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Follow us on Sebastopol December 11, 2020 12 Pages Sign up for the FREE e-Edition Sebastopol and get the latest local news Established delivered to your mailbox Quote of the week: 2020 Christmas is a necessity. Friedman’s Home Improvement There has to be at least one day of the year to remind us that we’re here for something else besides ourselves. Senior center keeps seniors safe and connected -Eric Severide Guess Who? I am an actress born in Georgia on December 10, 1985. I gained fame as a child star on a popular family sitcom and also as a child model. I went on to be the headliner in a Disney series and its spin-off. My name is a type of bird. Answer: Raven-Symoné Answer: Inside this issue Teachable moments 2 Mudflow losses 2 Climate activists summit 2 Stay at home order 2 The Power of Adversity 3 Family Justice Center 3 Spread holiday cheer 3 Know the facts 4 PG&E uses helicopter saw 4 Virtual poetry slam 4 Sebastopol History 7 Military ways 7 Bell ringers needed 7 Top-Volunteers at the Sebastopol Senior Center load their cars with meals to be delivered to area sen- Reduce wildfire risk 10 iors. The center delivers 800 meals per week. Rural well-owners 12 Right-Steve Annala leaves the Sebastopol Senior Center on his way to deliver meals to area seniors. Slam 2020 12 Photos courtesy of Sebastopol Senior Center Café Espresso By Brandon McCapes With over 200 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Sonoma County each day, staff and volunteers at the Feature of the week Sebastopol Senior Center have been working to keep the most vulnerable safe and connected to services throughout the pandemic. The center, which has served area seniors from North High Street in Sebastopol for 51 years, has had to adapt to the needs of its members, who are not only at higher risk of severe coronavirus infec- tions, but also suffer from lockdown-related isolation. The non-profit organization serves around 1,200 older and elderly citizens in Sebastopol, where ap- proximately one third of the population is elderly, according to Executive Director Katie Davis. Davis has been working at the Sebastopol Senior Center for over three years and transitioned into Weekly Columns the executive director role in October. When the pandemic began to spread in March, Davis said she and her colleagues decided to shut Thomas Elias 3 down days ahead of March lockdown orders in order to protect the people they serve. Nationally, senior Sweeping up solutions 3 citizens (those over the age of 65) account for 16 percent of the population but 80 percent of COVID- Words to ponder 3 related deaths, the Kaiser Family Foundation reported in July. Sonoma County, of which over 20 percent of the population are senior citizens, has had over 13,000 cases and 160 deaths this year, according to county data. “We knew we had a responsibility to our seniors and meeting in groups was just not recommended,” Davis said. After the lockdown, staff who weren’t furloughed sent out bulk calls to all of the 3,000 community members on its roster, which Davis said helped to reach seniors in rural areas who may not have access to modern technology. Davis said before the COVID pandemic hit, the senior center was a bustling hub for seniors in Se- bastopol and Sonoma County, providing classes and lectures, free dine-in meal services, over 3,200 ‘Senior Center’ see page 12 Sportsman’s Report 2 State keeps high school WSCUHSD Entertainment athletics in holding pattern Approves Parcel By Patrick Norton tion until after January 1, 2021, at the earliest. If you have ever jogged through downtown, you Thus, all full practice and competition start dates may have found yourself running in place waiting are officially on hold until updated guidance is is- Tax Ballot Measure for a traffic light to change. The COVID-19 pan- sued.” cifstate.org. A move foreseen by Analy By Cassandra May Albaugh demic has California High School Athletics in High School Athletic Director, Joe Ellwood. “We The West Sonoma County Union High School District met in spe- much the same situation. Keeping the blood mov- are currently in a holding pattern. The CIF is wait- cial session at 9 a.m. on December 9. The only agenda item for this ing, waiting for a green light, ready to spring into ing for news from the governor’s office. There one-hour online meeting was to consider approval of a resolution to Scott Sheldon 12 action. That green light has yet to be issued. should be some new information out this week, put a Parcel Tax measure on the March 2, 2021 ballot. The required Statewide high school athletics have been put on hopefully by Thursday. However, I expect some Ken Weise 12 public meeting was held, receiving no public comments. hold