YOUR HOMETOWN WEEKLY NEWSPAPER

Vol. 9, No. 46 Including Nearby Communities www.thepress.net November 13, 2009

Natio

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THIS WEEK

FOR MOVIE TIMES SEE PAGE 5A

Crosstown confrontation

The Deer Valley Wolverines crashed the Antioch Panthers Senior Night party and ran their unbeaten streak to nine.

Page 21A

Guidelines for gifting

Hoping to wrap up your holiday shopping swiftly and smoothly? Check out our Holiday Gift Guide.

Page 1B

Opinions flow on state water billsLocal reaction to the water legislation

passed last week in Sacramento ranges from raising a glass in celebration to a lukewarm wait-and-see attitude to simply considering it all wet, depending on whom you talk to.

The fi ve water bills provide for a new Delta governing board that could approve a peripheral canal, require water conservation of 20 percent in urban areas, increase monitoring of ground-water, increase penalties for illegally taking wa-ter from the Delta and place an $11 billion bond for water projects on the ballot next November.

Local Delta users and advocates have long been mistrustful of efforts in Sacramento to fi x the Delta, fearing that its mostly a ruse to send more water south rather than keep it in the Delta to preserve the ecosystem.

Obviously, I am disappointed, as should everybody in the Delta, said Roger Mammon, an Oakley resident and board member of the advocacy organization Restore the Delta. They are passing all these things about Delta protec-tion, but theres no enforcement body behind it or penalties. Theres so much to it, its kind of hard to track it all. But if you really look at it, theres a lot of pork in this thing. It looks like

theres a general obligation bond that will be paid for by the general public and the projects will benefi t Southern California and the west side of the San Joaquin Valley, which has the most junior water rights in the state.

Of the bonds $11 billion, $3 billion is des-ignated for water storage, $2.2 billion for Delta projects such as levee reinforcement and ecosys-tem restoration, $1.7 billion for watershed con-servation throughout the state, $1.4 billion for water management and delivery projects, $1.2 for water recycling and conservation, $1 billion for groundwater cleanup and protection and $455 million for drought relief.

But Mammon is skeptical that local Delta users will see much benefi t. Asked whether they will get anything from the water package, he said, Yeah, they get the shaft.

In contrast, the Contra Costa Water Dis-

trict (CCWD), which gets all of its water from the Delta, welcomes the legislation, believing it will improve water quality.

The approval of this water package repre-sents a signifi cant milestone for water policy in California, said Jennifer Allen, CCWD senior public information specialist. It doesnt fi x the Delta but provides the framework and fi nancing needed to begin the critical restoration program needed to ensure Delta sustainability. It includes the establishment of state policy that improves Delta water quality, making water supply more reliable, and provides fl ood control in the Delta. It will also set requirements for fl ows out of the Delta before more projects can be implement-ed.

That includes the proposed peripheral

by Dave RobertsStaff Writer The approval of this

water package represents a significant milestone for water policy in California.

Jennifer Allen, CCWD

Obviously, I am disappointed, as should everybody in the Delta.

Roger Mammon, Restore the Delta

see Water page 15A

Veterans on parade in AntiochThousands of people lined

Second Street in downtown An-tioch Wednesday to view the soldiers, vintage cars, macho mo-torcyclists, fl ag-waving scouts, marching bands, waving politicians and a bagpiper in the nearly hour-long Second Annual Veterans Day Parade.

So far its been wonder-ful, said Antioch resident Bruna DelChiaro. Im a very patriotic person. I love my country and want to honor these young men that are giving their lives for us. Im really proud of our mayor (Jim Davis) that he continues with this. Im happy to see that we keep this day alive. The young people dont seem to have the patriotism that we oldsters do. And I hope that this kind of brings to mind to them what these young men are doing: they are giving their lives for their freedom.

Many of the younger kids sit-ting on the curb seemed more ap-preciative of the giving of candy occasionally being thrown their way by parade participants. But

one dad was observed showing his 4-year-old son how to salute the passing soldiers.

While many vintage cars with roaring engines made the half-mile trek from E Street to the Antioch Marina, the most unusual was a 55 Chevy displaying the names of 3,578 Vietnam prisoners of war or missing in action, similar to the

Vietnam Memorial wall in Wash-ington D.C. Max Loffgren, a twice-wounded Vietnam vet, rebuilt the car in 1993 and has traveled across the country several times display-ing it at patriotic events.

We made it home; these guys did not and we didnt want to forget them, said Loffgren. Over 600 of these guys came home alive

during the course of the war. And today we are still missing 1,734 of them. As a result of the war, a lot of them may have ended up in Chi-na, Czechoslovakia, Cuba, any of the communist bloc countries. Ac-cording to the National League of Families, they think about 100 of these guys may still be alive.

The parade actually started in the air as a restored Vietnam-era Huey assault helicopter fl ew over Rivertown containing the grand marshals: Bataan Death March survivor Vincent Silva; Richard Lundin, a major general in the Northern California Army Reserve and Leo Fontana, a World War II veteran.

The parade kicked off on the ground with police motorcycles, a fi re truck, color guard and bag-piper followed by Antioch and Oakley City Council members, Antioch school board members and recently elected Congressman John Garamendi. Music was pro-vided by the Antioch, Deer Valley and Liberty high school marching bands.

Watching the festivities near

Thousands of people lined downtown Antioch to honor Americas veterans Wednesday.

Photo by Rick Lemyre

by Dave RobertsStaff Writer

see Veterans page 15A

Powerful proponents A proposed generating station has generated support from resi-dents, city officials and business leaders alike.

Page 3A

Calendar ..........................23BClassifieds ........................14BCop Logs ..........................17AEntertainment ................11BFood .................................10BHealth & Beauty ...............7BHoliday Gift Guide ...........1BOpinion ...........................16AOutdoors ...........................6ASports ...............................19A

INSIDE

NOVEMBER 13, 2009 COMMUNITY THEPRESS.NET | 3A

More than 100 Oakley residents came out to support the proposed Oakley Gener-ating Station during the California Energy Commissions fi rst visit to the city this week.

Commission Vice Chairman James Boyd, who presided over the event, said he was impressed with Mondays turnout for the informational hearing that followed a site tour in which approximately 60 people visited the location of the proposed power plant. If ap-proved, the plant will be built on 22 acres of the former DuPont property on Bridgehead Road.

District V Supervisor Federal Glover said it was good to see so many people interested in the project, especially since the project has the potential to create new jobs that will ben-efi t many of Oakleys residents: This project will allow us the opportunity to put people who are not working to work with local hire. It will give us the opportunity to reach a lot of the economic demands within the commu-nity, and its going to put a lot of labor folks to work in terms of construction of the site, so we really have a jewel here.

Radback Energy Senior Vice President and Project Manager Greg Lamberg said if the project is approved, more than 700 union labor jobs would be created during the three-year construction period, which will be a huge shot of adrenalin to the economy, as $4 million in supplies will be purchased locally

and $6 million is projected to be generated in sales tax revenue. The plant will also generate up to $10 million in property taxes each year, creating funds to be used to benefi t local ser-vices such as police and fi re protection, street maintenance and schools.

Steven Nosanchuck, president of the Oakley Chamber of Commerce, said the fi -nancial gains for the community are greatly needed. Its important to me to see Oakley thrive again. Like most communities in our country, Oakley has been hit hard by the cur-rent economic crisis. The power plant being discussed brings jobs to Oakley and much-needed revenue to our city coffers. Were a small city. To be discussing property tax reve-nue in the ballpark of $10 million a year is very encouraging. It makes me much more hopeful about the economic future of our city.

More than 20 residents spoke in favor of

the project, citing creation of jobs as the most signifi cant benefi t.

Theres no question times are hard for most folks, said Michael Hernandez. Dur-ing this economic crisis, with so many jobs that have been lost across California, the Oak-ley Generating Station will offer some relief.

Marco Gonzalez, representing a local labor union, said its important to hire locally for the project and hopes there will be offi cial documentation that stipulates local hiring.

Nosanchuck also stressed the need for local hiring for this project, which Lamberg said is a priority. In an interview with the Press last week, Lamberg said as part of conditions for certifi cation in the fi nal permit, Radback will fi rst look to employ Oakley and far East County workers before expanding its search to the rest of the county and beyond.

