On Small Business Saturday November 25th, Santa Barbara County Animal Services is holding the first annual Support Your Shelter Saturday. All three shelters will be open from 10AM until 4PM for discounted adoptions.

Take advantage of our cuddlebuster deal on a day that is notorious for showing support for local businesses and adopt any animal five months or older for FREE from 10AM-12PM. A 50% adoption discount will be offered from 12PM-2PM and 25% off will be given for adoptions from 2PM-4PM. Adoption Matchmakers will be on hand to assist those looking to adopt. Dog licensing fees still apply.

Support Your Shelter Saturday is a great time to adopt a new family member. There is plenty of time to help your new cuddly canine, fluffy feline, or beautiful bunny adjust to their new home before the Holidays. In addition, pets have many health benefits including helping you to fight off those winter blues. With all of the rich foods that tend to be enjoyed throughout December, adopting a new walking companion, also known as a dog, is sure to help you stay healthy while adopting a rabbit will encourage you to eat more fruits and vegetables. Adopting a cat this time of the year has its perks as well; like a built in lap warmer which can help reduce your heating bills.

All three Santa Barbara County Animal Shelters’ are full of amazing animals with a lot of love left to give. This holiday season, when all is focused on giving, open your home to a shelter pet. Giving the gift of a home to a homeless animal is sure to leave you on the receiving end of many things including unconditional love.

All adopted animals include a health check, spay or neuter, applicable vaccinations, and a starter bag of food. You can add a microchip for just $10 at the time of adoption. You will not find a better deal at any other stop!

Make sure a stop at your local shelter is planned for Support Your Shelter Saturday on Saturday, November 25th from 10AM to 4PM at the Santa Maria Animal Center at 548 W. Foster Rd in Santa Maria, the La PAWS Adoption Center at 1501 W. Central Ave. in Lompoc, or at the Santa Barbara Shelter at 5473 Overpass Rd. in Santa Barbara.

Camarillo Hospice, A Program of Livingston Memorial Visiting Nurses Association,

If you are grieving the loss of a loved one, please consider joining one of our grief support groups. Grief is not meant to be experienced alone. We are committed to maintaining an open, accepting, confidential atmosphere. The groups are free of charge. Registration required.

If you have any questions, please call Stacia Sickle LCSW at 805-389-6870 x452.

Ongoing Support Groups

Young Widow and Widowers Support Group: Tuesdays 5:30 to 7:00 pm

Good Grief Club and Teenage Grief Support Groups: as scheduled

General Bereavement Support Group: Healing after the Loss of a Loved One: Wednesdays 1:00 to 2:30 pm and Thursdays 6:00-7:30 pm

Caring for the Caregiver: 1st and 3rd Wednesdays 1:00 to 2:30 pm

Survivors of Suicide Support Group: 1st and 3rd Wednesday of every month 6:30 to 8:00 pm

Reinvesting in Life after Loss of a Loved One: 2ndand 4th Thursdays 3:00 to 4:30 pm

Adult Loss of Parent Support Group: 1st and 3rd Thursday of every month 6:00 to 7:30 pm

For more information on Camarillo Hospice visit www.camarillohospice.org

Back Stacks Books sponsored by the Friends of the Blanchard Community Library in Santa Paula will have the 1st Saturday book sale December 2, 2017, from 10 AM to 2 PM, featuring 1,000’s of used books from 50 cents to $2, as well as collectible books from $4 and up.

The special for December 2nd is HALF PRICE on ALL Cookbooks. Start planning your holiday dinners early. We have many styles of cookbooks, including lots of books specializing in Holiday cooking.

Located at 119 North 8th Street, Santa Paula, enter via the north parking lot, thru the roll-up door in the back. Normal weekday hours also continue: Wed. 12-4, Thu. & Fri. 12-2.

For more information: spfotl@gmail.com

Pet owners, don’t miss your chance for a uniquely fun and wonderful holiday memory. On two upcoming Sundays, the Humane Society of Ventura County will present its annual Santa Paws holiday photo shoot.

Bring your critters out to meet, sit and stay for a moment with Santa Paws, and pose for some truly adorable holiday pictures!

