2019 Scholarship Award Winners Annika Kinnaman, Bryce Weinell and Labiba Sardar.

The Ventura Police Officers’ Association (VPOA) is pleased to announce the winners of the 16th annual Dee Dowell Memorial Scholarship. The scholarships are to honor Sergeant Darlon “Dee” Dowell, who was shot and killed on August 7, 1978. Sergeant Dowell is the only officer in Ventura’s history to die in the line of duty.

In selecting scholarship recipients, the VPOA considered academic achievement, school and community service, financial needs, and the following requirements:

Applicants must:

• Be entering his/her freshman through senior year in college;

• Plan a course of study related to the field of public service;

• Ventura resident or have graduated from a high school in Ventura within the past three years, or a Ventura Police Department employee or employee’s child.

• Have a grade point average of 3.0 or better (based on a 4.0 system);

• Maintain a grade point average of 3.0 or better if selected as a recipient;

• Submit a resume of school and community activities, including a copy of transcripts through the most recent semester;

• Submit an essay of 1000 words or less on “Service, what it means to me”;

• Submit a letter of reccommendation from a public servant.

1st Place $5,000.00 Annika Kinnaman

2nd Place $3,500.00 Bryce Weinell

3rd Place $2,000.00 Labiba Sardar

The VPOA would like to thank all of the applicants and congratulate the 2019 winners of the Dee Dowell Memorial Scholarship!

“Be honest, be safe, and look forward to each day.” –Sgt Dee Dowell

Surf instructor Anthony Corral shares a wave with Natalie Fruit at the International Surf Day event. Photo by Joshua Berman

by Amy Brown

The Surfrider Foundation Ventura County recently hosted a day on the beach at Surfer’s Point for the 15^th annual International Surfing Day event. The focus was raising awareness of the importance of clean oceans, and celebrating the love of surfing. This global event was founded by the Surfrider Foundation, and brings communities together to enjoy coastal recreation and raise awareness of urgent threats to the coasts. The Surfrider Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world’s ocean, waves and beaches through a powerful network.

Founded in 1984 by a group of surfers in Malibu, the Surfrider Foundation today has more than a million supporters, activists and members. “We chose this day to celebrate what we protect all year round,” said Laura Oergel, Chapter Chair of the Ventura County Surfrider Foundation. “We’re environmental activists; we work hard to support our community, and this is a day for fun and outreach for our grassroots, volunteer-run national organization.” The Ventura event included yoga on the beach, a paddle out, surfing lessons from Pure Stoke, and a raffle for a free wetsuit donated by Patagonia, with tickets available for anyone bringing in a wetsuit to be recycled by Suga, a company that converts donated wetsuits into yoga mats.

Oergel reported that the local Surfrider chapter has been serving the community since 1991, helping protect the environment in a variety of ongoing ways. Since 2016, the chapter has installed over 100 ashcans with “Hold Onto Your Butts” emblazoned on them, which serve dual purposes—keeping cigarette butts disposed of and then actually recycled, as a company called Terracycle makes things like benches out of them. One such green bench can be seen on the promenade near the Ventura pier playground. The Surfrider members also participate in water quality testing with the Foundation’s Blue Water Task Force, a volunteer-run, water testing, education and advocacy program which measure bacteria levels at both marine and freshwater beaches and compare them to federal water quality standards established by the EPA to protect public health in recreational waters.

This year, the Surfrider Foundation partnered with local non-profit pure Stoke Surf Club to raise awareness of environmental responsibility while enjoying and respecting the ocean. Zora Wolter is the founder of the organization, and she and her team of volunteers were busy during the event, offering tandem surfing lessons for kids. The organization develops free, year-round community surf programs for kids with diverse backgrounds and abilities, including underserved communities. Wolter shared that in the past she had been involved with other surf therapy organizations, and recalled that during one of them, a participant was so jubilant that he told her ‘This is the best day of my year!’ She said “That made me so sad! We should definitely be out here far more often offering this to kids.” So, she launched the pure Stoke club in Ventura in 2018, and since then, they have offered nearly 500 monthly surf lessons to kids at C street, as well as a location in Rosarito, Mexico, all taught by local surfers.

Ventura is an almost implausible mix of the magical and the mundane. Photo by Bernie Goldstein

by Visit Ventura.

Imagine a town tousled by sea breezes, a town that drifts, well, sea breeze easy under the radar, a place where the days end with the sun slipping behind purpling islands, a place where play matters (greatly), and the happy din of art galleries, boutique shops, breweries and restaurants really is happy.

If you live in Ventura, you already know you can save your imagination for something else.

