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“Wreaths Across America” is returning to Lake County again this year.
On Friday, Dec. 9, local volunteers, Boy Scouts Troop 42, Clear Lake High School Interact Club and families of veterans will lay 686 wreaths on the graves of veterans at Hartley and Kelseyville cemeteries.
Formal wreath-laying ceremonies will take place promptly at 9 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 10, at both cemeteries.
Seven specially designated ceremonial wreaths for the Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Merchant Marine and POW/MIA will be placed on memorials during the local ceremonies, which will be coordinated simultaneously at more than 600 participating locations all across the United States.
The ceremonies will be performed by local youth and veterans organizations, including Boy Scout Troops, Girl Scout Troops, Sea Scouts, Highway Patrol Explorers and Royal Rangers, the United Veterans Council’s Military Funeral Honors Team and Patriotic Guard Riders.
The national anthem and “Amazing Grace” will be sung by Michaela Mahnke and Bianca Torres. Chaplain Woody Hughes, and pastors Gary Zeek and Gary Dromi will officiate at the ceremonies.
This is the fifth year that there has been a wreath laying ceremony at Hartley Cemetery and the first year at Kelseyville Cemetery, according to Toni Funderburg, the effort’s local coordinator. A future goal is to hold events at other county cemeteries.
The second Saturday in December will mark the 20th anniversary of Worcester Wreath Co. of Harrington, Maine, donating wreaths to be placed on headstones at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, VA.
The national wreath sponsorship campaign under the guidance of the nonprofit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org will bring the same remembrance wreaths to national and state veterans cemeteries, monuments and community centers all across the nation.
In addition to these ceremonial wreaths, local Boy Scout Troop 42 has joined with Wreaths Across America to promote sponsored wreaths to be placed on veterans’ graves.
Funderburg said the first goal for this year was to place a wreath on every veteran’s gravesite at Hartley Cemetery, and this will happen as a result of the support of the community’s generosity.
The second goal this year was to build wreath stands for all the wreaths at Hartley Cemetery. Thanks to Pam Huebner and her generosity they have wreath stands for all of that cemetery’s veteran gravesites, Funderburg said.
Subsequent to meeting these two goals sponsorships continued from many who value and respect veterans and their families, she said.
With that support they are able to lay approximately 686 wreaths at Hartley Cemetery and Kelseyville Cemetery, according to Funderburg.
The mission of Wreaths Across America is to “Remember (the fallen), Honor (those that serve), Teach (our Children the Value of Freedom).”
Troop 42 and community sponsors want these holiday wreaths to symbolize honor to those who have served and are serving in the armed forces of the United States, as well as to their families, who endure sacrifices every day to preserve freedom, Funderburg said.
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By forging this alliance, California and Nevada will combine investigative resources, including litigation strategies, information and evidence gathered through their respective ongoing investigations, assisting each state as it pursues independent prosecutions.
This alliance will link the offices' civil and criminal enforcement teams, speeding along the full, fair and adequate investigation of wrongdoing in the two states, which have experienced similar foreclosure and mortgage fraud crises.
"The mortgage crisis is a manmade disaster that has taken a heavy toll on the country, but it saved its worst for California and Nevada," said Harris. "The mortgage crisis is a law enforcement matter, and we will prosecute to hold accountable those who are responsible and also protect the homeowners who are targeted for fraud. I am delighted that California and Nevada are entering into this alliance to leverage the best results for our investigations and look forward to forging similar collaboration with other states."
"I am pleased to join forces with General Harris to fight against fraudulent mortgage and foreclosure practices that continue to devastate lives, homes, and the economy in Nevada and California," said Masto. "This strong partnership will allow our states to make an even more concerted effort to hold fraud perpetrators accountable and ensure law-abiding homeowners receive justice."
By most objective measures, California and Nevada have been the states hardest hit by the nation's foreclosure crisis.
In October 2011, Nevada and California ranked first and second, respectively, for the percentage of their housing units that entered the foreclosure process, reflecting a parallel surge in foreclosures in the two states.
One in every 180 Nevada properties entered the foreclosure process in October, and one in every 243 California homes received a filing that month.
In 2010, California led the nation with a total of 546,669 foreclosure filings – 4 percent of the state's housing units – while Nevada led the nation with 9.4 percent of its homes receiving a foreclosure filing, totaling 106,160 units.
The crisis in these Western states is similar because both states share a foreclosure system in which a bank can foreclose on a borrower's home without court oversight, also called "nonjudicial foreclosure." The collective result has created a rich opportunity for predators, leading both states to make mortgage-related law enforcement action a top priority.
In May 2011, Attorney General Harris formed a Mortgage Fraud Strike Force, now composed of nearly 40 attorneys and investigators, that has launched a wide series of investigations and litigation.
The Mortgage Fraud Strike Force has instigated legal actions in cases including a fraudulent multi-million dollar "mass joinder" lawsuit operated by the law firm Kramer and Kaslow, and the arrests earlier this month of three top officers of a Stockton real estate company who took thousands of dollars in up-front loan modification fees and made false promises to assist struggling Central Valley homeowners with lowering their mortgage payments.
