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BY JIM KNOWLES • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-27-16
People like to talk about community and affordable housing.
Well, they have them both at Trailer Haven, the cozy little trailer park on East 14th Street. It’s affordable, and it’s a nice, friendly community of people who’ve worked most of their lives and don’t have a lot of wealth.
Many of the porches on the little trailer homes are decorated with potted plants. Kids ride their bikes down the main lane.
But the park was sold recently and the new owners are raising the rent. Trailer Haven residents are worried.
Trailer Haven resident Max (short for Maxina) Ventura said the rent increases of 29 percent landed in the mailboxes right after the trailer park was sold.
“It was sold on Sept. 1,” Ventura said. “Three seconds later we got a rent increase.”
Ventura said her rent is going up 29 percent, and others are about the same.
“I’ve heard nothing less than 25 percent,” said Ventrua, a mom of three kids who all grew up in Trailer Haven.
Residents own their trailers but rent the “pad,” the little piece of land where the trailer rests. For a regular trailer, Ventura said her rent will go from about $540 a month to $700. For a double-wide, from $800 or $900 to $1,200.
“There are so many nice people here, and they’re worried,” Ventura said.
Moving is out of the question for a lot of the residents who spoke to the newspaper. They can barely afford the trailer park, but the rent is even higher for apartments now.
“I’m on G.A. and food stamps,” said resident Bob Nelson. “A $200 increase is too much for me.”
Nelson said he called both HUD and ECHO Housing and that neither one could offer any help.
“I called both and they don’t care,” Nelson said. “They said, ‘We can’t help you. Good luck.’”
Ventura said they got a letter from a property management company, but the residents don’t know who bought Trailer Haven. The letter says the owner is now San Leandro Mobile Home & RV Park, LP, with a post office address in Sacramento.
“This whole thing is so shady,” Ventura said. “It’s very scary.”
She added, “This is a park with many families with fixed income and on SSI, so it’s a vulnerable population.”
But the company that manages the property for the new owners says the rent has not been increased in years, and the rent is still below most mobile home parks in the area.
“We’re still one of the most affordable mobile home parks in San Leandro and in the Bay Area by far,” said Brock Kaveny, spokesman for Cascade Corporate Management. He said the owners are hit with a big increase in property taxes after the sale.
The dwellings might be called mobile homes, but they’re not mobile. Most of the trailers, made in the 1970s, have been sitting for decades. If you tried to tow them they’d probably fall apart, Ventura said.
One resident tried to sell his home, but when the potential buyer found out about the new ownership and rent increase, he pulled out.
Ventura looked into the City of San Leandro’s Rent Review Board. No luck there either. The Rent Review Ordinance doesn’t apply to renting spaces for trailer homes.
The rent board has no power to control rent, only to make a recommendation, but Ventura had hoped that it might help.
Ventura believes the owners of Trailer Haven are making money hand over fist, while the park’s maintenance is inadequate. All the vacant space, the common areas, have been filled up with trailers, which are squeezed into the property side-by-side.
“Every common space with green had been taken over for more rental space, even the space that was supposed to be for meetings,” Ventura said. “And no one will speak up, because we’ve seen people threatened with evictions.”
Ventura’s daughter, who lives with her, was contributing to the rent. But she had to give up her job at a produce market because she was affected by the pesticides they use.
Another letter from the new management told residents that the water and sewer charges will be separated from their rent, starting Dec. 1, instead of being all in one lump sum. Ventura suspects that’s to make it appear that the rent hasn’t gone up as much as it is.
Ventura sought help from Congresswoman Barbara Lee and Assemblyman Rob Bonta to see what they could do. But both representatives’ staff people said there wasn’t much they could do, other than to give Ventura some phone numbers for legal and tenants’ rights organizations.
But the City of San Leandro is aware of the rent hikes and has been trying to contact the property managers and owners.
“It’s definietly been a concern and we’ve informed the mayor and City Council, said Tom Liao, the city’s community development director. “We sent out communications to the new owners to see if we could meet with them.”
Liao said that the city would like to sit down with the new owners and see what, if any, plans they have for the property.
“I don’t know if they’re buying it as an investment or to change it,” Liao said. “We’re just waiting to hear back,” Liao said. “It’s a concern, and hopefully we can make some progress.”
But Brock Kaveny with Cascade Management says the rent is still lower than most trailer parks, and they plan to keep Trailer Haven just the way it is.
“We love Trailer Haven, it has a ton of history to it, and we want to operate it well,” Kaveny said.
Kaveny said the prior rent was way below the market, and this much of an increase was a one-time thing.
“We don’t believe in doing this kind of an increase every year, you can quote me on that,” Kaveny said.
One reason for the rent increase is the jump in property taxes the new owners have to pay, he said. The annual property tax was $62,000 before. But the property is re-assessed when it’s sold, and now the tax is $204,000 annually.
Plus, the city charged a “transfer fee” of $101,000 when the property was sold.
That’s a big chunk of money that the new owners are paying in taxes for roads and everything else to improve the community, Kaveny added.
The owners are “everyday people who believe in affordable housing,” Kaveny said.
“They have a commitment to affordable housing,” Kaveny said. “I don’t know where you can find a more affordable place.”
They haven’t gotten any hardship requests from residents, Kaveny said. But if they do, he said they will consider the requests.
CAPTION: Max Ventura, at left, is worried about rent hikes at Trailer Haven with Jean Smith, Sonia Bohannon, Ventura’s daughter Ingrid Pollyak, and Bob Nelson.
PHOTO BY JIM KNOWLES
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BY AMY SYLVESTRI • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-27-16
Kavanagh Liquors is closing on Nov. 19 after 52 years in business in San Lorenzo.
Property owners the Bohannon Companies sold the land and the new owners said that the well-known convenience store had to go.
“Bohannon sold the land and the new owners have plans and we aren’t a part of those plans,” said Kavanagh employee Johnna McDaniel.
The San Lorenzo location, known for selling lucky lottery tickets, is the final Kavanagh location to close. At one point there were 12 stores all around the East Bay.
McDaniel said that the owners looked around San Lorenzo for another location, but just couldn’t afford it, so Kavanagh will close for good next month.
“It’s over, it’s just too expensive around this area,” said McDaniel.
The Bohannon Organization did not return calls for comment. Whatever they and the new developers have planned for the space at 500 Via Mercado will be of interest to the people of San Lorenzo, as the surrounding area including the former Mervyn’s site has been empty since that store closed in 1995.
There has been a lot of talk about what might be built in the Kavanagh/ Mervyn’s site, with previous projects discussed including a 52,000 square-foot Lucky grocery store that never came to fruition. The Mervyn’s property is currently a parking lot.
BY AMY SYLVESTRI • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-27-16
A proposed ordinance to double the number of medical marijuana dispensaries in Alameda County’s unincorporated areas is moving forward, despite considerable public opposition and accusations that county Supervisor Nate Miley is being influenced by donations from the cannabis industry.
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors has tentative plans to expand their medical marijuana ordinance to allow delivery, edible products, and two more dispensaries in the western part of the county – which includes San Lorenzo, Ashland and Cherryland.
At meetings in September, the San Lorenzo Village Homes Association opposed the ordinance, citing concerns about crimes, a drain on law enforcement resources, and a lack of economic benefit to the community. The Castro Valley Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) also spoke out against the ordinance for the same reasons, as did speakers at the county’s Unincorporated Services Committee.
At Monday’s MAC meeting, former MAC member Cheryl Miraglia accused Nate Miley of having been bought off by the marijuana industry with $60,000 worth of campaign donations.
“Guess what? It appears that medical marijuana has donated more (to Miley) than the unions,” said Miraglia, who added that you’d have to be “smoking something” to think Miley’s push for more dispensaries is a coincidence.
In Miley’s most recent campaign finance statement, two donations totaling $30,000 came from Honeycomb Farms Inc. and Pioneer Management Innovations, which both listed the same address of 9782 Flynn Road South in Livermore.
The registered owner of Pioneer Management is Soufyan Abouamed, the CEO of Garden of Eden medical marijuana dispensary.
Another donation of $20,000 was made by STRM LLC of Hayward. STRM’s address is a UPS store on Mission Boulevard, and STRM’s registered owner is listed as “Shareel El-Sissi.” Garden of Eden’s CFO is “Shareef El-Sissi.”
Miley has told the MAC that if Supervisor Scott Haggerty would agree to place two dispensaries in eastern Alameda County, Miley would give his word that there would be no additional dispensaries in the Eden Area.
At Monday’s meeting, the MAC gave its recommendations on the ordinance under a certain amount of duress, with the fear being that if the MAC rejected the ordinance outright, the county Board of Supervisors could simply ignore them and do what they wanted, including placing additional dispensaries in the Eden area.
“This is the best we can do, unfortunately,” said MAC member Ken Carbone.
MAC chair Marc Crawford agreed and pointed out that the county could still place a dispensary on its own property – at Fairmont Hospital for example.
“This process is going to go forward with or without our concerns,” said Crawford. “I’d love to slow it down, but I think the political reality is that that’s not going to happen.”
The MAC said that even though they granted a recommendation, they still had a lot of questions, including the logistics behind the delivery of cannabis to patients and the storage of product.
“I don’t see how this ordinance is manageable,” said MAC member Linda Tangren.
The county ordinance could be voted on by the Board of Supervisors as soon as next month. If approved, it would go into effect 30 days later.
BY AMY SYLVESTRI • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-27-16
The Nov. 8 general election is just under two weeks away. In San Leandro City Council District 4 candidate Benny Lee is running unopposed.
The 51-year-old incumbent is a financial consultant, first elected to the council in 2012. Before that he served on the city’s recreation and parks commission and personnel relations board and as the president of the Heron Bay Homeowners’ Association.
Lee says that he looks forward to continuing his service on the council.
“San Leandro is definitely moving in the right direction,” Lee said.
In his second term, Lee said that public safety will be a top priority.
One of the more controversial issues that came up during Lee’s first term was the police department’s acquisition of an armored vehicle. Many members of the public spoke out against what they felt was militarization the police, but Lee says that’s not an issue in San Leandro.
“I think the public gets it and I think our police get it, “ said Lee. “I don’t think anyone feels like the San Leandro police are being militarized.” He added that the recent “unity in the community walk” and the community’s quick reaction to some racist graffiti were positive signs of a health police/public relationship in San Leandro.
Another priority will be affordable housing. Lee says that it is imperative that “a diversity” of housing exists, with both affordable and market-rate units available.
“We want local folks living and working locally,” said Lee. “A variety of different price ranges is important.”
Lee said that “smaller is better” when it comes to the housing of the future and pointed to sites including the former CVS site on the corner of Callan Avenue and East 14th Street as a place where smaller apartments could be built.
Soaring rent prices were a big issue the council heard during Lee’s first term, with some people even calling for rent control.
Lee said some members of the public have expressed concern about San Leandro’s focus on attracting tech businesses. If the city booms, will long-time residents be pushed out when they can’t afford increasing rents?
“I don’t think we will leave anyone behind,” said Lee. “We have an opportunity to expand overall.”
As far as representing District 4’s specific issues, Lee says that during his second term, he’ll focus on making sure all properties have proper upkeep. He says he’s looking to increase the city’s community compliance department budget by up to $50,000 for more enforcement to keep blight away.
Lee’s endorsements include County Supervisor Wilma Chan, the police and firefighters’ unions, and California State Controller Betty Yee.
In the District 6 City Council election, retired San Leandro Police Captain Pete Ballew is running unopposed, replacing termed-out councilman Jim Prola.
Ballew, 54, grew up in Floresta Gardens served on the San Leandro police force for almost 30 years. He is in his 28th year of coaching sports at San Leandro High and teaches for the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training.
Ballew says he was inspired to run for City Council by his 7-year-old daughter. He says he wants to make the city a great place for her to grow up just like it was for him.
Public safety, housing, and neighborhood preservation are among Ballew’s top priorities. He says the key to San Leandro’s success in the future is keeping a balance between attracting business and paying attention to the needs of residents.
“San Leandro has an emphasis on growth right now, but the city is pretty much built out,” said Ballew. “We need to look at things like mixed-use developments but we also need to preserve a neighborhood feel.”
Ballew says San Leandro needs to study how other cities in California are handling the disparity between supply and demand in housing.
The city has touted the tech campus and Westgate as signs of a thriving economy, and Ballew says that’s great, but the city must also remain a good place to raise a family.
“The techies want to move to town, but we have to avoid just chasing the shiny new object at the expense of the community,” said Ballew. “I love the tech stuff, but my platform is common sense, we have to find a balance.”
According to Transparent California, Ballew retired from the police department in 2012 with a $160,000 annual pension.
Asked if his career as a police officer might make him more inclined to favor the department while making council decisions, Ballew says that his experience will actually make him more critical of police matters.
“I would argue that because of my background, I’m in a better position to make a common sense call,” said Ballew. “I am familiar with the department’s policies and it better positions me to make those decisions.”
Ballew gave the armored vehicle as an example – the department acquired one earlier this year after a lengthy process and considerable public opposition. But the police first considered getting an armored car back in 2009 when Ballew was on the force and he was against it.
“I wasn’t a proponent of it back then, because I didn’t think we needed it, but I’ve since changed my mind and think it’s great,” said Ballew. “But ask anyone who knew me in 2009, I was against it. I have never been a rubber stamp guy.”
Ballew says he’s looking forward to continuing to be active in the community as a councilman. He said that even though he’s running unopposed, he’s thankful for the support he’s gotten since deciding to run.
Ballew's endorsements include the San Leandro police union, the Alameda County firefighters’ union, and former state senator and San Leandro mayor Ellen Corbett.
Election day is Nov. 8.
SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-27-16
Jeremiah Baranco, 5, of Oakland pulls the pumpkin he picked out in a wagon at Moore’s Pumpking Patch in Castro Valley on Saturday. Moore’s is a family-owned business (next to the Rowell Ranch Rodeo grounds) that sells thousands of pumpkins each year weighing from a few ounces to more than 600 pounds. The patch also includes carnival rides.
PHOTO BY FRED ZEHNDER
BY JIM KNOWLES • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-27-16
Halloween isn’t as fun as usual this year for a resident on Napoleon Drive, just off San Leandro Boulevard.
All the Halloween decorations were stolen from the yard of Shelia Brice sometime on Sunday.
Brice said she came home on Sunday evening and her decorations were all missing, including the animated witch, the hand that crawls across the lawn, and the witches’ feet that stick out of the grave.
More than the monetary value, Brice said it just made her feel bad that somebody would take the things.
“It just hurt my feelings more than anything else,” Brice said. “People would come and look at it.”
Brice said one of her neighbors who lives a block away had her Halloween decorations stolen, too.
Now Brice says she’s just going to take down the lights that illuminated the scene at night.
“I might as well take them down, they might get stolen too,” Brice said. “I don’t even know if I’ll put up Christmas decorations this year.”
BY AMY SYLVESTRI • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-27-16
The election season in San Leandro hasn’t been quite as contentious as the presidential race with only one City Council race contested.
But a crowd of about 50 people gathered at the Main Library on the evening of Oct. 5 for a candidate forum put on by the League of Women Voters of the Eden Area.
First up were Bryan Azevedo and Ed Hernandez, facing off for the District 2 City Council seat.
“I want San Leandro to be a destination people go to, not just a place people are from,” said Azevedo.
Hernandez, a real estate agent, said that if elected, he’d have a special focus on creating a transit village at Bayfair, “where the momentum is.”
Azevedo, a sheet metal foreman, said he’d work to be an independent mind on the council.
“The City Council goes along with the staff too much,” said Azevedo. “We’ve got to make sure to read everything and be independent.”
Hernandez talked about his parents immigrating from Mexico to provide him a better life and how he worked his way through a master’s degree. Azevedo banked on a hometown connection, saying he’s lived in San Leandro his whole life and was able to buy his grandparent’s house – what he called the American dream.
Asked to picture San Leandro in 10 years, Hernandez said he envisions a thriving marina – perhaps with a ferry terminal and lots of housing.
Azevedo said it will be a destination city with high-tech companies and a good public transportation infrastructure.
Both men said they support the Black Lives Matter movement and both took part in a recent unity walk in town. And both said they’d support a citizens’ oversight committee on the police, but also praised the job done by the San Leandro police.
And both men agreed that the lack of affordable housing was San Leandro’s biggest challenge for the future.
Hernandez said that “we have a supply and demand issue” and more units are needed in the city. He suggested that 20 percent of all new developments be set a side for affordable housing instead of the current 15 percent.
Later in the evening, Benny Lee and Pete Ballew took the stage together to answer a few questions. Both Lee and Ballew are running unopposed and will be the representatives from Districts 4 and 6 respectively on the City Council.
Lee is the incumbent and works as a financial consultant and is a past president of the Heron Bay Homeowner’s Association.
Ballew has lived in the city his whole life and grew up in the Floresta Gardens neighborhood. He retired in 2012 as a captain at the San Leandro Police Department after three decades with the department and he coaches sports and served on the city’s personnel relations board.
Ballew said that housing, schools, and public safety are his priorities for the city.
“I think we have a challenge – we have a San Leandro that has a great history and we want to move into the future,” said Ballew. “I want to be a good steward for positive change in San Leandro.
When asked how his history as a cop may affect his decisions for the city, Ballew said his career made him more in tune with all walks of life in San Leandro.
“I will tell you that in 30 years as a police officer, it really opened my eyes,” said Ballew. “I gained a lot of compassion. It made me a better listener and made me learn not only to take what is in front of you at face value but how to ask questions that get honest answers.”
On medical marijuana, Lee again said he wished the council would have been more open about the process when selecting operators for the three dispensaries approved in San Leandro.
Ballew said he was a realist and that recreational use will likely be made legal in California and that his own friends have benefited from medical cannabis use.
“I think we have to have those dispensaries available,” said Ballew. “That being said, I’ve been talking to parts of the constituency who don’t want it and we need to open avenues for that constituency to be heard.”
Lee spoke of his support of Measure A1, the county’s $500 million affordable housing on the Nov. 8 ballot and said housing must be a priority in San Leandro. Lee said that he was proud that San Leandro found homes for 25 homeless people this year though a joint project between a local shelter and city landlords.
Both thanked the crowd for coming out to hear from them even though they are the only choice in their races. Ballew asked voters to turn up at the polls to support him anyway.
“The biggest endorsement I can have is having your vote even if I’m running unopposed,” said Ballew.
CAPTION: Alice Sarafian (left) of the League of Women Voters of the Eden Area moderated a candidates’ forum for those running for the San Leandro City Council, including Benny Lee and Pete Ballew who are running unopposed in District 4 and District 6.
PHOTO BY AMY SYLVESTRI
BY JIM KNOWLES • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-20-16
Spending an afternoon packaging medical supplies doesn’t sound like the most exciting day of your life.
But it means a little more when you consider that the supplies will be a life-saver for people in Haiti.
At a warehouse in San Leandro, volunteers come to pack medical supplies that are sent to countries all around the world. Right now, they’re shipping to hurricane-ravaged Haiti. The supplies are leaving San Leandro by the truckload for the Caribbean island nation.
