VILLAGE CAMERON PARK
life
™
SERVING THE COMMUNITIES OF EL DORADO HILLS AND CAMERON PARK
VOL. 29 ■ ISSUE NO. 1
JANUARY 5, 2022
NEW BIKES & BIG SMILES ■
Local kids get sweet, new rides
Thomas Frey Staff writer
O
n Christmas Eve Raiden Iverson soared down the ramp at Bayside Church of Placerville on his new bicycle. The 9-year-old Grizzly Flat youngster was there to pick out his new ride and he had a hard time finding the one he wanted. He initially wanted a green bike, but a red one with racing stripes that volunteer Mark Ryan helped him pick out put a gleam in his eyes. Raiden’s smile stretched from ear to ear. The bikes came from Folsom Prison, where inmates restored them to be like new before they were picked up by Joe Ryan and other Cameron Park Rotary Club volunteers. Rotarians also donated helmets to everyone receiving a bicycle. Ryan worked with Bayside Church of Placerville Pastor Al Soto to make the church a bicycle pick-up spot for people in need and some from the Grizzly Flat, which was ravaged by the Caldor Fire this summer. Volunteers Richard Ryan and Zach Horne were also on hand to help kids find their dream bikes. Horne, a student at Providence Christian School, wasn’t paid in money, but in satisfaction. “Seeing the smile on his face was amazing,” Horne shared. And bike recipients didn’t need a nudge from their parents to remember to say thank you. They said it with so much joy it was obvious just how grateful they were. El Dorado County District 2 Supervisor George Turnboo was at the church in support. “People lost everything. A lot of people were misplaced,” Turnboo said, adding that the support shown to Grizzly Flat residents “brings joy to my heart. It really does.”
Village Life photo by Thomas Frey
Raiden Iverson, 9, of Grizzly Flat, smiles while trying on his new helmet he said “fit perfect” as he prepares to ride his new bike provided by the Cameron Park Rotary and Joe Ryan, left. Mark Ryan, holding the bike, and Richard Ryan helped Raiden pick out one from the many bikes the Rotary recently gave to Caldor Fire victims Dec. 24 at Bayside Church of Placerville. Pastor Al Soto said the church has given close to $100,000 worth of supplies and checks to families in need.
Robot security soon to New GM takes the reins roam Community Park AT THE CPCSD
Jana Rossi Staff writer
New Cameron Park Community Services General Manager André Pichly has worked in the parks and recreation field for nearly 32 years. His illustrious career includes 20 years as West Sacramento’s recreation superintendent before he headed to Tracy, where he served as the Parks and Community Services director. But it was Sacramento that Pichly called home even as his other employment stints took him farther away, including Auburn and St. Helena. “I loved St. Helena,” Pichly shared, but added he missed being home after spending three days a week in the Napa Valley. Fate intervened when the Southern Californiabased company that his wife Alene worked
Sel Richard Staff writer
ANDRÉ PICHLY remotely for offered her a job in Cameron Park around the same time the position for the Cameron Park CSD general manager position became available. Late last year
Pichly got the job and the couple decided to make the leap, moving up the hill to Placerville. They are now able to ■
It may not be R2-D2, but El Dorado Hills Community Park patrons will soon encounter a security robot patrolling the grounds. What’s more, instead of beeps and whistles, it speaks English. El Dorado Hills Community Services District General Manager Kevin Loewen explained at the December EDHCSD Board of Directors meeting that CSD staff had expressed a decline in a general feeling of safety. Although he assured that video presence at Community Park is substantial and recently updated, robot security would be an enhancement to the existing cameras. “This is something that would roam around, branded to the CSD.” Weighing in at 398 pounds and more than 5 feet tall, the Knightscope autonomous security robot has a durable, tamper resistant design, is all-weather functioning and sports a strobe light, call button, performance analytics and post-incident investigation data, route scheduler and a command center man-
See PICHLY, page A6
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See ROBOT, page A4
Courtesy photo
A friendly robot will patrol EDH Community Park, providing additional security.
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