Vol 65 No. 47 Thursday, November 20, 2025

AS SHUTDOWN ENDS, FLIGHT DELAYS CONTINUE INTO HOLID AY SEASON

By Edward Henderson

BLACK MEDIA

CALIFORNIA

Marcus Hill, 39, is an Oakland resident and professional who travels often for work. During his last trip, he brought along his wife and daughter for the weekend, only to be met with the widespread disruptions created by shutdown-related staffing shortages.

“Man, that day at Oakland Airport was rough. We got there early because we knew flights were already backed up from the shutdown. But the whole terminal felt tense — long lines, people arguing with gate agents, kids crying, phones dying,” Hill explained.

See SHUTDOWN page 2

INSIDE

November 15th Officially Declared ‘American Legion Auxiliary Unit

From Data to Action

A BLUE WAVE… NOW WHAT?

Black voters delivered a “blue wave” during recent elections. Now Democrats must prove they can govern with solutions.

By ReShonda Tate HOUSTON DEFENDER

Democrats are celebrating. Republicans are regrouping. And Texas is buzzing after a political jolt few saw coming. The so-called blue wave that swept through the country didn’t just shift a few seats; it signaled something deeper — voters are paying attention again. But here’s the real question: Now what?

See BLUE WAVE page 2

Black women are an essential part of California’s progress — leading classrooms, businesses, and movements that keep our communities strong. Yet, as the 2025 State of Black Women in California Report makes clear, Black women continue to face barriers that limit opportunity and threaten wellbeing.

Last Wednesday, the California Black Women’s Collective Empowerment Institute released this year’s report — the most comprehensive look yet at how Black women are faring across the state. The findings reveal what many already know: that brilliance and resilience are not enough when the systems around us remain unequal.

See WOMEN page 2

By Megan Sayles THE AFRO

New York farmer David Haughton had hoped the end of the COVID-19 pandemic would bring relief from his revenue challenges. But just as he began to recover, new funding gaps under the 47th president’s administration brought hardship back to his farm.

In March 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that it would cancel the Local Food Purchase Assistance (LFPA) Cooperative Agreement Program, which had helped farmers like Haughton sell produce while supplying fresh food to communities in need.

See FARMER page 2

PHOTO: Masiyah/ Unsplash

VOICE & VIEWPOINT NEWSWIRE

New York farmer David Haughton is seeking donations after a fire destroyed his home

August 2025. PHOTO: Courtesy of David Haughton/ NNPA

ARTICLE CONTINUATION

(LAX), Oakland International (OAK), San Diego International (SAN), and San Francisco International (SFO)).

“We waited almost four hours while our flight kept getting pushed back. First it was ‘delayed due to staffing,’ then they said they didn’t have enough air traffic controllers cleared to handle the route,” he continued. “By the time they officially canceled it, folks were furious. Including me.”

Hill’s experience is similar to that of many travelers across California and nationwide as the aviation system struggles to recover from the shutdown’s staffing shortages and operational disruptions.

Most major airports in California have been impacted.

Although President Donald Trump signed a deal Nov. 12 ending the longest government shutdown in U.S. history (43 days), officials say travelers should still expect flight delays nationwide for the next week or possibly more.

On Nov. 7, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an emergency order to 40 airports to reduce flights by 6% because of the shortage of air traffic controllers caused by the shutdown.

Four of the 40 airports impacted by the order are in California (Los Angeles International

blue wave

Because winning an election is one thing, governing, gearing up for the next election, and keeping the people’s trust, is another. Harris County has historically been a blue area, but Texas is overall a red state. Now, after the results of the Nov. 4 election, many believe this is finally the time to turn the state.

What should make Texas Republicans especially nervous are the results from the northwest corner of Harris County, where a Democratic slate defeated Republicans in what was once their own suburban stronghold. Even a last-minute push from Gov. Greg Abbott couldn’t stop the party’s slide. If Abbott couldn’t help Republicans

Hundreds of domestic flights were canceled during the shutdown, throwing travelers into a scheduling panic. Had the shutdown continued, officials warned that cancellations could have expanded to affect up to 10% of all flights nationwide.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy last week tried to assure travelers that the staffing issues are improving and a return to normal flight schedules is not too far ahead. A Nov. 12 FAA press release states that air traffic controllers will receive 70% of their pay within 24 to 48 hours of the shutdown ending.

“The FAA safety team is encouraged to see our air traffic control staffing surge, and they feel comfortable with pausing the reduction schedule to give us time to review the airspace,” said Duffy. “The data is going to guide what we do because the safety of the American people comes first. If the FAA safety team determines the trend lines are moving in the right direction, we’ll put forward a path to resume normal operations.”

Representatives of the airline industry estimate that flights could return to normal within a week of the shutdown ending. However, there are key workarounds recommended to ensure your travel is as seamless as possible during

hold these three seats, it’s fair to ask how he plans to turn all of Harris County “dark red” in 2026 as he’s promised. The truth is, voters in this region are sending a message: extremism doesn’t play well in the suburbs anymore.

Whispers among Republicans are that they need to run candidates who can differentiate themselves from the MAGA wing that Houston voters clearly rejected because the same rhetoric that electrifies national rallies is falling flat with everyday Texans who just want safe neighborhoods, good schools, and affordable healthcare. Meanwhile, Democrats have found a model that works, and they’d be wise not to take it for granted. Their wins didn’t come from social media sound bites or last-minute door knocks. They came from strategy, organization, and persistence.

The report shows that Black women make up just 6.6% of California’s female population, yet remain overrepresented in poverty, housing instability, and health disparities. The report documents that Black women earn about 60 cents for every dollar paid to white men, and many spend half their income on housing or childcare. Black women are the backbone of California’s care economy — teaching, nursing, caregiv-

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what is estimated to be a heavy travel season in the coming months.

“I’m nervous about Thanksgiving,” said Hill. “We’re planning to fly from Oakland down to San Diego to see my wife’s family. Normally that’s an easy trip — an hour and some change in the air. But now I’m thinking about whether we’re walking right back into the same mess: delays, cancellations, overcrowded flights, or last-minute staffing issues. Even if the shutdown is over, the system doesn’t just bounce back overnight.”

Travel experts recommend booking early and prioritizing nonstop, morning flights to minimize disruptions during the FAA-mandated flight cuts. Nonstop routes reduce the chance of delays from missed connections, and early departures leave before staffing or aircraft shortages build up. Travelers in California may also want to consider secondary airports, when possible, since major hubs like LAX and SFO are expected to experience the heaviest schedule reductions.

Flexibility is also important this holiday season. Choosing tickets that allow free changes or refunds gives travelers room to adapt if flights are canceled or rescheduled. Some experts even suggest purchasing a refundable backup ticket on a different airline for important trips. Enabling realtime alerts through airline apps and flight-tracking services can also help travelers respond quickly when disruptions occur, increasing the odds of securing a timely rebooking.

They raised money early. They reached suburban voters where they live through “carpool canvassing,” a technique that lets neighbors talk to neighbors. They talked about education and affordability, not partisanship and power. And it worked. That’s a much-needed reminder that when a community mobilizes, a district can, in fact, be reclaimed, not for a party, but for progress.

But let’s not get too comfortable. A wave, after all, can lift us up or wash us away, depending on what we do next. If Democrats see these wins as a finish line instead of a starting point, they risk losing the momentum that made this moment possible. The real test is whether they can turn campaign promises into tangible change. Because the voters who turned out didn’t do it for symbolism, they did it for

ing — yet remain underpaid and under-promoted, the report shows.

These are not just statistics; they are lived experiences. They represent mothers choosing between rent and medication, young women carrying student debt they can’t repay because of pay inequity, and professionals still being “the only one in the room” despite decades of progress.

But the story does not end there — because Black women are also leading California’s path forward.

CABWC’s 2025 State of Black

FARMER

Continued from cover

Haughton’s major customers, like The Campaign Against Hunger and GrowNYC, were directly affected.

“Because of the cut, we actually lost 60 percent of our market,” said Haughton. “Some of them dropped out. Some of them we will have to wait a period of time to get money [from]. Some of them still owe me money.”

The LFPA program was created in 2021 under former President Joe Biden to help farmers cope with pandemic-related challenges. It provided funding to states to purchase produce from local farmers and then distribute it to food banks and other hunger-relief organizations. The program especially sought to support small and minority farmers, who often face greater obstacles than their counterparts.

When LFPA was terminated earlier this year, local organizations no longer had the funding to pay for Haughton’s produce, putting a serious strain on his cash flow. Suddenly, the 35-acre property he had cultivated since 1995—following the death of his son—was at risk.

“We almost lost our home and our property because we couldn’t

While some are celebrating the end of the shutdown, California lawmakers have also voiced frustration with the broader fallout of the Trump administration policies Democrats were pushing back against before ending their holdout. U.S. Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Los Angeles) said the end of the impasse still leaves families dealing with expensive, cascading consequences across daily life — including travel.

“While this is not the outcome we wanted, make no mistake: the fight is far from over. Americans now see more clearly than ever that every aspect of their life is more expensive under the Trump Administration,” she said in a recent statement.

For flights to resume as usual, the Transportation Department must ensure enough air traffic controllers are back to work to minimize staffing-related flight delays.

On Nov. 14, the FAA rolled back the required flight reduction to 3 % at the 40 airports, but the order remains in effect and has not yet been fully rescinded.

Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy and the FAA say the order will only be lifted once staffing and safety metrics are sufficiently stable. As of press time, officials had not provided a timeline for when normal operations would fully resume.

solutions. They’re tired of chaos. Tired of politicians chasing headlines instead of results. And they’ve made it clear: competence matters more than partisanship.

So, yes, celebrate the wave. But then roll up your sleeves. The work starts after the confetti falls.This election proved that Texas voters, particularly in diverse, rapidly growing areas like Harris County, want leadership that listens, not lectures. They’re not impressed by culture wars; they’re focused on the cost of living, schools that work, and leaders who show up yearround, not just at election time. If Democrats can remember that, they may turn this blue ripple into a lasting tide. If Republicans can’t adapt, they’ll keep getting swept away. Either way, voters have spoken.

Women in California Report reflects the realities Black women face and charts the path to what must change:

• Fair pay that closes the gap for working women and mothers.

• Affordable housing and childcare that allow families to thrive.

• Health equity that saves lives and prevents loss.

• Leadership pipelines that ensure representation matches contribution.

Check out the 2025 State of Black Women in California Report here: https://www.cablackwomenscollective.org/stateofblackwomensreport

make the mortgage payments,” said Haughton.

Because he is a small, Black farmer, securing a loan to help with his financial challenges proved difficult. It was the Black Farmer Fund (BFF) that provided Haughton a lifeline. The organization was created by farmer activists in 2017 to provide low-interest loans, grants and technical assistance to Black farmers and other food businesses.

Myra Marcellin, investment director at BFF, said access to capital and resources remain the top obstacles to the sustainability of Black farmers’ operations—especially in light of funding changes under the 47th president’s administration.

“Some of the grants that have been canceled and paused have really impacted Black farmers the most,” said Marcellin.

For many farmers, like Haughton, that means the difference between keeping their land and losing it. Marcellin said BFF uses its $20 million integrated capital fund to help Black farmers scale their operations and economic and social impact.

“With folks, like farmer Dave, they need support relative to marketing, branding, as well as financial and production support because they

have to grow based on demand,” said Marcellin. “As far as the Black Farmers Fund, we provide those levels of technical assistance to help them identify some of these challenges and areas of need so that they can understand their business better and figure out what they need to focus on to optimize their growth potential.”

BFF ultimately provided Haughton with a grant that helped him save both his farm and home. He was also able to buy new equipment and hire a few part-time workers.

However, in August 2025, a fire ravaged his home—destroying part of the house, ruining personal belongings and supplies and flooding the basement. Haughton has set up a GoFundMe to help him with recovery.

Despite the struggles he’s encountered, Haughton remains committed to being a farmer. It’s been in his blood since growing up on a 14-acre farm in Jamaica.

“Farmers are heroes, and farmers feed heroes,” said Haughton. “We face the most challenging times, whether it’s climate change or the market falling. I wish that the federal government or even some of these financial institutions wouldn’t just look at us but help us.”

PHOTO: Jessica Felicio/Unsplash

UNLAWFUL LAW ENFORCEMENT UNDER COLOR OF LAW: SAN DIEGO POLICE & ICE ACTIVITIES

Recently, at least two unlawful activities have taken place against civilians by the San Diego Police and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agencies. The first was a justifiable arrest of a man who had physically assaulted another person, and understood that he was facing arrest when police arrived. He took off most of his clothing to show he was not armed. At least four police officers were holding his arms and legs when a fifth officer reached over the ones holding the man to punch him in the face at least five times, as caught on camera.

This was clearly excessive force reminiscent of the Rodney King arrest, where police officers were filmed beating King, the arrestee, who was already on the ground. Question? What has the San Diego

Police Chief done about this matter, which is now several days old? Has the officer been placed on suspension while an investigation is being conducted? No response from the Police Chief or the Mayor, who is his boss.