until after January 1, 2021. Therefore, our type of postponement.” A motion was made by outgoing trustee Diane Landry, seconded theoretical jogger continues to pound the concrete Previously, the last official guidance offered by by trustee Angie Lewis, to approve Resolution #12. Dec 2020-2021 into quicksand, stuck in a COVID-19 quagmire. the CIF came on July 20. Under that guidance ordering an election for the purposes of submitting the question of Health... The administrative machine behind high school teams could still operate on a limited basis follow- levying an education parcel tax on that ballot. Less than a half dozen Body... athletics is complex and there are many moving ing state and local health guidelines. For the Analy community members spoke during the public comment section. The parts. It operates due to the hard work of several Tigers that means teams will continue to partici- gist of their comments was on providing clarifying language for the Mind... entities and many individuals. It’s a huge task in a pate in conditioning sessions twice a week, focus- ballot measure. After additional board discussion, the motion was Sprit... normal year. An argonaut of an endeavor in the ing on strength, agility and aerobic conditioning. amended to clarify the ballot language. The board unanimously current COVID-19 climate. The California Inter- Sessions are held exclusively outdoors, with the voted to approve the amended resolution. scholastic Federation (CIF) governs high school use of masks and adhering to social distancing pro- The required election notice read “NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN Julie Ann Soukoulis 6 athletics at the state level. It is comprised of 10 tocols. Shared equipment is expressly prohibited to the qualified electors of the West Sonoma County Union High local sections each of which serve multiple school making technical work a challenge for both the School District (the "District") of Sonoma County, that in accor- George Malkemus 6 districts. Sonoma County teams find themselves in football and volleyball teams as balls constitute Steven Campbell 6 dance with law, an election will be held on Tuesday, March 2, 2021, the North Coast Section (NCS) and one of three shared equipment. Luckily for the Tigers the ad- in the District, at which election there will be submitted the question Glenn Mollette 6 High School Districts. ministration has been very supportive. “Our prin- of levying an education parcel tax of $48 per parcel annually for The current goal of the CIF is to get student-ath- cipal and superintendent have been really three years, exempting seniors, with annual audits, for the purpose letes safely back in action. Not a simple task with supportive. They understand the beneficial social of raising money to pay educational costs.” 52 out of California’s 58 counties in the highest emotional aspect that sports provide. They could The verbiage for the ballot measure is limited to 75 words, with Covid-19 risk level, sitting in the purple at tier one. have said “no,” which would have been the easiest the name of the district counting as just a single word. As amended, The CIF has been continuously monitoring the di- thing to do. Instead they encouraged us to do what the language submitted to meet today’s deadline for filing is “To Kids rectives and guidelines released from the Gover- we could if we could do it safely,” states Ellwood. renew and provide stable funding for Analy, El Molino, and Laguna nor's Office, the California Department of Ellwood also praises his coaches for their patience High Schools that the State cannot take away; protect music, art, Education, the California Department of Public and flexibility in the current situation. “Our dance, shop, culinary and other career technical programs; retain Health and local county health departments. Their coaches have been great. They have been so pa- teachers/staff; and keep class sizes low; shall the West Sonoma due diligence has led them to postpone the start of tient and flexible during all this. They understand County Union High School District measure to levy $48.00 per par- Fall sports until after the first of the year. As of and continue to provide a quality experience and cel annually for three years be adopted, raising $1,150,000 annually, Activities for kids Tuesday December 1, the CIF posted this state- physical outlet for our student-athletes.” have no funds for administrators' salaries, provide a senior citizens' Kids activities ment on their website “Due to the continued surge The CIF postponement of fall sports (season 1) exemption and have all funds stay local?” including coloring pages in COVID-19 infections, the California Depart- into 2021 could create a ripple effect.