Fundraiser supports efforts to provide hospice and palliative care services
By Cindy Hatton, President & CEO
Hospice East Bay has been caring for patients and their families in our community since 1977. We are proud to be celebrating our 35th annual Tree of Lights. These ceremonies set aside time for families and friends to honor their loved ones through the symbolism of light and the reading of names.
Funds raised by these events help Hospice East Bay provide hospice and palliative care services to everyone in our communities, regardless of their ability to pay. Through your gifts, we also offer additional supportive services and programs, such as music therapy and children’s grief programs, which are not covered by insurance.
I wish to thank the many community groups that make these events so special and unique. A special thank you to Rudney Associates for their ongoing support as a Sustaining Light Sponsor.
This year, we are hoping to see you in person at a ceremony near you. However, due to growing concerns about the Delta variant, we may need to hold these events virtually once again. I hope you will join us either way and gather with others to remember or honor someone special in your life.
About
Hospice East Bay provides compassionate end-of-life care to terminally ill patients, while offering emotional, spiritual, and grief support for the entire family. As a not-for-profit organization, we accept all medically qualified patients, regardless of their insurance status or ability to pay. Proceeds from our thrift shoppes support our programs.
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Forced into oncoming traffic on Brentwood Boulevard near Sellers Avenue
By CHP Contra Costa
On October 26, 2021 at around 3:35 pm, Contra Costa CHP was advised of a three vehicle collision on Brentwood Boulevard, east of Sellers Avenue. The events occurred as follows, a Honda Civic with one occupant was stopped and waiting to make a left turn. A Dodge Ram with one occupant was approaching the Civic from the rear and collided with the rear of the Civic. This initial collision caused the Civic to be pushed into the opposite lanes of traffic and an approaching Ford Expedition with one occupant collided with the right side of the Civic.
The driver of the Honda was pronounced deceased at the scene and was identified by the Contra Costa Coroner’s Office as 39-year-old Jesus Ismael Virgen-Medina of Pittsburg.
The occupants of the Ford and Dodge suffered minor injuries.
This collision is still under investigation. If anyone witnessed it or the events leading up to it, please contact Contra Costa CHP in Martinez, (925) 646-4980.
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$18 million in funding for the next 3 years available to private and public land owners
CAL FIRE announced today, Thursday, October 28, 2021, it is allocating more than $18 million for the California Forest Improvement Program (CFIP), which is designed to provide up to a 90% cost-share assistance to small private and public forestland owners to improve forest health and increase the resilience of California’s forestlands to adapt to climate change. Funding to support private forestland owners through this and other programs was provided through Senate Bill-170 Budget Act of 2021.
The purpose of the CFIP is to encourage private and public investments in forestlands and resources within the state to ensure adequate future high quality timber supplies, related employment, and other economic benefits, and to protect, maintain, and enhance the forest resource for the benefit of present and future generations.
The funds will be released over the next three years beginning in 2021 for forest health projects. The funds will be dispersed in bi-monthly blocks of approximately $2 million until all monies have been applied for by project applicants. Cost-share assistance is available to private and public ownerships containing 20 to 5,000 acres of forest land, and cost-shared projects include thinning for forest health and fire resilience, tree planting, pruning, and other forest health improvement activities as described at the following web location:
https://www.fire.ca.gov/grants/california-forest-improvement-program-cfip/
For inquiries on the program and how to apply, please contact one of CAL FIRE’s Forestry Assistance Specialists at the following web location:
https://www.fire.ca.gov/media/trjncbme/contact-a-cfip-forest-advisor.pdf
This funding is designed to help meet California’s goals of improved forest health, resilience to climate change, and reduced forestland impacts due to devastating wildfires. The efforts help implement the recommendations in California’s Wildfire and Forest Resilience Action Plan from the Governor’s Forest Management Task Force issued in January, this year.
The CFIP has been in existence since the 1978 California Forest Improvement Act was passed and has encumbered over $75 million for landowner assistance since the beginning of the program.
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Federal grant funding Impaired Driving Reduction efforts
By Jaime Coffee, Information Officer II, California Highway Patrol
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The California Highway Patrol (CHP) and the California Office of Traffic Safety are partnering on a campaign aimed at reducing the number of crashes caused by impaired drivers. The $5.5 million grant will fund the Impaired Driving Reduction (IDR) education and enforcement campaign, which began October 1, 2021 and continues through September 30, 2022.