Next, ICE, making unlawful arrests at the 47th Street San Diego Trolley stop. Unlawful in the sense: no warrant to taking persons in the commission of a crime; no identification by the arresting armed and face-covered ICE Agents who were just grabbing people without explanation, and arresting them, some with brutal force such as knocking one woman to the ground. San Diego Police arrive. They said, to “monitor the situation,” but do not take action against ICE agents, only the people who are present and protesting the arrest.

What we as citizens need to know is that both law enforcement entities violated Federal Law. Title 18 United States Code, Section 245. In everyday terms, the actions of the San Diego Police hitting a man in custody and the actions of the ICE agents grabbing people at trolley stops and arresting them without cause or notice, amount to kidnapping, which is the unlawful detention of a person in their movements.

The San Diego Police should have been arresting the ICE agents and not standing around watching the unlawful acts of those agents. If our local Police Chief will not act on the wrongful actions of his own officers, what can we, the people, expect in regards to the ICE agent activities in front of them?

As people are doing in other cities, we must gather and rally whenever we see such activity by any law enforcement personnel. Let's wake up San Diego. Later today or tomorrow, it could be any of us.

Detroit Makes History

Mary Sheffield’s Election Expands the Legacy of Black Women Mayors

By Glynda C. Carr

Election Night 2025 didn’t just make headlines; it made history. In Detroit, voters shattered a 324-year barrier by electing Mary Sheffield as the city’s first woman and Black woman mayor. Her victory is more than symbolic; it’s a testament to the transformative power of Black women’s leadership and a powerful addition to the growing sisterhood of Black women mayors who are redefining what executive power looks like in America’s cities.

At 38 years old, Mary Sheffield’s rise reflects both vision and grit. The daughter of longtime Detroit community leader Rev. Horace Sheffield, she has spent her career fighting for economic justice, equitable development, and opportunity for all. She was elected to the City Council in 2013, becoming the youngest Detroit council member in the cities history.

In 2022, the members of the city council elected her to serve as Council President where she earned a reputation for bringing people together, pushing for affordable housing, youth employment, and policies that put people, not corporations, at the center of progress. Her leadership has always been rooted in love for her city and an unwavering belief that Detroit’s comeback must include everyone.

Now, as Mayor-elect, Sheffield joins a powerful lineage of Black women leading major cities from Karen Bass in Los Angeles and Muriel Bowser in Washington, D.C., to Cherelle Parker in Philadelphia, Pamela Goynes Brown in North Las Vegas, and Vi Lyles, who was reelected as well to an unprecedented fifth term in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Together, these women represent a bright spot in our democracy and a model for the kind of leadership our nation des-

perately needs, experienced, empathetic, accountable, and focused on building stronger, safer, more equitable communities from the ground up.

And they are doing so while standing on the frontlines of crisis.

Across the country, Black women mayors are grappling with the real consequences of Washington gridlock, a federal government shutdown that has stretched into its second month, disrupting vital services; the loss of SNAP benefits that threatens the stability of millions of families; and the ongoing challenges of federal ICE enforcement in their communities. While others debate, these women are delivering, ensuring their residents are fed, housed, and safe. They are governing in real time with limited resources and limitless resolve.

See DETROIT page 15

GENERATION Z IS THE BATTLEGROUND

By David W. Marshall CHICAGO DEFENDER

Nine years ago, millennials reached a major milestone. Based on population estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau, 2016 was the year millennials officially surpassed baby boomers in becoming America’s largest living generation. Born between 1981 and 1996, the millennial generation includes anyone aged 29 to 44 in 2025. While Gen Z is now the second largest generation, by natural progression, they will become the largest generation in the coming years.

This population shift will have major political and social implications, as today’s digital natives will gain a greater influence in how our future society is shaped. Social activism has long been associated with young people, as evidenced by demonstrations against the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights Movement during the 1960s, and the Black Lives Matter protests triggered by the murder of George Floyd in 2020.

Gen Z will not only be a rising influence in future elections, but in the age of smartphones and social media, young people have been given a louder voice than ever before. Due to core issues such as climate change, racial and gender justice, mass shootings, economic inequality, healthcare access, and LGBTQ+ issues, along with unprecedented access to digital tools, many Gen Zers are motivated to start social activism at an earlier age. Generation Z’s early and passionate embrace of activism reflects both a reaction to the challenges of their era and a proactive commitment to making a tangible impact. As a young gun control activist and Parkland, Florida, mass-shooting survivor, David Hogg tweeted: “I’m not powered by hope. I’m powered by the fact I have no other choice.”

Generation Z is the ideological battleground, and groups like the Proud Boys know it. The Southern Poverty Law Center has called the all-male neo-fascist group an “alt-right fight club” and a hate group that uses persuasive devices to obscure its true motives. The group was tied to the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) describes the Proud Boys as “extremist conservative” and “all too willing to embrace racists, anti-Semites and bigots of all kinds” and cites the group’s promotion and use of violence as a core tactic. The nations of Canada and New Zealand have designated the Proud Boys as a terrorist group. Yet, there will be teens and young adults who are drawn to its anti-feminism, antisemitism, White supremacy, neo-Nazism, and its version of Trumpism.

Several months ago, a roadside billboard was placed in Clinton County, Illinois, as an attempt by the Proud Boys to recruit teenagers. The billboard, using the words “faith, family, freedom, and brotherhood,” was located 1,000 feet from the entrance to Central Community High School. The billboard listed a local recruiting phone number. By targeting 16-, 17-, and 18-year-old students on their way to school, the Proud Boys are fully aware of the influence Gen Z has on the future of this nation. Parents, local officials, and state leaders condemned the sign, saying the extremist group has no place in Illinois communities.

David Cunningham, a Washington University professor who studies White supremacy, said extremist groups often use billboards to try to normalize their presence. “They’re sort of using phrases related to freedom, faith, these kinds of things,” Cunningham said. “This was never in the Proud Boys lexicon prior to the current presidential administration…This is really an attempt to rebrand themselves in a more mainstream way.”

After strong community opposition, the sign was removed after a few days. But one has to wonder how many young people were persuaded to call in those few days. The Proud Boys are organizing at the grassroots level, as is Turning Point USA. Turning Point USA is an organization, founded by the late Charlie Kirk, that advocates for conservative politics on high school, college, and university campuses. Turning Point USA is a political organization that aims to elect conservative leaders.

According to its website, they are a movement rooted in faith, freedom, and love of country. They built a well-organized infrastructure of over 900 college chapters dedicated to defending America’s future. I admit that I admire how Turning Point USA has strategically built a nationwide movement focused on young people and America’s future. While I am impressed with the grassroots machine, I know this is another organization that uses persuasive devices to obscure its true motives (White supremacy). Behind the powerful words of “faith, freedom, and love of country” is a national network that promotes anti-Blackness, anti-diversity, anti-equity, and anti-inclusion under the umbrella of Christianity.

The organization is impressive, but the true message is not Christ-like.

By Dr. John E. Warren

SAN DIEGO VOICE & VIEWPOINT NEWSPAPER CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS, NNPA

CHURCH DIRECTORY

Bradley Amor Betty Joyce

Megginson

SUNRISE 05/25/1962

SUNSET 10/29/2025

ARRANGEMENTS BY PREFERRED CREMATION & BURIAL

Service was held November 12, 2025 at City of Hope International Church.

***************************************************************************

Bradley Amor Megginson, a beacon of light and love, passed away on October 29, 2025, in San Diego, California, after a life filled with laughter, wisdom, and service. Born on May 25, 1962, in Chicago, Illinois, Bradley lived with devotion to his family, community, and faith. Though his final days were marked by renal failure, his spirit remained strong and inspiring.

Bradley’s life reflected dedication and perseverance. After graduating from Patrick Henry High School in 1980, he devoted more than forty-three years to the City of San Diego Public Utilities Department, where he served as the Plant Process Control Supervisor. His career began with a meaningful purpose as San Diego’s first Black lifeguard, a role in which he protected lives and encouraged youth to learn the skill of swimming.

Family was the center of Bradley’s world. He was a devoted son to his mother, Shirley A. Kendle, and his stepfather, Enoch Long. His love for his wife, Danyrea Megginson, flourished for nearly twelve years and created a blended family that included his daughter LaBrandie A. Megginson, his son Bradley A. Megginson Jr., his daughter in law Sarah L. Megginson, and his stepchildren Azrael Joseph, Autum Joseph, Ibrahim Clark, Amir Clark, and Ahmad Hassan. He is also survived by his brother Derick L. Megginson, his sister Erica Megginson, his grandson DeJhon A. Megginson, his granddaughter Jayden A. Megginson, along with uncles, aunts, nephews, a niece, and cousins. Each one carries a part of his love.

Bradley’s Christian faith guided every part of his life. He found joy in the Word of God, led a long standing workplace Bible study, and created a weekly men’s online ministry group. The scripture, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,” was a truth he lived daily and shared freely.

Bradley cherished fishing and often spoke of his unforgettable time in Sika, Alaska. His love for trains was well known, reflected in his collection of model trains. Above all, he loved God, his family, and helping others.

Bradley was known for his humor, kindness, and wisdom. He often said God did it again as a reminder of every blessing. Though his earthly journey has ended, his legacy of faith, compassion, and joy continues to shine in the lives he touched.

Thigpen-Anderson

SUNRISE 06/24/1949

SUNSET 10/31/2025

ARRANGEMENTS BY PREFERRED CREMATION & BURIAL

Service will be held Tuesday, November 25, 2025 at 11:00 AM, at Greater Life Baptist Church.

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Betty Joyce Thigpen–Anderson, also known as “BJ”, was born on June 24, 1949, in Laurel, Mississippi. She was the only child born to her parents – Jordan (Sonny) Thigpen Jr. and Martha J. McCurty-Thigpen. After that union was dissolved, both parents remarried leaving Betty with 3 sisters and 2 brothers on her father’s side: Dr. Darrel Thigpen (Dense), Janice Sparks (Shelton), Deborah King (Willie) McComb, Anita Johnson, and Wendall “Peanut” Thigpen. On her mother’s side: Michael Jackson (Sharlyn), Ronnie Musgrove (Ann), and sister Carolyn Jackson-Griffth (Edward).

Even though Betty was born in Laurel, Mississippi she was raised in San Diego from the age of 6. She attended Logan & Valencia Park elementary schools, O’Farrell Junior High School and Morse High School class of 1968. Betty also attended San Diego City College for 2 years before being hired by Air West Airlines in 1970 as a Hostess, now known as a Stewardess and Flight Attendant, for 37 and half years. She traveled the world and merged with several other airlines (Republic Airlines-Northwest Airline and finally Delta Airlines). Over the years she was based in Las Vegas, San Francisco, Seattle, Memphis, Minnesota, Detroit and finally Los Angeles. For the last 20 years she has only flown international flights.

In 1974, she was introduced to her husband Rudy Anderson by a mutual friend. They were married in Las Vegas on April 15,1976. To that union 2 sons were born, Ra’mon Andre and R’mon Howard, and one stepson Randy Monte. Betty was raised in a Christian home and as a young teen she was baptized at Calvary Baptist Church under the Pastorage of Dr. S.M. Lockridge, for many years. In 2002, she started attending Greater Life Baptist Church under the pastorage of Willie E. Manley and his son Pastor Cedric Manley.

Betty passed on October 31, 2025.

Family members that preceded her in going home are her father Jordan “Sonny” Thigpen, stepfather Jessie L. Jackson, brother Dr. Darrel Thigpen, and beloved mother Martha J. Jackson.

Betty leaves behind to cherish her memory her husband of 49 years Rudy, son Randy Anderson, daughter-in-law Monsy Anderson-Mitchell, sons; Ra’mon (Cathy) Anderson and R’mon (Syretta) Anderson, grandchildren; Lovely Anderson-Fears (Jalen), Ian Woods-Anderson, Derek & Nariah Mitchell, and Tyler & Kaylani “Peanut” Anderson.

Theodis

Mims

SUNRISE 01/03/1948

SUNSET 10/30/2025

ARRANGEMENTS BY ANDERSON RAGSDALE MORTUARY

A Life Well Lived Gone Fishing… Permanently

Theodis Mims cast his final line on October 30, 2025, surrounded by love and peace. Born on January 3, 1948, in Palestine, TX, he carried deep roots, a gift for connection, and a life of service. From the U.S. Navy to 24 years with the San Diego Police Department, and decades as a Funeral Director, he offered fairness, compassion, and dignity.

Family was his anchor, joy his compass—whether fishing, cooking, or spending time with friends and loved ones. His wisdom, warmth, and steady hand remain. By every measure, Mims lived a life well lived.

