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Supporting those working with Kids & Families Together

At least 12 children learned how to ride a bike for the first time.

Do you remember learning how to ride a bike for the first time? The struggles, the frustrations suddenly turning into exhilaration, pride and joy as one achieves this childhood milestone! On Saturday, June 19th, at least 12 of the Ventura County foster, adopted and kinship children attending this Kids & Families Together and Heart 2 Heart event had never ridden a bike before. Within a few hours, they left the event with a bike, new helmet and the confidence that comes from learning a new skill!

K&FT is grateful to the event partners who made this day so memorable and successful for so many Ventura County children! “With their help, 80 children learned bike safety, enhanced their riding skills and at least 12 children learned how to ride a bike for the first time! Just in time for some Summer fun!” stated Jeni Futvoye, K&FT Community Resource Manager

The creation of this event was inspired by grandparents who were receiving support in some of K&FT’s programs. They were a kinship family and had their 7-year old granddaughter in their care. Their granddaughter really wanted to learn how to ride a bike, but neither of the grandparents felt that they were physically capable of safely helping her. The grandmother reached out to K&FT looking for help. That one phone call, sparked the idea for this event which first took place in May of 2019.

2021 Bike Rodeo partners and event sponsors donated helmets, bikes, coloring books, bike safety gear, and more! Thank you to Crosspointe Church Ventura for the wonderful location and storage. Thank you to Pastor Matt, Mark and Lewis! Thanks to Joey and Alex from Bike Ventura for their bike instruction, safety expertise, additional event volunteers, bike service, and the donation of 15 bikes. Thank you to CHP Ventura, Moorpark and San Luis Obispo, for their bike safety expertise, organization of the bike course, donation of helmets, coloring books, bike safety gear, and bringing additional volunteers to the event. Thank you, Officer Steve Lutzke and colleagues! Thanks also goes out to … The Gene Haas Foundation, Project Bicycle Love, Royal Family Camp, Camarillo Amber’s Light Lions Club, The Local Love Project, Open Air Bicycles in Ventura, Raising Hope, Left Coast Parrot Heads and individual donations that came from members of the local community.

These events are always a huge success due to many dedicated and amazing volunteers! 2021 Bike Rodeo volunteers included members of: Bike Ventura, CHP, Camarillo Amber’s Light Lions Club, Left Coast Parrot Heads and many local community members.

Kids & Families Together (K&FT) is a nonprofit that has been serving foster/resource, adoptive, kinship, and birth families throughout Ventura County since 2000. K&FT works with children who have experienced trauma, abuse, neglect, loss, and multiple placements. K&FT also works with caregivers who need specialized education, support, and strategies to help raise safe, healthy, nurtured children who thrive.

For more information about K&FT please visit us at: https://www.kidsandfamilies.org/

To learn about all K&FT events supporting Ventura County Foster/Resource, Kinship, Adoptive, and Bio-families please visit: https://www.kidsandfamilies.org/giftaway-events/

 

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Parent and Child Together Class: Infant and Toddlers

Ventura County Library and First 5 Ventura County are proud to partner on Parent and Child Together classes for local families starting this summer. In this free 12-week class, families with infants or toddlers are invited to learn new skills together, play fun activities, and share the love of reading. “Parents are their child’s first and most important teacher. Every child comes into this world ready to learn. It’s never too early to talk, read, and sing to your child,” says Petra Puls, Executive Director of First 5 Ventura County.

Nancy Schram, Ventura County Library Director says, “By collaborating with First 5 Ventura County and other organizations that serve children from birth to age 3 and their parents, our Ventura County Libraries can make an even bigger difference in early childhood brain development. This program means our libraries will play a key role in providing equitable opportunities for all children to experience language through books and other interactions and provide support for parents who may have few or no other places they can go for help.”

In the class, parents receive a free toolkit with developmental screenings for their child, age-appropriate toys supporting early childhood development, and books exploring social and emotional competence. Librarians also partner with families to address individual needs and strengthen community connections.

Online registration began Tuesday, May 25 for the summer session of classes, which will be held during the months of June, July, and August. Parents must register using this link: bit.ly/VCLPact. The class is limited to six families per location and registration is on a first come, first served basis. If the class is full, a waiting list will be created, and interested families will be notified of any openings.
Attendance is limited and all participants must follow safety protocols in place at the time of the class – including distancing and face coverings – while in the library.

