Ventura County, CA. - The public is invited to attend the 3rd annual Point Mugu Surf Contest Presented by Quiksilver at Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC), Point Mugu, Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 21-22. The event is free and open to the public starting at 6 a.m.

150 surfing contestants are expected with professional surfers Sean Hayes, Adam Virs, Peter Mel, Reff McIntosh among others participating at one of Southern California’s best surfing locations. This particular surfing area off the coast of Point Mugu faces in a south direction which gives it a unique wave. The South swell, submarine canyon, and sandbars cause waves to break differently and bigger than at other beaches.

There are six different divisions: Open, military men, open women, Quiksilver Young Guns, body board and Quiksilver Expression Session featuring pro surfers. Opening ceremonies on Saturday will begin at 7 a.m., and the first heat begins at 7:15 a.m. The surf event lasts until 5 p.m.
Each heat lasts 15 minutes. There will be multiple heats per division and the top two scores from each heat will advance for that division. The finals are scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 22.
Live music bands will Reality Check, The Harm, Road to Bremen, The Royal Heist and Big Junior Little just to name a few. Food and vendor booths will be open during the event.

The public is to enter the Las Posas road gate at NBVC Point Mugu, both Saturday and Sunday. All guests are directed to a parking lot and then shuttled to and from the event. The public is allowed to bring cameras, however the maximum focal length is not to exceed 100 mm.

For more information, please call Vance Vasquez, NBVC Public Affairs Office at 805-989-8095 or Teri Reid, NBVC Public Affairs Officer at 805-989-9234.

Mark your calendar to save the date for the Great Train Robbery fundraising event, benefiting the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley. Scheduled for departure at 6:00 PM on Saturday, September 11, 2010, guests will be treated to a ride on the Fillmore & Western Railway serving an appetizer buffet, provided by several Santa Clara Valley restaurateurs, on each car. A full no-host bar will be provided by Fillmore & Western Railway.

Entertainment includes a ‘shoot out’ and ‘train-jacking’ by local desperadoes, played to the hilt by the Ventura County Sheriff’s Association Posse Riding Club, and the kidnapping of a mystery Club Benefactor at the Santa Paula station. Several arrests will occur during the trip by the Chief of Police Steve MacKinnon from Santa Paula and Police Chief Tim Hagel of Fillmore. Held in a special ‘jail’, arrestees can be ‘bailed out’ after an appearance before the ‘traveling judge’. Event passengers will be encouraged to enjoy the music on the dance car. The kidnapping victim will be rescued and his/her identity revealed at the end of the evening as the train returns to the Fillmore Station around 10:00 PM.

The route runs throughout the Heritage Valley by first going west to Santa Paula when departing Fillmore, then traveling east all the way to Piru before concluding the trip back in Fillmore. The entire trip will last approximately 4 hours.

Kid art will be on display and available for purchase throughout the event. Guests will be encouraged to ‘ransom’ the kidnapped benefactor, with all funds becoming the property of the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley.

Boarding tickets sell for $45 per person, and can be ordered by calling the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley at 805-525-7910. Advance sales are encouraged as seating is limited.

The Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley provides after school and Summer Camp programs for children ages 5 to 18, at the Club’s two locations; 1400 E. Harvard Blvd., Santa Paula and 565 First St., Fillmore. Club members pay a $25 annual fee to attend the Club, and no child is turned away for their inability to pay the membership fee. It costs the Club $560 per child annually to provide services for its members. The obvious gap between cost of services and membership is bridged by generous donations from local businesses, private donors and local and national grants. Donors interested in providing financial assistance to the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley are encouraged to contact the Club at 805-525-7910. All donations, regardless of amount, are gratefully appreciated.

Cell Phones for Soldiers and Fillmore Mail Stop are calling on all Americans to support the brave men and women serving in the military by donating your used cell phones and chargers. More than 150,000 troops are serving overseas and are away from their families. Cell Phones for Soldiers hopes to collect over 1 Million cell phones this year to help keep troops connected with their families.

Local residents can help support the collection drive by donating their phones at:
FILLMORE MAIL STOP, 330 CENTRAL AVENUE, FILLMORE (Across from the Post Office)

Cell Phones for Soldiers was founded by teenagers Robbie and Brittany Bergquist from Norwell. Mass., with $21 of their own money. Since then, the registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization has raided millions of dollars in donations and distributed millions of prepaid calling cards to soldiers overseas.

The donated phones are sent to ReCellular, which pays Cell Phones for Soldiers for each phone – the money is used to purchase prepaid calling cards which are sent to troops. DONATE YOUR OLD CELL PHONES AND HELP OUR TROOPS CALL HOME. Your phone does not need to be working to donate it. Please drop off any broken, dead, smashed, or old phone, anything is usable. Approximately half of the phones ReCellular processes are reconditioned and resold to wholesale companies in over 40 countries around the world. Phones and components that cannot be refurbished are dismantled and recycled to reclaim materials, including: ●Gold, silver, and platinum from circuit boards ●Copper wiring from phone chargers ●Nickel, iron, cadmium and lead from battery packs ●Plastic from phone cases and accessories.

