Sept 13 Clayton Pioneer 2013

Dogs are said to be man’sbest friend. Renowned for theirloyalty and devotion, a dogsticks with his master throughthick and thin.

But the six dogs of theCanine Division of the ConcordPolice Department and theirhandlers take the canine-human

bond just a little bit farther thanthat.

On a recent Tuesday night,at an undisclosed location inNorth Concord, the sounds of adog fiercely barking and menshouting elicited nary a glancefrom Concord Police CorporalDan Sweany, who stood closeby. In fact, the ruckus was hisfault, as members of the well-regarded canine division

Sweaney heads practiced nearby.There, the dogs practiced

locating guns and drugs, trailingsuspects and lost children, andlaunching themselves at an offi-cer who’d clearly drawn a shortstraw and was clad – in the 90degree evening heat – in a heavyprotective suit, a game thatcould be called “bring down thesuspect.”

As much fun as the dogs

seemed to be having, the playwas serious business.

SNIFFING OUT STASHES

Concord’s six-team division– down from nine due to budg-et cuts – handles an average of75 calls per week. In addition tocalls in Concord, the depart-ment pools resources with thoseof other cities.

“San Ramon, Moraga, Oak-land, Walnut Creek...” Sweaneyticked down the list of areasthey’ve worked as the sounds ofmayhem continued in the back-ground. Other areas lend theirdogs for jobs in Concord aswell, including BART dogs whoare specially trained to sniff forbombs.

“We’re all fighting the samebattle,” he said.

Each of the officers had hisown set of stories of stashestheir particular dogs had found,or suspects they’d flushed out,and in a couple of cases, lost orwandering souls the dogs helpedrescue.

One incident Sweaneyrecalled, years ago, involved apanicked call the departmenthad received from a parent.Their worst nightmare had hap-pened: a back was turned foronly a moment, a door leftunlatched, and their 3-year oldhad disappeared, just like that.Police were called, and the divi-sion summoned. Scents weretaken, and 45 heart-rendingminutes later, the toddler wastrailed to a nearby supermarket,to where he’d wandered on hisown, and safely returned home.

Other calls aren’t so benign.

Officer Todd Nunn’s dog,Dantest – who travels with hisown baseball-style trading cardsto be given out to his adoring,often pint-sized, fan club – wascalled to a “drug sniff,” wherehe found significant amounts ofdrugs – and a gun – hiddenbehind the center console of acar.

Officer Ollie Sansen’s dog isBen, an unnervingly grinning,happy-go-lucky Belgian Mali-nois. Ben is specifically trainedin narcotics detection, and

Most little brothers havetrouble saying no to their big sis-ters, and Jeff Holmes was noexception when sis Jules Bianchicalled in June to ask him helpwith an outlandish idea. Did hewant to help her make a movie?

Of course, Bianchi – whogrew up in Clayton – is a well-established Oakland photogra-pher now, and Holmes is a cine-ma arts student at Pacific AzuzaUniversity. So the request kindof made sense.

Like the dutiful little brotherhe is, Homes called in some ofhis buddies, who were eager towork on a “real” project, and toBianchi’s surprise, she suddenlyhad a crew.

September is half over andfamilies have settled into theirnew fall routines. In Clayton, wetake pride in the appearance ofour town. How our communitylooks has a great deal to do withsupporting our good propertyvalues. It’s also a big part of thatwarm, welcoming “ahhh” we allfeel when we drive into ourhome town.

As we put away the toys ofsummer, it’s a great time to takea look at how we can all improvethe appearance of our neighbor-hoods. Indeed, living in Claytoncarries certain expectations ofproperty maintenance, includingour own responsibility to elimi-nate dead landscaping andweeds from our yards – even inback yards, for both fire protec-tion and appearance.

Part of our neighborhoodpreservation responsibilityincludes the proper storage ofRVs, boats, trailers, disabled andunlicensed vehicles behind a

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www.claytonpioneer.com September 13, 2013

Around Town . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Behind the Badge . . . . . . . . .6

Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Club News . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Community Calendar . . . . .14

Concord Beat . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Design and Décor . . . . . . . .18

Directory of Advertisers . . . . .5

Garden Girl . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Letter to the Editor . . . . . . . .7

Mind Matters . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Pets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Pioneer Photo Album . . . . . . .3

Real Estate . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Sports Shorts . . . . . . . . . . .12

Sports Talk . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Teen Reads . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9

Teen Speak . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Voyage of the Eagle (NEW) 8

What’s Inside

JULIE PIERCE

MAYOR’S CORNER

See Mayor, page 7See Movie, page 3 See Canine, page 4

See Fire, page 4

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Keep Clayton sparkling this fall

Photo courtesy of the Holmes family

MAKING MOVIES IS A FAMILY AFFAIR for photographer-turned-filmmaker Jules Bianchi, left, shown here withtwin sister Joy and brother Jeff Holmes. Their film,“Apocolypso,” is a finalist in Director Ron Howard’sProject Imagina10n.

Concord’s canine force tells some fierce tails

Photos by Jason Rogers

FIGO WORKS WITH HIS HANDLER

and partner, Matt Switzer, asthey run through exercisesduring the Concord CanineDivision training

Clayton siblings shoot forthe big time with art film

Photo by Tonya White

MT. DIABLO LOOKED LIKE AN ERUPTING VOLCANO ON SUNDAY NIGHT, SEPT. 8, as a fast moving wildfire spread from 400 acres to nearly 2000 overnight.By press time on Monday night, the fire had burned nearly 4000 acres, North Peak was charred, the summit of Mt. Diablo was threatened and thefire had spread northeast toward Russelmann Ranch Road. It was still only 20 percent contained.

Temperatures nearing 100degrees coupled with a dry win-ter, off-shore winds and dense,bone-dry fuel set the stage forthe biggest Mt. Diablo wildfire in36 years.

The fire started at the mercu-ry mines on Morgan TerritoryRoad on Sunday around 1:30p.m. The cause is officially“under investigation,” but neigh-bors say it was sparked by some-one target shooting.

By 3 p.m. on Sunday, the fire,dubbed the “Morgan Fire,” hadburned over 800 acres, threaten-ing homes and power lines andforcing evacuations from OakHill Lane and Curry Canyon.

AirCloud Communicationswhich provides internet serviceto the Morgan Territory andMarsh Creek areas, lost electricalpower to their communicationequipment on North Peakaround 11 p.m. Sunday night

With the fire spreading fast,the critical issue was getting thehorses and other large animalsout of the area. By late Sunday

FIREMorgan Fire charsthousands of acreson Mt. Diablo

Sunny skies and mercifullycomfortable temperaturesbrought kids and cars out indroves for the 10th annual Clay-ton Community Church LaborDay Derby and Car Show.

About 2000 spectators linedMain Street while some 250 kidslined up early for a chance torace the little wooden cars downMain Street. Competition wasstiff.

“You’re goin’ down,” saidone driver to another as theywaited on the ramp for the start.

“No, you’re goin’ down,” theother replied.

“No, YOU are goin’ down.”Barely off the ramp, the two

collided and both racers “wentdown.” But, each would have asecond chance a little later.

At the other end of thestreet, 275 classic cars, sparklingand spit-shined, waited for thejudges. By the end of the day. 33of them would take home a tro-phy. Best in Show honors went

to Sal Nicolosi for his baby blue1959 Chevrolet Impala convert-ible.

Listed below are the derbywinners from Saturday’s event.

Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com September 13, 2013

Around Town

Thomas Cook took us along on an excitingvacation in the Midwest this summer. We startedour journey with a trip to Chicago with aunts anduncles where we sampled the finest in Chicagodeep-dish pizza, went to Cubs and White Soxgames and visited the Art Institute. We ended up atThomas’ grandpa and grandma’s in Indiana, wherewe are in their backyard camp equipped with zipline, tree house and replica teepee.

Nicki van Vaerenberg andJordan Wells capped off a fami-ly vacation in Europe this sum-mer with the announcementthat they would marry on Sept.14.

The couple timed theirannouncement with a trip toAmsterdam to celebrate the30th wedding anniversary ofNicki’s parents, Carol and RandyvanVaerenbergh.

The engagement was aromantic surprise for Nicki whothought she and Jordan weresimply going for a walk alongthe canal. Jordan had, however,prearranged a private tour atMuseum Van Loom where heproposed in the garden.

Later, the whole family cele-brated with champagne aboard aprivate canal boat.

Nicki is a Clayton resident.She graduated from CarondeletHigh and attended Cal Poly SanLuis Obispo.

Jordon is the son of Jeff andJody Wells of Ben Lomond,Calif. He graduated from Cal

Poly in 2007 and is a businessdevelopment manager with anadvertising agency.

JORDAN WELLS AND NICKI VAN VAERENBERG

Nicki van Vaerenberg engaged to Jordan Wells

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A vigilant Pit Crew stands byfor quick repairs. The crewchecks out every car before therace.

An eager racer climbsaboard for the heart-poundingrace down Main Street

Car Show Judging: Theannual CCC car show is one ofthe biggest in the area, drawingmore than 250 exhibitors.

Clayton Community Churchpastor and race announcer,Shawn Robinson

The Derby race cars are alldonated by local merchants.The kids race free in the annualevent.

10th Annual Derby was all about cars

Locals AndieShipman, Judi Hersh,Carol Gurrad and PatAllison cruised theRhine and MainRivers in Germany,Strassburg andFrance last month,stopping at theEiffel Tower inParis to catchup on newsfrom home.

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FFiirrsstt PPllaaccee Reese Romero Adam Stelchek Dalton WoestSSeeccoonndd PPllaaccee Shane Hopfner Grace Turner Drew BrennanTThhiirrdd PPllaaccee Pasquale Ancona Mattie La Venture Matthew Dias-Martin

Thanks to that rag-tag team ofcollegiate film students, an agree-able family, some ex-boyfriendsand a creative vision, Bianchi’s 10-minute short film “Apocolypso”was made – and is now a finalistin Academy Award-winner RonHoward’s Canon’s Project Imagi-nat10n, with a shot at being oneof the five films screened at theproject’s prestigious short filmfestival.

FAMILY AFFAIR

The film is a poignant lookat the power of love vs. fear setagainst the backdrop of a loom-ing Y2K. But perhaps mostpoignant is the love that Bianchiand Holmes – and their entirefamily – put into the project.

“I’ve always watched Jules inher photography, and helped herout since I was 8,” says Holmes,who produced the film. “This isjust an extension of that.”

Indeed, the two siblings werejoined by Bianchi’s twin Joy, as

well as her mother Leonora andstepfather Neil Holmes, whostill live in Clayton.

“My mom helped feed thecrew, and my step-dad droveeveryone around,” Bianchi says.“I couldn’t have done it withoutthem.”

They also provided anothermajor ingredient in the film: alocation, as Bianchi was able tofilm some of the scenes at herparents’ house on Pine Road offof Marsh Creek Road.

Although most filmmakersenjoy staying close to the excite-ment of Los Angeles and Holly-wood, permits and fees canbreak an already shoestringbudget. And “Apocolypso” wasdefinitely on a shoestring budget.So Bianchi and Holmes decidedto bring their crew to northernCalifornia, and Bianchi used agrocery store and book shop inher Oakland neighborhood toround out the movie’s locales.

Besides her family, Bianchi

called in favors from old friendsto help with things like writingthe screenplay, helping with themusical score and casting.

“Jules had, like two or threeex boyfriends helping her out onthis, as well as her currentboyfriend,” Holmes says. “Itwas wild.”

It took a frantic month oflate-night shoots, re-shoots and“lots of laughs,” but “Apocolyp-so” was made. The siblings arewaiting “on pins and needles”Bianchi says to hear if it madethe final cut of five.

“We didn’t want the film tolook like we shot it in our back-yard,” she says.

“Which is ironic, because itwas,” Holmes chimes in.

The way the contest works,Howards posts still pictures on awebsite, and filmmakers areasked to use them as inspirationfor a short movie. Bianchi said aphoto of basement full ofcanned goods n which her heroin the film stocks in case of aY2k-inspired apocalypse –reminded her of her youth.

“We did have a basement like

that, and it was filled withcanned fruits and vegetables,”she says. “But that was justwhere we stored things.”

FUTURE CAREERS

Bianchi, 41, says she doesn’tknow if this is the start of a newcareer in filmmaking or justanother fun project that “drewmy eccentric and artistic familytogether.” Holmes, though,hopes to make filmmaking acareer – and anyone who knowshim knows that’s not far-fetched. He is well-known in andaround Clayton for his elaboratelighting displays.

This project, he says, was“kooky, but wonderful,” in partbecause of the collaborationwith his sister.

“You have to know yourboundaries when you’re work-ing with family,” Holmes says.“It can be a trying experience,but it can also be the bestexperience.”

To see “Apocolypso,” and otherfilm festival finalists, visit the websiteat imagination.usa.canon.com.

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Movie, from page 1

September 13, 2013 Clayton Pioneer • www.claytonpioneer.com

Pioneer Photo Album

The Pioneer is proud to spotlight our readers’ photos. Email yourphoto in a high-resolution format to [email protected] witha description of the photo, where and when it was taken and a littleabout why you like it. Include your name and phone number. Thenlook for it in the next Pioneer.

This visitor was briefly in our garden the afternoon of July 4. sit-ting on a hydrangea just off of Peacock Creek Drive. Photo wastaken with a 250 zoom (full telephoto) at about 3.5 feet using acanon T2i. It posed for two photos and then went on its way.

