Discovery Bay Press_04.02.10

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APRIL 2, 2010 COMMUNITY THEPRESS.NET | 3A

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CCWD expected to drop drought program

The rain dances and prayers to the rain gods by Californians paid off this winter, ending three years of drought, replenishing depleted reservoirs and likely ending the Contra Costa Water Districts Drought Management Program that took effect last May.

The rains that began falling last fall and continued regularly through winter into spring have resulted in a Sierra snow pack at 107 percent of average levels and water storage in the Shasta Reservoir at 101 percent of average, CCWD Board Member Bette Boatmun told the Antioch City Council on March 23.

The CCWD board is expected to vote Wednesday, April 7 to replace the drought program, which was designed to reduce water usage by 15 percent, with a conservation program that encourages effi cient use of water while not setting a specifi c reduction target. The program is expected to go into effect May 1.

CCWDs 550,000 customers, including those in Antioch and Oakley, proved to be more than up to the drought program challenge. From May through February they reduced their water usage by 20 percent in comparison with 2005-07. They were perhaps motivated by the drought

programs penalty; an excess use charge of four times the normal rate for those who used more water than in the past.

That penalty will be disappearing under the conservation program for about 95 percent of customers. But those using more than 1,000 gallons per day would still pay a penalty of twice the normal rate for the amount in excess of 1,000 gallons or their historical usage.

Boatmun also discussed CCWDs Alternative Intake Project on Victoria Island near Old River, which the districts Web site touts as the most signifi cant Delta drinking water quality project to complete planning studies, design and begin construction in the past decade.

The project, which began in 2004 and is scheduled for completion this year, includes a 250-cubic-foot-per-second pump station, a concrete intake structure with a fi sh screen similar to Old River Pump Station, a building to house electrical and control equipment, electrical substation and surge control tanks. It also includes the now-complete installation of approximately 12,000 feet of 72-inch pipe across Victoria Island with tunneling beneath Old River to the Districts Old River Pump Station, where it will be connected to existing conveyance facilities. It will be a big improvement for us, said Boatmun.

To comment, visit www.thepress.net.

by Dave RobertsStaff Writer

Senate power plant billcould generate money

While the City of Oakley awaits news from the California Energy Commission regarding the fate of the proposed Oak-ley Generating Station, representatives of the city will travel to Sacramento later this month to support a bill that could bring Oakley up to $4 million annually in prop-erty taxes.

Sen. Mark DeSaulnier, who repre-sents Oakley, introduced Senate Bill 1398 in February. An amendment to existing legislation created by Sen. Tom Torlakson in 2006, the bill provides cities and counties with incentives to approve the construction of new power plants. Under this law, local jurisdictions are able to acquire additional property-tax revenues to support commu-nity programs, but the legislation fails to include redevelopment agencies. In Oakleys case, the proposed Oakley Generating Sta-tion would be built on the former DuPont property located in Oakleys redevelopment district.

According to an SB 1398 fact sheet distributed by DeSaulniers offi ce, under the current law, the tax increment allocated to the Oakley Redevelopment Agency from a new power generating facility would be exceptionally small approximately .05

percent. However, SB 1398 will remedy that, adding the Oakley Redevelopment Agency to the current defi nition of where power-generating facilities can be located for the purpose of directing a portion of these new property tax revenues toward the revitaliza-tion efforts of the redevelopment agency

This bill was designed specifi cally for Oakley, said Eric Zell, Radback govern-ment affairs consultant. If passed, it would be of enormous benefi t to Oakley, allowing the city to gain $4 million annually.

Representatives from the City of Oak-ley, including Mayor Pat Anderson, plan to testify at a April 21 Senate committee hear-ing to support the project. If the fi ve-mem-ber Senate Policy Committee approves the project, the bill will require approval from the Senate Finance Committee before con-sideration by the full Senate in June.

From that point, the bill will undergo a similar process in the State Assembly. Zell said he is confi dent that SB 1398 will pass in the Senate and the Assembly and that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will sign it by the end of September.

As the bill is not an urgent matter, since the plant has yet to be approved by the Cali-fornia Energy Commission, the law wont go into effect until January of 2011 if ap-proved.


by Samie HartleyStaff Writer

4A | THEPRESS.NET COMMUNITY APRIL 2, 2010

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Rhapsody Ranch offers peace and purpose

When Pamela Doheney and her husband Bill moved out to their 5-acre ranch in Knightsen, Pamela admits she wasnt much of a country girl: When I lived in town (Brentwood) I was afraid of spiders; I never wanted to get dirty; I was defi nitely not an outside girl.

But as she and her husband grew their ranch, including adding horses, a covered arena and a barn, Pamela came to fi nd a peace and contentment from caring for her horses that she had never experienced before, and she began to hatch a plan.

You know, feeling that love that comes from animals, I cant describe it. Its just an unconditional love, said Pamela. I began to feel that when we got our horses and I wanted to pass it on to others, I wanted to share that. Its been a longtime dream of mine.

In just a few weeks, the Doheneys will begin sharing that dream when they open their ranch, and their hearts, to those in need. Rhapsody Ranch is a nonprofi t organization that helps disadvantaged children ages 7 to 17, as well as young women and adults, fi nd strength, peace and comfort in the quiet friendship of the horses and the healing powers of the ranch. The program is free to all and programs are available by appointment and will be offered three days a week for 90-minute sessions.

I want people to be able to come out here to the ranch and be in a place thats not

surrounded in concrete, said Pamela. I want them to fi nd the peacefulness out here and to improve their lives with self-esteem and confi dence.

Rhapsody Ranch is currently home to two and a half horses We have a miniature horse called Danny, and hes my half, laughed Pamela. Visitors may ride, groom and care for the horses, but there are lots of other things to do at the ranch.

My goal is really to get them (visitors) to where they want to be near a horse. Once they get up there, theyll enjoy it, said

Pamela. But I will give everyone choices and ask them what they want to do.

The ranch will also offer arts and crafts, a library, gardening and even stargazing on clear evenings. And if theyre not ready for the larger horses, they can groom and bathe Danny (the miniature horse). Hes more their size and not so intimidating, said Pamela. Hell probably be the cleanest miniature horse in the county.

But mainly, what the Doheneys hope Rhapsody Ranch will provide is a sense of peace and purpose; the same kind of

purpose that spurred them to establish their nonprofi t organization.

This may sound kind of corny, but I just dont feel right having all this and not sharing it with others, said Pamela. I want to leave some kind of a legacy and Im happy to be able to have this. Were in a good spot right now; were on an adventure and its all about the journey.

For more information on Rhapsody Ranch, visit www.rhapsodyranch.org or call 925-516-0474.


Alison Weidenheimer takes a turn on Copper at Rhapsody Ranch in Knightsen. Pamela Doheney, seen with friend Danny, is the owner and operator of Rhapsody Ranch in Knightsen.

Photos by Ruth Roberts

by Ruth RobertsStaff Writer


Relay illuminated with hopeAfter 12 hours of walking the track as

part of Relay For Life, the mood of cel-ebration transitions to a time of refl ection as hundreds of white bags are lit around the Relay route in memory of those who have lost their battle to cancer.

The Luminaria Ceremony represents the Relay theme Remember. At the half-way mark of the 24-hour Relay events, activities on the track cease so that par-ticipants may take a moment to remember loved ones lost, and what Relay is all about: raising money for a cure so that no more

lives are claimed by cancer. Three of the fundraisers for the American Cancer Soci-ety will be held in East County this year: in Oakley (May 1-2), Brentwood (June 12-13) and Antioch (June 26-27).

