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YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Vol. 11, No. 49
Delta 2000 offers holiday help by Justin Lafferty
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December 9, 2011
Gifting tips from A to Z
Staff Writer When Susie Dove saw the look on the kids’ faces, she knew all the effort has been worth it: The search for the Christmas tree. The search for the stand. The search for any kind of decoration. Dove, executive director of the local nonprofit hub Delta 2000, had scurried all over Contra Costa County to help an East County family displaced in a hotel after a case of child sexual abuse. The family had plenty to worry about, including how this holiday season could be a cause for cheer. But when Dove arrived at the hotel room with the tree, sadness disappeared from the children’s eyes. “They were so excited when I walked down the hallway with that Christmas tree,” Dove said. “Even if they were in a hotel room and got no Christmas gifts, they were going to be able to decorate a Christmas tree, and that was just awesome.” From that moment roughly 16 years ago, Delta 2000’s Christmas program was born. Every year, special-needs families from all over East County apply by November to receive gifts for their children. When available, families also re-
Delta 2000, a local nonprofit hub, collects teddy bears throughout the year to give to children and seniors.
Photo courtesy of Susie Dove
ceive a Christmas tree, but there aren’t many to go around. Dove often takes a personal, hands-on approach, dropping off toy donations as late as Christmas Eve. Delta 2000 helps families that have fallen through the cracks and aren’t getting the help they need from federal or state sources. If Delta 2000 can’t help, someone from the organization
is more than happy to point those families in the right direction. “We work closely with all the different programs and agencies,” Dove said. “We try to meet everybody’s needs.” The hub partnered with Sutter Delta Medical Center a few years ago, and the hospital spon-
Our Holiday Gift Guide dials you in to ideas for perfect presents – and local shops that sell them. Page 1B
Visions in the fog Two colors of the holiday season match the colors of our winter landscape. Page 8A
Outlaws on the loose
see Help page 26A
Rooftop standoff ends quietly by Rick Lemyre Staff Writer
Photo by Richard Wisdom
Capt. Dominic Ciotola of Contra Costa Fire coaxes a man who had been perched on the Brentwood community center building for three hours to cross the last few feet to the ladder down.
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A man perched on the roof of Brentwood’s new community center building was safely taken into custody after a three-hour standoff with police and firefighters Tuesday night. Police did not release the name of the 20-year-old, who stood mostly silent after climbing onto the pitched roof at about 5 p.m. “He climbed up there and started shooting off a fire extinguisher,” said Brentwood Police Sgt. Mark Misquez. “He didn’t make any demands, and wouldn’t speak to us.” Police Chief Mark Evenson said officers had also encountered
Key caregiver
go to news/WebExtras! Antioch’s Kaiser Permanente has been named one of the nation’s top hospitals.
the man, whose last known address was in San Francisco, while responding to another call unrelated to him a few minutes before he climbed onto the roof. “He was contacted and seemed to be acting a little odd, but nothing to alarm the officer,” Evenson said. “He told the officers he was about to get on a bus back to San Francisco. They took his name and left.” Misquez said a call was received a few minutes later from a construction worker who had challenged the man’s presence on the community center construction site across the street. The man ran away and out onto the roof and see Standoff page 26A
The nation’s most dynamic sprint car drivers return to tear up the Antioch Speedway next year. Page 25A Calendar ............................ 19B Classifieds ......................... 13B Cop Logs ............................ 18B Entertainment .................11A Food .................................... 10B Holiday Gift Guide............ 1B Milestones ........................ 17B Opinion ..............................18A Outdoors ............................. 8A Sports .................................19A FOR MOVIE TIMES SEE PAGE 5A
Wizards of wealth Brilliant boughs go to news/press releases
A conference held in Atlanta attracted the nation’s premier financial advisors.
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Oakley’s festive Christmas tree blazed with light at the annual celebration.