The Orange County Tribune Nov. 2, 2022

It’s Finally All Up to You, Voters of OC

By Jim Tortolano/Orange County Tribune

Many votes have already been cast, with thousands more ballots still to flow in across Orange County to polling places and from mailboxes and drop boxes for the general elec tion of Nov. 8.

This election may not carry as much of the drama as usually occurs when a president is elect ed, but there’s still a lot at stake in what goes into and out of the Registar of Voters in Santa Ana. One of the most significant issues before vot ers is Measure Y, which would extend the onecent sales if approved by voters in Westmin ster in 2016.

Without a renewal of the levy, financial ex perts say, the City of Westminster would soon exhaust all its reserves and require drastic cuts in municipal service or – potentially – tumble into bankruptcy.

In Huntington Beach, several ballot measures will go before voters, primarily city charter

Higher densities bring protests

By Huw Pickering Orange County Tribune

A proposal to rezone an affluent area of Hunting ton Beach for high-den sity housing has met with harsh criticism from resi dents of Edwards Hill and Seacliff, who feel such a construction would impair the quality of the area.

That issue dominated much of the public com

ments portion of Tuesday night’s meeting of the city council.

Like nearly all cities in California, Huntington Beach must meet the re quirements of the Re gional Housing Needs As sessment, part of the state housing law that has de termined the need to build

1.3 million new housing units between 2021 and 2029. In order to be in line with the RHNA, the Huntington Beach City Council must zone for an additional 13,368 units in the city.

The Brindle/Thomas property, located north of Seacliff, lies at the edge of the wealthy equestrian community

Wednesday: 67/49 mostly sunny Thursday: 65/48 mostly sunny Friday: 68/51 mostly sunny

Bird says: please put candle out!

It could have been a trag ic Halloween for a Santa Ana family, and especial ly for their pet bird.

The Orange County Fire Authority received a call for a fire in an apartment in the 200 block of N. Ol ive Street at 2:28 p.m. on Monday.

Upon arrival, firefighter paramedic crews were in formed by residents that all the occupants were out safely … except for their bird.

Employing a rapid attack, the OCFA crew was able to extinguish the fire and prevent its spread to ad jacent units. The bird was

n GARDEN GROVE SCHOOL BOARD

costs

By Jim Tortolano Orange County Tribune

An increase of nearly 30 percent in what the district will pay for fresh produce for food services was approved by the Gar den Grove Unified School District Board of Edu cation at ts meeting on Tuesday.

The board voted to ac cept a 29.77 percent increase to Gold Star Foods, effective today (Tuesday). Students will

Some people just aren’t that frightening, even on Hal loween. Robbie Furman of Happiness is a Balloon on Main Street in Garden Grove tried to put on his best frightening face but he’s just too nice a guy to be con vincing (Orange County Tribune photo).

2022 general election primer

amendments. The key measures are:

• Measure 2: Requiring city clerks and treasurers to meet minimum qualifications at the time of filing candidacy; re quiring at least four votes to fill council vacancies and limit appointees to serve only until the next municipal election; no longer require the city attorney be a graduate of a law school accredited by the American Bar Association;

• Measure 3: Would define the attorney-client relationship be tween the city attorney and the city so that all legal matters are controlled by the council;

• Measure O: In favor of enact ing a tax upon cannabis busi nesses in the city. A similar mea sure was narrowly rejected by voters in June.

In the arenas contested by of fice-seekers and office-holders, some change and some continu ity are likely. The sitting mayors of Garden Grove and Stanton –Steve Jones and David Shawver – are running unopposed.

Westminster Mayor Tri Ta, a Republican, is seeking the 70th District Assembly seat against Democrat Diedre Thu-Ha Nguy en, now a member of the Garden Grove City Council.

In the June 2022 primary, Nguyen polled 39.7 percent of the vote, while Ta drew 21.2 per cent in a field of six candidates.

In Huntington Beach, the may or is not directly elected by the public, but chosen among mem bers of the council.

The 36th State Senate District seat is hotly contested between

Republican Janet Nguyen, a member of the state Assembly, and Democrat Kim Carr, a mem ber of the Huntington Beach City Council and former mayor.