MedShare volunteer manager Jesse Vazquez explained the job to a group of Kaiser employees who arrived for an afternoon of work one day last week. But first, he gave a tour of the vast warehouse full of medical supplies – hospital beds, rows of scales, boxes of stethoscopes, and various electronic medical machines.
Then the volunteers took their spots around a row of tables where they sorted and packaged a mountain of medical supplies stacked on pallets. Margarita Papapsomas, an employee at Kaiser in Oakland, said she thought the program was great.
MedShare has a couple of distribution centers back east, and the San Leandro center is MedShare’s base here on the West Coast. The firm works with hospitals and medical manufacturers to send products to places around the world where there’s a shortage of medical supplies.
In the United States, hospitals get rid of old equipment, or supplies that are past their expiration date. But often the supplies are still good. So MedShare puts the goods to use in countries where they’re needed.
Right now, MedShare in San Leandro is preparing supplies of bandages, needles, crutches, antiseptics and other emergency response materials to ship to Port-au-Prince with the help of UPS and AirLink, said Michael Sander, director of operations for MedShare International.
Around the world, millions of children die from lack of adequate medical care each year. But at the same time, hospitals in the United States dispose of tons of old equipment of supplies, said Sander.
So MedShare is the link between those supplies in America that are still useful and a country where it can be put to use.
“It’s difficult for me to view this (the devastation in Haiti) without getting very emotional and thinking about the people who have been harmed,” Sander said. “This is why we do what we do.”
CAPTION: Margarita Papapsomas and Rowena Weber, both Kaiser Permanente employees, pack boxes with medical supplies last week at MedShare in San Leandro.
PHOTO BY JIM KNOWLES
A man was run over and killed at a food distribution center on Williams Street on Monday while trying to stop a suspect from stealing wooden pallets.
Takeshi Watanabe, 54, of San Leandro, an employee of the True World Foods distribution was struck by a hit-and-run driver at the company’s warehouse at 1815 Williams Street just before noon.
Emergency responders pronounced Watanabe dead at the scene, according to Lt. Robert McManus of the San Leandro police.
Witnesses and surveillance video shows that Watanabe, who had worked at True World Foods for over 20 years, was likely trying to stop the suspect from stealing wood pallets that were stacked in the rear parking lot of the warehouse.
The suspect fled the scene in a white Ford F-250 pickup and a description of the truck was given to Oakland police at their afternoon briefing.
At 5 p.m., two Oakland cops spotted a truck matching the description of the suspect’s vehicle near a recycling center on East 12th Street near 47th Avenue. The truck had no license plates and had several wooden pallets in its bed.
The police tried to pull the driver over, but instead the suspect abandoned the pickup and tried to walk away and then hid under a nearby parked car on 48th Avenue. Police found the man and arrested him.
The driver, identified as Kadeem Edwards, 27, of Richmond, was arrested on suspicion of murder.
Edwards is currently being held without bail at the county jail in Dublin and is scheduled to be arraigned at the Hayward Hall of Justice this week.
True World Foods released a statement calling Watanabe a “truly good-hearted person,” and said they have provided grief counselors for their employees.
“We grieve with his widow and three sons,” said True World president Robert Blue in a written statement. “Personally, I am tremendously moved by Takeshi’s desire to stop what he saw as a violation of the company. I respect his courage, yet deeply regret that it cost him his life.”Watanabe’s death is San Leandro’s third homicide of the year.
BY JIM KNOWLES • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-20-16
Dennis Dixon was on hand for the San Leandro High homecoming game on Friday night, but the University of Oregon and NFL quarterback couldn’t have thrown a better pass than the one Pirate quarterback Qiyam Islam threw.
The pass from Islam to wide receiver Taemon Omolou was right on the money, connecting with the receiver at full speed down the right sideline, and the junior took it to the end zone.
“That was a beautiful pass,” Omolou said after the game.
The play, called Quick Pass 99, is the deepest route in the Pirates playbook. As Omolou said, “you just go.”
But the pass was set up by the Pirates running game that had plenty of traction on the way to a 62-0 win over Tennyson.
Pirate kick returner Jermaine Jackson ran back a punt for a touchdown late in the game to cap a nine-touchdown night that began when Jorge Diaz recovered a bobbled Tennyson punt in the end zone for the first TD of the night.
Diaz, the Pirates kicker, was almost flawless, booting eight extra points on nine touchdowns.
San Leandro running back Mekhi Land scored two touchdowns and his brother, running back Omari Land, scored another 6 points.
The line opened it up and I went through,” said Mekhi Land about his last touchdown. “The team is coming together, getting better every week.
The homecoming crowd didn’t lack something to cheer about on offense, and when Tennyson finally got within striking distance, Pirates cornerback Gino Long picked off a pass to end the drive.
As the homecoming festivities got underway on the field at halftime, the San Leandro Sports Foundation honored its inaugural class into the San Leandro Sports Hall of Fame with a ceremony near the main entrance to Burrell Field.
The 14 athletes and coaches had their names inscribed on plaques that will forever be a part of Burrell Field and San Leandro sports history.
This year’s inductees into the San Leandro Sports Hall of Fame are:
David Beaver – coach/contributor/swimming
Danny Calcagno – SLHS football coach ’90s
Chris Cannnizzaro – SLHS Class of 1959 athlete/baseball
Dennis Dixon – SLHS Class of 2003 athlete/football
Robert Duey – SLHS Class of 1957 athlete/football and baseball
Dick Duey – SLHS Class of 1957 athlete/football and baseball
Pat Hurst – SLHS Class of 1987 athlete/golf
Tony Lema – athlete/golf
Steve Lubratich – SLHS Class of 1973 athlete/baseball
Terry Markou – PHS Class of 1975 athlete/wrestling
Casmiro (Cas) Munoz – SLHS baseball coach 1960s to 1980s
Alan Pitcaithley – SLHS Class of 1966 athlete/football, basketball, baseball
Benjamin Ramos – PHS Class of 1964 athlete/football and baseball
Tim Stokes – SLHS Class of 1968 athlete/football
CAPTION: Some of San Leandro’s greatest athletes were inducted into the San Leandro Sports Hall of Fame by the San Leandro Sports Foundation on Friday night at Burrell Field. Left to right are Pat Hurst, Peggy Beaver (daughter of David R. Beaver), Danny Calcagno, Terry Markou, Ben Ramos, Bob Duey, Cas Munoz, Al Pitcaithley, Tim Stokes, and Dennis Dixon. (Not in photo: Chris Cannizzaro and Steve Labratich).
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE SAN LEANDRO SPORTS FOUNDATION
BY AMY SYLVESTRI • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-20-16
The financial statements for the candidates for City Council show that raising money is all about who you know – with candidates receiving a lot of union cash, as well as contributions from real estate developers and medical marijuana entrepreneurs.
In the city’s only contested race, candidates Bryan Azevedo and Ed Hernandez have similar-sized war chests of around $20,000 as of the latest financial filing. Updates will be made before election day, Nov. 8.
But Azevedo has multiple union contributions where Hernandez depends on individual contributions.
Azevedo reports year-to-date contributions of $21,125. Former City Councilwoman Linda Perry is his treasurer.
Azevedo, who works as a sheetmetal foreman, has multiple donations from unions including $4,200 from the Unity PAC of the Alameda Labor Council ALF-CIO, $2,500 from the Construction and General Laborers Union, $2,500 from the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, $2,500 from Sprinkler Fitters Local 483, and $1,000 from Northern California Carpenters Regional Council,
Azevedo also received $500 from Dan Grace, owner of the Harborside medical marijuana dispensary and $500 from Salwa Ibrahim, executive director of BLUM, another medical marijuana dispensary.
Candidate Ed Hernandez lists year-to-date contributions of $19,604. His treasurer is Ken Pon, a former school board member.
Hernandez’s donations include a lot of $100 individual donations as well as $1,000 from the president of Lloyd Wise Car dealership and $1,500 from Creekside Associates. Creekside is owned by David Irmer, the developer behind the downtown Village shopping center, the TriNet building, and other projects in San Leandro.
Hernandez also got $500 from Salwa Ibrahim of Blum, who donated to both District 2 candidates. Hernandez also loaned himself $1,850.
Incumbent Benny Lee is running unopposed in District 4. Lee has received total contributions of $13,631 year-to date.
Lee’s contributions include $1,000 from Eden Realty, which is owned by Tom Silva, who was forced to change his plans for a five-story apartment building on Bancroft Avenue earlier this year after outcry from Estudillo Estates homeowners.
Lee has also received $5,000 from Cal-Coast, the company behind the marina shoreline development
Lee got some help from his fellow politicians, including $100 from Wilma Chan’s campaign and $100 from District 6 candidate Pete Ballew.
Lee also received a contribution of a $480 fundraising dinner from David Duong, the managing director of Cal Waste Solutions.
Lee’s support of Cal Waste’s effort to get a garbage contract from the City of Oakland drew the ire of his fellow council members and then-mayor Stephen Cassidy back in 2014.
Retired police captain Pete Ballew is running unopposed in District 6 and his campaign treasurer is also former City Counilwoman Perry.
Ballew reported year-to-date contributions of $37,105, including a $10,000 loan to himself.
Ballew has the support of multiple unions including $2,500 from the Construction and General Laborers union, $1,000 from the sprinkler fitters, $1,000 from electrical workers, and $500 from the police union.
Ballew received $500 from Dan Grace, the Harborside dispensary owner who listed his job on the financial disclosure form as “nurseryman.”
Ballew also got money from the developers – $250 from Silva and $500 from Irmer.
Ballew also received money from some familiar San Leandro names including $100 from Mayor Pauline Cutter, $500 from retired police chief Robert Maginnis, and $250 from the campaign of councilman Benny Lee.
CAPTION: City Councilman Benny Lee received $5,000 from Cal-Coast, the company that will re-develop the San Leandro Marina and the surrounding area.
BY AMY SYLVESTRI • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-20-16
Many local politicians want the Eden Township Healthcare District dissolved, calling it obsolete and inefficient.
But at a special town-hall meeting at the Castro Valley library Monday night, the public strongly supported keeping ETHD running, and said the county is simply trying to get its hands on ETHD’s money – because if the district is dissolved, its assets would go to the county.
Speaker Elke Sommer said it’s a “no-brainer” to continue to support the district and that dissolution is “a thinly-veiled cash-grab by county partisan groups.”
Roxanne Lewis, an elected member of the ETHD board, said that eliminating the ETHD is “short-sighted” because the county would spend its assets within a couple of years. But if the ETHD continues, it could continue to sustain itself for many years and will eventually be able to expand its charitable work once the Sutter lawsuit is paid off.
Many speakers said the benefit of the ETHD is its elected board, which holds the interests of Eden area residents in mind when acting. If the county is in control of the funds, they will likely not be spent within Castro Valley, San Leandro, and San Lorenzo.
Speaker Phyllis Moroney, a former employee of the county health system, was the only one of about a dozen speakers who supported dissolving the district, calling it “obsolete” and saying that too much money is being spent on salaries and debt.
The meeting was put on by the Alameda Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCo) to gauge the public’s opinion on ETHD. The district was created in 1948 in order to run the then-new Eden Hospital. Over the past 70 years, the district has owned and overseen various properties in San Leandro, Castro Valley, Hayward and the unincorporated areas.
Over the summer the Alameda County Grand Jury issued a report that said the district “failed in its mission” and lacked a plan for its future.
And politicians including Assemblyman Bill Quirk, Supervisor Wilma Chan, and the San Leandro City Council have called to disband the district, saying it is no longer serving the community efficiently.
Currently, 88 percent of the ETHD’s budget goes to real estate, staff, and legal fees, leaving around $500,000 annually to distribute to various causes – including a $250,000 annual commitment to the Davis Street Family Resource Center, along with smaller projects such as diabetes workshops.
One source of the ETHD’s struggles is a legal battle with Sutter Health over San Leandro Hospital that resulted in the district owing Sutter $20 million.
It was politicians including Chan and the San Leandro City Council who leaned heavily on the district to fight Sutter at the time.
A second LAFCo meeting on the future of the ETHD took place Tuesday in Hayward and a third meeting is scheduled for Nov. 7 at 5:30 p.m. at San Leandro City Hall, 835 East 14th Street.
Once the meetings have been conducted, a draft report based on the findings of a consultant that LAFCo hired as well as public comments will be presented to the LAFCo board. There will likely be another public meeting at that point, sometime in mid-November, then a final report and eventually a determination by LAFCo.
LAFCo could 1) decide to dissolve ETHD, 2) have it remain running as it is, 3) modify the ETHD’s structure works so a separate foundation awards the scholarship money, or 4) any number of options including putting the matter up to a public vote.
CAPTION: One of Eden Township Healthcare District’s buildings is the San Leandro Medical Arts Building, next to San Leandro Hospital.
TIMES FILE PHOTO BY AMY SYLVESTRI
BY JIM KNOWLES • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
A crew cut down a row of 14 trees in front of the KP Corporation on Washington Avenue last week, part of a PG&E project to keep access open to the main gas lines.
Earlier this year, PG&E announced that it would be removing trees on Washington Avenue and along San Leandro Boulevard. The work is part of a state-wide project to make the pipes accessible in an emergency.
“It’s part of our community pipeline safety initiative, so first-responders have access to the lines,” said PG&E spokesman Jeff Smith.
The trees that were cut down last week were on the property of KP Corp. a printing business at 13951 Washington Ave., just south of where Washington goes through the railroad underpass.
An employee at KP said he remembers the trees being planted in about 2001, so they’re around 15 years old.
The project to remove the trees in San Leandro is on the main lines that run along Washington Avenue between Grant Avenue and San Leandro Boulevard, and then down San Leandro Boulevard to Williams Street.
PG&E estimates that about 35 trees on private property, and seven trees on public property, will be removed.
It’s similar to a “no parking” zone next to a fire hydrant,” Smith said. During an emergency, crews need to get access quickly to prevent things from getting worse.
CAPTION: A row of trees in front of the KP Corp. building on Washington Avenue was cut down last week, part of a project to keep access open for first-responders to gas pipelines in case of an emergency.
PHOTO BY JIM KNOWLES
SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-20-16
Jeff Tudor has been named chief of the San Leandro police department after serving for the past six months as interim chief.
“I’m truly honored and appreciative to be appointed as the Chief of Police of the San Leandro Police Department,” said Tudor in a written statement. “I’m thankful to have the opportunity to serve in the community that guided and mentored me throughout my life and to serve with dedicated people who truly want to make a difference.”
Tudor has been with the department for 20 years, working in patrol, traffic, criminal investigation, and SWAT.
Tudor is a graduate of the Federal Bureau of Investigations National Academy and Senior Management Institute for Police in Boston and holds a Mass Communications degree from Sonoma State University.
The city also announced on Tuesday that Jeff Kay has been appointed assistant city manager. Kay previously worked as the city’s business development director.
BY AMY SYLVESTRI • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
After a lengthy contract dispute between the teachers and the administration of the San Lorenzo School District, it’s time for some new blood on the school board – at least that was the argument put forth by two of the candidates who are running for the board this November.
Candidates Marilyn Stewart and Kyla Sinegal both have worked in education. Stewart recently retired after 31 years teaching in San Lorenzo.
Sinegal currently works in human resource management for the county office of education and is a chapter president of the California School Employees Association
They both say they’ll stir things up on a school board that has some members who have been on the board for over 20 years.
There are four candidates for three open spots on the board: Sinegal, Stewart, and incumbents Penny Peck and Helen Foster.
The League of Women Voters of the Eden Area held a forum for the candidates last Thursday at the San Lorenzo Library. Foster did not attend, as she works as the superintendent of schools for the Central California town of Coalinga and spends part of her week down there.
The questions at the forum were submitted by the audience of about 30 people, which consisted of quite a few San Lorenzo teachers.
The contract dispute came up repeatedly, with many asking how the board could improve trust between teachers and the administration, despite the fact that contract disputes are common occurrences in every school district.
“I’d be a champion for change in the school district,” said Sinegal. “I’d bring collaboration, transparency, and the lens of a parent.”
Stewart said that in her three decades as a teacher, she’s seen the district change a lot and not always for the better.
“There has been a large shift in the atmosphere of being a teacher,” said Stewart. “Over the years, we’ve started to feel left out, the district stopped listening. I can bring to the school board the voice of the teacher.”
Peck was the children’s librarian at the San Leandro Library for 25 years and continues to work part time as a children’s literature instructor at San Jose State. She’s been on the board for the past four years, including during the contract dispute, but says she’s ready to evolve and has been the biggest proponent of letting everyone have a chance to speak at meetings.
“That opportunity for feedback has been on recent agendas,” said Peck, who added that the district’s website has improved during her tenure and that means more accessibility for the public. She also said that she wants to create a task force with teachers to figure out how to best cooperate and more forward.
Sinegal said she’d like to see agendas out as early as possible and that the board should table major items if the public doesn’t show up to meetings because that means not enough has been done to notify the public. She also said she’d work to get the meetings broadcast on television and online.
Asked how to improve morale in the district, Peck said that when parents hear about potential labor strikes that creates a lot of negativity that colors their opinion of their child’s education. So she would improve overall morale by getting parents more involved. She would also add a student member to the board so they could be better represented.
Sinegal also said that the labor negotiations changed the “culture” of the school and that kids pick up on where there is conflict and her negotiation experience would prevent that.
Stewart said she’d have the entire board tour the schools and have lunch with teachers – that she would say to teachers, “I’m going to listen to you and I am going to look for answers.” Stewart added that some teachers only meet board members at graduation ceremonies. Stewart said she’s have office hours open to parents and teachers if she is elected to the board.
The last day to register to vote for the Nov. 8 election is Oct. 24.
CAPTION: San Lorenzo school board candidates Marilyn Stewart, Kyla Sinegal and Penny Peck spoke at the forum.
PHOTO BY AMY SYLVESTRI
BY AMY SYLVESTRI • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
San Leandro school board president Vince Rosato passed away from a heart attack suddenly last Saturday.
Rosato served on the board for the past four years, but had chosen not to run for reelection in the upcoming Nov. 8 race when his first term expires. He was building a home in India.
School board member Evelyn Gonzalez said Rosato’s passing was a blow to his colleagues.
“It was just such a shock to all of us,” said Gonzalez. “Tuesdays night’s school board meeting was a hard one (without him). We left his seat open in tribute.”
In addition to serving on the school board, Rosato was also serving as the treasurer of the Alameda County School Boards Association at the time of his death.
Rosato, 62, was a native Californian who moved to San Leandro from Fremont 15 years ago with his wife, Usha.
Rosato retired in 2014 after 15 years teaching elementary school in the New Haven school district. He was ordained as a Catholic priest in 1982 and spent two years at the Vatican.
Rosato was a graduate of Loyola Marymount, the Jesuit School of Theology, and Saint Mary’s College, where he got his teaching degree after changing careers.