Paul Johnson

UFO over Clayton? Mike Harms of Clayton snappedthis amazing shot of a lenticular cloud over Clayton. “It’sshape is due to wind and areas of differing atmospheric densi-ty,” he explained.

At one of the biggest turnoutsfor a Clayton Business and Com-munity Association meeting any-one could ever remember, morethan 120 members packed thedining room at Oakhurst CountryClub to give vigorous approval tohelp fund a bocce park in down-town Clayton.

The proposed four-courtpark will sit on land owned bySkip and Kent Ipsen, founderand owner of Skipolini’s Pizza.The Ipsen family will donate$125,000 of the estimated$300,000 construction cost, withthe remaining $175,000 comingfrom the CBCA.

The Ipsens are making theland available, along with the

development funds, as a way of“giving back to the community”that has supported their businessfor decades, said founder SkipIpsen.

Skipolini’s will be undergoinga major remodel after the first ofthe year and the Ipsens hope tohave necessary approvals for thebocce park in place by then soconstruction on both could pro-ceed at the same time.

CBCA president, Keith Hay-don was jubilant at the vote. Hecalls the proposed bocce park a“win-win-win” for the city, theIpsens and for the CBCA.

The park is expected to bringupwards of 80 players to thetown center during the typically

dead weeknights, benefittingdowntown restaurants andmerchants.

“People have to eat and buythings and everything’s right herewithout having to get in the car,”noted Skipolini’s owner, KentIpsen.

At the same meeting, the clubvoted to apply to the IRS for achange in tax exempt status froma civic organization to a 501 (c)(3) public charity, which wouldmake contributions to the clubtax deductible. Ed Hartley, chair-man of the bocce committee,expects the club to recover atleast $50,000 of the initial costfrom donations. Ed Moresi,owner of Ed’s Mudville Grill and

Moresi’s Chophouse, offered a$25,000 donation for the namingrights of the first court.

The park will require a use-permit from the city of Clayton.After the application is submit-ted, the planning commissionwill hold a public hearing beforevoting. The planning commis-sion can approve the use permitif there is no appeal. An appealwould take the proposal to thecity council for a final decision.The Ipsens hope to have theapplication ready to present in aninformational form to the Plan-ning Commission by the Sept. 24meeting.

Gary Carr contributed to thisstory.

CBCA gives ‘thumbs up’ to bocce funding

afternoon, SUVs and truckspulling horse trailers joined thesteady stream of fire trucks, bull-dozers and heavy equipment lin-ing Morgan Territory Road.

The steep, rugged and dense-ly wooded east side of Mt.Diablo presented huge chal-lenges to fire fighters and equip-ment trying to gain access. Thefire raged out of control throughSunday night, growing to 2000acres by Monday morning. At 10a.m., the fire was only 10 percentcontained according to EastCounty Fire Chief HughHenderson.

The fire continued to growMonday, spreading south towardSan Ramon with the heaviestactivity on the east side of Mt.Diablo above Curry Canyon andon the north edge of North Peakabove Russelmann Road.

According to CalFire Public

Information Officer, Dave Shew,more than 800 personnel fromCalFire, CCCFPD, ECFPD anddozen other local fire districtswere on scene. Two DC 10s wereon the fire until late afternoon,when they were called to anothermajor fire burning near Shasta.

A Red Cross evacuation cen-ter set up at the Clayton Librarydrew mostly government offi-cials and locals looking for infor-mation or just to connect withothers. Most of the evacueesfound lodging with friends orrelatives in the area.

Curry Creek resident VirginiaFraser came with her cat, Emma.She saw the black smoke andflames around 2 p.m. on Sundayand alerted her neighbors beforeleaving. “I thought it’d be a nicequiet day, sitting there readingthe Sunday papers,” she said.“Then, boom – all this.”

As of 3 p.m. Monday,according to the CalFire incidentwebsite, the fire had burned3,718 acres and threatened 100homes and was still only 20 per-cent contained.

Monday night when thispaper went to press at mid-night, the fire was still active.Earlier in the evening, flamesflared up on Morgan TerritoryRoad near the origin, jumpingthe road at one point and caus-ing more evacuations.

At press time, the CalFire sitehad not been updated since earlyin the day Monday. The CalFiremedia information office had nomap showing the boundaries ofthe fire, active areas or contain-ment lines, leaving residents inthe fire zone dependent on localblog sites and social media forcritical information.

The last huge fire on themountain was in 1977, whenlightning sparked a fire thatburned 6000 acres.

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Multi-Colored SlateBeautiful colors created in the center of the earth. Reg. $2.99

Walnut OakReal wood, acrylic-infused for twice the hardness. Reg. $6.99

Grecian MarbleThe floors of the Golden Age in your home. Reg. $10.99

Strand EucalyptusTwice as strong, easier to install, virtually dent-proof. Reg. $6.99

Brazilian TigerwoodThe beauty of real wood, precision engineered planks. Reg. $11.99

Park TerraceSubtle patterns and three colors to show off your style. Reg. $6.99

25-Year LaminateLike-real warmth and color, and a25-year warranty. Reg. $2.39

New Zealand WoolThey keep trying, but no one has improved on wool. Reg. $8.99

Century HerringboneA unique floor at a once-in-a-life-time price. Reg. $15.99

Classic Crema MarfilUltra-premium imported marble. 12"x12" tiles. Reg. $13.99

$499 $699

Fire, from page 1

Sansen’s voice took on anunmistakably proud tone, as herecounted a call they’d taken tohelp at a crime scene in Oak-land, where Ben found threepounds of cocaine, potentiallyworth six figures, hidden in astereo box.

“You’re so proud of yourdog when he does what he’strained to do,” he admitted.

LIFELONG BOND

The training the dogs aregiven is no small matter. Priced atabout $10,000 each, the divisionpurchases each dog from River-side-based Adlherhorst Interna-tional. The company’s ownerstravel every few months toEurope, where they find dogs inGermany, the Netherlands andthe Czech Republic. Bred andtrained in many of the skills need-

ed for a life in law enforcementfrom the time they’re puppies, thedogs are then transported to theU.S. Police departments through-out the country send teams toAdlerhorst’s facilities where theytest the dogs themselves – likescouts would professional athletes– before buying and bringingthem home for further trainingwith the officers with whom thedogs will be paired.

“It’s a lot of repetition,”Sansen described. “We’re learn-ing the quirks of the dog, learn-ing the dog’s personality.”

The teams work together forfour years, at the end of whichterm, the officer is given theopportunity to adopt their caninepartner – previously classified ascity property – for $1. Most do,the bond between the two contin-uing through the dog’s retirement.

“He’s my best friend and he’smy buddy,” says Sansen. “He’sall business in the car, he’s mypartner at work. But he’s my dogat home.”

Canine, from page 1

OFFICER OLLIE SANSEN withcanine partner, Ben

in flowers this year with monthly

fertilizing and pruning visits.

Email for consultation or details.

[email protected]

FOR LEASEOffice and retail space for lease

in Historic Clayton City

Center: Village Oaks Center,

6200 Center St., Clayton. Call

Nick Adamson at (408) 371-

8770, ext. 21.

TUTORS

NEEDEDDiablo Valley Literacy Council,

English tutors. Must attend all

three training classes: Sept. 28,

Oct. 1, Oct. 5. $15 fee for train-

ing and materials. Go to dvlc.tri-

pod.com, call 685-3881 or email

[email protected].

HELP

WANTEDComputer Tech

Growing business has position

for onsite pro computer tech in

Contra Costa County. Must have

experience in Windows and Mac

OS, network repair and trou-

bleshooting. ComputersUSA!

672-9989.

Come join Mazzei Realty!

Currently interviewing and hir-

ing new and experienced real

estate agents. Call 693-0757 for

details.

Real Estate Agents Be

Successful! Lynne French is

expanding and interviewing for a

few agents. Call her today 672-

8787.

VOLUNTEERS

NEEDED Help Fight Hunger

Anna Chan – AKA: The Lemon

Lady needs your help! Weekly

commitment appreciated. For

more info and contact numbers,

go to

thelemonlady.blogspot.com.

Clayton Historical Society

Museum The Clayton Historical

Society Museum needs a greeter

for two hours per month from 2-

4 p.m. Wednesdays or Sundays.

Call the museum at 672-0240

and leave your name.

Clayton Community Library

Needs volunteers. Minimum age

13. Minimum commitment is 6

months. Some training provided.

Contact: Arlene at 673-9777 or

[email protected].

P.O. Box 1246

6200 Center Street, Suite H, Clayton, CA 94517

TAMARA AND ROBERT STEINER, PublishersTAMARA STEINER, EditorPETE CRUZ, Graphic DesignPEGGY SPEAR, Copy Editor JAY BEDECARRÉ, Sports PAMELA WIESENDANGER, Administration

STAFF WRITERS: Denisen Hartlove, Pam Wiesendanger, Peggy SpearWe remember Jill Bedecarré - Her spirit is our muse

Business Services

Rising Moon Marketing & Public Relations . . . . .672-8717

Construction and Trades

Appliance Repairs by Bruce, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-2700

Belfast Plumbing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .457-5423

Burkin Electric . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-1519

Diablo View Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .822-5144

Gary’s Home Repair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .787-2500

Iron Horse Concrete . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .595-3951

Steffan Smith Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .914-0497

Tipperary Construction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .216-2679

Dining and Entertainment

Clayton Club Saloon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .673-0440

Five Guys Burgers and Fries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-6030

Johnny’s Deli & Café . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-1203

La Veranda Café . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .524-0011

Oakhurst Country Club . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-9737, ext. 205

Events

City of Clayton – Concerts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .673-7300

CBCA - Oktoberfest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-2272

Pacific Coast Farmers’ Market . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .825-9090

St. Demetrios – Greek Festival . . . . . . . . . . . . . .676-6967

Financial, Insurance and Legal Services

DuRee, Daniel – The Law Office of . . . . . . . . . . .210-1400

Held, Chris – Morgan Stanley Smith Barney . . . .930-3815

Littorno, Richard – The Law Office of . . . . . . . . .432-4211

Prosperitas Wealth Management . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-7700

Sorensen, David – Wells Fargo . . . . . . . . . . . . . .296-3086

Van Wyck, Doug – State Farm Insurance . . . . . .672-2300

Funerals

Ouimet Funeral Home . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .682-4242

Groceries

Doorstep Farmers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .349-4568

Home and Garden

Clayton Furniture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .686-2299

Diablo Lawnscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .381-3757

Interiors Panache . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-7920

Just Floors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .681-4747

Nichols Landscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-9955

Refresh Pool Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .286-8601

The Floor Store . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .969-9890

The Maids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .798-6243

Utopic Gardens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .524-0055

Waraner Bros. Tree Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .831-2323

Waraner Tree Experts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .250-0334

Mailing Services

The UPS Store . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .689-6245

Optometry

Foresight Optometry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-4100

Pet Services

Cat Hospital of Clayton . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-2287

Fluffy and Fido’s Adventures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .408-1622

Monte Vista Veterinary Hospital . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-1100

Pittsburg Pet Resort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .432-7387

Rodie's Feed and Pet Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-4600

Real Estate and Mortgage Services

French, Lynne – Windermere Real Estate . . . . . .672-8787

Geddes-Sinclaire, Christine – RE/MAX Realty . .286-7593

Howard, Don – Better Homes Realty . . . . . . . . . .408-3184

Klock, Leigh – Coldwell Banker . . . . . . . . . . . . . .212-5593

Laurence, Pete – RE/MAX Realty . . . . . . . . . . . .890-6004

Lopez, Stephanie – Coldwell Banker . . . . . . . . . .932-7329

Mazzei, Matt – Mazzei Realty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .693-0757

Stojanovich, Jennifer – Better Homes Realty . . .567-6170

Vujnovich, George - Better Homes Realty . . . . . .672-4433

Recreation and Fitness

Clayton Valley Bowl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .689-4631

Earthquake Arabians . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .360-7454

Levity Fitness Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-2995

Senior Services

Chateau on Broadway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .686-1700

Montecito – Oakmont Senior Living . . . . . . . . . . .852-6702

Services, Other

1-800-Junkster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .800-586-5783

ComputersUSA! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-9989

Net Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-6029

Recycling Center & Transfer Station . . . . . . . . . .473-0180

Travel

Celebrity Cruises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .888-456-7887

Travel to Go . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .672-9840

Directory of Advertisers

PIONEER INFOCONTACT USTel: (925) 672-0500Fax: (925) 672-6580

Tamara [email protected]

Send ads [email protected]

Send Sports News [email protected]

Send Club News [email protected]

Send Church News [email protected]

Send School News [email protected]

Send Classified Ads [email protected]

CLASSIFIEDSClassified rates per insertion:$48 for first 30 words, 40 cents

each additional word Non-profit: $24 for first 30

words, 20 cents each additional word To place your classified ad over thephone, call the office at (925) 672-0500 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Mon.-Fri. All classifieds must be paid for inadvance by credit card (Master Cardor Visa) We will not accept any ad thatdiscriminates on the basis of race,color, sex, religion, nationality, familystatus or disability. The Clayton Pio-neer reserves the right to reject anyadvertising we believe is unsuitable.

LET US KNOW Weddings, engagements, anniver-

saries, births and deaths all weavetogether as part of the fabric of ourcommunity. Please let us know ofthese important events. We ask onlythat the announcement be for a resi-dent in our home delivery area. Sub-mit on our website and be sure toattach a JPG photo that is at least 3

MB but not bigger than 6MB. Youcan also mail or bring your print tothe office and we can scan it for you.