The City of Fillmore Fire Department would like to remind residents of the danger associated with the dry summer season and the high probability of brush fires. The City of Fillmore is nestled amongst an area surrounded by numerous natural hazards including creeks containing non-native bamboo and hillsides covered with dense dry vegetation.

A quick review of historical fire data indicates Fillmore residents have been victim of a wild fire greater than 1,000 acres in size nearly every five years for the past three decades. The last fire to directly impact local residents was the Day fire in 2006 that scorched some 162,000 acres.

Above average rainfall experienced in late 2009 and early 2010 has led to higher than normal vegetation growth in the Santa Clara Valley. When combined, these dry fuels and low relative humiditys pose significant risk to those living within high fire danger areas.

Is My Home at Risk?
Two factors have emerged as the primary determinants of a home’s ability to survive wildfire. These are the home’s roofing material and the quality of the “defensible space” surrounding it. By using fire-resistant materials unlike wood or shake shingles, you can insure the long-term safety of your property.

Defensible space is an area around a structure where fuels and vegetation are treated, cleared or reduced to slow the spread of wildfire towards the structure. It also reduces the chance of a structure fire moving from the building to the surrounding forest. Defensible space provides room for firefighters to do their jobs. Your house is more likely to withstand a wildfire if grasses, brush, trees and other common forest fuels are managed to reduce a fire’s intensity. As part of an ongoing hazard mitigation plan, the City of Fillmore Fire Department has issued weed abatement notices to those properties with hazardous vegetation growth. This remains to be an ongoing project for the department due to the high number of bank repossessions and foreclosures.

Staying Informed During an Emergency Situation
In the event of a fire related emergency, residents are encouraged to stay informed as best as possible. To obtain the latest information on ANY local fire situation, please tune in to Fillmore Access Cable Television Channel 10, Fillmore Emergency Access Radio AM1620 or visit our website at www.fillmorefire.com. Residents can also follow Fillmore Fire Department on Twitter by visiting www.twitter.com/fillmorefire or texting “follow fillmorefire” to 40404. Up-to-the-minute information will be published through all four sources as it becomes available.

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VCGC began in 1924 with Mrs. F.H. Osgood of Ojai as Charter President.

Club purpose: “The purpose of this club shall be to promote interest in the subject of gardening and to foster community beautification through district projects.”

Club contains members from Ventura, Camarillo, Oxnard, Fillmore, Santa Paula, and Ojai, so projects are rotated through the different communities each year.

Some of the projects include: Blanchard Library entry planter was redone and a bird bath added for the children’s section. Sheridan Way School garden presented with 2 miniature fruit trees, artichoke plants and watering cans. Fillmore Convalescent Hospital presented a table with umbrella for their patio. Santa Paula Hospital given 2 benches one year and another time $100 was donated for new roses to be added to the rose garden.
Linda Nunes, of Fillmore, will be acting president for the 2010-2011 garden club year. An invitation is extended to all women and men interested in attending or joining. Dues are $20. The first meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 1. Program speaker will be Antonio Sanchez of Napolito Nursery, Ventura, Fall Planting of Natives. Contact: President Linda Nunez 524-3021 or Director Carolyn Lasky 524-1252.

Bert Rapp
City of Fillmore, Public Works Director

Answer: Fillmore is located in the Santa Clara Aquifer system which extends from the Pacific Ocean to Aqua Dulce. There are multiple interconnected basins under the river and the Fillmore basin is the largest of them all. It is approximately 8,000 feet deep and contains about 7,300,000 Acre Feet of water. The Fillmore basin begins near the Fish Hatchery and extends downstream almost all the way to Santa Paula.

The City of Fillmore draws its water out of the Sespe sub-basin in north Fillmore. The Sespe sub-basin has the best water quality of all the water basins in the Santa Clara River system. It is recharged by the Sespe Creek and receives flow off of San Cayetano Mountain. The majority of the Sespe Creek watershed is located in the Los Padres National Forest and is essentially undeveloped. The Sespe Creek has been designated as a natural and scenic river.

The Fillmore basin has provided an abundant supply of groundwater to municipal and agricultural users for about 100 years and remains in good health. About 46,000 acre-feet are pumped out of the Fillmore basin each year: 43,700 acre-feet by agriculture and 2,300 acre-feet by the City of Fillmore.

The City water wells draw from the top 300 feet of the basin or upper 4% of the basin depth. The water quality below this level quickly deteriorates becoming higher in salts and minerals. It is believed the deeper water is ancient ocean water when the area was submerged below sea level.