At the Congressional level, the 45th District race between Re publican Michelle Steel (who now holds the 48th District seat) of Seal Beach and Democrat Jay Chen of Hacienda Heights is fierce and attracting national attention as the GOP seeks to recover control of the House of Representatives.

The seat is now held by Katie Porter who was redistricted into the 47th District after the 2020 Census.

GGUSD board

Continued from page 1

not be affected as meals are pro vided to them at no cost.

Lan Nguyen, vice president of the board, said, “This is really going to affect our budget” and asked if there was some way to avoid paying such a big leap in costs.

He was told that the bid ap proved by the board in July had a “price escalation clause,” and that – as a distributor rather than a producer of food – Gold Star passed on increases in costs tied to worldwide disruption of sup ply chains and rising freight charges.

Despite the increases, this was therefore still the “most cost-ef fective way” to buy the produce.

Also Tuesday night the board recognized the district’s employ ees of the Month for November.

JIm Tortolano Editor and Publisher Marilyn Lewis Tortolano General Manager

The Orange County Tribune is published on Wednesdays and Saturdays with some exceptions. Address is 9402 Luders Ave., Garden Grove, 92844.

E-mail is orangecountytribune@gmail. com. Website is: www.orangecountytribune.com.

Phone: (714) 458-1860.

Established Aug. 6, 2016. All opinions ex pressed in The Tribune, unless otherwise stated, are those of the individual writer or artist and not necessarily those of The Tribune.

A member of The Associated Press, and Garden Grove Chamber of Commerce.

The classified employee is Cris Markleroad, a gardener who works at Eisenhower Elemen tary School and the certificated choice was Cathy Choi-Kim, a teacher at Lawrence Elementary School.

Candle fire blaze

Continued from page 1

found and safely removed. The family of five were assisted by the Red Cross.

And what caused this blaze? An unattended Halloween candle, according to investigators, who caution against ever leaving any open flame unattended.

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Editorial

Measure Y: vote yes to save city of Westminster

Nobody likes paying taxes, but as Thomas Jefferson said, they are the price we pay for civilization.

If you want police protection, fire and paramedic services and parks, you have to contribute with your property and other taxes. And just like what you pay for gasoline and food, the prices tend to go up over time.

On Nov. 8, voters in Westminster will decide the fate of Measure Y. It’s not a tax increase, but instead is the extension of Measure SS, a one-cent levy passed by voters in 2016 with a six-year sunset clause.

The original measure kept the city from tumbling into bankruptcy. Westminster has one of the lowest property tax rates in California, and the only way to balance the municipal books is through a sales and transaction tax.

Frankly, the city council has been playing politics with this issue. Without the revenue from that tax, there has to be severe cuts in public safety and other services necessary to a modern city.

The fact that the council agreed to put the ballot before voters at the very last moment will neverthe less cost Westminster millions of dollars because of the gap between the end of the original measure and the tax accrual date of the “new” one.

The new tax levy will provide financial stability as it would remain in place until March 31, 2043, unless ended before then by voters.

For anyone interested in good government and a better Westminster, this is a no-brainer. The Orange County Tribune recommends you vote “yes” on Measure Y. If it fails, there’s a terribly big chance so will Westminster.

A new means to battle problems with bullying

Garden Grove Uni fied School District has launched an anonymous reporting platform pow ered by Stopit Solutions, a leading technology for improving student safety and mental wellness on school campuses.

The new platform was announced to parents during a “Parenting in the Digital World Workshop” held at Santiago High School recently and all

families received a dis trict message with infor mation about how to use the new platform.

October was National Bullying and Cyberbul lying Prevention Month. STOPit will be a tool for GGUSD students and families to report bul lying, cyberbullying, or any inappropriate or un safe behaviors including discrimination, threats of violence, alcohol or drug

GGUSD beats county, state test avg.

Garden Grove Unified School District has out performed the state and county average on 2022 state standardized test scores for students who met or exceeded stan dards in both English Language Arts and Math.

Last week, the California Department of Education released statewide results

which show GGUSD ranks No. 5 in California for public school districts of 35,000 or more stu dents.

Last spring, GGUSD students in third through eighth grade and eleventh grade participated in the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress tests in ELA

and Math following a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. In English Language Arts, 59% of students met or exceeded standards compared to 57% in Orange County and 47% statewide.