On Sunday, Nov. 19, the Ventura Beach Marriott will host the popular event, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Two weeks later, on Sunday, Dec. 3, the HSVC Shelter will host a second Santa Paws pet photo shoot, also from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The shelter event will additionally feature a bake sale and marketplace, where you can get some holiday shopping done while you wait, from the many local vendors who’ll be on hand selling quality goods. All proceeds from these events benefit the animals of the nonprofit HSVC.

Adults and children are welcome to pose in their pets’ photos – with or without Santa. The shelter will have many festive pet costumes to doll up your pets if you are in the mood. In addition to cats and dogs, pocket pets, reptiles, rabbits and birds are all welcome!

Holiday photo shoot packages start at $30 and include five to 10 images. For a larger donation, you also will have access to some wonderful HSVC keepsakes, including a 2018 HSVC calendar. All images will be provided on-site on USB flash drives.

For over 30 years, this event has been providing high-quality holiday family portraits for county residents and beyond. “Having helped with Santa Paws since 1990, I can tell you this is one very fun event – and it’s especially fun for us to see the families grow through the years,” said Greg Cooper, HSVC Director of Community Outreach and official photographer for the event.

Thanks to Chuck Bowman for once again providing his services as the best Santa in town!

For more information, contact Cooper at GregC@HSVC.org or 805-646-6505, ext. 112.

District Attorney Gregory D. Totten announced today that David Joseph Wirsing (DOB 10/15/71), of Ventura, was sentenced to serve seven months in jail and placed on formal probation for three years for his role in causing a 2014 explosion at Santa Clara Waste Water Company (“SCWWC”). Wirsing was the former transportation manager for SCWWC. The case was jointly prosecuted by the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office and the California Attorney General’s Office.

On November 18, 2014, an explosion occurred at the SCWWC facility located at 815 Mission Rock Road in Santa Paula. Numerous employees as well as first responders were injured either by the initial explosion or by inhaling a toxic cloud of chlorine gas generated by the illegal disposal of hazardous chemicals that were present on site. In July 2014, Wirsing and other SCWWC employees negotiated a lease for an off-site storage yard located near Palm Avenue in Santa Paula. Wirsing was involved in a criminal conspiracy to impede inspections by Ventura County Environmental Health officials through arranging for the hazardous chemicals to be moved to the off-site storage yard before inspections occurred.

In addition to the jail sentence, Wirsing was ordered to pay victim restitution in an amount to be determined by the Court. Under the terms of his formal grant of probation, Wirsing is prohibited from employment in any capacity involving the transportation of hazardous waste.

In observance of Thanksgiving Day, the employees of Santa Clara Valley Disposal are taking the day off on Thursday, Nov. 23. As a result, Fillmore residential customers will have their trash, recyclables and green waste collected on Saturday, Nov. 25, one day later than usual.

The regular Friday schedule will resume the following week.

For more information, call 647-1414.

The Ventura County Transportation Commission (VCTC) will provide free rides to U.S. military veterans on its VCTC Intercity Transit bus service on Friday, Nov. 10 and Saturday, Nov. 11. Part of a countywide effort to honor local veterans on Veterans Day, VCTC joins Camarillo Area Transit, the County of Ventura, Gold Coast Transit, Moorpark City Transit, Ojai Trolley, Simi Valley Transit, Thousand Oaks Transit and Valley Express in offering two days of free rides.

“This our way of saying thank you to the thousands of men and women living in Ventura County who have served our country in the armed forces,” said VCTC Executive Director Darren Kettle. “VCTC is honored to welcome these local heroes on board our buses on Veterans Day and every day.”

To qualify for a free ride, veterans may simply show their valid Veterans Identification to the bus driver upon boarding any participating fixed-route bus service. Valid IDs include U.S. Military ID, CAC, VA Card, Veterans designation on a California driver’s license, DD214 and Retired Military ID.

Free rides are also available on the Camarillo Area Transit, CONNECT Intercity, Moorpark Transit, Simi Valley Transit, Thousand Oaks Transit and Valley Express dial-a-ride programs.

Please note that Moorpark Transit and CONNECT Intercity do not operate on Saturdays.