During the public comments portion

of the hearing, several residents expressed concern about pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. The Energy Commissions Staff Is-sues Identifi cation Report also asked for more studies to be conducted regarding air quality and noise pollution. Environmental impacts found to be signifi cant must be mitigated for the project to move forward, and representa-tives from Radback Energy said they would work with staff to address all concerns as needed.

The informational hearing is just one step in a 16-month process in which the com-mission will conduct an analysis to determine whether or not the proposed project is viable. The commission is expected to make its deci-sion by March, 2011. If approved, Radback anticipates beginning construction in May, 2011, and completing the project by the end of 2013, at which time PG&E will take over operation of the plant.

The proposed Oakley Generating Sta-tion is designed to be a 620-megawatt, state-of-the-art natural-gas-fi red, combined-cycle generating facility supplying power to 600,000 households. The plant will also use General Electrics latest technology, the 7FA Fleet, which employs faster starts, greater turndown, lower emissions and hirer effi ciency. The Oak-ley Generating Station would be the fi rst in the world to use this new technology.

For more information about the project, visit www.radback.com/CCGSLLC.html. To join the e-mail list for updates, visit www.ener-gy.ca.gov/sitingcases/contracosta/index.html.

Energy Commission comes to OakleyIf approved, the Oakley Generating Station, seen in this rendering, will sup-ply power to 600,000 homes.

Graphic courtesy of Radback Energy

by Samie HartleyStaff Writer

4A | THEPRESS.NET COMMUNITY NOVEMBER 13, 2009

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Antioch: The Orchard at Slatten Ranch (925) 779-1844

When the people at Cortona Park senior living community want-ed to celebrate Cortonas rst anniversary, they gured a great way to do it was to help out the youth in the community at the same time. So last months bash did double duty: marking the milestone and generating $1,258 in donations for the Brentwood Police Activities League. Taking part in the hand-off of the check, from left, are PAL Exec-utive Director Of cer Roger Wilson, PAL President Jeff Altman, Cortona Park representatives Donna Spencer, Lisa Panguelo and Sally Thompson, and Brentwood Police Chief Mark Evenson.

PALs pal, Cortona Park

Photo by Greg Robinson

Holiday De Lites committee is seeking entries for the Holiday De Lites Twilight Parade to be held Dec. 5. The street pa-rade will begin at 4 p.m., followed by a tree lighting ceremony hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus in the City Hall parking lot.

A lighted boat parade will top off the eve-nings festivities. Applications for parade participation are available at www.art4an-tioch.org. You may also call Parade Coor-dinator Lori Chalifoux at 925-776-3090 or e-mail lchalifoux@ci.antioch.ca.us.

Looking for De Lites

The City of Brentwood is accepting applications for the following commis-sions and boards:Planning Commission

Applicants for this commission must reside within the incorporated city limits. This fi ve-member commission meets on the fi rst and third Tuesdays of each month. The commission recom-mends plans for the regulation of future growth, development and design of the city, and carries out the provisions of the zoning ordinance. The deadline for applications is Monday, Nov. 30.Arts Commission

The Arts Commission is an advi-sory commission to the City Council made up of five Brentwood citizens, who meet on the third Wednesday of the month and make recommenda-tions on arts. Commissioners should be knowledgeable about and repre-sent a cross section and distribution of membership among the major art and cultural fields, which may includ-ed one or more of the following art disciplines: architectural arts, dance, art education, fiber arts, literature, music, painting, performing arts, pho-tography, ceramics, sculpture, murals, visual, functional art and crafts. Ap-plicants must reside within the city limits. The deadline for applications is Monday, Nov. 30.Park and Recreation Commission

The Park and Recreation Com-

mission is an advisory commission to the City Council made up of five Brentwood citizens, who meet on the fourth Thursday of each month and make recommendations on park and recreation facility designs, use of city park and recreation facilities, and pro-vide feedback and recommendations regarding program and facilities rules, regulations, policies and procedures. Applicants must reside within the city limits. The deadline for applications is Monday, Nov. 30.Brentwood Advisory Neighborhood Committee

Brentwood Advisory Neighbor-hood Committee (BANC) is made up of residents from the citys 53 neigh-borhoods. Meetings are held on the second Wednesday of the month at 6 p.m. in the Brentwood Technol-ogy Center Presentation Room, 101B Sand Creek Road. Committee mem-bers serve on special task forces to study city issues and work on projects such as the committees Home of the Month program and Christmas Tree Lighting. Applications are available online. The committee seats remain open until filled.

Applications may be obtained in person at City Hall, 708 Third St., by calling 925-516-5400, or by visit-ing www.ci.brentwood.ca.us. For ad-ditional information, call the City Clerks Office at 925-516-5400.

Boards seek participants

NOVEMBER 13, 2009 COMMUNITY THEPRESS.NET | 5A

Gobbler Bob feathers the nest

Brentwood Mayor Bob Taylor Gobbler Bob, as he is increasingly becoming known has blown past his original goal of 300 donations of $8 for turkeys for needy families and has revised his goal to 500.

I cant believe how people have picked up on this, said Taylor after being informed that donations had reached 378. Its a wonderful thing that so many people want to help other people. Of course, the idea of see-ing the mayor in a turkey suit might have something to do with it.

Taylor launched his The Mayor Is A Turkey fundraiser four weeks ago with a goal of 300 donations of $8, a fi gure designed to drive home the idea that each donation is personal, and will buy a bird for one family during the holidays. The benefi ciary of the program is the Brentwood Regional Community Chest, which provides food and toys for 500 families every Christmas.

Having exceeded his original goal of 300 turkeys, Taylor has upped the ante, and upped the payoff as well. He is al-ready commit-

ted to appear dressed in a turkey suit at the BRCC sorting and dis-

tribution events on Dec. 18 and 19, but if the goal

of 500 is reached, he will also appear on a date to be determined at a public park and spend the day with residents posing with him dressed in the turkey suit.

The goal is certainly attainable: The Brent-

wood Police Offi -cers Association has challenged the East Contra Costa Fire Pro-tection District

to see who can muster the most donations, and the Brentwood Post

Offi ce is hawking the birds as well. Just

about the only question re-maining is: Who will bring

the cranberry sauce?

6A | THEPRESS.NET OUTDOORS NOVEMBER 13, 2009

Leonid light show a slashy, flashy affairTuesdays meteor displaypredicted to be robust

Nov. 18, 2001 was only an hour old when Leia and I hauled ourselves and a sleeping bag built for two up a hill above Mt. Diablos Back Creek Canyon and watched the millenniums fi rst full-fl edged meteor storm explode above the

ragged black of the mountains profi le.

Id been stalking meteor showers for decades, staking out observation spots from campsites to prairies to remote rural roads, where Id remove my cars headrest, use it as a pillow and lie on my back on the cool pavement, keeping

a peripheral eye peeled for headlamps heading my way. Mt. Diablo struck me as a good venue. My only concern: North Peak rises 3,557 above the horizon; the Summit, 3,849 a signifi cant slice of sky viewed from our lowly hilltop. Wed see fewer shining slashes than meteorphiles on the fl atlands.

My worries were unwarranted. As Leo slinked over the mountain, meteors fl amed so fast and furious I couldnt have kept track of them with a clicker.

This was Leias fi rst meteor gig. And I, like an idiot, tried to give ver-bal expression to how mind-bogglingly exceptional this A.D. 2001 installment was. And she, like someone watching golf for the fi rst time as Tiger Woods goes on a birdie binge in the wind and rain at Carnoustie (Hey, that game must be easy!), just settled back and enjoyed the show. After a while, I shut up and we watched the storm in peace.

A meteor isnt what its nickname im-plies. Its not a shooting star. Our Sun is a star, large enough to fi t 109 Earths across its diameter. The average meteor is the size of a grain of sand. But when that grain zips through our upper atmosphere at up to 50 miles per second, its fl are-out is stunning.

Ive seen meteors spewing fl aming green tails and meteors with no tail, tumbling through the night like glow-ing knuckleballs. Ive seen cigar-shaped meteors fl ying sideways, and chunks that split in two as Earths atmosphere found chinks in their armor. Ive seen fl ame-outs so bright they made me blink, and fi reballs that fell to the horizon slowly, dripping molten gold in their wake.