In Math, 46% of stu dents met or exceeded standards compared to 45% in Orange County

and 33% statewide.

GGUSD has consis tently outperformed the state since the first year the SBAC was adminis tered in 2014-2015. This marks the fourth year that GGUSD has out performed the Orange County average in both ELA and Math.

use, and mental health struggles.

“Our goal with STOPit is to empower students to play an active role in creating safe, kinder school communities both online and off,” said Board of Education President Bob Harden who attended the event at Santiago High School along with Board Vice President Lan Nguyen, Trustee Teri Rocco, Su perintendent Dr. Gabrie la Mafi and other district administrators. T

The event also fea tured a Mental Health Resource Fair and repre sentatives from STOPit Solutions were on hand to speak with families about the platform.

Students or family mem bers can make a tip via phone hotline, website or mobile app. STOPit’s incident response center monitors and reviews

A NEW WAY TO COPE WITH THE PROBLEM OF BULLYING

The Garden Grove Unified School District has a new program that will allow for anonymous reporting of bullying, harassment and intimidation in school settings

Anonymous reporting

Continued from page 3

submissions and school admin istrators receive and act on the reported issues before they es calate. STOPit is 100% anony mous and allows users to submit photo or video evidence.

It also provides students with direct app integration with Cri sis Text Line which offers im mediate access to trained and certified mental health counsel ors.

Over the last several years, GGUSD has increased its school-based mental health pro fessionals, and increased initia tives around student wellness.

Schools have focused efforts around creating a safe and wel coming environment for all stu dents with many schools par ticipating in the No Place for Hate program through a partner ship with the Anti-Defamation League.

All students in third through 12th grade will watch a train ing video in class to learn about

STOPit and the importance of being an upstander to issues like bullying.

“We want students to know we care and this is one more tool in our tool box to help any students who are struggling to ask for help,” said Trustee Teri Rocco.

Additional information about STOPit can be found on the dis trict’s website at https://www. ggusd.us/stopit

GGUSD tops state, county

Continued from page 3

“GGUSD schools have amaz ing teachers and instructional programs that support student growth and consistently lead to superior levels of academic success,” said Lan Nguyen, board of education vice presi dent.

“We have been steadfast in our work to provide targeted academic and social-emotional

supports to address the chal lenges to students brought on by the pandemic. Our scores are reflection of the outstanding commitment to academic excel lence by both our students and staff.”

The GGUSD is a K-12 sys tem that serves most of Garden Grove and portions of Anaheim, Cypress, Fountain Valley, Santa Ana, Stanton and Westminster.

Huntington Beach city council meeting

Continued from page 1

of Edwards Hill. The city has deemed that Brindle/Thomas fits the criteria for rezoning.

The issue is that some of those living at the edge of the prop erty are concerned about what could result from high-density housing at 33 units per acre. They have made these concerns known since the proposal was first offered on Oct. 11.

Some fear a rise in crime; some fear traffic congestion from so many cars, as well as higher risk of traffic accidents. Others wor ry that so many more students in the neighborhood will force the local schools to undergo realign ment of attendance boundaries.

The possible impact on educa tion in the area was the locus of discontent for many speakers at Tuesday’s meeting. Most speak

ers were parents of students at Seacliff Elementary, and their resistance to rezoning was shared by a council candfate

“I moved here from Los An geles County 23 years ago,” said Gracey Van Der Mark. “I thought it was the best place to raise my children, but if this decision is taken, Huntington Beach will not be for families anymore.”

Arts&Living Religious tourism in a polarized age

Branson, Missouri and people’s varied ideas of Americanism

By Bob Smietana Religion News Service

BRANSON, Mo. (RNS) – A night at the Dolly Parton Stam pede is a microcosm of life in these polarized United States. For nearly two hours, on a hot August night, a capacity crowd divided by North and South, Red and Blue, tried to outshout the other side, egged on by lead ers who referred to the other side by creative, G-rated terms of derision.

The tension ramped up as two teams of riders dressed as cow boys and pioneers of the Old West competed to show which side could ride fastest, dodging obstacles and the occasional ring of fire – then breaking into songs or corn-pone jokes, while the audience cheered and de voured Cornish hens, biscuits and corn on the cob by the truck load.

