Richard Lee Schuck "Dick" born October 19, 1926 in Hazard, Kentucky, passed away at age 83 on March 8, 2010 quietly in his sleep at home in Fillmore, California. Dick struggled with emphysema for 15 years. He masked his pain with a smile and a joke.

Dick was a member of VFW of Santa Paula, he was a lifelong Mason and member of the 82nd Airborne in World War 2. He was stationed in Munich, Germany in 1945 and was part of the US liberation of Dachau concentration camp. He took pictures and those are on display at the Los Angeles Holocaust Museum. Dick was one of several veterans who were honored at the Fillmore Middle School ‘Pride in America’ assembly each year.

Dick was an adventurer and a traveler. His work took him to Iran for many years where he lived and worked for Aramco Oil. He also lived in the Philippines and Thailand.

For the last 14 years of his life he lived in the El Dorado senior community with his wife of 16 years Marion. On any given day you would see him walking his dog "Hey you" or working on his backyard making a waterfall. He loved to visit with his friends and neighbors. He really loved to brag about his children. Every holiday he would take them around to show them off.

It is difficult to capture Dick's personality in words. Every memory his loved ones have of him is with a big smile on his face and cracking a joke.

His optimistic attitude, his love of life, his great stories and his ability to befriend all those around him made him someone we will never forget.

He is survived by his wife Marion and his five children Henry, Sheva, Debra, Kimberly, Pamela and his grandchildren Shelby, Amanda and Mitchel.

All Dick’s friends are welcome to attend his memorial which will take place on Saturday, March 20, 2010 at 11am at the Fillmore Senior Center. See obituary section.

The Board of Directors of the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley is very happy to announce the appointment of Sheila Tate as the Club’s new Chief Executive Officer. Sheila’s appointment was announced Wednesday, March 10th and she will take on the permanent position effective April 7, 2010. Readers may recall that Sheila stepped into the Interim CEO position in December, 2009 when the Club was experiencing serious financial difficulties. Sheila took hold of the reigns with a firm and unswerving hand, bringing the Club back to its current condition of solvency. Services to the communities’ youth continue and the trust of the community has been restored.

The Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley is a 501(c)3 non-profit operating with a $986,000 budget, 30 employees, serving 700 children daily from six school sites and two Club locations in Fillmore and Santa Paula. Sheila has been tireless in her efforts to raise grant, corporate, and individual donations by speaking before local service groups and City Council meetings. The Club is moving forward with grant applications, collaborations with other local non-profits and anticipates a financially solid and responsible fiscal report when it ends its fiscal year in June, 2010.

Sheila has long been a contributing member in the Santa Clara Valley, participating as Rotarian with Santa Paula Rotary, and having recently closed her therapy practice on Main Street in Santa Paula. All in all, the Board feels it has made a wise decision in retaining Sheila. Donations are always encouraged at the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley and can be made by contacting the Club at 805-525-7910, or mailing a check payable to the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clara Valley at PO Box 152, Santa Paula, CA 93061-0152.

Ventura, CA – The Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation (CEDC) announces that it has been awarded $650,000 through the Federal Home Loan Bank’s (FHLB) Affordable Housing Program for a new affordable rental community CEDC is planning to build in Piru called Valle Naranjal. The FHLB award is made to a member bank which sponsors the project. In this case, Bank of America, N.A., was the member bank which received the funds and will distribute the funds to CEDC when construction on the project begins.

The $650,000 will be used toward construction costs of 65 of the 66 total rental homes in the development. One rental home in the development will be set aside for an on-site property manager and was not eligible for the FHLB funding. The project was awarded the maximum competitive subsidy of $10,000 per unit, for a total of $650,000 for the 65 rental homes.

A website noting the award is located at:
http://www.fhlbsf.com/ci/grant/ahp/grantrecipients.asp

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Fillmore Unified School District

I wanted to let you know that I have made some personnel changes that will affect Fillmore Middle School. I have promoted Mr. Todd Schieferle to work in the District Office. Mr. Schieferle will be in charge of Human Resources. Mr. Schieferle has been a counselor, a dean, and the principal at FMS and will be missed by all.

To replace Mr. Schieferle, I have asked Mrs. Tricia Godfrey to move from her position as assistant principal to become principal. Mrs. Godfrey and Mr. Schieferle have worked in partnership for two years as leaders at the school. Having Mrs. Godfrey as principal will ensure that the great progress the school has made will not be derailed with this change.