Earth collects about 400 tons of meteoric debris every day, the lions share of which is so microscopic that it can fl oat around for years before descending

see Outside page 7A

TAKE ITOUTSIDE

GERERICKSON

NOVEMBER 13, 2009 OUTDOORS THEPRESS.NET | 7A

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Advertisement

TAX CREDIT EXTENDED AND ENLARGEDNow I can officially report that the popu-

lar homebuyers tax credit HAS been extended, and on top of that, they have enlarged the qualification requirements. This is welcome news for those buyers who were frustrated at not being able to close escrow on a home before the prior November 30, 2009 deadline.

The tax credit has been extended to include homes that close escrow by April 30, 2010. And there is an additional 60 day extension if the home is in contract prior to April 30, so it really goes to the end of June, 2010. The credit is still $8,000 for first time homebuyers (those that have not owned a home during the past three years). But they have enlarged the qualifications to also include existing homeowners, as long as they have lived in their current residence for at least five years. However, the credit for existing hom-eowners will be $6,500, not the full $8,000. They qualify for the credit no matter if they are buying a more or less expensive home than their current home.

In addition to the homeownership quali-

fication change, they have also enlarged the income qualifications for the credit. It will now be $125,000 for single tax filers and $225,000 for those that file jointly. This is almost double the current limits of $75,000 single and $150,000 joint.

Another wrinkle they added to the new law is that you can claim the credit on your 2009 taxes, even if you complete the home purchase in 2010. So if you plan on buying a home in 2010 and think you will qualify for this credit, talk to your tax professional about possibly filing an extension so you can file your taxes as late as possible.

The purchase price of the home available for the credit is a maximum of $800,000. And you still dont have to pay the credit back, as long as the home remains your principal resi-dence for 3 years after you close escrow.

If you have questions on this or any other real estate topic, call me at (925) 240-MOVE (6683). To search the MLS for free and view virtual tours of homes for sale, go to: www.SharpHomesOnline.com. Sharp Realty

to our planets surface. A tiny minority of the debris is large enough to create that brilliant burst we see from ground level. And yet on an average night under a clear sky graced by low light pollution, the patient sky watcher can spot three or four meteors per hour, increasing to seven or eight by dawn. Theres a lot of stuff up there.

The light show gets serious when Earth in its voyage around the Sun passes through a special kind of debris. For billions of years, fragments left over from the formation of the outer planets have crossed the plane of Earths orbit in their long and elongated journey around the Sun.

As these mountains of ice approach our star, solar radiation begins to vaporize their surfaces and solar winds blow the gas and dust rearward, creating comas many times the diameter of Earth and tails millions of miles long. You might have seen two shining examples of these ice mountains back in 1996 and 97. Their names were Hyakutake and Hale-Bopp, and their tails were magnifi cent. We know those ice mountains as comets.

One comet in particular, labeled 55P/Tempel-Tuttle, slingshots around the Sun every 33 years on a path proximate to the plane of Earths orbit. Its detritus is spread through long, narrow corridors of space like permanent oil spills. (By nar-row we mean approximately 10 Earth diameters wide.) Every mid-November, Earth plows through 55P/Tempel-Tuttles

trails. We call the event the Leonid meteor shower.

The shelf life of 55/P Tempel-Tuttles debris streams is long. Mark your calendars for the night of Tuesday, the 17th of November. On that night, Earth will bulls-eye the rich streams the comet discharged in A.D. 1466 and 1533. Normally, a ZHR (Zenithal Hourly Rate) of 100 would qualify as a respectable Leonid shower. Astronomers are predict-ing Tuesdays display to top out at 500 or more per hour, boosting its status from shower to half storm.

The peak should occur just before sunset on the West Coast, and be most spectacular over the Pacifi c and Asia. We on the West Coast are lucky that well catch the back end of it.

Meteor watching is easy no knowl-edge of astronomical facts or fi gures required. The Leonids radiant area is the constellation Leo, but meteors scoot in from all points of the sky. All you need is a good pair of eyes and clear skies.

Scope out an open spot as far from city lights as feasible. Bring a blanket and pillow, a thermos of your favorite hot beverage and a portable recliner. The ultimate posture for meteor watching is the one that allows for the widest fi eld of vision: fl at on your back. (The naked eye is a far better meteor-sighting instrument than binoculars or a telescope). So stretch out on your chaise longue with your feet to the east, relax your focus and take in the whole sky at once.

And enjoy the show.

Outside from page 6A

NOVEMBER 13, 2009 COMMUNITY THEPRESS.NET | 9A

Trevors Weekly Mortgage MattersBy Trevor Frey

HOA is Back!!!

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CMG Mortgage, a leading whole-sale mortgage lender headquartered in San Ramon, has reintroduced their popular Home Ownership Accelerator (HOA) home loan in fi ve states: Cali-fornia, Washington, Arizona, Colorado and Minnesota. Th is innovative, all-in one, fi rst position HELOC (home equity line of credit) similar to loans used for many years in Great Britain and Australia is once again available for both home purchases and refi nances here. In 2007 nearly $1 billion HOA loans were funded, and now they may make even more sense for certain borrowers particularly since people have learned they can no longer rely exclusively on rising home values to build equity, rather they must rely on their own fi nancial common sense and use debt wisely.

Th ink of this product as turning you into the bank of you. Instead of your pay-checks being deposited into a standard checking account and allowing the bank to hold your money, where it more or less sits stagnant, your paychecks are depos-ited directly into your loan. Money left in your mortgage reduces the principal balance on which interest is calculated, thereby saving thousands of dollars in in-terest and shortening the life of your loan by a number of years. Borrowers access their money through unlimited checks, an ATM/debit card, and even on-line bill pay. However, while the homeowners funds are not being used, said funds are

no longer sitting stagnant, they are work-ing for the home owner. In essence your mortgage has become your checking ac-count, creating a higher return on your funds, and, allowing you to always have your money working for you.

Th is is a huge win for homeown-ers, said Chris George, President and CEO of CMG Mortgage. In todays un-certain economy, consumers are keenly aware that paying off debt is essential to securing a healthy fi nancial future. Fi-nally, heres an opportunity to shift the focus from just minimizing payments to actually paying off effi ciently, quickly and with no change to lifestyle. And its not magic, its just math. Youre simply paying interest on a lower principal bal-ance more of the time thanks to your own money.

With the HOA loan being more of a fi nancial tool than a mortgage, loan agents who off er the Home Ownership Accelerator have to be certifi ed through CMG. More information can be found at www.homeownershipaccelerator.com or feel free to contact me directly -- aft er all, four years ago I was the very fi rst loan agent to fund a Home Ownership Accel-erator loan in the State of California. I know how this loan can help you!

If you have any real estate lending re-lated questions or concerns, dont hesitate to write me at tfreymortgages@yahoo.com or call me directly on my cell phone, (925) 726-1444.

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ON THE WATER!!

were putting in another application, but it might be spring before we hear back.

Smith said that in the meantime she will continue to communicate with parents, the city and Oakley police to enhance and en-sure the safety of Orchard Parks students: Were working on perhaps getting parent volunteers with refl ective vests from the po-lice department to see the kids off campus and around the corner to their homes. Every-one is doing what they can, but its been baby steps. Theres a lot of red tape involved.

Oakley Chief of Police Chris Thorsen said his department remains committed to keeping the community safe: Were always looking for ways to make our schools safer, and our offi cers are doing the best they can. Were looking into providing safety training for parents and we will continue to work with the schools as we always have.

In the end, we want our driving com-munity to be cautious around the schools and to understand that an extra fi ve or 10 minutes (in the car) isnt going to make a difference in the long run. The safety of the students is whats important.

Accident from page 8A

Antiochs Mission Elementary School recognized the following Stu-dents of the Month for October for exemplifying the character trait of Trustworthiness. In the front row, from left, are Jasmine Thurston, Jewel Avila, Daniel Sedano, Logan Martin, Jasmine Gomez, Rhea Prasad, Amairani Vega, Abiezer DeJesus and Jennifer Fung; middle row: Gigi Acosta, LaMariyone Moore, Avian Oden-Barnes, Danton Basco, Valerie Castilla-Tabares, Fernando Sandoval, Justin Brown, Diana Diaz and Alexis Xaysana; and back row: Edgar Gutierrez, Kyleigh MacDougall, Koby Williams, Salvador Sanchez, Tariq Wright, Armando Fajardo, Emil-iano Alvarez and (a camera-shy) Nandi Loving.