Also on the website are forms forcalendar items, events & press releases.

LETTERS TO THE EDITORThe Clayton Pioneer welcomes

letters from our readers. As a generalrule, letters should be 250 words orless and submitted at least one weekprior to publication date. Letters con-cerning current issues will have prior-ity. We may edit letters for length andclarity. All letters will be published atthe editor’s discretion. Please includename, address and daytime telephonenumber. We will not print anonymousletters. E-mail your letter to [email protected]. LettersMUST be submitted via E-mail.

CIRCULATIONTotal circulation of the Clayton

Pioneer is 15,500. Papers are deliv-ered to households in ZIP codes94517, 94518 and 94521.

In Clayton, all papers are deliv-ered Every Door Direct by the USPost Office. We cannot start or stopindividual addresses.

All Concord delivery is by carrierand delivered twice a month on a Fri-day morning. To stop delivery for anyreason, call the office at (925) 672-0500 or email [email protected].

If you are NOT receiving thePioneer, please check the distributionmap on the website. If you live in theshaded area and are not receiving thepaper, please call us or send an emailto [email protected] you are not in the shaded area,please be patient. We will come toyour neighborhood soon.

SUBSCRIPTIONSTo subscribe, call the office at

(925) 672-0500. Subscriptions are$50/year and are not pro-rated formid-year stops.


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POLL WORKERS NEEDEDThe Contra Costa County Elections Division is looking

for civic minded people willing to serve as poll workers forthe November 5, 2013 Election in the following cities:Antioch, Moraga and San Ramon. Bilingual(English/Spanish) workers are also needed. You must bea registered voter in California to qualify for a poll work-er position.

No prior experience is necessary. Procedure Training isby appointment only. Poll workers receive a stipend from$80 - $150 for serving on Election Day from 6a.m. –9p.m.

We have a poll worker program for High School stu-dents called “Youth With A Vision”, in which students atleast 16 years of age with a 2.5 GPA can serve as pollworkers, receive a stipend and fulfill community servicerequirements.

County and State employees are encouraged to applyas Inspectors.

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The streets of Concord willbe a lot less friendly to intoxicat-ed and distracted drivers thanksto almost $275,000 in trafficsafety grants approved by thecity council last week.

The Concord Police Depart-ment was awarded $200,000from the California Office ofTraffic safety, and $74,920 fromthe UC Berkeley Safe Trans-

portation and Research Center,both designed to curb drivingunder the influence and otherproblems that are causing “sig-nificant number of vehicle traf-fic collisions, alcohol involvedfatal and injury traffic collisionsand traffic collisions involvingpedestrians,” says ConcordPolice Officer Lyle Robles.

The COT grant, awarded aspart of a Selective TrafficEnforcement Program, willallow Concord police to con-

duct 12 Distracted Drivingenforcement operations; targetdrivers using hand-held cellphones and texting; increasemotorcycle safety enforcementoperations in areas or duringevents with a high number ofmotorcycle accidents; increaseDUI “saturation” points, espe-cially during the winter holidays,and better target multiple DUIoffenders. The grant will alsoallow for increased training ofofficers in field sobriety testing.

The UC Berkeley grant aug-ments the COT grant, helpingto increase the number of DUIcheckpoints the city will hold inthe next year.

“We recognizes alcohol-relat-ed collisions, and DUI incidentsare significantly higher during thewinter holidays,” says Robles, andthat most annual traffic safetygrant funds are spent during thistime. The two new grants willhelp extend the safety programsthroughout this year and next.

We often receive callsregarding vehicles, RVs, boatsand other items being parked onthe streets or in the driveways ofneighborhoods throughoutClayton. This month, I hope tobriefly explain the rules pertain-ing to such items.

First, it’s important to notethat here in Clayton, we believepart of our job is to protect and,where possible, enhance thequality of life our residentsenjoy. We typically deal withthese matters on a complaintbasis. When you call or notifythe city with this type of com-plaint, a member of our staffwill respond and attempt toresolve the issue.

Pursuant to the CaliforniaVehicle Code, a car may be

parked upon a public roadwayfor up to 72 hours withoutbeing moved. After 72 hours,the vehicle is subject to removal.When notified, we will tag thevehicle with a warning noticeand return three to four dayslater to remove the vehicle ifnecessary.

Pursuant to the ClaytonMunicipal Code (section 10.41),it is unlawful to store/park aboat, motorhome or other RVon the street. You may obtain apermit to park an RV on thestreet for the purposes of load-ing or unloading prior to and/orafter a trip.

Pursuant to the ClaytonMunicipal Code (section17.76.010), it is unlawful to storea boat, RV or inoperable vehicle

in the driveway of your home.You may store these vehicles indesignated parking areas onyour property (such as if youhave RV parking along the sideof your house).The vehicle mustbe shielded by a legal, solidfence or other structure.

For brevity, I have only para-phrased the municipal code sec-tions. You may review them atyour leisure by going to the Cityof Clayton web site at ci.clay-ton.ca.us. Click on the “Depart-ments” tab. You can access theonline version of the municipalcode under the City Clerk sec-tion on the left side of the webpage.

Complaints involving vehi-cles parked on the street will behandled by the police depart-

ment. Reports involving parkingor vehicle storage on privateproperty are handled by thecode enforcement staff at theCity of Clayton. You can reportthese matters by either callingthe non-emergency police num-ber at 925-673-7350 or by usingthe city website “Report a Prob-lem” feature. You will find thelink to this feature on the lowerleft corner of the city’s homepage.

With the excitement aboutthe plans for the Concord NavalWeapon Station Reuse Area,there has been a lot of talkabout developing the areaaround the North ConcordBART station. In reality thatdevelopment will take severalyears. However, through thisenthusiasm we should not over-look the current downtownBART station area. There areunderdeveloped and underuti-

lized areas near and surroundingour downtown.

It is imperative that we cre-ate a vision so that future devel-opment will not be haphazard.Concord’s downtown isanchored by the city’s centralplaza, Todos Santos park. Itwould be important to connectDowntown BART to TodosSantos. The opening up ofGrant Street to make it morewalkable, and reflecting the earlyCalifornian architecture, will beimportant to link the past to avibrant future.

In attempting to create adowntown that is a dynamic,safe and attractive place for fam-ilies, businesses and visitors, we

have formed a Downtown Spe-cific Steering Committee. Wehave a committee of 13 mem-bers and five alternates, includ-ing myself as chair, and includ-ing Vice Mayor Tim Grayson,planning commissioners, designreview board members, localbusinesspersons and residents.We began meeting in June andshould continue through Octo-ber. Although all of our meet-ings are open to everyone, we’vescheduled a community meetingon Oct. 7 to receive input fromthe general public.

Enhancing the walkability ofdowntown will be essential to itssuccess and strengthen oureconomy and augment our qual-

ity of life. Adding wide side-walks and bike lanes, accompa-nied with traffic calming meas-ures with more frequent busservice will encourage workers,residents and visitors to exploreon foot and greatly reduce traf-fic congestion. Our DowntownSpecific Steering Committee hasbeen working on developing aplan to make downtown Con-cord a thriving, vibrant, walka-ble center of our community.

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CHRIS THORSEN

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Chris Thorsen is Clayton’s chiefof police. For questions and com-ments, call him at (925) 673-7350.

RON LEONE

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Ron Leone, a Concord city coun-cilman and former mayor, welcomescomments and questions. Call him at (925) 680-1776 [email protected].

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side-yard fence or in a storageyard. On-street and drivewayor front-yard parking of thesevehicles is prohibited in Clay-ton. See more about the pre-cise regulations in Police ChiefThorsen's column in this issueof the Pioneer.

DERBY DELIGHT

Thanks to the ClaytonCommunity Church for anoth-er spectacular Labor DaySoapbox Derby and car show.A great time was had by all andthere were lots of pictures ofsmiling kiddos on Facebookpages. What a fun event forfamilies!

CONCERT FINALES

This Saturday will be thefinal night of our "Concerts inThe Grove" for this seasonwith a great band, East BayMudd, and next Thursday isthe final concert for that seriesas well. The concerts havebecome the place to be on

those 10 Saturday eveningsand five Thursdays of thesummer. I want to thank mycolleagues Howard Geller andJim Diaz and their entire crewfor their hard work – all volun-teer – to present the concertsfor our community. Part ofthat crew is the team fromDiablo Valley Ranch who helpwith the set-up, take-down andpark clean-up for every con-cert. We truly appreciate every-thing they do to help.

I also want to thank you,our wonderful audiences, foryour generous donationstoward next year's concerts. Asall who attend have heard, noconcert funding comes fromthe city's budget. The concertsare entirely funded by our gen-erous sponsors, the ClaytonBusiness & Community Asso-ciation, Republic Services (ourgarbage company) and you. Weuse your donations to help payfor the concerts for the follow-ing year. During the first nine

concerts this year you havecontributed more than$16,000. That's nearly half ofwhat it costs us to put on theseries for the summer. Whatwill the final season total be?I'll let you know next issue.

As we circulate among thecrowd collecting donations,Howard and I hear how muchyou enjoy them and whichbands you like the best. Wealready have about half of thebands chosen for next year,including some long-timefavorites and some new up-and-coming ones, too. It'sgoing to be another great line-up.

As always, you can reach me [email protected]. Let meknow what you think.

Q. Do you think homeprices will continue toincrease for the rest of thisyear and next year?

A. Economists with “Core-Logic,” a statistical firm, predictthat rising interest rates, afford-

ability and a more balancedinventory of homes for salewill cause home prices to evenout more next year. I still feelthat there will be some peaksand valleys in our housingrecovery. A slowly improvingjob market and still historicallysmall inventories of new andexisting homes for sale (thoughthe inventory is increasing)might prevent much of adecline in prices. Since pricesare still quite a bit below theirpeak, I don’t really see a bubblehappening like before. Thisyear we have had the first dou-ble digit gain in percent ofprice appreciation in homes inseven years. I am looking for-ward to a “normal” marketwhere homes appreciate a smallpercentage every year (1 per-cent to 6 percent).

Q. What are some inter-esting facts you have gleanedfrom our crazy, ever chang-ing housing market?

A. The California Associa-tion of Realtors compiles inter-esting facts and statistics fortheir members. They call it“One Cool Thing.” I would liketo share some of them withyou.

1. In California the city withthe most growth in housingpermits from their lowest pointwas Riverside, at 21 percent.The least growth was SantaCruz with 0.9 percent; SanFrancisco 2.3 percent growth –probably because there isn’tmuch room to build. Bakers-field was 12.1 percent, San Josewas 2.4 percent and Sacramen-to was 5.1 percent.

2. “The Ripple Effect” –For each home purchaseapproximately $60,000 ofdirect and indirect spendingoccurs in the economy. Homesales in this country generatemore than 2.5 million private-sector jobs in an average year.They create jobs in remodeling,landscaping, lawn and poolservice, furniture and appli-ances, home improvement andreal estate services. The listgoes on.

3. Now that the economyhas begun to stabilize, peopleare ready to move into newhomes. Five-point-four percentmore households moved thisyear than last. An estimated36.5 million people moved in2012-up from 35.1 million in2011. Fifty-four percent ofpeople in the Western U.S. saythey’re more comfortable pur-chasing a house today than anyother time in the past five years.This is higher than any otherregion in the country.

4. Did you know that own-ing a home may help your chil-dren do better in school? Read-ing scores= 7 percent higherfor homeowners; Math scores=9 percent higher for homeown-ers; High school graduationrates = 25 percent higher forhomeowners and College grad-uation rates =116 percent high-er for homeowners.

5. Want the most bang foryour buck when improvingyour home? Here are 10 proj-ects that will yield the greatestreturn on investment once youare ready to sell. These are indescending order: 1. Garage

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6. Over the past 42 years,home prices have risen in Cali-fornia almost every year, andthey’re back on the rise. Histo-ry shows that homeownershipin California is a solid long-term investment. Median pricefor single family homes in Cali-fornia:

1970=$24,640;1980=$99,550;1990=$193,770;2000=$241,350 and2010=$319,340.

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Obamacare will improvehealth care system

The column by Dr. DavidBirdsall on health care reform[Doctors’ Orders, Aug. 30] wasinsightful. As he pointed out,people without health careinsurance need only to be “sta-bilized” at emergency rooms,before being sent off to seekfurther treatment elsewhere.They will not receive “follow-up” appointments, even ifdesired by the attending physi-cian. And, in many if not mostcases, they simply will not beable to pay for their expensivetrip to the emergency room, acost that can quickly reach tensof thousands of dollars.

But I think the doctor’s con-cerns about what may be hap-pening in states other than Cali-fornia, a possible future short-age of primary physicians, andthe basic funding of reform,deflect the reader from the pri-mary purpose of Obamacare:The best way to improve overallhealth care in our country is toincrease the percentage ofAmericans with health careinsurance. Pure and simple.

Obamacare is NOT about orfor the 85 percent of Americanswho already have minimal-essential-coverage for healthcare services. It IS aboutimproving accessibility and/oraffordability for the 15 percentor so who do not. Everythingelse, over time, will fall intoplace. We will look back, even-tually, to appreciate the signifi-cant improvements to our over-all American health care systemdue to the implementation ofObamacare.

George FulmoreConcord

Letter tothe Editor

Home prices should level off in ‘14

Send your question and look for youranswer in a future column. [email protected]. French is thebroker/owner of Windermere LynneFrench & Associates. Contact her at672-878 7or stop in at 6200 CenterSt., Clayton.

