The Ventura County Rose Society will hold its monthly meeting on Thursday, October 27, 2016 at the Ventura County Office of Education Conference Center at 5100 Adolfo Rd., Camarillo.
The doors will open at 6:30 p.m. for advice from Consulting Rosarians and refreshments, We will have our Little Rose Show at 7:00 P.M. Our presentation will begin at 7:30 P.M.

The VCRS meeting will feature Corey Welles who is the Plant Health Care Coordinator at Lotusland. Corey will be talking about plant health with an emphasis on roses and sustainable ways to have plant health in drought conditions.

Visitors are always welcome to our VCRS meetings. For more information contact; Janet Sklar at 818-993-6622 or Dawn-Marie Johnson at 805-523-9003. Our website is http://www.venturarose.org/

California Lutheran University’s Center for Nonprofit Leadership announces the following upcoming workshops for October. These workshops are designed to provide practical and applicable skills for nonprofit leaders in Ventura County and beyond. All workshops will be held at Cal Lutheran’s Oxnard Campus at 2201 Outlet Center Dr., Oxnard.

• Positive Communication Strategies for Your Team—This interactive workshop will help you become a more effective communicator, problem-solver and trusted, focused leader. To be held Wednesday, Oct. 12 from 9 a.m. - noon. Cost for members: $45, non-members: $50.

• Building a Board that Works—Nonprofit consultant Andy Robinson explains how to take your board from good to great! Perfect for new board members as well as seasoned leaders interested in expanding their skill set. This event is co-sponsored by the Greater Conejo Valley Chamber of Commerce. To be held Wednesday, Oct. 19 from 8 a.m. - 12:30 pm. Cost is free for members, non-members, $75.

• A Tailored Development Plan that is Right for You—In this two-workshop session, we will create or refine your plan to maximize the dollars you raise and even out the peaks and valleys of your income. To be held Thursday, Oct. 20 from 9 a.m. - noon. Part two to be held Nov. 3 from 9 a.m. - noon. Cost for members: $75, non-members: $90.

• Perfecting Your Pitch–This workshop will examine how to create a thoughtful, intentional ask that considers who your donor is and what they care about. To be held Tuesday, Oct. 25, from 9 a.m. - noon. Cost for members: $45, non-members: $50.

• Planning to Plan: Strategic Planning Preparation—The phrase “strategic planning” can spark fear and frustration with executive directors and boards of directors. This workshop will explore the important steps in the strategic planning process and how to adapt them based on organizational needs. To be held Thursday, Oct. 27 from 1 - 4 p.m. Cost for members: $45, non-members: $50.

For more details or to register for a workshop, visit callutheran.edu/nonprofit. For questions regarding registering for a workshop, contact program coordinator, Leanne Blackwell at (805) 493-3740 or blackwell@callutheran.edu.

As the only management training center of its kind in Ventura County, the Center for Nonprofit Leadership provides practical and affordable professional development opportunities for nonprofit leaders. The Center focuses on offering training, technical assistance, and access to research materials to help strengthen the leadership of nonprofit organizations throughout Ventura County and beyond. For more information, visit callutheran.edu/nonprofit or contact the Center at (805) 493-3740 or email blackwell@callutheran.edu.

Solarize 126, a community-led program offering group discounts on solar electrical systems, is available for one more month before it expires on Oct 31st. The program offers vetted installers and sizable discounts on solar installations to homeowners in Ventura County along California State Route 126. Solarize 126 is offered as a partnership between The Community Environmental Council (CEC), The Ojai Valley Green Coalition (OVGC), and the vetted installer partners.

The Community Environmental Council (CEC) began offering Solarize programs in Santa Barbara in 2011 as a tool to make going solar simpler and more affordable, and to increase the amount of renewable energy in the region. Since 2011, CEC has helped over 480 homeowners go solar in Santa Barbara, Ventura, Ojai, and surrounding communities. Solarize 126 is the first time that the Solarize program is being offered in Santa Paula, Fillmore, and Piru. “With discounted, fixed pricing from vetted installers and education through workshops and independent consultation, Solarize has streamlined going solar and made to process easier on the customer,” explained Jefferson Litten, CEC’s Director of Energy Programs, “We are excited to bring the program to the Santa Clara River Valley.” The neighboring community of Ojai has hosted Solarize programs for four years, with 41 solar systems installed through the program within the Ojai Valley. Solarize 2015 participant, Sandra Blasé explained, “It was a great program. I was looking into putting solar on my house, but it was a little beyond my budget. This program made it possible to do it. So far I have had no problem with it and California Solar Electric did a great job. It was installed quickly and professionally.”