The Luminaria ceremony includes testimonials from guest speakers who have gone through the process of caring for a loved one battling cancer, sharing their grief with the hundreds of Relay walkers. Following the speeches, Relay participants take a lap of silence to pay their respects and to honor the brave souls who lost their battle and those who are still fi ghting. As the night goes on, the names of those who have died of cancer are scrolled on a large

screen.Everything kind of stops for the Lu-

minaria Ceremony, said Jeff Schults, who served as Brentwood Relays Luminaria chair last year. We take an hour or so to remember the people, our loved ones, whose lives were lost to cancer. When you lose someone like that, you never really get over it completely, so the night is spent in that kind of mood as everyone grieves at their own pace. Its a quiet time a solemn time. Some people only have one Luminar-ia bag to visit. Others take longer because they have several bags to visit.

A woman takes a moment to read

the names of the luminaria bags placed around

the Liberty High School track

as part of the Brentwood

Relay For Life. The Luminaria Ceremony is a

Relay tradition, providing a time

for re ection and grieving.

Photo by Richard Wisdom


see Relay page 15A

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Civilization hops onto floral fast-trackThe universe is large, and getting larger. In the time

it takes you to fi nish this sentence, the universe will have expanded in volume by 100 trillion cubic light years. Period. But run the video backward 13.7 billion years and youll see the universe shrink to a mere mathematical point. Call it the cosmic seed, inscribed in the most infi nitesimal handwriting,

like DNA, with instructions for the universe in its totality: galaxies and gad-fl ies, planets and plankton. You and me.

I like to imagine God as the Great Gardener: creating a seed with the simplicity of the primal elements yet potential for the staggering complexity 13.7 billion years of expansion accrues; planting it in the coldest of soils, the nothingness before time and space; and with one searing command, one blast of incandescent breath, setting it in motion.

This could be one reason why the image of wildfl owers in spring strikes such a resonant chord in us. Woven into the fabric of our world is the pattern of darkness to light, cold to warmth death to rebirth enacted yearly in the reawakening of sterile and shriveled meadows into orgies of color and fragrance.

If youre itching for springs wildfl ower theater to fl ing open its doors, youre in for a treat. East County has some of the best seats in the house. Round Valleys Hardy Canyon Trail has thrown the switch on the violet voltage of Ithuriels spear and ookow. On the red side of the spectrum, Oil Can-yon Trail (Upper and Lower) at Black Diamond Mines is strewn with the scarlet spikes of Indian paintbrush and the orange corolla of California poppies and scarlet pimpernel. Do you yearn for yellow? Take a stroll along Los Vaqueros Mariposa Canyon Trail, where buttercups swarm like stars.

And those with a penchant for purple should check out the suburban sprawl of Chinese houses along the Falls Trail at Mt. Diablo State Park.

Theres another reason why wildfl owers should fi ll us with awe and gratitude: without them, the human race might never have come into existence.

A hundred million years ago not a single fl ower adorned our planet. It was a world in slow motion. The reproductive processes of plants required either direct access to water (through swamps, lakes, river systems, dew and raindrops) or wind-borne pollen-like particles. Some plants had developed primitive seeds, but the spread of plant life proceeded at a glacial pace.

Dominating the landscape were creatures with slow metabolism, the cold-blooded dinosaurs. They were slaves to the mercury level, plodding through their habitat in the warmth of daylight but largely inactive at night. Warm-blooded creatures existed in this Cretaceous Period but were hardly the dominant life form. They ranged from rat-like dwellers of trees and underbrush to lizard-like birds lurching through the primal skies.

Then, as the Age of Reptiles was coming to an end, something miraculous happened as miraculous as creation itself. The fi rst simple fl ower opened its petals. And the world changed.

Unlike a spore, the seed of a fl ower is a fully outfi tted embryonic plant, a survivalists doomsday bunker stuffed with nutrients capable of sustaining the sprout. And armed with pollen, nectar, and seeds wrapped in a mantle of fruit, the ancient fl ower began attracting insects for pollination and exploiting birds and mammals for transportation. It developed featherdown for sailing on the wind and hooks for snagging a ride on a passerbys hide. The angiosperms

An intimate view of the inner sanctum of our state ower, the California orange poppy.

Photo by Ger Erickson

see Outside page 7A

TAKE ITOUTSIDE

GERERICKSON

APRIL 2, 2010 OUTDOORS THEPRESS.NET | 7A

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credit that will go into effect on May 1, 2010, which is the day after the Federal tax credits expire. The credit is the lesser of 5% of the pur-chase price, or $10,000. This credit is redeemed in equal installments over three years. So if you qualify for a $9,000 credit, that will mean a $3,000 credit for each of the next three tax years. It applies to purchases where the contract was signed on or after May 1, 2010, and the transaction closes by December 31, 2010. The closing can stretch out as far as August 1, 2011 as long as you were in contract on or before December 31, 2010. You will have to live in the home for at least two years, or you have to repay the credit to the state. You also cant use this credit to buy a home from a relative. The California government has set aside a maxi-mum of $200 Million for this credit, so they will probably run out of money within a few months like what happened with the last credit. First-come, first-served, and if you are too late, no credit for you.

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(encased seeds) were off to the races.The dinosaurs disappeared with

stunning abruptness. A special fl owering, seed-producing plant we call grass made its debut. Grasslands swept across the continents, providing a nutritious buffet for the great herbivores, the horse and bison, and indirectly for their predators, the dire wolf and saber-toothed tiger.

Peering meekly from the forest at the great game herds was another creature. Like the other mammals his metabolic rate was high, requiring an energy-rich diet to sustain body warmth and effi cien-cy. He was small, and abandoned the trees awkwardly on his hind legs, no match for the bison. But once he learned to heave a rock, swing a fl int axe and build a fi re,

he, like the fl ower before him, hopped onto the reproductive fast track. And like the predators before which he had once cowered, he began taking ever-greater amounts of energy indirectly from the grass.

Indirectly until that moment out on the waist-high savannah when he concep-tualized the grass seed, the ancestor of wheat, as a thing to grow and consume for its own sake. That moment was itself a seed. From it would sprout cities and civi-lizations in countless succession, to our present time and beyond, rising and fall-ing in ten thousand springs and winters of human history. The gift of the fl ower.

With acknowledgement to How Flow-ers Changed the World by Loren Eiseley. To comment, visit www.thepress.net.

Outside from page 6A

Photo byGer Erickson

The wild ower

known as winter vetch

crowds the shoulder

of the Stewartville

Trail at Antiochs

Black Diamond

Mines Regional Preserve.

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Final WeekEVERYTHING MUST GO!

Band members from Liberty and Heri-tage high schools returned to classes this week with a little hula in their step after at-tending the Pacifi c Basin Music Festival in Hawaii last week.

The bands, which represented two of the 12 bands selected to participate in the international program, had the opportu-nity to play alongside musicians from Japan, Australia, Singapore and the Kingdom of Tonga, perform at public venues and receive a professional critique from some of the most respected musicians and conductors in the world.

Heritage Band Director Steve Ernest said the band greatly benefi ted from the ex-

perience and hed like to send the band to more festivals of this caliber when funds are available in the budget.