Visitation

Thurs, Nov 13, 1–5 PM at Anderson Ragsdale Mortuary

Homegoing

Fri, Nov 14, 11 AM, Bethel Baptist Church 1962 Euclid Ave, San Diego

May Time Soften Your Pain

Jennie Veronica Ethel Mae

McKissack

SUNRISE 02/15/1924

SUNSET 09/27/2025

ARRANGEMENTS BY ANDERSON RAGSDALE MORTUARY

Jennie Veronica (Banks) McKissack was born on February 15th, 1924, in Three League, Louisiana, to proud parents Simuel Banks and Mary Wafer Banks. After spending her formative years engrossed in bayou life, Jennie joined her sister Alvie in California for better work prospects and opportunities. In San Diego, CA, she found work at the Balboa Naval Hospital as a nursing assistant; she additionally performed domestic work. Jennie eventually met Lucius McKissack Jr., whom she soon married, and became the mother of their four children: Deborah Ann, Kathy Marie, Lester Rene, and Glenn Foster.

An enthusiastic gardener and cook, Jennie greatly enjoyed tending to her wonderful garden which was always brimming with fresh vegetables and fruits. Strong in her faith and true to her Christian values, Jennie provided the McKissack household, on the corner of Delta and 41st streets, as a beacon for all in the neighborhood. She was always ready to provide shelter and comfort to the lonely, nourishment for the hungry, and to be an embodied example of God’s unconditional love. After the transition of her husband, as a comfort zone, Jennie joined the Senior Center at the Neighborhood House. There she engaged in numerous activities including taking third place in a drawing exhibition at Balboa Park and having her picture on the information pamphlet for the Senior Center.

Jennie passed on September 27, 2025.

Jennie is preceded in death by her devoted husband Lucius McKissack Jr., son Glenn Foster, parents; Simuel and Mary Banks, brothers; Simuel, Jr., Leroy, and Emeal, and eldest sister Alvie.

Jennie is survived by her daughters; Deborah and Kathy of San Diego, son Lester (Sue) of England, as well as grandchildren; Diva, Brian and Olivia, and a great-grand daughter Adrena, in addition to many loving nephews and nieces, extended relatives, and dear long-time friends in San Diego as well as across the United States.

Viewing

9am to 11am

11am Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church

3045 Greely Avenue, San Diego, CA 92113 Internment Greenwood Memorial Park

Martin Bugg

SUNRISE 12/22/1927

SUNSET 10/28/2025

ARRANGEMENTS BY ANDERSON RAGSDALE MORTUARY

Ethel Mae Martin Bugg was born on Thursday December 22, 1927, in the community of Claiborne Parish, Louisiana, near Haynesville. Ethel was the beloved daughter of the late Willie and Emma (Brown) Martin. She was the second eldest of eight children, raised within a deeply spiritual and supportive Christian household that shaped her early values.

Ethel's spiritual journey began in her youth; she embraced her faith, accepting Christ as her personal savior, and became a devoted member of Shiloh Baptist Church. She graduated from Haynesville Negro High School (now Woodson High School).

In 1946, Ethel met Detroit "Bud" Bugg, who would become the love of her life. Their deep connection led to their marriage on August 7, 1946. Shortly thereafter, they embarked on a new chapter, relocating to San Diego, California. Their marriage was a testament to enduring love and partnership, spanning 58 years until Bud's passing in 2003. They were blessed with four children: two daughters and two sons.

Ethel continued her educational development at Kelsey Jenny College, where she was taught key punching. Her career factor was working at University Hospital where she dedicated 33 years of service as a dietitian, retiring as a respected supervisor.

Ethel was a cornerstone of her spiritual community. Around 1948, she became a devoted member of Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, serving faithfully under the esteemed leadership of the late Reverend C. Johnson. She held a particular passion for the Mission Department, where she diligently served as secretary and corresponding secretary for both the Esther Circle and General Mission. She remained a faithful member for 70 plus years.

Her oldest daughter Christine passed away in 2005.

Ethel Mae Martin Bugg passed on October 28, 2025. She leaves behind a profound and cherished legacy.

She is survived by her loving daughter Linda Washington, her devoted sons; Detroit and Kenneth Bugg, sisters; Doris Mack of Jackson, Tennessee, and Annie Vera Coggins of St. Louis, Missouri, eight grandchildren, sixteen great-grandchildren, and four great-great-grandchildren, alongside a vast network of cherished nephews, nieces, three sisters-in-law, extended family, and friends whose lives she touched deeply.

Her spirit of dedication, perseverance, and unwavering faith will forever be remembered. Viewing

Thursday, November 20, 2025 - 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM at Anderson~Ragsdale Chapel Homegoing Celebration Friday, November 21, 2025- 11:00 AM Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church 3045 Greely Avenue, San Diego, CA 92113

In times of darkness, love sees… In times of silence, love hears... In times of doubt, love hopes… In times of sorrow, love heals... And in all times, love remembers. May time soften the pain Until all that remains Is the warmth of the memories And the love.

LOCAL AND STATE NEWS

CITY NEWS YOU CAN USE COUNTY NEWS YOU CAN USE

City of San Diego is Flipping Lids to Boost Recycling Awareness

If you’ve seen an “oops” tag on your trash or recycling bin, it’s part of the City’s new “lid flip” inspections—quick checks to help residents recycle correctly and prevent fires or equipment damage caused by hazardous items like batteries and propane tanks.

Conducted by the Environmental Services Department under state law SB 1383, the checks identify contamination and provide feedback without penalties. The goal—to improve recycling safety and reduce waste across San Diego. For help or questions, residents can contact ESD at 858-694-7000 or trash@sandiego.gov

City

to Reinvest Parking

Meter Revenue into Neighborhood Repairs

Space Available in San Diego’s afe Parking Program

Plans Unveiled for San Diego County’s Behavioral Health Campus

San Diego County is set to build a state-ofthe-art Behavioral Health Wellness Campus in the Midway District — a first-of-its-kind facility combining mental health, addiction treatment, and support services under one roof. The $210 million campus will serve more than 20,000 people each year, including veterans, adults, and justice-involved residents.

The proposed campus will feature crisis stabilization units, residential treatment, peerled respite care, and outpatient mental health services. County leaders say the project will replace a fragmented system with coordinated, whole-person care. The County is seeking up to $100 million in state funding through Proposition 1 to support construction.

The San Diego City Council has approved nearly $2 million in parking meter revenues to fund infrastructure repairs in the communities where the money was collected. The move pauses the City’s Community Parking District program as officials work to modernize parking management and improve transparency.

According to Transportation Director Bethany Bezak, the funds will help tackle urgent needs such as the 1,200 streetlight outages in Downtown. City crews will begin repairs immediately, using revenues to fix streetlights, sidewalks, and safety issues across affected neighborhoods. Residents can report repair needs through the Get It Done app or at sandiego.gov/get-it-done.

The City of San Diego’s new Safe Parking site in Point Loma, known as H Barracks, currently has over 100 spaces available for people living in their vehicles. Operated by Jewish Family Service, Safe Parking sites include restrooms, basic needs assistance, access to resources, mental health services and job training, and participants work with case managers to create individual housing goals.

To consolidate resources, the City will temporarily close its Aero Drive lot later this month, saving about $23,000 monthly in operating costs. With four active sites remaining, the program continues to serve over 1,000 people annually, connecting hundreds to permanent housing. Individuals in need are encouraged to schedule an intake session with JFS via an online form (secure.jfssd.org/site/ SPageServer?pagename=contact_safe_parking) or by calling 858-637-3373.

Crude oil, gasoline, diesel fuel, and other petroleum products can expose you to chemicals including toluene and benzene, which are known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. These exposures can occur in and around oil fields, refineries, chemical plants, transport and storage operations, such as pipelines, marine terminals, tank trucks, and other facilities and equipment listed here:

https://www.wspa.org/proposition-65-notice-information/

The foregoing warning is provided pursuant to Proposition 65. This law requires the Governor of California to publish a list of chemicals “known to the State to cause cancer or reproductive toxicity.” This list is compiled in accordance with a procedure established by the Proposition, and can be obtained from the California Environmental Protection Agency. Proposition 65 requires that clear and reasonable warnings be given to persons exposed to the listed chemicals in certain situations. For more information go to:

www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/petroleum or call:

Full November CalFresh/SNAP Benefits Are Being Delivered to San Diego Beneficiaries

San Diego CalFresh/ SNAP beneficiaries are starting to see their full November benefits loaded on to their EBT cards.

The process began late Thursday, November 6th after a federal court ruled in favor of restoring full benefits during the government shutdown, according to the State.

With hundreds of thousands of residents at risk of losing food assistance, this investment provides immediate relief to organizations on the frontlines of hunger relief. Each $1.5 million grant will help expand emergency food distribution, support local farms, and ensure equitable access to nutritious food as federal resources diminish.

San Diego County is projected to lose more than $300 million annually in government funding, including an estimated $200 million in new costs or cuts to CalFresh, California’s version of SNAP. The loss of federal food benefits not only deepens food insecurity, it also removes $260 million from the local economy, jeopardizing both access to food and the livelihoods of small farmers.

The emergency investment will reportedly help offset these losses by providing immediate operational support to strengthen San Diego’s food-relief infrastructure and sustain Local Food Purchase Assistance (LFPA) partnerships which connect local growers to community food programs.

Benefits normally issued from the first to seventh have now been loaded on to EBT cards. Remaining benefits will be issued as regularly scheduled through November tenth.

Legal cases remain ongoing, and the County will provide more information as it becomes available. Information on food resources is available through the 211 San Diego webpage or by calling 211 San Diego. Additional resources including, food banks and pantries located throughout the region can be accessed using the Feeding San Diego interactive map or San Diego Food Bank interactive map.

In San Diego County, about 400,000 individuals receive CalFresh benefits, based on their income. For example, a family of four must make less than $5,360 a month to qualify.

San Diego Food Relief Groups Unite to Protect Access Amid Federal Cuts

As historic federal cuts threaten access to food assistance for hundreds of thousands of San Diegans, the Prebys Foundation — in partnership with Feeding San Diego and the Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank — announced on November 6, $3M in emergency funding to protect and strengthen the region’s food security network.

The grants are part of United for San Diego, a joint philanthropic initiative by Prebys Foundation, Price Philanthropies, and San Diego Foundation, created to support local communities impacted by cuts to federal programs that provide housing, food, and healthcare. San Diegans can donate at SDFoundation.org/ unity.

Board of Supervisors Approves Plan to Create Safety Net Bridge Program

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors has approved a plan to explore creation of a Safety Net Bridge Program aimed at preventing service gaps for residents who may lose MediCal, CalFresh, or other essential benefits due to recent federal policy changes.

The program would link community-based strategies to maintain access to healthcare, food, and social services. Proposed measures include expanding no-cost primary care through local providers, same-day prescription access, volunteer-driven medical services, and food distribution partnerships to reduce waste and improve nutrition access.

County staff will report back within 45 days with preliminary findings, followed by an implementation plan outlining costs and funding sources to launch the program.

Dr. John E. Warren, in his role as publisher of The San Diego Viewpoint and Chairman of the Board of Directors for the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), spoke to a rapt crowd of media industry publishers at the The National Association of Hispanic Publications (NAHP) convention on Friday, Nov 14, 2025. The convention’s theme, “The Power of Our Readers”, was held November 12 to 14 at the University of San Diego’s Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies. Dr. Warren, with his over 3 decades in publishing, shared his wisdom and insights on the challenges and opportunities facing ethnic media publications and their important role and impact on advocacy and public policy.

of Behavioral Health Wellness Campus to be built in the Midway District. PHOTO: Instagram via Terra Lawson-Remer

By Voice & Viewpoint Staff

Encanto Community Gathers for Covered California Conversation at the Mental Bar

By Ike Hall Contributing Writer

On Wednesday, November 12th, about 25 media members, health executives, and San Diego community leaders gathered inside Mental Bar, a Black-owned coffee shop in Encanto. The gathering was hosted by Covered California, a state-run health insurance marketplace and one of the largest purchasers of private individual health plans in California.

Put plainly, Covered California lets Californians shop for private insurance plans offered by top insurers, and, for eligible consumers, it provides financial help to lower monthly premiums and out-of-pocket costs. It also uses its negotiating power to set strict standards for insurers that participate in the marketplace.

the broader middle class would face sharply higher premiums. Covered California projects a 76 percent average premium increase in San Diego County if the credits expire.

Altman explained, “Enrollment in the marketplaces more than doubled for people of color because of the tax credits. They reduce disparities.” The future of these subsidies will not be known until Congress meets to determine their fate in mid-December, which leaves families and enrollment counselors in a stressful limbo.

Dr. Monica Soni expanded on the stakes if the tax credits are not renewed. “A decade of infrastructure that allowed healthcare professionals to cover uninsured folks has been wiped out,” she said. “I am in fear that we are going to be in a worse place than 10 years ago. Four hundred thousand people are at risk. I am worried about someone in the middle of chemo or specialty care who might be left in the lurch.”

While very low-income residents often qualify for Medi-Cal, Covered California supports tens of thousands of middle-income families, young adults in their first jobs, and other working people whose employers do not offer affordable insurance. In San Diego County, more than 140,000 residents use Covered California plans, and the majority receive some form of financial assistance.

This “Community Conversations” event is part of a statewide outreach and media tour the agency is conducting to mark the start of the 2026 Open Enrollment period. This is the time when Californians can compare insurance plans and sign up for coverage for the coming year.