Solarize 126 features two local solar installers, California Solar Electric and Coastal Solar, who are both offering special discounted pricing for 126 corridor residents. The firms were selected for Solarize 126 after careful evaluation and vetting by a committee of local experts. Both companies are locally owned family businesses with years of experience in the region. “We are very excited to partner with California Solar Electric and Coastal Solar for this year’s program,” said Litten. “Not only are both companies local, they are both offering top quality panels and installation.”

As part of the program, CEC and OVGC will host free educational workshops covering solar technologies, energy efficiency, financing options and the Solarize program. “The workshops are a great opportunity to learn the ins and outs of going solar - from technical aspects to the effects on home values, to how your electric bills will shrink,” said Litten. Robert Garven, a Solarize Participant in 2015, was particularly grateful for the education he received through Solarize. Robert explained, “I went to a homeowner workshop, and when I left an hour later I felt like I knew everything that I needed to know about going solar. The workshops saved me hours of research and the installers I worked with were fantastic”

In addition to monthly savings on their electricity bills, Solarize participants will help support the CEC and OVGC’s missions to increase renewable energy in the region. For each homeowner that goes solar through the program, CEC’s partnered solar installers will pay, at no additional cost to the homeowner,
a small fee which covers program costs and allows CEC and OVGC to continue to offer the program to local communities.

Solarize 126 launched on August 1, 2016, and runs through October 31, 2016. During this time, homeowners with the zip codes of 93015 and 93060 can switch to solar at a fixed, group-purchasing price the program’s vetted installers, California Solar Electric and Coastal Solar.

Upcoming Workshop:
Tuesday, October 4 6:00-7:30pm Blanchard/Santa Paula Community Library, 119 N 8th St, Santa Paula, CA 93060
More information is available at www.Solarize126.org or by calling 805-963-0583 x 101.

About the Community Environmental Council
Since 1970, the Community Environmental Council (CEC) has led the Central Coast region – and at times California and the nation – in creative solutions to some of the toughest environmental problems. Today CEC is focused on the climate, encouraging global change through local action with five initiatives: Drive Less, Choose Electric, Go Solar, Ditch Plastic, and Eat Local.

Ventura County Sheriff's Department

According to the Center for Disease Control, “Millions of Americans ride bicycles, but less than half wear bicycle helmets. For example, a national survey conducted in 2001-2003 found that only 48% of children ages 5-14 years wore bicycle helmets when riding. Further, older children were less likely to wear helmets than younger children. In 2010 in the U.S., 800 bicyclists were killed and an estimated 515,000 sustained bicycle-related injuries that required emergency department care. Roughly half of these cyclists were children and adolescents under the age of 20. Annually, 26,000 of these bicycle-related injuries to children and adolescents are traumatic brain injuries treated in emergency departments.” (http://www.cdc.gov/healthcommunication/toolstemplates/entertainmented/ti...)

To promote safe riding and the wearing of safety equipment, the Fillmore Police Department held its Second Annual Bicycle and Skateboard Safety Rodeo this past Saturday, September 24th, at the Fillmore Middle School. The event, which was free to the public, featured safety instruction, an obstacle course, bicycle and skateboard safety inspections, and proper helmet fitting. New donated bicycles and skateboards were raffled to children at the event. California state law (21212 VC) requires all bicycle riders and skateboarders, under the age of 18, to wear helmets. 123 free helmets were given to children in need, 92 children completed the safety course, and 45 bicycles were registered with the Fillmore Police Department to help prevent theft and assist with the return of lost or stolen bicycles to their owners. The Fillmore Police Department and Ventura County Sheriff’s Office will continue to register bicycles throughout the year for a $5.00 fee.

The event was combined with a Public Safety Day, allowing children and their parents to meet the first responders who protect Bardsdale, Fillmore, Piru, and the surrounding county and federal lands. Agencies on hand included American Medical Response, Fillmore Fire Department, Ventura County Fire Department, Fillmore Police Department, Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, California Highway Patrol, California Fish and Wildlife, and Los Padres National Forest Fire Department and Law Enforcement.

This event was made possible by through the generous help of the Fillmore Fire Foundation, Fillmore Police Department’s Citizen Patrol, First 5 Ventura County – Santa Clara Valley, Fillmore Lions Club, Fillmore Rotary Club, Ventura County Deputy Sheriff’s Association, Baskin-Robbins, Mejia’s Nursery, Ragatz Performance Bicycles of Santa Paula, and SkateLab of Simi Valley. FOOD Share and the Ventura County Health Care Agency provided additional support and resources to the attendees.