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Remember this number: 836.The official Academic Perfor-mance Index (API) numbers forthe 2012-13 school year havebeen released by the CaliforniaDepartment of Education andour 62 point growth is incredible.How incredible you ask? CVCHShas the highest API growth forcomprehensive schools (elemen-tary, middle, and high) in ContraCosta County and the highestgrowth for large comprehensivehigh schools in the entire state ofCalifornia. That’s how incredible.

But what is the value of a 62point jump? While the API meas-ures academic growth based onstandardized test results, it is asymbol for much more. This jumpwill have a ripple effect that willimpact school spirit, collegeacceptance rates, communityproperty values, attraction andretention of staff and students,and more. This data validates thecharter vision; but it is not an endin itself, simply a high water markon our journey from good togreat. And there is no arguing nowthat we are headed for greatness.

Clayton Valley High Schoolhad been stuck below the 800level, resulting in the lowest possi-ble ranking in the state similar-schools band, since the creationof the API. So how did we finallybreak through this once unattain-able goal? The simple answer is anunrelenting work ethic matchedwith a feverish sense of urgency.There is no single magic bullet;rather our achievement is theresult of a combination of pro-grams designed to produce “firstclass citizens with a world classeducation” – a phrase that hasbecome a shared motto atCVCHS. To name a few things wedid:• Implemented a guidance and

counseling program with threeacademic counselors, one collegeand career counselor, one schoolpsychologist, and one Dean ofStudents;• Developed quality academic

intervention programs (summerschool, Saturday Bridge to Suc-cess Program; after-school tutor-ing; credit recovery programonline) and kept our library openfive days a week;

That time of year has comeagain: the return to books, back-packs, homework and teachers.The usual routine for some is anew challenge for incoming stu-dents, especially when they do notunderstand a word of English. Itis for these students that EnglishLanguage Learner programs exist.

Imagine entering your firstyear at a new school and notunderstanding anything yourpeers are saying. Of course, youwould have learned a few wordsfrom watching television or goingout somewhere, yet you have ulti-mately lived your whole lifespeaking a different language thanthe people with whom you sharea classroom. How will you adapt?How will you learn? How will youmake friends? These questionsdominate the lives of manyAmerican students, especiallyconsidering that multilingualismhas risen incredibly in the last 30years..

The thousands of studentswho face this dilemma do nothave to worry for long, since thesudden exposure to the Englishlanguage in new academic com-munity will push them to learn itrapidly. This is particularly trueamong children of elementaryages who can master a language

quicker than any teen or adult.Naturally, students who are dis-covering English for the first timewill take a little longer to catch upin class, yet programs such asEnglish Language Developmentand English as a Second Lan-guage help children succeed aca-demically by providing individualhelp to improve their languageskills.

Moreover, these and otherprograms are prominent in highschools as well, and they have arightful place among the varietyof courses high schools offer.Needless to say, children will stilllearn the language faster thanteens, yet these programs allowfor adolescent students to honetheir English language skills withthe guidance of excellent teach-ers. With their help, the languagebarrier that prevents multilingualstudents from interacting withother students and understandingcourse material vanishes. These

programs and the exposure toEnglish in school will helpteenage students succeed in theiracademic lives.

The public school system isresponsible for offering EnglishLanguage Learner programs forevery student who requires it.American students are taught inEnglish, so how can the studentswho hardly comprehend Englishbe refused the opportunity tofully understand it?

Multilingual students gainprominence in the American edu-cation system with every passingyear, and thus it is important tokeep these arguments in mindwhen trying to approach themand help them along their way toacademic victory in the future.

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Dr. Nellie Meyer doesn’tlook much like a kindergartner,but the new Mount Diablo Uni-fied School District superinten-dent was the first to say she hada lot in common with those ofthe class of 2027.

It was appropriate that Meyerwas unanimously approved tolead the district on Aug. 28, itsfirst day of school. “I see a lot ofparallels in the work we will bedoing with those kindergartners,”she quipped.

The lighthearted atmospherebelied the combative road theboard traveled to get to Meyer’s

a p p o i n t -ment, fol-lowing thefiring of herpredecessor,Dr. StevenL a w r e n c e ,last spring.L a w r e n c eand severalboard mem-bers had avolatile rela-tionship, and it chose not torenew his contract in April.

Dr. John Bernard is servingas interim superintendent untilMeyer officially takes over onSept. 23.

Meyer comes to MDUSD

from San Diego Unified SchoolDistrict, where she served asdeputy superintendent ofschool support services.

Thanking the board, Meyersaid she looks forward to a freshstart for the district, building onwhat is already working andfocusing on growth, collabora-tion and focus in addressingwhat isn’t.

“I hope to push all of us in anew direction,” she said.

She will earn $245,000 a yearto lead the district, whichencompasses 49 traditionalschools sites and several otheradult and special education pro-grams. Her contract runsthrough June 30, 2016.

New superintendent totake over MDUSD Sept. 23

English learners face hurdles;need help in the classroom


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Clayton Valley Charter HighSchool is celebrating Homecom-ing Week from Sept. 23 through28. Clayton Valley students arecelebrating with activitiesthroughout the week on campuswith spirit days, a rally and a danceon Saturday evening.

Please join in on the fun at theHomecoming Parade at 5 p.m. onWednesday, Sept. 25 in downtownClayton. Every class will be pre-senting their Homecoming royal-ty on each of their floats. Addi-tionally, various clubs and sportsteams will make an appearance.

On Friday, Sept. 27, join theCVCHS Eagles in the coronationof the 2013/2014 HomecomingKing and Queen. Coronation isprior to the varsity football gameagainst Skyline High School at 7p.m.

The football games andHomecoming pre-game festivi-ties are at Clayton Valley’s Gon-salves Stadium. Come and sup-port the Ugly Eagles.

For further information, go to theClayton Valley Charter High Schoolwebsite at claytonvalley.org.

PEGGY SPEAR

Clayton Pioneer

Clayton Valley Charter HighSchool Homecoming Activities

Liliana Hernandez is a Senior atClayton Valley Charter High School.She loves to read and plans to pursueher interest in writing in the future.Send email to her at [email protected]

DR. NELLIEMEYER

Soaring scoresjust meanCVCHS cango higher

California is one of the mostprolific supplier of leeks andscallions. Leeks look like over-grown scallions, but a single leekcan be as thick as two-inches indiameter, or almost as thin as ascallion. Leeks have a crunchytexture when cooked, and aheartier flavor than scallions.They are used mostly in cook-ing, and are often braised. J&MFarms has wonderful organicleeks, scallions and a variety ofother onions.

Pick leeks with relativelystraight bulbs that don’t exceedone-and-a-half inches in diame-ter, or they will be tough andwoody. Never buy leeks thathave wilted or torn green parts,or those that have been

trimmed, as it is a good indica-tion that the leeks have beenaround too long. Store scallionsand leeks away from odor-sensi-tive foods such as corn andmushrooms, which will absorbthe odor of the onions. Removeany rubber bands and any dam-aged leaves and store in plasticbags in the crisper section of therefrigerator. They’ll both last upto five days.

Leeks are notoriously sandyand must be washed thoroughly.First trim off the root and greentops, and then slit the leekslengthwise. Rinse off the dirtbetween the layers under a run-ning tap or wash the leeks in atub of water while holding itfirmly so it doesn’t fall apart.Leeks are usually cut crosswiseinto crescents before they aresautéed in butter or oil for adish, but if they are to be roast-

ed or braised, the two halves canbe left intact. Scallions are pre-pared like leeks, except dirt andgrit are not an issue. Trim theroots and the green tops andleave about an inch of greenwhere it’s fairly light green.Then cut crosswise into thinslices.

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6 large leeks, bulb and lightgreen parts washed and cut into1-inch strips6 shallots1 cup organic vegetable broth1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard2 Tbsp. coconut vinegar1/4 cup olive oilsalt & pepper to taste2 Tbsp. fresh chopped parsley2 Tbsp. coconut flour

Toss leeks in 1 Tbsp. olive

oil. Lightly brown on grill pan.Add broth and simmer on lowheat for 20 minutes. Chop 4shallots into 1/4” rings, toss incoconut flour and cook underbroiler until crispy, 2-3 minutes.In a small bowl combineremaining shallots finely dicedwith mustard and vinegar, whiskin olive oil and salt and pepper.Place leeks on serving platter,drizzle with vinaigrette, sprinklewith crispy shallots and parsley.Makes 8 small servings.

Teen reclaims friendships andfamily in poignant ‘Summer’

In “Second Chance Sum-mer” by Morgan Matson(Simon & Schuster Books forYoung Readers; Reprint May,2013), Taylor Edwards’ family

spends about as much qualitytime together as the Hatfieldsand the McCoys. Everyone isalways busy and they never haveany time to spend together as areal family.

But when Taylor’s dad isdiagnosed with stage-four pan-creatic cancer and has only fourmonths to live, Taylor’s parentsdecide that the family will spendtheir last summer all together attheir old lake house in thePocono Mountains.

Taylor’s dreading this vaca-tion due to the drama thatoccurs while her family isenclosed together. But whilebeing forced to bond with eachother throughout the summer,

they all rediscover how power-ful a family’s love can be andwhat they’ve been avoiding allthese years.

Taylor is also reunited withtwo people who she spent thesummer with in the Poconoswhen she was 12: her formerbest friend, Lucy, and her firstcrush, Henry. Taylor spends theseason rekindling the friend-ships that she left behind andcreating memories that will lasther a lifetime.

This book is an impeccablenovel about reclaiming yourselfand enjoying life while you have it.


Don’t say ‘eek’ when it comes to cooking leeks

Emily York is a freshman atCVCHS.

EMILY YORK

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It’s the rare exception insports when a losing teammoves up in the rankings butthat’s exactly what happenedto Clayton Valley Charter HighSchool after they lost their sea-son opener to De La Salle 34-14 in a clash of defendingNorth Coast Section footballchampions from Concord.

Coach Tim Murphy’sEagles have been stamped asfavorites for the NCS DivisionII title after the team’s show-ing against the Spartans, whowere debuting their first newfootball coach in 35 years.Justin Alumbaugh’s squad wonthe game but not before Clay-ton Valley gave his No. 1

ranked team all they couldhandle for much of theevening running off moreplays but being shutout in thesecond half when the largelines of De La Salle started towear down the Eagles.

Murphy relished the oppor-tunity to play DLS, whichcame into the year with 26straight victories overall and237 games without a loss to aNorthern California team.Early in the game CVCHSwent for a first down onfourth and short at their own25-yard line, signaling theirintent. Although the playfailed the Eagles did not giveup a touchdown then andeventually tied the game at 7and trailed only 21-14 at thehalf following a touchdown

pass from transfer quarterbackGabe Taylor to KristianMamea, who injured his anklelater in the game and is apt tomiss up to six weeks.

Unheralded John Velascostole the headlines with threerushing touchdowns and 187yards from scrimmage for DeLa Salle. Junior Miles Harrisonwas almost as impressive in hisstarting debut for the Eaglesrunning for 175 yards on 24carries and scoring the team’sfirst TD of the year on a 10-yard run.

Tanner Wraa had nine tack-les and was the CVCHS stand-out on defense. Dylan Jue hadsix tackles and stripped a DLSrunner causing fumble that healso recovered in his first timeever playing inside linebacker.

Murphy summed up theeffort, “Overall the teamplayed well considering howbig and fast DLS is this yearand the fact that we had 13positions getting their firstvarsity start. We feel like if westay healthy we should have ashot at another NCS title.”

The Eagles began the sea-son ranked 21st in the BayArea but moved up to 18thdespite the loss to DLS, whichis No. 1 in NorCal and statepolls as well as topping somenational ratings. Several prepsports experts are now toutingthe Eagles as early-seasonfavorites to defend their DIINCS title, which would likelyplace them into a RegionalBowl Game for the secondyear in a row.

Clayton Valley had a byelast week due to a schedulingchange and meets Castlemontof Oakland this Friday in theEagles first home game atGonsalves Stadium. Kickoff isat 7 o’clock. Following a roadgame next Friday at Indepen-dence in San Jose CVCHS cel-ebrates homecoming Sept. 27against another Oakland team,Skyline.

Clayton Valley High Schoolgrad Nick Goff was recentlyappointed University of Nevadamen’s basketball Director ofOperations. Goff returns to hisalma mater after two years atSouth Dakota State.

“I am very pleased toannounce our new Director ofOperations Nick Goff,” Wolf-pack head men’s basketballcoach David Carter said. “Nickwas a former manager here atNevada in 2011. He will be agreat addition to our program.”

Goff will handle travel, filmexchange, oversee the Pack stu-dent managers, assist withscheduling and work with Neva-da’s academic advisors and com-pliance department along withadditional duties as assigned.He will serve as the coordinatorfor the Wolf Pack men’s basket-ball camps.

“I’m very thankful for theopportunity to join the staffhere at Nevada,” Goff said.“I’m excited to work alongsideCoach Carter and the rest of thebasketball staff that did so muchfor me during my time as a stu-dent manager. It is a great feel-

ing to be back in the Reno com-munity and I look forward tocontributing to the Wolf PackBasketball program again.”

Goff spent the past two sea-sons as a graduate assistant atSouth Dakota State where hehandled many of the operationsduties for the Jackrabbits.Some of his duties includedcoordinating travel and filmexchange along with assisting inscheduling. He served as thecamp coordinator for the SDSUmen’s basketball camps.