In 2019, impaired driving crashes were responsible for 568 deaths and 11,444 injuries within the CHP’s jurisdiction throughout the state. Each one of these injuries and deaths represents a preventable tragedy and a continued need to focus efforts on reducing impaired driving in California.
“This grant will help support the Department’s mission by strengthening education and enforcement efforts throughout the state,” CHP Commissioner Amanda Ray said. “As a public safety organization, we will continue to do everything in our power to promote safety for all on California’s roadways.”
In 2020, more than 90,000 violations for driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol and/or drugs were cited by CHP officers through California. The IDR grant provides the CHP with funding to conduct additional saturation patrols, checkpoints, and traffic safety education efforts throughout California. These efforts are designed to remove impaired drivers from the roadway and educate the public regarding the dangers of DUI. Additionally, the CHP will actively participate in California’s Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over public awareness campaign.
The CHP wants to remind the public, “DUI Doesn’t Just Mean Booze.” Alcohol, cannabis, certain prescription and over-the-counter medications, illegal drugs, or any combination can affect your ability to drive and will result in an arrest if you are under the influence. Always make good decisions and plan ahead by designating a sober driver, take public transportation, or call a taxi or ride-share. There is always a better option than getting behind the wheel while impaired.
The public is encouraged to call 9-1-1 if they observe a suspected impaired driver. Be prepared to provide the dispatcher a location, direction of travel, and vehicle description.
Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The mission of the CHP is to provide the highest level of Safety, Service, and Security.
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Follows Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare health plan in California receiving a 5 out of 5-star rating making it among the highest rated in the nation
By Antonia Ehlers, PR and Media Relations, Kaiser Permanente Northern California
Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare Advantage health plan is one of the best in California for quality care and service, according to U.S. News & World Report’s Best Insurance Companies for Medicare Advantage Plans 2022.
To create its 2022 list of best insurance companies for Medicare Advantage, U.S. News & World Report analyzed Medicare Advantage offerings in each state based on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) annual Star Quality Ratings for 2022.
In the CMS 2022 ratings, Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare health plan in California received a 5 out of 5-star rating – making it among the highest rated in the nation – for providing expert medicine, seamless care, and outstanding service to its Medicare health plan members. This is the 11th straight year Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare health plan in California has been rated 5 out of 5 stars.
According to U.S. News & World Report, a “best” Medicare Advantage insurance company is defined as a health care organization whose plans were all rated at least 3 out of 5 stars by CMS and whose plans have an average rating of 4.5 or more stars within the state.
With Kaiser Permanente, Medicare members get high-quality medical services, hospital care, prescription drug coverage, preventive care, and more in one easy-to-use plan. We also offer convenient care options, such as video visits, phone appointments, and secure email.
Learn more about Medicare, explore Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare Advantage plans, and get information on enrolling.
About Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve almost 12.5 million members in 8 states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente Medical Group physicians, specialists, and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery, and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education, and the support of community health. http://about.kaiserpermanente.org
Read MoreInvestigation conducted by multi-agency Contra Costa County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force
By Scott Alonzo, Public Information Officer, Contra Costa County Office of the District Attorney
On Tuesday October 26, 2021, after a six-day trial, a jury in Contra Costa County found 30-year-old Pleasant Hill resident Won Kwak guilty of aggravated possession of child pornography and attempting to destroy evidence.
The jury found that on November 24, 2020, Kwak knowingly possessed over 600 images of child sexual abuse material, depicting pre-pubescent children engaged in sexually explicit conduct. The jury also found Kwak attempted to destroy evidence on his laptop computer when he deleted thousands of sexually explicit files as officers served a search warrant at his residence.
On November 24, 2020, members of the Contra Costa County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force served a search warrant at Kwak’s residence after it was discovered someone at the residence was making child pornography files available for sharing on the internet. When officers knocked on the front door, Kwak looked through the blinds, saw the police officers, and then went to his computer and began deleting files of child pornography. Concord Detective Daren Billington, a digital forensics expert, was able to recover many of those files and demonstrate to the jury exactly what Kwak did to delete them.
