By Allen Payton

The Antioch and East County community joined together to honor America’s military veterans, today with a ceremony near the Antioch Veterans Memorial at the marina, followed by the annual parade down 2nd Street in the city’s historic Rivertown.

The ceremony, led by former Antioch Mayor Jim Davis, included comments from Mayor Wade Harper and County Supervisor Mary Piepho, beginning at 9:30 a.m.

Then at 11 a.m., in honor of the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month when the armistice began, officially ending World War I in 1918, and pretty much at the 11th minute, the parade began. This year it was reversed and ran east from L Street to E Street, instead.

Marching bands from four of East County’s high schools, including Antioch, Deer Valley, Liberty and Freedom, participated in the parade, as did various veterans groups, Cub, Boy and Girl Scout troops and other organizations.

Following the parade, veterans and their families gathered at the VFW hall on Wilbur for a barbecue lunch.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 29th Annual California Coastal Cleanup Day, the state’s largest volunteer event, will take place on Saturday, September 21st, 2013. The event is expected to draw more than 70,000 volunteers who will combat marine debris at over 800 locations throughout the state by removing the trash that has accumulated on California’s beaches and inland shorelines over the past year. Get out there, join the effort in Antioch. Last year, over 100 participants volunteered There are three locations to choose from: Antioch Marina, Prewett Park & Fulton Shipyard. Select your location when you complete your registration (see link below). Last  year over 100 participants came together to clean along the Delta and create awareness of why trash  so damaging to our aquatic and coastal areas.

Coastal Cleanup Day provides  a way for tens of thousands of Californians to remove trash from our environments, but also reinforces that each of us, as consumers of goods and producers of those goods, has a responsibility to reduce, prevent, and clean up marine debris. For more information, and to register to volunteer, visit www.art4antioch.org/Coastal-Cleanup.asp or email Diane@Art4Antioch.org.  or call Diane Gibson-Gray at (925) 325-9897 or Julie Haas-Wajdowicz at (925) 779-7097.

For more information visit www.coastal.ca.gov/publiced/ccd/ccd2.html.

By Eleanor O’Donnell

The Antioch Historical Society will host their final Summer Open Evening at the museum on Wednesday, August 21, 2013. We will feature a Vintage Car Show and an old fashioned Ice Cream Social, demonstrations of making ice cream in old fashion crank type ice cream maker.

The museum will be open from 1:00 – 4:00 pm and 6:00 – 9:00 pm. Admission is free.

We have had a nice turn out for the open house and have entertained many children with contests and snacks.  Our goal has been to acquaint people with the museum and the history of the area.  We have more people living in Antioch and area now than ever before.  The museum welcomes everyone and hopes to show the history of Antioch and people who were here before us.

The museum has been adding some improvements, a new wrought iron fence at the front of the drive-way, new lighting in front of the building and new carpet in the hallway and Riverview Room.  All provided by generous donations to the museum and fund raising efforts.

The museum is located at the corner of 1500 West 4^th Street at the curve from Auto Center Drive.

For more information please visit www.art4antioch.org/ahs.asp.

Antioch residents will again celebrate National Night Out, this year, on Tuesday night, August 6 in over 30 neighborhoods to help fight crime throughout the city.

The event begins at 6 p.m. and lasts until dark.  So, join with your neighbors and learn how to keep your neighborhood safe.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the National Night Out. To learn more about the National Night Out, visit the National Association for Town Watch at www.natw.org.

Help the East Bay Leadership Council promote and honor good works in Contra Costa County and the Tri-Valley by submitting your nominations to the Third Annual Contra Costa/Tri-Valley Philanthropy Awards program by Thursday, August 15. The annual program recognizes outstanding contributions of time, leadership and financial support by businesses, individuals, families and nonprofit organizations throughout the region. Nominations are sought in communities throughout Contra Costa County and the Tri-Valley, including Livermore, Pleasanton and Dublin.

The annual awards breakfast honoring nominees and award recipients will be held Thursday, November 7, from 7:30 to 10 a.m. at the Hilton Concord. The event is a project of the Council’s Social Responsibility Task Force.

Each nomination must come from a nonprofit or have a letter of support from a nonprofit. Organizations may make multiple nominations. Award categories include Outstanding Corporate Philanthropist (small, medium and large companies), Outstanding Philanthropist, Outstanding Foundation or Community Grant Maker, Outstanding Collaborative Project, Volunteer of the Year, Next Generation Philanthropist (new) and Lifetime Achievement. A prestigious panel representing all sectors of the community and government is formed each year to make the award selections.

“The awards program is dedicated to the generosity of the many great people and organizations that offer a richness in our region,” says Mark Hughes, who chairs the awards committee and will emcee the breakfast celebration in November. “Through it, we are working to build awareness and inspire many more organizations to get more involved in this work, which can transform companies and make a true difference in our communities.”

To access the Philanthropy Awards nomination form and eligibility details, see the nomination form on the Council website. For other questions, contact Terry Shoaff at 925.246.1880.

Presenting the keynote at the November 7 breakfast celebration is Sid Espinosa, Microsoft’s champion for philanthropy and citizenship in Silicon Valley. He is the former director of global philanthropy for HP, a Palo Alto City Council member and former mayor of Palo Alto. Espinosa has served on numerous boards of directors for business, nonprofit and educational organizations around the world, including the board of trustees at his undergraduate alma mater, Wesleyan University. He worked at the Democratic National Committee during the 1994 congressional campaigns, joined the Clinton Administration to work at the White House and as an advisor to U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno at the U.S. Department of Justice.

Philanthropy Award recipients in 2012 were:

• Outstanding Corporate Philanthropist (over 500 employees): Wells Fargo

• Outstanding Corporate Philanthropist (100 to 500 employees): Neiman Marcus, Walnut Creek

• Outstanding Corporate Philanthropist (1 to 99 employees): InVision Communications

• Outstanding Philanthropist: Mary Garaventa

• Outstanding Foundation or Community Grant Maker: East Bay Community Foundation

• Outstanding Collaborative Project: SparkPoint Contra Costa

• Volunteer of the Year: Kay Aaker

• Lifetime Achievement: Judy Lazarus

Title sponsor of the event is Wells Fargo, and presenting sponsor is Chevron. Other sponsorships are available.

About the East Bay Leadership Council (formerly the Contra Costa Council): The Council, also referred to as the EBLC, is a private sector, public policy organization with a membership that includes business, nonprofit organizations, government, education and labor. The mission of the Council is to provide advocacy on public policy issues affecting the economic vitality and quality of life in the Greater East Bay region. For more information, see www.eastbayleadershipcouncil.com and follow us on twitter (@EBLConline) and Facebook.

The Senior Girls Softball Team from Antioch Little League has made it to the Western Regionals. They and and their families need your help. The players and families are responsible for their own hotel and travel expenses to the tournament. The league has received a number of monetary donations and is a great start of getting everyone there.

Do you know of any companies or if you are interested in helping the families and players, donations have to be made to the league by this afternoon. (Tuesday, July 22)

They were featured on KTVU Channel 2 news, which you can watch by clicking here.

There’s a link on the league’s Pay Pal Account on their website at www.antiochlittleleague.com or feel free to contact Dennis Felix at questions@antiochlittleleague.com