In 2007, Attorney General Masto formed the Nevada Mortgage Fraud Strike Force that launched a wide series of investigations and litigation into areas including violations of the law related to mortgage lending, servicing, and foreclosure practices and the creation, rating, marketing, sale and management of mortgage backed securities.
The Nevada Mortgage Fraud Strike Force has taken action against predatory "mortgage rescue" companies and individuals claiming to offer services to stop foreclosures.
Last month, the Strike Force announced the indictments of Gerri Sheppard and Gary Trafford, who led a massive robo-signing scheme which resulted in the filing of tens of thousands of fraudulent documents.
Nevada is also suing Bank of America and its subsidiaries, including Countrywide, for violations of a Consent Judgment for mortgage servicing and mortgage origination irregularities.
The Mortgage Investigation Alliance is the product of weeks of discussion between Attorneys General Harris and Masto regarding the most effective and efficient means of achieving justice for their respective states.
Tuesday's announcement formalizes an agreement reached between the two officials last week.
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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A Sunday tule fire near Upper Lake appears to be a case of arson, according to Northshore Fire’s chief.
The fire, which was reported after 4 p.m. on Sunday, occurred in a 15- to 18-acre field in the reclamation area near Bridge Arbor North, not far from Upper Lake, according to Northshore Fire Chief Jay Beristianos.
He said the fire was located behind Robinson Rancheria, but that it occurred on private, not tribal, property.
Lake County News readers reported seeing the fire’s large black plumes of smoke on Sunday evening.
It’s similar to other fires lit a few weeks earlier in essentially the same place, said Beristianos.
“The fire last night was lit in three separate places,” said Beristianos, adding there is no reason for the fires to burn where they do unless they’re being intentionally set.
“They’re arson fires,” he said.
The fires can be difficult to fight, since the burning tules – which Beristianos said are as high as 12 feet tall – are located in a swampy area, making it dangerous to send in fire equipment.
On Sunday evening, Beristianos, who himself oversaw the fire response, said his firefighters burned control lines to contain the fire.
Although the fires put out a lot of black smoke, he said they generally burn out when night falls, which was the case with Sunday’s fire.
He said such fires are generally set every few years.
“This has been going on for as many years as I can remember,” said Beristianos, who grew up in Upper Lake.
Beristianos said he’s trying to find out who may be responsible. If it’s being done due to concerns over vegetation growth, he said the fire district can help set up control burns.
Beristianos is concerned about the time and resources responding to such nuisance fires take. There’s also the chance they could become more serious.
Anyone with information about the tule fires can contact Beristianos at the Northshore Fire Protection District, 707-274-3100.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – A 19-year-old Lower Lake woman was arrested last week after she allegedly assaulted a wheelchair-bound woman for whom she had offered care services.
Katie Key was placed under citizens arrest and cited and released at the scene of the fight, according to Clearlake Police Chief Craig Clausen.
A Lake County News reader reported witnessing the confrontation, which occurred on Old Highway 53 near Highway 53 on Thursday, Dec. 1.
Clausen said the fight was reported to police shortly after 3 p.m. that day.
Key is alleged to have assaulted 46-year-old Christina Warrington of Clearlake, Clausen said.
“I don’t think this was just a random act,” Clausen said. “They definitely knew each other.”
Clausen said Key allegedly confronted Warrington, who was in a wheelchair. Key had worked as Warrington’s In-Home Supportive Services worker, Clausen said.
Warrington, who alleged that Key hit her, placed Key under citizens arrest, and officers then accepted that arrest and cited Key, Clausen said.
Warrington suffered minor injuries as a result of the fight, according to Clausen.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
Each year in the United States more than 200,000 people are hospitalized, and as many as 49,000 people die after contracting influenza.
“As this is National Influenza Vaccination Week, it is a perfect time to remind Californians to get a flu shot to protect themselves and others,” said Dr. Ron Chapman, director of the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). “Since the flu season typically peaks in December and January, I urge people to get immunized now.”
Flu season begins each year in September and ends in March, and influenza vaccination is recommended for all Californians six months and older.
This year’s vaccine will protect against the H1N1 strain, as well as H3N2 and influenza B.
In conjunction with National Influenza Vaccination Week, CDPH released its annual report on vaccination rates among health care employees across the state.
The report found that the employee vaccination rate has increased slightly from 62.6 percent in the 2009-10 flu season to 64.3 percent in 2010-11 for reporting hospitals.
The report also shows that hospital reporting compliance grew to 98 percent in the 2010-11 flu season from 80.9 percent during the 2009-10 season.
In Lake County, the report found that at St. Helena Hospital Clearlake 60.4 percent of employees, 44 percent of nonemployee health care personnel and 68.2 percent of volunteers were vaccinated.
At Sutter Lakeside Hospital in Lakeport, 57.5 percent of employees, 62.3 percent of nonemployee health care personnel and 45.1 percent of volunteer received vaccinations, the report showed.