Being a part of an international fes-tival, which draws groups from around the Pacifi c Rim, is inspiring and enlightening, Ernest said. The groups we heard from Singapore opened our ears to the possibili-ties any group of high musical caliber can produce. The band is now inspired to work harder and achieve that level of success.

The band also had the opportunity to sit in with a band from Australia and play each others songs. Emily Grace, a senior who plays French horn, said the collabora-tion with the Australian band was one of the highlights of the six-day trip, but her favorite

Bands enjoy spring break Hawaii style

Photo by Kathi Reed

Leaving their mark in the sands of Waikiki Beach, members of the Heritage High School Band, from left, Emily Grace, Michael Mehlberg, Melina Duterte, Josh Chang, Trevor Steadman and Parker Johnson, recently attended the Paci c Basin Music Festival where they performed and collaborated with bands from around the world.


see Bands page 11A

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10A | THEPRESS.NET EDUCATION APRIL 2, 2010

Brentwood schools shine at Odyssey event

Krey Elementary students, left, took home third-place honors at the state level of the recent Odyssey of the Mind competition held at Heritage High School. Loma Vista Elementarys Odyssey of the Mind fourth-grade Discovered Treasures team, above, in-cluded, top row from left, Emily Bernamonti, Riley Ehlen, Caitlyn Graves and Shaylee Hanson; bottom row: Madeline Koontz, Jaden Rodriguez and Maya Davies.Photo courtesy of Larry Plate

Brentwood elementary students made outstanding showings at last weekends Cal-ifornia Odyssey of the Mind competition, highlighted by a pair of teams that earned the right to represent Brentwood for the fi rst time at the world fi nals in May. More than 100 schools participated in the competition, which was held at Heritage High School for the third straight year.

Brentwood Elementarys two fi fth-grade teams earned fi rst-place awards and the right to head to Michigan State Univer-sity for the fi nal competition. The schools Food Court team, coached by Bart Sch-neider, Jessica McCurdy and Michelle Va-ladez, includes students Casey Schneider, Will McCurdy, Tyler Valadez, Sam Gold-man, Jack Mitchener, Emily Gonzalez and Gillian Gash. Its fi rst-place Nature Trail team features Veronika Wallace, Allyson Russell, Hannah Eelsing, Cole Zanarini,

Cody Rohrbacker and Nathan Barsanti, and is coached by Susan Wallace and Ly-nelle Russell.

Krey Elementarys Nature Trail team placed third narrowly missing the oppor-tunity to join its cross-town counterpart on the trip to Michigan. The team was coached by Lori and Al Churby, and fi elded students Angelo DeJesus, Steven Plate, Jennifer Plate, Kaila Malzahn, Ahmed Alani, Stone Churby and Giovanni Alvarez. Finish-ing eighth last weekend was Loma Vistas

fourth-grade Discovered Treasures team: Emily Bernamonti, Riley Ehlen, Caitlyn Graves, Shaylee Hanson, Madeline Koontz, Jaden Rodriguez and Maya Davies.

Odyssey of the Mind is an international educational program that provides creative problem-solving opportunities for students from kindergarten through college.

For a complete list of Odyssey of the Mind winners, visit www.calomer.org/joomla.



Photo courtesy of April Koontz

Robbie Pierce is working on a novel about brave new worlds, and Jordan Perkins is developing a story about teenage love. Vic-tor Saude is penning a poem about baseball, while Aiden Tilcock is entering the realm of fantasy fi ction.

My story is about living food in a refrig-erator, said Aiden. The waffl e is the main character and he helps all the other food hide whenever a human opens the door. So the human ends up wondering where the box of waffl es went or what happened to the vegeta-bles. Its fun.

For one hour each week these budding Tolkiens, J.K. Rowlings and Stephanie Mey-ers converge on the computer lab at OHara Park Middle School and let the creative juices fl ow.

These kids come willingly each week to write, edit or share their works in progress with each other, said Joni Whalin, teacher/advisor of the aptly named Writers Club. Im just so impressed by them. They are here simply be-cause they want to be.

The purpose of the club is to allow these students to write, edit and share if they wish their work with others who share their pas-sion for writing. Many of the students in Wha-lins class submit poems and short stories to the Young Writers Contest and other youth-oriented writing competitions, although thats not a requirement of the club.

Most of these kids are GATE stu-dents and they have very full schedules and workloads, so for them to commit to coming here once a week is something, said Whalin. There is no way they can complete their writ-ing within the time constraints of our club meetings, so much of their work is done at home. But this gives them at least an hour a week to spend doing what they love. Their dedication is quite incredible.

As is their confi dence. Nathan Reinders is

currently working on three novels, two sci-fi ad-ventures and one kind of mythological story. Working on three transcripts at one time is no problem for the sixth-grader, as he already has the storylines and endings worked out. I get bored working on just one book, said Nathan, so I like to have a few going at a time.

Seventh-grader Tyler Zahn is taking it one project at a time, and is currently working on a story about a kid who has had an abu-sive, crappy life so he decides to go off and live in the forest, said Tyler, who added that the weekly writing class is good for him because it forces him to be more disciplined.

Lexie Delarosa agreed. I like expressing myself, and this class is good for that, said the seventh-grader, who recently fi nished a poem about a real-life argument she got into with a friend and how she felt about it. I have a lot of other distractions at home so this gives me a quiet place to work.

And while their interests and storylines vary, the one thing these young writers share

is an appetite for reading and a love of writ-ing. For them, the joy is all in the process. Its not hard for me (writing), its just something I like to do, said sixth-grader Natasha Cocke. I keep a journal at home and I read a lot, so that helps. And I kind of feel relaxed when Im writing.

Since some of the students have consid-ered a career in writing, one of the benefi ts of participating in the writing contests is learn-ing how to submit work for publication. Ive thought about it (a career in writing) before, said Tyler. Im going to see if I can get pub-lished fi rst and then see what happens.

Whalins role is that of advisor, mentor and listening post, but there are days, she con-ceded, when she feels more like the student than teacher: I leave here every Monday just thrilled and impressed by these students and their willingness and their talent. Theyre just a great group of kids.


part was being able to share the Hawaiian ex-perience with her band mates.

What Ill remember from Hawaii was the sense of unity we felt as a band, Grace said. We woke up every morning and had breakfast together, we went to the beach together, we shopped together and, when it came down to it, we performed together. It was fantastic.

Junior Trevor Steadman, who plays baritone sax, said his favorite part of the trip was getting the chance to meet people from different cultures that share his love of mu-sic. Every day when you went to rehearsal or just met someone from another band on the beach, you had the opportunity to meet a new person or a different culture altogether. These spontaneous occurrences made each day a new adventure and added a spark to the already awesome experience.

We got to talk one-on-one and see where their band was from, how their culture infl uenced their musicianship and what they did to get here. This is where the most self-re-fl ection occurred, and it gave each person an individual perspective on where he or she is as a musician and what it takes to reach that

next level of excellence.Liberty Band Director Carey Hurst

said the Lions also enjoyed their Hawaiian

adventure, learning a lot about music and enjoying the sunshine.

This was a really great experience for

the kids, Hurst said. We got to do a lot of fun Hawaii things like surfi ng, snorkel-ing and parasailing; those kids just love the beach. We also got to visit Pearl Harbor and do some sightseeing, but the trip was all about the music. We got to learn from a lot of different bands, and this is an experience they wouldnt get anywhere else.

