WawonaNews.com - November 2012
Wawona School Clean Up
Your assistance would be greatly appreciated in deep cleaning the Wawona School.
Mainly all of the books and materials need to be
removed from the shelves and wiped down. The more people available the easier this task will be.
The current clean-up schedule is as follows:
Wednesday November 7th after school (starting at 3:30)
Thursday November 8th during school from 9:30-3:30
Thank you for your continued support of the Wawona School!
Mainly all of the books and materials need to be
removed from the shelves and wiped down. The more people available the easier this task will be.
The current clean-up schedule is as follows:
Wednesday November 7th after school (starting at 3:30)
Thursday November 8th during school from 9:30-3:30
Thank you for your continued support of the Wawona School!
Pumpkin art at the Wawona Hotel
For the past 5 years Wawona Hotel has hosted a Pumpkin Carving contest for the employees. This has been the most successful year with the best creative competitive works of art we have ever seen. There were more then 150 votes throughout the night on Halloween. First place was awarded to Max Fantel and his creepy pumpkin with the hand. Second place was awarded to Lisa McKee with the memorial of her German Shepherd, who was also born on Halloween. Third place was awarded to Kathleen Krueger and her Alien Babies eating the guts out of a pumpkin body. The most creative was awarded to Anthony Hanson and his Disco Witch. We had several pumpkins tie for a fourth placement. Each associate had a blast creating their works of art and showing it off to the public. I have hosted the last 5 competitions and I have never seen so much excitement coming from the staff. We hope to have many more successful pumpkin competitions in the future.
Lisa McKee
Click on the thumbnails to enlarge
Lisa McKee
Click on the thumbnails to enlarge
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Lewis' memorial - October 29th
About eighty people attended Lewis' memorial yesterday in the Redwoods' clubhouse. Yvonne has graciously provided these photos for everyone who wasn't able to attend.
Guests at Lewis' memorial.
(click to enlarge)
Board Member Tim Finster greeting everyone.
(click to enlarge)
The Tempongko Family from Redondo Beach. They've been coming to The Redwoods for over 47 years.
(click to enlarge)
LeEtta up front, Burel - random shot. (click to enlarge)
LeEtta, on left. (click to enlarge)
Lynn Becker, Pat Sischo and Paul DeSantis
(click to enlarge)
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Donna reading a letter from one of Lewis' sisters - Leslie. That is the back of LeEtta's head on the right.
(click to enlarge)
Burel (stagecoach driver), Marvin (DNC Wawona Hotel Maintenance), and guest. (click to enlarge)
The table set up with guest book, the photo ablum that was on the table was making it's way around for viewing. (click to enlarge)
Burrel "Buckshot" Maier with Pat and Norman May
(click to enlarge)
LeEtta outside with her friends and George
(click to enlarge)
Childhood friend of Lewis', even had pictures of them when they were 8 years old. (click to enlarge)
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After 35-foot fall, Wawona Hotel worker healing
By PATTY GUERRA - [email protected]
It started as a plan to save money for a car. Jessica Rose Garcia found herself studying film at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco after administrators cut the program she attended at Modesto Junior College in spring 2011. Knowing she would have a few months off for summer, she looked for a job where she could save up some money.
"I went to a job fair and the park was there," Garcia said. The idea of working at Yosemite National Park appealed to the 23-year-old from Ceres, so she applied online, eventually getting a summer job in transportation at the Yosemite Lodge.
That's where Garcia discovered a love of hiking -- and of saving the money she made. When the position ended at the close of September, she sought another Yosemite job, landing one in housekeeping at the Wawona Hotel.
"I wanted to see snow," she said. "I've never seen snow fall."
It was after job orientation Oct. 6, a Saturday, that she decided to take the long way back to her cabin and become familiar with her new surroundings. She headed out alone for what she thought would be a pleasant morning walk around the Wawona area.
It started as a plan to save money for a car. Jessica Rose Garcia found herself studying film at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco after administrators cut the program she attended at Modesto Junior College in spring 2011. Knowing she would have a few months off for summer, she looked for a job where she could save up some money.