The City has an allocation of CONTINUED »

City of Fillmore

The City is starting the construction of a new domestic water supply well called Well 9. The well will be located near the intersection of 3rd Street and Goodenough Road. The drilling of the well will begin about August 23rd and will proceed 24 hours per day for about 2 to 3 weeks. A sound curtain is being installed to reduce the noise impact to local residents. Well 9 is 100 percent funded by new development and is not being paid for by the water-rate increase currently under consideration in the City. The well is needed to meet future water demand from future development like the Fillmore Business Park.

The City currently owns three service wells that supply water to the existing community. This new well is needed to meet the increased water demands from new development. This well is an essential part of the future economic health of the community because the Fillmore Business Park cannot go forward unless this well is constructed.

The drilling of the well is the first phase. The second phase will be the construction of pumping and chlorination equipment and a pump house. This first phase of drilling the well is being funded by a $750,000 loan from the Fillmore Redevelopment Agency and will be repaid by the Water Development Impact Fees paid by future development. The second phase is not expected to occur for a couple of years and is expected to be paid for by Water Development Impact Fees from new development.

None of the funding CONTINUED »

Mr. Ricards and FFA members getting ready for the fair.
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As the weeks of hard work dwindle down to days, FFA members are in the final stretch of preparation for the fair. Although the Ventura County Fair started last week, the Junior Livestock exhibitors will move their animals in on Monday August 9th. FFA members were busy clipping, shaving and sheering their animals to make them look their best. Students continue to monitor their animals’ feed, weight and health closely as show day approaches. FFA members met on three afternoons last week to wash and paint equipment that will be used at the fair. During the week, members also had to fill out health care forms for their animals making sure they are showing proper use of vaccinations and medications. After showmanship practice on Thursday night, Mr. Ricards held a meeting for parents and students to talk about fair issues. He announced that if the Fillmore FFA can win Grand Champion in all three species, lambs, swine and steers, he will shave his head. Let’s hope the first day of school finds Mr. Ricards bald! If you find yourself in the livestock area at the fair, please stop by the Fillmore FFA barns and say hi!!

Market shows at the fair this year are as follows: Lambs Tuesday the 10th at 9am; Swine Wednesday the 11th at 9am; and Steers Thursday the 12th at 9am. On Saturday August 14th, all species will be shown in showmanship classes starting at 9am.

Brooke Aguirre is the Fillmore FFA Chapter Reporter

This August has five Sundays, five Mondays and five Tuesdays, all in one month. It happens once in 834 years. And at exactly 6 minutes and 7 seconds after 5 o'clock, August 9th 2010, it was 05:06:07 08/09/10.

Sophia Maria Martinez a girl, born February 17, Community Memorial Hospital, to Leo Martinez and Sonia Osuna of Fillmore.

Evan Steve Ramirez a boy, born April 29, Community Memorial Hospital, to Steve and Hortencia Ramirez of Fillmore.

Tyler Cardona a boy, born April 29, Community Memorial Hospital, to Sammy Cardona and Michelle Cervantez of Fillmore.

Holly Grace Parrish a girl, born May 10, Community Memorial Hospital, to Clyde and Christine Parrish of Fillmore.

Foreign high school students are scheduled to arrive soon for academic semester and year homestay programs, and the sponsoring organization needs a few more local host families. The students are anxiously awaiting news of their new families. This is the last chance for these young ambassadors to fulfill their life-long dreams, and their placement deadlines are rapidly approaching.

According to Pacific Intercultural Exchange (P.I.E.) President, John Doty, the students are all between the ages of 15 and 18 years, are English-speaking, have their own spending money, carry accident and health insurance, and are anxious to share their cultural experiences with their new American families. P.I.E. currently has programs to match almost every family's needs, ranging in length from one semester to a full academic year, where the students attend local public and private high schools.

P.I.E. area representatives match students with host families by finding common interests and lifestyles through an informal in-home meeting. Prospective host families are able to review student applications and select the perfect match. As there are no "typical" host families, P.I.E. can fit a student into just about any situation, whether it is a single parent, a childless couple, a retired couple or a large family.

Families who host CONTINUED »

California State University Channel Islands

Camarillo, CA. August 11, 2010 – The California Institute for Social Business (CISB) at CSU Channel Islands (CI), in conjunction with the Grameen Creative Lab, will host a Social Business Training Forum on Thursday, Aug. 26, 2010, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event will take place on campus and the cost is $300 per person, which includes lunch. For non-profits, the cost is $200 per person.

CI’s California Institute for Social Business was launched in February by Muhammad Yunus, founder of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh and creator of microfinance, a means for the poorest of the poor to attain a better economic and social existence. This fall CISB plans to hire a Director and establish its curriculum.

