LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Local government and law enforcement agencies are this week honoring the work of the dispatchers who form the critical link between public and first responders.
National Public Safety Telecommunicators’ Week is April 14 to 20.
Ahead of the event, at last week’s Clearlake City Council meeting, Mayor Nick Bennett presented a proclamation honoring dispatchers to Clearlake Police personnel.
Bennett, a retired Clearlake Police sergeant, said dispatchers saved his life on numerous occasions.
“I can’t say enough about our dispatchers and I think any officer worth his or her salt will agree,” Bennett said.
He said dispatchers are critical in calls for police, medical services or fire. At the same time, the safety of officers and firefighters depends on the quality and accuracy of the information dispatchers obtain during emergency calls.
“Public safety communicators are the first and foremost critical contact our citizens have with emergencies,” and are a vital link for police and firefighters, he said.
He said they’ve contributed substantially to apprehension of criminals, suppression of fires and treatment of patients, exhibiting compassion, understanding and professionalism while doing their job.
Dispatchers are becoming even more critical to the Clearlake Police Department as the agency works to become a 911 primary public safety answering point.
That designation means 911 calls will no longer be routed through the Lake County Sheriff’s Office Central Dispatch but will go directly to the police station. It’s a measure that is meant to reduce delays and add additional services for calls.
This week, Sheriff Brian Martin offered his thanks to his agency’s “rockstar dispatchers” in a Facebook post.
“These folks are often times the first contact we have with the public. Thank you for the sacrifice and dedication you guys and gals provide every hour of every day,” Martin wrote.
The California Highway Patrol said the calm, professional and unseen voices of public safety dispatchers in times of crisis are an essential link for its officers.
“The selfless efforts of telecommunications professionals are crucial for public safety,” CHP Commissioner Warren Stanley said. “With any new crisis, dispatchers who provide services to the public and every CHP unit are to be commended for their dedication and hard work.”
More than 900 public safety dispatchers work for the CHP, in 24 Communications Centers statewide, where they handled more than seven million calls in 2018. A large majority of the wireless 911 calls in California are handled by CHP dispatchers.
Calls are never routine. The CHP said its dispatchers must instantly determine the correct response to ensure safety in an emergency. They are also in constant communication with patrol officers, looking up license plates, driver license numbers, and running criminal record checks on wanted subjects.
Although text to 911 is now available in many parts of California, voice calls are better whenever possible. The CHP said more areas will add text to 911 in the coming years.
Calling 911 can be stressful. The CHP said the following tips will help callers during an emergency:
– Stay as calm as possible. – Call from a landline if possible. – Be prepared to provide your name, phone number, address or location, and a detailed description of the incident or vehicle being reported. – Cellular telephones may not tell the call-taker where you are. The location of the emergency may be the single most important information for the dispatcher in case the call is cut off. – Wait for the dispatcher to ask questions, and then answer clearly and calmly. – Listen carefully and follow all directions provided by the dispatcher. – Be prepared to provide a physical description if the emergency involves a criminal suspect.
Remember, 911 is for life-threatening emergencies. Misuse of the emergency 911 system will result in a delay for callers with real emergencies and is punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
NORTH COAST, Calif. – Eighteen months after devastating wildfires ripped through Northern and Southern California, the American Red Cross has awarded more than $3 million in donated dollars to fund community-based recovery services.
Among those receiving awards, North Coast Opportunities of Lake County received $476,220, North Coast Opportunities of Mendocino County received $386,250 and $500,000 was awarded to the Hope Crisis Response Network, the parent organization of Hope City, which has been rebuilding homes in Lake County after the fires.
Jenny Chamberlain, representing James Gore, Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, District 4 and Tom Schwedhelm, mayor of the city of Santa Rosa joined a Grantee Award Ceremony Wednesday hosted by the American Red Cross at the chapter offices in Santa Rosa.
The 2017 California Wildfires Community Recovery Grants Program was launched to support established nonprofits best able to address the needs of the most vulnerable survivors.
Grants were awarded to 16 organizations who provide support in the areas of behavioral and spiritual care, funding to address unmet needs, outreach, recovery services, and repair and rebuild services.
The following is a full list of the organizations honored at the ceremony:
– California Lutheran University; – Ceres Community Project; – Community Action Plan of Sonoma County; – Council on Aging; – First 5 / Trauma Resource Institute; – Foodbank of Santa Barbara; – Healthcare Foundation of Northern Sonoma County; – Hope Crisis Response Network; – HOPE Worldwide; – Individuals Now, Social Advocates for Youth; – Integrative Healers Action Network; – Integrative Medical Clinic Foundation; – Latino Service Providers; – North Coast Opportunities – Lake County and Mendocino County; – On the Move; – UpValley Family Centers of Napa County.
“The 2017 California Wildfires Recovery Program continues to provide vital services and financial assistance to our communities in Northern and Southern California that were the most affected by the 2017 wildfires and 2018 debris flow,” says Anne E. Reynolds, executive director, California Wildfire Recovery Program. “It is the generosity of each donor that allows us to support recovery efforts long after a disaster. Together with community organizations, we can continue to provide hope and help.”