Tagged as trustworthy

Brentwood police are ramping up coverage of Creek-side Park in the wake of a stabbing on Monday of a 15-year-old.

Lt. Doug Silva of the BPD said offi cers responding to a call about 5:25 p.m. were fl agged down by the victim, who collapsed near the childrens play area in the park. He was fl own to John Muir Medical Center with a non-life-threatening wound to the upper torso, according to reports.

Silva said 21-year-old Todd Lindgren was detained following a sweep of the area, and was turned over to the East Bay Regional Park Police, who have jurisdiction over the Marsh Creek Trail. The attack was believed to have occurred on the trail in the tunnel beneath Balfour Road, and not actually in the park, according to Lt. Manuel Misquez of the BPD.

Silva said a resident called police dispatch to say they had seen someone throw something in the tall grass near the park, after which a search by a police dog recovered a knife possibly used in the attack.

BPD Chief Mark Evenson said the victim might have provoked the attack, but the incident is not believed to be gang-related. Creekside Park has been the site of increas-ing juvenile activity, and as a result Evenson, in an e-mail to Creekside residents, said patrols have been stepped up there.

We know that criminal activity has been on the rise in the Creekside neighborhood, and we have had addition-al patrols in the neighborhood for the past several months to help deal with it, Evensons e-mail stated. Our patrol commander, Lt. Silva, has been communicating directly with residents and overseeing our extra patrol efforts.

Unfortunately, the problems still persist. I have di-rected our patrol staff to use some of our federal grant funds to place uniformed offi cers on overtime to patrol the neighborhood and to vigorously deal with the criminal and civility issues going on in the community. I have also asked my Neighborhood Watch Coordinator, Michele

Keady, to set up an open meeting between the police de-partment and residents to discuss neighborhood issues.

Keady notifi ed residents of the area on Wednesday that a meeting was planned for Dec. 2 to establish more Neighborhood Watch coverage of the area. Residents who want to participate can call Keady at 925-634-6911.

10A | THEPRESS.NET COMMUNITY NOVEMBER 13, 2009

Police step up patrols following stabbingby Rick Lemyre

Staff Writer

Police are stepping up patrols in and around Creekside Park in the wake of a stabbing on a nearby trail on Monday.

Photo by Rick Lemyre

12A | THEPRESS.NET MILESTONES NOVEMBER 13, 2009

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NOVEMBER 13, 2009 COMMUNITY THEPRESS.NET | 13A

Bowlers looking to earn a free game and do something good for the community will soon have the opportunity to do both, thanks to the Strike Out Hunger campaign at the Harvest Park Bowl in Brentwood.

Bowlers who bring in a canned-good product or non-perishable food item dur-ing regular operating hours now through Dec. 20 will be treated to a game on the house.

All collected items will go directly to the Brentwood Regional Community Chest for distribution to needy families in town.

Harvest Park Manager Sherry MacK-enzie said she heard about the Strike Out Hunger project through the Northern Cal-ifornia Bowling Association, and thought it would be a perfect fi t for Brentwood. When I heard about this, it just sounded like a great thing, she said. Jim (Wange-man), who owns the Bowl, is very active in the Community Chest, so it all came

together. I fi gured everyone can use a free game and its a great way to help out a local charity. Were hoping to have a great response.

The free games are subject to lane availability, and do not include bowling shoes. Harvest Park Bowl is located at 5000 Balfour Road. For more information, call 925-516-1221 or visit www.harvest-parkbowl.com.

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canal, which is planned to stretch 49 miles from just south of Sacramento to next to a new forebay near Clifton Court Forebay south of Byron, drawing up to 15,000 cu-bic feet of water per second from the Sac-ramento River, bypassing the rest of the Delta, before pumping it south.

This legislation in no way authorizes a peripheral canal, said Allen. In fact, it lays out a number of hurdles for any canal to move forward, that being the environmental protection specifi cally.

Theres a possibility that some of the

bond money, if it passes next year, could go toward the expansion of CCWDs Los Vaqueros Reservoir. The environmental im-pacts of that proposed expansion are cur-rently being studied.

City offi cials in East County are cau-tiously optimistic but also taking a wait-and-see approach while they wade through the details in the hundreds of pages of water legislation.

The Assembly bills are quite volumi-nous, said Paul Eldridge, Brentwood as-sistant director of public works. In general there are some things that are really good

about the bill and things that could have been better. First and foremost, theres a compre-hensive plan, which we havent had in a long time. It takes into account the Delta convey-ance, some of the storage issues, the environ-ment. Also it gave some of the groups who were keen on water usage some teeth for wa-ter conservation. I think everybody got some of what they wanted, but not everything they wanted.

Phil Harrington, Antiochs director of capital improvements and water rights, who recently warned that Antioch is in danger of losing its century-old right to draw water

from the San Joaquin River (possibly re-sulting in a multi-million dollar increase in water costs for residents and businesses), is cautiously optimistic that the legislation will preserve that right.

They have not said in any part of this bill that existing senior water rights will be impacted, he said. There are a lot of cave-ats to this whole process that could do it. (If) they start to fold in sea-level rise and climate change, that will typically incur processes that could impact your ability (to draw free water from the river). We continue to work and negotiate with the state.

Water from page 1A

the start of the parade was Antioch resident Julius Benveniste, a vet who was wearing a bronze star cap. He was drafted into the First Cav (as he put it) 8th division in the Korean War in 1951. Like many vets, he doesnt say much about his service.

I was young; I was 21 years old, he said. Its good for everybody to go in the service, I think. Besides serving your country, I really became a man instead of a boy. You realize how lucky you are. I was in Korea for the amount of time I needed to be there. I came home. Im lucky. Thats about it, I guess.

Loffgren was similarly low-key when asked about his Vietnam experience. I was in the infantry, he said. I was wounded twice, but I made it home just fi ne and thats that. He was more forthcoming on the meaning of Veterans Day. We would like to thank all of the veterans and the com-

munity for their support and to support our military in Afghanistan and Iraq today and all corners of the world. A lot of the troops are in other places that you dont hear about. And their families miss them. And we want to make sure we honor them and keep them in our prayers.

The parades loudest participants were the revving, roaring Patriot Sentinel motor-cycle riders, a bunch of bearded, bandana-wearing, gum-chewing, tough-looking Hells Angels-type guys who provide welcome-home ceremonies for returning soldiers. The festivities wrapped up with four Calvary Temple Saddle Club horse riders and Sheba, a 35-year-old retired horse led on foot.

Those needing another parade fi x wont have to wait long. The annual Holiday DeL-ites Parade and Tree Lighting Ceremony takes place in just three weeks on Dec. 5, trav-eling along the same route and with many of the same participants.

Veterans from page 1A

Photo by Richard Wisdom

Parade grand marshals, from left, Vincent Silva, Richard Lundin and Leo Fontana were own to the parade in a Vietnam-era Huey assault helicopter.

16A | THEPRESS.NET NOVEMBER 13, 2009

OPINIONEDITORIALS, LETTERS & COMMENTARY National

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

Effort to recall councilmen will continueLet me fi rst say that we are not opposed to the of-

fi cials decision to build a civic center, just its location of choice. The majority of us were even in favor when we fi rst heard of the plans. However, that was when the plan was to build behind the current City Hall.

We do understand the growth of our small com-munity (all too well) and realize that the increase in employees at City Hall is a given. What we are concerned and opposed to is the use of land that was

donated to the inhabitants of Brentwood to be used spe-cifi cally as a public park perpetually and forever. Our beautiful and historic City Park (all original 2.93 acres of it) should remain a park.

We do take offense to you calling our efforts mis-guided. It is our democratic right to question what our offi cials do and how they go about doing it. We have tried to get answers to our questions for over a year now from our city offi cials about how they were able to legally rezone the park, to no avail. We have spoken out at sev-eral city council meetings and were just ignored. We have requested copies of all documents pertaining to this issue with no document appearing proving they have a legal right to build upon the park.

And it is our constitutional right to question what appear to be ethical violations of the law and trampling

on the rights of us citizens that want answers and the entire park to remain a park. If this has been legally taken care of and in the proper way, we would love to see the proof; otherwise, there just may be some malfeasance (your word) being done by these two council members and the mayor.

Yes, recalling a government offi cial is a very serious undertaking and believe me, we wish we didnt have to proceed. However, when these same offi cials refuse to explain, talk to us and/or provide proof that what they are doing is legal what else can we do?

