South Valley Review
VOL. 1, NO. 20
December 1, 2017
Better at knowing what matters to you. Page # 4
Trestle Fire
Our Corner of the Valley
Page # 7
Freight Train on the recently-charred Union-Pacific Trestle over the Guadalupe River. The trestle is behind the newer CalTrain bridge with the metal railings. By Larry Ames
The Union Pacific Railway bridge over the Guadalupe River near Willow Street caught fire at 3:15 AM Wednesday morning, Nov. 1, 2017. (To see some pretty impressive video of the fire, go to: http://kron4. com/2017/11/01/videofire-on-caltrain-bridge-insan-jose/ ) Fortunately the San José Fire Department extinguished the fire quickly. Despite the headlines in the newspaper article (“Early fire engulfs train trestle near Willow Glen” / “Fire
that consumed wooden structure was contained within an hour” -- http:// www.mercurynews. com/2017/11/01/fireengulfs-train-trestle-insan-jose-minimal-delaysto-caltrain-service/ ), the damage to the trestle was actually quite minimal. I went out the afternoon of the fire to see the trestle for myself, and I talked with a crew of Union Pacific bridge inspectors who happened to be there and on break. They said that the trestle is fine and suitable for freight trains. I asked about the criteria, and they said they hit the various posts with a hammer: if the char on
the timbers is less than an inch deep, it’ll carry the weight. I told them about our efforts to save a nearby historic trestle for use as a bike/pedestrian bridge and mentioned the concern about fire. They said that, for bikes and pedestrians, the posts could be nearly charred through and still be strong enough! Recently I got a firsthand view of a freight train crossing the trestle. I only had my cell-phone with me, but nonetheless
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Los Gatos Events
Page # 13 Worship Directory SVR Home Delivers Papers To These ZIP CODES 95119 95123 95124 95125 95032 95008 95037 95051 *COMING SOON* 95126 95128
When...Where Symphony Silicon Valley presents The Nutcracker
SVR South Valley Review 2059 Camden Avenue Suite 219 San Jose, CA, 95124 (408) 898 - 7534 Minority Owned Business President: Richard Pugh Richard@southvalleyreview.com Publisher: Brigitte Jones Brigitte@southvalleyreview.com Executive Editor: Sonya Ruffin Editor@southvalleyreview.com Operations/Accounting: Dorothy Pugh Accounting@southvalleyreview.com Graphic Design Director: Amanda Faris Graphics@southvalleyreview.com Assistant to Publisher: Kal-el R. Pugh Editor at Large: Pearl Baeni
SVR welcomes letters to the Editor Please limit content to 200 words or less. Submissions are subject to scrutiny for content and grammar but all effort will be made to retain intended meaning of such letters.
Symphony Silicon Valley presents “The Nutcracker” with the Ballet Stars of Moscow Company December 16 through December 24, 2017 at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts, 255 South Almaden Blvd, San Jose, CA 95113. The tradition of professional ballet in San Jose continues with a full company of Russian dancers direct from Russia and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s magnificent music performed LIVE by Symphony Silicon Valley conducted by Maestro George Daugherty. Make a whole day of it. Park once and visit Christmas in the Park, have a skate at the outdoor Ice Rink Under the Palms next to San Jose Museum of Art, ride the Ferris Wheel and the other rides and games at Winter Wonderland, and enjoy a meal at one of the dozens of eateries within just 3 blocks of the theater. Downtown San Jose is amazing this time of year.
About Symphony Silicon Valley: Founded in 2002, Symphony Silicon Valley has progressed from daring idea to exciting reality, rapidly becoming the greater South Bay’s premiere orchestra and a notable community success story. The Symphony’s artists, nationally recruited, locally resident, with an average performance tenure in San Jose of over 20 years, are recognized as among the best in the greater Bay Area. Led by an exciting roster of distinguished guest conductors on the European model, the Symphony is an anchor tenant of San Jose’s magnificently restored downtown California Theatre, one
Anonymous letters will not be printed.
of Northern California’s most outstanding music halls. There, audiences and critics alike greet its concerts with enthusiasm.
Photos courtesy of Oksana Bondareva and Andrei Bolotin from the 2016 production. Photos by Robert Shomler.
