Category Archives: News and Notes

Ventura College Foundation Weekend Marketplace is open

The Ventura College Foundation’s Weekend Marketplace has reopened and will continue to be open every weekend. The Marketplace has been closed since March 14 when social distancing restrictions took effect because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Marketplace will initially have 39 vendor booths and will safely limit customer attendance. Prior to the shutdown, the Marketplace drew about 2,000 shoppers each weekend with 300 to 400 vendors.

For the past several weeks, the foundation has been creating a reopening plan that follows the safety directives of the Ventura County Public Health Department. Vendors will set up six feet apart. They are required to wear masks and gloves, disinfect work surfaces and payment machines, and have hand sanitizers available for the public. Caution tape and markings on the ground in front of each booth will help keep customers and vendors separated. Safety posters will be on display to remind everyone of their responsibilities.

Items that can be currently sold at the Marketplace include pre-packaged baked goods and food, beverages, canned food, dry goods, fresh fruits and vegetables, pet supplies and household supplies and equipment necessary for community safety, sanitation, and prevention of community transmission of COVID-19 such as masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, soap, and disinfectants.

Designated entrances and exits will be strictly enforced. Portable hand sanitizer stations will be available at each entrance that customers are required to use. Shoppers are strongly encouraged to wear masks.

“We need the public’s help to ensure that shoppers, vendors and our staff remain safe at the Marketplace,” says Anne Paul King, Ventura College Foundation executive director. “Wearing masks, practicing social distancing and following all the guidelines posted throughout the Marketplace can really make a difference.”

The Marketplace is at the corner of Telegraph and Day roads in the East Parking Lot of Ventura County. Free parking is available in campus lots and along Telegraph and Day roads. Hours are 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Saturday and Sunday.

“The Marketplace closure in March greatly impacted many in the community who rely on the market for their fresh produce and household items,” says King. “For our vendors, the Marketplace is a major source of revenue. We’re happy that we can slowly take steps to bring it back.”

Prior to its closure, the Ventura College Foundation’s Weekend Marketplace generated $1.5 million annually from space rentals to support the foundation, helping to cover the costs of staff, operations and a portion of the foundation’s core programs including scholarships, the VC Promise and textbook lending. The Ventura College Foundation supported over 5,800 students last year and just awarded 427 scholarships totaling $683,748, the largest annual scholarship distribution in the foundation’s history.

For vendor and shopper information and a full set of safety guidelines, go to https://venturacollegefoundation.org/weekend-marketplace. The public can also contact King (805-289-6503, [email protected] with questions. Questions from vendors should be directed to Esmeralda Juarez, Marketplace supervisor (805-289-6062, [email protected]).

Local students shift gears to help restart our economy

As our economy reopens, business owners and their employees are going back to work and need to protect themselves from exposure to coronavirus. STEMbassadors, a student-run nonprofit organization in Ventura, wants to help. STEMbassadors has been 3D-printing and assembling face shields to help their local medical community since quarantine began. To date, STEMbassadors has provided 3500 face shields to medical workers and first responders. The STEMbassadors Face Shield Project has been so successful that STEMbassadors will now pivot to focus on helping small business owners and their employees.

STEMbassadors is working with community members to increase their production to make a total of 10,000 -12,000 face shields. Half of these will be available to small business owners and their employees. Ventura County business owners and employees who are interested in obtaining face shields should email their request through the STEMbassadors website: www.stembassadors.net. The remaining face shields will be sent overseas as part of STEMbassadors’ exciting new international endeavor. STEMbassadors’ student members were so inspired and encouraged by the incredible community support they received over the past two months, that they will now expand the impact of the project to an international level. “It gives me a sense of pride and accomplishment to see our skills as STEMbassadors having real impact in helping reopen local businesses and helping people worldwide”, said Pascal Hayward, a 9th grade STEMbassadors member.

STEMbassadors has connected with international charitable organizations with a presence in twenty economically disadvantaged countries around the world which are suffering from a severe lack of PPE. STEMbassadors will help the medical workers in these countries by providing them with protective face shields to help avoid illness, allowing them to treat Covid-19 infected patients. STEMbassadors is a student-managed, California 501(c)(3) corporation formed in 2017 in Ventura, comprised of 14 motivated middle and high school students with highly developed STEM “maker” skills. Their “maker” skills consist of the knowledge and ability to use CNC routers, computer aided design (CAD) and, of course, 3D printers. STEMbassadors is mentored by STEM educator, Alex Wulff.