Kwak’s sentencing is scheduled for January 7, 2022, in front of the Honorable Joni T. Hiramoto. Kwak faces a maximum penalty of five years in state prison. The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Max Laettner with the Interpersonal Violence Division.
This investigation was conducted by the multi-agency Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, which is managed by the San Jose Police Department. In Contra Costa County, detectives and investigators from the Walnut Creek, Martinez, Danville, Pleasant Hill, Concord and Moraga Police Departments, the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office, United States Secret Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the Contra Costa County Probation Department, and Inspectors from the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office participate in the task force.
Parents seeking additional resources can visit www.kidsmartz.org or the website for the Silicon Valley Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force at www.svicac.org. Reports of illegal activity involving minor victims on the internet should be reported at once to your local police department.
Case information: People v. Kwak, Docket Number 01-195765-3
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The Packard Foundation has also donated $40,000 and the Golden State Warriors $5,000 to fund free BART rides for field trips
In partnership with the local non-profit, The Youth Transportation Organization (“Yoots”), BART is working to launch a special Free BART Rides for School Field Trips program that will provide local students, teachers, and chaperones the opportunity to take transit to BARTable field trip destinations. Google.org has stepped up to support this program by providing $100,000 that will provide 20,000 students access to these field trips.
“We can’t thank Google.org enough for supporting transit trips for youth in the Bay Area during this critical time in pandemic recovery,” said BART Board member Lateefah Simon. “Many of our youth are coming out of a long period of isolation from the pandemic. Offering an opportunity to schools and parents to cover the cost of field trip rides will provide new educational experiences as many venues are reopening for field trips later this year.”
“We’re incredibly proud to work with Yoots and BART to help provide more in-person learning opportunities for students,” shared Rebecca Prozan, Google’s West Coast Government Affairs Lead. “Increasing access to education and experiences, like these BARTable field trip destinations, is especially important for youth in the Bay Area after a year of distance learning.”
“Over half of students in the Bay Area have had extremely limited access to external education opportunities. Yoots is thrilled to partner with Google and BART who together can help us make a massive, sustainable and lasting impact on our youth,” said BART Partner and Yoots Founder and CEO, Craig Flax.
Free Field Trip Eligibility
BART and Yoots will work with Title 1 schools—schools in which children from low-income families make up at least 40 percent of enrollment—directly to arrange trips. However, BART and Yoots will also provide on a first-come, first-served basis, trips for enrolled students of elementary, middle, and high schools located in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, Santa Clara, and San Mateo counties on school-sponsored field trips for educational purposes. Students must be chaperoned by adults at a ratio of at least 1 adult per 15 students, and all must enter, travel, and exit stations as a group — no exceptions.
In addition to the Google.org donation, The Packard Foundation has donated $40,000 and the Golden State Warriors $5,000 to fund free BART rides for field trips that will further expand the program.
BART is launching a pilot program with a small number of schools this fall with the hopes of expanding the program in 2022.
BART Seeking Additional Donors
Other organizations, companies and foundations who are interested in supporting BART and Yoots in sustaining free educational field trip opportunities to local youth should contact Jill Buschini, Field Trip Program Manager in BART Marketing at jbuschi@bart.gov and Craig Flax, Yoots Founder and CEO at craig@yoots.org.
Read MoreBy Kelly Kalfsbeek, PIO, Contra Costa County Public Works Department
Contra Costa County will be issuing a road closure permit to East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) to fully close a portion of Lenox Road, Avon Road, Richardson Road, Stratford Road, Willow Lane, Coventry Road and Ocean View Avenue, in Kensington. Traffic will be detoured via neighboring streets.
The purpose of this road closure is for EBMUD to install 3755′ of 8″ IPVC, 2045′ of 6″ IPVC and 25′ of 2″ copper. Work will begin on Tuesday, November 2, 2021 and last through June 2022, barring unforeseen circumstances. Work will occur between 7:00 a.m. through 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, weather permitting. The roadway will be reopened at the end of each workday.
