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Deliberations on accused of shooting | Page B1
Weather: 80o/48o | Volume 01 | Issue 25
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Real Estate: Property Guide| Page C5
Thursday, Nov. 21 - Nov. 27, 2019
B POLITICS
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NOTICIAS EN ESPAÑOL! | Pág. E 1
www.HSJChronicle.com |
D THE 7 ARTS
C VALLEY BEAT
HEMET CITY COUNCIL Maintaining while moving forward
STRAIT ON Thanksgiving around the World
Historic Hemet Theatre Tribute Mania: Styx Closes
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OL' GLORY STILL WAVES
The star-spangled banner still wave
POLITICAL INTERVIEW
With a month to go... our mayor speaks out
Good Neighbor donates much-needed flag to American Village An honest,
open discussion with Mayor Bonnie Wright
MARK LENTINE | EDITOR
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eighbors had been complaining for years. With each passing summer the hallowed flag at American Village Mobile Home Park became more and more faded, and with each passing winter it became more and more tattered. No one would help. What's worse is that those who wanted to help couldn't risk climbing up the flag-pole to hang a beautiful new version of "Ol' Glory." And no one could find a decent replacement. No one except Joyce Newsom that is. Joyce Newsom is a woman who loves our flag...and our police and firefighting personnel as well. Ms. Newsom proved her patri-
MARK LENTINE | EDITOR
T "THE OLD "OL' GLORY.": Does that star-spangled banner yet wave? Yes it does. | Photo courtesy of Hemet Eye News otism by donating the flag to American Village. "Fred Zerkle is the one who has been pushing this for so long," said Ms. Newsom,
SAN JACINTO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
A school district that's winning Megan Cope Elementary Unveiling New School Community Little Library
PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID HEMET, CA PERMIT NO. 69 92543-9998
See SJUSD on page A2
COMMUNITY BRIEFS
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JUSD's Megan Cope Elementary will unveil a new ‘little free library” for their school community on Friday, November 15, at an 8:45 a.m. at Pep Assembly. “We heard about the ‘Little Free Library’ program, and knew at once that we needed to have one!” explained Principal Tye Allenbrand. “It features a cute
little outdoor wooden box for a ‘take a book, return a book’ free book exchange,” he noted. Little Free Library is a registered nonprofit organization committed to fostering neighborhood book exchanges and promoting the love of reading, creativity and building community. Megan Cope Elementary School’s little library will be
MOMENTS IN TIME
SJUSD | CONTRIBUTED
adding, "I'm just proud to be able to help." Fred Zerkle, Purple Heart recipient, couldn't have been more pleased.
"It's just...beautiful." Mr. Zerkle was flanked by his friend and fellow veteran
See FLAG on page A2
STRAIT ON - COLUMN
A funeral home that's more than a funeral home EDITOR’S NOTE: Even in a small town, there's no shortage of interesting news articles, but sometimes...we need a news item in a pinch. I'd like to take a second to say that the following story was written-up in style and so quickly that it'd make your head spin. Who wrote it? No...it wasn't some fresh-faced kid who needed a byline: we turned to the most trusted, seasoned voice we are honored to have on our newspaper: Rusty Strait came through as he has all his life. Enjoy this wonderful piece written on the fly and from the heart, by our own inimitable, Ray "Rusty" Strait. RUSTY STRAIT | SENIOR WRITER
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ick and Charlotte Jones, owners of Miller-Jones Funeral Home are hosting an Ice Cream Social for the benefit of
THE WESTERN SCIENCE CENTER
Monthly Science Lectures – featuring some of the most respected names in science, this monthly lecture series covers topics such as paleontology, anthropology, anatomy and more. Held the 3rd Thursday of the month at 6:00 PM, subject to change. Nov. 21, 2019. Members Book Club: Mask of the Sun - For December we’ll be discussing Mask of the Sun: The Science, History and Forgotten Lore of Eclipses by John Dvorak. Book Club begins at 5:30 PM in the museum conference room located in the museum office; light refreshments will be served. Thursday, December 5, 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM. Western Science Center, 2345 Searl Parkway.
CHARLOT GYMNASTICS
Extra Practice Session - For children 6 years old
On Nov. 21, 1986
National Security Council staff member Oliver North and his secretary, Fawn Hall, begin shredding documents that would have exposed their part in a range of illegal activities. When North was fired, Hall continued to sneak documents to him by stuffing them in her skirt and boots.
On Nov. 22, 1718
Edward Teach, also known as Blackbeard, is killed off North Carolina's Outer Banks during a battle with a British navy force. In 1717, Teach took over a captured French merchantman from a retired pirate, increased its armament to 40 guns and renamed it the Queen Anne's Revenge.