Nature of Incident: Fillmore Bicycle and Skateboard Safety Rodeo / Public Safety Day
Report Number:
Location: Fillmore Middle School, 543 A Street
Date & Time: September 24, 2016, 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Unit(s) Responsible: Fillmore Police Department
Prepared by: Sergeant Kevin Vaden
News Release Date: 9-26-16
Media Follow-Up Contact: Sergeant Kevin Vaden
805-524-2233 / kevin.vaden@ventura.org
Approved by: Captain Dave Wareham

Interested in getting your novel, memoir, poetry collection, or children's book in eBook and print-ready formats? Ventura County Library now has Pressbooks, an easy online tool that allows you to create professional quality versions of your book in popular publication formats.

Combined with other aspects of BiblioBoard Digital Library, our newest online resource, local authors now have free access to the following tools for local publication:
• PressBooks: An easy-to-use online tool for authors, allowing you to create professional, print ready, quality versions of your books, memoirs, or poetry collections in ePUB, MOBI, and PDF formats.
• SELF-e: An innovative collaboration between Library Journal and BiblioBoard enabling authors and libraries to work together to share self-published ebooks to eager readers looking to discover something new.
• Indie California: great reads in all genres from local authors. Start reading today to find your next favorite book!

Ventura County Library Director Jackie Griffin says, “Adding BiblioBoard with PressBooks, SELF-e, and Indie California to our digital eLibrary reinforces Ventura County Library as a center for community engagement. We are excited to promote local authors and put diverse and self-published books into our reader’s hands.”

BiblioBoard’s mobile apps available free from Apple App Store and Google Play.

Find PressBooks under BiblioBoard in the Ventura County eLibrary.

The Ventura County Library is available 24/7 at www.vencolibrary.org

Ventura County Library System:
Inspiring our community to explore, discover and connect.

Colon cancer, the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and the second leading cause of cancer death in men and women in the U.S., will be focus of a free seminar Community Memorial Health System is holding on Saturday, Oct. 1.

The symposium will run from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Ventura Beach Marriott, 2055 Harbor Blvd.

An estimated 136,830 Americans will be diagnosed this year and 50,310 will die. The symposium will provide the latest information on the detection and diagnosis of colon cancer. It also will offer the latest concepts on treatment options and cancer support for those facing colon cancer as well as for their caregivers and family.

Registration is free but reservations are required. Visit cmhshealth.org/rsvp or call Brown Paper Tickets at 1-800/838-3006.

Future Speaker Series events include: Red, White & You! American Politics through the Healthcare Lens on Oct. 26 at the Museum of Ventura County; and TEDMED Live! What If?, on Dec. 1 at the Museum of Ventura County.

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.

A ceremony to honor the International Day of Peace will take place on September 21st at 7:00p.m at the park in front of Fillmore City Hall. All are invited to participate in this important event hosted by the Soroptimists Club in cooperation with members from the Fillmore Lions Club and Fillmore Rotary. The International Day of Peace began in 1982 with a United Nation’s proclamation following a celebration commemorating the 21th Anniversary of the United Nations’ General Assembly stating “that this day be devoted to…strengthening the ideals of peace both within and among nations.” It was expanded in 2001 to call for a day of global cease fire and nonviolence.

Soroptimist International of Fillmore began to honor the International Day of Peace in Soo8 with a temporary wooden pole. The permanent Peace Pole was installed in 2010 though the collaboration of the City of Fillmore, local service groups and donations from individuals. The Peace Pole now stands in the southwest corner of City Hall Park to invite personal reflection and to stand as a permanent reminder of the need for peace. The pole has inscribed “May Peace Prevail on Earth” in seven different languages.

This year the Peace Award will go to returning Peace Corps Volunteers who, as young adults, spent at least two years in other countries to promote peace and understanding and to learn from those countries.

In our own town violence continues. Our town, our country and our world need a concerted movement toward reconciliation and peace. At a time when people in our country and around the world are being needlessly killed and wars are decimating entire populations, this call to peace is even more urgently needed. We hope that you will join with us in the City Park to reinforce the need for personal, community and world peace.

If you have any questions, please contact Sarah Hansen at 524-0132 or Lynn Edmonds at 907-6576.