San Jose Center for the Performing Arts 255 South Almaden Blvd. San Jose, CA 95113
Tickets: $38 - $100
Box Office: 408.286.2600 x23 or www.symphonysiliconvalley.org
PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
Saturday, December 16, 2017 at 2:30pm and 7:00pm Sunday, December 17, 2017 at 2:30pm Monday and Tuesday, December 18 and 19 (No Performances) Wednesday, December 20, 2017 at 7:00pm Thursday, December 21, 2017 (No Performance) Friday, December 22, 2017 at 7:00pm Saturday, December 23, 2017 at 2:30pm and 7:00pm Sunday, December 24, 2017 at 2:30pm
FREMONT DERMATOLOGY
39210 State Street #218, Fremont CA 94538
Articles so published reflect the views of the authors - not necessarily those of South Valley Review.
David C. Gorsulowsky, M.D.
Certified American Board of Dermatology Assoc Cln Prof Univ California at San Francisco Cln Assoc Prof Standford Univ School of Medicine
All submissions become the property of B & R Media Group, Inc. and cannot be acknowledged.
Phone: 510-790-0477 Fax: 510-790-1835 By Appointment Only
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OUR DECEMBER EVENTS December 8, 2017 - Woman in Leadership - Meet the Best Series. A discussion with Dotty Hayes, Lili Balfour, and Azita Rashed on Power, Gender, Sexual Identities, Legitimacy, and Professional Success in light of the recent “Me Too� media Events. This is a session specifically tailored for Woman Who Code. We invited the leaders, mentors, and investors to share what it takes to be a leader. December 8, 2017 - Woman Who Code Silicon Valley: Holiday Party 2017 with Carmelo Rosado. Please join Women Who Code Silicon Valley in celebrating 2017 with resounding fanfare! Enjoy an evening of opera music with Carmelo Rosado, co-founder of The Bay Area Opera Collaborate! December 12, 2017 - Google TALK: Opportunities and Challenges for NVMe BGA Storage. If you are building products, starting the company, this talk is a MUST COME: Consumer Products from Google, considerations, specification, and much more. This talk will be focused on the new 11.5x13mm PCIe NVMe BGA SSD and its application in consumer hardware product. The talk will cover its key features, standard progresses, potential applications, and challenges for wide adoption.
Valley Extra Our Corner of the Valley By Scott Taper
The Holiday Season is a time of celebration for not just Christians, but also for Sikhs, Jews and Muslims as well. In the United States, the season starts with Thanksgiving and ends with the African American week of celebration, known as Kwanzaa. The celebration of The Prophet Muhammad always takes place in the 12th month of Islamic month of Rabi’ al-awwal, while Shi’a Muslims mark it on the 17th day of this month, usually a Monday, which matches December every year. Usually it is marked by either a day of
celebration and fasting. The Jewish holiday is marked by Hanukkah and the lighting of the menorah, signifying the miracle of a small amount of oil lasting 8 days to cleanse a desecrated temple. The holiday also marks the revolt and victory over the Greeks who persecuted them. Each year it is celebrated during the Jewish Lunar month, therefore it may occur anytime between late November and late December. Indian holidays are many and many may celebrate the same holidays as everyone else does, much as Americans
do. Sikhs, however celebrate the Guru Govind Singh Jayanti birthday on December 25th in much same way as Christmas is Celebrated. Last is Kwanzaa, a holiday that was literally made up that has no religious background,
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but is based solely on the celebration of spirit, unity, and perseverance, a harvesting of the principles that guide and unify them, literally, “first fruits”. It celebrates 7 principles of guidance and takes place on December 26th and continues daily
thorough January 1st. We are all are so different and yet we are the same during these Holidays…we are happy, giving, and we remember why we celebrate and who we are. Happy Holidays! Sources: http://www. history.com/topics/ holidays/kwanzaahistory; https://www. timeanddate.com/ holidays/muslim/prophetbirthday; https://www. simpletoremember.com/ articles/a/jewsandjesus/; https://www.timeanddate. com/holidays/india/gurugovind-singh-jayanti