This enrollment period comes during a time of great distress for American healthcare. The nation is emerging from a government shutdown, medical costs continue to rise, and Congress has not yet decided whether federal subsidies will continue.

The panel featured Covered California Executive Director Jessica Altman, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Monica Soni, and Dr. Sharon Smith, former president of the San Diego Black Nurses Association.

With a suppressed tension in the room, much of the conversation centered on a looming challenge: the potential expiration of the federal enhanced premium tax credits. These government subsidies, enacted during the pandemic and made possible through the Affordable Care Act, have allowed many non–Medi-Cal recipients to afford private health insurance.

Without these tax credits, working families, young adults entering the job market, and

Dr. Sharon Smith, who led the San Diego Black Nurses Association for more than two decades, reflected on the historical and cultural stakes for Black communities. “A lot of Black folks were not receiving the proper care,” she said. She described how expanded coverage reduced emergency-driven care and increased access to preventive treatment for chronic conditions like heart disease, which affects the Black community disproportionately. “The more people that were covered, the fewer emergency-driven cases we saw.”

As a state marketplace, Covered California not only sets quality standards for participating insurers, but also plays a direct role in enrolling uninsured people into coverage. “Health insurance has been made to be as complicated as possible,” Altman said.

Throughout the hour-long conversation, the speakers emphasized the wide gaps between the healthcare system and everyday people, especially communities of color such as Encanto. Events like this are intended to bridge those gaps by connecting Covered California directly with community leaders who can help spread information and guide residents to enrollment support.

Covered California representatives reminded attendees that free, multilingual enrollment help is available across San Diego County, offering one-on-one guidance for comparing plans, checking subsidy eligibility, and determining Medi-Cal benefits.

Open Enrollment runs through January 31, 2026. Early enrollment is encouraged to avoid gaps in coverage.

Altman closed the event with a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “The arc of history is long, but it bends toward justice,” affirming Covered California’s commitment to helping Californians remain insured despite rising costs and the uncertainty coming from Washington.

( L to R) Dr. Soni (Chief Medical officer of Covered California), Dr. Afflalo (Community Leader), Dr. Sharon Smith

(Former President of Black Nurses), Jessica Altman (Executive Director of Covered California). PHOTOS: Ike Hall

By Ike Hall

SWRITER

aturday night at the Anchors Catering and Conference Center, Voice and Viewpoint had the opportu nity to attend a wonderful gala.

The Lakiba Palmer American Legion Auxiliary Unit 310 was celebrating their 91st anniversary.

Lakiba Palmer Legionnaire Auxiliary Unit

For those not familiar, the American Legion Auxiliary is a civilian organization that serves, supports, and enhances the American Legion. In tandem, these organizations advocate for veterans, educate citizens, mentor youth, and promote patriotism and peace.

Unit 310 is one of the only units of color in the entire state of California and the first ALA charter named after a Black woman. The unit carries the name of San Diego native Seaman Lakiba

Palmer, who was tragically killed in 2000 during the attack on the U.S.S. Cole in Yemen.

The 91st anniversary marked a special moment in time for this unit. The night began with an official declaration from San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, proclaiming November 15th as American Legion Auxiliary Unit 310 Day. On hand to do the honors was Ms. Chida Warren-Darby, Director of Boards and Commissions for the City of San Diego to present the award to Mrs. Margaretta Hickman, President of Unit 310. But behind every milestone are challenges, past and present. Since 2021, the unit has been without a permanent brick-and-mortar loca-

By Lavada England

On November 15, 2025 at the Legacy Hotel & Resort the 5th

Annual Thanksgiving She’s Worthy 2025 Summit carried a level of energy that you could feel the moment you walked into the room. Every corner was filled with connection, emotion, and purpose. The panelists deliv-

As a Black woman expecting, or currently with a baby, you deserve the best care possible. Black women are at high risk for poor birth outcomes regardless of age, income, or education. They are 3.8 times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than White women and their babies are 64 percent more likely to be born premature. This is due to racial bias. This is not acceptable. Join us in our efforts to improve birth and maternal health outcomes for all African-American families in San Diego County. Learn more about available resources and programs to help protect and support pregnant women and babies. Visit BlackLegacyNowSD.com or contact the Black Infant Health Program at our Central location 619-266-7466 or the North County location 760-231-1887.

(l to r) Mrs. Margaretta Hickman and Ms. Chida Warren-Darby

Above: Mrs. Margaretta Hickman, President of Lakiba Palmer American Legion Auxiliary Unit 310

‘American Legion Auxiliary Unit 310 Day’

tion due to building reconstruction.

“I prefer to say under-housed, not homeless,” quipped the organization’s president with an endearing grin.

With nearly 30 years of involvement with Unit 310, and her second term as President, Mrs. Hickman carries a heart and presence that gently pulls the entire room toward her.

ered powerful perspectives that reached everyone in attendance — from the youngest kids to the adults — leaving a lasting impact.

What stood out most was how naturally the event allowed people to be vu lnerable, inspired, and uplifted. The atmosphere made it easy to witness real moments of growth, joy, and community.

“Despite the adversity, we have continued to serve our veterans to the best of our ability,” Mrs. Hickman said.

That statement was echoed moments later when District 22 Auxiliary President Linda Sundberg addressed the audience. Not only is Unit 310 the only unit of color in District 22, they are one of the strongest performing in California in terms of fundraising and community outreach. Today, the unit includes 163 members who work across six major programs: Poppies, Legislative, Americanism, Children and Youth, Education, and Veterans Affairs and Rehabilitation. Poppies refers to symbolic flowers sold to honor veterans, especially during designated remembrance days.

When asked which programs she felt were the highlight of the year, Mrs. Hickman mentioned their youth mentoring and fundraising initiatives and their VA hospital visit programs specifically.

After 91 years of faithful service to the Veterans of San Diego Unit 31 is moving forward as they continue to serve in the Spirit of Service and not Self.

The Hollowing Out of America’s Only Agency for Minority Business

By Dedrick Asante-Muhammad and Eric Morrissette

“I have often made the point that to foster the economic status and pride of members of our minority groups, we must seek to involve them more fully in our private enterprise system… To do this, we need to remove commercial obstacles that have too often stood in their way—obstacles such as the unavailability of credit, insurance, and technical assistance.”

Those were the words that gave rise to the first iteration of what would become the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA)—spoken by Republican President Richard Nixon. More than fifty years later, those words ring hollow as the Trump administration races to dismantle the agency, hollowing out the small staff that remained after earlier rounds of downsizing—just 23 career employees—to none. Today, only two political appointees remain, one of whom also serves as the Deputy Secretary of Labor.

The MBDA is not a bureaucratic relic; it was a rare glimmer of bipartisan progress during the civil rights era and remains the only federal agency devoted to expanding opportunity for entrepreneurs who have historically been locked out of capital markets, contracting networks, and investment pipelines. Its deliberate dismantling is both a moral failure and an economic crisis.

Our economy is strongest when every community can build and own, and when capital flows not just to those who’ve always had it, but to those ready to create something new.

A small staff, a massive mission

At its height, the MBDA oversaw a nationwide network of business centers, technical-assistance hubs, and capital-readiness programs serving tens of thousands of enterprises. The agency is responsible for supporting more than 12 million minority business enterprises (MBEs) across the United States. And “minority” here is broader than many realize—it includes not only businesses owned by people of color but also by members of socially or economically disadvantaged groups such as rural, veteran, and women-led small businesses.

Through a network of more than 130 cen -

ters and partners across the U.S. and its territories, MBDA provided hands-on technical assistance to help businesses navigate growth and scale successfully. No free money. No direct loans. Just guidance to help these businesses help themselves.

By any measure, MBDA was delivering results. During Morrissett’s tenure leading the agency, immediately before the start of the Trump administration, MBDA helped businesses secure $3.2 billion in contracts and $1.6 billion in capital, creating and retaining more than 23,000 jobs. Last year also marked the first year of MBDA’s Capital Readiness Program—the largest-ever fed eral initiative of its kind—designed to help underserved entrepreneurs grow and scale their businesses. In its first full year, the program served more than 6,300 entrepreneurs and helped raise $263 million in capital.

In other words, MBDA evolved into a broad, national platform for growth—one that reaches well beyond race alone. Its clients range from a Black-owned cybersecurity startup in Atlanta to a Latina-led food manufacturer in Texas, a Native American construction cooperative in Oklahoma, a veteran-owned logistics firm in Ohio, and a white Appalachian entrepreneur rebuilding a small-town sawmill with limited access to capital. MBDA’s scope reflects a fundamental truth: opportunity gaps are intersectional. A functional MBDA recognizes that inclusive economic development requires tools that reach across these lines, while still honoring the agency’s original civil-rights mission— to repair the damage of centuries of racially exclusive capitalism.

What we stand to lose

When an agency like MBDA is dismantled, the casualties are not bureaucrats–they are business owners, workers, and America’s competitiveness. Without MBDA, it becomes harder for disadvantaged businesses to access capital, navigate federal and corporate procurement systems, and unlock innovation.

We know empirically that minority-owned and disadvantaged businesses receive less capital and pay more for it. Programs like the Capital Readiness Program were designed precisely to close that gap—helping entrepreneurs get a fairer shot at the financing they need to grow and hire. MBDA’s business and procurement centers also ensure that our public and private contracting pipelines are diverse, making our supply chains more resilient to shocks like the pandemic.

Beyond that, MBDA’s mission aligns with the broader economic imperative of closing America’s opportunity gap—a gap that sidelines an estimated $7.1 trillion in potential economic output, nearly a quarter (23.3%) of

U.S. GDP. Activating that untapped potential doesn’t just strengthen minority communities; it strengthens America itself. The path forward

We must demand that Congress and the Administration act swiftly to reopen the government and restore MBDA’s staffing, budget, and network of partners supporting businesses around the country. Lawmakers must:

1 R estore independent nonpolitical programs and staff to support the socially and economically disadvantaged businesses of this country.

2 Guarantee stable funding so the agency cannot be hollowed out each time administrations change, and businesses can be provided some predictability.

3 P rotect MBDA’s statutory authority to focus on disadvantaged entrepreneurs, including those facing social, geographic, or economic barriers.

4 M odernize MBDA’s mission for an AIdriven economy, helping minority and disadvantaged firms adapt to new technologies rather than be displaced by them.

5 Reinforce the apolitical nature of MBDA’s work with bipartisan safeguards allowing the work to be unimpeded.

MBDA’s destruction would signal that the federal government no longer feels an obligation to correct the marketplace’s deepest inequities—the very inequities Richard Nixon sought to address when founding the agency. Yet we know the opposite is true. Our economy is strongest when every community can build and own, and when capital flows not just to those who’ve always had it, but to those ready to create something new. Letting MBDA die would betray that promise. Defending and expanding it would affirm that economic opportunity belongs to every American.

Read the full article at www.sdvoice.info.

3 Ways to Become Indispensable to Your Workplace

Here are three ways to become indispensable to your company:

Be a Leader

Doing the bare minimum is a fast track for fading into the woodwork. Instead, become someone that your colleagues, supervisors and supervisees trust, respect, and look to for insight. Make a point of having a broad understanding of your department and company’s overarching goals and priorities so that when you speak up in meetings, you’re doing so from an informed, holistic standpoint. Identify processes that need fine-tuning and share ideas for implementing them. Showcase your ability to lead by volunteering to oversee high-visibility projects and by becoming a mentor to interns and new staffers.

Get the Right Certification

In many industries, acquiring the right certification can impact your income, advance

your career and help make you a vital member of your company. Take financial advising, for instance. In fact, 79% of CFP® professionals say they have a competitive edge over other financial advisors.

Be Willing to Pivot

Organizational strategies and priorities can change over time. Understanding these shifts and being flexible is essential to staying relevant at your company. This may require learning new skills and software, obtaining new certifications or even going back to school. The important thing is being willing to pivot if needed.

With the right attitude, and a willingness to invest time and energy to develop your professional skills, you can advance your position in your company and secure your place as an essential member of the team.

Statepoint

PHOTO: Blackpressusa.com

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Zanzibar’s ‘Solar Mamas’ Help Light Up Communities

By Jack Denton AP

Wh en darkness came, so did the smoke. Hamna Silima Nyange, like half of the 2 million people in Tanzania’s semi-autonomous archipelago of Zanzibar, did not have a house connected to the electricity grid. After sunset, she would turn to smoky oil lamps that provided the only light for her eight children to study. ”The light was too weak,” Nyange said. “And the smoke from the lamp hurt my eyes.” Then one day a neighbor, Tatu Omary Hamad, installed solar panels and bulbs that lit her home with help from the strong sunlight along the Indian Ocean coast. “Today we have enough light,” Nyange said.

Training women to be solar technicians

Hamad is one of dozens of “solar mamas” trained in Zanzibar by Barefoot College International, a global nonprofit, through a program that brings light to rural communities and provides jobs for local women. So far in Zanzibar, it has lit 1,845 homes. The program selects middle-aged women, most with little or no formal education, from villages without electricity and trains them over six months to become solar power technicians. It is one of a small number of programs in Africa including Solar Sister. The women return to their communities with at least 50 sets of household solar panel kits as well

as the skills and equipment to set them up and keep them running.

