SEEAG teaches kids how to grow vegetables while learning healthy eating habits.

For the second year, Students for Eco-Education and Agriculture (SEEAG) is hosting its “Let’s Grow A Garden”–an at-home garden program for students in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties that teaches kids how to grow vegetables while learning healthy eating habits and proper nutrition.

“A garden gives kids a sense of accomplishment as they care for their plants and then harvest their crops. They also come to appreciate the role of our local farmers and the importance of eating healthy,” says Mary Maranville, SEEAG’s founder and CEO.

To help start their gardens, Agromin, an Oxnard-based manufacturer of earth-friendly soil products, composts and mulches made from recycled organic materials, is giving away 4-quart bags of potting soil to Let’s Grow A Garden participants. The bags (one per child) are available at Agromin (201 Kinetic Drive, Oxnard) April 19 through Aprils 23, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the Agromin parking lot.

Plantel Nurseries will be giving away vegetable seedlings on Earth Day (April 22) at Agromin as well. When picking up soil and seeds, follow all social distancing and other rules posted on site.

Nutrition and agriculture program lessons are on SEEAG’s website with new lessons posted every Monday beginning May 3. Also on the site is Information about local agriculture and links to where families can order seeds and gardening materials online.

A Let’s Grow A Garden e-newsletter with product giveaway details and more “ag-tivities” is sent out weekly through August. E-newsletter article topics include how to plant vegetables from seed, container gardening for small spaces, and selecting the right plants and soil. Register to receive the newsletter by going to www.seeag.org/signup.

The program will also feature a weekly garden photo contest where students submit photos (#letsgrowagarden2021) of their gardens with the chance to win garden-themed prizes.

No registration is required. Let’s Grow a Garden is for elementary school teachers, students and their families. For more, go to www.seeag.org/letsgrowagarden2021. To learn about SEEAG, go to www.SEEAG.org.

Founded in 2008, Students for Eco-Education and Agriculture (SEEAG) is a nonprofit organization that aims to help young students understand the origins of their food by bridging the gap between agriculture and consumption through its agricultural education programming. SEEAG’s “The Farm Lab” program based in Ventura County teaches schoolchildren about the origins of their food and the importance of local farmland by providing schools with classroom agricultural education and free field trips to farms. Its Child Wellness Initiative in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties educates, inspires and empowers children to eat healthy by adding locally grown fruits and vegetables to their diet to help ward off childhood obesity that could lead to diabetes. Through these and other SEEAG programs, over 60,000 elementary school students in Central and Southern California have increased their understanding of the food journey. For more information, visit www.seeag.org or email Mary Maranville at [email protected].

“Our classified employees often work behind the scenes”

With his trademark “Ask Me” button showcasing his helpful attitude, Ventura College’s Alwin Sauers Jr. has been named the 2021 Ventura County Community College District Classified Employee of the Year. The VCCCD bestows this honor in accordance with the California Community Colleges (CCC) Board of Governors, who will now consider Sauers for the CCC statewide award. The award recognizes classified professionals who positively influence countless lives by showing the utmost commitment to our community colleges, by upholding professional ethics and standards and by serving the community with purpose and passion. They embody the best of California’s community colleges.

Fellow VCCCD Classified Employee of the Year nominees included Thomas “Tommy” Arellano of Moorpark College, and Gabriela Rodriguez of Oxnard College.

“Our classified employees often work behind the scenes, yet they play a critical role in helping VCCCD students achieve their academic and professional goals,” said Board Chair Joshua Chancer. “All three candidates are outstanding employees who reflect the District’s focus on serving students, and we are thrilled to have Alwin represent the District at the state level.”

Arellano is the athletic equipment manager at Moorpark College. He is known for his unlimited skills and contributions to the athletic department during his 39 years with the District.

Rodriguez is the student activities specialist for Oxnard College. For the past five years, she has served students and staff with a passion that is imperative to maintaining OC’s high-quality enrichment and academic offerings.

