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MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The Middletown Area Town Hall will hold a special town hall meeting with Congressman Mike Thompson on Monday, Oct. 7.
The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. at the new Middletown Community Center, located at 21256 Washington St., Middletown.
The public is invited to attend.
The congressman will give opening marks and then take questions from community members.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Cooler temperatures and increased humidity gave California a brief break from major fire activity this past week, but that's expected to ramp back up in the month ahead, according to state fire officials.
With the state now moving into the “historically dangerous” month of October, firefighters remain on high alert, said Cal Fire spokesman Daniel Berlant in the agency's latest Fire Situation Report.
California's 2013 fire activity remains higher than 2012 and the five-year average, Berlant said.
Major fires continuing to burn around the state are the Rim Fire, Corral Complex and Forks Complex, according to Berlant.
See the full report in the video above.
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The Lake County Wine Auction crossed a milestone with its event on Saturday, Sept. 21.
Early in an evening of highly competitive bidding, the total raised in the 14 years of this event easily topped the $1 million mark.
Going into the auction, the 13-year total was $991,302, so it took only nine items before the total passed the “magic” number.
Welcoming people to the event, held at the Cole Creek Equestrian Center, Wine Auction President Kaj Ahlmann reminded them that the focus of the event was to support the young people who represent the future of Lake County.
Honorary Co-Chairs John and Joanne Van Eck, the equestrian center's owners, worked tirelessly to transform their unique facility into a magical place, which many in attendance feel contributed to the high energy atmosphere and high bidding.
While it will be several weeks before the final figures are known, preliminary indications are that the event will be judged a huge success, according to auction officials.
In 2012, $96,000 was distributed to the beneficiaries and the auction committee expects that this year's recedes could be equal to that or higher.
The high bid during this year's auction was $7,500 for a barbecue event for 15 people at Congressman Mike Thompson's ranch in Finley.
The second highest was $6,000 for John Clarke's painting “The Country,” which provided the signature image for this year's event. The painting was purchased by Dirk and Karen Wooten of Clearlake.
Proceeds from the 14th annual Lake County Wine Auction will benefit the county's five area high schools along with 10 other charities and community organizations.
Representatives of these groups will receive their checks at a special reception in December at the Saw Shop Bistro in Kelseyville.
The Lake County Wine Auction would like to thank this year's premium sponsors: American Ag Credit, Beckstoffer Vineyards, Calpine, Mendo Lake Credit Union, Kathy Fowler Chevrolet and Six Sigma Vineyard and Winery.
These and the event's other sponsors cover the costs of the event so that all the money raised from ticket sales and the auction can go directly to the auction's beneficiaries.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – The Lake County Chamber of Commerce will present its fourth annual Oktoberfest on Main Street in historic downtown Lakeport on Saturday, Oct. 5.
The event will take place between First and Fourth streets from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
During the day, Oktoberfest offers fun activities such as a doggy costume contest, open to all breeds and the now World Famous Dachshund Derby Race, open only to dachshunds. Entry forms can be found on www.oktoberfest-lakeport.com .
There will be a people costume contest for youth, male, female categories, entry forms available at the chamber’s information booth on Saturday. Prizes will be awarded for all costume contests. There will be bounce houses for the young and a face painter.
The very popular “beer pong” and a new contest, “corn hole” will take place during the afternoon in Museum Park on Main Street. Another fun contest will be guessing how many pretzels are in a very large jar.
A large variety of microbrews will be offered for tastings from noon to 5 p.m. on Third Street, where other beverages will also be offered for sale.
An opportunity drawing for three prizes – $250, $250 and $500 – will be held at 9 p.m., winner need not be present to win. The contest is sponsored by the Jimi Z Band and the ticket printing sponsored by Bellisimo! Wine Country Catering.
For those who collect beer steins, they are once again featuring a beer stein competition. Beer steins can be brought to The Game Shop at the corner of Third and Main streets in Downtown Lakeport on Oct. 5. Numbers will be assigned to each stein and they will be placed in the front windows for public viewing.
The public is encouraged to place their votes at the Game Shop. The winners will be announced from the stage in the late afternoon.
Oktoberfest features “Showcase the Band” during the afternoon, offering a large variety of German music and standards, and they also engage the crowd with games and songs.
The evening street dance, beginning at 6 p.m., will feature the talents of Jimi Z’s band until 9 p.m. Both of these bands keep the crowds on their feet continuously.
During the day, there also will be roving accordion players. Stage sponsors are Eagle Distributing/Budweiser and Running Creek Casino.
The Oktoberfest official festmeister, Tony Barthel, will invite public participation throughout the day in some wild and wacky contests.
For more information and to view the schedule of events, visit www.oktoberfest-lakeport.com or contact the Lake County Chamber at 707 263-5092.
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A community forum on the proposed realignment of the of the colleges and campuses in the Yuba Community College District will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 2.
The forum will take place from noon to 1 p.m. in Room 211 at the Clear Lake Campus, at 15880 Dam Road Extension in Clearlake.
The Yuba Community College District Board of Trustees is considering the realignment of the Clear Lake Campus with Woodland Community College. Currently, the Clear Lake Campus is aligned with Yuba College.
Presenters Yuba College President Rod Beilby and Woodland Community College President Angela Fairchilds will provide information to the public on the proposed realignment of the colleges.
The district said possible benefits of this proposal include geographic alignment, career and technical education, curriculum, implementation of the resource allocation model and partnering opportunities that can better serve students.
State and national initiatives will require community colleges to collaborate regionally with other colleges, K-12 districts and industry partners to secure funding for career and technical education programs.
The geographical proximity of the Clear Lake Campus with Woodland Community College potentially increases opportunities for regional partnerships to compete for career and technical education funding and better align those programs for students with community economic development and workforce needs.
The public is invited to attend the forum to ask questions and provide input regarding potential opportunities and obstacles.
If you are unable to attend, you are invited to share your input directly with Executive Dean Art Pimentel, Yuba College Clear Lake Campus,
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A wildland fire in a remote area above Highland Springs Reservoir was contained on Sunday.
The Highland Fire burned 98 acres and was contained by Sunday evening, according to Cal Fire.
The fire, first reported just efore 2 p.m. Saturday, burned a hunting cabin and an outbuilding, according to Cal Fire Battalion Chief Greg Bertelli.
The fire burned in the area of Highland Springs Road, southeast of Kelseyville, at the Lake and Mendocino County line. Bertelli said the fire burned mostly within Lake County.
No cause has yet been given for the fire.
Email Elizabeth Larson at