization that is very involved with housing homeless vets, and several times when it looked as though a vet was not going to be able to get housing or something needed in order to get housing, these organizations have come through doe so many. Claude Battaglia with Independent Living Resources  should be included in that group, as well.

I am proud of the Veterans in East County who have made sure that No Man (or Woman) Is Left Behind. And how nice it is to be in a community that joins with us, as wonderful support and encouragement to be a part of the solution for those veterans who have fallen on difficult times.

So on this Veterans day 2020, On behalf of those who proudly served you, the American citizen, as many of you have Thank you for your service, let us say back to you, Thank you for your support.

God Bless you, God bless our military and veterans and God Bless America.

Please check back later for more photos and videos of the ceremonies.

 

To be honored, again today during drive-in Antioch Veterans Day Celebration

This is part of a continued series of the annual community awards by the Antioch Chamber of Commerce.

On Friday night, Sept. 24 the Antioch Chamber of Commerce held its Gala Dinner, this year virtually, and honored the city’s most outstanding residents and organizations with their annual awards.

Just because active duty may have ended doesn’t mean those that have protected our freedoms stop serving. Such is the case with the Veteran of the Year award. Award recipients remain heavily involved and active in the community.

Veteran of the Year – U.S. Army, Vietnam Veteran, Past Galt VFW Commander, and current Antioch VFW Post 6435 Commander, Denny Hollison

Born in Des Moines, Iowa on January 29, 1947, to a large family and raised between Los Angeles and Galt, CA, Jimmy “Denny” Hollison joined the United States Army as a Heavy Truck Operator and was sent to South Vietnam in 1968. Denny was stationed with the 101st Airborne Division (2nd BN, 502nd Inf. Division) as a “Road Warrior”

In 1970 Denny became a Life Member of the VFW and in 1972 Denny served as the Galt VFW Commander, and was a High School Football Coach for Galt and Livermore, CA. Denny Hollison became the Antioch VFW Post 6435 Commander in 2016 and still serves the post in that capacity.

He takes great pride, in being a member of the Antioch VFW Post 6435 where he gives back to the community and helps veteran’s in need. Denny is a constant advocate for the veteran’s here in the City of Antioch! He has served as the Security Coordinator for Contra Costa Counties Homeless Veteran “Stand Down on the Delta” since 2015.

Denny and his wife Diane Marie Hollison have three children, Sara Ruegg Hollison, Paul D. Hollison and Kyle Gottwald.

The 2020-21 Antioch Veteran of the Year along with the Veteran of the Year for Lifetime Achievement will be announced and honored, today at the drive-in Antioch Veterans Day Celebration which begins at 10:00 a.m. at the marina, foot of L Street. (See related article).