For your information, a third Notice of Intent will be issued (if at fi rst you dont succeed in the red-tape of the legal system try, try again). Unfortunately, on the second notice, some of the addresses had changed due the housing situation and registration update cards had not been sent in.

Our City Council needs to be held accountable for its actions. And its lack of communication proves that it does not care what any of us think or want for our community. Therefore it is its lack of cooperation and continuous story changing (and downright lies) that forces us to continue

I fi nd it unusual that the editorial in the Oct. 30 Brentwood Press was unsigned. Does this mean that this editorial is the stance the Brentwood Press is taking? If it is, I fi nd that very sad, but it also explains why the Press refused to print my last two letters to the editor. Isnt a newspaper supposed to remain unbiased? I guess the author(s) wanted to remain anonymous. Why is that?

And yes, democracy is what our country runs on but it just takes a little longer to achieve results for those of us who do not have the funds for attorney fees.

It was hilarious to read the editorial where it states that City Park will be bigger. Dont you remember that the city rezoned the park to a new downtown (mixed-use) district? There is no such thing as our city park anymore. The city can now cement over whatever it wants (even the remaining grass area). I would also like to see the proof that it will be bigger (without counting in a parking lot); the recent plans do not prove it.

During a recent council meeting, Councilman Stone-barger asked if the grass ratio would be the same after City Hall was built. He was told yes, it would even be a little larger and that if it werent, then construction would stop and plans would be redone so that it would be. Well, the most recent plans I have prove that the park will be smaller. But wait construction is still going on?

Please also remember per your article that Erick Stonebarger did get more votes than Brockman. End of story no other votes matter. I know numbers can say anything the author intends them to. Councilman Stone-barger and Councilman Richey have continuously voted against the Civic Center project, selling bonds, re-phas-ing, library re-location/renovations and a few other areas in the past year.

This project has never been a unanimous decision within our city council nor is it within our community. It is time those three (Taylor, Becnel and Brockman) real-ize they cant keep sweeping us under the carpet.

Thank you for your honorable service

Editor:An open letter to Lisa Hultz and

the community:It was a crushing blow to me and

the school district when you an-nounced your resignation from the Byron Union School District board of trustees. The commitment you gave to our students, the schools and the community will be sorely missed.

Even before you joined the board

six years ago, you gave selflessly of yourself and always found ways to be there for and appreciate oth-ers. Whether it was volunteering in the classroom, working with SEED, surprising staff with secret Santa gifts, setting up appreciation days or honoring our valued employees, you always made sure people were treated with honor and respect.

The district grew and improved under your guidance and dealt with adversity in a positive manner. You brought honor and integrity to the posi-tion of trustee in the BUSD, and the legacy built over those years will be felt for generations of students in the future.

I know you feel the district is headed in a great direction, and you want to see it through to the amazing outcomes we have ahead. But again, you made the selfless act of stepping down from the position, because you didnt feel you could give the time necessary to do the job correctly. Others would have stayed, out of ego, instead of doing what is best for the kids and the district.

Maybe when things settle down and your full commitment to the po-sition of trustee can return, you will have the opportunity to finish the job. But for now, thank you for all you have done, and know that the many

successes on the horizon were made possible with your efforts. With great honor and respect,

BUSD Board President Ken SilmanTrustees Karri Murayama, Jill Sprenkel,

Bobbi NugentSuperintendent Eric Prater

City hall should take to the StreetsEditor:

Two months ago I expressed a concern over losing our park to the multi-million dollar city hall project. I was reassured by a park employee, who said that the green parts of the park would remain.

Last week I talked to a man who was working on the project. He said that the building would extend from Maple Street to the far side of the old library taking over half the park.

I have a better idea. Put the city hall out at the Streets of Brentwood. I understand there are empty stores available. To view the rape of the park, visit the real streets of Brent-wood. Bring Kleenex its enough to make you weep.

Mr. Stonebarger and Mr. Richey, thank you for voting against the project. You have my vote in the next election.

Carole MainBrentwood

Foregone conclusionEditor:

Ive read comments about the 2-Gates Project, but find no mention of a glaring red flag that bothers me. If this project is indeed about saving the Delta smelt, why is the Southern Cali-fornia Metropolitan Water District one of the sponsors? We all know its main goal is to divert as much Northern California water to South-ern California as possible. Im frankly surprised that it would even have its name associated with this project. My sad conclusion is that its already a done deal, so they dont care.

Bill KoguraDiscovery Bay

Giving Dawgs their dayEditor:

The Delta Dawgs Baseball Club recently held its inaugural golf tour-nament. Its success would not have been possible without the help of our many volunteers and sponsors. We would like to thank and acknowledge the following businesses for their generous donations: Les Schwab Tires, Orale Orale, Kellogg Creek Aggre-gates, Metro PCS, Wes & Robin Olsen, Yogurt Pizzazz, Diggers, Rave Movie

by Kathy FredenbergBrentwood resident

GUEST COMMENT

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

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see Letters page 18A

NOVEMBER 13, 2009 THEPRESS.NET | 17A

A sampling of recent law enforcement activity reported by East County police depart-ments.BRENTWOODOct. 30, 4:30 p.m. On Balfour Road, an un-identifi ed person stole a purse from a shop-ping cart.Oct. 30, 5:57 p.m. An unidentifi ed person opened a credit card under the name of a resi-dent of Prominent Drive and made purchases on the card.Oct. 30, 6:52 p.m. An unidentifi ed person armed with a handgun robbed a business on Sand Creek Road.Oct. 30, 11:58 p.m. A driver struck the me-dian on Balfour Road at American Avenue.Oct. 31, 1:09 a.m. On Dainty Avenue, a sub-ject involved in a fi ght sustained four stab wounds. Another subject involved in the fi ght, who sustained injuries to his face, was found to be intoxicated and was arrested. Both sub-jects were uncooperative. The fi rst subject was airlifted to a hospital. The second was trans-ported to a different hospital.Oct. 31, 8:12 a.m. On Bauer Road at Country Glen Lane, a subject too intoxicated to care for himself was arrested and released on a Ju-venile Affi davit.Oct. 31, 11:08 a.m. On Whitehall Lane, a sub-ject who failed to drop off a child was found in violation of a court order.Oct. 31, 4:44 p.m. An unidentifi ed person stole a generator from a business on First Street.Oct. 31, 9:59 p.m. On OHara Avenue at Sand Creek Road, a subject stopped for vehicle code violations was DUI and in possession of suspected cocaine. He was arrested and taken to the Martinez Detention Facility.Oct. 31, 11:48 p.m. On Lone Tree Way at Fairview Avenue, a subject stopped for a ve-hicle code violation was found to be under the infl uence of a central nervous system stimu-lant. She was arrested and taken to the Marti-

nez Detention Facility.Nov. 1, 1:16 a.m. On Lone Tree Way at Em-pire Avenue, a subject stopped for vehicle code violations was found to be driving under the infl uence of alcohol. He was arrested and taken to the Martinez Detention Facility.Nov. 1, 1:20 a.m. A subject involved in a me-lee on Lone Tree Way refused to comply with offi cers orders, was arrested and taken to the Martinez Detention Facility.Nov. 1, 2:48 a.m. On Lone Tree Way, two subjects punched a victim several times with closed fi sts. The victim signed a citizens arrest form against both assailants.Nov. 1, 11:26 a.m. A vehicle was stolen from a residence on Campanello Way.Nov. 1, 1:14 p.m. An unidentifi ed person stole a cell phone from the display of a business on Lone Tree Way.Nov. 1, 8:05 p.m. A subject arrested for shop-lifting at a business on Sand Creek Road was released on a Promise To Appear.Nov. 1, 10:16 p.m. On Sand Creek Road at Minnesota Avenue, a subject stopped for ve-hicle code violations was found to be driving on a suspended license due to a DUI.

To view the Brentwood Police Depart-ments public logs on the citys Web site, visit www.ci.brentwood.ca.us/department/pd/re-ports/index.cfm.ANTIOCHNov. 3, 2009, 9:48 p.m. Offi cers of the An-tioch Police Department responded to the report of an armed robbery at the Jack in the Box restaurant on 4801 Lone Tree Way. After ordering employees to lie down on the fl oor, the robber stole an undisclosed amount of money from the registers and fl ed. He was not located. As the subjects face was covered and he wore a hooded jacket, witnesses offered confl icting descriptions of his appearance.