Improving health is at the heart of the program’s mission. Alongside its flagship solar power course, Barefoot College International

offers programs for women in tailoring, beekeeping and sustainable agriculture.

E v ery woman who completes a program is trained in general health knowledge that they are expected to take back to their villages.

Challenges remain

Barefoot College International has scaled up across Africa, with other campuses in Madagascar and Senegal. In recent years, women have been brought to Zanzibar from Malawi and Somaliland, and this year some

are being recruited from Central African Republic. Funding remains a challenge as major donors, notably the United States and European ones, cut foreign aid and projects face more competition for money that remains. Barefoot College International is run with public and private donations and revenue generated by its social enterprises. Another challenge is resistance in local communities, where some people find it hard to accept the women technicians in a radical new gender role. While the solar training program recruits with the approval of village leadership, who put forward candidates, some husbands have stopped their wives from training.

Trump’s Tariffs Are Sending African Countries Into China’s Hands

By Nimi Princewell

Africa is adjusting to the new reality of US President Donald Trump’s tariffs, with countries on the continent facing some of the highest export charges. But what could become a crisis is an opportunity for United States rival China, which has long courted African countries and is now offering them a lifeline. “We (Africa) are going straight into the hands of China,” Nigerian economist Bismarck Rewane told CNN. “That is the unfortunate outcome,” Rewane said of Africa’s expected further shift toward China, which has emerged in recent years as the continent’s largest bilateral trading partner.

Four African nations - Libya, South Africa, Algeria and Tunisia - face some of the steepest tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, with charges on exports ranging from 25% to 30%. Eighteen other countries from the continent were hit with 15% levies, a modified tariff package released Thursday [ July 31] by the White House showed. In April, when the US import levies were first announced, Trump pitched them as “reciprocal” and targeting countries that he said had trade deficits with the US. But Trump instead based his tariffs on countries’ trade deficits with the United States – not the tariffs they charge. South Africa, one of the continent’s powerhouses, challenged the imposition of a 30% tariff on its US-bound exports, saying

Trump’s decision was not based on “an accurate representation of available trade data.”

An opportunity for China

China has offered to soften the impact of US tariffs on Africa, saying in June it would halt charges on imports for nearly all its African partners. “There is no other opportunity for African countries to strengthen South-South trade (among developing nations) than now,” South African researcher Neo Letswalo told CNN, while urging countries to “solely turn to China and make it the next US.”

The impact of Trump’s tariffs is already being felt in some of Africa’s most buoyant economies and some of the continent’s poorest, such as Lesotho, which was slapped with a 15% tariff. It had previously been hit with a 50% tariff – one of the steepest rates – before the charges were modified.

Lesotho’s Prime Minister Samuel Matekane said in June that the huge tariff, combined with the halt of US aid to the nation of just over 2 million people, “have crippled industries that previously sustained thousands of jobs.” Trump has described Lesotho, a landlocked nation surrounded by South Africa, as a country “nobody has ever heard of” – even though trade between the US and Lesotho totaled over $240 million last year, mostly in textiles. Authorities in Lesotho have declared a two-year national state of disaster over the tariffs, as the country braces for their impact,

with the textile industry already grappling with massive job losses.

Is reliance on China risky?

Letswalo believes there are accompanying risks behind the enticing option of relying on Beijing to cushion the impact of Trump’s tariffs. Alternating US with China “could be risky,” he said, “especially for some nascent industries within the (African) countries.”

“If they’re not protected, Chinese products will flood and outcompete them as many African countries are price sensitive markets,” he warned. China has imposed some imbalanced trade deals of its own in Africa with trade deficits skewed in its favor, according to the China-Global South Project (CGSP), an organization monitoring China’s engagement with developing countries.

Additionally, the bulk of Beijing’s exports to Africa comprise mainly manufactured products, while the continent’s exports to China are commonly raw materials. South Africa’s Ramaphosa advocated for balanced trade with China when he met his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Beijing last year.

Letswalo advised that, while Africa leans on China for trade, it must also seek domestic alternatives. He recommended a swift implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), an agreement signed by nations on the continent to boost trade among themselves. Rewane believes that the US tariffs could inspire Africa “to build economic resilience and be less dependent on lopsided trade.” Above all, he added, the continent must be “more inward-looking rather than outward-dependent.”

Secretary-General Warns Sudan War Is ‘Spiraling Out Of Control’

By Jon Gambrell AP

The United Nations secretary-general warned Tuesday [November 4] that the war in Sudan is “spiraling out of control” after a paramilitary force seized the Darfur city of El Fasher. Speaking at a UN summit in Qatar, António Guterres offered a stark warning about El Fasher and called for an immediate ceasefire in the two-year conflict that’s become one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. “Hundreds of thousands of civilians are trapped by this siege,” Guterres said. “People are dying of malnutrition, disease and violence. And we are hearing continued reports of violations of international humanitarian law and human rights.” He added that there also were “credible reports of widespread executions since the Rapid Support Forces entered the city.”

UN officials have warned of a rampage by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces after it took over the city of El Fasher, reportedly killing more than 450 people in a hospital and carrying out ethnically targeted killings of civilians and sexual assaults. The RSF has denied committing atrocities, but testimonies from those fleeing, online videos and satellite images offer an apocalyptic vision of the aftermath of their attack. The full scope of the violence remains unclear because communications are poor in the region.

The RSF besieged El Fasher for 18 months, cutting off much of the food and other supplies needed by tens of thousands of people. [Three weeks ago], the paramilitary group seized the city. Asked if he thought there

“We need to create mechanisms of accountability because the crimes that are being committed are so horrendous.”

–António Guterres

was a role for international peacekeepers in Sudan, Guterres said it was important to “gather all the international community and all those that have leverage in relation to Sudan to stop the fighting.”

“One thing that is essential to stop the fighting is to make sure that no more weapons come into Sudan,” he said. “We need to create mechanisms of accountability because the crimes that are being committed are so horrendous.” The war between the RSF and the Sudanese military has been tearing apart Sudan since April 2023. More than 40,000 people have been killed, according to UN figures, but aid groups say the true death toll could be many times higher. The fighting has driven more than 14 million people from their homes and fueled disease outbreaks. Meanwhile, two regions of war-torn Sudan are enduring a famine that is at risk of spreading.

“It is clear that we need a ceasefire in Sudan,” Guterres said. “We need to stop this carnage that is absolutely intolerable.”

PHOTO: Instagram via @barefootcollegezanzibar

PHOTO: Wikimedia Commons, CC By- 3.0

County Offers Tips to Stay Safe for Upcoming Storms

Tips for the Public

• In areas that often see flooding during rain, people should prepare their areas with sandbags to protect against flooding or to prevent soil erosion.

• Areas that have been scarred by fires can suffer additional damage by soil erosion. Sandbags can be placed to divert or redirect water, mud and debris away from your property.

County emergency services and public works road crews say people should stay alert and take precautions and drive carefully on the roads...

• P eople in the County’s unincorporated areas can report concerns by using the County’s Tell Us Now app, using the County’s online service request form, or by calling the service request hotline toll free at (877) 684-8000, or at (858) 694-3850 during normal business hours.

• The County’s Office of Emergency Services also has useful information about storm preparation on its website. And County Public Works has information about known low-water crossings on its Flood Control webcam page.

• The C ounty also encourages the public to download the County’s Alert San Diego app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store to have a personal disaster plan and go-kit.

Be Careful on the Roads

County emergency services and public works road crews say peo -

ple should stay alert and take precautions and drive carefully on the roads and offered the following tips. Avoid driving in heavy rain conditions. If the trip is necessary:

1. S low down to avoid getting into an accident. It takes longer to stop when roads are wet. Allow yourself at least an extra 15 minutes or so to arrive at your destination to adjust for slower traffic.

2. Turn on your headlights to see better and make it easier for other drivers to see you. It’s the law.

3. Try to drive toward the middle lanes as water tends to gather in outside lanes.

4. Defog your windows for better visibility. Rain can cause windows to fog up. Along the same lines, check your windshield wipers preferably before it rains again and replace them as needed.

5. Avoid driving through deep water because it can affect your brakes. If you cannot avoid it, test your brakes afterward to make sure they’ve dried out and are working properly.

6. T urn around, don’t drown. In heavy rain, never drive through a flooded roadway if you cannot see the pavement. Even a few inches of water

The fall COVID-19 vaccine season is starting slowly for Pfizer, with U.S. sales of its Comirnaty shots sinking 25% after federal regulators narrowed recommendations on who should get them.

Approval of updated shots also came several weeks later than usual, and Pfizer said Tuesday[November 4] that hurt sales as well. Many Americans get vaccinations in the fall, to protect against any disease surges in the coming winter. Experts say interest in COVID-19 shots has been declining, and that trend could pick up this fall due to anti-vaccine sentiment and confusion about whether the shots are necessary.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last month stopped recommending COVID-19 shots for anyone, instead leaving the choice up to patients. The government agency said it was adopting recommendations made by advisers picked by U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Before this year, U.S. health officials — following the advice of infectious disease experts — recommended annual COVID-19 boosters for all Americans ages 6 months and older. The idea was to update protection as the coronavirus evolves.

But that sentiment started to shift earlier this

running at the right velocity can sweep a car, and even a truck, and its occupants off the roadway and downstream. You should not walk or swim across a flooded roadway either.

7. Give the cars in front of you extra distance. The spray from their vehicles — particularly from larger trucks and buses — can hamper your vision. And giving extra space to the guy in front of you also gives you more time to brake or adjust if you need to do so.

8. K eep calm, don’t oversteer or stomp on the brakes if you start to hydroplane or skid when your tires lose traction with the wet road. The Department of Motor Vehicles says keep the steering wheel straight and take your foot off the accelerator so your vehicle can slow down slowly.

9. Stay focused. Remember, it’s illegal, and dangerous, to try to text or use a hand-held cell phone when you’re driving.

10. Sl ow down for the cone zone if you see highway or road workers ahead or to your side. Watch out for public works crews and equipment.

SOURCE: County of San Diego Communications Office

year when Kennedy, who has questioned the safety of COVID-19 vaccines, said they were no longer recommended for healthy children and pregnant women.

Dr. Amesh Adalja said vaccine rates have been “suboptimal” in recent years even for people considered a high risk for catching a bad case of COVID-19.

“That’s only going to fall off more this season,” the senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security said recently.

The shifting guidance caused some confusion in September, once updated shots began arriving at drugstores, the main place Americans go to get vaccinated. Some locations required prescriptions or started asking customers if they had a condition that made them susceptible to a bad case of COVID-19.

The change in government guidance also created questions about whether insurance coverage would continue. A major industry group, America’s Health Insurance Plans, has since clarified that its members will cover the shots.

CVS Health announced earlier this month that it will not require prescriptions at its stores and clinics.

Pharmacy owner Theresa Tolle says this fall has probably been one of the more confusing seasons for her customers. Tolle runs the independent Bay Street Pharmacy in

The Youngest Black Male Mayor in U.S. History Visits College Classroom

Where 90% of Students Are Black Men

By Wayne ‘BC’

There’s a powerful story out of Little Rock, Arkansas, that national media missed—one that sits at the intersection of race, youth leadership, faith, and education.

On November 11, 2025, the Honorable Jaylen Smith, mayor of Earle, Arkansas—the youngest Black mayor in U.S. history, elected at age 18—made a historic visit to Arkansas Baptist College (ABC), the only co-educational institution in America where over 90% of students are Black males. This all started when Davis, an already internationally known professor, researcher, and journalist/author with millions of readers, gave his students an assignment to write Mayor Smith, and he responded.

Smith didn’t visit for a ceremony. He came to speak to a classroom.

The conversation unfolded in Professor Edmond W. Davis’s U.S. Government course — a class assignment turned real-world civic engagement. The students, 98% young Black men, had written letters to elected officials; Smith not only replied, he showed up. What

followed was a rare and transformative moment of mentorship between a 21-year-old mayor and college students his own age — a genuine exchange on leadership, faith, and purpose that few cameras captured but every American classroom could learn from.

Mayor Smith spoke candidly about challenges as a young leader: critics calling him inexperienced, elders resistant to change, and the responsibility of representing a city while still in college. He described bringing a grocery store to Earle, reducing crime, and using his diverse trade skills — EMT, firefighter, mechanic, law enforcement — as a model for sustainability and self-reliance.

“This wasn’t a guest lecture,” said Professor Davis. “This was living history—a moment that showed what representation looks like when it walks into the room.”

This is more than a campus visit. It’s an Only in America story: a 21-year-old Black mayor born in 2004 speaking to peers born the same year—on a campus built on hope, history, and the belief that second chances can still change generations.

Sebastian, Florida.

She said her COVID-19 vaccine business has been busy because she has an older patient population. Many still want the shots. But she’s also had more customers tell her this year that they don’t want them.