For more information visit www.goventura.org or call (800) 438-1112.

About the Ventura County Transportation Commission
The Ventura County Transportation Commission is the regional transportation planning agency committed to keeping Ventura County moving. Program information is available at goventura.org.

(l-r) Karen Bagley and Annette Ross.
Enlarge Photo

Vision 2020, Civic Pride Committee, with their Statement of Vision being: “Foster a thriving small town atmosphere in which people give their time and talents for the good of the community.” accomplished two large projects on Saturday, October 28. Committee members, Annette Ross, Karen Bagley, Cindy Klittich, and Linda Nunes welcomed hard workers, Julie and Justin Fairall, Grace and Michael Mitchell from 4 H groups and James Nunes, who regularly provides muscle and engineering of drip systems for our efforts. We pruned and divided Cape Balsam succulents and Sticks on Fire Euphorbias in three planters within the westside parking lot behind the police station. These planters had been designed and planted in September, 2014 and maintained by our group.

Next we planted succulents at 429 Central and pruned a Ficus tree for Kraft & Sons Computer Store.

Civic Pride meets on the third Wednesday of each month in City Hall at 1:30 pm and we welcome all who are interested in beautifying our community and producing an annual Flower Show to attend.

Happy Halloween everyone! I’m going to give you some ideas for Halloween. If you want some ghosts, get a paper or big paper poster (If you want a big ghost), and draw a ghost any size you want. Then cut it out and now, you’ve got a ghost. Then if you want anything like that like skeletons, zombies, and ghouls, do the same thing. Now pumpkin banners. You’ll need string, paper that’s orange and green, glue, and scissors. Cut a pumpkin out with the orange paper, and a stem with green paper. Glue them together and draw little designs on the pumpkin. Glue pumpkins to the string and now you have a banner. Halloween can be scary sometimes but fun! Costumes can be fun too! I hope you have a great Halloween!
- Heather Furness, Gazette Cub Reporter

Halloween season is in full swing in Fillmore! A creepy holiday light and music show is on display at 408 Edgewood in The Bridges every night at 7:00, 7:30 and 8:00pm. The display includes music and visuals from Michael Jackson’s Thriller, Ghostbusters and The Nightmare Before Christmas. Cruella de Vil and Capt. Hook also join the mayhem, along with music from all your favorite haunts, including songs from Disney’s haunted mansion. This year’s show has 10 creepy RGB Spiders, 2 Mega Spiders, Meg Spinners, Halloween circles, Giant Pixel Web, and 3 ghosts. You can tune into 97.7 FM on your car radio to listen to the frightfully familiar music. Homeowner Ron Howard went all out to make sure this Halloween is Spooktacular! Ghosts and goblins welcomed.

The community welcomed Fillmore Saw with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on September 18, 2017. On hand were Miss Fillmore 2017 Sara Uridel and Fillmore Chamber of Commerce board directors Ari Larson and Martin Guerrero. Evan and Dulce Zellmer offer a variety of saws depending on your needs and also service lawn mowers. Fillmore Saw is located inside Fillmore Rental on Highway 126 (955 W. Ventura St. Rm B). For questions contact Evan Zellmer at 805.827.5130.

How do we cope with the good and bad things we face in life? Everyone must overcome hardships like illness, natural disasters, job loss and the deaths of loved ones.

There are lessons to be learned about recovering and thriving after challenging experiences. At this time of year when people give thanks, Community Memorial Health System is sharing personal and inspiring stories that help teach others how to build resilience, strength and hope during trying times.

“Stories of Life’s Joys and Challenges: A Thanksgiving Program” is a free Ethics in Healthcare event and part of Community Memorial Health System’s 2017 Speaker Series. The program starts at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 16, at the Museum of Ventura County, 100 E. Main St. in Ventura. James Hornstein, M.D., CMHS Bioethics Committee Chair, will serve as moderator.

Attendees are encouraged to bring donations of toys, food, diapers and toiletries for three charity efforts: Ventura County’s FOOD Share food bank; Gabriel’s House, a transitional support organization for women and children; and the Ventura County Fire Department’s Spark of Love toy drive, which collects unwrapped toys for needy local children.

