Written by Carina Monica Montoya

Who is behind the wheel of the most sought-after truck in Fillmore? His name is Jay Morrissey, more commonly known as Mister Softee. Day or night, sunny or overcast, people bolt out their doors when they hear the ice cream truck jingle, risking the high probability of becoming wedged in the doorway in a race to be the first outside to flag him down. Everyone in Fillmore has seen the truck, and most everyone has come to know Jay.

Originally from Northern New Jersey, Jay moved to Los Angeles where he lived for more than a decade. Jay’s passion is music. He’s a skilled guitarist and has been in the music business for 20 years. When his good friend Jeff Hiller from South Jersey started up Mister Softee for Southern California, he asked Jay to join him. Initially Fillmore was not on his route, only passing Fillmore via Highway 126 on his way to Ventura, but when cars began to follow him and he noticed both adults and children waving and pointing at him with big smiles, he soon realized that Fillmore should be included in his route. The rest is sweet history, as far as Fillmore goes.

The history of ice cream dates back to second century B.C. It made its appearance here in America in 1744, and its first advertisement for ice cream appeared in the New York Gazette on May 12, 1777, long before California became a state in 1850. Our ice cream jones is something we’ll never tire of or outgrow. It’s the perfect combination of elements that make our mouth water – sugar, fat, frozen water, and air. It’s that simple, but there’s more. The human brain responds to eating ice cream in much the same way it responds to any favorite thing we like, such as a favorite song or winning a big prize. Jay can attest to the happy faces that come to him, which is the main reason he loves doing what he does, being Fillmore’s Mister Softee.

Jay is fond of Fillmore. He says it’s an amazing place that epitomizes small town USA where everyone is friendly, and when it comes to ice cream, “kids are kids and adults are kids.” So next time you see Jay’s truck, give him a wave because he’ll be just as happy to see you.

WHAT: The Sierra Northern Railway, Ventura Division, headquartered in Fillmore, will be running a test passenger train over our line to Santa Paula and return. No passengers will be riding the train.

WHEN: Thursday, May 5th.

TIME: We expect to depart Fillmore between 8-8:30 a.m., arriving at Santa Paula at about 10:30 a.m. We will depart Santa Paula at about Noon and expect to arrive back at Fillmore about 2 p.m.

WHY: The purpose is for our company photographer to record the train over various parts of the route as we evaluate future excursions and movie, television, and commercial ventures.
At the throttle of the locomotive will be Matt Blackburn, Ventura Division Manager.

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About the Sierra Northern Railway - Formed in August 2003 through the merger of two Northern California short line railroads: Sierra Railroad Company and the Yolo Short line Railroad, we currently operate over 100 miles of track in Northern California. Earlier this year we began operations over an additional 30 miles of track historically known as the Santa Paula Branch Line in Southern California.

Ventura County Sheriff's Department

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office reported an attempted carjacking on Monday, May 2, where a suspect was located and captured near Fillmore following an extensive 4-hour effort that included two helicopters and two K-9s. Deputies say the incident started around 6:15am in the area of Highway 126 near the Fillmore Fish Hatchery when the 29-year-old male suspect from Fillmore attempted to steal the male victim’s truck by force. The suspect punched the victim and demanded the vehicle, but the victim refused. The suspect, who was not armed, then fled on foot into the hillsides north of the 126 and east of the city. Deputies began a search using Copter 3 and located the suspect clinging to a tree about 4-hours later. Copter 8 was called in and with the help of one of the K-9s, they took the suspect into custody around 10:15am. He was airlifted to a waiting patrol vehicle and taken to jail. The victim did not suffer any serious injuries in the battery.

The Fillmore Police and Fire Departments proudly announce the first “Coffee with the Badges” event.

On Tuesday, May 10th, from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm, Fillmore deputies and firefighters, along with their respective chief’s will be at La Michoacana Bakery, located at 511 Sespe Avenue in the city of Fillmore, sharing a cup of coffee with our neighbors. Community trust is one of the key elements to the success of the Fillmore Police and Fire Departments. By sitting down and having a simple conversation with members of the community we serve, we can develop and build meaningful relationships.