“There’s just so many messages out there, they don’t know who to believe,” she said.

“I’ve had people tell me they are afraid of it when they’ve had it many times.”

Pfizer saw U.S. Comirnaty sales drop to $870

million in the recently completed third quarter from $1.16 billion in the same time frame last year. That came after vaccine sales rose the first two quarters of the year.

Pfizer also said Tuesday that sales of its COVID-19 treatment, Paxlovid, dropped more than 50% in the quarter both in the U.S. and internationally due to lower infection rates. Wall Street analysts also expect sales of the COVID-19 vaccine Spikevax from Moderna to tumble about 50% in the third quarter, according to the data firm FactSet.

PHOTO: Courtesy of County News Center

PHOTO: Ed Davis

Kent Black History Is Global

PHOTO: Freepik

CLASSIFIEDS / LEGAL NOTICES

Invitation for Bids (IFB) Bayshore Bikeway Barrio Logan Phase 2

Solicitation No.: SOL1479431 CIP 1223096 Federal Aid Project No.: ATPL-6066(216)

The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is seeking contractors to deliver the Bayshore Bikeway Barrio Logan Phase 2 project.

The work generally consists of upgrading MTS railroad signaling hardware and software to provide advanced preemption at Sampson Street/Harbor Drive, Schley Street/Harbor Drive, and 28th Street/Harbor Drive; the construction of a traffic pre-signal for southbound 28th Street; signing and striping improvements at Cesar Chavez Parkway/Harbor Drive, Sampson Street/Harbor Drive, and 28th Street/Harbor Drive; and reconstruction of pedestrian routes for the 28th Street / BNSF at-grade crossing for ADA compliance.

Work includes, but is not limited to, hauling and disposing of materials containing aerially deposited lead; controlling for water pollution; traffic control; erosion control; clearing and grubbing; unclassified excavation; imported borrow; asphalt concrete pavement; curb, gutter, sidewalk, driveway, stamped median concrete; detectable warning tiles; storm drain installation; pavement markings and signage; chain link fence; traffic signal modifications; MTS signaling system modifications. Additive Alternate 1 consists of pavement rehabilitation by cold milling and ii overlaying asphalt concrete. Procurement of all materials and performing all other work necessary to complete the work in accordance with the project plans and specifications is included.

This project is federally funded. The Engineer’s Estimate is $3,813,447.00. This project is not subject to the Community Benefits Agreement (CBA).

The optional Pre-Bid Meeting will be held virtually via Microsoft Teams on November 19, 2025, from 10:00 to 11:30 AM PST/PDT. The deadline for electronic Bid submittal is December 10, 2025 by 3:00 PM PST/PDT unless otherwise stated in an addendum.

A copy of the solicitation documents and any communications or addenda can be accessed via www.bidnetdirect.com/sandag.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on November 17, 2025 This fictitious business name will expire on November 17, 2030 11/20, 11/27, 12/04, 12/11

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9021366

County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual Registrant has not yet begun to transact business under the name(s) above

This business is hereby registered by the following: Joi Mychelle Jenkins 2140 Central Ave Spring Valley, CA 91977

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on November 17, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on November 17, 2030 11/20, 11/27, 12/04, 12/11

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9020167

Fictitious business name(s): Advance Auto Wholesale 2275 Rolling Ridge Rd. Chula Vista, CA 91914 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual

The first day of business was: 10/22/2025

This business is hereby registered by the following: Rogelio Casillas

2275 Rolling Ridge Rd. Chula Vista, CA 91914

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on October 22, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on October 22, 2030 11/20, 11/27, 12/04, 12/11

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9021759

Fictitious business name(s): Streamline Auto Care

6811 Alvarado Rd Unit 14 San Diego, CA 92120 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual Registrant has not yet begun to transact business under the name(s) above

This business is hereby registered by the following: Mohamed Elabbassi

6811 Alvarado Rd Unit 14 San Diego, CA 92120

This business is conducted by: An Individual

The first day of business was: 09/17/2025

This business is hereby registered by the following: Raychelle Lee 8761 Lake Murray Blvd #4 San Diego, CA 92119 State of Incorporation/ Organization

California

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on November 10, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on November 10, 2030 11/20, 11/27, 12/04, 12/11

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9021477

Fictitious business name(s): Dreacutz 5483 Adobe Falls Rd San Diego, CA 92120

County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: A Limited Liabillity Company

The first day of business was: 10/18/2024

This business is hereby registered by the following: Dreacutz LLC 5483 Adobe Falls Rd #16 San Diego, CA 92120 State of Incorporation/ Organization

California

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on November 13, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on November 13, 2030 11/20, 11/27, 12/04, 12/11

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9021266

Fictitious business name(s): Jesimmonds Consulting 3053 Marlborough Ave San Diego, CA 92105 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual

The first day of business was: 08/30/2023

Fictitious business name(s): Dela Connect Group 404 Camino Del Rio S Ste 210 San Diego, CA 92108 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: A Corporation Registrant has not yet begun to transact business under the name(s) above This business is hereby registered by the following: Delagroup Management Inc 404 Camino Del Rio S Ste 210 San Diego, CA 92108 State of Incorporation/ Organization California This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on November 10, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on November 10, 2030 11/20, 11/27, 12/04, 12/11

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9021193

Fictitious business name(s): Ingrid's Paradise Of Incense 1668 Glencoe Dr. Lemon Grove, CA 91945 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual

The first day of business was: 06/01/2016

This business is hereby registered by the following: Ingrid G. Garcia 1668 Glencoe Dr. Lemon Grove, CA 91945

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on November 06, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on November 06, 2030 11/20, 11/27, 12/04, 12/11

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9021370

Fictitious business name(s): Always A Traveler

Black Branches 8761 Lake Murray Blvd #4 San Diego, CA 92119 County of San Diego

This fictitious business name will expire on November 05, 2030 11/13, 11/20, 11/27, 12/04

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9019808

Fictitious business name(s): Green Air Mechanical 701 49th St San Diego, CA 92102 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual Registrant has not yet begun to transact business under the name(s) above

This business is hereby registered by the following: Alan Perez 701 49th St San Diego, CA 92102

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on October 16, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on October 16, 2030 11/13, 11/20, 11/27, 12/04

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9020745

Fictitious business name(s): MVMNT Studio

MVMNT After Dark

Fit Life with Pam 5702 El Cajon Blvd San Diego, CA 92115 County of San Diego 1111 6th Ave Ste 550 PMB 171522

San Diego, CA 92101-5211

This business is conducted by: A Limited Liability Company

The first day of business was: 08/01/2024

This business is hereby registered by the following: Passion Project SD LLC 1111 6th Ave Ste 550 PMB 171522

San Diego, CA 92101-5211

State of Incorporation/ Organization California

This business is hereby registered by the following: Jeanette Elizabeth Simmonds 3053 Marlborough Ave San Diego, CA 92105

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on November 07, 2025 This fictitious business name will expire on November 07, 2030 11/13, 11/20, 11/27, 12/04

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9021283

Fictitious business name(s): Sound Reinforcement West 359 Bowie St. San Diego, CA 92114 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual The first day of business was: 01/01/2018 This business is hereby registered by the following: Andrew Paul Tait 359 Bowie St. San Diego, CA 92114

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on November 07, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on November 07, 2030 11/13, 11/20, 11/27, 12/04

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9021107

Fictitious business name(s): Tran's Adult Residential Facility, Inc. 5902 Flipper Drive San Diego, CA 92114

County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: A Corporation

The first day of business was: 11/01/2010

This business is hereby registered by the following: Tran's Ault Residential Facility, Inc. 5902 Flipper Drive San Diego, CA 92114 State of Incorporation/ Organization California This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on November 05, 2025

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on October 30, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on October 30, 2030 11/13, 11/20, 11/27, 12/04

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9020764

Fictitious business name(s): Kewl Weddings & Events

275 S. Worthington Spring Valley, CA 91977 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual

The first day of business was: 01/01/2025

This business is hereby registered by the following: Karen Elaine WitherspoonLewis 275 S. Worthington Spring Valley, CA 91977

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on October 30, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on October 30, 2030 11/06, 11/13, 11/20, 11/27

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9020762

Fictitious business name(s): DeLyteful Events 4231 Balboa Ave San Diego, CA 92117

County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual Registrant has not yet begun to transact business under the name(s) above

This business is hereby registered by the following: Gladys Crawford

8305 Garnet Ct. #184 La Mesa, CA 91941

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on October 30, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on October 30, 2030 11/06, 11/13, 11/20, 11/27

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9019608

Fictitious business name(s): Soom Living

8174 Rose Quartz Cir San Diego, CA 92126 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual

The first day of business was: 04/05/2025

This business is hereby registered by the following: Jennifer K Cho 8174 Rose Quartz Cir San Diego, CA 92126

State of Incorporation/ Organization California

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on October 14, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on October 14, 2030 11/06, 11/13, 11/20, 11/27

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9020734

Fictitious business name(s): Korarift 6560 Montezuma Road, Apt 104 San Diego, CA 92115

County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: A Limited Liability Company

Registrant has not yet begun to transact business under the name(s) above

This business is hereby registered by the following: Korarift LLC 2108 N St. Ste C Sacramento, CA 95816

State of Incorporation/ Organization

California

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on October 30, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on October 30, 2030 11/06, 11/13, 11/20, 11/27

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9018718

Fictitious business name(s): Polish & Co 3933 Corral Canyon Rd Bonita, CA 91902

County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: A Limited Liability Company

Registrant has not yet begun to transact business under the name(s) above

This business is hereby registered by the following: Polish and Co LLC 3933 Corral Canyon Rd Bonita, CA 91902

State of Incorporation/ Organization California

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on September 30, 2025 This fictitious business name will expire on September 30, 2030 11/06, 11/13, 11/20, 11/27

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9020309

Fictitious business name(s): No Fee No Me Clothing Brand 625 Palm Ave Apt 5 National City, CA 91950 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: An Individual

The first day of business was: 03/01/2025

This business is hereby registered by the following: Semaj Jermaine Bennett 625 Palm Ave Apt 5 National City, CA 91950

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on October 23, 2025 This fictitious business name will expire on October 23, 2030 11/06, 11/13, 11/20, 11/27

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9019935

Fictitious

& Spa 1490 S 43rd St STE B San Diego, CA 92113 County of San Diego This business is conducted by: A Corporation The first day of business was: 09/23/2025 This business is hereby registered by the following: Mini Nails, INC 1490 S 43rd St STE B San Diego, CA 92113 State of Incorporation/ Organization

California

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on September 23, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on September 23, 2030 10/30, 11/06, 11/13, 11/20

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9020231

Fictitious business name(s): Little Star Family Childcare 844 Parkbrook St Spring Valley, CA 91977 County of San Diego

This business is conducted by: A Limited Liability Company

The first day of business was: 08/19/2025 This business is hereby registered by the following: Eloisa Little Star LLC 844 Parkbrook St Spring Valley, CA 91977 State of Incorporation/ Organization California

This statement was filed with the Recorder/County Clerk of San Diego County on October 22, 2025

This fictitious business name will expire on October 22, 2030 10/30, 11/06, 11/13, 11/20

FICTITIOUS BUSINESS NAME STATEMENT 2025-9020124

Fictitious business name(s): Six Bikinis 2718 Worden St San Diego, CA 92110

The court will review the documents filed as of the date specified on the Order to Show Cause for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-120).

If all requirements for a name change have been met as of the date specified, and no timely written objection has been received (required at least two court days before the date specified), the Petition for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-100) will be granted without a hearing. One copy of the Order Granting the Petition will be mailed to the petitioner.

To change a name on a legal document, including a birth certificate, social security card, driver license, passport, and other identification, a certified copy of Decree

Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree

Changing Name and Order

Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be required. Contact the agency(ies) who issue the legal document that needs to be changed, to determine if a certified copy is required.

A certified copy of Decree

Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree

Changing Name and Order

Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be obtained from the Civil Business Office for a fee. Petitioners who are seeking a change of name under the Safe at Home program may contact the assigned department for the information on obtaining certified copies.

If all the requirements have not been met as of the date specified, the court will mail the petitioner a written order with further directions.

If a timely objection is filed, the court will set a hearing date and contact the parties by mail with further directions.

A RESPONDENT OBJECTING TO THE NAME CHANGE MUST FILE A WRITTEN OBJECTION AT LEAST TWO COURT DAYS (excluding weekends and holidays) BEFORE THE DATE SPECIFIED. Do not come to court on the specified date. The court will notify the parties by mail of a future hearing date

Any Petition for the name change of a minor that is signed by only one parent must have this Attachment served along with the Petition and Order to Show Cause, on the other nonsigning parent, and proof of service must be filed with the court.

The address of the court is:

330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101

11/20, 11/27, 12/04, 12/11

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA

330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101

Hall of Justice Courthouse Case Number

25CU061463C

Petitioner or Attorney:

Huynh Anh Vu Nguyen

To All Interested Persons: Petitioner

Huynh Anh Vu Nguyen filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows:

PRESENT NAME:

Huynh Anh Vu Nguyen

PROPOSED NAME: Andy Nguyen

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted.

Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING

Date: January 08, 2026

Time: 8:30 A.M.

Dept. C-61

(To appear remotely, check in advance of the hearing for information about how to do so on the court's website. To find your court's website go to www.courts.ca.gov/find-mycourt.htm)

NO HEARING WILL OCCUR ON THE DATE SPECIFIED IN THE ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE.

The court will review the documents filed as of the date specified on the Order to Show Cause for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-120).

If all requirements for a name change have been met as of the date specified, and no timely written objection has been received (required at least two court days before the date specified), the Petition for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-100) will be granted without a hearing. One copy of the Order Granting the Petition will be mailed to the petitioner.

To change a name on a legal document, including a birth certificate, social security card, driver license, passport, and other identification, a certified copy of Decree Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree

Changing Name and Order

Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be required. Contact the agency(ies) who issue the legal document that needs to be changed, to determine if a certified copy is required.

A certified copy of Decree

Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree

Changing Name and Order Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be obtained from the Civil Business Office for a fee. Petitioners who are seeking a change of name under the Safe at Home program may contact the assigned department for the information on obtaining certified copies.

If all the requirements have not been met as of the date specified, the court will mail the petitioner a written order with further directions.

If a timely objection is filed, the court will set a hearing date and contact the parties by mail with further directions.

A RESPONDENT

OBJECTING TO THE NAME CHANGE MUST FILE A WRITTEN OBJECTION AT LEAST TWO COURT DAYS (excluding weekends and holidays) BEFORE THE DATE SPECIFIED. Do not come to court on the specified date. The court will notify the parties by mail of a future hearing date

Any Petition for the name change of a minor that is signed by only one parent must have this Attachment served along with the Petition and Order to Show Cause, on the other nonsigning parent, and proof of service must be filed with the court.

The address of the court is: 330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101 11/20, 11/27, 12/04, 12/11

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA 330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101 Hall of Justice Courthouse

Case Number 25CU061024C

Petitioner or Attorney: Thi Chin Huynh; Quan Sang Nguyen on behalf of minor

To All Interested Persons: Petitioner Thi Chin Huynh; Quan Sang Nguyen on behalf of minor

filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows:

PRESENT NAME: Huynh Thy Nguyen

PROPOSED NAME: Hari Nguyen

name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING

Date: December 29, 2025 Time: 8:30 A.M. Dept. 61

(To appear remotely, check in advance of the hearing for information about how to do so on the court's website. To find your court's website go to www.courts.ca.gov/find-mycourt.htm)

NO HEARING WILL OCCUR ON THE DATE SPECIFIED IN THE ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE.

The court will review the documents filed as of the date specified on the Order to Show Cause for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-120).

If all requirements for a name change have been met as of the date specified, and no timely written objection has been received (required at least two court days before the date specified), the Petition for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-100) will be granted without a hearing. One copy of the Order Granting the Petition will be mailed to the petitioner.

To change a name on a legal document, including a birth certificate, social security card, driver license, passport, and other identification, a certified copy of Decree

Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree

Changing Name and Order Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be required. Contact the agency(ies) who issue the legal document that needs to be changed, to determine if a certified copy is required.

A certified copy of Decree

Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree

Changing Name and Order Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be obtained from the Civil Business Office for a fee. Petitioners who are seeking a change of name under the Safe at Home program may contact the assigned department for the information on obtaining certified copies.

If all the requirements have not been met as of the date specified, the court will mail the petitioner a written order with further directions.

If a timely objection is filed, the court will set a hearing date and contact the parties by mail with further directions.

A RESPONDENT

OBJECTING TO THE NAME CHANGE MUST FILE A WRITTEN

OBJECTION AT LEAST TWO COURT DAYS (excluding weekends and holidays) BEFORE THE DATE SPECIFIED. Do not come to court on the specified date. The court will notify the parties by mail of a future hearing date

Any Petition for the name change of a minor that is signed by only one parent must have this Attachment served along with the Petition and Order to Show Cause, on the other nonsigning parent, and proof of service must be filed with the court.

The address of the court is: 330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101 11/20, 11/27, 12/04, 12/11

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA

330 W Broadway San Diego, CA 92101 Central Division, Hall of Justice

Case Number 25CU057178C

Petitioner or Attorney:

as follows:

PRESENT NAME: Landera Lee Riley

PROPOSED NAME:

Elanderas Louiseive Riley

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING

Date: December 29, 2025 Time: 8:30 A.M. Dept. 61

(To appear remotely, check in advance of the hearing for information about how to do so on the court's website. To find your court's website go to www.courts.ca.gov/find-mycourt.htm)

NO HEARING WILL OCCUR ON THE DATE SPECIFIED IN THE ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE.

The court will review the documents filed as of the date specified on the Order to Show Cause for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-120).

If all requirements for a name change have been met as of the date specified, and no timely written objection has been received (required at least two court days before the date specified), the Petition for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-100) will be granted without a hearing. One copy of the Order Granting the Petition will be mailed to the petitioner.

To change a name on a legal document, including a birth certificate, social security card, driver license, passport, and other identification, a certified copy of Decree Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree Changing Name and Order Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be required. Contact the agency(ies) who issue the legal document that needs to be changed, to determine if a certified copy is required.

A certified copy of Decree Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree

Changing Name and Order Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be obtained from the Civil Business Office for a fee. Petitioners who are seeking a change of name under the Safe at Home program may contact the assigned department for the information on obtaining certified copies.

If all the requirements have not been met as of the date specified, the court will mail the petitioner a written order with further directions.

If a timely objection is filed, the court will set a hearing date and contact the parties by mail with further directions.

A RESPONDENT OBJECTING TO THE NAME CHANGE MUST FILE A WRITTEN

OBJECTION AT LEAST TWO COURT DAYS (excluding weekends and holidays) BEFORE THE DATE SPECIFIED. Do not come to court on the specified date. The court will notify the parties by mail of a future hearing date

Any Petition for the name change of a minor that is signed by only one parent must have this Attachment served along with the Petition and Order to Show Cause, on the other nonsigning parent, and proof of service must be filed with the court.

330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101

Hall of Justice Courthouse

Case Number 25CU060415C

Petitioner or Attorney:

Nyi'Be Dawn VenableNajee'ullah AKA Nyibe Dawn Venable Najee Ullah AKA Nyibe Dawn Venable AKA Nyibe Dawn VenableNajeeullah

To All Interested Persons: Petitioner Nyi'Be Dawn VenableNajee'ullah AKA Nyibe Dawn Venable Najee Ullah

AKA Nyibe Dawn Venable AKA Nyibe Dawn VenableNajeeullah filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows:

PRESENT NAME:

Nyi'Be Dawn VenableNajee'ullah AKA Nyibe

Dawn Venable Najee Ullah

AKA Nyibe Dawn Venable AKA Nyibe Dawn VenableNajeeullah

PROPOSED NAME: Jai Monae Venable [first] [middle] [last]

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING

Date: January 05, 2026 Time: 8:30 A.M. Dept. 61

(To appear remotely, check in advance of the hearing for information about how to do so on the court's website. To find your court's website go to www.courts.ca.gov/find-mycourt.htm)

NO HEARING WILL OCCUR ON THE DATE SPECIFIED IN THE ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE.

The court will review the documents filed as of the date specified on the Order to Show Cause for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-120).

If all requirements for a name change have been met as of the date specified, and no timely written objection has been received (required at least two court days before the date specified), the Petition for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-100) will be granted without a hearing. One copy of the Order Granting the Petition will be mailed to the petitioner.

To change a name on a legal document, including a birth certificate, social security card, driver license, passport, and other identification, a certified copy of Decree Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree Changing Name and Order Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be required. Contact the agency(ies) who issue the legal document that needs to be changed, to determine if a certified copy is required.

A certified copy of Decree

Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree

Changing Name and Order

Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be obtained from the Civil Business Office for a fee. Petitioners who are seeking a change of name under the Safe at Home program may contact the assigned department for the information on obtaining certified copies.

If all the requirements have not been met as of the date specified, the court will mail the petitioner a written order with further directions.

OBJECTING TO THE NAME CHANGE MUST FILE A WRITTEN

OBJECTION AT LEAST TWO COURT DAYS (excluding weekends and holidays) BEFORE THE DATE SPECIFIED. Do not come to court on the specified date. The court will notify the parties by mail of a future hearing date

Any Petition for the name change of a minor that is signed by only one parent must have this Attachment served along with the Petition and Order to Show Cause, on the other nonsigning parent, and proof of service must be filed with the court.

The address of the court is:

330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101 11/13, 11/20, 11/27, 12/04

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA

330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101 Hall of Justice Courthouse Case Number 25CU059685C

Petitioner or Attorney: Leeann Williamson AKA Leeann W Katz

To All Interested Persons: Petitioner Leeann Williamson AKA Leean W Katz filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows:

PRESENT NAME: Leeann Williamson AKA Leeann W Katz

PROPOSED NAME: Leeann Williamson

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING Date: December 30, 2025 Time: 8:30 A.M. Dept. 61

(To appear remotely, check in advance of the hearing for information about how to do so on the court's website. To find your court's website go to www.courts.ca.gov/find-mycourt.htm)

NO HEARING WILL OCCUR ON THE DATE SPECIFIED IN THE ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE.

The court will review the documents filed as of the date specified on the Order to Show Cause for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-120).

If all requirements for a name change have been met as of the date specified, and no timely written objection has been received (required at least two court days before the date specified), the Petition for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-100) will be granted without a hearing. One copy of the Order Granting the Petition will be mailed to the petitioner.

To change a name on a legal document, including a birth certificate, social security card, driver license, passport, and other identification, a certified copy of Decree Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree Changing Name and Order Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be required. Contact the agency(ies) who issue the legal document that needs to be changed, to determine if a certified copy is required.

program may contact the assigned department for the information on obtaining certified copies.

If all the requirements have not been met as of the date specified, the court will mail the petitioner a written order with further directions.

If a timely objection is filed, the court will set a hearing date and contact the parties by mail with further directions.

A RESPONDENT

OBJECTING TO THE NAME CHANGE MUST FILE A WRITTEN

OBJECTION AT LEAST TWO COURT DAYS (excluding weekends and holidays) BEFORE THE DATE SPECIFIED. Do not come to court on the specified date. The court will notify the parties by mail of a future hearing date

Any Petition for the name change of a minor that is signed by only one parent must have this Attachment served along with the Petition and Order to Show Cause, on the other nonsigning parent, and proof of service must be filed with the court.

The address of the court is: 330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101 11/13, 11/20, 11/27, 12/04

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA 330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101 Hall of Justice Courthouse Case Number 25CU057765C

Petitioner or Attorney: Richard Radoslav Rodic

To All Interested Persons: Petitioner Richard Radoslav Rodic filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows:

PRESENT NAME: Richard Radoslav Rodic

PROPOSED NAME: Aleksandar Noni Rodic [first] [middle] [last]

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING Date: December 22, 2025 Time: 8:30 A.M. Dept. 61

(To appear remotely, check in advance of the hearing for information about how to do so on the court's website. To find your court's website go to www.courts.ca.gov/find-mycourt.htm)

NO HEARING WILL OCCUR ON THE DATE SPECIFIED IN THE ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE.

The court will review the documents filed as of the date specified on the Order to Show Cause for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-120).

If all requirements for a name change have been met as of the date specified, and no timely written objection has been received (required at least two court days before the date specified), the Petition for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-100) will be granted without a hearing. One copy of the Order Granting the Petition will be mailed to the petitioner.

be changed, to determine if a certified copy is required.

A certified copy of Decree Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree Changing Name and Order Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be obtained from the Civil Business Office for a fee. Petitioners who are seeking a change of name under the Safe at Home program may contact the assigned department for the information on obtaining

THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the

Landera Lee Riley

To All Interested Persons: Petitioner Landera Lee Riley filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names

The address of the court is: 330 W Broadway San Diego, CA 92101 11/13, 11/20, 11/27, 12/04

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA

If a timely objection is filed, the court will set a hearing date and contact the parties by mail with further directions.

A RESPONDENT

A certified copy of Decree Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree Changing Name and Order Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be obtained from the Civil Business Office for a fee. Petitioners who are seeking a change of name under the Safe at Home

To change a name on a legal document, including a birth certificate, social security card, driver license, passport, and other identification, a certified copy of Decree Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree Changing Name and Order Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be required. Contact the agency(ies) who issue the legal document that needs to

10/30, 11/06, 11/13, 11/20

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA 330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101

Case Number

25CU056526C

Petitioner or Attorney: Carolyn Gail Murray

To All Interested Persons: Petitioner Carolyn Gail Murray filed a petition with this court for a decree changing names as follows:

PRESENT NAME: Carolyn Gail Murray

PROPOSED NAME: Maritza Del Carmen Ramirez-Murray THE COURT ORDERS that all persons interested in this matter appear before this court at the hearing indicated below to show cause, if any, why the petition for change of name should not be granted. Any person objecting to the name changes described above must file a written objection that includes the reasons for the objection at least two court days before the matter is scheduled to be heard and must appear at the hearing to show cause why the petition should not be granted. If no written objection is timely filed, the court may grant the petition without a hearing.