Gonzalez described Rosato as a man with a passion for education, who was always trying to better himself.
“For him, education was a life-long process,” said Gonzalez. “He was a learner. He became a master gardener just this year. He signed up board members for seminars. He was extremely passionate about public education and really cared for the students.”
San Leandro school district superintendent Mike McLaughlin also singled out Rosato’s devotion to education.
“Vince cared about making a difference in public schools and that showed through his work both here in San Leandro, in Alameda County, and across the state,” said McLaughlin in a written statement. “This is a huge loss for our district and we send our heartfelt condolences to his widow.”
Rosato is survived by his wife, Usha, and his daughter, Alexandria. In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made in his name to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the American Cancer Society.
BY JIM KNOWLES • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
The first issue of the San Leandro Times was delivered this week in October 1991 – 25 years ago.
The top story in that first issue was the widening of Davis Street with new sidewalks and sound walls. The Davis Street project was hailed as “The Gateway to San Leandro,” connecting downtown to the Oakland Airport, and once the project was finished, things were going to take off.
In other news that week, a woman set fire to her neighbor’s shed on Harlan Street, a state panel called for cities in southern Alameda County to work with organizations on hate crimes, and the San Leandro Main Library and its branches closed for 10 days to put bar codes on 150,000 books.
In the early years of this newspaper, former City Councilman Mario Polvorosa wrote a column about his memories of San Leandro. Polvorosa started out with a shoe shine stand on East 14th Street and he knew the town from the bottom to the top.
Daniel Pryfogle, the managing editor at the time, used to swing by Mario’s to pick up his column in his old Studebaker. Pryfogle liked that old jalopy but the floorboard was full of holes and the exhaust vented into the passenger compartment. Daniel liked to say that every time he drove that Studebaker he lost a few thousand brain cells.
An ongoing story in the 1990s was a development at a place called Robert’s Landing (the name later changed to Heron Bay) on the site of the former Trojan Powder Works, a company that made explosives for the army up until the 1960s. A lot of work was done to remove toxic soil before they could build houses on the site.
The newspaper had a political cartoonist at the time who drew a picture of a mushroom cloud over the new development. The developer came to the newspaper and he was about ready to go off like a bomb too.
The newspaper started in a small office on W. Juana Avenue that was later torn down to expand the parking lot for Pelton Plaza. In the evenings, publisher Fred Zehnder used to swing by and pick up the garbage after he got off his job as news director at Channel 2.
Fred would walk through the office with a big plastic bag that he dumped the waste paper baskets into. So the new people at the paper just thought Fred was the janitor.
That was fine with Fred. He said he liked doing the routine work that needed to be done.
Before digital photography, reporters here turned their film in to Howard Morrison who developed the film and printed the pictures in his darkroom. To get it done in a reasonable amount of time, Howard had to cut it down to two rolls of film a week. So reporters could take no more than three or four pictures on each story.
Howard said that’s good practice, it makes you take better pictures. It seems like there’s something to that. Today the trend is to take thousands of pictures, and then you just bore everybody to death.
One year, a little controversy broke out about a play at the high school. Some people got riled up about a few swear word in the script. Somebody formed a “profanity committee” to decide what language can be allowed in a school play.
Maggie Sharpe was editor then, and they asked Maggie to be on the committee. This gave Maggie a source of endless amusement. To break it to them gently, maybe the committee had never been around Maggie when the paper’s on deadline. Really, Maggie was very easygoing, though not averse to an occasional swear word.
San Leandro has a wide variety of people doing all sorts of things. That’s what makes the paper. The people have the stories, and a reporter just puts it down on paper.
There’s no doubt that a lot of interesting stories will come up in the next 25 years. Who knows, there might even be a chance to use that mushroom cloud cartoon again.
CAPTION: The first issue of the San Leandro Times was published on Thursday, October 9, 1991.
BY STEVE SCHAEFER • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
The first issue of the San Leandro Times dropped on my doorstep on October 9, 1991. That began a relationship that remains to this day. My first auto review column appeared on February 8, 1992.
I started reading auto journalism when I picked up my dad’s August 1963 issue of Motor Trend, with drawings of the upcoming 1964 models.
I’ve read the local newspaper columnists over the years, too. When I opened up the brand new San Leandro Times, I thought, “This paper is new and small—maybe I could write for them!”
I went in and talked with editor Daniel Pryfogle, who turned out to be a very nice young man. He liked the idea of running a local car column, and asked me for a sample.
I was just starting out, so I wrote about my own car—one of the first Saturns, which I’d owned for a year. That story passed muster, and the Times printed me “Auto Writer” business cards and I was on my way.
I visited local dealers, who generously let me take out cars on my own. I created a special route that provides a variety of road conditions, and dutifully put my testers through their paces.
My first review was on the all-new 1992 Honda Prelude, which I borrowed from the San Leandro Honda dealer, who was located on East 14th Street. The Marina Auto Plaza didn’t exist yet.
As the weeks went by, I made a connection with someone at the NUMMI plant (where Tesla is today) and got a chance to test a Geo Prizm compact sedan for a few days.
Through my job at the Golden State Warriors, I scored a weekend with a BMW 325i (wow!). But starting with my ninth test car, I found the local press fleet, and I’ve driven cars for a week at a time from that fleet, and others, ever since. (ninth test car pictured above—a 1992 Chevrolet Lumina, March 1992)
In April 2013, I tested my 1,000th car, a BMW 6 Series convertible.
Next spring, I should hit my 1,200th. It’s been a great ride.
CAPTION: Auto writer Steve Schaefer poses with the ninth car he reviewed 25 years ago.
PHOTO BY DAVID STERNBERG
BY AMY SYLVESTRI • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
In the coming weeks before the Nov. 8 election, we’ll speak with the candidates running for San Leandro City Council and School Board.
Bryan Azevedo is running against Ed Hernandez for the District 2 seat, the only contested City Council race in San Leandro.
Azevedo says that, as a fourth generation San Leandran, he has a big stake in helping the city and its citizens.
“I want to make sure everyone in San Leandro has a voice,” says Azevedo, a sheet metal foreman and father of five who also serves on the city parks and recreation commission.
Azevedo and Hernandez come down on the same side of many issues. Both support Measure J1, the school district’s proposed $104 million bond, as well as the city’s three proposed tax measures.
But Azevedo sees himself as more of a man of the people than his opponent.
“I’m a people person, I like getting out there and talking to people,” said Azevedo. “He’s more white collar, I’m more blue collar, it’s as simple as that. I’ve been laid off before, I’ve had to go to Davis Street (food pantry).”
To that end, he says making sure San Leandro attracts well-paying jobs for all will be a priority for him.
“Jobs are the key to everything,” said Azevedo. “The key to stopping homelessness, the key to attracting business.”
In his district specifically, he wants to see Bayfair revitalized, with more housing and better shopping options.
The city is currently in the very early stages of planning a “transit village” around the mall, with apartments and new shops. Azevedo says that, as is, the mall isn’t doing a lot for the city.
“There are some spots where people don’t feel safe – parts of the mall and near the Oakland border,” said Azevedo. “We need to feel safe here in San Leandro.”
So Azevedo says that the police department will have his support if elected – though he also promises he’s not a rubber stamper who will pass any issue that comes before the City Council, despite having the police union’s endorsement.
“We are lucky here in San Leandro, we’re not like Oakland or San Jose or Los Angeles, we love our police department,” said Azevedo. “The council goes along with what city staff say all the time, but you’ve got to read the background information, do your homework.”
Azevedo says he supports the police department’s push to have more surveillance cameras around- but not red-light cameras.
“I have seen them go off on false tickets before,” said Azevedo.
So would he ask the council to end their contract with the red-light camera company?
“Maybe, maybe not,” said Azevedo. “We need to see how we can make the system better. I’m a problem solver.”
In addition to the police union, Azevedo’s endorsements include the fire unions and several other local labor unions, as well as current council members Jim Prola, Corina Lopez, and Benny Lee.
Azevedo says that if elected, you’ll see his “three principals” in action in all that he does.
“I believe in fairness, a balanced approach, and listening to everyone,” said Azevedo. “There is a lot of progress to be made, but I believe the American dream is still possible in San Leandro.”
CAPTION: Bryan Azevedo says he's more of a man of the people than opponent Ed Hernandez.
BY ANDREW JOSEPH • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
The stage was set on Friday night as the Castro Valley Trojans football team played in their homecoming game against visiting conference rival San Leandro.
The green and gold of Castro Valley came into the night 1-4 looking for a much needed win. The Pirates, on the other hand, went in at 2-3 trying to reach the .500 mark, with hopes of a 2016 WACC-12 playoff berth.
San Leandro came out on top in dramatic fashion with a 41-0 shutout victory over the Trojans.
Pirates’ senior Jahari Kay set the tempo early in the game, picking up a blocked Trojan field goal attempt and running it back all the way for a touchdown.
“That’s what we’re all about, making big plays to create momentum for our team,” said Pirates running back Omari Land.
Land scored three touchdowns and rushed for 151 yards for the Pirates, a game high.
The halftime festivities were illuminated by homecoming fireworks over the stadium after the Castro Valley cheer team danced for the home crowd.
Pirates’ cornerback Dejon Goodall made two interceptions to spark the defense.
“This win gives us hope and confidence for these last four games of the season and into the playoffs,” said Pirates’ junior wide receiver Anthony Norman.
Mehki Land and Dejon Goodall also scored a touchdown for San Leandro.
“This win boosts our team’s confidence,” said Pirates running back Omari Land, as the Pirates now reach the .500 mark heading into week 7.
Although Castro Valley lost their homecoming game, junior Thomas Tran who watched the game explains that having fun and cheering on the school is what is most important.
“We are here for the spirit and unity of our school,” said Tran, who happens to be Castro Valley’s student body treasurer.
This week, San Leandro plays its homecoming game against Tennyson at Burrell Field on Friday at 7 p.m.
CAPTION: San Leandro High spoiled Castro Valley’s homecoming on Friday night with a 41-0 win as Omari Land scored three touchdowns for the Pirates.
PHOTO BY ANDREW JOSEPH
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BY GREG BENSON • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
The Raiders leaped into a tie for the top spot in the wild AFC west division with a gutsy fourth-and-three play late in the third quarter of a 34-31 win over their western rivals, the San Diego Chargers.
“It was a little Wild West out there today,” said Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio after Sunday’s game. “A couple of AFC west teams going at it, back and forth. Our guys hung in there and made enough plays to go home happy today. That’s what the idea is, come out of here with a smile on your face and celebrate being tied for first after five weeks.”
With the Denver Broncos losing to the Atlanta Falcons 23-16 and the Raiders win, both teams are now tied at 4-1 atop the AFC west.
Whether it’s a strategic two-point conversion or a fourth-down gamble, the Raiders have consistently come through this season to pull out the win in these closely combatted contests.
On Sunday, Del Rio once again swiped the dice off the felt and rolled a seven with the confidence he has in his young quarterback, Derek Carr, and the team’s ability to make plays in critical situations.
Carr connected with wide receiver Michael Crabtree with 1:15 left in the third quarter for a 21-yard touchdown on the fourth-and-three down. The Raiders then capped the 38-yard drive with a two-point conversion pass from Carr to Amari Cooper to go ahead of the Chargers 27-24.
“It’s like all these situations, you make the call, what you think is best for the team, and then you count on your guys going out and executing,” said Del Rio. “Crab [Michael Crabtree] got open and made a nice play.”
And that’s how the Raiders roll these days. The average margin of victory in their four wins is just three points. The team has finally found the confidence to overcome gameday setbacks, fight back against the odds and win.
“I think this year, we wanted to take a step forward in terms of understanding how you flourish in those situations and make the winning plays,” said Del Rio. “Most of our games are one-score games and you have to play well in those critical moments in order to win.”
Next up on the Raiders schedule is another AFC west rival, the Kansas City Chiefs. Oakland has yet to put together a jackpot performance, getting a solid effort from all three phases — offense, defense and special teams. Now’s the time to give the one-armed bandit a try.
CAPTION: Oakland Raiders right guard Gabe Jackson clears a path for fullback Jamize Olawale for a fourth-quarter touchdown to put the Raiders ahead 34-24. Oakland beat the Chargers 34-31 for their first home win of the season and a 4-1 record.
PHOTO BY GREG BENSON
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The City of San Leandro’s annual Halloween Carnival is set for Sunday, Oct. 30, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Marina Community Center, 15301 Wicks Blvd. Admission is free and tickets for food and games can be purchased.
Kids can put on their costumes for an afternoon of games and spooky cheer. Mad Science will present a spooktacular science experiment. Games and entertainment are geared toward children from 4 to 8 years of age.
This event is made possible by a donation from the San Leandro Optimist Club.
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The San Leandro Main Library, 300 Estudillo Ave., will have a spooky Halloween in its Haunted History Room on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 1 to 3 p.m. Visitors will encounter the ghosts of some of San Leandro’s more famous residents and learn their fascinating histories.
After visitors have encountered all the ghosts and learn why they are so famous, they’ll be given an easy questionnaire to complete. Parents can help their children discover the answers – to exchange for treats.
History researchers will be on hand to encourage and assist visitors during their walk to the Other Side.
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Students from St. Felicitas teacher Jean-Thierry Mendiola’s sixth grade class took a trip to the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in San Jose earlier this month. They got a chance to see the artifacts and mummies dating back to ancient Egypt.
PHOTO COURTESY OF SUSAN DIONISIO
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A few local companies: Divine Home Care, Carlton Senior Living, Royal Ambulance, Wellsprings Pharmacy and Horizon Home Health; co-hosted a “Mixer with a Purpose” last month at Horatio’s to benefit SOS/Meals On Wheels, a non-profit agency.
SOS/Meals on Wheels produces and delivers 1,100 nutritious meals daily to frail seniors living in San Leandro, Castro Valley, San Lorenzo, Hayward and Oakland. Their mission is to promote nutritional health, decrease the possibility of premature institutionalization, and fosters support to maintain independence and dignity to homebound seniors by enhancing their quality of life through the Meals on Wheels System of Care. SOS/Meals on Wheels serve all eligible seniors, regardless of their ability to contribute to the cost of their meals. SOS/Meals on Wheels is now serving more low-income seniors than ever before. They must raise a significant portion of their budget from individuals, donations and corporations.
With the help of sponsors and over 150 attendees, contributions totaled $5,500 which were directly donated to SOS/Meals on Wheels.
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Our Lady of Good Counsel Concert
A star studded concert will be held at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church Hall, 2500 Bermuda Ave. in San Leandro, on Saturday, Oct. 29, at 6:30 p.m. The Through the Years concert will lead the audience on a musical journey over the last 50 years, featuring well known singer-comedian Fe De Los Reyes and the popular Philippines singer Jam Morales, supported by Ellona Santiago, an X-Factor finalist. Other artists are Ronnie Ramos, Monica Mendoza, an American idol top 48 finalist and Charlz Mendoza. Tickets are $25. For more information about the tickets, call Beth Garcia at 861-1753 or Mon Cargo at 1-800-432-4300.
Children’s Baking & Craft Classes
Children are invited to join the baking and craft classes at the Praises of Zion Missionary Baptist Church, 1395 Bancroft Avenue in Oakland on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. These classes are free of charge.
Haunted Night at the Library
Treat yourself to a night of tricks and treats at the San Leandro Main Library, 300 Estudillo Ave. on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 5 to 7 p.m. Teens in grades 6 through 12 are invited to a free haunted tour of the library after hours, crafts, and a costume contest. Registration is required at the Children’s Desk. For more information, call 577-3960.
Haunted Halloween History
The San Leandro Main Library, 300 Estudillo Ave., will have a spooky Halloween in its Haunted History room on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 1 to 3 p.m. Encounter the ghosts of San Leandro’s more famous residents and learn their fascinating histories. After visitors have encountered all the ghosts and learn why they are so famous, they’ll be given an easy questionnaire to complete. Parents can help their children discover the answers. After answering just three ghostly questions correctly, participants will receive a coupon for a small bag of treats, while supplies last. History researchers will be on hand to encourage and assist visitors during their walk to the Other Side.
Classic Broadway Music at SL Library
A tribute to classic Broadway music will be presented at the San Leandro Library, 300 Estudillo Ave., on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 2 to 3 p.m. Enjoy an afternoon of classic Broadway melodies with concert pianist Frederick Hodges. Admission is free. Hailed as one of the best concert pianists in the world, Frederick Hodges is sought after by today’s foremost orchestras, festivals, and conductors. His extensive repertoire includes the great European classical masters as well as the best American composers.
Paranormal Investigation at Meek Mansion
Experienced investigators lead attendees through Meek Mansion, with access to all non-restricted areas on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. Data collected on previous investigations include electronic voice phenomena (EVP), cold spots, touches, apparitions and much more. General Admission $75. Proceeds support the maintenance and preservation of this historic site. Tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance. Ages 18 or older. Purchase tickets online at www.haywardareahistory.org or call 581-0223.
Vespers at All Saints Episcopal Church
A Byzantine-style Vespers Service for the Vigil Feast of All Saints will be on Monday, Oct. 31, at All Saints Episcopal Church, 911 Dowling Blvd. in San Leandro. The Vespers service starting at 7:30 p.m. will include icons, Eastern Christian chants, and a time for contemplative prayer. No matter who you are or where you are on your spiritual journey, you are welcome at All Saints. For more information, visit www.saintsalive.net.
Parkinson’s Support Group
The San Leandro Parkinson’s Support Group will hold its monthly meeting on Thursday, Nov. 3, at 10 a.m. at the San Lorenzo Community Church, 945 Paseo Grande. Karen Marshall from Community Resources for Independent living will be the speaker. For more information, call Lona White at 276-3119.
Songstress Ramana Viera at SL Library
Ramana Viera, “songstress of fado,” will perform at the San Leandro Main Library, 300 Estudillo Ave., on Friday, Nov. 4, from 7 to 8 p.m. Admission is free but, please, no children under 10 years of age. Fado is a blend of African rhythms and traditional Portuguese seafaring songs that are infused with Brazilian and Arabic influences. Vieira sings songs both traditional and original songs, joined by bass John Clark on bass, Ela Polak on violin and Brad Bivens on classical guitar. Vieira beautifully modernizes these old-world ballads while maintaining the integrity of this time-honored tradition, harmonizing unconventional instrumentals with fado’s haunting melodies and melancholy stories of heartache and disappointment.
I.D.E.S. of Saint John Lunch & Bingo
I.D.E.S. of Saint John, 1670 Orchard Ave. in San Leandro, will have a bingo and lunch on Saturday, Nov. 5, at noon. Lunch is $15 and includes three bingo cards, extra cards are 25 cents apiece. For more information, call Mr. Helder at 357-5846.
Eagles Eden Auxiliary Autumn Tea
The Fraternal Order of Eagles Eden Auxiliary #1139 will have its Autumn Tea on Saturday, Nov. 5, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Eagles Hall, 21406 Foothill Blvd. in Hayward. To make a reservation by Oct. 29 or for more information, call Glenda at 584-1568. The proceeds from will benefit five local charities at Christmastime.