Prior to working at SDSU he

was a manager for the WolfPack basketball team for threeseasons. During his time atNevada he assisted in severalaspects of the Nevada basket-ball program and worked thePack basketball camps. In 2011he received his bachelor’s degreein journalism with a minor inbusiness from Nevada. Heearned a master’s of sciencedegree in sport and recreationstudies from SDSU.

Goff graduated from Clay-ton Valley in 2006. He was cutfrom the Eagles freshman teambut persisted and eventuallyplayed for coach Troy Sullivan’svarsity as a senior, calling him-self “more of the inspirationaltype than point guard.” Histeam included nine seniors andwas led by standouts AdamCarp, Drew Menez and JohnnyDel Bene. Goff ’s parents, Jerryand Eda, and his younger sisterAmina still live in Concord.Amina is a 2008 CVHS grad.

University of Nevada MediaRelations Department contributed tothis story.

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TRANSFER GABE TAYLOR (12) THREW A TOUCHDOWN PASS in the final minute of the first half and“managed the offense really well for his first varsity start,” according to CVCHS coach Tim Mur-phy. Larry Ross (58) looks to tackle Taylor. De La Salle won the game between 2012 NCSchampions from Concord 34-14.

TIGHT END KRISTIAN MAMEA CAUGHT A TOUCHDOWN PASS late inthe first half to bring Clayton Valley within 21-14 of De LaSalle at halftime in the season opener that pitted NCS champsfrom last season. Later in the game Mamea injured his ankleand may be out up to six weeks, a big blow for the senior whoalso plays middle linebacker. Das Tautalatasi wraps up Mameaand Jevari Anderson (14) comes in to finish off the tackle forthe Spartans, who won 34-14.

Four golfers at OakhurstCountry club have made hole-in-ones recently, including Clay-ton residents Rick Smith andSteve Greytak. Three of thefour Oakhurst par 3 holes wereaced in this recent rash of hole-in-ones.

The 13th hole was acedtwice with Don Nicolai ofAlamo using a nine iron from

118 yards at the white tees andRenata Young of Walnut Creekusing a gap wedge from the redtees at 86 yards.

Smith aced the 11th holefrom 181 yards using a five ironwhile Greytak used a seven ironfrom 145 yards on the eighthhole, according the PGA proand Oakhurst Director of GolfRobert Barnes. Both those

hole-in-ones were from the goldback tees.

Oakhurst’s other Par 3 is onthe third hole is the longest at185 yards from the champi-onship tees. The course is a Par72, 6,746-yard layout which wasnamed “best New Course inNorthern California” when itopened in 1990 by CaliforniaGolf magazine.

Clayton Valley earns respect, DLS gets W

Four Aces at OakhurstNICK GOFF

The United States women’squadruple sculls crew with KaraKohler of Clayton finished fifthat the World Rowing Champi-onship finals in Chungju, SouthKorea at the end of August.

The USA quad had takenthird last summer for thebronze medal in the LondonOlympics but was not a threatto medal in the World Champi-onship final race. MeganKalmoe (St. Croix Falls, Wis.),Esther Lofgren (NewportBeach, Calif.) and Susan Fran-cia (Abington, Pa.) joinedKohler at the World Champi-onships with the quartetaccounting for five Olympicmedals between them.

In the finals the U.S. wasnever in a position to medal,starting in fifth place and fallinginto sixth before crossing thefinish line back in fifth. Ger-many won in 6:41.86. Canadawas second in 6:45.02 andPoland was third in 6:46.27.

The American quad startedthe regatta by taking fourth intheir preliminary race, forcingthem to enter the repechage inorder to gain a place in the six-boat finals.

In the repechage (secondchance) race the U.S. andPoland traded places threetimes over the first 1,500 meters– first Poland led, then the U.S.,then Poland. New Zealand wasback in third and apparently outof the running for the top twoplaces.

“I looked over once acciden-tally,” said Kohler, who withKalmoe had won Olympicbronze in this same event lastsummer. “I saw that it looked

like they (New Zealand) wereeven and it was just like, we’vegot to go, we’ve really got togo.” And go they did, crossingthe line second in a frenziedsprint, the result of which was atrip to the final. “I wasn’tshocked,” Kohler said. “I knewthey were quick in the sprint.

We were just trying to hang on.”The Americans finished

with eight overall medals at theWorld Championships in SouthKorea, the same total earned byItaly, Germany and GreatBritain.

Three-time All-AmericaKohler and six former Cal Bear

rowers competed in the WorldChampionships. The Claytonwoman will be starting her sen-ior year at Cal this fall. This washer first World Rowing Champi-onships in an Olympic event.

US Rowing contributed to this story.

It can be easily said that theSan Francisco Giants have hadone of the worst World Seriesfollow-up seasons in the historyof baseball. Although this maybe true, it doesn’t signal the endof a powerful era for this team.

There are several factors asto why the Giants struggled somuch this year, and why theycan easily make it back into theplayoffs next season. First of all,they need to get healthy, whichcan happen for them nextseason.

Angel Pagan, Ryan Vogel-song, Chad Gaudin, Santiago

Casilla, Pablo Sandoval, MattCain; what do all of these play-ers have in common? They areall essential to the Giants suc-cess and have been on the dis-abled list for extended periodsof time this season.

Baseball is such a fascinatinggame because it is a marathon,not a sprint, and there will bebumps along the way in the reg-ular season. Unfortunately forthe Giants they fell into a pot-hole with how many injuryproblems they had this year.Their offense became stagnant,their defense struggled, andmost of all their pitching fellapart due to numerous andlengthy injuries. Next season itwill be a clean slate where all theGiants starters can be healthy.

The Giants have also per-formed poorly this year due tofatigue. Before this season, the

Giants had gone to the WorldSeries in two of the past threeseasons, winning two champi-onships in the process. Whengoing deep into the playoffs, ateam plays many more gamesthan they anticipated with just aregular season. Fatigue can beeasily seen in pitchers who areconsidered “work-horses,” andthis is what happened to Cainthis season.

This isn’t to say that therehaven’t been other problemswith the Giants ace, but he hashad to pitch over 50 innings inthe post-season the previousthree seasons alone. All theseextra innings, and the fact thathe goes deep into games, hasobviously fatigued the man –the human body can only handleso much. With the Giants notgoing to the post-season thisyear, maybe Cain can get

enough rest to become his for-mer self in the 2014 season.

Getting rested and healthyare the keys for the Giants tobecome successful again.Almost all of their star playersare still under contract for nextyear, so they will still have thenucleus for a playoff contendingteam. One more key thing theGiants must do is add to theirbullpen depth, as this was ahuge problem for them this sea-son. The Giants have plenty ofspending money so they cansurely go out and get a few armsfor the bullpen, and next seasonmake a run at their third WorldSeries in five years.

TYLER LEHMAN

SPORTS TALK

Tyler Lehman is a sophomore atDiablo Valley College and a 2012CVHS graduate. He plans to majorin journalism and wants to be a sportswriter. Email your comments or ques-tions to [email protected].

Rest easy: Giants should beback in playoffs in 2014

New Clayton Valley CharterHigh School cross countrycoach Anthony Munch will beintroducing lots of new run-ners to his girls and boys varsi-ty squads and hopes he caninstill some of the success hehad as a runner at his almamater.

Munch only competed incross country as a senior butwas part of the 1994 team thatwas so good it was inductedinto the Clayton Valley AthleticHall of Fame earlier this year.While he has no allusions thatthe same will happen this sea-son he does hope to meld somestrong returning veterans withother runners new to varsityand, in a couple cases, new tothe school as freshmen.

For the varsity boys DannyCondon was sixth last year atthe league meet and is joined byfellow seniors Quentin Mclane,Kyle Metz and Ben Linzey and

junior Eduardo Wence as keyreturning runners. They will bejoined by junior Sam Givens,who won the Diablo ValleyAthletic League frosh/sophrace, and also Sayed Opeyanyand Josh Rosen, who were top5 in frosh/soph.

“There is a great amount ofdepth on the team that wehaven't seen in years with thetop eight all running very closein time. This is helpful in theway that if one runner has abad race, his teammates canpick up the slack. The top fourDVAL teams on the boy’s sidewere fairly closely matched lastyear and there should be somegreat head-to-head competitionagain this year,” Munch says.

For the girls Kyra Ortiz,who was fourth in DVAL lastfall, and sophomore Sarah Car-rico head the returning runners.A pair of freshmen, NatalieRuzicka and Sarah Verderame,has made a run for varsity posi-tions along with junior LindsayMondloch in her first year run-

ning cross country.Munch sums up the girls

side, “The varsity girls graduat-ed two strong seniors (RachelPreeg and Emma Schoenstein),but we are hoping that a fewtalented freshmen runners willdevelop to fill the openings.Kyra is a hopeful to qualify forthe State Championships inNovember. She narrowlymissed a spot last year and hasshown a great deal of dedica-tion preparing for the season.

“College Park will be verystrong again in their quest toreturn to the state champi-onships.”

Munch has a strong staffworking with the cross countyEagles teams including Debo-rah Osteen (CV alumni andformer head distance coach atUniversity of Southern Missis-sippi), Brandon Enriquez (CValumni, also track and soccercoach), Matt McCoy (CV classof 2013) and Shaun Guest (alsocoaches swimming at CVCHS).

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Senior standouts will becounted on to lead the ClaytonValley Charter High School girlsand boys water polo teams thisfall as the Eagles seek to win Dia-blo Valley Athletic League cham-pionships and advance in theNorth Coast Section playoffs.

Veteran girls coach DennisBledsoe and second-year boyscoach Nick Ballew each circleNorthgate as their biggest rivalsfor DVAL honors. Fittingly, thetwo league favorites meet in thefinal week of the season at Con-cord Community Pool onWednesday, Oct. 23, a weekbefore the DVAL tournamentbegins at College Park.

Jack Brown was co-MVP lastyear with senior Zach Loza ofNorthgate. Brown scored 104goals and also led the Eagles inassists. Brown was honorablemention all-DVAL as a fresh-man, first-team all-league as asophomore and then was MVPas a junior.

His senior classmates KennyCuneo and Grant Meylan werealso first-team picks last yearwhile goalie Max Renner and Jor-dan Tate nabbed second-teamrecognition, as did soph TannerWhite. All return to help Ballew’steam reach its goals of winningthe league title after losing 8-6 toNorthgate in the finals a yearago. The Eagles have missed

reaching the NCS playoffs onlyonce (2008) since 2003 butadvanced past the opening Sec-tion playoff round only in 2009.

Cuneo scored 44 goals lastyear and “was a force on theteam and is vital to our team’ssuccess this year as he will beplaying ‘Hole-D’ for the major-ity of the year,” Ballew adds.

Tate led the team with 78steals a year ago and has set outthis year to break the schoolsingle-season steals record as asenior.

Brown, Cuneo and Tate aretri-captains this year. TheEagles opened the season withlopsided wins over Liberty andDeer Valley.

Northgate lost Loza and two-time first-team all-DVAL AlexO’Laughlin from the 2012 cham-pions but has all-league perform-ers Mason Tittle, Michael War-dle, Calvin Kirkpatrick and Bray-den Levey back. Broncos coachTaylor Herman’s team has thecredentials for a repeat title andanother visit to the NCS Divi-sion II playoffs where theyreached the semi-finals beforefalling to eventual championMarin Catholic 13-8.

EAGLES GIRLS

REPLACING GRADS

Three graduates from lastyear’s Clayton Valley Charter girlsDVAL league champion team areplaying college polo this fall butcoach Bledsoe still has qualityplayers returning to show the

way girls coming up from juniorvarsity in the quest for a leaguechampionship.

Seniors Sara Abele, NoelCreamer, Sara Johnson and KimAnderson will be looked to forleadership and strong play byBledsoe.

Abele was co-captain last year

and was co-leader in assists andsteals while being named first-team all-DVAL for a second timeand third-team all-East Bay.

Last year, Creamer was sec-ond-team all-league and herteam’s most improved whileJohnson was a co-captain, tiedfor most steals and made second-

team all-DVAL. Anderson (2011and 2012) and Katie Van Tuyl(last year) were honorable men-tion all-league. Quincy Winshipis the other returning varsityplayer for the Eagles.

Bledsoe expects Katie Kom-mer and Vanessa Parham to con-tribute to varsity after moving up

from JVs.Three-time first-team all-

league player Casey Adams isnow playing at UC Davis, JuliaArteaga is at DVC and first-teamall-leaguer Taylor Ryle is at CalState Long Beach. Also gonefrom the team are Michell Lutzand Bailey Rogers. The 2012Eagles lost in the NCS Division Iquarterfinals 8-7 to James Logan.

Bledsoe has have been at CVcoaching since 1966 except fortwo years when he tried collegecoaching at Cal and Fresno State.Head JV coach is Natalie Jen-nings, an all-league and all-EastBay player at CV who played col-legiately at San Jose State. Assis-tant varsity and JV coach is Lind-say Allen Struempf.

Northgate girls lost to Mira-monte in the NCS DII quarter-finals a year ago. The Broncosfinished second to CVCHS inleague play but won the DVALtournament last fall. Toughesthole to fill for Northgate coachGab Flores is for graduatedtwo-time DVAL MVP Lani Tit-tle. Also graduated are all-league players Kelly Carson,Natasha Williams and MeganMcWard. Hannah Dillon willgive a young squad senior lead-ership this season.

CLAYTON VALLEY FALL

YOUTH BASEBALL PROGRAM

NOW UNDERWAYClayton Valley Charter High

School baseball coaching staffand players are offering a fallinstructional program until Nov.14. The 10-week, 30-hour pro-gram focuses on the skills nec-essary to be a successful playerincluding batting, fielding, pitch-ing, catching and base running.Sessions are held Tuesdays andThursdays from 4-5:30 p.m. atthe Clayton Valley Varsity Base-ball Facility for boys and girlsages 5–13.

