YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Vol. 16, No. 34
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No election Lining up the big cats for new fire board
August 24, 2018
The Legend Of Murrieta
by Kyle Szymanski Staff Writer
When the elected East Contra Costa Fire Protection District Board takes over at the end of this year, the most notable change will be the number of board members, not the faces filling the seats. Only five candidates, four of whom already serve on the current appointed board, filed to fill the five-member governing body, alleviating the need for a November election. Newcomer Carrie Nash, a development director for the nonprofit White Pony Express, will join current appointed board members Brian Oftedal, Adam Langro, Stephen Smith and Joe Young on the elected board later this year. “I am not surprised (more residents didn’t seek board seats),” Smith said. “It is really easy to sit back and criticize elected officials, but few crit-
Local resident is making a movie about infamous bandit Joaquin Murrieta. Page 5
Sprucing Up School Sites Photo by JVB Photography
B
oaters throughout the Delta gathered at the Discovery Bay Marina last weekend for the 18th annual Big Cat Poker Run. One of the biggest events put on by the Discovery Bay Lions Club (DBLC), all proceeds from the event go back into the community. Glenn Hoffman, DBLC president, said a portion of this year’s poker run funds will go to the Wounded Warrior Project.
see Fire page 26
Measure B funds are adding a variety of improvements to Brentwood schools. Page 4
by Aly Brown
Liberty Takes Season Opener
Community rallies to keep program alive Romey Wingard (gray dress) and her Academic Talent Program (ATP) peers hand Byron Superintendent Dr. Debbie Gold a check for $4,250 from funds raised to help keep ATP afloat. In the face of budget cuts, the gifted student program faced elimination.
Staff Writer
In the wake of Byron Union School District’s (BUSD) budget cuts and financial distress, parents in the community are proving that where there’s a will, there’s a way. At a recent Aug. 16 board meeting, a group of bright-eyed students stood before the crowded room and handed BUSD Superintendent Dr. Debbie Gold a check for $4,250 to keep a program for highly advanced children, the Academic Talent Program (ATP), from facing its demise as the district tightens it belt. Each child present was an ATP student, and some shared their experiences from exciting lessons they wouldn’t have found in a conventional classroom. The force behind the fundraising effort was a Discovery Bay Elementary School parent and PTA secretary, Amanda Wingard, whose fifth-grade daughter Romey was enrolled last year. “With budget cuts, there was concern
Photo by Aly Brown
if there would be enough money to pay for (the program),” said Wingard. “When Rick Pierce (a Timber Point Elementary School parent) and I realized there was no money for this program, we started thinking outside the box and looking at what it meant to the kids.”
NOW HIRING
As the previous school year came to a close, Wingard and Pierce asked district officials if parents were allowed to self-fund the program, to which they were given the green light, and planning began.
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see Rallies page 26
West Nile Virus www.thepress.net/news/webextras
West Nile virus has been detected in horses in Sacramento, Kern and Placer counties.
Lions kick off football season with a bang, winning 35-10 against Vacaville. Page 17 Calendar................................27 Classifieds.............................21 Cop Logs................................25 Education ..............................4 Entertainment.......................9 Food..........................................8 Milestones............................12 Opinion..................................11 Pets...........................................6 Sports.....................................17
Delta Updates
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Assemblymember Frazier addresses state water contract postponements.