The summer session of classes will be held weekly in Ventura at:
Community Room
Housing Authority of the City of San Buenaventura
1187 Riverside Street
Ventura, CA 93001
Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.
The full class schedule may be found on the library’s online calendar of events: https://vencolibrary.org/calendar.

This class is offered in partnership with First 5 Ventura County. It is supported in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library. It is free and open to the public. For additional information, contact Antonio Apodaca, Education and Outreach Coordinator, (805) 218-3821.

Visit Olivas Adobe

When visiting Olivas Adobe, Docent Mary Thompson can show you the wonderful living quarters and provide a historical overview of the families who lived there. Enjoy an afternoon filled with California history, art, and see Ventura County’s only remaining Monterey style adobe home from the Rancho-era. Olivas Adobe will open to visitors the second Sunday of each month, May-August 2021, from 11am – 3pm.

Rubicon returns with performances at Villanova Preparatory School in Ojai.

Young performing rehearsing for live performances.

Rubicon Theatre Company announces their dramatic return to live performances with an eclectic season of three Youth Theatre shows to be performed at the outdoor amphitheater at Villanova Preparatory School in Ojai. A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shrek the Musical and Les Misérables.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream July 9th and 10th at 8p.m

Under the light of a magical midsummer moon, romance runs amok when prankster forest fairies meddle in the affairs of four young Athenians and a group of amateur actors. One of Shakespeare’s most popular comedies, this lighthearted play celebrates the capricious, dream-like and sometimes silly nature of love and desire.

Shrek The Musical, Jr. July 16th-18th at 8pm

A hilarious and joyous musical, adapted for the stage from the popular Dreamworks’ animated film about a big green ogre who ventures out of his comfort zone to discover what beauty – inner beauty – really means, and finding true love in the process.

Directed and choreographed by Cheryl Baxter-Ratcliff and George Baxter-Ratcliff with Musical Direction by Billy Thompson.

Les Misérables August 12th-15th at 8pm

This epic, enthralling musical masterpiece, set just after the French Revolution, is an enthralling story of broken dreams and unrequited love, passion, sacrifice and redemption – a timeless testament to the survival of the human spirit. The thrilling score includes “I Dreamed a Dream,” “On My Own,” “Bring Him Home,” “One Day More,” and many more.

Directed by Kirby Ward with Musical Direction by Anthony Lucca

Tickets can be purchased by visiting www.rubicontheatre.org or by calling the box office at 805-667-2900. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for children (plus service fee).

While our guest services office at Rubicon is not open for in person purchases, our guest services staff is available from 12pm-4pm Tuesdays through Saturdays via phone. Tickets are available at the door, but advance purchase is encouraged. All performances will be at Villanova Preparatory School, 12096 N. Ventura Avenue, Ojai.

Movie Stars in Ventura, a long tradition

Kevin Costner by Johanna Spinks from the Face of Ventura from the Ventura Breeze.

by Richard Senate

I was working giving tours at the Albinger Archaeological Museum that summer in the 1980s. It was a fun job and enabled me to meet people from all over the world and tell them the history of our city, as interpreted in the archaeological finds at the small museum. It was a slow day I recall when a couple came in, as was my job, I started to give them the tour pointing out the significant artifacts from the Chumash and Spanish Colonial periods. The man, had short hair, cut in a military fashion but he looked familiar. I racked my brain trying to figure out where I knew the man from. Did I go to school with him? Did we work together on some project? But, being a professional, I didn’t interrupt my tour to flat out ask him who he was. He didn’t ask a lot of questions and toured the grounds with his lady friend. Then, as he left, he signed the quest book. When he left I checked the log only to discover the familiar face belonged to the actor Tom Cruise! I walked outside to see him drive away in a big black car, with a gold grill. He waved at me as he passed. I later learned he was filming Top Gun at the time and that accounted for his haircut. But Ventura has always been a place where movie stars have visited over the year. It is a place to unwind from the rigors of Hollywood.

A list of the greats and near greats who have stopped over in our community is long.

This is but a sample:

Kevin Costner He grew up in Ventura and attended Buena High School. He considers Ventura his home town and returns from time to time.

Fatty Arbuckle, Silent clown and controversial star drove though Ventura, and on Main Street was given a ticket for speeding. He told the policeman he had once lived in Ventura for a time.

Red Grange Football hero made silent films too making his race car movie Racing Romeo at the Ventura fairgrounds. Sadly this film is now lost.