Learn more about the 2017 California Wildfires Recovery program here.
The Red Cross raised $29.3 million, including the value of critical donated goods and services, to help people affected by the 2017 California wildfires.
A year after the devastating 2017 California wildfires, the Red Cross had already programmed approximately $18.9 million on emergency relief and recovery efforts.
The remaining funds are now being used to help with unmet needs for individuals and families impacted by the 2017 wildfires, as part of the 2017 California Wildfires Community Recovery Grants Program.
Read the 2017 California Wildfires One-Year Update here.
LOWER LAKE, Calif. – The Konocti Unified School District has selected a new superintendent.
During a brief special meeting held at the district office on Wednesday evening, Board of Trustees President Sue Burton announced that Dr. Rebecca Salato has been chosen to head the district.
Salato’s contract will be confirmed at the board’s regular meeting on May 1. Burton said Salato – who was not in attendance on Wednesday – will be present at that meeting for the contract approval, and is excited to meet everyone.
Salato will succeed Superintendent Donna Becnel, who retires as of June 30. Burton said Salato will begin her tenure on July 1.
Burton said Salato is the chief operating officer of Action Learning Systems, and in that role she has led district assistance intervention teams, supported multiple districts in evaluating politics and practices, and has coached superintendents, principals and teachers.
“Her focus is to strengthen capacity to improve student learning through continuous improvement and innovation by leading professional development, analyzing data and coaching,” Burton said.
Salato holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in history, a master’s degree in special education and a doctorate from Pepperdine University in educational leadership.
She has 22 years of experience in K-12 education as a teacher, principal and district office investigator.
As director of instructional support services with the Beaumont Unified School District, she had oversight of curriculum and instruction, and student services – including child welfare and attendance, school attendance review boards, suspensions and expulsions, special education and English Learner services.
Salato also has experience in bond elections and designing, planning and opening a new elementary school.
Last year, Salato – who grew up in Upstate New York – was a finalist for the superintendent’s job in Billings, Montana.
In January, following Becnel’s announcement of her retirement, the board hired Education Leadership Solutions LLC – led by Wally Holbrook, a retired Lake County superintendent of schools, and Dr. Richard Smith, also a retired school superintendent – to lead the recruitment. It was the firm’s first superintendent search.
The job was advertised in EdCal – a publication of the Association of California School Administrators – for about two and a half weeks, with a March 22 deadline, according to the recruitment timeline.
Burton told Lake County News that 14 applications were submitted.
She said all 14 applicants were impressive. Thirteen of them came from around California – from the north to the south – with one applicant from Montana.
Those 14 applicants were narrowed to a pool of seven to be interviewed. One candidate dropped out, she said.
On April 6, the board and a 16-member community committee took turns interviewing the six candidates selected for interview, according to Burton.
Burton said that on April 7, the board interviewed two finalists, which led to Salato’s hiring.
During Wednesday’s special meeting, Burton thanked everyone who was on the community committee for their time and contributions. “Your input was valuable.”
“I second that,” said Board Clerk Mary Silva.
Burton said the community committee’s input helped the board reach its decision.
Becnel said she’s had the chance to speak with Salato – who is planning visits to district schools over the coming months – and explained there will be a transition time.
Board member Joan Mingori said that Salato told the board in an email that she is planning to visit Lake County at the end of this month to begin a home search and look at ways to become involved in the community. Mingori added that Salato sounds like she is ready to go.
Burton told Lake County News after the meeting that the superintendent hiring process was “exciting.”
She said she’s looking forward to seeing the district continue to move forward and upward under Salato’s leadership.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – As the county works to rebuild the staff in the Registrar of Voters Office, the Board of Supervisors is set to interview next week the candidates in the second recruitment to fill the registrar’s job on a permanent basis.
At the same time, the county is holding a formal recruitment for the deputy registrar’s job, which is set to close later this month.
The Registrar of Voters Office, led for decades by Diane Fridley who was assisted by Deputy Registrar Maria Valadez, lost those two key staffers within a two-month period, as Lake County News has reported.
Fridley retired at the end of December and Valadez left in February to take a job with the county of Mendocino.
Valadez’s departure followed her appointment as interim registrar in early December. She received no permanent job offer, which she said was put off while the county did a six-month study.
County Administrative Officer Carol Huchingson has had a direct role in the turmoil in the Registrar of Voters Office.
She attempted to have Valadez disqualified for consideration to succeed Fridley when last fall she proposed to have new educational requirements introduced for the registrar’s job that would have necessitated a bachelor’s degree with no ability to substitute experience.
The board did not accept Huchingson’s proposal and at the start of December, weeks ahead of Fridley’s retirement, the supervisors appointed Valadez as interim registrar.
After Valadez took a job with the county of Mendocino in February, county leadership attempted to offer her the registrar’s job at the higher Mendocino County rate, but she declined.
Meantime, Huchingson, in an odd development in the situation, was appointed by the board as interim registrar in February upon Valadez’s departure.