Veterans and their families at American Legion Post 53. The event will be taking place on Wednes-
See FUNERAL on page A2
he Hemet San Jacinto Chronicle sat down this afternoon with Mayor Bonnie Wright and discussed several issues: among them was the California Bureau of Audit assessment of Hemet and an article in Business Insider Magazine which, to put it mildly, did not put Hemet in the best light. “First of all...What is the criteria used to place cities on this Business Insider list of the country’s “most miserable" cities? There are a million ways you can assess any town or anything for that matter. The problem with studies like this is that no one takes the time to find out what criteria is used.” Here is the criteria used: https://docs. google.com/spreadsheets/d/ 1j1L19LB3T3uldlkW8OsJ_ JyFq-f8yPBYWXLj752hBHA/edit#gid=1188779382. In this, our Mayor is right on target. First off, the study gave an unexplained 40% weight to population change. Why is it weighted at 40%? The study doesn’t say. What does this population change mean? The study doesn’t say. What’s the demographic of the population change? The article answers none of those questions. By the way, and for whatever it’s worth, which no one can tell from the study, the demographic change was pegged at 8.50% from 2010 to 2018 (http:// worldpopulationreview.com/ us-cities/hemet-ca-population/). From the year 2000 to the year 2018, our population
up to 18 years old and is open to the public. The kids have full access to the gym and the equipment. Coaches will be on the floor to make sure they are using the equipment safely, but it is not a normal structured gymnastics class. November 22, 29, 2019 from 7pm to 9pm. Pop N Play - Open to the public for children 5 and under every Wednesday. The kids have full access to the gym in a safe and fun environment. A coach will be on the floor to make sure the kids are using the equipment safely and for younger kids, the parents can go out on the floor with them. November 27, 2019, 10:15 AM - 11:15 AM. 1102 S. State St. Suite 5, San Jacinto, CA. More info: (951) 487-1200. http://charlotgym.com
HEMET CITY COUNCIL MEETING
Scheduled meetings Second & Fourth Tuesday of Each Month. November 26, 2019. 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM.
On Nov. 23, 1936
The first issue of the magazine Life is published. When the original Life folded during the Great Depression, publisher Henry Luce bought the name and relaunched the magazine as a picture-based periodical.
On Nov. 24, 1947
The House of Representatives votes 346 to 17 to hold 10 Hollywood writers, directors and producers in contempt for refusing to cooperate at hearings dealing with communism in the movie industry. It marked the start of a "blacklist" of names of Hollywood personalities suspected of having communist ties.
On Nov. 25, 1963
Three days after his assassination in Dallas, President John F. Kennedy is laid to rest with full
BONNIE WRIGHT| Mark Lentine grew from 58,812 to 85,275: not only does the article not mention this, but it gives no idea as to what the population increase may even mean to the city. The article also gives a 10% weight to those working in the civilian labor force. Why only 10% ? What’s the median for a city our size? Again, the study is mute. BI’s study gives 10% weight to Median Household Income, 15% weight to median commute time, 10% weight to the percentage of people in poverty and 15% of the weight of the study goes to those without health insurance. This is the sum total of the study’s criteria. Again, one must ask, “Why are these criteria used? No one knows, because the study doesn’t cite its reasoning. Weather? Beautiful mountain scenery? Emergency personnel response times? Police response times? Response times for firefighters? Overall quality of life, as measured by the citizens actually living here? None of these issues were addressed. Using our “Question of the week,” we asked our citizens what they thought of the BI article, and, on urging from the mayor, we also asked the question, “Are you better off than you were a year ago?,” the following week. While there were some understandably dour comments, the overwhelming tone of the
See WRIGHT on page B3
Hemet City Council Chambers 450 E. Latham. http:// www.cityofhemet.org
FEYROUZ BELLY DANCE
Come take a Bellydance class with award Winning performer Feyrouz, Nikkal! Classes are drop in or monthly! Contact Feyrouz for more information! 909-908-0927. Cost: $10 drop-in or $30 a month for 4 classes. Wednesday, November 27 from 7:00 PM 8:00 PM. Valley-Wide Recreation & Park District, 901 West Esplanade Avenue, San Jacinto.
PAINTOLOGY
Paint & Sip: Villa - $23 ONLINE $27 AT THE DOOR. Age: 21+ ONLY Must bring your own snacks/
See COMMUNITY BRIEFS on page A7 military honors at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. Kennedy was shot to death while riding in an open-car motorcade. He was 46.
On Nov. 26, 1942
"Casablanca," a World War II-era romantic drama starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman, premieres in New York City. The Oscar-winning film featured a number of now-iconic quotes, including "Here's looking at you, kid."
On Nov. 27, 1703
An unusual storm system finally dissipates over England after wreaking havoc for nearly two weeks. Featuring hurricane-force winds, the storm killed between 10,000 and 30,000 people. Hundreds of Royal Navy ships and their crews were lost to the storm.
“Experienced dentist, friendly staff”
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On C8