"I went to a job fair and the park was there," Garcia said. The idea of working at Yosemite National Park appealed to the 23-year-old from Ceres, so she applied online, eventually getting a summer job in transportation at the Yosemite Lodge.
That's where Garcia discovered a love of hiking -- and of saving the money she made. When the position ended at the close of September, she sought another Yosemite job, landing one in housekeeping at the Wawona Hotel.
"I wanted to see snow," she said. "I've never seen snow fall."
It was after job orientation Oct. 6, a Saturday, that she decided to take the long way back to her cabin and become familiar with her new surroundings. She headed out alone for what she thought would be a pleasant morning walk around the Wawona area.
Story continues below video
Nobody would see Garcia again for three days, when a search-and-rescue team found her, badly injured, after a 35-foot fall into a rocky creek bed.
"It was a walk," Garcia said. "I didn't treat it like a hike. That's why I didn't take any of my gear."
That gear was a backpack with food, first aid, a headlamp, a water system -- all the things that really would have come in handy to someone lost in the wilderness. It all sat in Garcia's cabin, where she was headed via the 4.75-mile Swinging Bridge Loop trail.
Garcia took off a little after 9 a.m. She'd been walking for about 3½ hours when she fell.
"I'd decided if I wasn't heading in the right direction, I'd turn and go back," she said. She was about to do just that when she slipped on wet rock and fell off a cliff, landing on a granite creek bed between the cliff wall and a boulder.
"I was screaming as I fell, and I tried to grab onto something, but you can't grab onto rock," she said. Once she landed, she immediately knew she was badly injured. She would later learn that a bone in her back had broken and she had badly pulled ligaments in her right leg.
Garcia said she knew she was stuck and nobody would be looking for her for a while. "I was thinking, 'Holy crap, I did this to myself. Oh, my God, this cannot be happening.' "
First, Garcia wanted to get out of the damp area where she found herself.
"My whole objective was to get around the boulder and find a way to be warm and dry," she said. She managed by crawling on her arms and her left leg.
Once in a drier spot, Garcia immediately started thinking, and planning. Earlier in the day, she had sent her sister a text message saying she would be in touch that evening. She thought her sister might tell someone when Garcia failed to send another text. Or her boss would start a search when she didn't show up for work the next day.
In the meantime, her only hydration and nutrition would come from a water bottle and a lollipop she carried with her. She sipped from the bottle for two days and ate the lollipop Sunday.
That first night, Garcia managed to get to a bush that afforded her some protection from temperatures that got down into the 30s. Though she had rejected invitations to go on backpacking trips earlier in the summer because of a fear of camping in areas inhabited by bears, she managed to get some sleep.
Sunday morning, she started looking for a way back, crawling downstream. She thought if she could get somewhere higher, she might be able to use her cell phone, which she had turned off to save the battery.
But large boulders blocked her path. "If I could have used both my legs, it would have been no problem," she said. But without them, she was stuck.
"My whole thing was just trying to find a way out of the river," Garcia said. "I wanted to see my family again."
She made her way back to the bush and slept.
In the meantime, others began to realize something was wrong.
Garcia's supervisor went to look for her when she didn't arrive for work Sunday morning. By that afternoon, a search-and-rescue operation was launched. Authorities also called her family, which quickly jumped into action.
Debra Garcia, Jessica's mother, doesn't remember exactly what she did and when. "I was in shock," she said. "It's one emotion after another."
Rangers mobilized searches from the Wawona Hotel area. But nobody knew where Garcia had gone — shy by nature, she hadn't lived or worked there long enough to make friends. And Yosemite, even just the Wawona area, is a big place to be looking for one person without any idea where she might have been going.
Night began to fall with no sign of Garcia.
Monday morning, Garcia decided to try again, going the other way along the creek.
"I thought I would try to see if there was a way to go up the hill," she said.
She hoped there would be people looking for her, but she had no way of knowing.
"A couple of times, I thought I heard a helicopter," she said. She saw several airplanes, but knew they were passenger aircraft up far too high to be of any use.
Without anything to eat since the lollipop Sunday, Garcia considered her meager options.
"There were red ants," she said. "I was thinking about it, but I didn't do it. I was getting there, but I wasn't that hungry."