“Gaby focuses on students with every breath she takes. In all her interactions at the college, Gaby is conscientious, strives for success and is fired up to participate. … She does all of this with her characteristic boundless energy and drive to make OC a special place to study and work for everyone,” noted Dr. Oscar Cobain, vice president of student development, in the nomination.

Sauers is a custodian at Ventura College and Ventura College East Campus, where his focus for over seven years has been on serving students. Sauers is an ever-present fixture on the campuses, making him a VC and VCEC ambassador available to help students. With his “Ask Me” button and gentle demeanor, every student feels comfortable asking him for assistance. As an essential worker, Sauers takes special care in guaranteeing the cleanliness of the campuses during the pandemic and always.

“Alwin Sauers Jr. is special. He is a mensch, a good man, who does his job and then some with a true commitment to all the students that we serve. When his name comes up in a discussion or meeting, the response from everyone is always the same: we smile and sing his praises. Alwin is truly deserving of this honor,” wrote Susan Royer, college services supervisor, in Sauers’ nomination.

Up to six recipients will be honored as California Community Colleges Classified Employee of the Year at the May 2021 Board of Governors meeting, where they will receive a $750 cash award and a plaque.

The owners are looking to reopen in a nearby location.

by Richard Lieberman

Player’s Casino in Ventura has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on April 6^th. Player’s Poker Club Inc. announced the firm has debts amounting to 3.5 million dollars, but cash on-hand and investments only total 3 million dollars according to U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Santa Barbara.

The “Players Casino” sign at the front of the building has been removed. The casino was located at 6580 Auto Center Drive. The parking lot now stands empty. The casino was opened on this site and has remained on the site for the past 11 years.

Michael Kogan, attorney for the gambling center said “the owners are looking to reopen in a nearby location. Casino owners commented that they are optimistic they can re-open safely and make money once the state lifts all Covid-19 restrictions,” Kogan added.

Since the pandemic restrictions went into effect in March, 2020, the casino’s business took a major hit in revenues. The company grossed $16.4 million in revenue in 2019, before the pandemic, compared with $3.9 million last year.

Property owners of the casino site and the casino owners are locked in a stalemate over the rent before the casino filed for bankruptcy and vacated the property, leaving it in disarray reported Michael Case an attorney for the property owners. He also said, “the casino had renewed the lease last fall for another five years and he doesn’t understand why the case is in bankruptcy court. The casino has plenty of money to pay its debts as they become due” he added

Mayor Sofia Rubalcava shared with the team that she is a native Venturan.

ECTV Students in the award-winning El Camino High School media program recently interviewed Ventura Mayor Sofia Rubalcava in the CAPS Media studio. The discussion covered a variety of topics with particular emphasis on racism. Ms. Rubalcava shared with the team that she is a native Venturan who attended Sheridan Way Elementary, De Anza Middle School and Ventura High School, and continued her education at UC Santa Barbara. Raised on the west side of Ventura, Ms. Rubalcava the first Latinx mayor of the city.

Her candid discussion with the teenagers about growing up in the area and discussing racism, part of an ongoing series, was highly informative and enlightening. “Mayor Rubalcava was friendly, open to our questions and made sure everyone was included in the discussion on racism,” said Ruby Intner, a senior in the ECTV program. “I learned a lot about her growing up in Ventura and her experiences on the Westside.” The mayor after spending time in deep discussion said “I’m so impressed with these students’ thoughtful courageous discussions about issues like racism. These are issues we didn’t discuss in high school. Seeing them with such knowledge and passion gives hope for the future.”

ECTV is part of the Ventura Unified School District’s Digital Broadcast Media program. The ECTV crew takes over the CAPS Media Center every week to write, produce, direct and edit video and audio programs covering topics of interest to themselves, other students and the community.

Mentor/Instructor/Media guru Phil Taggart is the wizard behind the socially-distanced curtain, directing the program. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic the ECTV students have continued to produce programming utilizing all COVID protocols.

This is the fourth year of the VUSD/CAPS Media ECTV collaboration. Graduates of the program have gone on to study all aspects of media production in colleges throughout the state.