James Cagney The popular star of Hollywood’s Golden Age stayed at the Mission Hotel while doing pick up shots for the race car film The Crowd Roars They filmed this at the Ventura County fairgrounds.

Clark Gable, the uncrowned king of Hollywood’s Golden Age had dinner at the Olivas Adobe after poaching ducks on owner Max Fleishmann’s property in 1939.

Jessie “The Body” Ventura, AKA… James George Janos, Took his wrestling name from a visit to John’s at the Beach. He later became an actor and was elected Governor of his home state of Michigan

Larry Hagman also visited Ventura. Best known for his role as JR Ewing in Dallas.

John Travolta. He had his action thriller Swordfish On Main Street, downtown Ventura.

There are many others that could be listed. You may have met one or two?

Vol. 14, No. 21 – July 14 – July 27, 2021 – The Pet Page

∙ SPAN Thrift Store is now open to the public and looking for donations of adult clothing, household items and tools if you’ve got items you no longer use.
SPAN Thrift Store is providing low cost spays and neuters for low income households with cats and dogs.
There are two upcoming clinics in July.
First one will be at SPAN Thrift Store parking lot 110 N. Olive St. (behind Vons on Main) on Tuesday, July 20th, and a second one on Tuesday, July 27th at Shiells Park, in the parking lot, located at 649 C St., Fillmore, 93015..
Please call to schedule an appointment (805) 584-3823.

∙ On May 18, the City Council approved a 5-year agreement with the County of Ventura to
provide animal control services for the City of Ventura.

The City has relied on Ventura County Animal Services (VCAS) to provide animal-related
services for over 30 years.

The agreement provides animal care services, field services, rabies control, animal nuisance hearings, animal license processing, administrative citation processing, and license canvassing.

Ventura County Animal Services (VCAS) provides two types of animal control services in
the City of Ventura. Those services are identified as basic services and field services. The
basic services include services that the City is legally obligated to provide for its residents
under state law.

All the basic services are described below:
Animal Shelter Services:
Animal License Processing: The standard City of Ventura license fees are $25 for spayed or neutered animals and $105 for animals that are not.
Administrative Citation Processing: A Ventura Police Services Officer is responsible for handling any administrative appeals from citations issued by Animal Control Officers.
Animal Nuisance Hearings:
Rabies Control:

In addition to the basic services, the City pays for field services at 20 hours per week of an
animal control officer’s time. These services are:
Field Services: These services include answering calls for service, picking up dead
animals, capturing and transporting animals, investigating nuisance complaints,
investigating animal abuse and mistreatment, license compliance, and rabies control.

∙Ventura County Animal Services opened the Simi Valley Animal Shelter on Saturday, July 10th, as a holding facility only, for the reclaim and drop-off of lost/found dogs and cats. This is the next step in their phased reopening plan. Pet adoptions at this location will resume at a later date. Animals not reclaimed by their owners during their stray hold period will be transferred to the Camarillo Animal Shelter or further services and to be made available for adoption. The Simi Valley Animal Shelter will be open Tuesday – Sunday from 12:00pm – 5:00pm.

VCAS looks forward to resuming pet adoptions in the future at the Simi Valley Animal Shelter as the final step in our phased reopening plan.

∙ How often do dogs need to see the vet?

Just like you need an annual trip to the doctor for a yearly exam and some preventive screenings—so does your dog. In fact, when you commit to adopting a puppy or older dog, you’re basically signing up for regular vet visits with your pooch.

It depends on your dog’s age and health conditions, says Dr. Amy Stone, clinical assistant professor at the small animal hospital at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine. “Puppies, like human babies, go to the doctor quite a bit in their first year of life for immunizations and other young animal issues. Once they are fully immunized and probably spayed or neutered, they typically need to come in for a visit yearly,” she says.

If your dog has a health condition, they may need to be checked more often. Plus, depending upon their breed, Dr. Stone recommends starting biannual visits when your pup starts becoming more of a senior. In general, that’s over seven years for small dogs and over five years for large dogs. “Unfortunately, dog’s lifespans are much shorter, so this becomes important to keep them healthy for as long as possible,” says Dr. Stone.

What happens when my dog visits the vet?
The most important thing that happens during these vet visits is a physical exam. “That will guide the veterinarian into what other testing may be needed to monitor your dog’s health,” says Dr. Stone. Also, on the table? Blood work and parasite monitoring and any vaccines that your dog is due for at that time, along with weight and a general health assessment of your pup’s ears, eyes, teeth, belly, heart rate, coat, and a discussion of any trouble—whether health or behavioral.