Questions? Contact Eagles coachCasey Coakley, [email protected] or (925) 285-9417.

FALL YOUTH, ADULT

PROGRAMS COMING TO

CLAYTON GYMA variety of programs at

Clayton Community Gym aretaking signups now through AllOut Sports League. Winteryouth basketball league signupsare now open for players 4-16.Youth hip hop and jazz classesare every Monday for 5-16 year-olds. Youth volleyball league (8-16 years-old) starts Sept. 14 forthird to 11th graders. BlazeAAU basketball and club volley-

ball tryouts are coming late thisyear. There will be an adult coedsoftball tournament Nov. 3.

For complete information, visitalloutsportsleague.com.

ST. BONAVENTURE CYOBASKETBALL TAKING

SIGNUPS ONLINESignups for boys and girls in

second through eighth gradesfor the St. Bonaventure basket-ball CYO program are still beingtaken online at stbonaventure-cyo.com. For more information call672-5774.

ST. BONAVENTURE CYOCROSS COUNTRY SEASON

UNDERWAY SEPT. 20St. Bonaventure CYO cross

country begins Friday, Sept. 20,with an Oakland Diocese tune-up meet. The season concludeswith the Diocese meet Oct. 18at Joaquin Miller Park in Oak-land. The program is open toboys and girls in 2nd-8th gradesin the St. Bonaventure atten-dance area. Cross country prac-tices are Monday, Wednesdayand Friday at 5:30 p.m. Theteam meets at Newhall Park bythe big oak tree.

Signups are taken online atstbonaventurecyo.com.

SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES

SOCCER SCHOOL IN

CONCORD THIS FALLThe San Jose Earthquakes of

Major League Soccer are hold-ing their Regional DevelopmentSchool fall session at BoatwrightFields in Concord on Tuesdaysthrough Oct. 29. Girls and boys5-10 years of age are eligible forthe school which brings profes-sional coaching experience andguidance to youth soccer playersof all skill levels. Brazilian WorldCup and Olympic player Tafaheads the teaching staff.

For more information visit theEarthquakes Youth Alliance Part-ner’s website at diablofc.org.

VINCE BUHAGIAR WILL SIT

OUT SAN JOSE STATE

FOOTBALL SEASONCV High grad Vince Buha-

giar will miss the entire footballseason after the San Jose Statesenior outside linebacker under-went surgery to repair a tornlabrum in his right shoulder.

Buhagiar was named to theall-conference team prior to thisseason. “The great news of thatis we’ve got a veteran, proventhree-year starter back at thatposition for 2014,” head coachRon Caragher said. The seniorwill likely draw a medical red-shirt tag in 2013.

JAY BEDECARRÉ

Clayton Pioneer


Sports Shorts

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KIMMY ANDERSON (15) has earned all-league recognition the past two years and hopes to helpher Clayton Valley Charter High School team to a league title as a senior this fall. She is one ofthree seniors, along with Sara Abele and Sara Johnson (8), giving coach Dennis Bledsoe’s teamexperience and leadership. Emily Rabbitt (11) also was in the pool as the Eagles defeated Liber-ty 15-7 in a preseason match.

• Embraced the Rigor/Rele-vance/Relationships framework;• Implemented instructional

guides for the four core subjectswith quarterly benchmarkassessments;• Provided a professional

development program – morestaff training in one year thanthe last decade;• Hired a technology coordina-

tor who implemented effectiveinstructional software programsto support student learning;• Emphasized communication

through a dynamic, informativeschool website including individ-ual teacher sites, regular home-work posting, and 24-hourresponse time on all emails andphone calls;• Focused on character educa-

tion through the FreshmanTransition program and theLink Crew program;• Engaged community support

through local partnerships and apowerful parent volunteerprogram;• Improved school environ-

ment through revitalized athleticprograms, clean and safe cam-pus initiatives, upgraded mainte-nance and operations manage-ment, and evening and weekendsecurity.

The work began before anystudent stepped foot onto cam-pus last year. The urgency withwhich we proceeded was due tothat shared understanding thatour kids’ futures were on theline. Educators must act in manyways like surgeons in the operat-ing room – one wrong move,one minute too late and a lifemay be lost. This is the gravity ofour work, a tone that is oftenmissing in other schools.

Today: 836, celebration, vali-dation. Tomorrow: back to thesurgeon’s table and the work athand. We could sit back and reston our laurels; but this is notwhat CVCHS is made of. The836 score is not good enough.Join me in this regular article fora firsthand look at “The Voyageof the Eagle” to heights yetunseen in secondary education.

David Linzey is executivedirector of CVCHS. Contact [email protected]

September is here and thatmeans another school year isalready in full swing, but it alsomeans another chance for kidsto be bullied. Unfortunately,bullying starts as early as pre-school and it is pervasive; any-where from 40-80 percent ofmiddle school-age childrenadmit to engaging in bullyingbehavior.

The reality is that bulliesoften struggle with personalissues, low self-esteem and con-flict at home – these kids devel-op aggression as a way to cope.But those who are bullied hap-pen to share a lot in commonwith their tormentors in termsof underlying issues; they justbecome the victims rather thanthe victimizers.

There is some good news

though – it is possible to helpyour children protect them-selves from bullies. Here is whatexperts recommend:

Model respect and compas-sion to your children. The bestpredictors of not being bulliedare having high self-esteem andstrong relationships at home. Ifyou treat your child as youwould like your child to treatothers, then practice using posi-tive guidance to change a child’sbehavior rather than physicaldiscipline, punishment or powerplays.

Help your child learn basicsocial skills. Model being confi-dent with others; your childrenare watching how you handlesituations. Teach your child howto introduce themselves, how tojoin a group, how to ask for aturn and give a turn, and how toinvite someone to do some-thing.

Coach your child on how tohandle a bully’s first attempts totease. Remind your child thatbullies thrive on getting a reac-tion out of their target; they feelmore powerful when they canget a strong reaction out of thevictim. Your child can use

assertive and non-defensivestatements to make their initialstand. Here is some languagethat your child can use:

“That’s teasing. Stop makingfun of me.”

“I want you to leave mealone.”

For every comment made,respond with, “Really?”, “So?”,“You don’t say?” or “And yourpoint is?”

Also let your children knowthat it is okay to feel scared ofbullies and not engage the bullyat all. Children can ignore thebully by pretending the bully is

invisible, looking uninterestedand walking away.

In addition to helping yourchild learn how to deal with bul-lies, it is also crucial to knowhow to intervene when they seesomeone else being bullied.Studies have shown thatbystanders who step up can cutbullying more than half the timeand within 10 seconds! If yourchild sees someone being bul-lied, they can confront the bullyby saying “That’s mean” andhelp the victim walk away bysaying, “C’mon, let’s go” or theycan deflect by standing next to

the victim, turning the victimaway from the bully and walkingthem in the opposite directionby saying, “I’ve been looking foryou” or “The teacher sent me tofind you.” Lastly, it is importantto remember to get adult help orcall 911 if your child is worriedabout the imminent safety ofthemselves or another child inthe face of a bully’s aggression.

STEPHANIE HO

MIND MATTERS

Stephanie T. Ho is a licensed psy-chologist. She has a private practiceoffice in Walnut Creek and works atUC Berkeley. She can be reached [email protected].

Smart ways to stop school bullying

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Club NewsCLAYTON VALLEY

WOMAN’S CLUB

Join the Clayton ValleyWoman’s Club for a fun eveningon Sunday, Oct. 13, at theOakhurst Country Club. No-host cocktails are at 5 p.m. fol-lowed at 6 p.m. by dinner, danc-ing and entertainment by DanAshley and his band PUSH.There will be a raffle and silentauction. Proceeds go to localcharities and scholarships.

Dan Ashley is an award-win-ning television anchorman onABC7. He is a popular figure inthe Bay Area and very involvedin the community serving onmany boards. He raises moneyto send underprivileged childrento a Lake Tahoe summer camp.A couple of years ago, Ashleydid something outside of thebox; he became the lead vocalistfor PUSH. They perform classicand original rock at local con-certs and events.

The event costs $47.50 perperson. Seating is limited, somake reservations early. Thedeadline is Oct. 1.

Oakhurst Country Club is at1001 Peacock Creek Drive,Clayton. The club meets the sec-ond Tuesday of every month,except July and August. Newmembers are welcome.

For more information, call 672-9448 or go to claytonvalleywoman-sclub.org.

CV GARDEN CLUB

Clayton Valley Garden Clubmembers Barry Hart, IngelaNielson, Steve Lane, DianeSelmer, Linda Cruz, DennisKaump, Alyce and Ben Shikano,JoAnn Caspar, Robb Kingsburyand Nadine Findley brought thePioneer along on an outing tobeautiful Maple Rock Gardensin Newcastle, Placer County, for

tomato tasting and made areturn visit to wonderful HighHand Nursery in nearbyLoomis.

The Garden Club meets at 7 p.m.on the second Wednesday of themonth, February through November,at Diamond Terrace, 6401 CenterSt., Clayton. Visit their website atclaytonvalleygardenclub.org.

The Clayton Valley Woman’sClub presents their FallFundraiser: A Fall Happeningwith Dan Ashley and HisBand PUSH.

IN CLAYTONSSeepptt.. 1144CCoonncceerrttss iinn tthhee GGrroovvee6-8:30 p.m. Grove Park, downtown Clayton. Free. Last concert of theyear.

SSeepptt.. 1144,, 2211,, 2288FFaarrmmeerrss’’ MMaarrkkeett8 a.m.-12 p.m. Saturdays. Diablo Street between Main and Centerstreets, downtown Clayton. Music: Sept. 14, Paul Anderson; Sept. 21,Tony de Grassi; Sept. 28, Damond Moodie. pcfma.com/clayton.

SSeepptt.. 1199TThhuurrssddaayy CCoonncceerrttss iinn tthhee GGrroovveeFeaturing local talent. 7-8:30 p.m. Grove Park, downtown Clayton. Free.

OOcctt.. 44 -- 66OOkkttoobbeerrffeessttSponsored by the Clayton Business and Community Association.Music by The Internationals, biergarten, food, arts and crafts, carni-val. 6 – 10 p.m. Friday, carnival only. 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. Saturday. 11a.m. – 6 p.m. Sunday. Downtown. Free admission. claytonoktober-fest.com.

FFiirrsstt TThhuurrssddaayyssOOaakkhhuurrsstt BBuussiinneessss NNeettwwoorrkkMeets first Thursday of the month for social hour. Hosted hors d’oeu-vres, cash bar. 5 – 7 p.m. Oakhurst Country Club, 1001 PeacockCreek Drive, Clayton. oakhurstcc.com.

IN CONCORDTTuueessddaayyss aanndd TThhuurrssddaayyss FFaarrmmeerrss’’ MMaarrkkeettTuesdays year round, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Thursdays through Oct. 24, 4- 8 p.m. Todos Santos Plaza, downtown Concord. cityofconcord.org.

ON THE MOUNTAINMMoouunntt DDiiaabblloo IInntteerrpprreettiivvee AAssssoocciiaattiioonn programs listed are free withthe exception of park entrance fee. Go to mdia.org and click onEvents Calendar for more information.

SSeepptt.. 1144,, 1155,, 2211,, 2288,, 2299TTaarraannttuullaa TTrreekkLearn about the hairy spiders that roam the mountain at this time ofyear. Then take a walk to see if you can find any. Reservations required.Check the website for more tarantula hikes. Reservations arerequired and fill up fast.

SSeepptt.. 1155,, OOcctt.. 2200TTaarraannttuullaa TTiimmeeIt’s that time of year again when male tarantulas are out of their bur-row roaming the hillsides looking for female tarantulas. Come andlearn about the lives of these special creatures from naturalist MichaelMarchiano in the Summit Audio Visual Room. 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.

SSAAVVEE MMOOUUNNTT DDIIAABBLLOO programs listed are free unless otherwise noted.Go to savemountdiablo.org and click on Activities/Guided Hikes formore information. 947-3535.

OOcctt.. 66MMoouunntt DDiiaabblloo CChhaalllleennggeeThis fun cycling event now offers course options for beginning andseasoned cyclists. Registration/fee required. Go to savemountdia-blo.org and click on Mount Diablo Challenge.

EVENTS & ENTERTAINMENTTThhrruu SSeepptt.. 2288““SShhrreekk tthhee MMuussiiccaall””Diablo Theatre Company brings the hilarious story of everyone’sfavorite ogre to life on stage. Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 CivicDr., Walnut Creek. $49-$53. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.

TThhrruu OOcctt.. 1122““EEllllaa tthhee MMuussiiccaall””Exhilarating new musical that weaves myth, memory and music to tellthe uplifting and poignant story of one of the greatest jazz vocalistsof all time. Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek.$37-$64. centerrep.org. 943-7469.

SSeepptt.. 1199 –– OOcctt.. 1133““PPyyggmmaalliioonn””A brilliantly witty reworking of the classical tale of the sculptor who falls inlove with his perfect female statue. Butterfield 8 Theatre at CueProductions Live, 1835 Colfax St., Concord. $12-$20. b8company.com.

SSeepptt.. 2200,, 2222““CChhaarrlloottttee’’ss WWeebb””A beautiful, knowing play about friendship. El Campanil Theatre,602 W. Second St., Antioch. $10-$15. elcampaniltheatre.com.