San Leandro Readers Roundtable
The San Leandro Readers Roundtable will meet Saturday, Nov. 5, at 2 p.m. at the San Leandro Main Library, 300 Estudillo Ave. The group will discuss How To Be Both by Ali Smith, a genre-bending conversation about the nature of art. All are welcome. Books discussed may be purchased in the library’s Booktique bookstore.
Diabetes Support Group
The Diabetes Support Group will meet on Monday, Nov. 7, at 5 p.m. at the San Leandro Surgery Center, 15035 East 14 St. in San Leandro. Fresh Approach will provide a guest speaker to discuss “Healthy Food Choices and Meal Planning.” One need not have diabetes to benefit from this presentation. As usual the public is invited.
Veterans Day Concert
Del Rey School, 1510 Via Sonya in San Lorenzo, will have a Veterans Day Concert on Wednesday, Nov. 9, at 6 p.m. Students will perform songs to honor our military.
San Leandro Museum Auditorium
The San Leandro Players present Trouble Bubbles at the Hot Springs, by Gary McCarver and directed by Catherine Heck, on Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. through Nov. 20 at the San Leandro Museum/Auditorium, 320 West Estudillo Ave. in San Leandro. One block east of the San Leandro BART Station. Professor Thaddeus Snavely Mack returns to do dastardly deeds with a colorful cast of characters in a rollicking musical melodrama. Tickets are $20, $15 for seniors, TBA members, and students. Information and tickets available online at www.slplayers.org.
San Leandro Museum Auditorium
The San Leandro History Museum, 320 West Estudillo Ave., will be screening On the Waterfront (1954) on Saturday Nov. 5, at 11:30 a.m. and again at 2 p.m. This is a classic, award-winning, controversial film directed by Elia Kazan, part drama and part gangster film. Admission is free and no prior registration is required. Bring your own popcorn. For more information, call
577-3991.
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BY SUE GETREUER • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-20-16
The hearing loss group’s kayak adventure started from the Encinal boat ramp in Alameda on Oct. 2
Our instructor, Joseph Stack, owner of Stacked Adventures, was sensitive to the hearing loss of the participants, because he has a mild hearing loss similar to mine.
Off came our hearing aids, watches — whatever should not get wet — and communication on the water was primarily by hand signals.
Our 2-hour excursion took us out on the bay, along a rock wall with lots of birds, including brown pelicans, seagulls and cormorants, and up close to the navy ships that seemed huge compared to us.
Our instructor told us that in the spring, brown pelicans come to the rock wall in large numbers as part of their migration route. I think I’d like to go kayaking again then, to see this. A big thanks to the organizers. This was fun, safe, and good exercise.
CAPTION: Sue Getreuer, right, member of the East Bay Chapter of the Hearing Loss Association, and fellow members had quite an adventure out on the Bay.
PHOTO COURTESY OF HEARING LOSS ASSOCIATION
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Shrouded Tales at McConaghy House
Explore true tales of tragic ends, Victorian death traditions, superstitions and a touch of the paranormal on Friday and Saturday Oct. 21 and 22 at the McConaghy House, 18701 Hesperian Blvd., in Hayward. Tours are at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. Proceeds go toward the maintenance and preservation of the site. Tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance. General Admission is $15, $10 for HAHS Members, Seniors and Students. To book a spot, call 581-0223 or visit www.haywardareahistory.org.
Adult School Transitions Services
The San Leandro Adult School, 1448 Williams St. in San Leandro, invites the community to learn about its transition services, which include assistance with education, employment and personal support services. The public is invited to come to an open house on Friday, Oct. 21, or Thursday, Dec. 1, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in Room 106. Refreshments will be served.
San Leandro Manor Library
Enjoy a free movie extravaganza screening of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies on Saturday, Oct. 22 at 2 p.m. at the San Leandro Manor Branch Library, 1241 Manor Blvd. This movie is for Teens ages 12 to 18.
Dia De Los Muertos Program
Enjoy a performance of Ballet Folklorico Mexicano de Carlos Moreno on Saturday, Oct. 22, from noon to 3 p.m. at the San Leandro Main Library, 300 Estudillo Ave. After the performance make your own mini-Altar to honor your loved ones, plus other crafts for the whole family. For more information or to register in advance for this free program, call the Children’s Desk at 577-3960.
The Arc’s Warehouse Sale
Uncover hidden treasures at The Arc’s Warehouse sale on Saturday, Oct. 22, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 14700 Doolittle Drive in San Leandro. All proceeds benefit The Arc of Alameda County’s programs to help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
4th Sunday Breakfast for Veterans
American Legion Post 117 will host breakfast from 8 a.m. until noon every 4th Sunday of the month at the San Leandro Veterans Memorial Bldg., 1105 Bancroft Ave. in San Leandro. The menu will be eggs-to-order, bacon/sausage, hash browns, toast and coffee. Cost is $6 for adults, $5 for senior and veterans, and $4 for children under 12. Everyone is welcome.
Eden Garden Club’s Fall Bazaar
Eden Garden Club’s annual Fall Bazaar will be on Monday, Oct. 24, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at the Moose Lodge 20635 Rutledge Road in Castro Valley (off CastroValley Blvd., behind Burger King). The bazaar will feature plants, garden items, books, crafts, household items, baked goods, Silent Auction items, and more. All proceeds to support school gardens. Meetings are free and guests are welcome. For more information, call 397-1268.
Friends of San Leandro Creek Meeting
The next meeting of the Friends of San Leandro Creek will be on Tuesday, Oct. 25, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the San Leandro Library, 300 Estudillo Ave. Peter Mangarella, Chapter President of the 1st East Bay Chapter of Trout Unlimited, will speak about his group and the exciting projects they do to preserve and enhance streams. Free coffee and snacks. For more information, call Susan at 577-6069 or email slevenson@sanleandro.org.
Halloween Storytime
Don’t miss Halloween Storytime at the San Leandro Main Library, 300 Estudillo Ave. on Wednesday, Oct. 26, at 1:30 (pre-school story) and 7 p.m. (family story time). Join the fun as stories are read about Halloween, and then go trick or treating through the library. Don’t forget to wear your costume. For more information, call 577-3960.
Our Lady of Good Counsel Concert
A star studded concert will be held at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church Hall, 2500 Bermuda Ave. in San Leandro, on Saturday, Oct. 29, at 6:30 p.m. The Through the Years concert will lead the audience on a musical journey over the last 50 years, featuring well known singer-comedian Fe De Los Reyes and the popular Philippines singer Jam Morales, supported by Ellona Santiago, an X-Factor finalist. Other artists are Ronnie Ramos, Monica Mendoza, an American idol top 48 finalist and Charlz Mendoza. Tickets are $25. For more information about the tickets, call Beth Garcia at 861-1753 or Mon Cargo at 1-800-432-4300.
Haunted Halloween History
The San Leandro Main Library, 300 Estudillo Ave., will have a spooky Halloween in its Haunted History room on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 1 to 3 p.m. Encounter the ghosts of San Leandro’s more famous residents and learn their fascinating histories. After visitors have encountered all the ghosts and learn why they are so famous, they’ll be given an easy questionnaire to complete. Parents can help their children discover the answers. After answering just three ghostly questions correctly, participants will receive a coupon for a small bag of treats, while supplies last. History researchers will be on hand to encourage and assist visitors during their walk to the Other Side.
Classic Broadway Music at SL Library
A tribute to classic Broadway music will be presented at the San Leandro Library, 300 Estudillo Ave., on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 2 to 3 p.m. Enjoy an afternoon of classic Broadway melodies with concert pianist Frederick Hodges. Admission is free. Hailed as one of the best concert pianists in the world, Frederick Hodges is sought after by today’s foremost orchestras, festivals, and conductors. His extensive repertoire includes the great European classical masters as well as the best American composers.
Paranormal Investigation at Meek Mansion
Experienced investigators lead attendees through Meek Mansion, with access to all non-restricted areas on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. Data collected on previous investigations include electronic voice phenomena (EVP), cold spots, touches, apparitions and much more. General Admission $75. Proceeds support the maintenance and preservation of this historic site. Tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance. Ages 18 or older. Purchase tickets online at www.haywardareahistory.org or call 581-0223.
I.D.E.S. of Saint John Lunch & Bingo
I.D.E.S. of Saint John, 1670 Orchard Ave. in San Leandro, will have a bingo and lunch on Saturday, Nov. 5, at noon. Lunch is $15 and includes three bingo cards, extra cards are 25 cents apiece. For more information, call Mr. Helder at 357-5846.
San Leandro Museum Auditorium
The San Leandro Players present Trouble Bubbles at the Hot Springs, by Gary McCarver and directed by Catherine Heck, on Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Oct. 22 through Nov. 20 at the San Leandro Museum/Auditorium, 320 West Estudillo Ave. in San Leandro. One block east of the San Leandro BART Station. Professor Thaddeus Snavely Mack returns to do dastardly deeds with a colorful cast of characters in a rollicking musical melodrama. Tickets are $20, $15 for seniors, TBA members, and students. Information and tickets available online at www.slplayers.org.
San Leandro Museum Auditorium
The San Leandro History Museum, 320 West Estudillo Ave., will be screening On the Waterfront (1954) on Saturday Nov. 5, at 11:30 a.m. and again at 2 p.m. This is a classic, award-winning, controversial film directed by Elia Kazan, part drama and part gangster film. Admission is free and no prior registration is required. Bring your own popcorn. For more information, call
577-3991.
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SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
More than 70 people took part in the Unity Walk sponsored by Unity in the Community on Sept. 24. Civic leaders and elected officials, parents, children, residents, police officers and others walked along East 14th Street to Root Park in support of civil rights, justice and personal safety.
PHOTO BY MONIQUE TATE
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SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
The Oakland Raiders celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month on Monday by partnering with a local Ballet Folklorico performance group to educate local underserved youth from Roosevelt Elementary School in San Leandro.
Students learned about the history of Ballet Folklorico and its significance to the heritage of Mexico and Latin American culture.
Raiders defensive end/linebacker Shilique Calhoun, guard Gabe Jackson, running back/kick returner Taiwan Jones and wide receiver Jaydon Mickens joined the Mexico Danza dancers and students in an energetic Ballet Folklorico session of learning traditional dance moves.
The event tied in with Play 60 messaging of dance being an easy and fun way to be active for at least 60 minutes a day. Additionally, the group put on a traditional Ballet Folklorico performance.
CAPTION: Raiders rookies Shilique Calhoun (91) and Jaydon Mickens (19) performed Ballet Folklorico dance routines on Monday with students from Roosevelt Elementary School.
PHOTO COURTESY OF TONY GONZALES/RAIDERS.COM
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St. James Lutheran Yard Sale
St. James Lutheran Church, 993 Estudillo Ave. in San Leandro, is holding a church-wide yard sale on Saturday, Oct. 15, from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. Earthly Treasures for sale include art, books, collectibles, household items, games, toys, clothing, sports and exercise equipment, jewelry and more. Also offered will be breakfast burritos and other treats. This fun family-friendly community event supports the ministries of St. James Lutheran Church and is open to everyone.
Alta Mira Club Pancake Breakfast
The Alta Mira Club, 561 Lafayette Ave. in San Leandro, will have a pancake breakfast on Saturday, Oct. 15, from 8 a.m. to noon. All you can eat. Adults $6, children $3, no charge for kids under 5. For tickets, call Isabel Polvorsa at 483-2073, Linda Klass 919-5684, or buy tickets at the door.
Saturday Explorers: Pumpkin Pickers
Join in the fun on Saturday, Oct. 15, at 10:30 a.m. at the Manor Branch Library, 1241 Manor Blvd., to learn about different types of seeds through games, crafts and other activities. Best for children ages 5 and older. All children must be accompanied by an adult. To register or for more information, call 577-7971.
Soroptimist Fashion Show & Luncheon
Soroptimist International of the East Bay presents the 4th Annual Fashion Show and Luncheon on Saturday, Oct. 15, from noon to 3 p.m. at the Crow Canyon Country Club,
711 Silver Lake Dr. in Danville. Fashions will be provided by Chico’s of Danville. Cost of the show and lunch is $45 per person. For more information or tickets, call Lynn Levin at 593-7377.
San Leandro Garden Club
The monthly meeting of the San Leandro Garden Club will be on Tuesday, Oct. 18, at the Alta Mira House, 561 Lafayette Ave. in San Leandro. The business meeting is at 10 a.m. and at 11 a.m. speaker Steve Wiley will introduce student members from the Environmental Leadership Club at San Lorenzo High School and discuss the club’s activities. Come early to check out the plant table. All are welcome.
St. Felicitas Oktoberfest Luncheon
St. Felicitas Parish, 1662 Manor Blvd. in San Leandro, hosts its monthly Young at Heart Luncheon on Wednesday, Oct. 19, with sausage on soft roll, sauerkraut, German potato salad, coleslaw, dessert, plus coffee or apple cider. Doors open at 11 a.m. and lunch is served at noon. Tickets are now on sale for $6 and must be purchased no later than the Monday before the luncheon. Entertainment and door prizes at each luncheon. Tickets available at the parish office Monday through Thursday between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Shrouded Tales at McConaghy House
Explore true tales of tragic ends, Victorian death traditions, superstitions and a touch of the paranormal on Friday and Saturday Oct. 21 and 22 at the McConaghy House, 18701 Hesperian Blvd, in Hayward. Tours are at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. Proceeds go toward the maintenance and preservation of the site. Tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance. General Admission is $15, $10 for HAHS Members, Seniors and Students. To book, call 581-0223 or visit www.haywardareahistory.org.
Adult School Transitions Services
The San Leandro Adult School, 1448 Williams St. in San Leandro, invites the community to learn about its transition services, which include assistance with education, employment and personal support services. The public is invited to come to an open house on Friday, Oct. 21, or Thursday, Dec. 1, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in Room 106. Refreshments will be served.
Our Lady of Good Counsel Concert
A star studded concert will be held at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church Hall, 2500 Bermuda Ave. in San Leandro, on Saturday, Oct. 29, at 6:30 p.m. The Through the Years concert will lead the audience on a musical journey over the last 50 years, featuring well known singer-comedian Fe De Los Reyes and the popular Philippines singer Jam Morales, supported by Ellona Santiago, an X-Factor finalist. Other artists are Ronnie Ramos, Monica Mendoza, an American idol top 48 finalist and Charlz Mendoza. Tickets are $25. For more information about the tickets, call Beth Garcia at 861-1753 or Mon Cargo at 1-800-432-4300.
Haunted Halloween History
The San Leandro Main Library, 300 Estudillo Ave., will have a spooky Halloween in its Haunted History Room on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 1 to 3 p.m. Visitors will encounter the ghosts of some of San Leandro’s more famous residents and learn their fascinating histories. After visitors have encountered all the ghosts and learn why they are so famous, they’ll be given an easy questionnaire to complete. Parents can help their children discover the answers. After answering just three ghostly questions correctly, participants will receive a coupon for a small bag of treats, while supplies last. History researchers will be on hand to encourage and assist visitors during their walk to the Other Side.
Classic Broadway Music at SL Library
A tribute to classic Broadway music will be presented at the San Leandro Library, 300 Estudillo Ave., on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 2 to 3 p.m. Enjoy an afternoon of classic Broadway melodies with concert pianist Frederick Hodges. Admission is free. Hailed as one of the best concert pianists in the world, Frederick Hodges is sought after by today’s foremost orchestras, festivals, and conductors. His extensive repertoire includes the great European classical masters as well as the best American composers.
Paranormal Investigation at Meek Mansion
Experienced investigators lead attendees through Meek Mansion, with access to all non-restricted areas on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. Data collected on previous investigations include electronic voice phenomena (EVP), cold spots, touches, apparitions and much more. General Admission $75. Proceeds support the maintenance and preservation of this historic site. Tickets are limited and must be purchased in advance. Ages 18 or older. Purchase tickets online at www.haywardareahistory.org or call 581-0223.
Japanese Moon Viewing Festival
Join the Oakland Fukuoka Sister City Association for an evening of Japanese food, entertainment and moon viewing Sunday, Oct. 16, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Lakeside Park Garden Center, 666 Bellevue Ave. in Oakland. There is a $5 parking fee. Japanese Bento box dinners available only on a pre-paid basis by sending your check for $15 to OFSCA, P.O. Box 13022, Oakland CA 94661-3022. Check must be received by Oct. 10. For more information, go to www.oakland-fukuoka.org or email: ofsca1962@gmail.com.
San Leandro Museum Auditorium
The San Leandro Players present Trouble Bubbles at the Hot Springs, by Gary McCarver and directed by Catherine Heck, on Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Oct. 22 through Nov. 20 at the San Leandro Museum/Auditorium, 320 West Estudillo Ave. in San Leandro. One block east of the San Leandro BART Station. Professor Thaddeus Snavely Mack returns to do dastardly deeds with a colorful cast of characters in a rollicking musical melodrama. Tickets are $20, $15 for seniors, TBA members, and students. Information and tickets available online at www.slplayers.org.
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The son of a woman who was found murdered in her home in unincorporated Hayward earlier this month has been arrested for the crime.
The decomposed body of Patricia Carpenter, 50, was found in her living room on the 22000 block of Princeton Street after neighbors reported not seeing her for over a week and smelling a foul odor coming from the home, according to Sgt. Ray Kelly of the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office.
It took investigators days to determine the cause of death was homicide due to the state of Carpenter’s corpse. An autopsy revealed she had been stabbed numerous times.
Carpenter’s son, LeMario Thomas, 28, was a resident of the home but could not be located. Inside his room, officers found a bloody knife, Kelly said.
During the investigation, it was discovered that on Sept. 28, a 911 call came into the CHP dispatch center in Sacramento.
The caller requested that the Hayward police be sent to the Princeton Avenue home to see what was inside. The male caller disconnected when asked for more information. Officers arrived, did not see anything out of the ordinary, and left when no one answered the door, according to Kelly.
After the discovery of the body, an arrest warrant for Thomas was put out.
On. Oct. 17, police in Centralia, Washington picked up Thomas for allegedly trying to steal valuables from a car. During his arrest, he told the cops that he had killed his mother.
Thomas also confessed to Alameda County Sheriff’s deputies, Kelly said. Thomas remains in a Washington jail awaiting extradition to Alameda County.
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A woman has been federally charged for string of bank robberies that hit cities all over the Bay Area, including two in San Leandro.
Federal attorneys say Yolanda “Yo-Yo” Brown robbed banks in San Francisco, Antioch, and San Leandro between January and June of this year. She faces 20 years in prison for each robbery and also has been charged with felony gun possession
Among her alleged robberies, Brown is accused of holding up the Patelco Credit Union branch on the 1300 block of Fairmont Drive on Jan. 13 and Feb. 29.
Brown was also allegedly found to be in possession of a semi-automatic pistol with the serial number destroyed.
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Two men have been arrested for a series of burglaries and the theft of cars from a dealership.