Underneath her uniform, Garcia wore a purple tank top that would come in handy. Eventually, she would use it as a flag to wave at a helicopter. First, though, she balled it up and bit down on it to help block out the pain.
She thought that if she could get back to where she fell, she might be able to make her way back to the trail. But it was hard going — when her mother first saw her at the hospital in Fresno, Debra Garcia was struck by the bruises that lined her daughter's forearms — and she stopped under a tree for another night of fitful sleep and watching the moon cycle.
As temperatures dropped back into the 30s, Garcia found herself shaking in the cold but grateful for her work-issued jacket, which rescuers later told her likely saved her life by keeping her from hypothermia.
One bright spot in the ordeal: "Because I was up so high, I saw a lot of shooting stars. I was trying to think positive."
Family members started a Facebook page to keep extended family and friends updated. That was how Denise Gilmore, a retired nurse, learned what had happened as she returned from a trip to Reno to her home in Redding. Bags still packed, she headed to her sister, Jessica's mother.
More rescue teams arrived at Yosemite to help. Volunteers from Mariposa, Marin and Madera counties joined National Park Service teams.
They kept Garcia's family apprised of every step, showing Debra Garcia on maps where they had been looking and where they planned to go next.
"They were great," Gilmore said.
But for Debra Garcia, there was only one answer that would suffice, and she would spend three sleepless days waiting for it: "I didn't care how I got her back, if she was paralyzed or whatever," Garcia said. "I wanted her back."
At one point, she went for a walk to try to get a grip on her emotions. She found herself drawn to a spot by the start of the Swinging Bridge Loop. She later would learn she stood less than a mile from where her daughter lay.
Tuesday morning, Jessica Garcia again started trying to make her way back. Then she saw the helicopter. She stopped.
"When I saw it, I was really happy," she said. She waved her tank top to try to signal the searchers. In her spot among boulders, she was skeptical someone in the helicopter would see her, but she knew for certain they were looking.
About an hour later, she heard someone call her name.
The search team finally had found a clue Tuesday morning: Garcia's employee identification card, which had fallen out of her pocket along the way. Garcia isn't sure if it dropped out when she originally fell or if it happened during one of her crawling expeditions.
Then they came across a soda can; she left that behind Sunday when she couldn't carry both it and her water bottle.
"I sort of left a trail of litter," Garcia said sheepishly.
Garcia looked up and saw a woman, one of the 50 or so volunteers taking part in the search.
"I was so happy, I started crying," she said. "Then you think you're safe."
Garcia had to answer a lot of questions: how long she had been out there, what kind of injuries she had, where she fell. She tried her best to answer them as searchers called for a medic.
Rescuers placed Garcia in an inflatable outfit to immobilize her, then she and a medic rode in a rescue basket carried by helicopter to a nearby meadow.
"The ride was pretty neat," she said, though with all the wind from the copter's rotors, she had to keep her eyes shut tight.
She was transferred to an ambulance, which took her to a hospital in Fresno.
Debra Garcia was in the car on the way to her sister Darlene Cunningham's house when she got the call from Gilmore, her other sister, about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday.
"I think she was more hysterical than I was," Garcia said. But there was plenty of emotion to go around.
Garcia wanted to head to Yosemite right away. "I couldn't get to her fast enough." But cooler heads prevailed, and the family met Jessica at the Fresno hospital.
More trials lay ahead.
Garcia underwent 12½ hours of surgery, and doctors weren't sure she would walk again. Surgeons replaced the shattered bone in her lower back with a metal rod. They hope the remaining bone will grow to join it and Garcia's nerves eventually will recover completely.
For now, she has numbness in her right leg and pain in her lower back. She is staying at her mom's home in Newman and needs help getting around and taking care of herself while getting ready to start a projected six months of physical therapy.
The family's Facebook page remains up, now offering updates on Garcia's progress. A fund has been established at Bank of the West to help with medical expenses — a three-month employee, Garcia did not yet have insurance benefits through her employer.
"She's had some depressing times," Gilmore said. "She's an independent, strong girl. It's hard for her to be dependent on others."
Still, Garcia is getting stronger and can get around the house with a walker.