The “Badges” invite the community to come out and ask questions, voice concerns, obtain crime and fire prevention advice, and get to know the “Badges” in your neighborhood. This is a relaxed, informal event and is not about speeches or agendas but simply about casual conversation. The goal of “Coffee with the Badges” is to get to know the community better and hear about issues that our residents feel are important.

May, is “Mental Health Awareness Month.” As First Responders, we have come together to promote awareness of the mental health issues. At this “Coffee with the Badges” event, we are proud to have representatives from the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) to help promote the upcoming “Health & Wellness Resource Fair” which will be held on May 14th from 11:00 am ~ 2:00 pm located at the Fillmore School District Administration Building, 627 Sespe Avenue in the city of Fillmore.

Community: Coffee with the Badges
Nature of Incident: Fillmore Police and Fire Department Host ~ “Coffee with the Badges”
Location: La Michoacana Bakery, 511 Sespe Avenue, Fillmore
Date & Time: May 10th 2022 from 10:00 am ~ 12:00 pm
Unit(s) Responsible: Fillmore Police Department / Fillmore Fire Department
Prepared by: Sergeant Will Hollowell
Approved by: Garo Kuredjian, Fillmore Chief of Police

Calling all FHS Alumni from the Great Class of 1977! The Alumni Association will be hosting your 45th Class reunion at the 109th Alumni Dinner on Saturday, June 11th, 2022. The event takes place in downtown Fillmore at the City Park/Front of City Hall. Your special class reunion/dinner package includes a special designated area just for the Class of 1977. In your section of the event, your class will have their own special private cabana area enclosed by white picked fencing, complete with couch, and chairs, and coffee table for seating and socializing with your classmates. Your royal blue linen draped round tables will surround your private cabana area. Each table will have silverware with white linen napkins and glassware for water or wine. Your reunion committee will be allowed to come in the day of your reunion and decorate your area any way they wish. Your special Class of 1977 designated area will be “THE PARTY AT THE PARTY!” Many in your class have already paid but it’s not too late. You can make reservations now by going to www.fillmorehighalumni.com/events. See you all on June 11th!

Lucy Jorgensen, Fillmore's first librarian.
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Hazel Cheek, Librarian who served for twenty years, and was also a former school teacher.
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Art Arundell, Librarian who served as Librarian from 1959 until 1988.
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Courtesy Fillmore Historical Museum

The Fillmore Library is closed for now, undergoing a long needed expansion. The Fillmore Branch Library has been a part of the community for 106 years. Even before that, the community recognized the need for some sort of library for its residents. As with many things in early Fillmore, the need was filled by Dr. John P. Hinckley. Shortly after the Fillmore Herald newspaper began publication in 1907, a “Traveling Library” at the home of Dr. Hinckley was advertised. The “traveling library” was operated by the State of California which provided 50 books at a time to Fillmore. Every six months a new supply of books arrived and the former supply was returned. Books could be borrowed by anyone over the age of twelve. Those younger than twelve could borrow books if recommended by an adult.

This remained the library for a number of years. By 1910, there was interest in a more permanent library. I. W. Stewart, secretary for the Oxnard Public Library, asked through a letter to the Herald, if Fillmore would be interested in having a library. He said the Ventura County Library system could establish branches in towns that had no public library. There was definite interest in this idea, but Fillmore was not yet a city and nothing happened until after the close incorporation vote in 1914 (https://www.fillmorehistoricalmuseum.org/1914-incorporation).

Elizabeth Elkins Rivard was the driving force behind the campaign to have a permanent library in Fillmore. Through her efforts people of the town and surrounding area donated over 350 books to start a library. Ventura County contributed between 50 and 75 volumes. In February of 1916, Julia Steffa, county librarian, outlined the steps needed to secure a branch library. All the town needed to do was furnish a location and the necessary furnishings and equipment and be responsible for the maintenance of the library.

