Part of National Hunger and Homelessness Week
by Jill Forman

“The days are long and the nights are cold.”
 ~ Christine Chalquist, formerly homeless

Jamie didn’t want to leave the Vagabond Coffee Shop.  “It’s nice to be inside,” he said. “Thank you very much.  It’s like going on a trip and looking out the window, so pleasant.  Makes people like us feel normalized”

Jamie and his friend Sean were there as part of the third Take a Hungry Person to Lunch Day.  Sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist Church of Ventura, the event partners those in need of a meal with others who want to provide them one.  More important, the participants sit down to lunch together and talk, sometimes for hours.

About 40 folks showed up at the church in the late morning, were greeted by Reverend Dana Worsnop , and heard from Sue Brinkmeyer and Kathy Powell, the organizers of the event  through the church’s Lift Up Your Voice program.  “The holiest work we do,” said Reverend Dana, is human depth of meeting.”

Christine Chalquist, a former corporate VP who was on the streets for years, shared her experiences.  She emphasized how difficult it is to get out of homelessness when there is no place to sleep, shower, use a phone etc.    “You can’t get ahead.”  She was helped by doing service for others at the Harbor Church, and is currently housed and employed.  “You feel beat up,” she said, “Less than.  Every day.”

The group also heard from Macheel, who describes herself and living “on the fringe of homelessness;” she is trying to hang in there until she and her daughter finish school.  She also credits the Harbor Church program for helping her, and giving her a place to volunteer and be of use.

As Chalquist also said, homeless folks want something to do and a way to give to others.  She now volunteers with the UU Church’s Park Outreach program, taking clothing, blankets, and personal care items.

After some logistical instructions, and a blessing by Rev. Dana, the group drove to two local parks.  There were a few difficulties – some of the people were initially reluctant – but everyone found lunch partners.

At the Habit, Mario was having lunch with Andrea and her father Al.  They had read about the event in the Breeze.  They were learning about Mario, who is “an entrepreneur and a scholar” according to Al.

Also at the Habit were Rev. Dana, Woody and Jim.  Woody said the subject of their discussion was, “Me being an idiot.”  (He gave permission to quote that.)

Down the street at the Vagabond, Ronnie, Maura and Dave were talking about “life on the street.”  Jim, Janette, Don and Suzanne were discussing what benefits are available (Jim worked for the county.)  A few other groups were chatting amiably and enjoying large quantities of food.  The Vagabond staff knows many of the homeless by name; the owner, Jolene, came out to greet the customers personally.

Jamie and Sean were discussing “taking over the world” with Sally and Alan.  Sean is looking forward to getting his retirement soon and being able to afford a place to live.  Jamie is full of praise for the agencies that help him, from the One-Stop drop-in center, to the people at the UU church, to the local police – especially one officer who gave him a bike when his was stolen.  Though they have many tales of the difficulties of street life, it doesn’t seem to have made them bitter.

As Sally said, looking across the table at her new friends, “Everybody deserves a good meal.”

Engage and inform
by Elizabeth Rodeno

Time is flying by here at CAPS Media Center. Members are busily producing shows, some aiming for the holiday season, which is coming up quickly. As a preview of the season of giving, it is always heartwarming to hear the stories from the homeless and helpless to the sheltered and hopeful. Last week, one of Project Understandings’ success stories shared his story about getting a hand up.  Martin was honored at Project Understanding’s Annual dinner event. We also spent time learning about the Ventura County Bar’s Legal Aid program. This time it’s about lawyers coming together to support those who need to help navigate the legal system. CAPS Media works our magic to produce powerful videos sharing transformative stories. Our door is open to come produce your own or have us create one for you.

The non-profit CAPS Media Center’s mission is to create an engaged and informed community through participation in electronic media.  Our mission for the soon to launch CAPS Radio falls in there as well. We are gearing up for the launch of our low power FM station, KPPQ-LP 104.1FM, the hyper local station with programs that will share interesting and uplifting stories. Our members’ goal will be to engage, educate and entertain. More information will found on our website. Stand by to air.

Peoples’ voices are never more important than today. Our manadate is to support the first amendment and ensure everyone can have a voice. Our voices are varied and many. Watch channel 6 to hear what the public has to say and watch channel 15 to experience the city’s vision to provide the best and clearest information for all. As we now stream through our website, our reach is much greater.

Ventura County Community Councils and others have had the opportunity to visit the media center and learn how our local councils can use our facilities to broaden their reach at the local level. Schools, teachers, girl scouts, churches and youth groups come for tours and think this place is really cool.

Go to www.capsmedia.org to see what our members are creating for you and sign up to be part of the story. For only $25 a year you get it all.

