YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Vol. 21, No. 20
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Liberty Lions receive state championship football rings
May 17, 2019
Bring On The Cherries
by Kyle Szymanski Staff Writer
As the Liberty High School football team gathered at Harvest Park Bowl last week, many members couldn’t help but look down for long periods of time. It was for good reason. Their eyes were fixated on the sparkling new state championship rings gracing their fingers. The Lions, 2018 California Interscholastic Federation Division 1A state champions, picked up their commemorative jewelry last week — five months after winning the team’s first state title in its 116-year history. “I’m amazed,” said senior Reese Watkins-Nelson moments after receiving his ring. “I saw the size of it and was like ‘Oh, my see Rings page 30
East County’s popular cherry season is officially underway. See where to pick and buy. Page 4
Heading To The Fair
Photo by Tony Kukulich
Reese Watkins-Nelson, Isaiah Dortch and Ethan Slaughter show off their championship rings Harvest Park Bowl in Brentwood, Saturday, May 11.
District’s first fire marshal sworn in by Tony Kukulich Staff Writer
When Steve Aubert was sworn in as the East Contra Costa Fire Protection District (ECCFPD) fire marshal during a recent fire board meeting, he became the first person in the district’s 17-year history to hold that spot. “I think it’s a wonderful opportunity,” said Aubert. “I love our area out here. I consider it a fantastic opportunity, really, to come home. Like I said the other night, it’s very easy to do my job when I’m doing it to protect family, friends and neighbors that I’ve been living with for the last 17 years.” While Aubert is new to his ECCFPD role, he is no stranger
Photo by Tony Kukulich
The Aubert family – Alyssa, Jana, Steve and Morganne – pose after Steve was sworn in as the fire marshal/public information officer of the East Contra Costa Fire Protection District during a ceremony at city hall in Brentwood, Wednesday, May 8. to the area. A longtime resident of Brentwood, he spent 10 of his last 11 years as the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District
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(ConFire) fire inspector, assigned to cover East County. “His institutional knowledge is second to none when it comes
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down to fire prevention, investigations and also inspections within our jurisdiction — our community,” said ECCFPD Fire Chief Brian Helmick. “I can say as a fire chief that our organization became a whole lot smarter last Wednesday.” ConFire has performed inspection duties for the district since ECCFPD’s inception in 2002. After the 2016 Ghost Ship fire in Oakland, ConFire put added emphasis on inspections within their district, and they opted to not renew the contract with ECCFPD. The contract expired in late 2018, and the obligation reverted to ECCFPD. With that change, Chief Helmick and the fire board began their search for a fire marshal. Inspec-
The Contra Costa County Fair in Antioch is here and runs through Sunday. Page 11
Sports Stars Making Tracks
BVAL track and field stars advance to Meet of Champions. Page 19
see Fire Marshal page 30
Calendar................................31 Classifieds.............................25 Cop Logs................................29 Entertainment.....................11 Food........................................10 Health & Beauty....................6 Milestones............................12 Opinion..................................18 Pets.........................................14 Sports.....................................19
Vasco Delays
Kirker Pass Work
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Look for roadwork on Vasco Road from May 28 - 30 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.
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Public Works will soon begin construction on the Kirker Pass Road.