Hurst said one of the highlights of the trip was sitting in on a workshop hosted by Stephen Williams, one of Australias most accomplished conductors. Williams spent an hour working with the Liberty band, giv-ing the students pointers on how to improve their performances.

The students learned so much in such a short time, and we all really appreciate how the community supported our fundraising efforts to help us get there, Hurst said. It was a dream come true, and we wouldnt have been able to go without the ongoing support of the Brentwood community.

Hurst said shed also like to take mem-bers of the Liberty band back to the Pacifi c Basin Festival, but for the next few years, the band will return to its usual tour schedule, visiting Disneyland in the spring.


APRIL 2, 2010 EDUCATION THEPRESS.NET | 11A

Bands from page 8A

Photo by Lisa Mitchener

Students from Liberty High Schools concert and symphonic bands attended the Paci c Basin Music Festival in Hawaii last week. As part of the trip, the students visited the Battleship Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor.

Writers pen more than words

Each Monday afternoon, these students spend an hour channeling their creative energy as members of the OHara Park Middle School Writers Club.

Photos by Ruth Roberts


G a r i n Elementary School, the second el-e m e n t a r y school es-tablished in Brentwood, will cel-ebrate its 40th birthday this year with a special party for students, staff and alumni on Friday, April 30 from 4 to 8 p.m.

The event features a barbecue dinner and other refreshments, celebratory activities and games, and a historical display outlining Garins past. Former Garin teach-er Wanda Groseclose and students from her 1984 fi fth-grade class will provide a blast from the past as they open a time capsule the stu-dents buried 26 years ago.

Event organizers are in search of alumni willing to donate pic-tures for the historical display and speak at the event. If you have any information to share about Garin and its history, e-mail [email protected]. If you would like to speak during the alumni ceremony, e-mail Garin Principal Stacy Joslin at [email protected].

Garins 40th Birthday Bash will take place on the Garin cam-pus, 250 First St. in Brentwood. All proceeds from the event will be donated to the Garin Parents Club to support Garin programs.

Garin turns 40

Local employment can be doggone hardto track down these days.Thats why our website islinked to the CommunityEmployment Connection.With a couple of clicks, youll behot on the trail of employmentinformation, upcoming jobfairs, career resources andjob listings from local media,as well as nearby employment centers.

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14A | THEPRESS.NET APRIL 2, 2010

Its a Matter of LawBy Amy Alvis & Barbara A. Frantz

HEY, THATS MY STUFF!My client wants to hire an expert con-

sultant to make part of a product that my cli-ent is manufacturing. Both parties are very talented with respect to their particular areas of expertise, but they need each other in order to have a successful product. My client wants to make sure that he has all the rights to the finished product, and that the consul-tant cant re-sell his part of the technology to someone else. The consultant feels that his contribution will revolutionize the industry that they are in, and wants money at the back end of the transaction based on the success of the product. For this, he is willing to charge a lower hourly fee up front.

How does this all get sorted out? First, I am grateful that my client came to me before having the Consultant start working. I can work through the details with my client, and document whose bringing what to the table. Another client didnt, and now no one knows who owns what, with both parties claiming that they have full rights to the product. One issue that comes up most often is that the concept originator believes that there would be no product without his creativity. But there is a big difference between saying, I have a concept for a restaurant where peo-ple can eat in their car and actually creating a McDonalds franchise. While everyone is friends, there are usually no issues, but when the money starts rolling in, if these matters are not sorted out in advance, disputes arise

often leading to litigation.There are several types of agree-

ments associated with the process of cre-ating Intellectual Property. Theres a Confidentiality or Non-Disclosure Agreement, a Work for Hire Agreement for high-level project managers/engineers, an Independent Contractors Agreement for the more common activities associated with work to be done, a Certificate of Originality, a Co-development agreement, a cross-licens-ing agreement a joint venture agreement and more. All of these agreements cover different aspects of the creation process, and have dif-ferent remedies for a breach.

Come see me if you are creating some-thing that will have lasting value, whether its an invention, software technology, video games, artwork, music, or just an idea whose time will come. Well sort it out together.

The information above is not a substitute forseeking legal advice. Barbara A. Frantz has 34 years of legal experience,offering proven solutions for business ownersto increase revenues and achieve their long rangegoals. Barbara is a lawyer with Alvis Frantz andAssociates, your law firm providing busi-ness and estate planning law. 925-516-1617www.AlvisFrantzLaw.com All Rights Reserved

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The Brentwood Luminaria Ceremony begins at 9 p.m. on Saturday, June 12.

Oakleys Luminaria Ceremony, sched-uled for 9 p.m. on Saturday, May 1, will be a little different. Event chair Cathleen Knight said although a few guest speakers have been scheduled, all participants are invited to take the stage and share their memories with the crowd.

We have an open-mic style ceremo-ny, Knight said. We want to give mem-bers of the teams a chance to speak and tell their stories. Some of the stories will be sad; some will be funny but its important that we share these stories to remember our loved ones and keep their memory alive.

According to Oakley Luminaria Co-ordinator Lisa Brizendine, as the night proceeds, the somber mood evolves into one of hope. The event is 24 hours long, but the hope generated by the evening of refl ection gives participants the strength to continue on and welcome the dawn, a metaphor for renewed hope.

The Antioch Relay Luminaria Cer-emony is scheduled for 8:15 p.m. on Sat-urday, June 26. Antioch Relay Co-Chair Amanda Roa said the Luminaria Cer-emony is the true heart of Relay For Life. I think the Luminaria Ceremony is the most moving part of Relay. Its the part that tugs at the heartstrings the most. To see all of those bags on the track is beautiful, sobering and inspiring all at the same time. The sheer number of bags on the track is shocking to think that all of those people have been struck with

the disease, and that there are probably many more people than that affected in our community alone.

Roa said the ceremony also has a unifying effect as everyone, in one way or another, is touched by cancer. The sheer number of Luminaria draw attention to how many others must be fi ghting the same battle. Its helpful to know youre not alone.

Luminaria bags are free, but donations are welcome. To obtain a Luminaria bag to honor a cancer survivor or in memory of someone who has lost the battle, contact the Luminaria Committee for the Relay event in your area. Contacts may be found on the Relay Web site, www.relayforlife.org. Those wishing to decorate their bags may do so on the day of the event.

Some choose to decorate their own bags, but Knight said the luminaria com-mittees are more than happy to decorate the bags for attendees, inscribing the hon-orees name and a message of hope.

Some people like to really go all out with their bags and decorate them with pic-tures and stickers and glitter, but the com-mittee can do it for you as well, Knight said. Weve been having decorating par-ties all year long. The next one is Monday, April 12 at Gehringer Elementary School at 7:15 p.m.

For more information about the Lu-minaria ceremonies, visit www.relayforlife.org, select the Relay event in your area and choose the Dedicate Luminaria tab on the left side of the screen.


Relay from page 5AReady to Relay

Preparations are underway for the American Cancer Societys Relay For Life 2010, and East County is putting three of its best feet forward. The annual fundraiser involves hundreds of people, organized into teams, which then keep a representative on a track or path for 24 hours, earning pledge dollars that help the ACS fi ght cancer.

