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YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Vol. 11, No. 23
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June 10, 2011
July 4 parade returns to Rivertown by Justin Lafferty
Waging war on cancer
Staff Writer
Though it won’t feature fireworks, Antioch’s annual Fourth of July celebration returns to Rivertown after a year at the Somersville Towne Center. Walter Ruehlig, who wears many charitable hats, announced recently that the daytime parade would return to the downtown area, but that an evening fireworks display would be too costly. He hopes this year’s celebration – which will get rolling on America’s birthday at 10 a.m. at Second and E streets – will become a foundation on which to build. “I’ve had a ton of people call or e-mail me expressing their delight that Antioch is reviving the tradition of downtown parades after a sad year’s absence,” Ruehlig wrote in an email. “Antioch is a patriotic bastion that really knows how to throw an old-fashioned parade that is vintage small-town America. The ambience of Rivertown is just an added exclamation mark to a grand old party that in these tough times Antioch needs as morale booster.” Ruehlig estimates that organizers will need to raise roughly $2,870 for the parade to happen, most of that money to pay Antioch police officers for protection and defray costs associated with setup and takedown. Ruehlig is hoping to tap into the city’s spirit of volunteer-
REMEMBER This weekend’s Relay For Life event will inspire us to celebrate, remember and fight back. Page 1B
The arts celebrated Press file photo
A motorcycle rider proudly flies the red, white and blue in Rivertown at the Antioch Fourth of July parade in 2008. Antioch school board member Walter Ruehlig recently announced that the parade would return to the downtown area after one year at the Somersville Towne Center. ism to keep expenses low – and at no cost to the depleted Antioch budget. Major fireworks, a Fourth of July tradition, would cost about $1,000 per minute, according to Ruehlig. And while such a display might be feasible down the road, right
now, it’s not. Ruehlig, an Antioch Unified School District board member and one of the driving forces that brought the parade back to River-
The Antioch Historical Society Museum hosts an exhibit showcasing the finest of local artists. Page 3A
Blazing batons
see 4th of July page 17A
Oakley homicide suspect arrested by Ruth Roberts Staff Writer
Mourners left flowers and remembrances outside O’Hara School Park, where 21year-old James Didio was shot to death last weekend. A suspect was taken into custody this week in connection with the crime. Photo by Samie Hartley
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Two Deer Valley relay teams and an Antioch sprinter made East County proud at the state finals. Page 21A
A suspect has been arrested in connection with the weekend shooting death of a 21-year-old Oakley man. Dameon Zesati, 19, of Oakley, was booked into the Martinez Detention Center on charges of homicide and criminal gang activity related to the death of 21-year-old James Didio. Zesati’s bail has been set at $1.13 million. On Saturday, June 4 at around 4 a.m., Oakley police dispatch received the report of a shooting at the O’Hara Park
Calendar ............................ 15B Classifieds ......................... 10B Cop Logs ............................19A East County Life ................ 1B Food ...................................... 8B Health & Beauty ................ 6B Opinion ..............................18A Sports .................................21A
see Homicide page 17A
FOR MOVIE TIMES SEE PAGE 5A
Dangerous days go to news/press releases
Parents are urged to help reduce teen roadway fatalities this summer.
ravemotionpictures Brentwood 14 +
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Tassel time
go to multimedia/videos Caps soared and crowds cheered as grads strode off the stage and into the future.