Letter to the Editor

Accountability, whose is it? Our school district is facing five areas of responsibility to our students and their parents. The area we cannot effectively control is the legislature. While it is out of control, however there are four areas we can have input on: the board of education, the district administration, the teachers and the students.

The board is elected to select the best qualified to run the district, hire teachers and guide the district through its accumulated experience in real world business, teaching models and overseeing operations. If our board doesn’t handle these functions well the whole district suffers.

Our input can be applied by voting in the best possible candidates and attending meetings where agendas of interest are held and speaking out. If our voices are not heard how can we expect to see change?

The district administration holds the responsibility to produce a curriculum that satisfies the Federal, state and local entities. They are responsible for teacher qualifications and upgrading them to stay current. The administration is supposed to be an efficient, on-budget operation that trims all the fat to produce a leaner profile.

The administration also assigns its principals and teachers to the schools where needed, but sometimes thinking that a good middle school administrator might bail out a high school, only find that administrator overwhelmed causing stress and perhaps the loss of a capable administrator.

Teachers hold the unique responsibility of forming our students’ minds and learning habits that will set them for life. In our current economic turmoil teachers are looking over their shoulders to see if they are next to be let go, perhaps at the expense of the “art” of teaching, that is to inspire their students. Teachers are not built-in baby-sitters but are to help build character and self esteem.

The students have their own responsibilities like being on time, doing homework, and focusing on the material being taught, not their neighborhood challenges. They need to learn to respect themselves when no one else does. They also need to know that there are other avenues to careers that don’t need college to start but, only their imaginations.

The responsibility for our students’ education is ultimately in our hands and we should be asking those who direct it, why doesn’t the system work any more?

Jack Yeager
Candidate AUSD

By Walter Ruehlig

The award winners for the annual Knights of Columbus Police Office and California Highway Patrol Officer of the Year awards luncheon have been announced.

They are Antioch P.D. Officer James Stenger; Pittsburg P.D. Officer Richard Hosier; California Highway Patrol Officer Officer Mark Mitchell and CCC Fire Protection District Fire Fighter of the Year Brett M. Schooley.

The awards will be presented at Lone Tree Golf and Event Center this Saturday, September 17th from 11:30 to 1:30. The Boy Scouts will present the colors and Dayang Montilla will sing the Star Spangled Banner. Baritone Richard Asadoorian will sing several classical selections.

Sound engineering is being donated by by Malcolm Hunter and videoing provided by Joey Montilla of Snap Eye Productions. The event chairs are Gary Clausen and Walter Ruehlig.

Tickets are still available for the buffet luncheon for $35. Call Walter at (925) 756-7628 or email walter.ruehlig@gmail.com.

In attendance will be County Supervisor Mary Piepho, Maurice Delmer representing State Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla, Antioch Mayor James Davis, County Board of Education Trustee Cynthia Ruehlig, Antioch Superintendent of Schools Dr. Donald Gill, and former Antioch Council Member Allen Payton.

The day’s events begin with a pageantry-rich Blue Mass to be held at St. Ignatius of Antioch Church at 9:30 a.m. The ceremonial Mass, replete with bagpiper, special music and colorful ceremony is a long-standing Catholic tradition that honors first responders. All are welcome.

The Chief Homilist is Rev. Robert Rien, chaplain to the Antioch and Martinez Police Departments. He will be assisted by Rev. Helmut Richter of Good Shepard Church, chaplain to the Pittsburg Police Department. Musical Director Don Pearson will conduct the choir and play the Rodgers’s 958 Trillium Masterpiece Pipe/Digital Organ.

By Walter Ruehlig
Member, Interfaith Peace Project Advisory Board

Some days, thank heavens, the news isn’t about murder or mayhem or scandals of unbridled lusting or looting. Sometimes as a human race we do it right and prove the poet Alexander Pope’s appraisal right; man can sink lower than the beast or fly higher than the angels.

It was gratifying to see well over a hundred people spend 45 minutes of their lunch-time at the dedication of the Peace Pole in front of Antioch City Hall on September 12th. The skies were glorious, the ceremony equally elegant and the milk of human kindness and brotherly love flowing.