For information on law enforcement in An-tioch, visit www.ci.antioch.ca.us/citygov/police.

OAKLEYOct. 28 A subject interfered with a public of-fi cer on the 1400 block of Ashwood Drive.Oct. 28 Moving violations were reported on Megan Court at Megan Drive and on the 2500 block of Main Street.Oct. 28 On Ponderosa Way at Ponderosa Drive, a subject was charged with driving un-der the infl uence of alcohol.Oct. 28 Shoplifting was reported on the 2500 block of Main Street.Oct. 29 Vehicles were stolen from the 5700 block of Main Street and the 200 block of West Bolton Road.Oct. 29 On the 100 block of Francisco Villa Drive, a court order was violated.Oct. 29 Arrest warrants were issued on the 4100 block of Hagar Lane and the 5700 block of Bridgehead Road.Oct. 29 A subject committed battery on the 1000 block of Neroly Road.Oct. 29 A burglary was reported on the 2300 block of El Monte Drive.Oct. 30 A vehicle accident with injuries oc-curred on Live Oak Avenue at Main Street.Oct. 31 A vehicle was stolen on the 4700 block of Carrington Drive.Oct. 31 On Almond Drive at Tokay Drive, a subject was found in possession of narcotics.Oct. 31 A vehicle accident with property damage occurred on Empire Avenue at Oak-ley Road.Oct. 31 On the 1700 block of Chandon Way, a subject committed an assault with a deadly weapon.Oct. 31 A residential burglary occurred on the 4100 block of Mehaffey Way.Oct. 31 On the 3900 block of Main Street and on Anderson Lane at Brownstone Road, subjects were arrested for public intoxication.Nov. 1 A juvenile was reported missing from the 600 block of Mockingbird Lane.Nov. 1 A court order was violated on the

2000 block of Rubens Way.Nov. 1 Cases of battery were reported on the 100 block of Las Dunas Avenue, on the 800 block of Chianti Way and on the 6400 block of Sellers Avenue.Nov. 1 An assault with a deadly weapon oc-curred on the 2400 block of Main Street.DISCOVERY BAYOct. 4 Vandalism was reported on the 2300 block of Newport Place.Oct. 5 A residential burglary occurred on the 1800 block of Seal Way.Oct. 8 On the 4800 block of South Point, a subject was charged with possession of dan-gerous drugs.Oct. 9 Grand theft was reported on the 5700 block of Starfi sh Court.Oct. 11 An arrest warrant was issued on the 5800 block of Starboard Drive.Oct. 13 Vandalism occurred on the 300 block of Discovery Bay Boulevard.Oct. 14 A case of battery occurred on the 2500 block of Foghorn Way.Oct. 17 Suspicious circumstance was report-ed on the 1600 block of Riverlake Road.Oct. 21 A juvenile was reported as a run-away from the 4000 block of Regatta Drive.Oct. 22 On the 2400 block of Discovery Bay Boulevard, a subject was arrested for public intoxication.Oct. 22 A minor was found in possession of alcohol at Porthole Drive and Sailboat Drive.Oct. 22 Grand theft from a boat was report-ed on the 1500 block of Riverlake Road.Oct. 23 An assault with a deadly weapon was reported on the 2400 block of Aberdeen Lane.Oct. 27 A strong-arm robbery was reported at Porthole Drive and Sailboat Drive.Oct. 28 Credit card fraud was reported on the 5700 block of Greenfi eld Way.Oct. 29 A disturbance was called in from the 3500 block of Catalina Way.

COP LOGSFROM EMERGENCY SERVICES DISPATCH LOGS A subject involved in a melee on Lone Tree Way refused to comply with offi cers orders and was arrested. Nov. 1, 1:20 a.m. in Brentwood

18A | THEPRESS.NET NOVEMBER 13, 2009

22 888882008

GOL

D MEDALAWARD

Theaters, Discovery Bay Country Club, Starbucks, Mimis Caf, Sim-ply Said, Cabanas, Boardwalk Grill, Harrys Hofbrau, Sportsbar & Steak-house, Shi Ra Soni, and Lourdes Ice Cream. And a special thank-you to Shadow Lakes Golf Course. Thank you for your continued support!

Kathy PrybylinskiDelta Dawgs Baseball Club

Blasting offEditor:

Brentwood PONY Baseball Leagues Blast 11U team held a Pasta Feed Fundraiser on Saturday, Oct. 24 at Veterans Hall in Brentwood. All proceeds will enable the team, the ma-jority of which have been together for three years, the opportunity to rep-resent Brentwood at the prestigious Cooperstown All-Star Village Youth Baseball Classic and visit baseballs Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. in the summer of 2011. With the gener-osity and support of many businesses, the team raised $3,700.

The boys were the food servers for the evening as they hustled out bowls of salad, baskets of rolls and platters of homemade Italian pasta. The cook was the Italian grandpa of one of the players. Bart Schneider was the master of ceremonies and auctioneer for our live auction items, which included tickets to Dr. Phil/The Doctors, Dis-neyland, Half Moon Bay Golf and El Dorado Hotel accommodations, to name just a few.

There was a Pick-your-Prize raffle and a sea of silent auction prizes for everyone to enjoy. The karaoke really took off when Kevin Morris (Blast 12 coach) offered $100 to have the Blast 11 coaches, Ed Mitchener, Mark Petures, Scott McCurdy, Terry Daysog and Jeff Marchetti perform Stop

in the Name of Love. It was truly difficult to determine which one was Diana Ross.

The parents of the Blast 11U baseball team would like to take this opportunity to thank all the guests who joined us for dinner and the fol-lowing businesses for their support and generosity:

1st Pitch Strike Baseball, A-1 Transmissions, A-1 Smog Test, Aladi-nos Pizza, All Gods Creatures, Apple-bees, Barilla Pasta, Bay Area Soccer Academy LLC, BevMo, Big O Tires, Bill Brandt Ford, Brentwood Auto Spa, Brentwood Golf Club, Brent-wood Hand Car Wash, John Broski Photography, C.K. Pizzeria, Cookie Lee, Anthony Costello (the cook), Cover-Ups, Disneyland Park/Disneys California Adventure, Deer Ridge Golf Course, The Doctors Show, Dog-gie Depot, Dr. Phil Show, El Dorado Hotel-Casino/Reno, Firestone, Food Maxx, Golf N Games, Hair Masters, Half Moon Bay Golf Links, Harvest Park Bowl, Hersheys Chocolate, Holy Hair, Jamba Juice, Les Schwab, Mary Kay Cosmetics, Marys Pizza Shack, Mimis Caf, Muriettas Well Winery, Nines Restaurant, Outback Steakhouse/Pittsburg, Paradise Skate Park, Pleasanton Hilton Hotel, Roccos Pizzeria/Walnut Creek, Ross Stores, Bart Schneider (our emcee), Schooners Grille & Brewery, Sevil-lano Links@Rolling Hills Casino, Shadow Lakes Golf Course, Shifflett Photography, Spa Prima, SpeeDee Oil Change, Starbucks Balfour/Fairview, Stockton Ports, Tamas Estates Winery, Tommy Ts Comedy and Steakhouse, Trucks Training, Usborne Books, The Vitamin Shoppe, Warriors and Wente Vineyards.

Mary StrongBrentwood

Letters from page 16A

WWW.THEPRESS.NET YOUR HOMETOWN SOURCE FOR EAST CONTRA COSTA

November 13, 2009

Heritage nets key volleyball victory You just knew the girls volleyball sea-

son fi nale last week between Liberty and Heritage would go down to the wire.

Each team came into the game with a 10-4 record. Liberty had won its fi rst en-counter in three games and Heritage took its second match in four games. The Nov. 5 showdown, in a nearly full Liberty gym, fea-tured a deafening playoff atmosphere as the crosstown rivals fought for second place in the Bay Valley Athletic League (undefeated Deer Valley had sewn up fi rst).

And sure enough, the well-played, hard-fought contest a battle royale, as Heri-tage Coach Janet Hannigan called it went a full fi ve games, the Patriots edging out the Lions 15-13 in the fi nal game. Liberty took the fi rst game 25-20; Heritage prevailed in the next two 25-19 and 25-22, and the fourth game went into extra points before Liberty prevailed 28-26.