Three Relay For Life events are slated for East Contra Costa County in 2010: Oakley (May 1-2), Brentwood (June 12-13) and Antioch (June 26-27). The following information will help you get involved; you can also learn more at www.relayforlife.org or www.cancer.org:

OakleyEvent Date and TimeSaturday, May 1 from 9 a.m. to Sunday, May 2 at 9 a.m.Event LocationFreedom High School, OakleyEvent Chair: Cathleen Knight at [email protected]; 925-383-1691Media PR: Lindsy Bruno at [email protected]; Cindy Coelho at [email protected]; 925-625-7041Event ScheduleOpening Ceremony: 9 a.m. SaturdaySurvivors Lap: 9:30 a.m. SaturdayLuminaria Ceremony: 9 p.m. SaturdayFight Back/Closing Ceremony: 8:15 a.m. Sunday

BrentwoodEvent Date and TimeSaturday, June 12 from 9 a.m. to Sunday, June 13 at 9 a.m.Event LocationLiberty High School, BrentwoodEvent chair: Joy Benson at [email protected]; 925-200-9463Event Co-chair: Wanda Zimmerman at [email protected]; 925-934-7640Media PR: Rick Lemyre: at [email protected]; 925-286-4591Event ScheduleOpening Ceremony: 9 a.m. SaturdaySurvivors Lap: 9:30 a.m. SaturdayLuminaria Ceremony: 9 p.m. SaturdayFight Back/Closing Ceremony: 9 a.m. Sunday

AntiochEvent Date and TimeSaturday, June 27 from 9 a.m. to Sunday, June 27 at 9 a.m.Event LocationLos Medanos College, PittsburgEvent chair: Amanda Roa at [email protected]; 925-383-3336 or Monica Olson at [email protected]; 925-550-3565 Event ScheduleOpening Ceremony: 9 a.m. SaturdaySurvivors Lap: 9:30 a.m. SaturdayLuminaria Ceremony: 8:15 p.m. SaturdayFight Back/Closing Ceremony: 8:30 a.m. Sunday


OPINIONEDITORIALS, LETTERS & COMMENTARY National

AwardWinning NewspapersHave you got something to say? Visit www.thepress.net and let your thoughts be known.

Time to think outside the BART boxBay Area motorists in general and East County motor-

ists in particular know that the area suffers from a signifi -cant transportation problem. The daily bumper-to-bumper grind on Highway 4 frays nerves, wastes time and gas and increases air pollution. The Highway 4 Bypass gets more congested by the month as traffi c stacks up at Sand Creek

Road. And major arterials such as Lone Tree Way, Brentwood Bou-levard and Main Street in Oakley are no picnic, either.

Fortunately, help is on the way as work fi nally gets underway on the eBART line from Bay Point BART to Hillcrest Avenue in Antioch, and con-struction restarts on the widening of Highway 4. Unfortu-nately, those projects arent scheduled to be completed until 2015, and motorists can expect a lot of inconvenience in the meantime.

Its understandable that many East County residents, who have been paying BART taxes for decades, are angry

that we dont already have a BART line in place through East County all the way to Byron. This has been due to politics East County lacks the clout of Silicon Valley and economics: BART costs more than $200 million per mile. It would cost more than $2 billion to extend BART to Antioch, and reaching Byron might require $5 billion. As a result, with only $500 million in available funding, were get-ting eBART a light-rail, diesel-powered version of BART to Pittsburg and Antioch.

But it might be time for East County transportation planners to start thinking outside the expensive BART/eBART box. A private company, CyberTran International, is proposing an innovative mass-transit alternative that might cost as little as half of eBART, provide many more stations, run on clean electricity instead of diesel fuel, be more effi cient and stimulate an economic boom in transit-oriented development around the stations.

CyberTran is partnering with eTranzUSA, an Antioch-based company headed by a former Press employee, to fi nd

the funding and governmental support to put together a demonstration system in the next year or two and launch a commercially viable project in three years.

With much of eBART still on the drawing board, the potential is there to replace it with CyberTran and extend mass transit to Oakley, Brentwood, Byron and possibly Discovery Bay for cost of extending eBART merely to Antioch. We encourage East County offi cials to study that possibility while the window of opportunity is open. It if turns out to not be viable to replace eBART at this point, CyberTran should be seriously considered for the future extension of the line from the Hillcrest eBART Station into far East County.

With government at all levels mired in an ongoing budget crisis, we need to rethink the expensive, one-size-fi ts-all approach and start forming public-private partnerships to explore innovative, inexpensive alternatives that will get people out of their cars and help save the planet.


EDITORIAL

LETTERS TO THE EDITORSobering stats

Editor: A national poll last year revealed

that the State of California produced the lowest test scores in the subject of history across the United States. To go even further than that, in the State of California the lowest overall test scores were produced by Contra Costa County. Some may ask why? or how? does this happen and why isnt the problem being addressed accordingly? California State Supervisor for Public Instruction Jack OConnell recently stated, Many schools, while making real academic gains, have fallen short on the federal measure.

I am writing this letter in the hopes to unveil this detrimental statistic so that we can change the education of our peers locally. Professors at the local State and UC levels are informing students of this as attention is brought to this matter. This is an issue that cannot be ignored and must be changed. Improvements in staff,

class sizes and educational environments would all make a positive impact.

French writer, poet and historian La-martine said, History teaches everything, including the future. This is a very true, important fact and I believe our board of educators needs to make a drastic step forward in changing these statistics.

Dylan BarrettAntioch

Railroad should fight its own blightEditor:

Residents of Antioch, Oakley and Brentwood have complained about trains stored on railroad tracks throughout our communities. You can see the trains in several locations along Highway 4, by the Hillcrest exit, in downtown Oakley and from the Highway 4 Bypass.

These trains are full of gang tagging and graffi ti. While other businesses in the area are required to clean or cover up neighborhood blight, these trains remain an eyesore. In Oakley, we are not allowed to store large vehicles in front of our homes and can be cited for letting exces-sive weeds grow in our lawns.

I have spoken to several of my neighbors in Oakley and Brentwood who agree this is a problem. In order to get more information about this problem that is affecting residents, I called and talked with a spokesperson from the Oakley Chamber of Commerce. I was informed the chamber has received many calls and complaints about the trains; however, they had no information about anything being done about the problem.

I would like to ask why these trains have not been cleaned up and repainted. Why is the railroad not held accountable for their unsightly contribution to our landscape? As a community we clean up our streets, parks and the Delta. Should

the community get involved in cleaning up these trains if the owners of them will not?

I suggest a Boy or Girl Scout troop pick up a brush and make the Delta a better place to live. It is insensible that the railroads are allowed to get away with this.

Jeanne AndersonBrentwood

Caring for animals is sign of humanity

Editor:In the United States, neglect and

abandonment are the most common forms of animal abuse. An animal is being beaten or abused every 10 seconds. Other forms of abuse include animal testing, puppy mills, factory farms and even ani-mals that live in an abusive home.

A study done by The National Coali-tion against Domestic Violence shows that 85.4 percent of women and 63.0 percent of children reported incidents of pet abuse after arriving at domestic violence shelters. Shelters and animal agencies receive 6 to 8 millions animals a year and about 3 to 4 million of those animals are killed within a week by painless lethal injection or by inhumane methods, such as the use of carbon monoxide or decom-pression chambers because they were not adopted.

There are 6 to 7 million homeless animals just in the United States. Also, an estimated 2 million animals are used in research in the U.S. each year. More animals are being abused and used than there are animals actually living a good healthy life.