Scott Taper is a biweekly contributor who consults in the field of commercialization and licensing of patented technologies/ consumer products. Send inquiries to staper@scitechcal.com with subject line “Our Corner of the Valley”
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Gratitude Cityteam served 700 Thanksgiving Meals For 60 years Cityteam has been providing care for men, women and children in need in our community. This year the Bay Area community has stepped up in a big way to donate their time, treasures and turkeys to help thousands of lowincome families, the
elderly and homeless individuals to a wonderful Thanksgiving feast. Guests were able to watch NFL football games, receive haircuts, footwashing and was given new and used shoes and coats to prepare for the Winter season. “We are grateful for
your generosity, your commitment to ending homelessness through the dignity of hope, and your desire to make your community-our community-strong, beautiful and vibrant.� The DST Family About Cityteam: Cityteam is a non-profit
organization serving the poor and homeless in San Jose since 1957. Cityteam has provided life-saving hot meals, emergency food boxes, safe shelter, clothing, showers, longterm recovery programs, learning & career skills, counseling and other essential care 365 days
a year for men, women and children who are in desperate need to find ways to survive and make real life changes while they find real hope. For more information, visit www.cityteam.org
Place Your Ad Here! Email South Valley Review at advertising@southvalleyreview.com Promote Your business with Us! Y5Z
29th ANNUAL CHRISTMAS AT THE WINERY Guglielmo Winery, Morgan Hill
The 29th Annual Christmas at the Winery is Guglielmo Winery’s annual holiday event. It will feature award winning wine sampling, gourmet food tasting and carolers. Beautiful holiday décor and other Christmas gifts will also be available in the gift shop daily through Christmas Eve. Admission is $10. Anyone under 21 is free. December 2, 3, 9, 10 from 10am to 5pm.
Guglielmo Winery 1480 East Main Ave Morgan Hill, CA 95037 ABOUT GUGLIELMO WINERY: Guglielmo Family Winery was founded by Emilio Guglielmo in 1925 and has been producing high-quality and award-winning wines ever since. Sitting on more than 80 acres in the Santa Clara Valley, Guglielmo produces about 40,000 cases of wine annually under three different labels: Guglielmo Private Reserve, TRÉ, and their oldest label, Emile’s. Although the Guglielmo Family Winery has grown since its birth, the winery holds on strong to their core value of maintaining natural, quality wines to share with both family and friends.
Holiday Los Gatos Events
South Valley Review is on the hunt for sales staff! If you are interested, please contact Us at editor@
southvalleyreview.com! Yule Love It Totes Carry your holiday purchases in style. Reusable, jute tote with Los Gatos Yule Love It logo. Includes special offers from local merchants. $10 each. To purchase, visit the Chamber office at 10 Station Way, Los GatoS,
Holiday Stroll December 10 - Town Plaza Park Enjoy a day of activities and shopping! Family activities in Town Plaza Park with great holiday shopping around town.
• Visit with Santa (sponsored by Los Gatos Saratoga Recreation) • Arts & Crafts with NUMU & the Farmers Market • Story walk in the park • Strolling carolers • Live music from local youth • Snow • Hot Chocolate
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District 6 News Trestle Fire Cont’
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here is photographic evidence that the trestle was not “consumed” or even significantly damaged by the fire. The viewing angle was not great and there are two parallel bridges there: the newer concrete bridge in the foreground is used by CalTrain, and behind it is the older Union Pacific steel-and-concrete bridge with a wooden trestle-like “entrance ramp” -- the part that caught on fire. As can be seen in the photo, the train is on that second bridge, as both sets of hand-rails on the foreground bridge are plainly visible. Trestle fires can produce toxic smoke, due to the creosote. House fires also produce toxic smoke, due to the carpets, vinyl and plastic contents, furniture, wiring and insulation, etc. Creosote is like a car tire: both produce black smoke, yet both continue to be in common use -- and both are actually quite difficult to ignite.