Enlarge Photo

Soroptimist International of Fillmore is once again holding a ceremony on the International Day of Peace on September 21st at the Peace Pole in the City Park in front of City Hall. This year any and all returned Peace Corps volunteers will be honored. If you are a returned Peace Corps Volunteer or if you know of one, please contact Lynn Edmonds at 805-907-6576 so your service to the country and the aim of peace can be honored.

Peace Corps volunteers serve at least two years in a foreign country doing a wide variety of jobs to help the host country with the aim to foster understanding between nations, starting with one on one, personal contacts. The Soroptimist Club would like to honor them for their service to the country!

On Saturday, September 24th, 2016 members of the Fillmore and Piru communities along with others from around the County will gather at Shiells Park in Fillmore at 9:00AM to honor those who have been affected by cancer and to recognize Rigo Landeros. To date we have 33 teams and 265 registered participants!

We invite everyone to come and join in on a day We Celebrate, Remember and Fight Back against this disease. Teams will walk around a make shift track for 24 hours with at least one team member walking at all times. Teams have been working hard raising money and will continue to raise money during the event. Teams will be having raffles and items for sale which include: Glow items, personalized Rustic Cooler and Corn Hole Boards, Hand made crafts, Grab Bags, Blankets, Photo Booth, Jewelry, Novelty items, Disney ticket raffle, Modern Family Memorabilia, 50 person Taquero Dinner raffle, face painting, tattoos and more!! You can visit our website at www.relayforlife.org/fillmoreca for more information.

Thank you to all our sponsors, participants, volunteers and donors, we could not do this without you.

The Humane Society of Ventura County, will hold its 10th annual “Cats in the Canyon & Hounds in the Hollow” fundraiser on Sunday, Sept. 25, at Boccali’s Pizza and Pasta Restaurant in Ojai.
Proceeds go to the care of animals in need throughout Ventura County.

This year’s event, which will feature a full vegetarian Italian buffet and a “Buy It Now” marketplace with bargains on items and services from Ventura County businesses, will run from 4 to 7 p.m. Guests also can interact with animals looking for new homes and visit with staff and volunteers. Boccali’s is located at 3277 E. Ojai Ave. The Main Street Jazz Band will provide musical entertainment.

The HSVC has provided continuous support and services to animals in need and their owners throughout the county for over 84 years. Besides their adoption center the shelter also is home to a low-cost spay and neuter clinic, pet food bank, humane education programs and Ventura County’s only two humane officers who investigate cases of animal abuse and neglect. All of these programs are made possible by the support of the public.

Earlier this year, the HSVC announced it will be entering phase one of a large project to rebuild its 34-year-old dog kennels. Increasing funds are necessary in order for the private non-profit to reach its goals.

Tickets purchased in advance are $50 for adults and $30 for children 12 and under. Tickets bought on site will be $60 and $30.

For tickets, to donate a marketplace item or to inquire about sponsorship opportunities, call the shelter at 646-6505 (there are no tickets through Boccali's directly). For more information on the HSVC, visitwww.hsvc.org.

The Humane Society of Ventura County is a private, nonprofit organization founded in 1932. It does not receive federal, state or local tax dollars to operate and relies solely on private donations.

Old Photo of Troop 406
Enlarge Photo

Fillmore Boy Scout Troop 406 invites all former Scouts and the community to join us on Saturday, October 1st as we gather together to reminisce about past scouting activities and to honor veterans with a flag retirement ceremony. The afternoon will begin with an opportunity for former Scouts to exchange stories, view Scout memorabilia and possible play a few Scout games. We will then share a delicious potluck dinner and conclude the evening with a flag retirement ceremony at dusk where the Scouts will read the names of veterans.

The primary purpose of this event is to record the memories of former Fillmore/Bardsdale/Piru Boy Scouts in order to create a written record of Scouting in the area. Former Scouts who are unable to attend, but would like to share their Scouting memories, can submit their stories to walkofhonor@gmail.com. Members of the community, who wish to have the name of a veteran read during the flag retirement ceremony, please submit the veteran’s name, branch and years of service to the same email address or call 524-5058. RSVP’s for this event can be sent to the aforementioned email address or phone number. Troop 406 looks forward to seeing many former Scouts and members of the community at this special event.

CA State Old Time Fiddlers will meet on Sunday 9/11/16 from 1:30-4:30pm at the Oak View Community Center, 18 Valley Road, Oak View. The public is invited to play, listen and dance to Country Western and Bluegrass music. Free admission and parking, refreshments available. calfiddlers.com or call 805-797-6563.