On Oct. 4, 2000, Ann Downing stated, Organizations which have pro-moted the welfare of animals over the years have raised societys awareness of

cruelty to animals. An example of one of these organizations is the ASPCA, which was one of the fi rst humane organizations in the western hemisphere.

Animal cruelty is the worst thing in this world through my eyes. People need to give a voice to those animals and not abuse them. Animals are innocent and have just as much right to be treated as we do.

Erica CalderonBrentwood

Devil not easily dismissedEditor:

The attempt to change the name of our historical Mount Diablo has been a continuous battle. This is all due to Oakley resident Arthur Mijares, who, as a devoted follower of the Christian faith, feels that it is profane and derogatory to name a mountain Diablo, the Spanish word for devil, and proposed the name adjustment to the United States Board on Geographic Names. The fi rst attempt was in 2005, a year after former President Ronald Reagan had passed away; thus the name change in his honor.

Mount Diablo came to be known as such from an incident that occurred in the year 1805 with Spanish settlers hunting for Native American runaways in a small village. After surrounding the village and preparing to strike, they were stunned to know that the whole village has unex-plainably vanished; subsequently dubbing the mountain Monte del Diablo.

Although it is highly unlikely that crusader Arthur Mijares will get his way, many people in the East Bay community feel a great deal of opposition toward the name change. They made that pretty apparent, saying things such as, Thanks,

The Press Newspapers are adjudicated in the the cities of Antioch, Brentwood, Oakley, and the Delta Judicial District

of Contra Costa County.

No part of this publication may be reproduced for commerce or trade without written permission from the publisher.

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Business Manager Heather ReidAdvertising Manager Ed Feldman

Main Office / Brentwood248 Oak St. Brentwood, CA 94513

Phone 925-634-1441 Fax 925-634-1975Web site: www.thepress.net

Advertising 925-634-1441, ext. 115Classifieds 925-634-1441, ext. 142

Editorial 925-634-1441, ext. 111Circulation 925-250-1405

Editorial e-mail [email protected]

see Letters page 18A


Trevors Weekly Mortgage MattersBy Trevor Frey

Big bank. Big help. As part of its continued eff orts to participate in the governments Home Aff ordable Modifi ca-tion Program (HAMP), Bank of America has completely revamped the way it attacks mortgage, or loan modifi cations. Announced on March 24, 2010, Bank of America will now look at principal forgiveness ahead of interest rate reduc-tions when modifying certain home loans. Unlike previous initiatives, this program will be geared towards borrow-ers who are so far underwater that they are unlikely to be helped by a government housing relief plan. According to Barbara Desoer, president of Bank of America home loans, Bank of America has found that many homeowners who owe considerably more on their mortgages than their homes are worth are reluctant to accept a solution that addresses only the amount of the payment without an accompanying reduction in the balance due on the loan.

So how does it work?Earned principal forgiveness will

be considered for borrowers who are at least sixty days late on their mortgage and have a current loan-to-value (LTV) high-er than 120%...whereas their home loan is over 120% of their homes current market value. If found eligible for the program a borrowers home will fi rst undergo an ini-

tial appraisal to ensure fair market value is properly documented. From there an interest free forbearance of principal will be applied, and for those borrowers who stay in good standing on their new mort-gage, they will annually be awarded with principal forgiveness. Th is will continue for up to fi ve years during which time the amount of forgiveness on principal balance will never be more than 20% in any one year, and the overall, the amount forgiven will never be less than 100% of the homes current market value.

Set to begin in May the program is estimated to erase as much as $3 billion in principal owed by thousands an estimated 45,000 of severely delinquent borrowers who owe more than their homes are worth. Although Bank of America did not provide a state-by-state breakdown, spokesperson Rick Simon stated the largest block would be in California. In other words, if your home loan is with Bank of America, start call-ing customer service now! Take advan-tage of the assistance and work to have your debt acquitted.

If you have any real estate lending related questions or concerns, or wish to speak with a Streamline expert, dont hesitate to write me at [email protected] or call me directly on my cell phone, (925) 726-1444.

Bank of Acquittal (B of A)

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Arthur, for cramming your ideology down our throats and ignoring 200 years of Bay Area history, reported by newspaper columnist Tom Barnidge.

In any case, it seems as if it may just be a disagreement of opinions. My outlook is: if you really want to be a good Christian, why not feed your fellow hungry man? Volunteer for a benefi cial charity or establishment? Financially sup-port your place of worship? Besides, we all know that if you are going to change the name of a mountain from Diablo to a past president, the obvious choice would be Richard Nixon, no pun intended.

Favio DelgadilloBrentwood

Not pining for the pastEditor:

If stopping development is such a good idea, why have property values col-lapsed at the same time that development has shut down? Didnt property values actually increase dramatically when new development was happening? Prices shot up from 1995 to 2005, the same time that we had a large increase in housing and have fallen since housing slowed in 2006.

The economic impact of housing the jobs, the new stores, the revenues to local governments, the parks, the schools, etc. all help make a community strong. The proper balance of housing, open-space protection, support for agriculture, etc. is what works well. Brentwood is a prime example of this approach. Having everything on one side or the other can be a disaster.

Maybe these people writing letters to the editor yearn for the old Brentwood of pre-1990. I certainly dont. Unlike them, I am proud of our city and only want to help get it moving forward again.

If you really believe that shutting everything down makes sense, then take a look around. Welcome to 2010! The cur-

rent economy, housing values, crime rates and lack of opportunity is apparently what they had in mind.

Kristine StokerBrentwood

Well done for wellnessEditor:

We would like to thank Californias 11th Congressional District Representa-tive Jerry McNerney for helping to pass the Health Care Reform Bill.

It was a courageous step in the face of the insurance industry attacks. We fi nally have something that will help the American people. Now Congress needs to work toward allowing all Americans, if they choose, to buy into Medicare.

Joe and Meryl TrebinoBrentwood

Dont count on CalamityEditor:

Charles Handwork, in his recent letter to the editor, paints a horrid future now that healthcare reform has been adopted. But just consider the idea of the future the insurance industry gave us when with amazing hubris, Wellpoint raised individual rates up to 39 percent just ahead of the healthcare vote. They had the audacity to make those increases even in the face of pending legislation.

Well, Mr. Handwork, it seems the insurance companies were truly the ones who just didnt get it! And you call on us to throw out Jerry McNerney because he voted to rein in an out-of-control industry. I dont think so. We need Jerry McNerney.

Now Mr. Handwork, whats all this about 46 percent of doctors soon to be leaving their practice, according to the latest poll, because of the new health-care program? Your letter never identi-fi ed this most interesting poll, but what

Letters from page 16A



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is so intriguing is that you are telling us we will soon have nearly half of all physicians claiming welfare because they will be forced on to the streets. I have an answer to the Handwork Calamity. Im sure you will like my plan.

To ease the strain of this anticipated mass medical exodus, I would like to propose an Adopt a Doc program. If every few blocks of Brentwood would adopt a doc, the doctors would stay em-ployed and each area of our city would have a physician in residence. How would that be?

Personally, at age 73, Id like my neighborhood to pick up a decent cardi-ologist.

Keith K. WheelerBrentwood

Kudos to congressmanEditor:

This letter is to thank Rep. Jerry McNerney, 11th District, for supporting the health care bill. Now: 11,000 residents (in the 11th District) with pre-existing condition will be able to acquire insur-ance, provide tax credits and assistance to 123,000 families, extend coverage to 35,500 uninsured residents, save 1,500 families from health care bankruptcy and get full prescription drug coverage for 90,000 seniors on Medicare. In this great wealthy country, every citizen should be health and now it will be so.