Special kudos to June Kirk for her tireless behind the scenes organizational work. As one person wisely observed, it all seemed so stress less precisely because somebody, in fact, had stressed on the pre-details.

Bouquets as well to Rev. Sierra Lynne White for her inspired music and for so gracefully leading us into centering moments in honor of 9-11 and the planting of the pole. The remarks by Mayor Davis and Rev. Bonnaci were inspired and the baritone Richard Assadoorian moved the crowd with his haunting rendition of “To Dream the Impossible Dream”.

The doves released by Terry Davis were a fitting prelude to the final emotional touching of the pole as clergy of all faiths and lay people, some in turbans, others in crew cuts, affirmed their vision of a more peaceful future.

Appreciation is extended County Board of Supervisor Mary Piepho for her attending as well as Paul Adler, representing Supervisor Federal Glover; Maurice Delmer, representing Assemblywoman Susan Bonilla; Cynthia Ruehlig, Trustee of the County Board of Education; Antioch City Council members Gary Agopian, Wade Harper, Brian Kalinowski and Mary Rocha; and City Manager Jim Jakel.

The Interfaith Peace Project, in concert with the Interfaith Council of Contra Costa County, hosted the planting as a second day kickoff to the 11 Days of Peace program which started in honor of 9-11 and will end on September 21st, the U.N. sponsored International Day of Peace.

By background, the Interfaith Peace Project was founded by Rev. Bonnaci on September 8, 2011 in Carmichael, PA. Rev. Bonacci then brought his vision to California in 2006 and a year later the organization was chartered. It now maintains a Peace Center at 4740 Matterhorn Way that is open to the public for browsing or reflection and houses artifacts and thousands of books on world religions.

Planting this pole continues a tradition started by Mashahisa Goi of Japan who in 1955 wanted to make a statement on world peace. Today over 200,00 peace poles exist. The Delta Region stands, then in good company as the poles have been dedicated by the likes of Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama and Jimmy Carter and stand at sites that include the tomb of Confucius, Gorsky Park in Russia, the Pyramids at Gaza, the base of Mt. Everest and the magnetic North Pole in Canada.

By all means, drop by this splendid eight-foot cedar pole. It stands between the evergreen planted in memory of the victims of 9-11 and City Hall Plaza, right near the gas payment box. Reflect on the inscription ingrained in twelve languages; Arabic, English, Filipino, Hebrew, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portugese, Spanish, Urdu, Ibo: “May Peace Prevail on Earth”.

I wish us all Der Frieden, Heiwa, Kapayapaan, La Paix, La Paz, Maluhia, Mir, Peace, Shalom, Shalom! After all, world peace begins one of us at a time.

Life has a biological way of giving you do-overs. Like this summer when I was asked to be an environmental science camp counselor. I immediately asked if I qualified since I just about failed biology, chemistry and physiology in high school over 30 years ago.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved those courses and loved my teachers Mr. Cornejos and Mr. Bandar even more. I just didn’t test well, and okay, didn’t study well either. Whatmatters now is I’m back in the biological game.

The camp leader told me my lack of science skills would not be a problem, since the kids would do most of the work and I would be more like a facilitator or something real important like that.

I said yes to the job and, to my surprise, I survived the week without burning sulfur through the floor, didn’t have to take any tests – well, except for nitrate, pH, turbidity and sulfide in water samples. And best of all, I didn’t have to work with the chemical Phenolphthalein, otherwise known as C20H14O4 – even though the haunting high school memories of chem lab would find me drifting at times.

No, see environmental science focused primarily on the environment and how we humans are messing it up big time, scientifically speaking.

I learned that all of the plastics we’ve made are still present on planet earth in some form or another, living happily in landfills and at the bottom of oceans (basically everywhere) and won’t decompose in our lifetime. I learned that we are 100% dependent on our beautiful Delta for our water source, and that Southern California wants it too.