Ventura is an almost implausible mix of the magical and the mundane. Pump your gas at certain gas stations and you can gaze out to Anacapa and Santa Cruz islands as you squeegee your windshield. It comes as no surprise that many holiday-goers decide to head out to the beautiful destination of Santa Cruz to enjoy a fun-filled break. Who wouldn’t? They may even decide to have a look at something like these Surf City Rentals vacation rentals to use during their stay. It would be a great way to start their vacation off right. And maybe that’s the trick, the sleight of hand that sees some of us forget that we live in a place where folks vacation. It could be argued that our lives are a vacation, with work, chores and errands thrown in. It’s a nice feeling. A happy contentment that brings a smile at unexpected times. Bhutan coined the term gross national happiness, but Venturans don’t need it defined.

Visitors are drawn to this. Not just our town’s obvious largesse — surf, sun, kaleidoscopic culture, and simple pleasures like a good laugh over a cold beer — but also, less visible, this sense of contentment and even unshakeable confidence. Ventura is a very special place.

Regarding the matter of visitors, they are important to our town. Critical. Why does tourism matter? Well, there are scrolling reams of financial figures illustrating the benefits of tourism — 2.7 million visitors spent 289 million dollars in Ventura in 2017 and generated $8.4 million in local tax revenue — but honestly, though figures matter, you’ve probably forgotten these three already. What you haven’t forgotten is the warm smile of the local coffee shop owner who might not be smiling across the counter at you were it not for the visitors who also line up for their turn at a flaky croissant. Tourism creates roughly 2,600 jobs in Ventura. And the spillover effects of tourism seep into almost everything in our town; our agriculture, our fire and police, our roads, our schools. It doesn’t take an MBA to know that these things matter. Safe to say that tourism hums quietly behind many scenes.

And, from a resident’s standpoint, the best thing about tourism can’t be notched as a figure. Tourism keeps us as we are. Visit Ventura, charged with promoting our town, targets the kind of visitor Ventura wants; visitors who care about Ventura, who appreciate the beauty of Ventura, and, here’s the important part, people who want to see Ventura stay the special place it is.

Promoting Ventura as a vacation destination might seem an easy job, like offering honey to Pooh, but the truth is it’s a competitive world. There are over 100 tourism offices in California alone, and we lucky Venturans know many of the beauties and charms they offer. Los Angeles, On paper Visit Ventura is a nonprofit funded by the city, tasked with promoting Ventura’s charms to the world beyond Ventura County. In real life, Visit Ventura is eight people (not including energetic volunteers) who live here and carry the town in their hearts. Which is where the things that matter reside.

Life is about moments — even a squeegee counts — and there are only so many. Ventura is a very special place, and all of us, residents and visitors, are lucky to have a moment here.

Alex Wulff is passionate about teaching advancements in media and fabrication technologies.

by Amy Brown

The Ventura Education Partnership (VEP) recently held its first annual LAUNCH event at the Ventura Masonic Center. The program celebrated Ventura school district educators who have spearheaded a range of successful, innovative learning opportunities for students. “With the exponential rate of change today, life-long learning is no longer optional,” said Dave Armstrong, Vice President of Innovation for VEP and VUSD parent. “LAUNCH celebrates a few of Ventura’s many amazing teachers who are constantly learning and expanding education beyond the four walls of the classroom.” LAUNCH raises funds for VEPGrants, providing VUSD teachers with funding for unique and groundbreaking projects.

A large audience comprised of local business community and academic leaders were treated to a presentation that included three local Ventura educators who introduced their popular new academic projects. Poinsettia Elementary Principal Elisabeth Denger-Harris shared an inspiring overview of the successful Sensory Path launched at her school, designed to calm, encourage, and engage students throughout the day. The path winds throughout the school itself, and consists of brightly colored, interactive artwork that combines action, thought and play.

Kelly Herrera, AP Literature and AP Language teacher at Buena High, presented on her groundbreaking Teach Living Poets project, a movement that was created to bring livings poets into classrooms, via Skype and video, to make poetry more accessible and engaging.  “There’s no teachers’ manual,” said Hererra. “As we dive in, I’m diving in along with the students. It’s making me vulnerable with them, and getting out of my comfort zone makes me a stronger teacher, and our students deserve that.”

Students at DATA Middle School are finding cool new methods with which to engage in advanced design methodologies. Alex Wulff is a teacher and entrepreneur at DATA, and is passionate about teaching advancements in media and fabrication technologies. He spoke about Ventura’s non-profit student-led “STEMbassador” program, focusing on Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, and how these students develop practical, standards-based curriculum for teachers to use for a variety of applied STEM technologies. These include CAD-based CNC-routers, laser engravers, and 3D printers—his points were amplified in real time while he spoke, as behind him a 3D printer made a small, detailed plastic frog. He was enthusiastic about the difference this program has been making in students’ academic lives. “Students started creating works of art, really, it hurt your heart, it was so beautiful,” said Wulff.

According to LAUNCH, following the event, which was videoed, the stories shared will live on to influence others, through social media. The plan is for the collection of videos to continue to grow over time to facilitate more peer to peer sharing, learning and collaboration.