SSeepptt.. 2200 –– OOcctt.. 44““WWiitthhoouutt PPuurrcchhaassee””A fun, new mystery play by local playwright David Evan Harris per-formed by Onstage Theatre. Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 CivicDr., Walnut Creek. $10-$23. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.

SSeepptt.. 2211TThhee BBrroonnxx WWaannddeerreerrssThis five-person group takes the biggest hits of the 1950s and 1960sto a whole new level. 8 p.m. El Campanil Theatre, 602 W. SecondSt., Antioch. $23-$25. elcampaniltheatre.com.

SSeepptt.. 2233CCoonncceerrttThe Contra Costa Chamber Orchestra performs. 7:30 p.m. LesherCenter for the Arts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $10-$30. lesher-artscenter.org. 943-7469.

SSeepptt.. 2266MMaarrkk TTwwaaiinnA reading of selected excerpts of Twain’s work. Butterfield 8 Theatreat Cue Productions Live, 1835 Colfax St., Concord. No admissionfee; donations accepted. b8company.com.

SSeepptt.. 2299AAuutthhoorr EEvveennttAuthor Elizabeth Lonseth discusses “A Gradual Disappearance: TheJourney.” 3 – 4 p.m. Montecito, 4756 Clayton Road, Concord. Free.Reservations required by Sept. 26. Call Michaela at 692-5838.

SSeepptt.. 2299CCaalliiffoorrnniiaa SSyymmpphhoonnyyCabrera conducts Mozart and Dvorak. 4 p.m. Lesher Center for theArts, 1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $20-$65. lesherartscenter.org.943-7469.

OOcctt.. 1111--NNoovv.. 1100““TTaarrzzaann,, tthhee MMuussiiccaall..”” CCMT brings Edgar Rice Burroughs’ romanticstory to the Lesher Center in Walnut Creek. For performance timesand ticket info call (925) 943-SHOW or go to LesherArtsCenter.org.

OOcctt.. 1133DDiiaabblloo SSyymmpphhoonnyy OOrrcchheessttrraaEric Zivian performs on the piano. 2 p.m. Lesher Center for the Arts,1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek. $12-$28. lesherartscenter.org. 943-7469.

OOcctt.. 1166 –– 2266““TThhee RRoobbbbeerr BBrriiddeeggrroooomm””The Clayton Theatre Company is proud to present its first production,a rousing, bawdy Southern fairy tale. Preview Oct. 16 – 17. ShowOct. 18 – 26. Endeavor Hall, 6008 Center St., Clayton. $12-$18 atbrownpapertickets.com. claytontheatrecompany.com.

CHURCHSSeepptt.. 1144PPaarrkkiinngg LLoott PPaalloooozzaaCrafts, games, food and fun. Open to the public. 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. TheSalvation Army Concord Community Church, 3950 Clayton Road,Concord. Free admission. salvationarmyconcordca.org. 676-6180.

SSeepptt.. 1155BBaacckk ttoo CChhuurrcchh SSuunnddaayySunday services and barbecue open to the public. 9:45 a.m. Sundayschool; 11 a.m. worship; 12:30 barbecue. The Salvation ArmyConcord Community Church, 3950 Clayton Road, Concord. Freeadmission. salvationarmyconcordca.org. 676-6180.

FUNDRAISERSSSeepptt.. 1144PPllaanntt SSaalleeFeaturing California natives, succulents and hard-to-find perennials.9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Markham Regional Arboretum Society Nursery.1202 La Vista Ave., Concord. 681-2968.

SSeepptt.. 2222BBooookk SSaalleeHardcover and paperback books; fiction, nonfiction, cookbooks,beginning readers, self-help books, biographies and more. Proceedsgo toward parking lot fund. 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Holy Cross LutheranChurch, 1092 Alberta Way, Concord. 686-2000.

SSeepptt.. 2288WWiinnee aanndd WWhhiisskkeerrssFine wine and food tasting to benefit ARF’s life-saving programs. 8p.m. Animal Rescue Foundation, 2890 Mitchell Drive, Walnut Creek.$80. arf.net.

AT THE LIBRARYThe Clayton Library is at 6125 Clayton Road. Programs are freeunless otherwise noted. claytonlibrary.org or 673-0659.

TTuueessddaayyss tthhrruu NNoovv.. 2266PPaattttyy CCaakkeessStory time for babies to 3-year-olds. Child attends with caregiver. 11 a.m.

WWeeddnneessddaayyssBBooookk BBuuddddiieessA volunteer will read stories for children 3 and older. 1 - 2 p.m. Callin advance.

TThhuurrssddaayyss tthhrruu NNoovv.. 1144PPiiccttuurree BBooookk TTiimmeeStory time for 3- to 5-year-olds. Child may attend without caregiver.11 a.m.

SSeepptt.. 1166,, 2255CCEERRTTEmergency preparedness information and hands-only CPR andAutomatic External Defibrillator instruction. 7 – 9 p.m.

SSeepptt.. 2255 –– OOcctt.. 2244LLiibbrraarryy PPuummppkkiinnCome see our big pumpkin and guess its weight. The person with theclosest guess without going over wins the pumpkin. Children 12 andunder eligible to enter.

The Concord Library is at 2900 Salvio St. ccclib.org or 646-5455.

SSeepptt.. 1166BBlluuee DDeevviillssCome see the Blue Devil color guard and musician demonstrationsthen try it for yourself. 7 – 8 p.m.

SSeepptt.. 1199WWiiggggllee aanndd GGiiggggllee wwiitthh LLiizz MMaaccHave a blast and dance to music. Children ages 2 - 4. 12:30 – 1 p.m.

SSeepptt.. 2211CCoommppuutteerrss aanndd TTeecchhnnoollooggyyIf you need help with your mouse, come to our house. Drop-in assis-tance to learn how to use computers, smart phones and tablets.Adults. 2 – 4 p.m.

SSeepptt.. 2255 IInnssiiddeerrssJoin this program for adults with disabilities. Events vary each weekbetween arts and crafts, music and dance, playing games on wii andmore. 1 – 2 p.m.

SSeepptt.. 2277 -- 2299BBooookk SSaalleeHardcovers $1. Paperbacks $.50. Children’s books $.25-$.50. Fri. 1 – 8 p.m. Sat. 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sun. 1 – 4 p.m. $3/bag.

SSeepptt.. 3300BBeeaann CCrraaffttLet your imagination soar and create a masterpiece with beans.Children 5 – 11. 7 – 8 p.m.

GOVERNMENT11sstt aanndd 33rrdd TTuueessddaayyssCCllaayyttoonn CCiittyy CCoouunncciill7 p.m. Hoyer Hall, Clayton Library, 6125 Clayton Road. 673-7304or ci.clayton.ca.us.

22nndd aanndd 44tthh TTuueessddaayyssCCllaayyttoonn PPllaannnniinngg CCoommmmiissssiioonn7 p.m., Hoyer Hall, Clayton Library, 6125 Clayton Road. 673-7304or ci.clayton.ca.us.

Community CalendarPLEASE SUBMIT YOUR CLAYTON COMMUNITY CALENDAR EVENTS BY 5 P.M. SEPT. 18 FOR THE SEPT. 27 ISSUE. ITEMS MUST BE SUBMITTED BY EMAIL TO [email protected]

Meeting dates and times for local clubs andorganizations are listed atclaytonpioneer.com. Click on ‘Links’


Rather than using my feet,this month’s excursion put meon two wheels for the annualDownieville Classic.

With a tradition rich in goldmining dating back to 1849,Downieville was once known as

“The Forks” because of its geo-graphical location (confluenceof the Downie River and NorthFork of the Yuba River).

Today most the activitiesfound in and around this areainclude off-road motorcycling,kayaking, hiking, gold panning,fishing, swimming and the bestreason to come here: mountainbiking. If you are a regular guy orgal who rides a bike for fun, mysuggestion would be to stay awayfrom Downieville around racetime (usually held in August).

Most towns would haveshriveled up by now, butDownieville is lucky enough tobe graced with some of the mostscenic landscape and trails foundanywhere. Downieville has two

shuttle companies that will dropyou at Packer’s Saddle, which isthe jump off point for the down-hill. Don’t let the word “down-hill” fool you. because while rid-ing a bike down a hill might seemlike a stroll in the park, this ter-rain is anything but friendly. Infact, most of the trails found inthis region require strong hands,ultra quick judgment, keen bal-ance, some guts and a full sus-pension bicycle.

Our group of hall-pass hold-ing soccer dads who needed aweekend away provided a per-fect recipe of camping, cookingand biking. We stayed at IndianValley Campground nestledalong the Yuba River outside ofDownieville.

BUTCHER RANCH CREEK

Our first ride is what madeDownieville famous, ButcherRanch Creek. You drop like abat out of hell through creeksand canyons, endless drop offs,tight turns and rock gardens.Butcher Ranch drops over 4,500feet in elevation and when youlink up with Third Divide andFirst Divide Trails, then I’d sayyou’ll have a tough time erasingyour smile (dirt not included).

PAULEY CREEK

Pauley Creek shares many ofthe technical aspects of ButcherRanch with the exception of theupper section, which is a fireroad. I suggest this trail for tworeasons: open country beauty

and solitude. The trail windsthrough endless meadows, heavyforest and the Sierras as yourbackdrop – and without thecrowds. Stair-step descents androllercoaster momentum downsteep rocky sections are signatureaspects of Pauley Creek.

BIG BOULDER TRAIL

The International MountainBike Association rates this trailas “epic.” Add in 1,700 feet ofelevation loss in about two-plusmiles on a rocky and narrowtrail that hugs the better part ofa mountain the entire way down,and you’ve found paradise ontwo wheels. This trail also offerssome climbing and cross coun-try riding prior to the downhill.

Watch out for gnarly tree rootsand off-camber riding as you letgravity take over literally.

SHUTTLE COMPANIES

$20-25 per person per shut-tle (45 minute shuttle from bot-tom to top)• Yuba Expeditions

yubaexpeditions.com• Downieville Outfitters

downievilleoutfitters.com• Indian Valley Campground

reserveamerica.comDirections: Take Interstate

Highways 80 & 49 (a three-plushour drive from the Bay Area).

6096 Main Street, Clayton, 673-0440

Sept. 13, 14 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Plan B

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Classic mountain biking thrills in Downieville

RYAN PARKER, ANDY HOSLER AND KEVIN PARKER take on the challeng-ing Downieville Classic

For more information on this hikeor other outdoor experiences, contactKevin at [email protected].

KEVIN PARKER

HIKER’S HAVEN

Before most Contra Costafamilies of school children hadautomobiles and school buses tobring them safely to – a luxurywe take for granted today – mostchildren either walked (some-times for miles) or rode horse-back, until the Toonerville Trol-ley came to town.

In 1911, on Feb. 11, an elec-tric railway known as the Oak-land & Antioch (O&E) made itsfirst run from Bay Point to Con-cord. Most all of the right ofway of Concord’s first electricrailway has become today’sBART trackage and overheadstructures along the Port Chica-go Highway.

The coming of the O&E,and later names – The Oakland,Antioch & Eastern (OA&E),San Francisco & Sacramento(SF-Sac), and the SacramentoNorthern (SN) railways provid-ed clean-burning, safe, and

(mostly) reliable transportationto Central CC residents andbusinesses in the even morerural areas than those served bySouthern Pacific’s Branch Lineof the San Ramon Valley, withlimited passenger service from1891 to 1934. Freight operationsending in 1979. This former lineis much of today’s Eat BayRegional Park District’s IronHorse Regional Trail.

Nearly 60 years before thevery first BART trains came tothe “end of the line” in Concordin 1972 – these earlier, electricrailcars of the O&E – SN rolledover much its successor’s right-of-way from Pleasant Hill toNorth Concord, then on to BayPoint, and as far north as Chico(making a ferry boat crossingover Suisun Bay to do so), and asfar west as San Francisco, via thelower deck of the Bay Bridge.

Many high school students inthe more rural areas aroundConcord and Walnut Creekoften rode these railcars to and

from school – to either Mt. Dia-blo High School in Concord, orSan Ramon Valley High Schoolin Danville, while college stu-dents rode the railcars to St.Mary’s College in Moraga, andthe University of California,Berkeley. School students, regu-lar commuters and the generalpublic alike referred to these rail-cars as Toonerville Trolleys,mostly after the popularFontaine Fox – ToonervilleTrolley comic strips of the1920s, and partly due to the con-dition of some of the older

railcars being used on the schoolcommute lines. OA&E/SF-Sacand Sacramento Northern buseseventually replaced the lovedand hated Toonerville Trolleys.

Learn more about the ToonervilleTrolleys and other railroads that ranthrough the Clayton and Diablo val-leys at the Clayton Historical SocietyMuseums current exhibit, “Rail-roads of the Clayton & Diablo Val-leys, and Beyond…” The exhibitruns through Oct. 9. For more infor-mation, visit ClaytonHistory.org.

The Way We Were

Toonerville Trolleys were early-day school shuttlesSTEVE LANE

Special to the Pioneer

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Children’s favorites are com-ing to life at the Lesher Centerfor the Arts this fall. Currently,Diablo Theatre Company is per-

forming “Shrek the Musical,”and in October, Contra CostaMusical Theatre gets into theswing of things with “Tarzan,”

the musical by Phil Collins andDavid Henry Hwang.