"Each day is a better and better," she said. "For exercise, I do laps around the living room and kitchen."
Her bedroom is festooned with flowers and stuffed animals from family and well-wishers. A giant card from Wawona Hotel staff has a prominent spot — Garcia hopes to return to work there one day. Before that, she wants to go back and thank personally the members of the search-and-rescue teams who looked so hard for her.
And she still has more hikes to do, preferably with a friend or a group of people.
Debra Garcia said she wouldn't put it past her daughter to get back out on the trails after enduring three days alone and in pain, followed by a grueling back surgery and arduous recovery.
"I've got total faith," she said. "If she could overcome that, there's nothing that's going to stop her."
Donations to help with medical expenses can be made to any Bank of the West branch, into the account for the benefit of Jessica Rose Garcia.
"It was a walk," Garcia said. "I didn't treat it like a hike. That's why I didn't take any of my gear."
That gear was a backpack with food, first aid, a headlamp, a water system -- all the things that really would have come in handy to someone lost in the wilderness. It all sat in Garcia's cabin, where she was headed via the 4.75-mile Swinging Bridge Loop trail.
Garcia took off a little after 9 a.m. She'd been walking for about 3½ hours when she fell.
"I'd decided if I wasn't heading in the right direction, I'd turn and go back," she said. She was about to do just that when she slipped on wet rock and fell off a cliff, landing on a granite creek bed between the cliff wall and a boulder.
"I was screaming as I fell, and I tried to grab onto something, but you can't grab onto rock," she said. Once she landed, she immediately knew she was badly injured. She would later learn that a bone in her back had broken and she had badly pulled ligaments in her right leg.
Garcia said she knew she was stuck and nobody would be looking for her for a while. "I was thinking, 'Holy crap, I did this to myself. Oh, my God, this cannot be happening.' "
First, Garcia wanted to get out of the damp area where she found herself.
"My whole objective was to get around the boulder and find a way to be warm and dry," she said. She managed by crawling on her arms and her left leg.
Once in a drier spot, Garcia immediately started thinking, and planning. Earlier in the day, she had sent her sister a text message saying she would be in touch that evening. She thought her sister might tell someone when Garcia failed to send another text. Or her boss would start a search when she didn't show up for work the next day.
In the meantime, her only hydration and nutrition would come from a water bottle and a lollipop she carried with her. She sipped from the bottle for two days and ate the lollipop Sunday.
That first night, Garcia managed to get to a bush that afforded her some protection from temperatures that got down into the 30s. Though she had rejected invitations to go on backpacking trips earlier in the summer because of a fear of camping in areas inhabited by bears, she managed to get some sleep.
Sunday morning, she started looking for a way back, crawling downstream. She thought if she could get somewhere higher, she might be able to use her cell phone, which she had turned off to save the battery.
But large boulders blocked her path. "If I could have used both my legs, it would have been no problem," she said. But without them, she was stuck.
"My whole thing was just trying to find a way out of the river," Garcia said. "I wanted to see my family again."
She made her way back to the bush and slept.
In the meantime, others began to realize something was wrong.
Garcia's supervisor went to look for her when she didn't arrive for work Sunday morning. By that afternoon, a search-and-rescue operation was launched. Authorities also called her family, which quickly jumped into action.
Debra Garcia, Jessica's mother, doesn't remember exactly what she did and when. "I was in shock," she said. "It's one emotion after another."
Rangers mobilized searches from the Wawona Hotel area. But nobody knew where Garcia had gone — shy by nature, she hadn't lived or worked there long enough to make friends. And Yosemite, even just the Wawona area, is a big place to be looking for one person without any idea where she might have been going.
Night began to fall with no sign of Garcia.
Monday morning, Garcia decided to try again, going the other way along the creek.
"I thought I would try to see if there was a way to go up the hill," she said.
She hoped there would be people looking for her, but she had no way of knowing.
"A couple of times, I thought I heard a helicopter," she said. She saw several airplanes, but knew they were passenger aircraft up far too high to be of any use.
Without anything to eat since the lollipop Sunday, Garcia considered her meager options.
"There were red ants," she said. "I was thinking about it, but I didn't do it. I was getting there, but I wasn't that hungry."