Ventura Harbor public launch ramp opens

With new guidelines in place Ventura Port District General Manager Brian Pendleton said the public boat launch ramp is open under the following conditions and protocols:

  • 24/7 hours of operation
  • Each vehicle/vessel is limited to members of the same household
  • No fishing will be allowed at the public launch ramp
  • No loitering at or around the public launch ramp
  • Boaters will maintain 6 feet social distancing
  • Masks are recommended when outside the vehicle or vessel in the public launch ramp and parking lot areas
  • Boaters must comply with all governmental orders

Please Note: The re-opening of the public launch ramp and guidelines are subject to change

“The reopening will provide our boating community the opportunity to get back on the water, “ states Pendleton. “In doing so, we are asking the public to be respectful of each other and practice social distancing while meeting the requirements of the Ventura County Public Health Order issued April 20, 2020.”

Additional information on the Ventura County Public Health Order can be found at vcemergency.com. Ventura Harbor Public Launch Ramp & parking information is located on venturaharbor.com https://venturaharbor.com/directory/launch-ramp/ For additional boating questions, please contact Ventura Harbor Patrol at (805) 642-8618.

Visit Ventura is working to help Ventura’s economy

Tourism has long played a critical role in Ventura’s economy. For the last nine years, burgeoning tourism has generated over $300 million in visitor spending in Ventura each year. And tourism’s beneficial spinoffs are myriad and sometimes hidden. Yes, tourism creates roughly 2,600 Ventura jobs, and tourism’s dollars help fund the city’s fire and police forces, build the city’s roads, and finance the city’s schools. Perhaps less known, tourism touches everyone. Tourism-related tax revenue from California visitors in 2019 amounted to $920 in savings for every single California household.

COVID-19 has now altered the landscape. Towns and people everywhere are struggling with matters more important than tourism. But while our medical heroes labor to stem the human losses, Visit Ventura is working to help Ventura’s economy — but not through tourism. A nonprofit funded by the city, Visit Ventura settled on a simple premise. Now is the time to do what Ventura does best — help each other.

“We know that, in the necessary absence of visitors, our businesses need a new kind of visitor, one that knows the true meaning behind 805,” said Visit Ventura President & CEO Marlyss Auster. “It’s not complicated. We need each other. And we’ve been here before. There’s no town more caring than ours.”

With caring in mind, Visit Ventura, through a variety of programs, has reached out to our remarkable community, asking that community to do a simple, caring thing — do the best they can to support our local businesses. With support in mind, Visit Ventura started “Takeout Tuesdays,” encouraging residents to buy takeout on Tuesdays (or any other day) if they can. They also dreamed up “Thirsty Thursdays,” a program of live Facebook tastings that feature local breweries, wineries, spirit makers, and even chocolatiers. The businesses come up with a special tasting package. Locals (and Californians farther afield) buy the package, and then enjoy them while watching as the brewer explains the nuances of various hops. Visit Ventura’s “Feel Good Fridays” have highlighted a variety of other businesses; highlighting, in an ever-changing world, what those businesses are offering — from online sales, to curbside pickup, to gradual reopenings. Each program is broadcast out over Visit Ventura’s social channels, reaching some 150,000 followers.

In a world of often bleak news, the results have been smile inducing. Ventura Coast Brewing Company, the first “Thirsty Thursday” participant, had close to 5,000 viewers log on, and saw a 120 percent increase in sales. When Topa Topa Brewery did their virtual tasting, co-owner Jack Dyer went into the back before the live presentation only to find they’d sold all the tasting packages. He had to buy his beer at a (fortunately) nearby store.

Visit Ventura is also preparing for the future. Already in place, a multi-layered recovery plan

addressing everything from cautious, responsible recovery, to how to woo visitors in a fiercely competitive market and make those visitors feel comfortable, welcome, and safe.

But, at the moment, it’s all about community. A remarkable community.

“I truly believe that all of us, working together to do the next right thing, will see us through this,” said Auster. “And then, when the time is right, tourism will be the economic driver that sees us back to our feet. But for now community love will see us through.”