“Tarzan” is based on theAcademy Award-winningDisney film (1999) of the samename and the classic adventurestory by Edgar Rice Burroughs.All of the songs from theDisney film are included in thestage musical, as well as manynew songs written by Collinsspecifically for the stage version.They include the GrammyAward hit “You’ll Be in MyHeart,” which also won theGolden Globe and AcademyAward for Best New Song,“Two Worlds,” “Son of Man”and the wild “Trashin’ theCamp.”

The Tony-nominated musi-cal “Tarzan” began as a work-shop in 2004 starring MathewMorrison from television’s“Glee” and Laura Bell Bundyfrom Broadway’s “LegallyBlonde.” It opened onBroadway on May 10, 2006 andran for 486 performances, clos-ing on July 8, 2008.

This will be the first locally-produced full-scale production

of “Tarzan” in the Bay Area,and will star James RoyceEdwards in the title role.Edwards, who lives in SanDiego, previously played therole in the 2010 U.S. NationalRegional Premiere in Utah.

CCMT’s production will fea-ture several characters flyingacross the Hofmann stage, uti-lizing the services of ZFX inHuntington Beach to make thespecial effects both safe andexciting.

“It’s Tarzan, so of course wehave to have him swing throughthe air, but in our production,the aerial stunts are used toenhance the storytelling, andnot to simply be a spectacle,”said Scott Strain, one of theproducers for the show.

“Tarzan” runs Oct. 11 throughNov. 10 at Walnut Creek’s LesherCenter for the Arts, 1601 CivicDrive in Walnut Creek. Ticketsrange from $45 to $54 (with dis-counts available for seniors, youth andgroups) and are on sale now at theLesher Center Ticket Office, by call-ing 925.943.SHOW (943-7469) oronline at LesherArtsCenter.org.

Everyone’s favorite upside-down fairytale is lighting theLesher Center stage as DiabloTheatre Company presents“Shrek the Musical,” a song-anddance-filled stage adaptation ofthe Oscar-winning Dream-Works animated film.

For their 54th season,Diablo Theatre Company re-creates the fantasy Kingdom ofFar Far Away – with many hilar-ious, irreverent twists. Thisentertaining, family-friendlyshow features 19 songs includ-ing “Travel Song” and “I’veThink I Got You Beat.” Thesongs come from JeanineTesori, who wrote the music,and David Lindsay-Abaire, whowrote the book and lyrics.

“Shrek the Musical” alsodraws from a 1990 children’sbook by famed New Yorker car-toonist William Steig. Like thefirst 2001 Shrek film, the musi-cal stays true to Steig’s fracturedfairytale vision where dragonsare friendly, swamps are betterthan castles, and the true heroisn’t handsome or noble but agrouchy-on-the-outside, tender-on-the-inside ogre who is moreor less content with himself andhis life in a swamp.

After “Shrek the Musical”

premiered in 2008 as the mostexpensive show ever producedon Broadway, it played for morethan a year, earning much praise.

“Shrek the Musical” performsthrough Sept. 28 at the Lesher Centerfor the Arts, 1601 Civic Drive,Walnut Creek. For tickets and show-times, call 925-943-SHOW (7469)or visit lesherartscenter.org ordiablotheatre.org.


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Performing Arts

Photo by Mark Kitaoka & Tracy Martin

JERRY LEE STARS as the heroicogre in CenterREP’s “Shrek,the Musical,” playing theLesher Center through Sept. 28.

CCMT Swings into the Lesher with Tarzan ‘Ella, the Musical’ brings both oldand new ‘magic’ to the Lesher

CenterREP kicked off its 2013-2014season this month with a jazzy tributeto Ella Fitzgerald.

“Ella, the Musical” stars YvetteCarson and features more than adozen of Fitzgerald’s signature hits,including “They Can’t Take That Away

From Me,” and “That Old Black Magic.” The show runsthrough Oct. 12 at the Lesher Center in Walnut Creek. Formore info, visit centerrep.org or call 925-943-SHOW (7469).

Fractured fairytale ‘Shrek’oozes into Walnut Creek

CCMT’S “TARZAN, THE MUSICAL” is now playing at the LesherCenter in Walnut Creek. The show opens Oct. 11.

Can a Cockney flower girl betransformed into an Englisharistocrat? Henry Higgins thinksso, but Eliza Doolittle may havesomething to say about it inGeorge Bernard Shaw’s delight-fully witty “Pygmalion,” pre-sented by Butterfield 8 TheatreCompany Sept. 19 through Oct.13 at Cue Productions Live indowntown Concord.

A brilliantly witty reworkingof the classical tale of the sculp-tor who falls in love with hisperfect statue, “Pygmalion” isalso a barbed attack on theBritish class system and a state-ment of Shaw’s feminist views.In Shaw’s telling, the phoneticistHiggins is the Pygmalion figurewho believes he can transformEliza, a Cockney flower girl, into

a duchess at ease in polite socie-ty. The one thing he overlooks isthat his creation has a mind ofher own.

“Pygmalion” remains Shaw’smost popular play, both delight-ing and scandalizing its firstaudiences in 1914 (swearing onstage!), and it became an Oscar-winning film in 1938. The play’swidest audiences know it as theinspiration for the wildly suc-cessful (and highly romanti-cized) 1956 musical and 1964film, “My Fair Lady.”

“Pygmalion” has transcend-ed cultural and language barrierssince its first production. TheBritish Museum contains imagesof the Polish production; aseries of shots of Higgins andEliza in the first French produc-tion in Paris in 1923; and pic-tures of a fascinating set for aRussian production of the1930s. It has been translated oradapted for such diverse lan-guages as Marathi, Gujarati,Georgian, Hindi, Bengali,Papiamentu, and Turkish.

The production is directedby company Artistic DirectorJohn Butterfield, and presentedby special arrangement withSamuel French, Inc.

For more information on timesand ticket prices, visitb8company.com.

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Performing Arts

Judy Potter

DONALD L. HARDY AS HENRY HIGGINS and Becky Potter, ElizaDoolittle, perform in George Bernard Shaw’s 1912 classic“Pygmalion” at Cue Productions in Concord through Oct. 13.

For its inaugural production,The Clayton Theatre Companypresents a rousing, bawdySouthern fairy tale, “TheRobber Bridegroom.”

Set in 18th centuryMississippi, the musical is thestory of the courting ofRosamund, (the only daughterof the richest planter in thecounty), by Jamie Lockhart, adashing rascal and robber. Theproceedings go very badlythanks to a case of double-mis-taken identity. Throw in an evilstepmother intent on getting ridof Rosamund and a cast of hap-less villains (including a bodilesshead in a box) and you have arecipe for a hysterical night oftheater.

The local cast includes actorsHayley Herrera, Kelly Hansen,Yoni Bushell, Kayla Elway, andMike Farnham, and musiciansSantiago Martinez and JoyceNovicky Martinez, all fromClayton. Board members LeslieHowell, Stacey Wickware, andBeth Neudell, director RoxannePardi and set designer DavidManogerra also hail fromClayton, director and choreog-rapher La Tonya Watts is fromPittsburg, and board memberCara Bent is from Brentwood.

Previews are Oct. 16 and 17, andperformances run Oct. 18 through 26,all at Endeavor Hall. Tickets can bepurchased at brownpapertickets.com.For more information about the showor to advertise in the program, visit thewebsite at claytontheatrecompany.comor call 925-222-9106.

‘Bridegroom’launches newlocal theatercompany

Clayton and Concord actors take center stage in Vagabond Players’

‘Wagon Wheels A-Rollin’’

Dave Westphal

“Wagon Wheels A-Rollin’” opens Oct. 26 at the ElCampanil Theatre in downtown Antioch. From left:Nathalie Archangel plays Ms. Sue Flay, “gorgeous, but witha rotten apple for a heart;” Wayne McRice plays Mr.Smiling Slade Claggett, the villain in this old-fashioned“hiss-boo” melodrama. Rita Hamlin appears as VirginiaHamm, card dealer and Bill Dietz as Wild Bill Hiccup. Callthe theater at (925) 757-9500 for more information.

Shaw’s ‘Pygmalion’ meets his fair lady

Autumn is the newspring…for planting that is. OurClayton Valley fall is the perfecttime to get outside and installfoundation trees and shrubs.

Considering a tree? Thinkabout your needs before youshop. Are you trying to achieveshade, privacy, or seasonal color?If you know what you are want-

ing, you’ll have an easier timefinding what you need.

The Raywood Ash is a niceU-shaped shade tree with fabu-lous fall color. Keith DaveyChinese Pistache achieves around shape as it matures. Thefall color of the Keith Davey is acombination of brilliant scarletand orange. Both of these selec-tions will reach heights of 25- to30-feet tall. Think before youinstall. Planting a shade treealong a fence line is not a greatidea. Trees usually cost under ahundred dollars to purchase andseveral hundred to remove.

Create privacy within yourlandscape using smaller ever-green trees. Photinia fraseri,Pittosporum tenuifolium, Laurusnobilis and Dodonaea viscosaare all sold in a tree shape. Theseevergreens all have predictable

growth, making them safe instal-lations for privacy. They all canbe installed near a fence line. Thefact that the are already grownwith a trunk gives the homeown-er more initial height for fasterprivacy.

Ornamental trees are themost fun. This category of treesis the one we plant for verticalinterest. If you are craving springflowering trees consider a flow-ering crabapple (Malus), sterileflowering plum (Prunus PurplePony), or tulip magnolia tree(Magnolia soulangeana). Forsummer flowers crape myrtleand chitalpa trees are lovely addi-tions. Avoid the flowering peartrees (Pyrus calleryana). They arehighly susceptible to fire blightand are almost guaranteed to suf-fer from it in our area.

Many shrubs thrive through-

out our local landscapes. Knowwhat your needs are. This willhelp you make a short list ofoptions. Do you need to accent adeciduous tree or camouflage anaging fence? Are you cravingspring or summer flowers? Whatcolor foliage do you want? Whatis the sun exposure of the land-scape where the shrubs are to beinstalled?

Westringia Wynyabbie Gem,Phlomis fruitcosa and Salvia cle-vandii are all exceptional ever-green shrubs with seasonal flow-ers and gray foliage. They arelandscape standouts for full sunnear old fences and surroundedby dark mulch. Polygala,Rhaphiolepis and Loropetalumchinense, satisfy those needinggreen foliage and seasonal flow-ers in a full sun application.Looking for a shrub that changes

color? The family of Nandinahas many members maturing tovarious heights and widths. Asthe weather cools, the Nandinafamily’s colors change to brilliantshades of orange and wine.Coprosma is another family ofwonderful plants whose leafcolor goes from nice to wow inthe autumn.

There are as many greatshrubs available for thoseinstalling in the shade. Cestrum,

Choysia, gardenia and azalea areall seasonal blooming evergreenshrubs that thrive in ourClaycord landscapes. They areeasy to find and easy to grow.

It is time to get planning yourfall planting! Don’t let anotherautumn slip past you.

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Trees and shrubs spice up autumn planting

The start of a new designproject is always very exciting.The design possibilities are end-less: a new, functional kitchen inplace of your dated 1980s erakitchen, or an addition of 250square feet for the home office-guest bedroom you’ve alwayswanted. Or maybe it’s time tocelebrate your 20th, 25th or30th anniversary with a masterbedroom suite remodel.Whatever your project may be,it’s an exciting first step to for-mally decide to do it.

But, now what? How doyou begin? What happens next?

There are a few things youcan do to get the process mov-ing along. Above all, the more

informed you are, the better.The main things are knowing tosome extent a design directionfor your project, how much youwant to spend, having a generalidea of materials, and findingprofessionals to work with youand guide you through thedesign process.

Here are some tips that willkeep you moving forward andcloser to the end result:

FIND YOUR INSPIRATION

Flip through the pages ofhome magazines where you willfind inspirational photos foryour project. If you will be tak-ing on a bathroom remodel, findexamples of tile layouts that

excite you, color combinationsthat create your desired atmos-phere, as well as interestingplumbing fixtures and lighting.Maybe you’d like to install a larg-er window over your bathtub, orinstall a TV behind your vanitymirror; looking through homemagazines to familiarize your-self with new or traditionalideas is a great way to narrowdown your wish list.

GET TO KNOW YOUR

PRODUCTS

The best way to familiarizeyourself with pricing is to doyour homework. Visit onlinehome improvement sites andonline retailers for broad infor-

mation and pricing. Also, takethe time to stop by as many localhome décor showrooms as pos-sible. You will be able to seefirst-hand the materials you willbe using for your project, as wellas the varying price points.

GET OUT THE CALCULATOR

How much do you intend tospend on your project? If youare taking on a kitchen project,will you be demolishing theexisting layout and starting fromscratch, or upgrading the deco-rative or functional items likelighting, backsplash tiles andmaybe an appliance or two?These two scenarios have verydifferent price points so it’s best

to prepare yourself for theforthcoming bid. Talking withinterior designers and generalcontractors can help you deter-mine how to make the most outof your budget.

PUT TOGETHER

A GREAT TEAM

If your project requires morethan you’re prepared to do your-self, take the time to search outand interview a handful of interi-or designers and general contrac-tors. Maybe you’ve come up withyour own design, or maybe youstill need guidance for your proj-ect. Whatever your design needsmay be, put together a team ofhome professionals that will not

only do great work, but who willlisten to your needs, help you tounderstand the process andabove all, work within yourbudget.

Jennifer Leischer is the owner of J.Designs Interior Design based inClayton. Contact her with questions,comments and suggestions [email protected]

JENNIFER LEISCHER

DESIGN & DÉCOR

Do your homework before starting a design project

Sept 13 Clayton Pioneer 2013

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