Underneath her uniform, Garcia wore a purple tank top that would come in handy. Eventually, she would use it as a flag to wave at a helicopter. First, though, she balled it up and bit down on it to help block out the pain.
She thought that if she could get back to where she fell, she might be able to make her way back to the trail. But it was hard going — when her mother first saw her at the hospital in Fresno, Debra Garcia was struck by the bruises that lined her daughter's forearms — and she stopped under a tree for another night of fitful sleep and watching the moon cycle.
As temperatures dropped back into the 30s, Garcia found herself shaking in the cold but grateful for her work-issued jacket, which rescuers later told her likely saved her life by keeping her from hypothermia.
One bright spot in the ordeal: "Because I was up so high, I saw a lot of shooting stars. I was trying to think positive."
Family members started a Facebook page to keep extended family and friends updated. That was how Denise Gilmore, a retired nurse, learned what had happened as she returned from a trip to Reno to her home in Redding. Bags still packed, she headed to her sister, Jessica's mother.
More rescue teams arrived at Yosemite to help. Volunteers from Mariposa, Marin and Madera counties joined National Park Service teams.
They kept Garcia's family apprised of every step, showing Debra Garcia on maps where they had been looking and where they planned to go next.
"They were great," Gilmore said.
But for Debra Garcia, there was only one answer that would suffice, and she would spend three sleepless days waiting for it: "I didn't care how I got her back, if she was paralyzed or whatever," Garcia said. "I wanted her back."
At one point, she went for a walk to try to get a grip on her emotions. She found herself drawn to a spot by the start of the Swinging Bridge Loop. She later would learn she stood less than a mile from where her daughter lay.
Tuesday morning, Jessica Garcia again started trying to make her way back. Then she saw the helicopter. She stopped.
"When I saw it, I was really happy," she said. She waved her tank top to try to signal the searchers. In her spot among boulders, she was skeptical someone in the helicopter would see her, but she knew for certain they were looking.
About an hour later, she heard someone call her name.
The search team finally had found a clue Tuesday morning: Garcia's employee identification card, which had fallen out of her pocket along the way. Garcia isn't sure if it dropped out when she originally fell or if it happened during one of her crawling expeditions.
Then they came across a soda can; she left that behind Sunday when she couldn't carry both it and her water bottle.
"I sort of left a trail of litter," Garcia said sheepishly.
Garcia looked up and saw a woman, one of the 50 or so volunteers taking part in the search.
"I was so happy, I started crying," she said. "Then you think you're safe."
Garcia had to answer a lot of questions: how long she had been out there, what kind of injuries she had, where she fell. She tried her best to answer them as searchers called for a medic.
Rescuers placed Garcia in an inflatable outfit to immobilize her, then she and a medic rode in a rescue basket carried by helicopter to a nearby meadow.
"The ride was pretty neat," she said, though with all the wind from the copter's rotors, she had to keep her eyes shut tight.
She was transferred to an ambulance, which took her to a hospital in Fresno.
Debra Garcia was in the car on the way to her sister Darlene Cunningham's house when she got the call from Gilmore, her other sister, about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday.
"I think she was more hysterical than I was," Garcia said. But there was plenty of emotion to go around.
Garcia wanted to head to Yosemite right away. "I couldn't get to her fast enough." But cooler heads prevailed, and the family met Jessica at the Fresno hospital.
More trials lay ahead.
Garcia underwent 12½ hours of surgery, and doctors weren't sure she would walk again. Surgeons replaced the shattered bone in her lower back with a metal rod. They hope the remaining bone will grow to join it and Garcia's nerves eventually will recover completely.
For now, she has numbness in her right leg and pain in her lower back. She is staying at her mom's home in Newman and needs help getting around and taking care of herself while getting ready to start a projected six months of physical therapy.
The family's Facebook page remains up, now offering updates on Garcia's progress. A fund has been established at Bank of the West to help with medical expenses — a three-month employee, Garcia did not yet have insurance benefits through her employer.
"She's had some depressing times," Gilmore said. "She's an independent, strong girl. It's hard for her to be dependent on others."