On February 11, 1916, an article titled “Local Library is Assured” appeared in the Herald. It would be housed in the Ventura County Co-Op building at 345 Central Avenue and Mrs. Lucy Jorgenson would be its first librarian.

Mrs. Jorgensen was not a surprising choice for librarian. She and her husband, Lefieldt, and daughters, Marion and Ruth, had moved to Fillmore from Minnesota in 1912. Lucy was a graduate of the University of Minnesota. Her husband managed Mayor George Tighe’s citrus orchards. She was a member of the group which were early supporters of the branch library.

The library opened on Saturday, April 1, 1916. In the first month 225 volumes were checked out. The January, 1917 report had a total of 1,024 books checked out in that month:
Adult Fiction 564
Adult Non-Fiction 111
Juvenile Fiction 258
Juvenile Non-Fiction 91

In March 1917, the number had grown to 1,096. By this time also, the library needed new quarters. A few months later the library moved to the second floor of the new Fillmore State Bank Building at 316 Central on the northeast corner of Main and Central.

Lucy Jorgensen served as librarian for four years. Her husband had taken a new position as manager of Roger Edward’s interests in Buckhorn and it required the family to move from Fillmore. She was replaced by Mrs. Bonnetta Dresser who had prior library experience in Klamath Falls, Oregon. Under Mrs. Dresser the library’s circulation numbers continued to grow. She was especially noted to encourage children’s reading, especially Spanish speaking children. She retired in 1936 but continued to help at the library as needed. It was while she was librarian that her family’s home in Bardsdale was destroyed in the St. Francis Dam collapse.

Both Mrs. Jorgensen and Mrs. Dresser lived the rest of their lives in Fillmore. Bonnetta Dresser died in 1975 and Lucy Jorgensen in 1971.

Bonnetta Dresser was replaced by Miss Dorothy Farthing. She was a graduate of Ventura Junior College and acted as the library’s “custodian” until April of 1939 when she left to be married.

Dorothy Farthing was replaced by Hazel Cheek, a former schoolteacher. Her husband, Homer Cheek, had been manager of the Rancho Sespe Packinghouse but had died suddenly in June of 1938.She served as librarian for the next twenty years and made an impression on many of her younger patrons by requiring their silence while in the library.

Between 1917 and 1955, the library relocated several times. After moving to the Fillmore State Bank building on Main and Central in 1917, it later was located for a time at 408 Central. It then moved to space in the first floor of the Masonic Building at 455 Sespe Avenue which had previously housed the Post Office.

In 1955, the current building was constructed on land donated by the William Shiells Company. A few years earlier, The Shiells Company had donated the land adjacent to the library for the Veterans’ Memorial Building.The building was begun in June, 1954 and was to be finished by February, 1955. A “floor error” delayed opening until June 12, 1955.

In 1959 the Fillmore Library had a new librarian, Art Arundell. Art was Fillmore “born and bred” being the grandson of Tommy and Inez Kellogg Arundell who had settled on Pole Creek in the 1870s. He had a bachelor's degree from UC Santa Barbara and a Master’s from Princeton. In World War II he had served in the Middle East. He was librarian until 1988. Art had a great influence on many of the people who frequented the library, especially young people who received a love of books and learning from him. According to his obituary, he made the library, “a place where people of all ages went to brighten their day and children went as though they were going to a second home.” Many residents and former residents remember Art fondly and speak of how he encouraged them in their education.

Since Art Arundell, there have been many librarians who have served the community well, despite a library building which had not kept up with the growth of the town and the expanded needs of the community. Anyone who happened to stop by to look for a book during children’s story time would find it crowded and sometimes happily chaotic (Mrs. Cheek would not have approved). If you attended a meeting at the library, adults would often find the only seating to be chairs built for 8-year-olds. The expanded facility will undoubtedly be embraced by the community just as Lucy Jorgensen’s small library in a corner of the Ventura Co-Op was. Hopefully she, as well as Elizabeth Elkins Rivard and the others involved in getting the library first established, would be pleased with the results of their efforts.