Muhammad Yunus joined forces with Hans Reitz, a German entrepreneur devoted to social business, to form a joint venture, the Grameen Creative Lab. This venture presents training sessions based upon the seven principles of social business.

CI’s training forum, conducted by CONTINUED »

Fabiola Estrella and family have received the Vision 2020, Civic Pride Committee’s Yard of the Month August award, for their lovely & colorful yard at 1361 Waterford.

The family will have lived at this residence for 5 years on August 29th. When they arrived the yard had two large Queen palm trees, lawn, nandina bamboo along the front path, and a few plants in a large curved bed laid out with edging at the front of the house. The entire family, including children and grandparents have been involved in the maintenance & planting projects.

Their efforts have added great color to the yard with bronze flax, 6 King palm trees, red & white begonias & impatiens, petunias, dahlias, pansies, variegated society garlic and roses for the background.

Fabiola said the palm trees & roses are her favorites in the yard & people do stop & compliment them on the yard’s beauty.

They received an Otto & Son’s Nursery gift certificate for $25. Otto & Son’s Nursery have been generously supporting Civic Pride’s “yard of the month” award program for years and Civic Pride members definitely are seeing a lot of improvement & beautification going on as they search neighborhoods for the next award yard.

Banana Squash
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FFA members Aaron Largen and Riley Wright are working hard in the hope of joining an elite group of FHS Alumni that have earned the American Farmer Degree. To date, there are only three FHS students who have earned the degree, Cathy Barker ‘86, Scott Beylik ‘87, and Mike Richardson ‘91. The American Farmer Degree is the highest honor that can be achieved in the FFA organization, less than 1% of FFA members earn the degree. In addition to GPA requirements, outstanding leadership qualities and community service activities, a student must have an outstanding SAE program that shows planning, managing and financial expertise. In addition to these skills, a student must work a required amount of hours which includes showing how to invest and profit in the farming industry using a required amount of money in order to obtain the American Farmer Degree.

Aaron and Riley are growing banana squash as an SAE project, which they will sell to a local insectory. The insectory will use the squash to grow a certain type of wasp that will be beneficial to farming. The project started back in April, when Aaron and Riley prepared the soil, laid the irrigation and planted the seeds. For the past several months, they have been watering and hoeing weeds in preparation for harvesting the squash when they are about 22 inches in length. When asked what the hardest part of the project has been, Riley said that keeping the weeds under control is tough. If left alone, weeds will suck the nutrients from the soil and the squash won’t grow.

Aaron Largen graduated this past June and was the Fillmore Chapter President and Ventura Section President for 2009-2010. He will be attending Moorpark College in the fall. Riley Wright starts her senior year as Chapter President for 2010-2011 and served as Ventura Section Treasurer in 2009-2010. Both Aaron and Riley have SAE project market steers that they will show this year at the Ventura County Fair. Let’s wish them well in their pursuit of earning their American Farmer Degree.

Fillmore’s Health and Wellness Center will begin offering a new yoga class, starting August 14 at 8:30 a.m. The Center is located at 448 Santa Clara Street, right across the street from City Hall. It is recommended that you have had some yoga but beginners in good health are welcome to attend.

Classes are 1 hour long, taught by Janine Rees and will emphasize gentle stretching and breathing, building strength, and learning and practicing relaxation. We will also be exploring “The Great Yoga Wall” as a way of moving more deeply into the poses. Come with an empty stomach and comfortable clothes. All equipment is provided. Call Janine at 524-4856 for more information.

Written by Karen Thayer

After nearly 27 years of dressing the lovely ladies of Fillmore and the surrounding areas in the latest styles, Shirley Wright owner of Mirage clothing store, has decided to close up shop. Shirley’s impeccable fashion sense was first introduced to her lucky patrons when she opened shop in the “Old” Vons shopping center. She then moved on to the location of “Laura Smith’s Dress Shop” on Central and finally landed in the old Wm L. Morris Chevrolet dealership showroom on the corner of Central Ave. and Santa Clara St. Shirley’s beautiful window displays have caught the eye of passersby on both streets ever since. Shopping at the Mirage can be likened to taking a small vacation. The atmosphere in the store has always been upbeat and fun with selections of clothing available for women of all ages and sizes. Mirage has been like a small piece of paradise located right here in our quaint town. A couple of generations of women have passed through Mirage’s door - always looking for and finding that “just right” item.

Shirley’s customers have quickly become her friends. She is very appreciative of the support they have shown her throughout the years and will miss the contact that running Mirage has afforded her. Shirley is also grateful for the unwavering support of the Morris family.

Mirage’s anticipated closing date is October 1, 2010. Lay-aways will need to be picked up by that time and tanners will want to use their remaining minutes by then. Shirley welcomes customers old and new to stop by. Watch this newspaper for sales announcements as October draws nearer.