On Oct. 17, an alarm went of at the Valero gas station at 1495 Hays Street at around 10 p.m. and police discovered that about $2,000 worth of tobacco products had been stolen.
Four hours later, another alarm call went off at McKevitt Volvo on Marina Boulevard, according to Lt. Robert McManus of the San Leandro police.
At the car dealership, police discovered that someone had cut hole in the rear roll-up door and stolen Audi and three Volvo.
On Oct. 19 at around 2:40 a.m., officers responded to another alarm call, this one at Bara’s Deli near the intersection of Washington Avenue and Monterey Boulevard. Someone had drilled into the front windows and front door lock.
About 15 minutes later, an alarm went off at the Premier Gas station at 15018 Hesperian Boulevard. When officers arrived, they found the front doors smashed and cash, lottery tickets, and tobacco products stolen.
Officers spotted an Audi and a Volvo matching the description of two of the stolen cards speeding away from the area.
A few hours later on last Wednesday morning, undercover detectives found one of the stolen Volvos parked at the corner of 92nd Avenue and E Street in Oakland where detectives arrested 35-year-old Jason Lee of Oakland on suspicion of auto theft and violating his probation.
On Thursday morning at 5:20 a.m. officers responded to another alarm call at the Grafco convenience store at 525 Williams Street. While searching inside, cops found 26-year-old Eli Mahoney of Oakland hiding inside. He was arrested on suspicion of burglary.
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A jury recently convicted Paul Booker, Jason Antoine Beasley, and Ruben Manzell Mitchell of numerous offences and enhancements, including kidnapping, torture, assault with a firearm, attempted pandering, and human trafficking for commercial sex in a case that began in San Leandro.
In 2013, a 17-year-old girl ran away from home and was living on a friend’s couch, making money in the commercial sex trade to survive.
The young woman knew Booker and Beasley, and previously Booker had propositioned her, offering to work as her pimp, according to the Alameda County district attorney’s office.
The girl declined to work for Booker and spent the night with Beasley at an apartment in San Leandro.
The next day Beasley took the girl to Oakland, where Booker forced her into the trunk of his car at gunpoint.
The district attorney’s office says that Beasley set her up.
Booker took the girl to his apartment and bound her hand and feet with duct tape. Over the course of several hours, he and Mitchell hit her and tortured her with a knife to get her to agree to “work” for them.
The girl was eventually left alone and was able to escape.
All three men were convicted and will be sentenced on Oct. 24.
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The death of a woman in her unincorporated Hayward home has been ruled a homicide, according to the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office.
Officers found the decomposed body Patricia Carpenter, 50, inside her home on the 22300 block of Princeton Street on Oct. 5 after responding to a report of a foul odor.
It took the investigators a week to determine her death was a homicide because Carpenter was decomposed. Neighbors hadn’t seen her in a week or more.
Because the investigation is active, the sheriff’s department is not yet disclosing the cause of death.
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San Leandro police arrested three women for “suspicion of resisting arrest” after locating what they believe to be a brothel operating in a home at 338 Aloha Drive.
The police acted on tips complaining of illegal activity at the home and detectives found advertising for prostitution on a website known to be used by “Johns,” according to Lt. Robert McManus of the San Leandro police.
The officers texted with a woman who agreed to perform sex acts for $160 and gave them the Aloha Drive address. Police served a search warrant there on the afternoon of Oct. 6.
When officers knocked on the door, three Chinese women between the ages of 31 and 54 tried to run away through the back of the house, but police caught up with them and arrested them.
In the house, police found another woman and a man. The man told officers he was there for a massage. Police are investigating the man and woman.
“These investigations are very challenging, especially when trying to seek criminal charges,” said McManus in a written statement. “We have difficulty convincing ‘Johns’ to cooperate with us, which negatively impacts the investigation. More importantly, we strongly consider the human trafficking aspect involved in these operations and know that some women are forced into performing illegal sex acts. In these cases, our goal is to provide the true victims (women) with social services that will assist them in escaping from this illegal industry.”
When police searched the house, they found no indication that anyone was living there. Each room just had a mattress on the floor and a small table with condoms, with a sheet covering the windows and a suitcase filled with women’s lingerie.
Police seized about $1,500 in cash. After interviewing the women, they discovered that one had arrived from China less than a week previously and came to San Leandro to engage in prostitution.
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Last week a three-month undercover investigation culminated in the bust of a marijuana growing operation at multiple houses throughout the city.
Police arrested five suspects and seized $40,000 cash and more than 2,000 pot plants, according to Lt. Robert McManus of the San Leandro police.
Search warrants were obtained for the six houses in the Broadmoor, Bay-O-Vista, and Washington Manor neighborhoods.
At around 7 a.m. on Oct. 5, more than 30 officers served the warrants and searched the homes, finding illegal indoor marijuana grows at four of the homes.
McManus said that when police knocked on one door, a man inside peered though the window and then immediately ran. Police found him hiding in the home in a tight crawl-space underneath a hatch in the floor. Police tired to talk him out, but he remained in the hole for 45 minutes until a police dog ousted him.
Police are not releasing the names of those arrested or the addresses of homes because the investigation is ongoing.
Based on the amount of electricity to successfully power the indoor-growing lights, police report that monthly PG&E bills for each residence could cost up to $480,000 annually.
Although it is typical in these types of set-ups for suspects to bypass the PG&E electrical meters, an electrical bypass was not discovered in any of the residences involved in this investigation, McManus said.
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Two neighbors had to be rescued from a nearby residence when a fire broke out at a home near Bella Vista Avenue and Lorraine Boulevard in San Leandro on Sunday morning.
The two-alarm fire started at around 7:15 a.m. with heavy smoke and flames coming from the back of the house. The fire was extinguished in about 20 minutes, according to the Alameda County fire Department, who helped evacuate the neighbors.
Investigators say the fire started in the backyard and spread to the home. The cause of the fire is still being determined.
A cat died in the fire but two others were able to be rescued by the home’s residents. Two other cats are still missing. No other injuries were reported.
The two residents have been displaced as a result of the fire and have found a place to stay.
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A San Leandro man was arrested after a car chase that went through multiple cities ended in a fiery wreck in Oakland early Monday morning.
Terry Nguyen, 29, faces charges including felony evasion, drug possession, driving under the influence, and driving on a suspended license, according to the California Highway Patrol.
Nguyen allegedly refused to stop for a CHP patrol officer who attempted to pull his GMC Yukon over on westbound I-580 near Highway 13 in Oakland for not having a license plate at around 1:30 a.m.
The suspect then led CHP officers on a chase that began when he exited the westbound lanes and turned onto the eastbound lanes of I-580. He drove from Oakland into San Leandro, then Castro Valley, and got on I-880 and continued into Hayward, driving at or below the speed limit the entire time.
Nguyen then turned around again and drove northbound on I-880 back toward Oakland. CHP officers put a spike strip down on I-880 near the Davis Street exit, which the suspect ran over before exiting at 98th Avenue into East Oakland.
The chase continued on Oakland city streets with the GMC on fire as Nguyen’s wheels wore through and he began driving on his metal rims.
Finally, Nguyen stopped near the intersection of 106th and Longfellow avenues and surrendered to CHP officers.
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Late last month, an Alameda County Superior Court judge a sentenced Sonny Anderson to 37 years-to-life in the hit-and-run death of a San Lorenzo teen.
Anderson, 36, was sentenced for the November 2014 death of San Lorenzo High School freshman Ivan Cruz.
Cruz had been returning home from riding his scooter at a park and was crossing an intersection near Ashland Avenue when Anderson struck and killed him during a police car chase while Anderson was high on methamphetamine.
Anderson evaded arrest at the time of the killing, but police later found the car abandoned in Fremont and traced it to a relative of Anderson’s, authorities said.
Anderson was also found guilty of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, hit and run, and felony animal abuse for punching a police dog at the time of his arrest for Cruz’s death.
BY CARL MEDFORD, CRS • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-27-16
As a kid, we frequently went camping and could always rely on outdoor toilets. We also had a few country friends on farms with outhouses. Trips to the backyard biffy were never fun: The smell and insects kept visits short; and, if it was cold outside, outings were measured in seconds.
I actually lived near the largest two-story outhouse in the world located behind the Windsor Hotel in Heritage Park in Calgary, Canada. Boasting four main-level stalls and two second-story units, it was constructed in such a way as to prevent the mayhem seen on The Simpsons.
We’ve come a long way since bathrooms moved indoors and, if you’ve done much travelling outside the U.S.A., you’ll have developed a strong admiration for modern American plumbing. Next to the kitchen, bathrooms are the most renovated rooms, and we are currently seeing a renaissance of sorts in the privy.
The National Kitchen & Bath Association has released its “Top Bathroom Trends for 2016.”* And, if you’ve visited many open houses lately, you will likely have seen some of these highlighted items:
1. Greater acceptance of aging-in-place amenities: no-threshold showers, grab bars, higher vanity heights and chair-height toilets. With aging boomers comprising a growing segment of society, bathrooms are adapting to boomer desires to remain in their homes as they grow older.
2. Neutral colors rule the bath. Coupled with whites and off-whites, grays are gaining in popularity, along with beige and bone shades.
3. More open shelving and floating vanities. Taking cues from upscale European hotels, vanities are starting to hang from the walls. Once only seen in commercial buildings, Euro-styled wall-mounted toilets are now appearing in homes.
4. Greater use of shower amenities such as lights, built-in seats and benches, and hand shower in addition to the mounted showerhead.
5. Undermount sinks are far and away the most popular sink style. Quartz products are also gaining popularity as the material of choice for counters.
6. When tubs are installed in master bathrooms, they are most likely to be freestanding.
7. Polished chrome is the most popular faucet finish. Satin or brushed nickel are next, and brass is out.
Factor in electric radiant floor heating, master bathrooms with coffee bars, wet bars and microwaves, TVs built into mirrors, soft-close toilet seats and steam showers… and those super-short visits of old may have gone the way of the outhouse.
*Taken from www.nkba.org, Inside Look at the Top Ten Bathroom Trends of 2016.
Carl Medford is a licensed Realtor with Keller Williams Realty and a licensed general contractor. This article is sponsored by the Central County Marketing Association at www.ccmgtoday.com.
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BY SAMANTHA MAZZOTTA • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-27-16
Q: I have a dry basement that I turned into an extra workspace and play area. The outer concrete walls are covered by a layer of wallboard with little or no space between. I’d like to hang pictures and a whiteboard in this area, but I am afraid of drilling through the concrete. How can I accomplish this?
A: Drilling into concrete isn’t impossible — special masonry drill bits are available — but you’re right to be cautious about drilling holes in the walls of a dry basement. However, you do have options outside of drilling into the mortar.
Light objects that won’t bear extra weight can be attached to the wall using an adhesive product like the Command series of picture hangers. These have the added benefit of not marring the wallboard even when the adhesive is removed later. They’re available at home-improvement and office-supply stores.
For a more secure attachment, place small picture-hanger hooks into the wallboard using the smallest nails available. The items being hung should be less than 5 pounds and not hold any extra weight — so a shelf or a cork board laden with notes might not hold up.
For heavier objects, or if you want shelving near your workspace, you’ll have to get more creative. If there is a little space between the wallboard and the concrete, you can drill a hole and place expansion bolts, which pop open behind the wallboard to keep the bolts in place. Toggle (or Molly) bolts will work if there is about an inch of space between the concrete and the drywall.
Because the bolts are not anchored in studs, you should brace the shelf or picture with extra expansion bolts on the bottom, and limit the load to less than 50 pounds. In fact, if you’re planning to add shelving to hold books, consider using a freestanding bookshelf instead of a weight-bearing wall shelf.
Another option for heavier items is suspending them from the ceiling. Try locating the ceiling’s framing material or the floor joists using a stud finder, and drill sturdy bolts or hooks into the joists.
Home Tip: Even “dry” basements can have high humidity or be vulnerable to seepage through the masonry foundation, so consider using a dehumidifier to improve air quality.
© 2016 King Features Synd., Inc.
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BY BUZZ BERTOLERO • THE DIRT GARDENER • 10-27-16
Q: Is it absolutely necessary to drill holes in the bottom of containers for drainage? I’ve purchased several inexpensive plastic pots that have no drainage holes. If I don’t overwater them, won’t the plants just suck up the water, leaving none to stagnate at the bottom? Also, what is good to plant for color for the winter months?
A: Having no drainage holes may work but it’s going to be tricky in gauging when to add more water. The amount will vary significantly between the seasons.
Another issue of not having drainage holes will be the depth of the container. Your new plants may not use all the excess water. You then have an issue with uneven soil moisture. The lower half could stay very wet while the top half is dry. It’s very difficult to water just the top.
A shallow container would be easier to water than a deep one.
This is not going to work with outdoor containers during the rainy season. To me, this whole idea is a lot of hassle.
A better option would be to purchase another pot with drainage holes that will fit inside the current ones. It’s a pot within a pot. Now, the excess water can be easily dumped out; or, just drill holes in the current pots.
For seasonal color, cyclamen, primroses, primulas, pansies, violas, calendulas or Iceland poppies are available for planting.
Planted now, these plants will bloom right into next spring.
Also available are mums, snapdragons, flowering kale and cabbage, but I’d look to replace them on or before the first of the year.
Cyclamen mixed with violas or primulas are a very attractive combination. They can be grown in any location that gets lots of light. Sun or shade isn’t important during the winter months.
The growth should be minimal, so plant them close to one another; otherwise, the containers will look sparse.
And, finally, you need to add a starter or all-purpose fertilizer at the time of planting so they don’t turn yellow from being hungry.
Q: The leaves of my dahlias are full of mildew; however, the flowers are not affected. What can be done now to prevent this?
A: There are many products available for mildew control on dahlias as well as many other plants. But, I would not be inclined to apply anything this late in the season.
Dahlias will be going dormant soon and the beginning of the rainy season is not that far off.
Mildew is an airborne disease that’s a problem when moisture remains on the foliage after the sun goes down. Once the rainy season concludes, the marine influence is a major contributor to mildew as well as watering in the early evening.
To combat this problem, I’d apply Bayer Advanced All In One Rose and Flower Care. It’s a granular or liquid solution that’s applied to the roots, so no spraying is necessary, and it gives you six weeks of protection. Besides controlling mildew, along with other diseases, it fertilizes and controls many sucking insects such as aphids. I’d make my first application in late May or early June.
Buzz Bertolero is an Advanced California Certified Nursery Professional and Senior Gardening Professional at Sloat Garden Centers. His web address is www.dirtgardener.com. Email questions to dirtgarden@aol.com or go to Facebook.com/Buzz.Bertolero.
CAPTION: Apply flower care to dahlias in late May or early June.
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BY CARL MEDFORD, CRS • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-20-16
While it’s no surprise that record high price tags for Bay Area homes are keeping many buyer wannabes from purchasing, this is especially true of Millennials.*
It’s not just the staggering cost of homes putting on the brakes, however. It’s that PLUS the extremely high outlay required for something else:
Education and the resulting student loans.
In a recent national survey of Millennials by LendingTree, 46.31 percent of respondents revealed that their high monthly student loan payments are actually delaying the home-buying process.
Further, the results revealed that 53.27 percent were putting travel plans on hold, 38.07 percent were postponing retirement savings and 44.74 percent were even delaying the purchase of new wheels.
With a degree deemed necessary for Millennials seeking good-paying jobs, there is no good news on the horizon for this problem. It’s no secret that the cost of higher education is soaring.
To corroborate, LendingTree’s report points out that while many survey participants had been accepted to highly ranked colleges and universities, they deemed that the associated costs were too high and, consequently, ended up settling for lower-ranked, more affordable schools. Further, the report declares that this trend “suggests student debt may not only obstruct Millennial spending, but may be negatively influencing college and career choices and restricting economic growth.”
And, it appears, hampering the housing market as well.
Millennials, in an attempt to get ahead, are not only not buying homes, they are also avoiding the rental market in record numbers. Evading conventional logic that assumes they have a choice between paying rent or making mortgage payments, they have chosen a third option: living with mom and dad.
A Pew Research Center paper, released in May, points out that, for the first time since 1880, more than 50 percent of Millennials are still living at home.
Historically, those staying at home have typically been college grads that have yet to secure a job. While that is still true to a point, the trend is changing with higher numbers of those fully employed still camping on their parents’ good will.
One last trend is also keeping Millennials from diving into the housing market: the increasing delay in getting married. No marriage, no pressure to set up a household; no pressure to set up a household, no need to get off the parents’ couch.
It’s a fine pickle, and one that does not appear to moving out any time soon.
*Those born between 1982 and 2004.
Carl Medford is a licensed Realtor with Keller Williams Realty and a licensed general contractor. This article is sponsored by the Central County Marketing Association at www.ccmgtoday.com.
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BY SAMANTHA MAZZOTTA • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-20-16
Cedar outdoor furniture is desirable to many people. It’s a durable wood, doesn’t easily warp or rot, and resists insects.
Unfinished cedar furniture starts out as a natural reddish color, which over time fades to gray as wind and weather season the wood. Owners who prefer the warmer reddish color can apply a wood sealer, or enhance the color using a wood stain.
Paint or finishing oils aren’t typically used with cedar furniture, since they can trap moisture, encouraging rot.
You can clean cedar furniture a few times a year with soap and water, but avoid using a pressure washer or harsh solvents. If you’re concerned about temperature extremes or ice on the furniture, you can cover it or store it during the winter.
© 2016 King Features Synd., Inc.
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BY BUZZ BERTOLERO • THE DIRT GARDENER • 10-20-16
Q: Is it too late to reseed my lawn, and should it be dethatched and aerated first?
A: It’s not too late to reseed your lawn but you need to act fast. The growing season concludes with the end of Daylight Saving Time, on November 6. However, if the temperatures cool too fast and the rainy season begins, the grass seed will never germinate. It takes 10 days to two weeks for germination. It has been successful in some years while it has failed in others.
I wouldn’t be inclined to aerate the turf now as the winter rains will wash away any of the drainage benefits, so I’d wait until next spring.
Dethatching may be necessary but, then again, it may not. You might want to determine just how thick the thatch layer is first.
With a shovel, make two cuts at a 45-degree angle to each other. At the apex of the angle, lift the grass up with the shovel exposing the soil profile. The soil profile shows the grass blades, the thatch layer and how far the roots have penetrated into the soil. The thatch layer is that layer of organic matter between the blades of grass and the soil.
It is normal to have some thatch, so if the layer is less than three-quarter of an inch, dethatching isn’t required. Instead, I’d just rake the area vigorously to remove any loose matter and scratch the soil in the bare spots.
If you’re planning on reseeding the entire lawn area, then you could use a detaching machine. Otherwise, skip it and just rake the bare spots.
The metal tines of a dethatching machine removes the thatch layer and it also damages the existing turf; hence, the need to reseed the entire area. It’s a particular issue with clumping Fescue type grasses.
If the original lawn was sodded or seeded this century, it’s more than likely a Fescue lawn. Fescue turfs are notoriously slow in filling in because of there clumping growth habit. So, it’s only recommended if you’re reseeding the entire lawn area.
