This project idea started in 2005 when I was watching the kids waiting with anticipation to see Santa at the North Fillmore Community Storefront for the Fillmore Volunteer Fire Department toy giveaway. Looking at the line, none of the kids had on coats. My mind thought immediately “Did the children forget their coats? They knew it was cold and that the wait was long.” The line snaked as the little boy tucked into his mother and the realization hit me like the cold wind- The little boy didn’t forget his coat. He doesn’t have a coat.

Please join Santa Clara Valley Legal Aid and Fillmore Community’s Winter Coat Drive with support from the Fillmore Volunteer Firefighters Foundation, Ventura County Sheriff’s Department, Fillmore Rotary and other community organizations. In December we will be giving away brand-new warm winter coats to needy children of the Santa Clara Valley who are standing outside in line in Fillmore to receive their toy from Santa. There are no “administrative” costs. You send the money and our teams go and buy the coats.

As Marion Wright Edelman, the founder of the Children’s Defense Fund says: “We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee.” When you place a warm coat on cold little shoulders, you know that a warm coat makes a big difference. We have given away over 7,000 new coats through the years.

Tax deductible donation can be made to Fillmore Volunteer Firefighters Fund, in the memo- coats, and mail to POB 331, or deliver to Taylor, Scoles & Bartels or donated through Go Fund Me at https://www.gofundme.com/warm-coats-for-fillmore039s-kids

Laura Bartels, Director
Santa Clara Valley Legal Aid
PO Box 236
Fillmore, CA 93016

Fillmore Unified School District

Board Policy Updates
The Governing Board approved the following Board Policy updates at the November 20, 2018 meeting: BP/AR 6142.1 Sexual Health and HIV/AIDS Prevention Instruction, AR 3516.3 Earthquake Emergency Procedure System, BP 3515.7 Firearms on School Grounds, and BP/AR 3515.2 Disruptions

Draft Mission, Vision, Core Values, and Strategic Goals
The Governing Board received a presentation on the draft Mission, Vision, Core Values, and Strategic Goals. Superintendent Palazuelos presented the information.

Approve the Start and End Dates for 2019-2020 School Year
The Governing Board approved the start date for staff to be Monday, August 12, 2019, followed by the first student day to take place on Thursday, August 15, 2019. Pending collaboration from both employee units, the last day for students would be June 4, 2020, followed by a teacher workday on June 5, 2020.

Approve Date and Time of the Annual Organizational Meeting
The Governing Board approved the date and time of the Annual Organizational Meeting to take place on Tuesday, December 18, 2018 at 6:30 PM

Personnel Recommendations
The Board approved all personnel recommendations including new hires, promotions, resignations, and leaves.

Bob Crum

Well, I gave y'all a heads up for Black Friday. You also had another fantabulous opportunity on Cyber Monday. You bought a camera, right? Great!

Regardless of what you bought, you could not have gone wrong given modern-day technology. These marvelous, wondrous image makers do everything except wash the supper dishes.

Now, please READ THE MANUAL! I know, these days, many manufacturers are bypassing the written manuals and putting them online to download as a pdf. Do it! Download it and study at your leisure.

Videos are another option. When I bought the Canon 7D Mark II camera, which is a complex and powerful camera, I purchased a tutorial video ($29.00) specifically for the 7D2 from creativelive.com. The demonstration videos were great explaining all of the camera’s features and functions. It helped me navigate and customize the menus, and how to best use the extraordinary autofocus system. Not to mention the camera's video capabilities. It was a big help, worth 10 times the cost.

There are plenty of resources available to help you get up to speed with just about any camera you buy. Needless to say, it's of the utmost importance to KNOW how to operate the camera. Mastering the camera will enable you to capture the photos that you mentally visualize. I can't stress this point enough.

Of course, most cameras have a 'program' or 'auto' mode, and that's fine to begin with. In fact, I advocate that you start out in auto mode. But when doing so, you can do yourself a huge favor by reviewing the metadata. That is, after making the photo look at the shutter speed, ISO, and aperture the camera used to make the photo. The metadata will help you quickly understand the relationship between ISO, aperture and shutter speed for proper exposure. Then, when you're not satisfied with a photo the auto setting used to create the photo, you'll be ready to take the next step: Manual mode! That is, taking control and setting the ISO, aperture and shutter speed. When you start doing this, you are becoming a photographer, your ultimate goal. Right?

Operating a camera is not rocket science. You can do this. When you know how to program the camera for the photo you want, you begin to 'create' photos. It's this creative process that is so overwhelmingly satisfying. It's not unlike any creative art form. There's untold joy in Fine Art Photography. Trust me, you'll love it!

The subject of the photo of the week is a yellow-crowned night heron. I photographed this rarely seen bird at the Ventura Harbor, one of my favorite haunts. Take a moment to check the photo data, especially ISO and shutter speed.

It was past sundown when I first saw the bird perched briefly on a commercial fishing ship. As it flew, I followed, huffing and puffing as it landed briefly here and there. It kept flying... I kept chasing. Because it was moving fast, I set shutter speed at 1/320th. It finally landed down at the water's edge where the light was very dim. I knew I had to shoot fast. In the excitement I neglected to slow the shutter speed to a more appropriate 1/60th. That would have reduced ISO from the ultra high of 10000 to perhaps 1600 resulting in much less image noise. I ignored, with great trepidation, the fact that the 7D2 is not supposed to capture acceptable photos at that high an ISO because of excessive image noise. A subject for another day. Happy photoing!

Send comments, suggestions or questions to: focusonphotography@earthlink.net

Please join many of your local non-profit organizations, local first responders, students and members of the community in kicking off the annual giving of Holiday Spirit for those in need. Between now and December 14, donations of new unwrapped toys, canned food, reading books and new coats for children will be accepted. Donation drop offs include the City of Fillmore Fire Station, City of Fillmore Police Station, Fillmore City Hall and Bank of The Sierra. If you would like to make a monetary donation to the overall effort, checks may be made payable to the "Fillmore Volunteer Fire Foundation" a 501(c)(3) organization. Other local non-profit organizations supporting the Community Giveaway are; Fillmore Rotary, Fillmore Lions Club, Fillmore Search and Rescue, Ventura County Sheriff's Deputy Association, Soroptimist International of Fillmore, One Step A La Vez, the Latshaw Foundation, the Santa Clara Valley Legal Aid, Fillmore FFA and Sespe 4-H. If you would like to have any items picked up or have any questions please call (805) 524-1500 ext 226. Thank you.

The project looks to be about 90 percent completed. Work on the Station, originally scheduled for completion in December of last year, was halted due to union issues according to Fillmore Planning Director, Kevin McSweeney. Efforts to contact the project manager have been unsuccessful, but work on utilities and painting are ongoing.

The Station appears to be a 5-star project with brick driving areas and decorative rock walls. With a price tag of approximately $9-million, it should be. The large station is expected to be an important fire-fighting asset, especially for eastern Ventura County.

Perhaps it might have proven helpful in fighting this year’s devastating fires had it been finished on time.