At the end of the night, out came the American flag for a parade with a Dolly Parton soundtrack, designed to remind everyone that no matter where they came from, they all bleed red, white and blue.

“There really is no North or South, no East or West – be cause we are the United States of America’’ said the show’s emcee, decked out in a starspangled outfit. “United under one flag.”

Then he asked the crowd, “Are you proud to be an American?” as Dolly Parton’s voice rose in “America the Beautiful.”

“America, America, God shed his grace on thee. And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea.”

Welcome to Branson, Mis souri, where the holy trinity of faith, flag and family reign supreme and where an inspira tional, God-and-country style of Christian nationalism serves as comfort food for the American soul. For more than a century, weary pilgrims have sought

spiritual renewal and rest from the troubles of modern life here in the heart of the Ozarks – hop ing to find a nostalgic vision of a beautiful America.

St. Louis tourists were first drawn to Branson as a refuge where they could hunt and fish in its pristine wilderness. The area became filled with spiritual meaning after the 1917 pub lication of “The Shepherd of the Hills,” a bestselling novel by Disciples of Christ minister Harold Bell Wright, a tale of ro mance and redemption set in the hills of the Ozarks.

The popularity of “Shepherd of the Hills” eventually inspired an outdoor dinner-theater ver sion of the story, which remains a popular tourist attraction in Branson, though the site of the show has been updated with zip lines and the mammoth Inspira tion Tower, the highest point in the city.

Wright was a proponent of a conservative version of the so cial gospel, where a person’s

loving actions on behalf of those in need matter more than their doctrine or prayers, said Aaron Ketchell, author of “Holy Hills of the Ozarks,” a history of reli gious tourism in Branson.

Wright’s dream of a nostalgic, nondenominational, inspiration al holy space remains part of the soul of Branson, said Ketchell. While the message is Christian, he said, it’s not doctrinaire or evangelistic. Instead, the mes sage is aspirational, focused on hope and love rather than con version.

“The place is really built on a subtle conveying of Christian messages,” he said.

David Ott and his wife, Carol, a retired couple from Minneapo lis, have visited – more than 60 times since 1980 – Silver Dol lar City, a theme park owned by Herschend Family Entertain ment, whose businesses include the Dolly Parton Stampede, and which operates – in a manner consistent with Christian values and ethics.”

“I could be a tour guide,’’ said David Ott while riding the tram back to the parking lot on a sun ny day in late August.

The Otts, who are Baptists, had just spent the day at a major Southern gospel music festival that takes over the park in late August. Ott said the family and faith-friendly atmosphere – and the music – keep them coming back.

“Everything there is a spiritu al-based atmosphere,” Ott said.

Ott said he and his wife of ten go to shows while visiting Branson. Among their favorites was the Andy Williams show at the Moon River Theater, which Williams opened in 1992 and where he performed until his death in 2012. They are also fans of the Sight and Sound Theater, where they’ve seen every show, including original productions about Moses, Noah and Jesus, as well as the Christ mas show.

Billboards for “Jesus” were ev

SPECIAL EFFECTS ARE PART OF THE ATTRACTION IN BRANSON SHOWS History and faith mingle in elaborate shows such as “Dolly Parton’s Stampede”

Many are seeking a nostalgic view of America

erywhere in Branson in late Au gust. The show, which debuted at the Sight and Sound Theater in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in 2018 and opened in Branson in March of 2021, has been seen by more than 4 million people.

Ott raved about a scene in the show, which ended its run in early October, depicting the Apostle Peter walking out on the water to meet Jesus.

“I don’t know how they do their special effects, but they are fantastic,” he said.

The theater’s original produc tions, based on biblical texts, feature singing, dancing, live animals, massive sets that move by remote-controlled robots, and dazzling special effects –the Branson theater boasts a 12ton LED video screen that cost more than a million dollars to install.

A more modest Branson attrac

tion can be found at the Free dom Encounter, which runs a patriotic-themed show called “Freedom Journey” three times a week in a theater built for ‘70s singer Tony Orlando, whose “Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree” hit has be come a Veteran’s Day anthem.

