FROM YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER
Vol. 18, No. 52
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New police chief on the beat by Tony Kukulich
December 28, 2018
Principals Honored
Staff Writer
It’s not difficult to find police officers who love their jobs, but it might be a challenge to find a cop with more enthusiasm than Eric Christensen, Oakley’s new chief of police. Christensen brings to the table an infectious energy. “I had always wanted to be a police officer since I was in the fifth grade,” said Christensen. “I had a teacher in the fifth grade named Sam Swafford who was a reserve officer with the Fremont Police Department. He was just my idol. That was the person I wanted to be when I grew up.” After graduating high school, Christensen joined the Army and became a military police officer to determine if he was cut out for a career in law enforcement. He completed his three-year stint, went to college and earned a degree in criminal
Eric Christensen is Oakley’s new chief of police. He takes over for the retired Chris Thorsen.
justice before he started applying with different police agencies in the Bay Area. The Contra Costa County Office of the Sheriff hired Christensen in 1991 and his career got underway working
in the county’s jails. “I spent four years inside the jail,” said Christensen. “(I) had the time of my life there. A great place to study human behavior is the county jail. At that
“ The concept of this store
by Aly Brown Staff Writer
A store in Antioch celebrated its grand opening in the weeks before Christmas, but it was also set to become the stage for a public discussion on aiding homeless veterans in Contra Costa County. City officials, decorated veterans such as Dr. Doris I “Lucki” Allen, and those who launched New To You Vets Resale Store Inc. from idea to reality gathered on Dec. 12 to cut the ribbon. Dr. Louis Langston, a 79-yearold Vietnam veteran with a doctorate in humanities and the man behind New To You’s creation, presented Antioch Mayor Sean Wright with an initiative: the store’s mission statement centered around providing services and permanent housing for homeless veterans. Langston noted the city had a program in place intended to provide relief for veterans in emergencies but said his initiative digs deeper into the many issues facing those who serve
evolved because initially I had designed to have a space for veterans to come and have a space to share their stories.
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Dr. Louis Langston – one largely being homelessness. “We’re happy with the concept of what the mayor has, but we’re wanting to initiate permanent housing,” Langston explained, noting he hopes to discuss ways to weave local efforts together for the cause on a larger scale. As of press time, Langston said Wright had committed to attending a public discussion at New To You this month to expand on the current programs and further ways to help veterans.
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point, I worked on the intake module at the jail and literally got to see everybody who came to jail.” see Chief page 26
Prior to the store’s opening, Langston initially sought a location to gather with fellow veterans who needed community, along with the therapy of discussing their experiences. “The concept of this store evolved because initially I had designed to have a space for veterans to come and have a space to share their stories,” said Langston. “Believe it or not a lot of our families don’t even know about our experiences because we don’t want to burden them with that … coming back from Vietnam, it was a very sad day for us (vets); a lot of the time, people didn’t want to discuss it, and many years ago, people didn’t even want to listen (to our stories). We had to slip in and slide, and now veterans need a place to come in and share our experiences to help relieve some of our anxieties.” Knowing he would need to obtain funding to keep such a gathering center open, Langston pursued the concept of a nonprofit
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Photo by Tony Kukulich
Veterans store offers more than resale
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Brentwood Union School District administrators recognized by state association. Page 5
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see Veterans page 26
Super Salaries
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Board of supervisors creates an ad hoc committee to review the board’s compensation.
Check out The Press newspaper’s most popular online stories for 2018. Page 10
Heritage For The Win
Heritage boys’ varsity team wins the prestigious Lou Bronzan Invitational. Page 17 Calendar................................27 Classifieds.............................21 Cop Logs................................25 Education................................5 Entertainment.....................11 Food........................................10 Milestones............................12 Pets...........................................9 Sports.....................................17
Fire Safety
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PG&E announces enhanced wildfire prevention and safety efforts.