Reopening businesses 

by Ashley Bautista

The County of Ventura has reached an important turning point for our community, County and our local economy. We have moved into Stage 2 of California’s roadmap to reopening where some lower-risk workplaces can gradually open with adaptations. This allows retail businesses to use curbside pickup or delivery to sell their goods and related manufacturing and logistics businesses to open.

Visit www.vcreopens.com and review the guidance 

Upon reviewing the guidance, complete a detailed risk assessment of your business in accordance with the state guidelines

Complete a written worksite-specific COVID-19 Prevention Plan and post it at your business

Implement the prevention measures identified in your worksite-specific COVID-19 Prevention Plan

Designate an on-duty employee responsible for monitoring compliance with your plan

Complete the attestation

Upon completing your attestation, an official from your local jurisdiction may conduct a site visit

If you were a business that was already permitted to be open you too need to register and follow the seven steps.

Here are some examples of businesses that are able to reopen in addition to the businesses that were already open in Stage 1:

  • Dentistry for preventative care.
  • Retail for curbside delivery
  • Manufacturing
  • Logistics
  • Pet grooming
  • Childcare
  • Office based businesses (telework remains strongly encouraged)
  • Equestrian Centers/Horseback Riding
  • Jet Ski/Boat/Bike Rentals
  • Archery/Shooting Ranges
  • Outdoor photography
  • Outdoor museums

Questions? Please contact County of Ventura Public Information Officer Ashley Bautista at [email protected] or call 805-654-2640. Stay up to date and sign up for daily updates at www.vcemergency.com.

What cities are in Ventura County? The unincorporated areas, along with the ten incorporated cities of Camarillo, Fillmore, Moorpark, Ojai, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Santa Paula, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, and San Buenaventura (Ventura)this ranks Ventura as the 11th most populous county in the State.

Community Memorial Health System has reopened inpatient and outpatient non-emergent surgical procedures

After suspending such procedures at the onset of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in mid-March, Community Memorial Health System (CMHS) has followed guidance from the CDC, US Surgeon General, American College of Surgeons, the State of California and the California Hospital Association, as well as expert surgeons, anesthesiologists, infection control specialists and nurses in establishing safety criteria and protocols prior to resuming non-emergency surgeries.

“After thoughtful evaluation of the data and careful implementation of the policies and procedures outlined by the CDC and state and local public health leaders, we have decided to resume scheduled, non-emergent surgical procedures at Community Memorial hospital in Ventura,” said Gary Wilde, Community Memorial Health System President and CEO. “As with most hospitals in the state of California, we suspended elective procedures to prepare for the potential surge of COVID-19 patients, but feel that it’s important to the overall health and wellbeing of our community to begin offering these services again at this time.”

Before scheduling medically necessary, non-emergent procedures, all hospitals and surgery centers across the nation must meet the following criteria: A sustained reduction of COVID-19 cases in the community; sufficient patient capacity (beds) and equipment; adequate supply of personal protective equipment (PPE); and a COVID-19 testing procedure in place for all appropriate patients scheduled for a surgical procedure.

In addition to meeting these criteria, CMHS and Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura continue to follow additional rigorous protocols to ensure the safety of their patients, healthcare professionals, and community as a whole. These protocols include:

· Mandatory COVID-19 testing for every preoperative patient in advance of his/her procedure.

· Mandatory COVID-19 screening for everyone who enters Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura, Ojai Valley Community Hospital, the Emergency Departments at either location, all Centers for Family Health clinics and Urgent Care locations, and all other CMHS outpatient service locations. This screening includes patients, essential companions, physicians and staff.

· Mandatory use of surgical masks for everyone in all CMHS inpatient and outpatient facilities, regardless of their COVID-19 status.

· Continued use of separate intake, evaluation, and treatment areas for patients who present with COVID-19 symptoms and those who do not.

· Continued use of separate waiting areas (including waiting in vehicles) and phone registration following appropriate screening, in order to minimize contact and maintain social distancing standards.

· Continued use of enhanced sterilization and cleaning protocols of operating suites, patient prep and recovery areas, and patient rooms to ensure optimal cleanliness and minimize potential spread.

· Continued restriction of visitors (one essential companion only) in all CMHS facilities to limit potential exposures.

CMHS has carefully determined which medically necessary, non-emergent procedures can safely be performed at this time, and will continue this evaluation process in the coming weeks and months. Urgent and emergent cases will continue to be prioritized with the reintroduction of elective procedures.

Help feed Ventura County foster/resource, kinship, adoptive families

After the first week, over 1,500 meals had been distributed.