Residents can expect pavement saw cutting, trenching, staging of equipment and materials, temporary road closures to through traffic and loss of some street parking, in phases. Some dust and noise can also be expected during the hours of construction. A portion of Lenox Road, Avon Road, Richardson Road, Stratford Road, Willow Lane, Coventry Road and Ocean View Avenue will be closed to through traffic (allowing residential and emergency access only). There will be traffic control throughout the work area so drivers can expect delays. “No Parking” signs will be posted 72 hours in advance of work. Final paving will follow several months after pipeline installation.
About Contra Costa County Public Works Department:
Contra Costa County Public Works Department (CCCPWD) maintains over 660 miles of roads, 150 miles of streams, channels and other drainage and over 200 County buildings throughout Contra Costa County. CCCPWD provides services such as Parks and Recreation, Sand Bag Distribution and Flood Control throughout unincorporated areas of Contra Costa County. To learn more about CCCPWD, please visit www.cccpublicworks.org
Contact:
For questions, call Community Affairs at 510-287-7208 or email construction-north@ebmud.com Outside of normal business hours, call 1-866-403-2683
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Power restored to 817,000 customers since Sunday
PG&E wants to provide you with an update on our efforts to restore power to our customers following this weekend’s potent atmospheric river storm.
- From the arrival of this storm in the early morning of Sunday, Oct. 24, to 6:30 p.m. today (Wednesday, Oct. 27), we have restored 817,000 customerswho experienced weather-related outages. For perspective, PG&E has 5.5 million electric customers.
- As of 6:30 a.m.today (Wednesday, Oct. 27), about 1,100 PG&E customers are experiencing weather-related outages due to wind, rain and snow.
- Nearly 99% of all customers impacted by this historic storm have been restored.
- In terms of where the remaining outages exist, the top three counties still feeling storm impacts are:
Contra Costa = 120
San Mateo = 443
Santa Clara = 288
- This has been an all-hands-on-deck storm response by PG&E, with more than 3,000 electric workers and tree workerson the ground assessing damage, making repairs and restoring customers. Hundreds of more PG&E employees are staffing emergency centers and performing other jobs related to the storm response.
- We continue to provide estimated restoration times to customers.
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Faced up to 22 years in state prison; DA Becton touts conviction on her re-election campaign social media, Sheriff Livingston asks her to remove it
By Allen Payton
A Danville police officer was convicted Tuesday of assault with a firearm in the shooting death of a 32-year-old man during a car chase on Nov. 3, 2018. But the jury did not convict him of the more serious charge of felony voluntary manslaughter. Officer Andrew Hall was accused of shooting and killing Laudemer Arboleda, of Newark, as he drove his car between two police cars. (See critical incident video)
According to the initial report from the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office, at the intersection of Front Street and Diablo Road in Danville, Arboleda attempted to run over Hall, who fired his weapon at the vehicle. Officer Hall shot at Arboleda, a Black man, and struck him nine times during the slow-moving vehicle pursuit. (See related articles here, here, here and here)
However, it wasn’t until April 21, 2021 that Contra Costa District Attorney Diana Becton filed charges against Hall, the same day the video was released of him shooting another suspect, Tyrell Wilson, also Black, who was first accused of throwing rocks onto I-680, then held a knife in his hands and advanced toward Hall, on March 11, 2021. Wilson died a week later at an area hospital. (See related articles here, here and here).
Becton issued the following statement regarding the guilty verdict:
“Today’s guilty verdict holds accountable defendant Andrew Hall for his excessive use of force in the fatal shooting of Laudemer Arboleda. Deputy Hall’s actions were not only a crime, but they tarnished the badge and they harmed the reputation of all the good, hard working police officers that work for our community. My Office extends our condolences to the family of Mr. Arboleda. With regards to the voluntary manslaughter count, we will take the matter under review to determine the appropriate next steps.”
The Danville Police Department is a contract agency with the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office. Sheriff David Livingston also issued a statement following the trial.
“Although I wish the jury had returned a not-guilty verdict on all counts, I respect their service. We ask our officers to make split-second decisions and many of the jurors understood that,” said Livingston. “I urge DA Becton not to retry this case. I also urge her to take down the posts on her reelection campaign social media where she touts this prosecution.”
Hall could have faced 22 years in state prison if convicted on both charges.
Case information: People v. Andrew Albert Hall, Docket 01-195930-3
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