The Human Resources Department – which the board gave Huchingson control of last year – conducted a brief recruitment in February which yielded a field that boiled down to only two interviews. Neither of those two candidates were selected.
That prompted the county to reopen the recruitment, which Huchingson said has resulted in 19 applications.
Huchingson said the board will conduct interviews at its meeting April 23.
At the same time, an open recruitment also is now under way for the deputy registrar’s job, which is being held on an interim basis by one of Huchingson’s staffers, Marcy Harrison. The Board of Supervisors appointed Harrison to the job on an interim basis on April 2, as Lake County News has reported.
The county Human Resources Department’s Web site shows that the job opened on April 11, but daily checks of the county Web site’s open and promotional jobs listings didn’t show the job being posted until this week.https://agency.governmentjobs.com/lakecountyca/default.cfm
The deputy registrar’s monthly salary is $4,493 to $5,879, and the application period closes at 5 p.m. Sunday, April 28.
Training and experience requirements are five years of previous work experience performing a variety of election administrative and support functions comparable to that of an Elections Assistant I/II with the county of Lake which included at least three years equivalent to that of an Elections Assistant II, with experience in a lead or supervisory capacity is preferred. Special requirements include possession of, or ability to obtain, an appropriate valid California driver's license.
It’s so far unclear if a new registrar will be selected and in place by the time of the May 7 Measure M fire tax measure that the Lakeport Fire Protection District has put before voters.
Adding to the challenges is that the county has purchased new voting equipment and software in order to comply with state rules, which decertified as of August the county’s old system.
However, Fridley has confirmed that she is volunteering and is helping the department during the upcoming election.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Beginning April 22, the Lake County Health Services Department and the Board of Supervisors are collaborating with Hope Rising and other partners to present community visioning forums throughout the county on the topic of community health and wellness.
Forum panelists, county representatives and staff and community leaders from partner organizations, will share information with residents on some truly outstanding resources that are available, and programs that are already improving our health outcomes.
They will also seek public input on next steps.
“Engaging with local residents, and hearing their voices, is one of the best ways to develop understanding surrounding community health and wellness,” said Health Services Director Denise Pomeroy. “We need to hear what challenges people are facing. We need the community’s input to identify gaps in local services and systems, and plan the best way forward. Promoting public health is a community effort.”
Community members’ input and information presented at these meetings will contribute to the development of a community health improvement plan.
“We are committed to working with local residents toward a healthier Lake County,” said Pomeroy.
The town hall schedule follows.
District 1: Supervisor Moke Simon Date: Monday, April 22, 6:30 to 8 p.m. Location: Twin Pine Event Center, 22223 Highway 29 Rancheria Road, Middletown
District 2: Supervisor Bruno Sabatier Date: Tuesday, May 14, 1 to 3 p.m. Location: Highlands Senior Center, 3245 Bowers Ave., Clearlake
District 3: Supervisor Eddie Crandell Date: Wednesday, May 15, 5 to 7 p.m. Location: Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake Community Center, 9470 Main St., Upper Lake
District 4: Supervisor Tina Scott Date: Thursday, May 16, 6:30 to 8 p.m. Location: Soper Reese Theater, 275 S. Main St., Lakeport
District 5: Supervisor Rob Brown Date: Thursday, May 30, 6:30 to 8 p.m. Location: Kelseyville Presbyterian Church, 5340 Third St.
Since early 2018, the Board of Supervisors and county staff have been holding town hall-style community visioning forums on critical priorities.
“The community’s priorities are reflected in the County’s Vision 2028 statement, and the Lake County Economic Development Strategy, which was recently adopted by all three local governments,” the county said in a statement on the new meetings.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Clearlake Animal Control has several dogs ready for new homes this week.
The following dogs have been cleared for adoption.
“Buddy.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Buddy’
“Buddy” is a male Chihuahua with a short tan coat.
He is No. 1244.
“Cadbury.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Cadbury’
“Cadbury” is a female Staffordshire Bull Terrier mix with a smooth medium-length beige coat.
She is No. 1215.
“Macy.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Macy’
“Macy” is a female Labrador Retriever mix with a smooth short black coat.
She already has been spayed.
She is No. 11.
“Neve.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Neve’
“Neve” is a female terrier puppy with a smooth medium-length white coat.
She is No. 1216.
“Scout.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Scout’
“Scout” is a male Belgian Malinois with a medium-length smooth brown and black coat.
He is neutered.
He is No. 1019.
“Wynn.” Photo courtesy of Clearlake Animal Control. ‘Wynn’
“Wynn” is a male American Staffordshire Terrier with a short brindle coat.
He is No. 969.
Clearlake Animal Control’s shelter is located at 6820 Old Highway 53, off Airport Road.
Hours of operation area noon to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The shelter is closed Sundays, Mondays and major holidays.
Call Clearlake Animal Control at 707-994-8251, Extension 1, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to inquire about adoptions.
Visit Clearlake Animal Control on Facebook or at the city’s Web site.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
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