Sharon McClellanBrentwood

Happy for health care billEditor:

Thank you, thank you, Congressman McNerney, for voting in favor of health care reform. The passing of the bill is a historic victory of epic proportions for all Americans families, seniors, young people, workers and small businesses alike. All Americans will now have the security of knowing that they wont risk losing every-thing if they get sick or are in an accident.

Finally, insurance companies will be held accountable they will no longer be able to increase premiums, deny care when its needed most or deny coverage because of a pre-existing condition. I am grateful to you and proud of you at the same time. It has been said that health care reform is a civil rights issue, but I think it goes further than civil rights; it is a human rights issue. Thank you for help-ing to make it into law.

Kati Short Brentwood

Thanks to dog rescuerEditor:

Just want to thank the kind soul who found my dog Aggie on March 3, 2010 and brought her to the animal shelter in Martinez.

Laurie SchwartzOakley

Booster Crab Feed a huge successEditor:

The Liberty High School Athletic Booster Club would like to thank all

persons involved with the recent Crab Feed put on for the Athletes on Feb. 6. This was the fi rst Crab Feed event for the club and the proceeds benefi ted the student-athletes of Liberty High School by supplementing the state budget dollars that we all know are decreasing every year.

With the support of the local busi-nesses and community, our goal is to minimize the impact of these budget cuts and allow athletes to continue to partici-pate in the sports they love.

The event was held at Veterans Hall in Brentwood, crab was provided by Justins Crab Company in Vallejo, and all catering duties fell to the extremely capable hands of Tony DEnterprizes out of Vallejo. Music was provided by local favorite Sixstrings, who kept us on the dance fl oor until right before closing with their incredible cover sets of classic dance and rock songs.

Thanks to the 2010 Liberty womens soccer, mens baseball, and track teams for the dedication to setup, serving and cleanup duties. Special thanks go out to the entire Liberty Booster Club Board for once again organizing a great event en-joyed by all, and especially Lynn Carpen-ter, who tirelessly handled the ticket sales and distribution for the entire event.

The next event is the annual Truck Raffl e Dinner, this year to be held on Aug. 28. For tickets and information, please call Booster President Mark Stone at 925-858-1418 or Vice President Tony George at 925-915-8669. Next years Crab

Feed will be held on Feb. 5, 2011 and promises to sell out early. Thanks again for all the support! Go Lions!

Tony GeorgeVice President, Booster Club

Sounds goodEditor:

Garin Elementary School would like to thank Betancourt Brothers Construc-tion, Dave Batancourt, Darrell and Pau-lette Maxwell, Greg Jeppson, Doug Brown and Steve Abel for an outstanding commit-ment and devotion to installing many audio amplifi cation systems for Garin School. A special thank-you to Mrs. Katie Halberg and her perseverance in making sure every classroom at Garin had one. The staff, students and parents thank you!

Suzanne JohnsonGarin Parents Club Secretary

Consoling careEditor:

On behalf of Mary O. Martinez and family, we thank you for the beau-tiful fl owers, cards and donations to the Kidney Foundation.

Mary MartinezBrentwood

Students see city government from inside

Editor:The Brentwood Lions Club, in

partnership with the City of Brentwood

Letters from page 18A


Th e Devaluation of Me and My Stuff No Wonder I Feel So Crummyby Joan Grimes, Esq.

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Everyday people come into my offi ce reminiscing about 2006 and what their home, rental properties, cars, boats and almost anything else you can think was worth. Th ey talk about salaries and commissions made and trips taken. Th e stories all seem so happy until they tell me that their home, rental properties, cars and boats are now worth less than 50% of their original price and they have taken cuts in pay and benefi ts while doing the same job, if they are lucky. Th is is devaluation and defl ation in its most basic form. What we have today is not worth what we paid for it and the value of our labor is not what we were paid before.

Dont let anyone fool you, we are in defl ationary period the likes we have not seen since the great depression which is causing catastrophic devaluation of goods and services in the United States and around the world. Th e days of buying now and paying later are over. Th e leverage game is over and the bill has arrived.

To the extent you can pay the bills, that is in your best interest. However, if you are only paying the minimum on your credit cards, interest only on your house or not saving for retirement, you should consider the following:1. Th e most important thing you can do is save for your retirement. We are living longer and therefore eating longer. We need money in retirement for that food and other stuff like disposable reading glasses. You will need a minimum of $3,000 per month in todays dollars for every month you want to be retired and this should not include Social Security.2. Nobody ever remembers what they bought with credit cards. Stop using them. Cash is king and you will remember what you bought and you will buy less.3. A house is just shelter. You cant eat it or take it with you. Never use more than 30% of your gross income for shelter and that must include principal, interest,

property taxes, insurance and maintenance. If you are paying interest only, you are renting from the bank.

Th is is not the time to have your head in the sand. Below is a quick test to see your fi nancial condition.1. Can you pay off your credit card debt in full in the next 12 months?2. Can you pay off you home loans in full by the time you retire?3. Are your cars owned outright?4. Are you putting away suffi cient monies each month so that you will be fi nancially independent when you retire?5. Do you have 6 months of expenses in savings for an emergency?6. Are you able to pay your bills as they become due and owing?

If you answered no to 2 or more of these questions, you should seek legal counsel on the options available to you. Th e devaluation and defl ation of us and our stuff is happening here and around the world. Th ere are fi nancial relief options available to you just like there has been to Wall Street and Main Street. Th ey did not suff er and you should not either.

We are a debt relief agency. We help people fi le bankruptcy relief under the bankruptcy code. Th is information is not provided as legal advice and should not be relied upon in making any decision regarding a voluntary default, short sale, foreclosure or bankruptcy. Th is information is not a substitute for obtaining tax & legal advice regarding an individual situation.

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2B | THEPRESS.NET SPORTS APRIL 2, 2010

Heritage volleyball looks for good year

If not for a powerhouse Deer Valley boys volleyball team, the Heritage boys volleyball team would have gone undefeated in league play last year. Instead, the Patriots fi n-ished 12-3 in league (18-13 overall) and made it to the NCS playoffs for the fi rst time by all accounts a very good sea-son.

That was an exciting time, said Coach Bess Haldi, who has helped build the boys volleyball program from scratch. Theres always a stigma (with boys volleyball) they think its a sissy sport to begin with. But Heritage has some tremendous athletes. They tend to get pigeonholed into a particular sport and go into the off-season and stay with that sport. We have always been able to scrape by. Last years JV team only had seven players; varsity we had like 10. So its sort of an uphill battle for us. Last year was a pretty nice ending for us to even make the playoffs.

Anyone who has watched competitive volleyball, with its rocket spikes, body-sacrifi cing digs and leaping blocks, knows its anything but a sissy sport. And the word seems to be getting out. This year I had an infl ux of senior football players who are learning the sport and loving it and saying

they wished they had played since they were freshmen, said Haldi.

The starters include center Josh Ibarra, outside hitter Daniel Regan hes being recruited right now by a few col-leges, said Haldi middle blockers Robert Uwaechie and Nick Monroe, and liberto Estefan Garcia. We have a lot of talent, said Haldi. This year I think once we start gelling a

little more in terms of confi dence, I think we should be able to do OK.