NOTICE OF HEARING Date: December 16, 2025 Time: 8:30 A.M. Dept. 61

(To appear remotely, check in advance of the hearing for information about how to do so on the court's website. To find your court's website go to www.courts.ca.gov/find-mycourt.htm)

NO HEARING WILL OCCUR ON THE DATE SPECIFIED IN THE ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE. The court will review the documents filed as of the date specified on the Order to Show Cause for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-120). If all requirements for a name change have been met as of the date specified, and no timely written objection has been received (required at least two court days before the date specified), the Petition for Change of Name (JC Form #NC-100) will be granted without a hearing. One copy of the Order Granting the Petition will be mailed to the petitioner. To change a name on a legal

document, including a birth certificate, social security card, driver license, passport, and other identification,

a certified copy of Decree

Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree

Changing Name and Order

Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be required. Contact the agency(ies) who issue the legal document that needs to be changed, to determine if a certified copy is required.

A certified copy of Decree

Changing Name (JC Form #NC-130) or Decree

Changing Name and Order

Recognizing Change of Gender and for Issuance of New Birth Certificate (JC Form #NC-230) may be obtained from the Civil Business Office for a fee. Petitioners who are seeking a change of name under the Safe at Home program may contact the assigned department for the information on obtaining certified copies.

If all the requirements have not been met as of the date specified, the court will mail the petitioner a written order with further directions.

If a timely objection is filed, the court will set a hearing date and contact the parties by mail with further directions.

A RESPONDENT

OBJECTING TO THE NAME CHANGE MUST FILE A WRITTEN

OBJECTION AT LEAST TWO COURT DAYS (excluding weekends and holidays) BEFORE THE DATE SPECIFIED. Do not come to court on the specified date. The court will notify the parties by mail of a future hearing date

Any Petition for the name change of a minor that is signed by only one parent must have this Attachment served along with the Petition and Order to Show Cause, on the other nonsigning parent, and proof of service must be filed with the court.

The address of the court is:

330 West Broadway San Diego, CA 92101

10/30, 11/06, 11/13, 11/20

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF Pedro Manuel Dammert Coronado

Case Number: 25PE003068C

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate or both, of Pedro Dammert, Pedro Dammert Coronado

A Petition for Probate has been filed by Priya C. Singh in the Superior Court of California, County of San Diego.

The Petition for Probate requests that Priya C. Singh be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

The Petition requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act.

(This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority.

A hearing on the petition will be held in this court as follows: November 26, 2025 at 1:30 P.M. in Department 1603 Room 331 located at the

to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney.

If you are a creditor or a contingent creditor of the decedent, you must file your claim with the court and mail a copy to the personal representative appointed by the court within the later of either (1) four months from the date of first issuance of letters to a general personal representative, as defined in section 58(b) of the California Probate Code, or (2) 60 days from the date of mailing or personal delivery to you of a notice under section 9052 of the California Probate Code. Other California statutes and legal authority may affect your rights as a creditor. You may want to consult with an attorney knowledgeable in California law.

You may examine the file kept by the court. If you are a person interested in the estate, you may file with the court a Request for Special Notice (form DE-154) of the filing of an inventory and appraisal of estate assets or of any petition or account as provided in Probate Code section 1250. A Request for Special Notice form is available from the court clerk.

Petitioner:

Priya C. Singh 11672 Alderhill Terrace San Diego, CA 92131 11/6, 11/13, 11/20

NOTICE OF PETITION TO ADMINISTER ESTATE OF Judith Ann Jones aka Judith Ann Clark

Case Number: 25PE003113C

To all heirs, beneficiaries, creditors, contingent creditors, and persons who may otherwise be interested in the will or estate or both, of Judith Ann Jones aka Judith Ann Clark

A Petition for Probate has been filed by Darren Jones in the Superior Court of California, County of San Diego.

The Petition for Probate requests that Darren Jones be appointed as personal representative to administer the estate of the decedent.

The Petition requests authority to administer the estate under the Independent Administration of Estates Act.

(This authority will allow the personal representative to take many actions without obtaining court approval. Before taking certain very important actions, however, the personal representative will be required to give notice to interested persons unless they have waived notice or consented to the proposed action.) The independent administration authority will be granted unless an interested person files an objection to the petition and shows good cause why the court should not grant the authority. A hearing on the petition will be held in this court as follows: December 17, 2025 at 1:30 P.M. in Department 502 located at the Superior Court of California County of San Diego 1100 Union St. San Diego, CA 92101 Central Division - Central Courthouse

If you object to the granting of the petition, you should appear at the hearing and state your objections or file written objections with the court before the hearing. Your appearance may be in person or by your attorney.

If you are a creditor or a contingent creditor

How NBA Legend Isiah Thomas Is Rewriting the Rules

Of Wealth, Industry, and the American

Dream

If you object

By Stacy M. Brown Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

There is something tender and knowing in the way Isiah Thomas speaks about the earth. It is the tenderness of a man who understands struggle and sunlight, who respects what grows slowly and what survives storms. When he began describing how his journey into renewable materials first took root, he started not with profit sheets or projections, but with the living world beneath our feet.

“I began by understanding the plants and the soil,” Thomas told Black Press USA. “Rice, corn, soy, all of these crops work directly with the earth. They are biofeed. They speak to the ground.”

He said he watched how these plants responded to wind, water, and purpose. He spoke of them almost like kin. “They show you what they can become if you pay attention,” the NBA Hall of Famer stated. “They show you how to live with the earth instead of against it.”

From those thoughts came a deeper question. Thomas wanted to know how to reduce plastic use during a time when industries across the world were scrambling to shrink their carbon footprints. “I began looking at how we take carbon out of the system, how we reduce plastics, and whether there was something in these natural fibers that could answer that call,” he said.

He hired engineers. He worked with Stellantis. He poured time and thought into a field most people in his world did not consider.

“There were a lot of research moments, a lot of ups and downs, a lot of failures,” Thomas acknowledged. “But eventually, we got it. And once we got it, we patented the process and started moving it into automotive.”

That path led to a milestone no NBA player had ever reached. Thomas became the first in league history to hold majority control of a publicly traded company, guiding One World Products into its transition as Isiah Enterprises, a clean-tech leader rooted in renewable materials and sustainable production.

His rise in business leadership began with a near-failing facility in Midland, Michigan.

Eco Bio Plastics Midland was close to bankruptcy. Thomas said he saw more than broken machines and struggling workers. “When I looked at that place, I saw a chance to rebuild something. I saw possibility,” he explained.

He bought it. He nurtured it. And under his direction, the company expanded into advanced materials used in vehicles, reusable containers, and packaging solutions. The transformation became the foundation of Isiah Enterprises.

The company began gaining ground. It shipped over 100,000 pounds of pelletized rubber compounds from the Michigan facility, proving that sustainable manufacturing could be scaled with precision and care. “This milestone represents more than just output,” Thomas declared. “It tells us the strategy works.”

The growth continued as One World expanded its Eco Bio Plastics division through a compounding partnership with Full Circle Technologies. “We are processing tens of thousands of pounds of renewable materials every week,” Thomas proclaimed. The expansion opened doors to a massive global packaging industry valued in the trillions and built on earlier successes, including hemp-based reusable containers delivered to Flex-N-Gate in collaboration with ORBIS and West Michigan Compounding.

The two-time NBA champion’s leadership in sustainable innovation stretches back further. He stepped in as CEO of One World Pharma in 2020, bringing with him relationships across continents and a commitment to working honorably with indigenous communities in Colombia. He said the company had “deep commitment to excellence and humanitarian partnership.”

To secure the future he envisioned, Thomas increased his own investment in the company while working alongside institutional backers who believed in the mission. “I wanted to make sure we had the capital we needed to grow responsibly,” the all-time great Detroit Pistons floor general said. He added that long-term supporters helped restructure debt and strengthen operations.

Yet the story that holds his heart rests with family. When asked whether he always dreamed of leading a public company, he shook his head. “It wasn’t always part of the plan,” Thomas related. “What was always part of the plan was uplifting my family out of generational poverty.”

He said some nieces, nephews, and cousins still struggle. The knowledge grounds him. It gives weight to each decision. “I started looking at the penny stock differently,” Thomas said. “I thought about people buying in for one, two, or five dollars. I thought about what that could mean for families like mine.”

He spoke with the memory of someone who has watched wealth pass through other communities without stopping in his own. “We never get a chance to participate at the

ground level,” he said. “The only time we get to play with that kind of money is the lottery. But what if instead of buying tickets, we bought shares? What if we became shareholders and not ticket holders?”

Thomas noted that he watches how wealthy families give stock to their children every holiday. “They pass out stock,” he said. “They stuff the stockings with stock. And by the time those kids are in high school, it is worth something. I want that for other families too.”

His long-term dream is bold. “My goal is to be the first NBA player to uplift a company to the NASDAQ,” Thomas said. “If we take this stock from two cents to a dollar, people can do the math. They will know what it means.”

The challenge now is spreading the word and delivering the applications that industries are demanding. “The automotive and food packaging worlds are calling for alternatives,” he continued. “We have come up with several applications already. Now I have to make sure we execute.”

With a calm that feels both gentle and resolute, Thomas looked toward the horizon of his new work. And with the same tone he used many times on the court when victory required faith, he said, “Now I have to come up with the applications to do it.”

Continued from page 3

When Higher Heights Leadership Fund released our first Black Women in American Politics report in 2014 along with our research partner, The Center for American Women in Politics, just one Black woman served as mayor of one of the nation’s 100 largest cities. Today, that number has grown to eight, matching our share of the U.S. population. In the last de c ade, 18 Black women have served as big-city mayors, including the first to lead cities like Baton

Rouge, Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco.

This is more than a statistic; it’s a sign of transformation. Black women are not only showing up to vote, we’re showing up to govern. These leaders are guiding America’s largest, most complex cities through some of the most politically toxic and racially divisive times, and they’re doing it with grace, innovation, and a deep commitment to equity. From tackling homelessness and housing affordability to rebuilding public trust and defending democracy itself, they are proving that when Black women lead and show up as their full selves, we all move forward.

But electing them is only the beginning. We must be governing partners by creating the environment for them to lead boldly, amplifying their successes, defending them against unjust attacks, and ensuring they have the tools, resources, and respect they need to lead effectively.

As the Black Women in American Politics

report underscores, representation at the executive level matters. It changes how policy is shaped, how communities are served, and how democracy feels to those who’ve too often been left out.

Sheffield’s election is a powerful reminder that when Black women lead, communities thrive. Detroit is now at the forefront of a story of continued renewal, powered by a young, visionary Black woman mayor who believes in the power of collective progress. Her victory lights the path forward, reminding us that even in times of division and doubt, Black women remain democracy’s strongest defender and brightest hope.

Glynda C. Carr is President & CEO of Higher Heights for America, a 501(c)(4) organization, and its sister organization, Higher Heights Leadership Fund, works to expand Black women’s elected representation and voting participation.

Isiah Thomas during the Knicks' game at the Washington Wizards on Jan. 17, 2007. PHOTO: Keith Allison/Wikimedia Commons via blackpressusa.com

1827

EDMUND DÉDÉ IS BORN

Edmund Dédé, born on November 20, 1827 to free Creole parents in New Orleans, and became a violin prodigy trained by leading composers and conductors of the city. After worsening race relations pushed him to Mexico in 1848, he returned to New Orleans to publish “Mon Pauvre Coeur,” the oldest known sheet music by a free Creole of color.

Dédé later moved to Europe, studied at the Paris Conservatory, and built a celebrated career in Bordeaux, composing hundreds of works. He returned to the U.S. briefly in the 1890s before spending his final years in France, where he died in 1903.

1910

PAULI MURRAY IS BORN

Pauli Murray, born on November 20, 1910 in Baltimore, lost both parents young but pushed forward academically, graduating from Hunter College in 1933. Rejected by the University of North Carolina Law School for her race and by Harvard for her gender, she earned her law degree from Howard, a master’s from Berkeley, and in 1965 became the first African American to receive a J.S.D. from Yale.

Murray challenged racial and gender hierarchies, coined “Jane Crow,” co-founded NOW, and later became the first Black female Episcopal priest. She died in 1985.

1998

MEREDITH GOURDINE PASSES AWAY

Meredith C. Gourdine (1929–1998) was an engineer, inventor, and Olympic silver medalist known for pioneering electrogasdynamics. A Brooklyn-raised Cornell graduate, he earned a Ph.D. from Caltech and worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory b ef ore leading major research roles in private industry.

Gourdine later founded Gourdine Laboratories and Energy Innovation, creating technologies like Incineraid and the Focus Flow Heat Sink, ultimately holding 30 patents. Elected to the National Academy of Engineering, he continued inventing until his death on November 20, 1998.