The key to victory for Heritage was fi nding ways to work around Libertys Corinne Costa, who at 6-foot-4 dominates the court on offense (she notched 31 kills) and on defense (fi ve blocks).

Today we were able to do some things a little differently, said Hannigan. We had to adjust to match Corinne shes such a huge threat we were able to do that. We made a couple of adjustments that really helped us out today. Youre trying to hit around a wall,

basically. So when shes not there, wherever shes not, we are trying to put the ball (and) adjusting who is playing middle when shes in the front row and trying to score a lot of points when shes not in the game. Shes a very physical factor.

Just how much of a factor Costa repre-sents was demonstrated in the fi rst game, in which her kills and blocks helped put the Li-ons up 12-3. But when she came out of the game for a rest, Heritage climbed back to

within four points, down 15-19. Then Costa returned to the game, leading to kill, kill, kill. Before you knew it the game was over and Liberty was victorious. If Costa were superhuman and able to play every minute of every game, the outcome of the match would likely have been different.

Liberty Coach Linda Ghilarducci was gracious in defeat: Everybody played their heart out. It was a great match. Nothing to be ashamed of. Thats the way it goes. Its

been great. We cant ask for better. Its great volleyball. The house is packed. This is great volleyball.

While Liberty, naturally, is a Costa-oriented team, Heritage takes a more dem-ocratic approach. Hannigan praised her whole team but singled out four players for helping make the victory possible: Chelsey Hancock, a sophomore running the team

Meg Lyons and Maddi Hancock of Heritage leap to block a shot by Libertys Nicole Kelly. Heritage won 3-2, winning the rubber match between the crosstown rivals last week.

Photo by Richard Wisdom

by Dave RobertsStaff Writer

see Volleyball page 23A

Patriots experience overwhelms Falcons

It was Senior Night at Heritage High Friday night, and Patriots Stadium was the scene of senior dominance as the Heritage football team routed the Freedom Falcons 32-6. The Patriots fi eld more than twice as many 2010 graduates as Freedoms 11 seniors, and the difference in experience was abundantly evident throughout the contest.

The offensive star for Heritage was running back Kruger Story Jr., who gained 213 rushing yards and scored four times. The offensive line, led by seniors Je-sus Ochoa, Seth Magalei and Carrington Reyes, opened gaping holes throughout the contest en route to 344 total yards of offense, 280 on the ground.

The fi rst Patriot possession seemed nearly uncontested, as the team drove 80 yards in four plays and slightly more than a minute. Quarterback Brent Eikanas com-pleted a pass to wide receiver Devin Hardy for 16 yards to start the march, followed by three straight runs by Story Jr., the last of which went for 45 yards to paydirt.

Freedoms defense stiffened on the Pa-

triots next possession, forcing a three-and-out, but Freedoms offense also couldnt get a fi rst down. A short punt put the ball on the Freedom 40 yard line. Eikanas hit Davonte Lewis for 16 yards and connected again for a 22-yard TD.

The Falcon highlight came on the ensuing kickoff. Running back DAmora Cooper took the kick at his 21 and bolted directly down the middle of the fi eld virtu-ally untouched for a 79-yard touchdown. Suddenly Freedom had life in a 13-6 ball-game in the fi rst quarter.

Heritage started its next drive from its own 22, and worked the ball downfi eld for Story Jr.s second TD of the night, this one from six yards out, giving the Patriots a 19-6 lead with 7:18 to go in the second quarter.

Determined not to fold under pres-sure, Freedom took its next possession at its 20. Cooper took a pitch to the right side and sprinted 69 yards to the Patriot 11. But the Falcons next three plays resulted in a loss of 16 yards. A fi eld goal attempt was blocked, and Lewis returned the ball to the Falcons 18 a play that seemed to sap the life from the Freedom sideline. Five plays later, Story Jr. scored from one yard out to

give the Patriots a 25-6 lead.After stirring halftime performances

by the cheerleaders of both schools, Fal-con wide receiver Kenneth Walker took the second half kickoff 60 yards to the Pa-triot 39, and the Freedom bench suddenly came to life. It was short-lived, however, as the team fumbled the ball after three plays. Story Jr. recovered for Heritage at the Freedom 24, but the Patriots stalled and were forced to punt.

Freedom then started to move the ball with authority, thanks to the tough run-ning of Cooper and quarterback Stephen Rodriguez. The Falcons eventually got to fi rst-and-goal at the Heritage fi ve. But the birds couldnt punch it in. On fourth-and-goal at the one, Cooper lined up in shotgun wildcat formation, but a bad snap forced him to retreat to recover the ball, forcing a

Heritages Kruger Story Jr. has plenty of company as he gallops down eld.

Photo by Kyndl Buzas

by Kenny LeeCorrespondent

see Patriots page 23A

20A | THEPRESS.NET SPORTS NOVEMBER 13, 2009

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Big-play Pirates sink Lions in blowout

There was an air of inevitability about the Liberty football teams blowout loss to Pittsburg Friday night, and the game pretty much lived up to expectations.

Pittsburg is a much stronger team than its 4-4 overall record coming into the game suggests. They had whupped Freedom 42-21 the week before, threw a scare into undefeated Deer Valley before falling 33-35 the week be-fore that and dominated Heritage 46-20 in the fi rst week of league play. Meanwhile Liberty was being collectively outscored 157-9 by An-tioch, Heritage and Deer Valley.

So you didnt need to be a rocket scientist to fi gure it was probably going to be another long night for Lions fans at Ohmstede fi eld. The only question was whether Liberty would be able to put up much of a fi ght for a while, as Freedom had done the prior week when it led Pittsburg by a touchdown after one quarter and tied the Pirates at the half. Unfortunately, it was never close in Fridays 52-7 blowout, although the Lions did have several scoring opportunities that could have made the game more interesting had they capitalized.

There are 52-7 blowouts that feel like they easily could have been 104-7 blowouts; and there are 52-7 blowouts that feel like they could have been 52-28 blowouts. This one felt like the latter, although the what-might-have-beens were cold comfort on a cold night for Lions fans.

I thought we hung with Pittsburg pretty well, said Liberty Coach Nate Smith. 52-7 it didnt feel like that except for the big plays they had on offense. They ripped off long runs on us. They had a couple of big pass plays. I thought we should have had 28 points tonight. We fumbled the ball once inside the red zone. Twice we put the ball in the end zone and penalties bring it back out and we dont score. We had another long run called back for a penalty. If we just limited the big plays (by Pittsburg), we are right in the game.

I know its a 52-7 game, but really it was three unfi nished drives and us missing a couple of tackles to enable big plays. They didnt necessarily drive the fi eld on us. It was big plays (by Pittsburg). Offensively, I thought we played our best game in over a month. I thought we moved the ball well all night long.

We just couldnt fi nish drives. Im proud of the effort, but we need to stay together better as a team. In the second half when they started to pull away, we kind of fractured a little bit. And I thought thats what really cost our de-fense on some plays.

Pittsburgs game plan was simple: its line would smash open holes for its fl eet of fl eet running backs to run through for touchdowns. Alex Foster scored the fi rst Pirate touchdown on a 36-yard run. Breon Butler scored twice once on a 43-yard run and another nearly as long to start the second half. Arthur Brown scored on an 80-yard kickoff return. Billy Wells ran it in from 11 yards for the fi nal score. Quarterback Julius Mozee also threw two TD passes to Robert Jiles.

Pittsburg was ahead 28-0 when Liberty fi nally got on the board for its sole game high-

light just before the fi rst half ended. With a little more than a minute left, the Lions drove quickly from their own 26 with fi ne passing by quarterback Devyn Parsons. He hit Anthony Garcia once and Garrett Slocum thrice, the last one caught on the 10 and run into the end zone. But the other scoring opportunities were thwarted by penalties and turnovers.

Liberty, which is 3-5-1 overall and 0-4 in league play, has an opportunity to fi nish the season on a positive note in Saturdays Bell Game against Freedom, which starts at 1 p.m. at Freedom. The Falcons have played better this season than their 0-9 record indicates, and Smith is expecting a tough battle.

Freedoms been getting better and bet-ter, he said. This week they kind of took it on the chin from Heritage. But prior to this they were getting better and better every week. So, right now if anybody is looking at it, they would probably have to say that Freedoms been playing better than us recently. But I thought, despite the score, we played much better tonight. So I think it will be a close game.