There will be raffles for prizes throughout the evening program, and those who make donations will receive reusable tote bags.

Registration is free but reservations are required. To secure reservations, please visit www.cmhshealth.org/rsvp or call Brown Paper Tickets at 800-838-3006. Program sponsors are KVTA radio, the Accountable Care Alliance of Ventura, SCAN and Ventura Care Partners Apc.

Community Memorial Health System is a not-for-profit health system, which is comprised of Community Memorial Hospital, Ojai Valley Community Hospital, along with the Centers for Family Health serving various communities within and located in Ventura County, California.

In an effort to improve the college-going rate among veterans and active duty military in Ventura County, the Ventura College Foundation is helping Ventura College students who are U.S. veteran and U.S. active duty military offset the cost of tuition through the William and Helen Scarpino Veterans Promise Program, a four-year pilot program funded by donors who cover the first-year costs of enrollment fees for qualifying students, allowing these students to reserve their GI Bill for university tuition.

“The William and Helen Scarpino Veterans Promise Program allows us to better assist active duty military and veterans with honorable discharges, to transition into civilian life by helping them further their education and successfully pursue their next career,” said Anne King, Ventura College Foundation executive director.

For the 2017/2018 academic year, the William and Helen Scarpino Veterans Promise Program will award approximately $1,200 to 16 veterans. Applications are accepted from Oct. 1 to 31, and awards will be distributed in January 2018.

To be eligible, students must be U.S. active duty or U.S. veteran (includes U.S. National Guard), a first-time Ventura College student, honorably discharged (if U.S. Veteran) and not currently using a GI Bill. Students must commit to attend Ventura College in both Fall 2017 and Spring 2018 semesters and have completed the FAFSA for the 2017/2018 academic year. Students must maintain a minimum 2.0 GPA and successfully complete at least 70 percent of the classes the student originally registered for.

Designed to eliminate economic barriers to higher education, the Promise grant encourages students to further their education and reach their academic goals. According to Foundation staff, 90 percent of Promise students persist to the second semester at Ventura College compared to 70 percent of their non-Promise counterparts. Promise students enjoy greater retention by taking 25 percent more units than non-Promise counterparts and seeking services available to them on campus, including the Foundation’s Lending Library and Scholarship Program.

In addition, the Veterans Resource Center at Ventura College offers a supportive environment and a welcoming campus culture for all veteran students, along with their dependents, and is available to help provide the support needed by veteran students to reach their educational goals.

Established in 1983, the Ventura College Foundation provides financial support to the students and the programs of Ventura College to facilitate student success and grow the impact and legacy of Ventura College as a vital community asset. The Foundation also hosts the Ventura College Foundation Marketplace, an outdoor shopping experience held every weekend on the Ventura College campus east parking lot. For more information, contact Anne King at (805) 289-6160 or aking@vcccd.edu, or visit www.venturacollege.edu/foundation.

Ventura County Arts Council in Partnership with the Fillmore Library is pleased to announce “The First Time” Poetry Contest. The contest is for adults and runs through October 31, 2017. One lucky poet will receive a $50.00 Visa gift card!

There will be a special Poetry Workshop at the Library Saturday, Oct. 21, 2017 from 1 p.m to 2:30 p.m. Fernando Albert Salinas will assist those interested in improving their poetry writing skills. Mr. Salinas currently serves on the VCAC Board and is a local county poet and performer. His writing has appeared in multiple publications including ASKW, Chaparral Journeys and The Aviator.

Poetry submissions may be brought or sent to the Fillmore Library 502 Second Street, Fillmore CA. 93015. Please contact Cathy Krushell at 805.524.3355 for further information.

Promoting exercise and fun, Bike HUB (a mobile unit) has a mission to foster a safe, healthy community through bicycle-centered education, empowerment and advocacy in Ventura County. They are now in Fillmore. On Sunday, September 2, 2017 they had a bike ride and swim event that included a ribbon-cutting by the Fillmore Chamber of Commerce. For information please contact Jaime Ambriz 805.421.9182 or Email: jambriz@bikeventura.org.