And most importantly, that the Delta is considered to be the most invaded estuary in the world! I had no idea that more than 250 alien aquatic and plant species have invaded the Delta. And at least 185 of these species have gained a foothold and are currently inhabiting (and altering) the Delta’s ecosystem. Bad, bad water hyacinth – I don’t care how pretty you look.

I also learned (on the first day mind you) to do a headcount of all those (including teachers) who ride the bus back home, instead of leaving someone behind to fend for transportation on their own.

The five-day camp was held at California State University East Bay’s Concord site. During the week we took mini field trips to Dow Chemical’s 450-acre wetland in Pittsburg, Ralph D. Bollman Water Treatment Plant in Concord, and Delta Diablo Sanitation District in Antioch – a somewhat “crappy” job, but someone has to do it, right?

I should also mention that this day camp, in conjunction with Contra Costa Economic Partnership, was largely sponsored by Chevron. Which, by the way, is making incredible efforts to develop efficient facility projects that reduce energy costs, benefit the environment and ensure clean, reliable power for education, government and businesses. And no, they did not pay me for this plug.

Also as a camp counselor, I was versed in reinforcing 10 work-ready essential skills with the students in order to promote such job qualities as professionalism and ethics, creativity and innovation, collaboration and communication and more.

I thought I did a pretty good job of that all week long, sans day one when I forgot about the teacher who needed to ride the bus home with us. Thank goodness for Starbucks gift cards. The teacher forgave me, and I decided to give her an award called, “No Teacher Left Behind.”

If you’re interested in the 2012 camp series, visit www.cceconptnr.org. I know I’m going back!

For the fourth year, Supervisor Federal Glover is sponsoring a day-long seminar on writing applications for grants.

“In this economy with everybody’s budgets getting trimmed, it is important that the agencies providing services to the public find funding wherever they can find it,” said Glover.

The workshop will be held from 8 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 19 at Los Medanos College, Library Community Room L109 in Pittsburg.

Originally intended to help East County nonprofit community-based organizations find additional funding for their programs, the seminar has expanded to include government agencies and other groups seeking ways to finance their programs. The program has become so popular that participants are coming from all over the Bay Area and is now held twice a year.

“Normally these workshops cost hundreds of dollars,” said David Fraser, Glover’s chief of staff and who plans and is one of the presenters at the cost-free seminars. “There are certain requirements that foundations look for and I try to emphasize how those should be written. It can mean the difference between rejection and acceptance.”

Space is limited and pre-registration is required at the supervisor’s website at www.cccounty.us/supervisorglover.

“The intention of these workshops is to try and keep the social safety net in place so no one who needs assistance falls through the cracks,” said Glover.

For more information, call 925-427-8138.

The contractor will begin placing the supports for the new Loveridge Road Bridge over Highway 4. In order to ensure crew and public safety during this work, the contractor will be doing complete closures of the highway overnight during the next several weeks.

The contractor plans to begin work in the eastbound direction, work for two weeks, and then work in the westbound direction for two weeks. The closures will take place on Sunday nights through Friday mornings for approximately 4 weeks beginning on September 13, and continuing until approximately October 11, 2011. The eastbound closure will take place between 12:30 a.m. and 5:30 a.m. The westbound closure will take place between 10:00 p.m. and 3:30 a.m.

The detours for this work will be as follows:
o Eastbound motorists will be directed off the highway at Loveridge Road and immediately back on the highway at the eastbound SR-4 on-ramp from Loveridge Road.

o Westbound motorists will be directed off the highway at Somersville Road/Auto Center Drive exit, left on Somersville Road, continue on to Auto Center Drive, left on Tenth Street, left on Loveridge Road, right on California Avenue, and left on westbound SR-4 on-ramp.

Motorists are advised to expect delays and allow extra time for their commute. Please drive with caution through the detours and leave a safe traveling distance between your vehicle and the vehicle ahead of you. Caltrans and CCTA appreciate your patience as we work to improve the highways.

For the most current information on all SR-4 corridor closures please visit our web site at: http://widensr4.org.