What if my dog hates walking through the vet’s doors?
The best thing you can do is try and make vet visits as happy as possible. If the dog is food motivated, plan a vet visit when they’ll be hungry and then provide high-value treats–peanut butter and spray cheese–to reward staying calm and good behavior. Sometimes the different treats at the vet’s office are enough to entice a reticent dog. You can also try wearing your dog out before a vet visit. A long walk, a romp at the park, or even an hour at the dog park could tucker him out enough to keep him better behaved and less concerned at his exam. Call or go visit your veterinarian without your pet to make a plan if visits have been difficult in the past. There are also calming medications you can try for extreme cases.

Can the vet catch cancer or other problems during these visits?
Absolutely. “You certainly catch many things with regular appointment,” says Dr. Stone. “Kidney disease, endocrine issues (hypothyroidism, diabetes), and arthritis are just a few of the important diseases that can be caught early so that they are not debilitating for your canine companion,” she says.

So don’t put off your dog’s regularly scheduled exams. They’re an important part of keeping her healthy, happy, and disease-free. And visiting the vet for an exam when they’re healthy helps your pup get used to going and being handled by the veterinarian.

∙ HealthDay News- Does your teen have the family cat or dog as a nighttime sleep mate? Is that even good for a child’s sleep?

In a new study, sleeping with a four-footed friend appears to be fine for pre-teens and teens. For them, sleeping with a furry family member doesn’t appear to negatively impact sleep, according to new research from Concordia University in Montreal.

“It was a pretty rigorous study on kind of a quirky little subject, but the bottom line seemed to be that it didn’t seem to make a difference and kids were happy about having the pets with them,” said Dr. Carol Rosen, a professor emeritus in pediatrics at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland. “Of all the things to worry about, this is probably one less thing to worry about.”

An estimated 30% to 50% of children and adults regularly share their beds with pets, according to the study. Up to 75% of households with kids have pets. Those who shared a bed with their pet often reported the highest overall subjective sleep quality.

Researchers suggested that the reason may be because these kids view their pets as close friends and find their presence comforting.

“There’s a range of things that are a little bit different, why someone might have those problems if they’re toddlers, preschoolers, school age or teenagers,” Rosen said.

Though it might be okay to let a child who needs comfort bring Fido or Fifi to bed, Rosen said if a “child’s really fearful or crying at night, then you probably want to talk to your pediatrician or think about seeing a sleep medicine specialist.”

Vol. 14, No. 21 – July 14 – July 27, 2021 – Opinion/Editorial

∙ I’m sure you know by now, but in case you don’t, beginning July 5, E.J. Harrison & Sons began weekly residential curbside collection of all 3 bins; trash, household recycling, and yard waste, at no additional charge. You no longer need to alternate the weekly collections of recycling and yard waste services. This service upgrade is part of Harrison’s ongoing commitment to keep up with the rapidly evolving world of recycling on the road to zero waste. It always amazed me how many people couldn’t figure out which cans to put out, so they put out all 3 anyway.

∙ The city of Ventura has apologized for texts sent by a planner during a May 26 Planning Commission meeting considering the 72-townhome Haley Point project in midtown Ventura.

The associate planner, Jamie Peltier, was seen texting. She was communicating with an unnamed relative and city staff. In the text she wrote, “I hate the public so much,” and “They hate everything and everyone.”

In describing the Haley Point project, Peltier wrote, “What a lovely development that the community HATES (her caps).” Later, she described opponents of the project saying, “They went straight psycho.”

Ventura spokesperson Heather Sumagaysay issued an apology saying, “It is unfortunate that the employee used a personal mobile device to communicate with a family member during the meeting for communications related to the public’s business,” Sumagaysay said.

“We deeply regret this happened. This does not reflect the respect for the public to which the city is committed.”

I don’t believe texting should be allowed during meetings, unless an emergency or relevant to the proceedings. I think she should be removed from the commission or should step down.

The commission’s approval of this project was appealed to the City Council. On Monday, July 12 the Council voted 7-0 to deny the appeal so the project will slowly proceed through other city approvals as necessary to commence with the construction.

∙ Last month, 130 people died of Covid-19 in Maryland. None of them were vaccinated, according to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan. In addition, unvaccinated people made up 95% of new Covid-19 cases in the state and 93% of new Covid-19 hospitalizations, Hogan said.