The wide-ranging and engaging interview with Mayor Rubalcava will air on CAPS Media, Channel 15 and on the CAPS Media website, capsmedia.org, as well as on the ECTV social media sites.

ECTV and CAPS Media producers gathered another set of well-deserved awards at the 2021 WAVE Awards. W.A.V.E. stands for Western Access Video Excellence. The awards contest is open to media cent

er members of California, Nevada, Colorado, Hawaii, New Mexico and Arizona.

This year’s WAVE Award winners from CAPS Media are ECTV (El Camino TV) for “ECTV – Mental Health” in the Community Issues Youth category, “ECTV at the Agricultural Museum” in the Culture and Lifestyle Youth category. ECTV for “ECTV – Confronting Cancer” in the Magazine Youth category, and CAPS MediaaCenter for “Ready for Wildfires 2020” in the Instructional/Training Videos Professional category. This year’s awards increase the CAPS Media members and staff collection of WAVE Awards to more than 50 over the past decade. Congratulations to all the honorees and winners for the outstanding productions.

Due to the COVID-19 emergency the CAPS Media Center is closed to Members and the public until further notice. We do not expect to reopen the facility to the public until after herd immunity is achieved. We encourage everyone to get the vaccine as soon as it is available to you.

During the shutdown, CAPS Member/Producers can submit programming via the online portal at capsmedia.org for broadcast and streaming on CAPS public access television Channel 6 and on CAPS Radio KPPQ 104.1FM.

All of us at CAPS Media hope everyone stays Safe, Strong, Socially Distant and Healthy during these very challenging times.

This is a book about Doug Halter’s fight to live with HIV, his family and his love for Ventura.

by Staci Brown

“You’d be expected to survive around 6 months, maybe a little longer if luck is on your side.” This was what Doug heard in 1987. Miraculously, with the help of Dr. Scott Hitt, he went on AIDs cocktails and continues to live today. Sadly, his boyfriend Randy Morrison wasn’t so lucky.

This is a book about Doug Halter’s fight to live with HIV, his family, his loves and his impressive careers leading up to purchasing and renovating homes and becoming a well-known landscaper. He got his first landscaping job at age 15 and eventually was able to do what he was passionate about. “I got an adrenaline rush as we neared completion and the original vision had come together”, he said after one of his first big jobs.

Although Doug had a rocky relationship with his father, Doug has demonstrated great warmth, kindness and honesty with the many, many friendships he has developed in life. He had a great mentor in Grandpa Salvatore who taught him all there was to know about plants, flowers, trees, seeds and gardening. He looked up to his grandfather and has very good memories of being with lots of family members at the Santa Cruz house where grandma and grandpa lived up until the earthquake. Doug ended up buying that house and rebuilding a new one where they have great family reunions. Doug met Randy Encinas coincidentally at the same place he met his previous Randy, and after a slow start, they became partners, eventually being able to marry in a grand ceremonial style at the Botanical Gardens in 2013 which is appropriate considering Doug was instrumental in the vision and opening of the gardens.

Doug stated “I wrote this book to share my life journey and all the unexpected challenges and triumphs; not unlike most others but the success I achieved through it all by having the courage to be the person God created me to be and knowing that every day is a gift to be used to make a difference and to develop and use our own unique potential to make the greatest contributions to our community and society.”

Read more in Doug’s book along with his plans for the city. I agree with every one of his plans and I am grateful that Doug has finally taken a well-deserved seat at the Ventura City Council. Congratulations!!

I hope these dreams come true. Doug has done so much for this city. Besides the Botanical Gardens vision, he bought the church that became the Rubicon Theater and brought exceptional theater to this town, and oh, so much more which you will find out about when you read his book.

And Doug has the greatest collection of photos in his book. You can see young Doug and how handsome he has remained, as well as both Randys’ as well as his brother, sister, grandparents, parents, family, houses, friends, landscaping and Ventura! It is a delight to look at this treasure, young and old.

I am very excited to see what the future holds and I am glad I got to know Doug better in this wonderful book.

You can purchase the book directly from Doug at [email protected].