The reseeding process is very straight forward. Scatter the seed, apply a starter fertilizer and then cover it with a thin layer of compost, mulch, or soil amendment.
The last step is to water, but be careful not to let the water puddle. The seed can float around and you can then create bare spots in the bare spots. Sprinkle the seed in the morning and afternoon until it germinates.
Q: I planted a bare-root peach tree this spring. All of the growth developed below the graft. Is it worth keeping or is it best to replant a new tree?
A: Unfortunately, your peach tree has expired, so, I’d start over with a new tree. The growth below the graft is just the rootstock. The root stock it not going to produce edible peaches. Your favorite garden center has bare-root peach trees in January.
Buzz Bertolero is an Advanced California Certified Nursery Professional and Senior Gardening Professional at Sloat Garden Centers. His web address is www.dirtgardener.com. Email questions to dirtgarden@aol.com or go to Facebook.com/Buzz.Bertolero.
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BY CARL MEDFORD, CRS • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-13-16
It’s official. With September’s data just released, average sales prices in Alameda County have declined steadily since their peak in April, 2016.
Cresting at $914,000, average county sale prices have eroded month-by-month to a September average of $842,000, a decline of 8.5 percent over a four month period. Median* prices, while not as high, have eased from $815,000 in April to a current low of $765,000, representing a 6.5-percent drop.
Regardless of which way you slice it, we’ve seen a steady decrease in market values since June. If the numbers from the past four years are any indicator, we can expect continued reductions through December.
So far, the market is performing as it has every year since the market turned positive starting in February, 2012. Each year, market prices dipped through to the end of December, then rebounded with a roar each January, soaring to new heights each spring.
While current numbers should be no surprise, given same-period market performance over the past four years, many pundits believe that, come 2017, the market will perform differently than we have come to expect in recent years.
One such example is Gary Keller, cofounder of Keller Williams, the largest real estate company in the world by agent count.
In a recent speech to KW leaders, Keller cited six key indicators in the national housing market that he believes will lead to a market shift in the near future:
1. Median prices across the country are at an all-time high.
2. The average DOM (days on the market) is rising.
3. Prices are declining in many markets.
4. The supply of move-up and luxury homes is increasing.
5. The number of unit sales (number of homes sold) are declining.
6. New home construction is flat across the country.
While true nationally, all six indicators are also present in the Bay Area. Prices have reached all-time peaks, DOM is increasing, the top end of the market is softening more rapidly than the bottom end and move-up sales, almost completely missing over the past few years, are once again becoming a staple.
Inventory is increasing while closings are diminishing, pushing prices downward. While we have pockets of new homes in the Bay Area, sales are not as brisk as hoped.
Our advice? Watch January’s numbers. If sales ease out of the gate instead of exploding, then, in our opinion, the shift in the market has finally arrived.
*Median price takes the lowest and highest price of properties sold in a specific period of time and calculates the mid-point.
Carl Medford is a licensed Realtor with Keller Williams Realty and a licensed general contractor. This article is sponsored by the Central County Marketing Association at www.ccmgtoday.com.
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BY BUZZ BERTOLERO • THE DIRT GARDENER • 10-13-16
Q: My tulips and daffodil bulbs were removed from the ground after the foliage turned brown and stored. When should I replant them, and should they be chilled first?
A: Spring- or summer-flowering bulbs stored from the previous year are replanted during their typical planting season. So, you’d replant daffodils, narcissus, tulips, etc. in the fall, while dahlias, gladiolus and others would go back into the ground in late winter, early spring.
Yes, tulips should be chilled, but not the daffodils. Chill tulips before planting for six weeks as the ground doesn’t get cold enough.
When chilling tulips in a refrigerator be sure to remove all the apples, bananas, tomatoes and other fruits. The ethylene gas from the maturing fruit can damage the immature flowers.
That being said, the real question is whether it’s worth the effort or not. Tulip flowers vary, so don’t expect last year’s tulips to be as showy this year. They will require another growing season before they reach their peak again.
You can improve the color show by mixing in new bulbs with the older ones. Personally, I’d plant new bulbs each year.
This is not the case with daffodils and narcissus as they’re planted anytime before the rainy season begins. Also, it’s quite common to leave them in the ground year after year. The clumps are dug up and divided when the groupings become so crowded that the flower size is reduced.
Also, the overcrowding is the major reason why daffodils and narcissus stop blooming altogether. Typically, they’re divided every three to four years.
As with new planting, you should add bulb food or bone meal. Depending on the size of the bulb, add a teaspoon or tablespoon under each bulb so nutrients are immediately available to the new roots.
Q: I read that to keep hydrangeas a pink color you should feed them an acid fertilizer; and, to turn them blue, use something alkaline. Each spring, I fertilize my pink hydrangea with an acid fertilizer but the blooms turn out to be a dirty white color. What am I doing wrong?
A: The flower color on hydrangeas is determined by the acidity or alkalinity of the soil and it’s measured by the soil pH. A pH scale runs from 1 to 14 with 7 being neutral. Any reading below 7 is acidic while any reading above 8 is alkaline.
A simple pH kit is available at your favorite garden center to measure your soil.
Unfortunately, your blue/pink formula is backward. Hydrangeas turn pink in alkaline soils while we get blue tones in acidic conditions.
You can keep hydrangeas pink or red by fertilizing with Superphosphate or 0-10-10. For blue and/or lavender hydrangeas, feed them Aluminum Sulphate, EB Stone True Blue or Gro More Blue.
Begin feeding in the fall and continue monthly, February through May. These additives are a supplement to your usual plant fertilizers, not a replacement.
Buzz Bertolero is an Advanced California Certified Nursery Professional and Senior Gardening Professional at Sloat Garden Centers. His web address is www.dirtgardener.com. Email questions to dirtgarden@aol.com or go to Facebook.com/Buzz.Bertolero.
CAPTION: Mix in new bulbs to improve the color show of your tulips.
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BY SAMANTHA MAZZOTTA • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-13-16
A leaking dishwasher hose can go unnoticed for a long time. That means it can also cause major water damage.
You should be able to find a similar-size replacement hose at your home-improvement store, or check with the manufacturer to see if the part is still available.
You definitely don’t want the flooding to continue, so unplug the dishwasher (or turn off power at the circuit panel if there is no standard outlet) and gently slide it out of its cabinet to access the hose.
Disconnect the hose from the appliance and from the sink trap or garbage disposal, depending on how it was installed. Take it to the home-improvement store to find a comparable size and length. (Don’t purchase a shorter length. The hose needs to be set up so that its middle part is higher than the inlet/outlet connections.)
Connect the new hose, first to the sink trap or garbage disposal, then to the dishwasher outlet. Plug the dishwasher back in (or turn on the circuit). Place a piece of plastic along the floor under the outlet and under the sink trap connection, then run the dishwasher empty for a full cycle and monitor for leaks. If you detect any, adjust the connections until the leak stops.
Once the leak is fixed, take a close look at the floor and wall behind the dishwasher and note the location and extent of water damage. Damp drywall and flooring may dry without issues, but materials that get repeatedly soaked can develop a mold problem. If you detect mold, the affected drywall should be cut out and replaced. Flooring may be okay, but it should be treated to prevent mold.
© 2016 King Features Synd., Inc.
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BY STEVE SCHAEFER • SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-27-16
Years ago, people drove station wagons to haul their families around. These cars were essentially versions of the full-size sedans of the day. Often, they had a third-row seat, but, if it was like the one in my family’s 1961 Chevrolet, it faced backwards.
The 1990s brought the rise of the truck-based sports utility vehicle (SUV). Today, we use a plethora of crossovers — SUVs built on car platforms — to carry our loved ones around. The Mazda CX-9 is one of them.
For 2016, the CX-9 is completely redone. Debuting a decade ago, it was ripe for change. It gains the beauty of the KODO design language and the efficiencies of SKYACTIV technology.
Looking at the new CX-9, you can see how much effort went into giving it presence and a lovely flow from front to rear and side to side. The grille follows the motif of other Mazdas, losing its grin for a more shield-like appearance. The bold metallic outline flows directly into the headlamp pods, and metallic trim outlines the lower edges of the façade. Carved and smoothed surfaces meet, evoking a solid shape that has a restless, energized feel.
Inside, the bold use of real aluminum trim lends an architectural feel, and various surface textures transition beautifully from one to the other. At night, lights behind the door interior door handles evoke dimension. Everything feels rich and substantial, as it should, being a two-ton, seven-passenger hauler.
The instrument panel carries a traditional gauge look but in the middle of the dash, a screen, looking like an iPad glued there, provides more information. A panel shines a head-up display onto the windshield for no-eyes-off-the-road driving. The barrel-shaped steering wheel stalks are perfectly positioned for effortless control.
My tester may have felt especially luxurious because it was the second highest level of CX-9. There are four: Sport, Touring, Grand Touring, and Signature at the top. My Soul Red Metallic Grand Touring wore the upsized 20-inch alloy wheels and interior trim you’d expect.
The new CX-9 loses 1.2 inches in length, but gains 2.2 inches of wheelbase. That gives rear passengers more leg room and makes it easier to get into and out of the rear seats.
The CX-9 uses a 2.5-liter turbo four-cylinder engine to move, working through a six-speed automatic transmission. Interestingly, if you feed the four regular fuel, you get 227 horsepower, but with premium, it jumps to 250 horsepower; 310 lb.-ft. of torque comes with either fuel. Regular is recommended, but you know what you need to do to get a little extra juice.
Mazda’s Dynamic Pressure Turbo is the world’s first that adjusts the degree of exhaust pulsation depending on engine speed. This gives it a 20 to 25 percent quicker response than a twin-scroll turbo at engine speeds below 1,500 rpm, making the engine punch above its weight.
Government fuel economy numbers are 22 City, 28 Highway, and 25 Combined. The all-wheel-drive versions lose one mile in each rating. I averaged 19.6 mpg over a test week. EPA Green scores are 5 for Smog and 6 for Greenhouse Gas.
SKYACTIV is now used throughout the Mazda lineup. Its purpose is to take the brand’s worthwhile engines and body structures and maximize efficiency everywhere, from smoother piston surfaces in the engine to many small reductions in unnecessary weight. Mazda, without hybrids or EVs, is looking to maximize what it’s got. It’s all about balancing fine road performance with the best possible fuel economy.
It’s all well and good to look nice, but you want to have a pleasant ride and a feeling of control when you’re driving. You can count on Mazda to provide agile handling, taut steering, and a responsive engine — in every model it sells. Every vehicle in the lineup has a connection to the idea of sportiness, so even in large scale, you won’t be unhappy behind the wheel.
The CX-9 can carry seven, and offers 14.4 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third seat. Drop the third row for 38.2 cf, the second row to expose 71.2 cf, and haul away! The second row folds down 1/3 by 2/3, so you can preserve passenger slots if you’re carrying something narrow.
Pricing starts at $31,520 for the Sport, working its way up to the Signature at $44,015. My Grand Touring, with $300 for the Soul Red Paint, came to $41,370 after the $900 shipping fee.
There are a number of seven-passenger crossovers on the market, but you’ll be hard pressed to find one that’s any more beautifully styled. With the many efficiencies of SKYACTIV technology and the KODO aesthetic inside and out, you can feel a little of the brand icon MX-5 Miata in the driving experience, even at a much larger scale.
Steve Schaefer is the Auto Editor for the San Leandro Times. He can be reached at sdsauto53.gmail.com.
CAPTION: The Mazda CX-9 model has been tailored for the North American market, which is expected to account for 80 percent of global sales forecast at 50,000 units annually.
SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-27-16
Many seniors worry about memory lapses as they get older fearing it may be the first signs of Alzheimer’s disease or some other type of dementia.
For insight on the seriousness of this problem, here are some resources you can turn to for help.
Warning Signs
As we grow older, some memory difficulties — such as forgetting names or misplacing items from time to time — are associated with normal aging. But the symptoms of dementia are much more than simple memory lapses.
While symptoms can vary greatly, people with dementia may have problems with short-term memory, keeping track of a purse or wallet, paying bills, planning and preparing meals, remembering appointments or traveling out of the neighborhood.
To help recognize the difference between typical age-related memory loss and a more serious problem, the Alzheimer’s Association provides a list of 10 warning signs that you can assess at 10signs.org. (For information on the other conditions that can cause dementia, see ALZ.org/dementia.)
Memory Screening
Another good place to help you get a handle on memory problems is through the National Memory Screening Program, which offers free memory screenings throughout November.
Sponsored by the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America, this free service provides a confidential, face-to-face, 10-minute memory screening to evaluate your status.
Screenings are given by doctors, nurse practitioners, psychologists, social workers or other healthcare professionals in thousands of sites across the country. Importantly, this screening is not a diagnosis. Instead, its goal is to detect problems and refer those individuals for further evaluation.
To find a screening site, visit NationalMemoryScreening.org (866-232-8484). It currently lists three locations in the Bay Area:
• Living Well Assisted Living, San Francisco, 1st Wednesday morning of each month, phone 800-805-7104
• Living Well Assisted Living, Sausalito, ongoing afternoon screenings second Tuesday of the month, phone 800-805-7104
• Senior Access, San Rafael, single-day screening from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 7, phone 415-456-9062
It’s best to check for a screening location at the end of October, because new sites are constantly being added.
See a Doctor
If you can’t make it to a screening site, make an appointment with your primary care doctor to get a cognitive checkup. This is covered, 100 percent, by Medicare as part of their annual wellness visit.
If your doctor suspects any problems, they may give a Memory Impairment Screen, the General Practitioner Assessment of Cognition, or the Mini Cog. Each test can be given in less then five minutes.
Depending on the score, the doctor may order follow-up tests or simply keep it on file to see if there are any changes down the road. Or, they may provide a reference to a geriatrician or neurologist who specializes in diagnosing and treating memory loss or Alzheimer’s disease.
Keep in mind that even if you or a loved one is experiencing some memory problems, it doesn’t necessarily mean dementia. Many memory problems are brought on by other factors like stress, depression, thyroid disease, side effects of medications, sleep disorders, vitamin deficiencies and other medical conditions. And, by treating these conditions, you and your loved one can reduce or eliminate the problem.
Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.
BY ROBERT M. VINCENT • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-27-16
Talking to your kids about alcohol may feel like a daunting task, but doing so can help prevent future health challenges and risks.
It’s important to broach the topic early: Many kids have their first drink as young as 9 years old, and 50 percent of 15-year-olds have tried alcohol.
Young people often begin drinking alcohol after experiencing stress, peer pressure, and difficult life transitions such as moving or divorce. While many adolescents consider drinking to be a rite of passage, the reality is drinking poses a serious threat to a young person’s growing brain, development and overall health. By having several small, low-key conversations with your kids about alcohol, you can create a comfortable and open space for them to discuss the dangers of underage drinking and strategies for avoiding it, without feeling awkward.
Studies show that parents have a significant effect on young people’s decisions about alcohol consumption, especially when they create supportive and nurturing environments in which their children can make their own decisions. And since so many kids begin to use alcohol at a young age, the sooner you begin talking to your children about drinking, the better.
“Parents are the number-one influencers on a young person. If every parent communicated a strong message about underage drinking, we would already have a delay on the onset of alcohol use,” said Frances Harding, Director of Federal Center for Substance Abuse Prevention.
Teen alcohol consumption is a significant health challenge nationwide. Nearly 23 percent of people between the ages of 12 and 20 are current alcohol users, according to the most recent national survey by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
This age group consumes alcohol more than any other substance, including tobacco and other drugs. While teens tend to drink less frequently than adults, they drink larger quantities, often having five or more drinks during a single occasion. More than 5 million adolescents binge drink, while 1.3 million are heavy consumers of alcohol, according to the survey.
This trend in underage drinking comes with significant risks. Adolescents who use alcohol are more prone to have legal issues and participate in unsafe sexual behaviors. They are at increased risk for using other drugs, hurting themselves or someone else, and being dependent on heavy drinking later in life.
There’s a fatal risk, too: Underage drinking is responsible for approximately 5,000 teen deaths per year — mostly from vehicle crashes, but also from alcohol poisoning and other accidents.
Talk to your children on a consistent basis about the dangers of underage drinking. Continuing the conversation throughout adolescence, when the pressure to try alcohol increases, is also important.
Helpful resources and advice can be found at samhsa.gov/underagedrinking, including a tool that illustrates the dos and don’ts of talking to kids about alcohol use.
Robert M. Vincent is a Public Health Analyst.
— North American Precis Syndicate, Inc.
BY JIM MILLER • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-20-16
Hiring a good home repair handyman can be a bit of a crapshoot. How do you find someone who will return your calls, show up on time, do the job right and finish it, all at a fair price?
Here are some tips that can help.
• Who to Call
While it may seem obvious, whom you call on for help will depend on what you need done.
If, for example, you have a small home repair or improvement project that doesn’t require a lot of technical expertise, a handyman may be all you need. But if you have a job that involves electricity, plumbing, or heating or cooling systems, you’re better off going with a licensed tradesman.
Bigger jobs, like home renovations or remodeling, may require a general contractor.
Whatever type of work you need, the best way to find it is through referrals from people you trust.
If your friends or family don’t have any recommendations, turn to professionals in the field like local hardware or home improvement stores, or real estate agents.
The internet can also help. Websites like HomeAdvisor.com can put you in touch with prescreened, customer-rated service professionals in your area for free.
Or try AngiesList.com, a membership service that will connect you with contractors and service companies with various types of expertise for free. They provide ratings and reviews of local professionals who’ve done work for other members in your area, plus details about the type of work they’ve done, prices, professionalism and timeliness. They also offer an upgraded silver or gold membership for $25 or $100 per year, which offers discounts, a magazine, complaint resolutions and more.
Another option for finding handyman services is through a local or national service company like MrHandyman.com, HouseDoctors.com or HandymanConnection.com.
You’ll probably pay more going through a company than you would with an independent handyman, but service companies typically promise professional workers who are screened, licensed, bonded and insured.
To find local handyman services in your community check your yellow pages, local publications or go to any internet search engine and type in “handyman” plus your city and state.
• Things to Know
Once you’ve located a few candidates, your next step is to get written estimates that list the materials, costs and details of the project. It’s a good idea to get at least three estimates from different sources to be sure you’re getting a fair deal.
Before hiring someone, check out their work history with your state consumer protection agency (go to usa.gov/state-consumer for a list) and the Better Business Bureau (bbb.org/council).
You can also search the Web using the company or individual’s name and such words as “reviews” and “complaints.”
You also need to find out if your candidates have an approved contractor or tradesman license. Using an unlicensed worker in a state that requires a license is dangerous — you’ll have little legal recourse if the job goes bad.
With a few exceptions, all businesses or individuals who work on any building, road, parking facility, excavation, or other structure in California must be licensed by the California Contractors State License Board if the total cost of one or more contracts on the project is $500 or more.
To find out if a contractor is licensed in California, visit: https://www2.cslb.ca.gov/
Also, ask to see their proof of insurance, which covers any damages they may cause while working on your home, and ask for several references from past jobs and check them.
Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070.
CAPTION: Don’t risk it when it comes to your home: Whatever type of work you need, the best way to find a good handyman or contractor is through referrals from people you trust.
BY GENE L. OSOFSKY, ESQ. • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-20-16
Q: Our property taxes are due soon and we worry that we may not be able to pay them, as my wife and I had large care expenses this year. Are there any programs that we might turn to for help?
A: Yes. California lawmakers have reinstated a program called the “Senior Citizens and Disabled Citizens Property Tax Postponement (PTP) Program” to provide property tax relief, in the form of a deferment, for qualifying seniors over age 62 and for persons with a disability.
Background: The program was originally created in 1976 and operated successfully for approximately 32 years until it was suspended in 2009 due to state budget cuts.
During that interim, it helped approximately 6,000 seniors and persons with disabilities remain in their homes, while generating an estimated $41 million in revenue for the state General Fund.
More recently, and with bipartisan support and the approval of the governor, the program was reinstated and revised.
• How it Works:
The PTP operates as a loan program. To qualify, an applicant must meet these five conditions: (1) be age 62 or older on or before December 31, 2016, or be blind or disabled at the time of application; (2) must own and occupy the home as his/her principal residence; (3) have total household income which did not exceed $35,500 for calendar year 2015; (4) have equity in the home of at least 40 percent of the fair market value; and (5) must not have a Reverse Mortgage on the home.
The application filing period began October 1, 2016 and runs through February 10, 2017.
Since there is limited funding for the program, applications are processed on a first-come, first-served basis.
Once approved, the State Controller’s Office will offer a loan to the applicant at 7 percent interest, place a lien on the home to secure the loan, and will then pay the current property tax due to the applicant’s county tax collector.
The loan will be due when the applicant moves from the property, sells or transfers the home, dies (unless a spouse or other qualified individual continues to reside in the home), falls delinquent on future property taxes or other senior liens, or upon refinancing or placing a Reverse Mortgage on the property.
Unfortunately, the program cannot be used to pay for any delinquent property taxes. Further, if an applicant wishes to use the program in following years, they must reapply and re-establish eligibility for each succeeding year.
The program is intended to be self-funding, with succeeding years’ loan pool supported by fees and repayments collected from prior loans. So, securing the loan in the first year does not necessarily assure that a loan will be available in succeeding years. Also, one can apply for a loan to cover all, or part, of the current tax due.
For seniors and persons with a disability in need of property tax deferment, it is a program worth considering. Loans are processed in the order received, and since the application period just opened on October 1, it is important to apply right away.
For an application or for more information, call the State Controller at 1-800-952-5661, or visit the Controller’s website at: www.sco.ca.gov.
Gene L. Osofsky is an elder law and estate planning attorney in Hayward. Visit his website at www.LawyerForSeniors.com.
BY JIM MILLER • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-20-16
It definitely pays to know what charges to expect when pre-planning a funeral. Most people don’t have a clue. Here’s a breakdown of what you can expect.
Funeral Prices
The first thing you need to be aware of is that funeral costs will vary considerably depending on your geographic location, the funeral home you choose and the funeral choices you make.
With that said, here’s a breakdown of what an average funeral costs, nationwide, according to recent data from the National Funeral Directors Association.
• Professional services fee: This is a basic non-declinable fee that covers the funeral provider’s time, expertise and overhead. $2,000
• Transfer of the remains: This is for picking up the body and taking it to the funeral home. $310
• Embalming and body preparation: Embalming is usually mandatory for open-casket viewing, otherwise it’s not required unless the body is going to be transported across state lines. Embalming costs $695. Other body preparations, which includes hairdressing and cosmetics, runs $250Funeral viewing and ceremony: If the viewing and funeral ceremony is at the funeral home, you’ll be charged for use of the chapel and any necessary staff. Costs: $420 for viewing, and $495 for funeral ceremony.
• Metal casket: Markups can be as much as 300 percent over the wholesale price. $2,395.
• Funeral transportation: Use of hearse and driver $318 to transport the body to the cemetery. Use of a service car/van $143.
• Memorial printed package: This includes printed programs and memorial guest book. $155.
In addition to these costs, there are a number of other related expenses such as flowers for the funeral (around $200 to $400), the newspaper obituary fee ($100 to $600 or more), the clergy honorarium ($200 to $300) and extra copies of the death certificate ($5 to $35 per copy, depending on the state).
And, a number of large cemetery costs like the plot or mausoleum fee, the vault or grave liner that’s required by most cemeteries, and the opening and closing of the grave, all of which average between $2,000 and $4,000; and the gravestone, which typically costs between $1,000 and $3,000.
All told, the average cost of a total funeral today is around $11,000 or more.
Ways to Save
If you can’t afford this, there are ways to save. For starters, you should know that prices can vary significantly by funeral provider, so it’s wise to shop around.
There are also free websites you can turn to, like Parting.com that lets you compare prices, and FuneralDecisions.com that will provide estimates from local funeral homes based on what you want.
When evaluating funeral providers, be sure you get an itemized price list of services and products so you can accurately compare and choose what you want.
But, the most significant way to save on a funeral is to request a “direct burial” or “direct cremation.”
With these options the deceased would be buried or cremated shortly after death, which skips the embalming and viewing. If a memorial service is desired, you can have it at the graveside or at her place of worship without the body. These services usually run between $600 and $2,000, not counting cemetery charges.
Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.
BY MELISSA AMORN, M.D. • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-13-16
The rate of thyroid cancer in the United States has been steadily growing over the past two decades, and has more than doubled since 1990.
With 48,000 new cases in 2011, the prevalence of thyroid cancer continues to rise, and women are three times more likely than men to develop it.
Most people attribute the increase in thyroid cancer to improved imaging technology, which allows doctors to find tumors much earlier — when they are smaller and easier to treat. About 49 percent of nodules responsible for the increasing incidence of thyroid cancer measure 1 centimeter or smaller while 87 percent consists of tumors 2 centimeters or smaller.
About 90 percent of these tumors are known as “well-differentiated” thyroid cancer, which has a very high cure rate when detected early.
• Regulating Metabolism
Endocrine glands release chemicals called hormones into our blood stream. The thyroid gland is one of the largest endocrine glands. Located at the base of our throat, it produces hormones by absorbing a chemical called iodine, which is often added to the table salt we use in our food.
By releasing its hormones into the blood, the thyroid regulates metabolic functions such as our weight, body temperature, blood pressure and heart rate.
• Detection
Thyroid cancer often has no symptoms. Some may have difficulty swallowing, hoarseness or shortness of breath; however, most don’t know they have it until they or their doctors detect a lump in their neck.
A history of thyroid cancer in your family or radiation exposure increases your risk of thyroid cancer. In addition, age is also an important risk factor, especially in people over 40.
To diagnose a lump or nodule, doctors use a diagnostic imaging test called an ultrasound, which emits high-frequency sound waves to create an image of the thyroid. Based on the findings, doctors will decide if they need to perform a needle biopsy of the nodule, which involves taking a small sample to test for cancer.
• Treatment
The most common treatment is surgery to remove part or all of the thyroid gland and any lymph nodes that may have been affected by the cancer.
Sometimes, doctors will also recommend that patients receive radioactive iodine, which uses radioactivity to eliminate any remaining cancer cells. External beam radiation is occasionally used in the more advanced cases of thyroid cancer, after other therapies have been exhausted.
Although thyroid cancer is not usually preventable, the majority of thyroid nodules are benign — only about 5 to 15 percent are cancerous. Because of improvements in early detection and treatment options, thyroid cancer has one of the highest survival and cure rates of all types of cancer.
Melissa Amorn, M.D., is a board-certified otolaryngologist (ENT) with the Sutter East Bay Medical Foundation.
SAN LEANDRO TIMES • 10-13-16
The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that children participate in 60 minutes of physical activity every day. Physical activity on a regular basis, combined with healthy eating habits, will prevent obesity and other diseases.
Kids need outdoor play to be active, burn up excess energy and have fun. There are, however, a few steps you can take to protect them from injury.
What You Can Do
Joan Lawrence, the Toy Industry Association’s “Toy Safety Mom,” offers these tips.
1. Make adult supervision a crucial part of outdoor play.
2. Watch children carefully whenever they’re near water. Kids should never be left alone near swimming pools, beaches, lakes or other bodies of water — even “kiddie” pools — no matter what their ages or swim capabilities. Children under 5 should always be no more than an arm’s length from an adult near water sources.
3. Always keep toys away from unsupervised and high-traffic areas, such as driveways and sidewalks, so they don’t lure a child into a dangerous situation.
4. Ride safely. Make sure your kids wear helmets, knee pads and other protective gear when playing with bikes, trikes, scooters and other ride-on toys. Accidental falls are the No. 1 cause of childhood injury, according to the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.
5. Organize and store toys to prevent slips, trips and falls. Designate “parking” spaces for bikes and other ride-on toys and store smaller items, such as skateboards, on shelves.
6. Uninflated balloons and broken balloon pieces can pose a choking hazard. At parties and other festive events, and especially when kids are playing with water balloons, remember to supervise children and throw away any broken latex pieces you find.
7. Be sure to check and follow age guidance on toy packaging. The age grading doesn’t have anything to do with how smart your child is — it’s safety guidance that’s based on the developmental skills and abilities of children at a given age and the specific features of a toy.
Learn More
You can find further facts and tips about keeping your kids safe and happy from the experts at www.PlaySafe.org.
— North American Precis Synd., Inc.
CAPTION: Taking your kids out for a bike ride can be a great way to spend quality time. Just be sure they’re properly protected.
BY JIM MILLER • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-06-16
The Social Security Administration offers three ways to apply for your retirement and/or spouses benefits, depending on your preference and how much help you need.
Here’s a rundown of the options, along with a list of information you’ll need to apply, and when to fill out the application.
• How To Apply
The easiest and most convenient way to apply for your Social Security benefits is to do it yourself online at SocialSecurity.gov. It takes less than 15 minutes to complete the application, as long as you’ve gathered all of the required information and documentation (more on that at the bottom of the column).
If, however, you’d rather have a Social Security employee assist with the process, you can also apply by phone at 800-772-1213, or at your local Social Security office.
If you apply in person, be sure to call ahead and schedule an appointment to cut your wait time.
Whichever method you feel most comfortable using, your application will be reviewed and processed as soon as all necessary documentation and information is received. And, the Social Security Administration will notify you if it turns out you could qualify for higher benefits on your spouse’s record, or if other family members can receive benefits on your work record.
• When To Apply
While full retirement age is currently 66 (for those born between 1943 and 1954) you can start receiving your Social Security retirement benefits as early as age 62 or as late as age 70, but the longer you wait, the larger your monthly check. See ssa.gov/retire/estimator.html to estimate your benefits.
Social Security recommends that you apply for retirement benefits three months before you want your payments to start. So, if you want your benefits to begin as soon as you turn 62, you should apply at 61 years and nine months old.
It’s also worth noting that if you start receiving your Social Security retirement benefits before age 65, you will automatically be enrolled in Medicare Part A and Part B, and you’ll receive your Medicare card about three months before your 65th birthday. It will include instructions to return it if you have work coverage that qualifies you for late enrollment.
But if you decide to delay your retirement benefits, you’ll need to sign up just for Medicare at age 65, which you can also do at SocialSecurity.gov, over the phone at 800-772-1213 or through your local Social Security office.
If you do not sign up, in some circumstances, your Medicare coverage may be delayed and cost more.
Need Information
In order to apply for Social Security benefits, you’ll need to be able to document some information about your identity and work history. So, before applying, have the following information handy:
• Your Social Security number.
• Your birth certificate (original or certified).
• Proof of U.S. citizenship or lawful alien status if you were not born in the United States.
• A copy of your U.S. military service papers if you had military service before 1968.
• A copy of your W-2 forms and/or self-employment tax return for last year.
• Your bank information (including your account number and the bank routing number) you want your benefits direct deposited to.
For a complete checklist of information you’ll need to complete your application, see ssa.gov/hlp/isba/10/isba-checklist.pdf.
Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.
BY GENE L. OSOFSKY, ESQ. • SPECIAL TO THE TIMES • 10-06-16
Q: I plan to hire a full-time caregiver for my husband, and I want to make sure that I handle everything legally. Do you have any suggestions as to how I handle payment or anything else?
A: Yes. There are specific rules about handling the payroll, tax and employment law aspects of hiring household help, especially a caregiver. Here are some tips:
1. Classify Your Hire Correctly: One of the most common mistakes is to treat the hire as an independent contractor, when they are really an employee.
If you have the right to control how, when and in what manner your caregiver handles the job, the individual is an employee and should be so treated. As such, you must make proper payroll deductions when you pay them, and furnish a form W-2 Wage and Tax Statement to them each year.
Knowingly mis-classifying your hire as an independent contractor could be viewed as tax evasion and could subject you to penalties and back tax payments.
2. Do Not Confuse Gross Pay with Net Pay: Gross pay, less payroll deductions, equals net pay. Make sure that both you and your hire are on the same page.
At the time of employment, prepare a sample payroll stub which shows gross income, deductions, and net pay and discuss this. Doing so can help avoid any misunderstandings.
Both the IRS and the Franchise Tax Board have easy-to-follow publications to assist you. You might ask your tax preparer to show you how to do this once, so you can do it yourself each payroll period thereafter. They can also prepare quarterly reports for you to send to the IRS and FTB. You might also handle this by using an online payroll service (e.g.Payroll.Intuit.com, or Care.com/HomePay) to do it for you.
3. Pay Overtime Correctly. A 2014 California law called the Domestic Worker Bill Of Rights, requires the payment of overtime to a person employed to assist with domestic work (including caregiving) if they work more than 9 hours in any single day or more than 45 hours in the work week.
Overtime is at the rate of 1.5 times the regular hourly rate. This requirement cannot be circumvented by offering a fixed salary: fixed salaries are legal for “exempt” workers (generally white-collar professionals), but are illegal when employing a nonexempt worker such as a caregiver.
4. Secure a Workers Compensation Insurance Policy. Protect your hire, as well as yourself, in the event they are injured on the job.
Families who do not have workers compensation coverage expose themselves to significant financial liability. You may be able to do this by purchasing a special endorsement to your homeowner’s policy, often at a modest expense.
Be sure to tell your insurance agent that you are seeking an endorsement for an employee performing domestic work in your home on a regular basis, and not for someone performing occasional work on your premises.
Handling the employment relationship appropriately can be mutually beneficial: You will be complying with law, protecting yourself from financial surprises, and may find that your payments to your caregiver are tax-deductible.
At the same time, you will create benefits for your employee in the form of contributions toward Social Security, Medicare, unemployment and state disability, and provide a documented source of employment income to enable her to apply for credit.
Following these basic guidelines will help foster a long-lasting relationship.
Gene L. Osofsky is an elder law and estate planning attorney in Hayward. Visit his website at www.LawyerForSeniors.com.
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Editor:
Regarding Oro Loma Board re-election, the General Manager and the current Board of Directors at Oro Loma Sanitary District in recent years have transformed an ordinary sewer, garbage and recycling system into an outstanding service agency.
They have won numerous statewide and regional honors and awards for its efficiencies, safety, and services to its many customers. For many years they have established and maintained the lowest known sewer service rates in the entire State of California.
I served on the Oro Loma Board nearly 30 years and have voted to elect, or re-elect, the 3 existing Board members, Dan Walters, Rita Duncan, and Ron Dias.
I have confidence their leadership will maintain continuity to the Board and its management and that they will lead the agency toward controlled customer costs and ever better services to the community.
Vote!
— Howard Kerr, San Leandro
Editor:
As vile and disgusting as I personally think Donald Trump is as a candidate, some of what he has to say about the ineptness of government rings true. And, sadly you don’t have to look any further than our own city hall to see what he means.
The first official act Mayor Cutter did once in office was to enrich city manager Chris Zapata with a $21,000 bonus and a big undeserved raise. He now makes $14,300 per month.
I’ve questioned that transaction from the very beginning because it coincided with the city manager’s decision to keep the mayor’s daughter on as the manager of one of the senior centers. When challenged, the city manager said nothing was wrong and this was all just “bad optics.” I call it quid pro quo corruption. This stain on City Hall isn’t so easily explained away in my book.
We’re the city looking for the latest tax scheme at the ballot to pay the bills at city hall. Our unimaginative city leaders, led by former Mayor Cassidy, promised us all an innovative and exciting tech center at the BART station and what we got was a horribly ugly cheap looking brown box. It’s not cool or innovative architecture. It’s ugly.
But the hardest pill to swallow is that the Marina is being sold off to developers. This round of city leaders can’t figure out how to pay for their raises without giving away our last bit of open space on the bay. It’s shameful.
It’s time for new leadership at City Hall.
— Gary Langbehn, San Leandro
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Editor:
I have read recent articles and letters concerning proposed taxes and rate increases with a combination of both great sadness and great amusement.
Both sadness and amusement because both sides of the issues are right. Both sides have facts and opinions to support their contentions. And neither side is all wrong, or all right.
Horace Walpole summed it up best: “The world is a comedy to those that think; a tragedy to those that feel.”
It is true that systems and organizations need constant upkeep. Hardware needs to be replaced eventually, and periodic ongoing maintenance is a requirement of all things. People expect raises even if their productivity does not change.
On the other hand, the desire for revenue by governments, utilities, and agencies is never ending. Where or when in the world have we ever encountered a company or utility or government that said “we have enough, we don’t need more money”? They always all want more, and all predict doomsday if they would be thwarted in their efforts.
Every tax increase and every rate increase that is more than the rate of inflation means that you have less and less money for yourself and your family as time goes by. As the famous saying goes, “the power to tax is the power to destroy.”
The current state-wide sales tax rate is 7.5%. Alameda County has the highest sales tax rate in the state at 9.5%. Several cities rank even higher, and are at the highest current sales tax rate of 10%, including San Leandro. I can’t conceive of allowing a further increase.
It seems to me that at a basic level, money does yield fair government or good service. Beyond that, the major affect of additional money seems to generate the need for more money.
— Joseph Springer, San Leandro
Editor:
In the morning of September 11, 2001, I witnessed the horrific terrorist attacks on television before going to my afternoon work shift.
I was into my 18th year as a Substance Abuse Counselor in an alcohol and drug recovery center. The facility was comprised of a short term Detox and a 90-day Men’s Recovery Home.
At the time there were about twenty-five individuals in the recovery program, all of whom were unemployed and destitute because of their chronic substance abuse. In my afternoon recovery group, I can remember giving the clients a stern lecture about how the world had changed and the necessity of being aware of your surroundings and not solely relying on the government to take care of you.
The tenor of my messages had always been taking responsibility for yourself and not expecting others to do for you what you can do for yourself. The surprise attacks on 9/11 reemphasized the necessity of being proactive about taking personal responsibility.
So now we come to the year 2016 and we have a dialogue about legalizing marijuana. Marijuana is not some kind of innocuous drug that so many purport it to be. The empirical evidence suggests that this is not true.