A genial former pastor and church musician, Darren Myers emcees the show, which weaves together faith-based quotes from the Founding Fathers, video interviews with modern immigrants and patriotic an thems. He’s also the founder of the Freedom Encounter – a non profit that plans to transform the theater into a faith-based museum, which will include a space for “Freedom Journey,” as well as interactive exhibits, a bookstore and a kids’ play area modeled after a colonial village. Myers left his church in 2015 to found an evangelistic min

istry devoted to traveling the country and “spreading the truth of God’s word and the truth of our country’s founding,” to help save the country from “a spiritu al crisis,” according to the pro motional video for the ministry.

After several years of perform ing the “Freedom Journey” show during the week of Vet eran’s Day in Branson, Myers decided to found the museum.

“My angle has always been, we’re in a spiritual war and we have the truth,’’ he told RNS during an interview at Freedom Encounter. “And we’ve got to tell the truth because the truth is what makes us free, and free dom isn’t going to happen, you know, separate from the truth.”

Myers said he’s not a Chris tian nationalist and doesn’t think the nation only belongs to Christians. But he does argue Christian ideas are essential to America.

Building an audience has been slow but steady work, Myers told RNS. Most audiences are small, but a few times the show has drawn as many as 200 peo ple.

“That’s pretty typical for a new Branson show,” he said. “We’re right on track.’’

While more hardcore Chris tian nationalism can be found in Branson, that message has its limits. Gary Emas, the 71-yearold owner of the Faith, Family and Freedom store on highway 76 in Branson, said that “They are all RINOS in Branson,” said Emas from the porch of his store, using a derisive nickname for Trump critics known as “Re publicans in Name Only.” His porch was lined with pro-Trump flags, with slogans like “Let’s Go, Brandon,” “Trump 2024,” and “Jesus Is My Savior, Trump Is My President.”

A former truck driver, Pente costal pastor, faith healer, alter native medicine advocate and former popcorn salesman, Emas said business has been tough since he started the store. Few tourists seem to be enthusias tic about stopping by the store, whose shelves are lined with flags and pro-MAGA messages. During an interview, Emas was dressed in a red, white and blue T-shirt that depicted the cross, a crown of thorns and the Ameri can flag gripped in Jesus’ hand.

Ruth Braunstein, associate professor of sociology at the University of Connecticut and director of the Meanings of Democracy Lab, said there has been a great deal of pushback on the criticism of Christian nation alism – the idea that America is at its core a nation for Christians – from more conservative Chris tians who believe in what they see as a more inclusive vision of America.

“There really is a much more sort of common and almost moderate seeming way of think ing about the United States that talks more broadly about some thing like Judeo-Christian val ues or the idea that, you know, why can’t we all just be, you know, good Americans and proud of the country and the flag,” Braunstein said.

“Ticket to Paradise” worth the trip?

High school football playoffs get started

Orange (8-2) in the only contest featuring two teams from The Tribune coverage area.

Here are the pairings for foot ball, as posted by the CIF-SS.

All games are scheduled for Fri ay at 7 p.m.

Division 1

• Lutheran/Orange (6-4) at Edi son (9-1)

Division 6

• Huntington Beach (5-5) at Orange (8-2)

Division 7

• Buena (5-5) at Western (8-1).

Division 9

• Moreno Valley (7-3) at Gar den Grove (9-1) Division 11

• Schurr (6-4) at Westminster (9-1) Division 12

• Rancho Alamitos (9-1) at Val

ley Christian/Cerritos (3-7) Division 13

• Arrowhead Christian (6-4) at Los Amigos (8-2) Division 14

• Duarte (5-5) at Bolsa Grande (5-5).

What the Rams need now

victory also realize nothing is decided yet.

about the likes of McCaffrey and Carolina edge rusher Brian Burns, but the one-sided nature of the Rams’ four defeats has given no indication this team is capable of contending with the NFL’s best.

“This is one of those deals where you have to be able to look at yourself in the mirror, get up and respond the right way,” coach Sean McVay said. “We’ve said that a handful of times this year, but I’m not afraid to continue to get up here, put everything that we have as players, as coaches, out there to try to be able to get the result that we want.”

Most of this ineptitude sits squarely on McVay and his of fense. Los Angeles got 163 of its paltry 223 yards Sunday on two drives in the first half, and every other drive was a different shade of awful.