“Vaccination of all health care workers is strongly recommended in order to prevent transmission of the illness to patients, especially those with long-term medical conditions who are at high-risk for serious complications from the flu,” said Dr. Chapman.
Agencies across the state are joining Dr. Chapman in promoting more vaccination of health care workers, through a letter distributed to all hospitals, long-term care facilities and physician groups throughout the state.
Those joining Dr. Chapman including the California Hospital Association, California Association of Health Facilities, California Medical Association and organizations of health care professionals.
The report released by CDPH offers the following recommendations to improve influenza vaccination coverage among health care professionals:
Hospitals should consider more rigorous influenza vaccination policies, such as mandatory participation or vaccination, to increase influenza vaccination percentages.
Hospitals should ensure that influenza vaccination status is a requirement of contracts with physician groups, registry organizations, fellowships, and student training programs.
Hospitals should account for the vaccination status of all non-employee health care personnel, including registry and contract personnel, students, and trainees.
Hospitals should implement robust data collection and management systems to document the vaccination status of all health care personnel.
The report can be viewed below.
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120511 CDPH Health Care Workers Influenza Vaccination Report
Gov. Jerry Brown released the following open letter to California’s residents that explains the plan.
“When I became governor again – 28 years after my last term ended in 1983 – California was facing a $26.6 billion budget deficit. It was the result of years of failing to match spending with tax revenues as budget gimmicks instead of honest budgeting became the norm.
“In January, I proposed a budget that combined deep cuts with a temporary extension of some existing taxes. It was a balanced approach that would have finally closed our budget gap.
“I asked the Legislature to enact this plan and to allow you, the people of California, to vote on it. I believed that you had the right to weigh in on this important choice: should we decently fund our schools or lower our taxes? I don’t know how you would have voted, but we will never know. The Republicans refused to provide the four votes needed to put this measure on the ballot.
“Forced to act alone, Democrats went ahead and enacted massive cuts and the first honest, on-time budget in a decade. But without the tax extensions, it was simply not possible to eliminate the state’s structural deficit.
“The good news is that our financial condition is much better than a year ago. We cut the ongoing budget deficit by more than half, reduced the state’s workforce by about 5,500 positions and cut unnecessary expenses like cell phones and state cars. We actually cut state expenses by over $10 billion. Spending is now at levels not seen since the seventies. Our state’s credit rating has moved from ‘negative’ to ‘stable,’ laying the foundation for job creation and a stronger economic recovery.
“Unfortunately, the deep cuts we made came at a huge cost. Schools have been hurt and state funding for our universities has been reduced by 25 percent. Support for the elderly and the disabled has fallen to where it was in 1983. Our courts suffered debilitating reductions.
“The stark truth is that without new tax revenues, we will have no other choice but to make deeper and more damaging cuts to schools, universities, public safety and our courts.
“That is why I am filing today an initiative with the Attorney General’s office that would generate nearly $7 billion in dedicated funding to protect education and public safety. I am going directly to the voters because I don’t want to get bogged down in partisan gridlock as happened this year. The stakes are too high.
“My proposal is straightforward and fair. It proposes a temporary tax increase on the wealthy, a modest and temporary increase in the sales tax, and guarantees that the new revenues be spent only on education. Here are the details:
“Millionaires and high-income earners will pay up to 2 percent higher income taxes for five years. No family making less than $500,000 a year will see their income taxes rise. In fact, fewer than 2 percent of California taxpayers will be affected by this increase.
“There will be a temporary ½ cent increase in the sales tax. Even with this temporary increase, sales taxes will still be lower than what they were less than six months ago.
This initiative dedicates funding only to education and public safety – not on other programs that we simply cannot afford.
“This initiative will not solve all of our fiscal problems. But it will stop further cuts to education and public safety.
“I ask you to join with me to get our state back on track,” Brown concluded.
Republican leaders in the state Legislature didn’t appear to welcome the proposal.
In responding to the initiative, on Monday Senate Republican Leader Bob Dutton (Rancho Cucamonga) put the emphasis on the need for reform.
“Clearly the governor has put tax hikes ahead of job creation,” Dutton said in a brief written statement released by his office. “Californians have consistently voted down tax-only proposals. Senate Republicans continue a call to action on reforms first. Only with reforms can we put Californians back to work and restore the people’s confidence in state government.”
Assembly Republican Leader Connie Conway of Tulare was similarly critical, calling the new taxes “reckless.”
She said Brown was “once again relying on his failed budget playbook in proposing a massive $35 billion tax increase on hard-working Californians and job creators.”
Conway said voters have rejected similar tax increases in the past.
"Despite their rhetoric, it is clear that our state's projected $13 billion budget shortfall is not the result of a lack of revenue, but rather that Democrats want to grow government spending by $10 billion next year,” she said. “The majority party's budget priorities are clear – sock working families with a painful tax increase to pay for more health and welfare spending and unsustainable public employee pensions, while education continues to take a massive hit.”
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