Most people under the influence of alcohol or drugs overestimate their cognitive and physical abilities. We already have an under-performing work force. Why introduce another way to validate our inadequacies?
I think that it is absurd in this day and age of international terrorism to even consider legalizing marijuana for recreational use.
It is very dangerous to think that the United States is invincible and to solely rely on the government to keep you safe.
A relevant question to ponder is “Why can’t I make it through the day without mood altering substances”?
Hedonism plays right into the hands of our enemies.
— Alan Garrett, San Leandro
Editor:
Last week Vernon Burton wrote a letter referring to law enforcement using the now closed Chabot Gun Club for training. In that letter he referred to ‘Black Lives Matter’ being killed by rogue cops or neighborhood vigilantes.
I suggest Mr. Burton look in his own backyard. According to the FBI’s Part One Crime Index, 90% of the African American homicide victims in this country are killed by other African Americans.
The adult male African American population of this country represents 6.5% of the total population yet are responsible for 60% of the homicides! Sleep on those numbers tonight, Mr. Burton.
I rest my case.
— Bob Oliver, Roseville
Editor:
I see important differences between the candidates for District 2, but the colors of their collar isn’t one of them.
First the article at the bottom of the front page (“Council Race: ‘Blue Collar vs. White Collar,” The Times, October 13) illustrated how much the blue collar candidate admits to having in common with his opponent.
Paragraph 4 said, both “…come down on the same side of many issues.” Among his closing statements, ‘Blue’ said “I believe in fairness, a balanced approach, and listening to everyone.”
But then he makes a statement that impressed the author so much she used it as the title of her article. “He’s more white collar, I’m more blue collar, it’s as simple as that.”
What exactly does “…I’m more blue collar, it’s as simple as that” mean to him? That statement implies bias, not balance or fairness.
Who doesn’t cherish the unions and what they have done not only for America but for the world? Yet who would deny the place of start-ups and inventive capitalism in the Bay Area? And who decided that it is it as simple as ‘blue vs. white’?
I listen for the candidates’ positions on the issues. So when a person’s underlined statement is the special interests (s)he is beholden to, as far as I’m concerned, openness and fairness has been taken off of the table.
Things in this town are changing in a positive way. The two candidates could easily be in the same family, they live in houses of comparable vintage in approximately the same part of town. Both work hard, help support their families and have committed to a tough race.
With all the hard work ahead of San Leandro, statements that smack of class warfare are out of touch, and certainly have no place in my City’s Council.
— Jeff Falero, San Leandro
Editor:
So a lot of non-Indian residents, particularly farmers and ranchers in North Dakota, are feeling frustrated that the Lakota People, other Indigenous Peoples, and their allies are setting an encampment there to protest Dallas-based oil companies’ Energy Transfer Partners who wanted to build a pipeline that will destroy the sacred sites of the Lakota People and the oil from it, will go into both the Missouri and Cannonball rivers.
Well that is too bad because neither the farmers and ranchers don’t care about the well-being of the Lakota People if it be built because they support the pipeline in the name of greed.
I urge Energy Transfer Partners to end their attempt to build this pipeline.
It is a human rights violation toward the Lakota People who resides in North Dakota.
— Billy Trice Jr., Oakland
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Editor:
The San Leandro Teacher’s Association strongly urges a YES vote for SLUSD Measure J1 on this November’s ballot.
Recently, there has been more heat than light regarding this ballot measure on the front pages of this newspaper. Let me break this down:
In the past, the voters of San Leandro have indicated their support for schools by passing bond measures and a parcel tax. Teachers, as well as students, wish to thank our community for its support.
As a result of Prop. 13 and the “Great Recession,” the state no longer provides dedicated funds for capital improvement.
This community, like so many others across California, has stepped up and filled the enormous gap in funds necessary to provide adequate facilities for our schools. These funds have invigorated our schools, but the work is not done.
Most of our schools are 60 years old or even older. Basic infrastructure systems such as heating, ventilation and roofing are worn out. Portable classrooms with a projected life span of 20 years are still in use after 40 years.
We are on the right track in this community. The new leadership at the district office has dramatically transformed our schools – and for the better.
This improvement was recently recognized by state superintendent of schools, Tom Torlakson, who visited our community to recognize our improvements – only two districts in the entire state were recognized.
Test scores are up, teacher salaries have improved, we are attracting bright, energetic teachers, and property prices in this community have risen dramatically. There is a direct correlation between local support of our schools and these indicators of success.
We must continue. To stop now would threaten the progress we have made. I urge you to choose facts on this issue, not misinformation. Support your schools, support your community, our students, and our teachers, and vote yes on J1.
— Jon Sherr, President, San Leandro Teachers’ Association
Editor:
Hayward, California has a dirty little secret and it can be summed up in two words: neglect and homelessness.
We all know that the November 8th election is crucial to our country; however, public safety is more important to me because of the increase of crime committed by our local politicians.
The crime that I am speaking about is gross negligence to the growing homeless population in Hayward, where people own a home, pay taxes and do their best to be good citizens. Although, I am sure that other cities across America are experiencing the same dilemma.
Supporting businesses in Hayward seems to be the agenda regarding our local politicians; however, the citizens of Hayward deserve equal support from the people we trust to do the right thing for us. Homeless encampments are popping up in the parks, on the streets, under the freeways, and in any available space where a lost soul can rest his head and sleep for one more night.
If I were Bill Gates, I probably would give someone a place to live with dignity and not worry about the cost of just living a decent life. I am, however, not Bill Gates. I am just a concerned citizen who is fed up with the gross indifference of our politicians, who own a home, a car, have a bank account, can travel, can eat, can buy clothes and have a decent life.
So, to all the local politicians: What would happen if a homeless family was found on your front yard, breaking into your cars, going through your garbage looking for food or thrown away clothing? Would you smile and say “go for it,” put them in jail (at least they would survive another night and get a shower and a meal – yeah good for you for providing temporary shelter), or would you wake up and smell the coffee and realize that there is a problem?
And yet, the local politicians still want to be re-elected, sit in their fine homes and remain indifferent, shut and lock their doors, and turn a blind eye.
Being homeless is an epidemic of epic proportions and yet the federal government wants to invite people from other countries to live here in America without any forethought about the consequences of that decision.
— Anita Imazumi, Hayward
Editor:
Apparently even the San Leandro Times had to do a double-take when the Truth is Beauty statue arrived!
I guess we’re on the map now…
— Richard Brock, San Leandro
Editor:
I am a Democrat and supported Clinton in the primaries and now general election. I am optimistic she will be a strong president and move our nation forward.
Throughout the campaign, I have been dismayed by many of Donald Trump’s comments and positions. I have thought Trump was an uninformed, prejudiced, developmentally stunted, and pompous fraud from day one.
Trump’s bragging – as a 59-year-old man – about kissing without consent and groping women and getting away with it because he is a “star” sets a new low.
My wife and I had to have a conversation about Trump’s comments with our daughters before the second debate as we knew the topic would be raised. It’s incredible that we could have such a person running for President – so disgusting that parents across America would have to explain to their early teen daughters what misogyny is and how some men and male teens treat women as objects and act as sexual predators.
While Trump sought to excuse his comments as simply “locker room talk,” he doesn’t understand how dangerous to women such speech is. It’s like saying the “N” word is just a word.
Speaking in such an offensive, degrading manner about women creates a cesspool of hate that inevitably leads to sexual violence.
All persons – including women and girls – deserve to be treated with respect. I want my daughters and all girls to grow up as strong, confident women. I want them to live in a society where they are safe, judged solely on their individual qualities and have the same opportunities as men to be successful.
Trump’s comments are a vivid reminder that we must actively work to confront and address misogyny.
— Stephen Cassidy, San Leandro
Editor:
What’s wrong with Trump’s tax policy?
His personal tax policy is to pay as little as possible, presumably in accord with the law.
His governmental tax policy is for people like him to pay even less than they do now.
That means less money for necessary government programs like homeland security, public health, environmental protection, education and infrastructure repair. We who do not have tremendous real estate business deductions will pay more than our fair share to keep our government services from declining.
The governmental service most important to the Bullying Billionaire is the civil court system, in which he frequently sues those who don’t suck up to him. Taxpayers support the courts that enable his kind of lawsuit intimidation, and he doesn’t even want to contribute to their support through federal taxes!
People in the Donald’s circle hire accountants, lobbyists and politicians to write tax laws in their favor, so they don’t have to pay as much as ordinary-income Americans. Then they claim they are doing nothing wrong, just following the law. How convenient!
But the Self-Absorbed Money-Grubber pushes it far further than most self-entitled billionaires. While some greedy billionaires may set up a few foreign shell companies to shelter their gains in off-shore banks, the Shifty Grifter has established over 500 shell companies to hide his gains and the identity of the people and countries to whom he owes money.
He even brags about the size of the pile of paper that constitutes his tax returns. “I’m just being a good businessman” is his justification.
That kind of business, and that kind of businessman is not good for our country, and certainly not good for our government. If he were President, he would make the government work for his personal financial interests and “to hell” with the people who he calls “losers,” who want effective government programs to do what unregulated markets can not do.
He is afraid to release his actual tax returns, in contrast to every other candidate for the last 48 years, but recent unofficial revelations show that the self-described “successful businessman” lost $916 million dollars in 1995, driving his casinos into the ground.
Should taxpayers subsidize his incompetence by allowing tax laws that enable him to write off those losses as deductions on future income? That just ain’t right.
— Bruce Joffe, Piedmont
Editor:
Being a person who is always willing to learn, I must admit that I was surprised to hear that Bay Area police departments rely on a single gun club’s largess on the weekends in order to stay proficient in the use of their weapons.
If this is true, it may account for some of the misuse of deadly force we are experiencing.
Somehow I doubt that the Chabot Gun Club was the only resource available to all these Bay Area police departments.
However, now that the gun club is history, those of us who have endured this nonsense of crowds, noise and pollution, get a chance to truly enjoy this beautiful and unique place.
As to my being part of the solution to America’s race problem, I’m sorry but it takes all of my energy and vigilance just to stay alive living in a country and time where “Living while Black” is a capital offense, punishable by death at the hands of rogue cops or neighborhood vigilantes.
— Vernon S. Burton, San Leandro
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BUTERA, Debra Ann
CAPORUSSO, Alberta (Bertie) G.
GOLFO, Hermie Del Mundo
IVEY, Thomas Eugene
WITT, Joseph
BUTERA, Debra Ann, passed away suddenly at home in San Leandro Oct. 19, 2016. Private service to be announced at a later date. Survived by her husband Michael G. Franetic, sisters Linda, Karen and brother Frank. She will be missed dearly.
CAPORUSSO, Alberta (Bertie) G. (November 10, 1917 – September 1, 2016), a life-long resident of San Leandro, is preceded in death by Louie, her husband of 68 years. Reunited again, they are playing Bingo and Bocce with family and friends. Alberta is survived by her son, Wayne, and his wife, Dawna; 5 grandchildren, Nicole Caporusso, Michael Caporusso, Derek Dutra, Roni Robinson and Shane Frede; and 7 great-grandchildren, Nicholas, Eric, Kelsey, Jordan, Drake, Devyn and Dustin. Bertie was a Life Member of YLI #166, Women of the Moose, past President of Buon Tempo Womens Auxiliary and Former Queen of Ashland Holy Ghost. Memorial gifts may be given to Buon Tempo Club Scholarship Fund, 831 Joaquin Ave., San Leandro, CA 94577. The family wishes to extend our sincere thanks to Dr. Arora, Patricia Elam and Hope Hospice, Dublin. Private services were held at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery on Oct. 21, 2016.
GOLFO, Hermie Del Mundo, 83, passed on October 24, 2016 at his residence in San Leandro. Public viewing Tuesday, November 1 from 4 p.m. - 8 p.m. at Grissom’s Chapel and Mortuary, 267 E. Lewelling Blvd., San Lorenzo. Internment Wed. Nov. 2 at 10 a.m. also at Grissoms. Funeral service Wednesday, Nov. 2 at 11:30 a.m. at Lone Tree Cemetery, 24591 Fairview Avenue, Hayward. Memorial service Sat. Nov. 5 at 10 a.m. at Westside Baptist Church, 1515 Santa Clara Ave., Alameda.
IVEY, Thomas Eugene, resident of San Lorenzo for 59 years, passed away peacefully on October 12, 2016 at the age of 92 years. Thomas was born in Oakland on February 18, 1924. He graduated from Oakland Technical High. He was a member of Alcalanes Fellowship Lodge #480. Thomas served in the United States Army and retired from Teamsters Local 70. His hobbies were bike riding and recycling. He loved to travel and spend time with family. He enjoyed yearly camping trips to Yosemite and made his last trek to Half Dome at age 71 with his daughter, brother and many of his grand-kids. He got a new mountain bike on his 80th birthday. He rode that bike all over San Lorenzo collecting cans. His grandson said it best: “God must have needed a new director of recycling in eternity.” He will be missed. Thomas is survived by his loving children; Orrin Ralph Ivey, Bonnie Jean Ivey and Patricia Kay Henderson; his daughter-in-law, Leslie Ivey; and his nieces; Barbara Triplett-Collins and Carolyn Doberenz. He was a proud grandfather of Jeff, Danny, Scott, David, Josh and Sarah, and great-grandfather to 11 great-grandchildren. A memorial service is planned for Sunday, Oct. 30, at 2 p.m. at Chapel of the Chimes, 32992 Mission Blvd., in Hayward.
WITT, Joseph, was born in Black River, Missouri on November 21, 1923. He recently passed away on Saturday, October 15, 2016 at the age of 92. A resident of San Leandro for the past 58 years, Joe came to the Bay Area from Colorado Springs at the age of 16. He hoboed his way to California by riding freight trains, eventually making his way to Oakland. He worked in the shipyards during WWII and eventually started his own successful business in the steel industry. He is survived by 2 sons, Robert and Stephen; 2 grandchildren, Barry and Mark; and 3 great-grandchildren. Joe was married to Louise Witt for 69 years until she passed away in 2013. Grandpa Joe will be missed by all.
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MARTINEZ, Teodoro, of Oakland passed away on Monday, October 17, 2016 in San Leandro. Visitation will be on Monday, Oct. 24 at Santos-Robinson Mortuary, 160 Estudillo Ave., San Leandro from noon to 8 p.m. with a Vigil Service at 6:30 p.m. The Funeral Liturgy celebrating his life will be on Tue. Oct. 25 at 10 a.m. at Church of the Assumption, 1100 Fulton Ave., San Leandro. Interment at Chapel of Chimes, Hayward. Santos-Robinson Mortuary, San Leandro (510-483-0123, santos-robinson.com).
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BLAIR, Curtis Christopher
BRANCA, Mary Beth
HAGERTY, Dorothy Coletta
MARPLES, Alan
ROSATO, Vince Jerome
BLAIR, Curtis Christopher, of San Leandro, born February 2, 1969, passed away on October 5, 2016. Curtis Blair’s family will be holding a memorial service to celebrate his life on Saturday, Oct. 15, at 11 a.m. at Santos-Robinson Mortuary, 160 Estudillo Ave., in San Leandro. Santos-Robinson Mortuary, San Leandro (510-483-0123, santos-robinson.com).
BRANCA, Mary Beth, born December 27, 1940, passed on October 2, 2016. Mary was a school nurse for San Leandro schools for over 20 years. Service will be held at St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church, 1550 Diablo Road, in Danville on Thursday, Oct. 20, at 11 a.m.
HAGERTY, Dorothy Coletta, of San Leandro passed away on October 8, 2016. Visitation on Monday, Oct. 17, from 4 to 8 p.m. and Vigil at 6:30 p.m. at San Leandro Funeral Home, 407 Estudillo Avenue, in San Leandro. Funeral Service Tuesday, Oct. 18, at 10 a.m. at San Leandro Funeral Home. Burial to follow at Holy Sepulchre. Arrangements under the direction of San Leandro Funeral Home, 407 Estudillo Ave., 510-483-5300.
MARPLES, Alan, 77, a resident of San Leandro, passed away on October 1, 2016. He was born in Manchester, England and came to America in 1967 as a tool and die maker. He is survived by his loving wife of 50 years, Ann; 4 children, Paul, Mark, Carol and Peter, and their spouses; and 7 grandchildren. He was a Queen Scout and spent 70 years as a dedicated scout and leader. Private family services will be held.
ROSATO, Vince Jerome, age 62, passed away suddenly on October 8, 2016, at home in San Leandro. Vince was passionate about teaching, social justice and helping the poor. He was tireless in making a difference in people’s lives. He liked to have fun and socialize, and he kept up with a huge group of friends. He was a man of many interests with boundless energy and an enthusiasm for life that was unsurpassed. He was loved and respected by many people, all of whom will miss him greatly. Vince was born in Huntington Park, California, on March 6, 1954. He moved to Vacaville in 1955 with his parents, Santo and Virginia Rosato, and his brother, Victor. He attended grade schools in Vacaville until he decided to study for the priesthood and entered the St. Pius X Seminary in Galt, California. He then earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Philosophy at Loyola Marymount University of Los Angeles in 1977 and a Master of Divinity at the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley, California. He was ordained as a Claretian priest on March 20, 1982 at St. Mary’s Church in Vacaville. After he was ordained, he served in various parishes and capacities, including two years in the Vatican. He spent two years as a financial consultant and Director of Administration at Energy Services Corp. in Bellevue, Washington. Vince next decided to change careers and go into full-time teaching. From 1991–1997 he taught at the Reignierd School and special education subjects at Milestones for Development in Vallejo. He moved on to St. Joseph School in Fremont and Searles Elementary School in Union City. He married the love of his life, Usha, in 2001. He retired from teaching in the New Haven School District in 2014; was elected to the San Leandro School Board later the same year, and was currently serving as the President of the Board. Following his retirement, Vince enrolled and graduated from the Alameda County Master Gardeners program in 2016; he has been actively involved in numerous activities within the local community and was leading the efforts for Community Emergency Response Training teams. He is survived by his wife, Usha; his daughter, Alexandria Brown; his brother, Victor; sister-in-law, Deborah; nephew, Nicholas; niece, Deanna; aunt, Ann Migliazzo; uncle, Vince Migliazzo; aunt, Beverly Migliazzo; aunt, Bena Reinig; uncle, Bernard Reinig; aunt, Josephine Salce; uncle, Anthony Salce; brothers-in-law, E.T. Sanakaran Kutty, E.T HariDass and E.T. MohanDass; sister-in-law, Jaya Sukumaran; and numerous cousins. A funeral mass will be held on Saturday, Oct. 15, at 1 p.m. at St. Paschal Baylon Catholic Church, 3700 Dorissa Ave., in Oakland, officiated by Bishop Michael C. Barber, SJ, with a celebration of Vince’s life in the parish hall to follow. In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made in Vince’s name to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, Tennessee 38105 (stjude.org) or to the American Cancer Society, P.O. Box 22478, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (donate.cancer.org).
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