Kids & Families Together (K&FT) is a nonprofit that serves foster/resource, adoptive, kinship, and birth families throughout Ventura County. K&FT works with children who have experienced trauma, abuse, neglect, loss, and multiple placements. Caregivers are supported with specialized education, support, and strategies to help raise safe, healthy, nurtured children that thrive.

Having hosted and catered several events for K&FT, the owners at Rincon Brewery Ventura are well aware of the needs of the families served by K&FT. Many of these families were struggling prior to the outbreak of COVID-19, and with the growing economic impacts, needs for these families have escalated. When World Central Kitchen joined the team a fantastic community partnership was born.

Rincon Brewery reached out to WCK offering to re-open their Ventura restaurant to make a difference in the community.

Because K&FT serves families throughout Ventura County, the need became clear that some families, due to lack of transportation, could not get to Ventura to pick up meals. K&FT’s staff rallied again and established a delivery network to get meals to families that had no means to get there. These families, particularly Foster/Resource and Kinship Families, have opened their homes and hearts to Ventura County children and K&FT wants to be there to support them.

Meal distribution takes place six days a week (Monday – Saturday). Families receiving services from K&FT can receive meals each day for all members of the household. Meals are prepared on site at Rincon Brewery the day before and refrigerated overnight for the next day. Rincon Brewery’s Chef, Steven Stroh provides a daily message called the “love note” explaining what each dish means to him.

After the first week, over 1,500 healthy, chef-prepared meals have been distributed/delivered to families across the county. Response from families has been extremely positive!

To volunteer at the distribution site or make deliveries please sign up via this link, created with the help of Ventura County Fire Department. https://vcfd.galaxydigital.com/need/?agency_id=112680

Financial donations to support this effort can be made via this link. https://mailchi.mp/kidsandfamilies.org/mealdistribution

The past is the present roadmap to the future

Edith Hobson Hoffman formed the Red Cross Committee

by Cynthia Thompson

Shock, denial, the closing of schools, churches, theaters, beaches and all gathering places, mandatory masks, emergency hospitals, mounting cases and deaths………COVID 19 of 2020?….No, Ventura and the Spanish Flu pandemic in 1918.

This isn’t the first time our nation has faced a worldwide pandemic. COVID 19 and the 1918 Spanish Flu are drawing comparisons. History reveals just how similarly the world of the past and present have responded.

It is a story of hope…..we survived and thrived. Just recall that the Spanish Flu preceded the unprecedented prosperity of the Roaring 1920s.

October, 1918….a large carnival came to town. Immediately afterwards, towns people became severely ill. At first there was denial, even among prominent doctors. However, when the numbers of sick and dying multiplied at lightening speed, the townspeople of Ventura heard the call to arms.

Edith Hobson Hoffman formed the Red Cross Committee (Edith became very prominent as a 20th Century philanthropist and community activist). On October 20th of 1918 the Ventura Daily Post announced that the Santa Barbara Mission would close for the first time since its 1786 founding.

Overnight, the real battle began; schools, churches, poolrooms, card rooms, saloons, theaters, and all gathering places were mandated to close. Because of the shortage of nurses, families cared for their own in isolation. Families were going hungry, so Mrs. Charles Bartlett organized “Meals on Wheels” for home delivery. (Mrs. Charles Bartlett became a major women’s club leader and community activist, including the raising of the cross in 1912)

The Red Cross Committee decided an emergency hospital was needed. Bard Hospital and a school were considered, but the contagion was too dangerous. Finally, two churches; the First Methodist Church at Meta (Thompson Blvd. today) and Oak, and the octagonal First Christian Church at Fir and Santa Clara Streets (later moved to Main and Kalorama). Their size, additional classrooms and in-house kitchen made them the perfect facilities. On October 31st, the first patients arrived.

The newspapers appealed to housewives to donate soft cloths for wash rags and towels, women volunteered as practical nurses to care for the sick and clean the hospitals, others shared shifts as office workers, answering telephones and keeping records. Mary Philbrick volunteered to do all cooking for patients and nurses (Mrs. Philbreck would become a major philanthropist of hospital systems in both Ventura and Oxnard in the 1940s -1960s).

The supply of masks was running dangerously low and the citizens were asked to make their own.