To replace Mrs. Godfrey, I have asked Mr. Scott Carroll to become the school’s assistant principal. Mr. Carroll is an excellent FMS sixth grade teacher who I know will become an outstanding assistant principal. He has been the school’s AVID and advisory coordinator this year. And, he has been the administrative designee for the past two years.

The school has made great strides under the leadership of Mr. Schieferle and Mrs. Godfrey. I know the school will continue to improve under the direction of Mrs. Godfrey and Mr. Carroll. All three will begin their transition to their new positions after our spring break. I look forward to seeing each assume their new job responsibilities and witnessing great things in the future.

Sincerely,

Jeff Sweeney, Superintendent

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Councilmember Brooks’ statement: "I have a different view of our sewer plant venture. I believe the decision to add a twenty six million dollar water recycling system was a poor choice with a costly result. It was an unneccessary component which has hiked up our sewer rates. Many citizens think that our sewer system project should have been vigorously streamlined in order to keep sewer rates down. As I listen to the reactions of the public I find that the majority of Fillmore citizens feel that our new sewer system has been overplanned and overbuilt at the expense of our wallets for decades to come. The cost to consumers is just too high."

Project of the Year
A presentation was made by Chris Hook of APWA, for the Fillmore Water Recycling Program, which was selected as the Ventura County American Public Works Association (APWA) project of the year in the Wastewater and Water category. In addition APWA selected the Fillmore project to represent all Ventura County Public Agency projects as the Project of the Year at the National Engineers Week Banquet at the Reagan Library on Thursday, February 18th. Public Works Director Bert Rapp was present to accept the honor.

Hook stated that the Fillmore project was selected because of an innovative management approach and due to its many unique characteristics. For example the "Design-Build-Operate" procurement process helped assure that the plant was as efficient and economical as possible. It also included an exacting quality assurance program so that the plant would have low maintenance costs for 20 years.

Another unique aspect was that the project included about 20 acres of CONTINUED »

In 2009, the Fillmore Police Department applied for and just received a one time payment of $21,600 in JAG money to help offset operating costs in the City Police Gang Unit. The money has been provided at a critical time when police services are needed most.

The Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Program is a partnership among federal, state and local governments to create safer communities. The JAG was created in 2004 by Congress to streamline justice funding and grant administration. JAG allows states and local governments to support a broad range of activities to prevent and control crime based on their own local needs and conditions.

The Byrne Justice Assistance (JAG) Program, administered by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), is the leading source of federal justice funding to state and local jurisdictions. The JAG Program provides states, tribes, and local governments with critical funding necessary to support a range of program areas including law enforcement, prosecution and court, prevention and education, corrections and community corrections, drug treatment and enforcement, planning, evaluation, and technology improvement, and crime victim and witness initiatives.

BJA supports law enforcement, courts, corrections, treatment, victim services, technology, and prevention initiatives that strengthen the nation’s criminal justice system. BJA provides leadership, services, and funding to America’s communities by: Emphasizing local control; Building relationships in the field; Provide training and technical assistance in support of efforts to prevent crime, drug abuse, and violence at the national, state, and local levels; Developing collaborations and partnerships; Promoting capacity building through planning; Streamlining the administration of grants; Increasing training and technical assistance; Creating accountability of projects; Encouraging innovation; and Communicating the value of justice efforts to decision makers at every level.

Fillmore Unified School District

Trustees of the Fillmore Unified School District questioned two candidates who want to fill the vacant seat left by former Board Member David Dollar on the board Tuesday night.

The two applicants, Mike Saviers and Scott Lee, answered six questions from a list supplied by board members before a large crowd at the FUSD Headquarters. The process Tuesday started with an overview of District policy for making a provisional appointment. They then discussed the interview process and the questions.

The candidates were asked: Why do you think you are qualified to be a board member? Lee said he's a registered voter and has lived in Fillmore for quite a few years. His children attended Fillmore schools and he was involved in the Middle School Site Council. Saviers said he's lived here for nine years and has mid-management experience from his years in law enforcement. He retired from law enforcement and has worked as a substitute teacher in the elementary schools and was a school bus driver for two years.

Why do you want to be on the board? Saviers responded by saying that he's been a volunteer for the last seven years in youth sports and he likes to make a difference in children's lives. Lee said, “I'd like to help the board fill the gap until December. I haven't been away from the school board that long. I wouldn't have to be trained to be a board member.”

In light of challenges facing public CONTINUED »