The Patriots have started the season slowly. As of last week they were 3-6 overall and 2-1 in league play. Facing very tough preseason competition, they lost their fi rst fi ve matches, failing to win a game in any of them. But since then theyve done much better, sweeping Livermore, Liberty and Pittsburg although they did lose a shutout to Antioch.

Although it will be a challenge to repeat 12-3 in league particularly with Deer Valley looking as strong as ever Haldi is optimistic her team will again be competitive. I am thinking that we can do fairly well if we are consistent and stay on our game here, she said. I have got great en-thusiasm for it. That alone will be able to give us some mo-mentum going into the season.

On Tuesday Heritage visited Freedom and on Thursday hosted Deer Valley, the results of which were not available at press time. The Patriots next game is slated for Tuesday, April 13 at Antioch.

Heritage also recently held a volleyball clinic that at-tracted 18 participants. The clinic is both a fundraiser for the team and an opportunity to introduce younger players to competitive volleyball.


by Dave RobertsStaff Writer

Heritage High held a volleyball clinic recently to in-troduce young players to the sport.

Photo by Coach Jacob Haldi

The Freedom girls soccer team recently took advantage of cooperative spring-break weather and hosted a fundraising skills camp for kids 6-13. More than 60 campers attended the four-day program. Coaches Mark Crockett and Cary Kawalkowski supervised 14 varsity players who coached the campers as they passed, juggled and played their way to a fun and enlightening week of soccer.

Getting their kicks

Photo courtesy of Lisa Carter

APRIL 2, 2010 SPORTS THEPRESS.NET | 3B

King comesto raceway

After two weeks of hosting the wingless and 360 winged sprint cars, the Antioch Speedway will provide the stage for the powerful King of Califor-nia 410 sprint cars this Saturday night, April 3. One of the top shows of the season, the event spotlights the light-ning-fast big sprint cars on the banked 3/8-mile clay track.

After a rained-out first weekend of the season, the King of California opened its 2010 championship chase last weekend in Placerville. Johnathan Allard of Chico won the 30-lap main event, and nine-time King of Califor-nia champion Brent Kaeding finished second. Kaeding, a multi-champion legend in Western auto racing, feels es-pecially at home on the Antioch track.Last weekends winners:Wingless Sprints: Heat Tommy Lab-bortea and Jim Perry; Trophy Dash Jim Perry; Main Event Billy Macedo, Jim Perry and Rick Sharp.360 Winged Sprints: Heat and Dash Craig Smith; Main Event Craig Smith, Jeremy Burt and Billy Anton.Super Stocks: Heat Mitch Machado; Main Event Larry Damitz, Mitch Machado and Eric Berendsen.Pure Stocks: Heat Jeff Bettencourt and Dan Mccown; Dash Chris So-renson; Main Event Chris Sorenson, Jeff Bettencourt and Michael Ryd-man.

Contributed by Jack Menges

we do in the wins and losses column. He seems to be a good teacher of the game. And, to me, good coaches are good teachers. I believe John will do a good job in developing a work ethic and being involved in school and be-ing a part of a team.

Lucido said six defensive starters will be returning next season some young linebackers who are stepping up and doing a really good job. Hes also looking forward to the return of quar-terback Billy Cloninger, who threw for more than 1,200 yards despite starting only seven games, and wide receiver/cornerback Shamawn Wright, who has been attracting attention from college scouts. The coach is also looking for-ward to the play of his daughter, Gi-anna, who kicked the past three years for the freshman and JV teams and will be stepping into the shoes of another female kicker, Dallas Butterfield, who is graduating. The challenge will be re-building the offensive line.

Im very excited because I know the players very well, said Lucido. I have been coaching them for a long time. I think we are all excited. They know what I bring to the table. I have been there a long time, and its a dream of mine.


Coach from page 1B


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For Freedom and Libertys baseball teams, last weeks league opener was an opportunity for a fresh start following winless preseasons. For the fi rst 3 innings it was all Lions, as they led 6-0. But Freedom rallied to score twice in the fourth, four times in the fi fth and once more in the sixth for an exciting 7-6 victory.

Alex Morrow hammered a home run to straight-away center fi eld to kick off the comeback for the Fal-cons, who had scored two runs early in the fi fth inning and appeared set to tie the game with runners in scor-ing position and nobody out. After forcing consecutive nonproductive outs, Liberty pitcher Xavier Alexander looked like he might escape trouble. But Joe Starick hit a bloop single to left, tying the game at six.

Freedom took the lead the next inning on a Ryan Petrangelo single that scored Javier Carrillo. Bryan War-go, the winning pitcher and unsung hero of the game, fi nished the game with a perfect seventh inning. Wargo pitched three and a third, allowing no runs and one hit, keeping Freedom in the game.

The Lions got things going in the fi rst inning, load-ing the bases with nobody out. But Freedom pitcher Dante Mayes got the next two hitters out without allow-ing any runs, and it appeared he would get out of the inning unscathed. However, Mayes then beaned Dillon Gallegos and walked Eric Lagomarsino to bring in two Liberty runners.

Libertys Jordan Flint drove in three runs on a bas-es-loaded double in the fourth. Anthony Zamora singled in Flint to give the Lions their 6-0 lead and chase Mayes from the game. Wargo came in to pitch for Freedom in and shut them down from there.

When asked about what his team did differently

today in comparison with the preseason losses, Falcons Manager Gary Alexander said, Nothing, because we very well could have lost that game. The bottom line is that we have some talent thats young; we have to get comfortable in our own skin. Its going to take game af-ter game and little successes; then they start to get com-fortable in their own skin, and well see what happens. Concerning the Falcon rally, Alexander said, The assis-tant coaches were getting fi red up in the dugout. I dont know what they said because I was over coaching third. But they fi nally got it going a little bit.

On his teams early run production, Lions Manager Greg Borland said, We put the ball in play. When we put the ball in play, a lot of things happen. We kept the strikeouts down, we moved the ball around, put the pres-sure on the other team, and made things happen from

the very beginning. We battled, and thats all that I can ask for.

Borland acknowledged that the Lions need to put away games when they get 6-0 leads. We need to im-prove our mental toughness, he said. Mentally, we need to approach every pitch and every inning like its our last. The way you start a game, you need to fi nish a game. And until we can get that down, were going to have games like this.

This week, Liberty was scheduled to host Deer Val-ley and Antioch while Freedom was scheduled to play at Heritage and host Pittsburg. Both teams play on the road in tournaments in the coming week. The next league game for Freedom is at home on April 13 against Deer Valley. On the same date, Liberty will be at Pittsburg.


Freedom comes from behind in openerby Michael Dixon

Correspondent

Photo by Richard Wisdom

Libertys Jordan Flint slides into third as Joe Navilhon readies for a tag in a 7-6 Freedom come-from-behind victory.

APRIL 2, 2010 THEPRESS.NET | 5B

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of the Williams girls fi rst Amanda, then Hannah (and another Williams, freshman Madison, is now stepping into their very large shoes) who have domi-nated on the mound and at the plate.

Last year Hannah went 15-0 pitch-ing for Freedom in league play (23-4 overall) while compiling a .649 slugging percentage. While fellow senior Chrissy Stalf (hitting .402) was also key to last years offense, and Freedom featured several outstanding fi elders, it almost seemed like Freedom could have sent Hannah onto the fi eld by herself (plus a catcher on defense and a runner on of-fense) an

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