Masking, volunteerism, and isolation stemmed the tide (or flattened the curve) and cases and deaths diminished. By December 22nd, the last patient left the emergency hospital, the mask ordinance was lifted, and children returned to school.

Thus, ended a dramatic war experience in the town of Ventura, which numbered 3,800 (today, approximately 120,000) at the time. Through suffering and sharing the citizens were brought closer together as they fought the enemy called the “Flu”, an invisible enemy that made a battleground of the town and took 29 lives.

When the flu surfaced again across the nation in 1922, Neill Baker, as board of health member, announced this resolution and lawful demand:

“Carried unanimously that all indoor public gatherings, viz, schools, theaters, churches, lodges, clubs, dance halls, pool halls, be closed indefinitely and that the city health officer be instructed to enforce said order”

This time Ventura was prepared.

The people mentioned in this article by name were in their early 20s in 1918. By mid 20th Century they had become community leaders and activist, pillars of Ventura society. Most of them are pictured on the Historic Tile Mural (150 years of Ventura history) in front of the Mission (by Michael Kelly). Our profiles in courage.

Housing Trust Fund Ventura County awarded $50,000

Housing Trust Fund Ventura County (Housing Trust Fund VC) has been named as one of 29 grantees receiving funding support from Weingart Foundation through their Unrestricted Operating Support (U.O.S.) program. Housing Trust Fund VC will receive $50,000 over two years to help with capacity building in support of the Fund’s overall mission to increase affordable housing options throughout Ventura County by leveraging public-private partnerships to provide low-cost, flexible loans early in the housing development cycle.

The Weingart Foundation partners with communities across Southern California to advance racial, social and economic justice for all. To achieve this mission, the Foundation’s grantmaking program is designed to strengthen the capacity and effectiveness of nonprofit organizations, collaboratives, and coalitions working to meet essential needs, expand opportunity and eliminate structural barriers to equity by building the community power required to sustain long-term prosperity. Grant recipients, such as Housing Trust Fund VC align strongly with the Foundation’s core mission.

Weingart Foundation awarded $3.5 million in grants through this round of their U.O.S. program and over the next 12 months intends to award up to $20 million in unrestricted operating support grants to core partners.

“Receiving this funding from Weingart Foundation is such an honor,” stated Linda Braunschweiger, CEO of Housing Trust Fund Ventura County. “COVID-19 is likely going to displace more people who will be looking for more affordable housing amid employment concerns. Now more than ever affordable workforce housing options are needed in our community and we remain committed to our promise that, “everyone deserves a home.”

Launched as a 501c3 nonprofit corporation in 2012, Ventura County Housing Trust Fund became Housing Trust Fund Ventura County (Housing Trust Fund VC) in July 2019. Housing Trust Fund VC is the local trusted leader in helping to increase affordable housing options throughout Ventura County by leveraging public-private partnerships to provide low-cost, flexible loans early in the housing development cycle. As of January 2020, Housing Trust Fund VC has invested $9 million through its revolving loan fund, creating 365 affordable apartments and homes for very-low, low- and middle-income employees, transitional age foster youth, veterans, farm workers, and the homeless.

Rumor Alert

There is a rumor that the County of Ventura is removing positive covid patients from their homes. That is not true. If a person cannot safely isolate at home and they would like an alternative location, then a different location is offered.

Public Health Officer Doctor Robert Levin stated “What I would like to say to those people who interpreted what I said as forcibly pulling people from their homes if they become COVID positive is that if I conveyed that, it was a mistake on my part and I apologize for that. I am sensitive to that as well. We have no intention of taking people from the environments they feel safe and comfortable in. To demonstrate our past actions, because they speak louder than words, we have managed over 600 people in our county with COVID-19 and we have not forcibly removed anyone from their home or wherever they wanted to be. We have removed about 7 of our seniors who were living in Long Term Care Facilities (LTCF) and had them admitted to one of our hospitals. This was to protect the other seniors and to observe those hospitalized for worsening of their symptoms. If COVID establishes itself in a LTCF (a nursing home), it can kill dozens as it did in Washington State. We also placed two homeless people who were COVID positive in a motel because they wanted to return to a crowded camp in the river bottom. Virtually everyone wants to stay in their home. It is safest when such a person can have their own room and bathroom but many of our COVID cases have not been so fortunate. When that is the case, our Communicable Disease nurses find ways of keeping them in their home such that it is still safe for the others who are there.”