Guests were having fun with photo props and champagne while waiting for their spa treatments at the 2nd Annual Breast Cancer Spa Night  October 26th The event was held at Jessica’s Nail and Spa in Ventura

Over 60 women who are breast cancer survivors and current fighters came out to receive a free manicure or pedicure, champagne, finger food and free goody bag.

The entire event was paid for by Assisted Home Health and Hospice

The community Liaisons who put on the event were Whitney LaBrie and Deanna Leslie.

The County of Ventura Grand Jury is an all-volunteer group serving as an independent agent of the public to investigate complaints from the public pertaining to government agencies in our community.    Is your organization interested in hearing about these investigative duties and procedures?  The Grand Jury Speakers Bureau is available to educate the public in its endeavors as the “public watchdog” for Ventura County. To learn more or schedule a date for a presentation, please call the Grand Jury at 477-1600 or  http://www.ventura.org/grand-jury.

A team of scientists recently unearthed an exceptionally well preserved fossil of a complete mammoth skull from an eroding stream bank on Santa Rosa Island.

The team, consisted of retired National Park Service archaeologist Don Morris,  Mammoth Site paleontologist Justin Wilkins and Monica Bugbee.

“This mammoth find is extremely rare and of high scientific importance. It appears to have been on the Channel Islands at the nearly same time as humans,” Wilkins said.

Geologists at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have dated charcoal samples adjacent to the specimen to approximately 13,000 years old. The dating is significant since this time period coincides with the age of Arlington Man, the oldest human skeletal remains in North America, also found on Santa Rosa Island.

It is believed that the Columbian mammoths migrated to the Channel Islands during the past two ice ages when sea levels were lower and the island land mass was closer to the mainland coast.

Channel Islands National Park Superintendent Russel Galipeau said, “One of the purposes of the park is to provide scientific value. This project is a great example of a multidisciplinary collaboration to learn about the prehistory of the park.”

The mammoth specimen was first discovered in September 2014 by National Park Service biologist Peter Larramendy, who noticed an ivory tusk protruding from gravel sediment in the canyon wall while he was conducting a stream study.

by Sheli Ellsworth

On October 18, Rincon-Vitova Insectaries won the international 2016 Regenerative Business Prize at the Regenerative Business Summit in Seattle Washington. Founded in 1959 by entomologist Everett Dietrick who passed away in 2008, the company is located at 108 Orchard Drive, just outside the Ventura city limits. RVI pioneered the commercial production of biological controls in pest management and produces, imports and distributes natural enemies for the control of pests like houseflies, beetles, mites, whitefly, grubs, moths, snails, and many others. pests. They also supply beneficial organisms like nematodes (to control pests that live in the soil) and microbials to kickstart soil biology. They are very active promoting living soil, because an acre of healthy living soil has six tons of microbes digesting wastes, protecting roots, sequestering carbon dioxide,  opening up soil structure and conserving water. They also sell  botanicals like orange oil and hot pepper extract to control pests. RVI offers technical support for the use of their products as well as educational materials about composting, organic gardening, and protecting pollinators.

RVI serves thousands of large and small farms, home gardens, nurseries, green houses, landscape and interior plantscapers, livestock and composting operations, stables, hotels and resorts, zoos, botanical gardens, government agencies, many research institutions, and private residences.

Everett taught that the key to pest management is understanding the behavior and life cycle of pests and of the beneficials that attack them. “Often the most effective strategy does not require the purchase of products. It requires knowledge of how to integrate features of crop rotation, variety, fertility, tillage, irrigation, insect attractant, and habitat management that can make a big difference in the ratio of good bugs to bad.” Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is not just one thing; it is a series of activities, which fosters natural enemies to keep pests within tolerable limits. IPM uses pesticides only as a last resort.

The company, operated by a dozen employees, occupies one acre of land, has $1.3 million in gross sales and ships millions of bugs all over the continental US. The biggest obstacle to their business is the competition from the marketing of chemical pesticides. Since insects cannot be patented and have relatively short life cycles, “success depends on expert guidance for the customer to set up a program.” RVI’s licensed pest control advisor, Ron Whitehurst, says that as farmers move from chemical toward biological farming they need a broader ecological regenerative mindset Trends related to global warming and the potential of biological agriculture to pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere has increased the company’s sales. At present, about half the company’s business is concentrated on fly control and the remainder on field crops, orchards, zoos, botanical gardens and conservatories.

Rincon-Vitova also supports training projects of the Dietrick Institute for Applied Insect Ecology and a subsidiary company produces the D-Vac Vacuum Insect Net used for monitoring the insect ecology on farmscapes and landscapes. Go to http://www.rinconvitova.com for information and newsletters.