December 9 & 10 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. No Early Birds Cash Only
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The restoration plans for the Willow Glen Trestle include fire sprinklers (to suppress any nearby brush- or trash-fires) and an alarm system. There are three fire stations within a mile and a quarter with easy access to the trestle. Fire is not good for wood, but fire is not good for metal, either. As engineers and architects can tell you, metal weakens when heated. At the temperature of a small brush- (or trash-) fire, steel will lose 90% of its “yieldstrength”: the metal doesn’t melt, but the structure will crumple. In many cases, wood can actually be better than metal: the wood chars on the outside but remains strong within, whereas the metal can quickly
crumple. You can observe this for yourself. Go look at the Willow Glen Trestle, and you can see the damage from a brush fire a decade ago. The wood beams are charred but still strong, but the metal catwalk sagged: if that metal had been in a structural truss, the whole structure might have crumpled and collapsed. Here is a link to a technical paper on the yield-strength of steel and a photo of the sagged catwalk I submitted some years ago on the Willow Glen Trestle - see http:// www.wgtrestle.org/LLA_ DEIR_comments.pdf , pages 3 and 4. So a trestle fire is like a Baked Alaska Flambé: the fire can be very showy, but the inner part is just fine so long as the fire is extinguished in a timely manner.
Dr. Larry Ames Mad Scientist (retired) - satellites, optics, metrology Professional Citizen Activist - creeks, trails, parks, environment, history, community
Larry@L-Ames.com
WGTrestle.org
Helpful Hands Thanksgiving Food Box Distribution
This program—which began in 1964— ensures families can continue their own holiday traditions. In December, SHCS will distribute another 3,200 turkeys. Over the weekend, 400 volunteers
rolled up their sleeves and came to SHCS to sort and pack boxes of nonperishable food. Families will also receive fresh produce and a turkey—over 50lbs of food.
The holiday season is a sense of home and joy, but for many the sense of home has been lost. Families in San Jose are feeling a sense of displacement from the high cost of rent,
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deportations, and natural disasters like the flood that hit Coyote Creek last February. SHCS’s Holiday Program brings the community together to ensure people can continue their own holiday traditions. It’s also an
opportunity for members of the community to work with us beyond the holidays and join SHCS’s committees and networks working on social justice issues including renters’ rights, and immigration.
Sacred Heart Community Service
1381 S. First Street (at Alma) San José
www.sacredheartcs.org
Worship Directory Santa Teresa Hills Presbyterian Church 5370 Snell Ave, San Jose, CA 95123 (2 blocks north of Blossom Hill Rd on Snell) (408) 629-5906 Email: santateresahills@gmail.com
We are a friendly, progressive, multicultural church striving to understand and apply the teachings of Jesus Christ. All are welcome!! Come visit us and participate in opportunities for spiritual growth, fellowship, and community outreach. We can pursue our faith journeys together! Sunday services are at 10:00AM with children’s Sunday school and nursery care available on site. Handicapped and hearing impaired services available. Visit our website for sample sermons, photos and a lot more information www.sthpc.org We look forward to meeting you!!
First Congregational Church of San Jose United Church of Christ 1980 Hamilton Ave., San Jose, CA 95125 (At the corner of Hamilton and Leigh) (408) 377-7121 www.firstccsj.org
We are a progressive, Open and Affirming, welcoming congregation of faithful people who seek to wrestle with scripture, and live out our faith, in the real world. We are far from perfect, but we try to offer as wide a welcome as possible, and invite you to join us on the community path, wherever it takes us. We offer lively, multi-generational worship on Sunday mornings at 10:00 AM (nursery care provided). We have regular educational programs for all ages, children through adults, and a variety of groups and offerings for spiritual development and service. Come check us out and find a community for the journey.
To showcase your listing in our Worship Directory or if you have any questions, please email editor@southvalleyreveiw.com.
District 2 News Ask about our 3.5% Total Commission!!!
You are invited to join council member Sergio Jimenez and fellow D2 Community Members to celebrate the end of the year at our Holiday Appreciation Party and Awards Ceremony! Enjoy great company, light holiday refreshments, and a chance to meet Santa Claus.
Kids are back to school and it is a great time to list your home!!!
Councilmember Jimenez will be recognizing neighbors for their outstanding service to the community. The District 2 office will be honoring award winners in the following 5 categories.
1. Neighbor of the Year Award 2. Community Leader Award 3. Outstanding Youth Award 4. Stellar Senior Award 5. City Employee Award
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