The Antioch Chamber of Commerce has announced the winners for the 2016 community awards:

•Citizen of the Year – Most Impact – Sal Sbranti

•Citizen of the Year – Lifetime Achievement – Leo Fontana

•Small Business of the Year – Rich McDaniel, McDaniel Financial Services

•Large Business of the Year – PG&E

•Non-Profit of the Year – Delta  Veterans Group

•Youth of the Year – Jocelyn Villalobos and Jacqueline Villalobos

The awards will be presented at the Chamber’s annual Gala on Friday, March 10, 2017.

Special recognition will be given to Antioch Unified School District for their continued efforts and successes. Posthumous recognition will be given to Karl Dietzel, and Ed Antrim in recognition of their commitment and betterment of the Antioch community.

Please see photos and details about the winners in the April issue of the Herald and on our website.

Students from Antioch Unified School District will showcase their art at the Lynn House Gallery beginning during March, April and May. The Art4Schools Exhibits began March 1st and end on May 27th.

The exhibit schedule opens with students who attend the Afterschool Program, March 1st – 11th, followed by Mission and Sutter Elementary Schools March 22nd – April 1st, Kimball and Turner Elementary Schools April 26th – May 5th and concludes with Black Diamond and Dallas Ranch Middle Schools May 17th – May 27th. There is a cookie and punch artist reception on opening day of each exhibit from 4-6 PM.  Please join us and support AUSD’s students and artists.

The program is sponsored by the Arts & Cultural Foundation of Antioch, the City of Antioch, Calpine and Keller Canyon Mitigation Fund Grant from Contra Costa County Supervisor Federal Glover. In addition to sponsoring the gallery exhibit, each school receives $500 to be used for art and cultural supplies and educational endeavors. Due to the generosity of Supervisor Glover, the number of participating schools has doubled from prior years.

Exhibits are open to the public at no cost. The Lynn House Gallery is located in the Rivertown District at 809 W. 1st Street, Antioch (across from the AMTRAK Train Station) and is open from 1 – 4 PM on Wednesdays and Saturdays during exhibits and admission is free.

For more information about each exhibit call Diane Gibson-Gray at (925) 779-7018 or email Diane@Art4Antioch.org.

Kiara Chatman advances to state finals in competition that emphasizes language skill and public speaking

In a remarkable achievement, Kiara Chatman, a senior at Deer Valley High in Antioch, took first place in the Contra Costa County “Poetry Out Loud” competition for the second year in a row. The event was held in the lovely Las Lomas High School Theatre in Walnut Creek on February 11th.  The Runner-up position went to senior Camila Morales-Jimenez from El Cerrito High in El Cerrito, and Third Place to sophomore Wesley Little from Monte Vista High in Danville.

The three were among thousands of students across the state to participate in the national recitation contest, a program started by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and run by the California Arts Council and locally by the Arts & Culture Commission of Contra Costa County (AC5) to engage high-school students in the presentation of poetry through memorization and performance.  Chatman advances to the California state finals in Sacramento on March 12 & 13. At stake are hundreds of dollars on the state competition level and thousands at the national finals of Poetry Out Loud.

This is Contra Costa’s tenth year of Poetry Out Loud competition, and many attendees commented that the recitations just keep getting better and better.  Among the many fine recitations, Ms. Chatman’s “The Gaffe” by C.K. Williams, Ms. Morales-Jimenez’s “One Hundred Love Sonnets: XVII” by Pablo Neruda and Mr. Little’s “Cartoon Physics, part 1” by Nick Flynn helped secure the final outcome.

The very competitive pool of finalists included students from eleven county high schools: College Park High in Pleasant Hill, Deer Valley High in Antioch, El Cerrito High in El Cerrito, Independence High in Brentwood, Las Lomas High in Walnut Creek, Monte Vista High in Danville, Northgate High in Walnut Creek, Pinole Valley High in Pinole, Truthtrackers Co-Op in Walnut Creek and Making Waves Academy and Salesian College Preparatory, both in Richmond.  Countywide, over 2500 students memorized a poem for the program this year.