At about 12:30 a.m., members of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office were actively searching for Daniel Drum who was previously reported as a missing person at-risk due to mental health issues. The Sheriff’s Communication Center received a call reporting a family disturbance in the area. Deputies responded and learned an altercation between Drum and a known male subject occurred resulting in a homicide. Drum fled the scene prior to deputies’ arrival.

Deputies later located Drum in the area, and he was taken into custody without incident. Currently, the homicide investigation is on-going.

Nature of Incident: Homicide suspect apprehended in Piru
Report Number: RB# 22-52120
Location: 500 Block of Main Street, Piru
Date & Time: 04/21/22 @ 12:30 AM
Unit(s) Responsible: Major Crimes
Prepared by: Natalie Hernandez
Approved by: Captain Cameron Henderson

Ventura County Sheriff's Department

On April 22, 2022, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Pharmaceutical Crimes Unit (PCU) concluded an investigation into Lenay Guevara-Mendez regarding her involvement in a fatal drug overdose.

On August 21, 2021, Fillmore Patrol deputies were dispatched to the 200 block of Arundell Circle the City of Fillmore reference a subject who was deceased as the result of a fentanyl overdose. PCU detectives took over the investigation and determined Guevara-Mendez was the subject who sold fentanyl to the victim that caused the fatal overdose.

During the month of April 2022, Special Crimes Unit (SCU) detectives developed additional information that Guevara- Mendez was responsible for drug sales in Ventura County. SCU, with the assistance of PCU, detained Guevara-Mendez and served a search warrant at her residence. Detectives seized 286 grams of methamphetamine, 39 grams of fentanyl, 6 grams of heroin, numerous counterfeit pills believed to contain fentanyl, scales, packaging material, $1099 in US currency and 3 rifles.

Guevara-Mendez was arrested for 11351 HS- Possession for Sales of a Controlled Substance, 11352 HS- Sales of a Controlled Substance, 11378 HS- Possession of a Dangerous Drug, and 11379 HS, Sales of a Dangerous Drug. Guevara-Mendez’s was booked into the Ventura County Jail and is currently out of custody on $50,000 bail. She is scheduled for arraignment on May 6, 2022, in Ventura County Superior Court.

The public may contact investigators from the Ventura County Interagency Pharmaceutical Crimes Unit at (805) 383-8700 or pharm.tip@ventura.org with additional information about this case, or any other information related to narcotics.

The Ventura County Pharmaceutical Crimes Unit is a task force made up of members from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office and the Thousand Oaks Police Department; The primary mission of the task force is combatting the transfer of legal prescription medication and fentanyl to the illegal market. In addition, the task force works to identify and stop new trends of abuse among the younger population and investigates overdoses due to both prescription medication and illicit drug use.

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office is an active member of the County Opioid Abuse Suppression Taskforce (COAST). We have partnered with Ventura County Behavioral Health in a campaign to reduce overdoses and educate the public about the dangers of opioids and other drugs. Comprehensive information can be found at www.VenturaCountyResponds.org.

Nature of Incident: Fatal Overdose Investigation Leads to Narcotics Arrest
Report Number: 22-52693 / 21-112308
Location: 700 block of Forest Park Boulevard- Oxnard, CA
Date & Time: April 22, 2022- 0845
Unit(s) Responsible: Ventura County Interagency Pharmaceutical Crimes Unit (PCU)
Ventura County Sheriff Special Crimes Unit (SCU)
Fillmore Patrol Station
(S)uspects, (V)ictims, (P)arty, (D)ecedent, City of Residence, Age
(S) Guevara- Mendez, Lenay, Oxnard, 39
Prepared by: Sergeant John Hajducko
Approved by: Captain Brian Slominski

Ventura County Crime Stoppers will pay up to $1,000 reward for information, which leads to the arrest and criminal complaint against the person(s) responsible for this crime. The caller may remain anonymous. The call is not recorded. Call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477) or at www.venturacountycrimestoppers.org