To me its very reminiscent of the year 2000 when both teams came in without a win in league play. And it was a 27-21 game that wasnt decided until the last seconds. It was a very exciting, thrilling game. And I think we can expect some of the same this coming week.

Pittsburg, which is 5-4 overall and 3-1 in league play, hosts Antioch Saturday afternoon in the Big Little Game.

by Dave RobertsStaff Writer

Pittsburgs Malik Watson (8) de ects a pass intended for Libertys Garrett Slocum.

Photo by Richard Wisdom

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turnover on downs.Heritage took advantage of the defen-

sive effort and scored four plays later, this time on a spectacular 78-yard TD jaunt by Story Jr., who again found a huge hole on the left side of the defense and dashed down the sideline. A downfi eld block by senior Robert Uwaichie cleared the last obstacle.

Prior to the game, the senior cheerlead-ers and players were escorted to midfi eld by family members, and a few tears were shed for what might be the last time they play or cheer on this fi eld. Many were ap-preciative of Cathy Alers, who has served as the Heritage Team Mom for many years in a variety of sports, organizing countless team dinners, coordinating corsages for the cheerleaders and helping with the early-sea-son road trip to San Diego.

Patriots from page 19A

at center; Megan Larmour, who recorded 14 kills and four blocks; Haley Kavanaugh, who made 20 kills and six aces and Maddi Hancock, who chalked up seven kills, six blocks and three digs.

Those four girls in particular made great things happen for us. But the team as a whole allowed them to do those things, said Hannigan. The girls deserve this win. They fi ght so hard every game, practicing, work-ing hard, building a great team. It was a good game win or lose, Id have been happy.

But Im very pleased with my team. They worked so hard every day. This is our highest fi nish ever in league. Deer Valley

and Liberty are always tough battles. So Im glad it went fi ve just because we are equally matched. When Corinnes in, it becomes an equally matched game.

The victory upped Heritages record to 23-11 overall and 11-4 in league play. Liberty ended the regular season 21-12 overall and 10-5 in league action. Both teams earned spots in the North Coast Section playoffs. Heritage played at home Wednesday against 18-13 Castro Valley; Liberty was on the road against 19-9 Irvington and 22-11 Deer Val-ley hosted 12-8 San Leandro. The results of those games were not available at press time. The winners move on to the second round Saturday at 7 p.m.

Volleyball from page 19A

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Broken teeth not what theyre cracked up to be

While tooth enamel is the hardest sub-stance in the human body, undue stress on your teeth due to chewing hard foods such as a popcorn kernel or an ice cube, biting on a hard object such as a pen or pipe, and clench-ing or grinding your teeth can cause enamel to crack.

Cracked Tooth Syndrome is common in teeth with large fi llings and is seen most often in the back teeth. If the crack goes untreated, it can deepen or expand like a crack in a glass window, causing part of the tooth to break off. If this occurs, the tooth might have to be ex-tracted or might need root canal treatment in an attempt to save it.

Some of the symptoms of this occurrence are pain in chewing, unsolicited pain, pain from cold air, no X-ray evidence of the problem and no dental decay present. Often it is diffi cult for the patient to determine which tooth is causing the pain. However, the absence of pain does not rule out the presence of a crack.

To determine if a tooth has developed a crack that is not visible to the naked eye, the dentist will take a thorough dental history, in-cluding history of trauma to your teeth and history of any bite adjustments performed. The teeth in the problem area will be examined with a dental explorer. Hot and cold sensitivity will be tested. If a severe pain is elicited with temperature, and the pain rapidly subsides with removal of the stimulus, it usually indi-cates a fracture.

Can cracks be treated so that the tooth can be saved? Yes. Early diagnosis leads to a better chance of success. The best solution is to have a full crown placed over the tooth to strengthen and hold the tooth together. In about 10 percent of cracked teeth, the nerve dies and root canal will be required.

For questions, or to set up an appointment for any of these symptoms, contact Dr. Dikran Dragopian in Brentwood at 925-513-0100.

Courtesy of DentalSenders.com

8B | THEPRESS.NET HEALTH & BEAUTY NOVEMBER 13, 2009

Workout a top priority

The number-one reason why people dont exercise is that they dont have time.

At least thats what they tell themselves.With the holiday season fast approach-

ing, your busy schedule is sure to get even busier. Parties, shopping, decorating, cooking and family gatherings its no wonder exercise quickly takes a backseat to holiday activities.

You dont need to succumb to weight gain this holiday season. Escape the time-crunch excuse with these easy steps:Schedule Your Workouts

If you treated exercise time with the im-portance of a work meeting, youd never skip a workout and youd be in amazing shape.

Pull out your calendar and a pen. Identify three 40-minute time slots and mark them on your calendar. That is when youll exercise.

If the thought of exercise is fl oating around in your head but you havent anchored it down to a specifi c time, it will disappear.Get the Most from Each Minute

The days of endless, mind-numbing car-dio are over. A great workout can take place in under an hour, when done correctly. The idea is to burn more calories each minute. This is done through short, intense bursts of exercise.

Use the following three tips to bring your routine up to the next level:1. Be Unstable: Use your entire body, and target your core, by performing exercises that

engage stabilizing muscles. To do this use an exercise ball, a balance board, a balance disk, or simply stand on one leg.2. Add Resistance: The more resistance you incorporate into your routine translates into higher intensity and more calories burned. Some ideas for adding resistance include: car-rying dumbbells while doing lunges, wearing a weighted vest while walking or jogging, or putting a weight between your feet while do-ing leg raises.3. Use Intervals: Interval training is an amaz-ing tool for creating short yet effective work-outs. Interval training is simply alternating between different short bursts of activity.

Heres an example: Lunge while curling dumbbells, 15-20 repeti-tions. 30 seconds of intense cardio: sprint, jump rope or do jumping jacks. Squat while pressing dumbbells overhead, 15-20 repetitions. 30 seconds of intense cardio: sprint, jump rope, or do jumping jacks. Crunches on an exercise ball, 15-20 repeti-tions. 30 seconds of intense cardio: sprint, jump rope, or do jumping jacks. Leg raises off the end of an exercise bench, 15-20 repetitions.

Call me at 510-919-6806 or e-mail alohafi tness@hotmail.com to get started on the program that will transform your life. And visit www.alohahealthandfi tness.com for more information.

by Christian AguirreCertified Personal Trainer

10B | THEPRESS.NET FOOD & ENTERTAINMENT NOVEMBER 13, 2009

Try pumpkin for a classic holiday

Family gatherings, favorite holiday deco-rations, the wonderful smells of baked goods the holidays are full of familiar rituals and special memories. And pumpkin treats are ideal for holiday baking. The pumpkins mel-low, sweet fl avor blends beautifully with spic-es, citrus and nuts. Pumpkin is a versatile and delicious addition to any holiday tradition.

Stir up some old-fashioned holiday cheer by giving your homemade baked goods as gifts. Wrap up your cookies in an inexpensive holiday tin and tie a pretty ribbon around it. A handmade gift tag is a nice fi nishing touch for your homemade gift from the heart.

MINI PUMPKIN WHOOPIE PIESCookies2 cups all-purpose fl our1 teaspoon baking powder1 teaspoon baking soda1 teaspoon ground cinnamon teaspoon ground ginger teaspoon salt cup (1 stick) butter, softened1 cups granulated sugar2 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten1 cup Libbys 100% Pure Pumpkin1 teaspoon vanilla extractCream Cheese Filling4 ounces room-temperature cream cheese6 tablespoons butter, softened

teaspoon vanilla extract1 cups powdered sugarFor Cookies

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly grease or line four baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine fl our, baking powder, bak-ing soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt in me-dium bowl. Beat butter and sugar in large mixer bowl on medium speed for two min-utes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add pumpkin and va-nilla extract; beat until smooth. Stir in fl our mixture until combined. Drop by heaping measuring teaspoons onto prepared baking sheets. (A total of 72 cookies are needed for the recipe.)

Bake for 10 to 13 minutes or until springy to the touch. Cool on baking sheets for fi ve minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.For Cream Cheese Filling

Beat cream cheese, butter and vanilla extract in small mixer bowl on medium speed until fl uffy. Gradually beat in powdered sug-ar until light an