“To learn a great poem by heart is to make a friend for life,” said John Barr, president of the Poetry Foundation. “The national recitation program brings fresh energy to an ancient art form by returning it to the classrooms of America.”

The Poetry Out Loud program seeks to foster the next generation of literary readers by capitalizing on the latest trends in poetry: recitation and performance. Poetry Out Loud competitions start in the classroom, then at the school, region, state, and national finals, similar to the structure of the spelling bee. The national initiative is part of an attempt to bring literary arts to students, a critical need in U.S. schools, according to a 2004 NEA report Reading at Risk that found a dramatic decline in literary reading, especially among younger readers.

More information can be found at www.cac.ca.gov/initiatives/pol.php and www.poetryoutloud.org.

By Jesus Cano

Antioch’s victory went beyond the court Tuesday night, as they defeated crosstown rival Deer Valley in the first round of the NCS Division 1 boys basketball playoffs. The win was dedicated to Yvette Matthews, who unexpectedly passed away this last weekend. Matthews was the wife of Antioch English teacher, Chris Matthews. Antioch players wore black armbands with the initials YM in yellow to show their respects.

“We wanted to let him know that the staff players and whole school is behind him,” Antioch head coach Andrew Riva said. “You never know when things like this are going to happen so we have to appreciate the moments we have.”

After leading 20-10 at the end of the first quarter, Antioch looked to carry their momentum. Deer Valley was able to tie up the game as Dominic Pino stole the ball and handed it over to Darius Ware for the game tying layup. This all coming after Dubem Boardman and Raydale Robinson contributed with nine points to reach the Panthers.

Kirmarje Trent scored the most with 26 points in the game and Antioch retained their lead with plays from Trent and Kaleb Smith, and at halftime they led 35-31.

“Coach always tells us that we’re going to have our ups and downs in the game,” Trent said. “We made sure we had more runs than them to make sure we executed in the game.”

The third quarter was a back and forth shootout between the teams. Antioch dominated half of the third quarter but the Wolverines countered back by going on a 11-point scoring streak, as Boardman built up eight of those points but Antioch still lead 53-45 at the end.

Trent’s biggest performance came in the final quarter, as he dropped 11 points. Towards the end of the game however, Antioch kept on fouling Deer Valley, handing them points. Elijah Sturgis was the man that kept them alive by completing four free throws along with dumping two points. It wasn’t enough as the Panthers kept pounding the rim, and defeated the Wolverines 81-72.

Antioch will travel to Dublin to face the top seeded Gales on Friday, February 24th.4

By Allen Payton

Antioch nine-year old, Kori Margain brought home the bronze by placing third at the NFL Punt, Pass & Kick competition during the Pro Bowl weekend in Florida, on Saturday, January 27, 2017. She was one of four girls to represent the Oakland Raiders nationally, but one of only four girls in the eight- and nine-year-old age group to make it to the finals.

According to their website, NFL Punt, Pass & Kick is “the oldest grassroots initiative at the NFL” and allows children ages 6-15 “to experience the fun of learning football fundamentals in an engaging and supportive non-contact environment.”

“Kori, a fourth-grader, started last November in a local competition,” said her mother Melissa Margain, a former field representative for County Supervisor Mary Piepho. “She won first place, there and moved up to sectionals and team competition, which was held in the Oakland Coliseum before the Raiders game in December.”

Since she was the winner of that competition, Kori earned the right to go the Raiders game, later that day and of course, Mom went with her.

The scores from that day from all the sectionals across the country were then sent to the NFL for comparison.

“They took only the top four scores from each of the 32 teams for each age group to determine who would go to the national finals,” Melissa explained.

Kori competed in the competition for eight- and nine-year-old girls and was one of the top four competitors from the Raiders.

The NFL selected the top four scores in the nation for each age category and Kori’s score was one of them, earning her a spot in the final competition.

During the competition on Saturday, “she placed third in the nation for her scores,” Melissa stated

“They sent the competitors to the Pro Bowl weekend for four days, including a trip to Disney World, interviews by the football players during a media day, and they got to attend the Pro Bowl,” said Melissa.