McVay’s reputation as an of fensive mastermind hasn’t stood up to the challenges of having a subpar offensive line and a pro nounced lack of talent at run ning back and receiver.

All-Pro Cooper Kupp has been the sole effective skill-position player for Matthew Stafford, but they haven’t been able to carry this unimpressive roster.

The Rams have never been at .500 or worse this late in Mc Vay’s six seasons, yet the veter an players less than nine months removed from a Super Bowl

“The biggest thing is just keep ing everybody on the right track,” defensive tackle Greg Gaines said Monday. “This is a huge season, long season. We’ve only lost four games, and we can still turn things around.

“We still have plenty of time, plenty of games left. It’s just getting everybody to put that stuff behind us and keep mov ing forward. If we start winning from here on out, we can go to the Super Bowl again. We’ve still got plenty of time.”

TheSportsPage

Nine Locals Seek Grid Glory

Bolsa Grande is back in playoffs after 34 seasons

Nine area high school football teams will be in the first round of the CIFSS playoffs starting on Friday.

The most surprising of those is Bolsa Grande.

The Matadors (5-5) not only will be making their first playoff appearance in 34 years, they are seeded first in Division 14.

Last year, a Loara team that finished fourth in the Garden Grove League, went on to win a CIF-SS title. Could the Matadors, who tied for third in the GGL and won a coin flip to make the playoffs, make history repeat?

The Mats will host Du arte (5-5) at their home stadium.

The only other area team that’s seeded is Westmin ster (9-1), rated second in Division 11.

The most intriguing matchups of the opening round include the D-1 contest between Luther an High of Orange and Edison. The Chargers have a better record at 9-1, but the Lancers are an at-large team from the super-tough Trinity League.

In D-6, Huntington Beach (5-5) will visit

Continued

Rams cannot expect very much from trade

By Greg Beacham AP Sports Writer

LOS ANGELES (AP) –

The brightest side of the Los Angeles Rams’ lat est blowout loss is they don’t have to play the San Francisco 49ers again this season.

Almost everything else coming out of Los An geles’ 31-14 home defeat Sunday was pretty dark, and it all cast serious doubt on the Rams’ tal ent, offensive game-plan ning and overall fitness to defend their Super Bowl title.

The Rams were com prehensively outplayed on both sides of the ball by the 49ers, a .500 team that has recorded two of its four victories this sea

son against Los Angeles. Christian McCaffrey em barrassed the team that failed to get him in the trade market, while the running backs in horned helmets were just as inef fective as nearly every body else.

Not much about these

This Week in Area Football

• USC Trojans (7-1): Saturday hosts Califor nia (3-5).

• UCLA Bruins (7-1): Saturday at Arizona State (3-5)

• Los Angeles Rams (3-4): Sunday at Tampa BayBuccaneers (3-5).

• Los Angeles Char gers (4-2): Sunday at Atlanta Falcons (4-4).

Rams (3-4) suggests they’re a team that should be going all-in at the trade deadline this week to make yet another splashy acquisition for another run at championship con tention.

General manager Les Snead reportedly has been active in discussions

7

It was deep water for area boys’ polo teams

Hopes for a nice, long run through the CIF-SS boys’ water polo playoffs were sunk for most of the area teams in first round action on Tuesday.

Seven of nine teams from West Orange County went down to defeat.

Division 1

• Dana Hills 6, Edison 4

Division 3

• Glendora 15, Pacifica 10

• Fullerton 13, Marina 11

Division 5

• Saddleback 7, La Quinta 5

• Royal 17, Western 10

• Westminster 15, Ontario 10

• Dos Pueblos 16, Ocean View 7

• Corona 16, Los Amigos 13

Division 6 Wild Card

• Loara 14, San Gorgonio 0.

Westminster will play the winner of Ramona vs. Torrance/West in the second round on Thursday. Loara will play Tahquitz (13-5) on Thursday.

ARGO COACH RICARDO CEPEDA TALKS TO TEAM

Garden Grove High finished the regular season with a 9-1 mark and as champions of the Big 4 League. They’ll open CIF-SS playoff Division on Friday hosting 7-3 Moreno Valley (Orange County Tribune photo).

COACH SEAN McVAY (Rams photo).