The connection between vaccination status and Covid-19 is not specific to Maryland and is not limited to last month.

The new Delta coronavirus variant is focusing on the dangers of the people who haven’t been vaccinated, so go get your vaccination. Delta is more contagious, deadlier, and is quickly spreading.

Currently, the variant accounts for 1 in 4 cases in the U.S., according to estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). But that number could keep rising if vaccination rates don’t start picking up quickly enough. Among those ages 18 and up in the U.S., 57.4% are fully vaccinated, while 66.5% has received at least one shot. The life you save might be mine.

A true story. When Carmichael felt sick from side effects after her first COVID-19 vaccine, her mother Jones decided to skip hers and hope for the best.

Her family said Jones contracted the Delta variant and died June 9. They are hoping no one else has to go through what they went through and are encouraging others to get vaccinated or wear a mask and socially distance.

∙ The deadly heat wave that has devastated many parts of the country (Palm Spring’s 120, 130 in Death Valley) was impossible without human-caused climate change that added a few extra degrees to the record-smashing temperatures. An international team of 27 scientists calculated that climate change increased chances of the extreme heat occurring by at least 150 times.

Luckily, we don’t know much about heat waves in Ventura. Hot here is 75, and we complain.

∙ Bible studies: Eating shellfish and wearing a shirt with two kinds of thread are forbidden in Leviticus.

∙ Bill Cosby has been freed from prison after Pennsylvania’s highest court overturned his sexual assault conviction. Some people, including Bill Cosby, believe that he has been found innocent of his many crimes against women. This is not the case – he is just as guilty today as he was 3 weeks ago.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court said that they found an agreement with a previous prosecutor that prevented him from being charged in the case. Legal scholars say that it was the right decision because his 5th Amendment right not to incriminate himself had been violated. Attorney Erwin Chemerinsky stated, “Even those who commit despicable crimes are protected by the Constitution.” Perhaps the prosecutor who made this possible should be made to finish out Cosby’s time in prison.

∙ President Biden has signed several Executive orders that he believes will help consumers. One that could be of the most help asking the Food and Drug Administration to work with states to allow the importation of prescription drugs from Canada where they often cost a fraction of the US prices. It also deals with the fact that the 10 largest healthcare systems control a quarter of the market. It is believed that this results in higher prices and less choice for patients. There are other provisions that will help our poor health system.

∙ Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), during an interview on a conservative podcast, compared House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s decision to continue to require members of the House to wear masks on the chamber floor to steps the Nazis took to control the Jewish population during the Holocaust. Scary ain’t it that this woman is in our government?

Some House Republican leaders have condemned her incendiary remarks as well as Jewish groups aimed at the Georgia congresswoman and the party leaders’ silence.

“Marjorie is wrong, and her intentional decision to compare the horrors of the Holocaust with wearing masks is appalling,” said House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy .

∙ All K-12 public schools in Florida will hold a moment of silence at the start of the day starting next school year, according to a bill signed into law Monday by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

According to the law, principals of each public school shall require teachers in first-period classrooms in all grades to set aside at least one minute but not more than two minutes daily for the moment of silence (will teachers be required to carry stop watches?). Teachers may not make suggestions as to the nature of any reflection that a student may engage in during the moment of silence, the law states. A period of “silent prayer or meditation” was optional for school districts in the state prior to the new law.

“It’s important to be able to provide each student the ability every day to reflect and be able to pray as they see fit,” the Republican governor said before signing the bill. “The idea that you can just push God out of every institution and be successful, I’m sorry our founding fathers did not believe that.”

Regarding the separation of church and state, in his 1802 letter to the Danbury Baptist Association, Thomas Jefferson declared that when the American people adopted the establishment clause, they built a “wall of separation between the church and state.”

Kid’s that want to pray can do that at home and in church, they don’t need to do it in school, nor should they be required to do such.

∙ A 10-year-old boy died in Philadelphia on Saturday after finding a gun in his home and fatally shooting himself. Police said the boy and his 8-year-old sister found the gun in a cabinet in their home in North Philadelphia while they were alone.

According to the University of Washington, U.S. gun deaths is 100 times higher than Britain’s, and 200 times the Japan rate. Nearly 60% of gun deaths are from suicide. Women are five times more apt to be murdered by an abusive partner when the abuser has access to a gun. I doubt if anyone buys a gun thinking that they will kill themselves or their partner.