Asked if Mom got to attend, as well, Melissa responded with a laugh, “I did.”

This was Kori’s second year competing in the contest.

“I participated, last year, too,” Kori said.

She made it to the team competition but not to the finals, the first time. Then, for this year’s competition, she said “I practiced with my family” to improve her skills.

“I competed on Friday and went to Disneyworld on Saturday,” Kori shared. Then they went to the Pro Bowl

game on Sunday.

The most fun Kori said she had was hanging out with her new friends from the competition.

“One from the Oakland Raiders, one from the Chicago Bears, one from the Seattle Seahawks and one from the Chargers,” she said.

Asked if she thinks other kids should participate in the competition, Kori responded, “Yes, it’s fun, you make good friends.”

Her favorite subjects in school are math and reading, and when asked if she wants to play on the high school football team, Kori replied, “No. I’m more into basketball.” She wants to be a WNBA player when she grows up.

A message was posted on the Antioch Unified School District’s Facebook page congratulating Kori for her success in the competition.

“Congratulations to Kori Morgain, 4th grade student at John Muir Elementary, who recently competed in the National NFL Punt, Pass, and Kick competition where she placed third in The United States. Prior to the national completion, Kori beat out thousands of other children in her age category and placed first in her local, sectional, and team competitions. More than 300,000 children throughout The United States participated in the event where they represented a professional football team. Kori represented The Raiders who recognized her at a recent game. Congratulations Kori!”

For more information on the NFL Punt, Pass & Kick competition, visit www.nflppk.com.

 

By Jesus Cano

The City of Antioch Mayor’s Cup means a lot for crosstown rivals Deer Valley High and Antioch High, and Tuesday night’s soccer match painted the picture for everyone as they ended up tying 5-5 in a wild shootout.

The Deer Valley Wolverines started off strong by scoring three consecutive goals. The first, coming from Diego Ruiz, after converting a penalty kick just two minutes into the match. Isaiah Moreira followed, right after as his teammate Rudy Saucedo sent him a pass sharp as a blade. The third goal found the back of the net on a header from Luke Fernandes, and was crossed to him by Edgard Morazan, setting Deer Valley to a comfortable 3-0 lead.

“Even after scoring the first three goals we still wanted more,” Deer Valley JV coach John Delaney said, who was filling in for the absence of head coach Juan Tannus. “Antioch is a great team so you never know what to expect with them.”

Antioch pounded the net on multiple occasions to end the half. Carlos Lopez began it all for the Panthers, as the senior perfectly executed a free kick. 10 minutes later, Abraham Torres took a corner kick that had Bernardo Mendoza’s name written all over it, as Mendoza got a head on the a ball that cut their deficit to 3-2. With less than one minute remaining, Josue Lopez tied up the game at 3-3, that sent the Antioch crowd into a frenzy.

“Our motto is to never give up,” said Antioch head coach Conrad Diaz. “We have to play every minute like it’s 0-0.”

The second half was no different from the first, as in identical fashion Ruiz once again claimed a goal that originated from a penalty kick.

Sophomore Omar Curiel finished a strike from a very difficult angle to tie up the game at 4-4.

After assisting earlier in the match, Morazan came up this time to finish the ball that was just out of the reach of the Antioch goalkeeper. With only seven minutes left in the match, the Wolverines preserved a 5-4 lead.

“Anytime I can help my team improve it’s a blessing,” Ruiz said. “This game is totally different from any other because you only get it once in our lifetime.”

They were had the taste of victory in their mouths with the game coming to a close, but Torres stole a ball and dribble it through defenders before hitting a right foot shot that put the game into a tie.

“Being back on the pitch was a blessing,” Torres explained, after missing most of the season due to personal issue.”Scoring the tying goal was just even better,”

While the game ended in a tie, the cup remains at Deer Valley, as a result of the Wolverines having possession of the award for the last two years.

“Keeping the Cup in my last year here means the world to me,” senior defender Fabian Wence said. “I really hope it (The Cup) never heads to the other side of town.”

Juvenile Hall makes determination based on overcrowding, prior arrest history

By Allen Payton

According to Antioch Police, on Friday, Jan. 20, 2017 at 10:58 am, a 13 year old male was arrested after assaulting a classmate at Antioch Middle School. The juvenile suspect was sent to Juvenile Hall for felony assault.

Then on Tuesday, Jan. 24th at 1:46 pm, Antioch Middle School staff called to report a 13 year old female student was detained in the office for assaulting her teacher. Upon the officers’ arrival, they determined the student had punched her substitute teacher in the face several times causing her to fall to the ground. While on the ground, the student continued to hit the victim several more times. School staff attempted to intervene and the student assaulted one of them. The victim suffered minor injuries from the assault. Several students filmed the assault with their cellular phones and the videos were collected as evidence. The student was issued a juvenile citation and was released to the custody of her mother.

When asked why the girl wasn’t taken to Juvenile Hall, Antioch Police Captain Tammany Brooks said it was up to Juvenile Hall to decide due to overcrowding and other details.

“When a juvenile is taken into custody for a felony, officers call over to Juvenile Hall, explain the charges, and Juvenile Hall staff determines whether or not they are willing to accept him/her,” he said. “When Juvenile Hall refuses to take an arrestee, we issue a citation and release to a parent.

“Juvenile Hall is extremely overcrowded and typically take kids arrested for very violent felonies, and who are a threat to the public,” Brooks explained. “They also are mandated to take kids who have outstanding warrants. Therefore, they screen all potential incoming kids and turn away ones who don’t fit that criteria.”

When asked why the boy was treated differently and what message that was sending to the other students, Brooks explained further.

“Each case is different,” he stated. “Boy or girl, prior arrest history, availability on the module, etc. that’s why we call first to get a yay or nay.”

“We’d prefer to send them all (to Juvenile Hall), but we’re at their mercy,” Brooks added.

When asked about the two incidents and if the school or district had taken any disciplinary action against the students, Antioch Superintendent Stephanie Anello responded.

“Our disciplining students is separate from any action law enforcement might take so I really can’t speak to the decision to send one student to Juvenile Hall versus the other,” she said. “The school discipline is based on the California Education Code and our discipline matrix and is in addition to any action law enforcement might take.”

However, she did not say if either of the students had been or would face any discipline, such as suspension or expulsion.

By Allen Payton

Sage Bennett, a sophomore at Antioch High School, was the winner of this year’s Reggie Moore Scholarship Award, which was presented to him during Monday’s annual Antioch Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Celebration.

The $400 scholarship is in memory of the late Councilman Reggie Moore who was the first African-American elected to the Antioch City Council. It was presented by former Mayor Wade Harper and Moore’s widow Dashon and family.

Sage shared his poem based on this year’s theme, United by the Dream, that day and with our readers, here:

Change

By Sage Bennett

Change is a word,

Meaning a difference in ways,

Like from black to white,

Years and then to days

Change is inevitable,

As some people come to fear,

Change is in the workings,

And change is with us, in this new year

Dr. Martin Luther King,

A man of great word,

He was killed for what he preached,

As some thought it was absurd.

He often spoke of a greater future,

One where we can love, cherish, and nurture,

One where his four little children would not be bound by discrimination,

One where he might still be alive,

if not for his assassination

We are able to sit here,

Together,

In this room today,

While fifty-three years ago the blacks would be all sent away,

Given by the Creator,

A set of “unalienable rights”,

Given to all men by the Declaration,

Not just the whites

Segregation brought separation,

lost communication, and fright,

Things we seen often in the day,

And often in the night

Oppression in the media,

Police Brutality in the streets,

Social injustice in the schools,

And again so it repeats

You can’t have a house,

without a door,

You can’t have a school,

without a teacher,

Although I could go on,

The point is you can’t have the dream,

without the dreamer

So Dream on.

Although change is slow,

From what we can see,

Change is happening everywhere,

And it’s coming with the fee

By following his theme,

We could turn dream into reality,

We could save this world’s credibility,

And save it from fatality,

Our country, our world, can be much better than it seems,

Stand with me, together, United by the Dream.