Still, Garcia is getting stronger and can get around the house with a walker.
"Each day is a better and better," she said. "For exercise, I do laps around the living room and kitchen."
Her bedroom is festooned with flowers and stuffed animals from family and well-wishers. A giant card from Wawona Hotel staff has a prominent spot — Garcia hopes to return to work there one day. Before that, she wants to go back and thank personally the members of the search-and-rescue teams who looked so hard for her.
And she still has more hikes to do, preferably with a friend or a group of people.
Debra Garcia said she wouldn't put it past her daughter to get back out on the trails after enduring three days alone and in pain, followed by a grueling back surgery and arduous recovery.
"I've got total faith," she said. "If she could overcome that, there's nothing that's going to stop her."
Donations to help with medical expenses can be made to any Bank of the West branch, into the account for the benefit of Jessica Rose Garcia.
Yosemite Fire Update #12
October 26, 2012
click to enlarge
Cascade: (37 46.173 x 119 40.519; 7800’El., Mariposa Co., 6.15.12). The fire is at 1705 acres, based on a reconnaissance flight by Helicopter 551 on October 17, 2012. Although the fire area received rain and snow during the early part of this week (October 22), the fire has not been declared out.
Before the storm, the west and northwest flanks of the fire were the most active, and showing very light fire activity. Little future growth is predicted for the Cascade fire. The fire will continue to be monitored.
Currently, no smoke is visible. Air quality has remained in the good range with no significant health impacts in nearby smoke sensitive areas. Air quality monitors are located in the communities of Foresta, Yosemite West, Yosemite Valley, El Portal and Lee Vining. The park’s webcam, located at Crane Flat Helibase, captures fire images, which can be viewed at: http://ssgic.cr.usgs.gov/dashboards/WebCam.htm?
Firefighter and public safety are always the primary importance and consideration with all fires.
For additional Information: Fire Information Officer Gary Wuchner at: [email protected] (209) 372-0480 or 375-9574
Ø Yosemite National Park Web page: http://www.nps.gov/yose/parkmgmt/current_fire.htm.
Ø Yosemite Air Quality Web page: http://www.nps.gov/yose/naturescience/aqmonitoring.htm
Ø Inciweb: http://inciweb.org/incident/3069/
Ø Yosemite Fire Twitter: http://twitter.com#!/YosemiteFire
Ø Yosemite Fire Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yosemite-Wildland-Fire/124632964255395
Before the storm, the west and northwest flanks of the fire were the most active, and showing very light fire activity. Little future growth is predicted for the Cascade fire. The fire will continue to be monitored.
Currently, no smoke is visible. Air quality has remained in the good range with no significant health impacts in nearby smoke sensitive areas. Air quality monitors are located in the communities of Foresta, Yosemite West, Yosemite Valley, El Portal and Lee Vining. The park’s webcam, located at Crane Flat Helibase, captures fire images, which can be viewed at: http://ssgic.cr.usgs.gov/dashboards/WebCam.htm?
Firefighter and public safety are always the primary importance and consideration with all fires.
For additional Information: Fire Information Officer Gary Wuchner at: [email protected] (209) 372-0480 or 375-9574
Ø Yosemite National Park Web page: http://www.nps.gov/yose/parkmgmt/current_fire.htm.
Ø Yosemite Air Quality Web page: http://www.nps.gov/yose/naturescience/aqmonitoring.htm
Ø Inciweb: http://inciweb.org/incident/3069/
Ø Yosemite Fire Twitter: http://twitter.com#!/YosemiteFire
Ø Yosemite Fire Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yosemite-Wildland-Fire/124632964255395
Tom Bopp upcoming appearances
Old Town Music Hall
THE OLD TOWN MUSIC HALL (El Segundo, California) Sunday, Nov. 4 – 7:30 p.m.
Admission: $20 CASH/CHECK ONLY; SEATS ARE RESERVED
CALL TO RESERVE TICKETS: (310) 322-2592 140 Richmond St., El Segundo, CA 90245
Phone: 310 322 2592 http://oldtownmusichall.wordpress.com/
WEST COAST RAGTIME FESTIVAL (Sacramento, California) Sunday, Nov. 18 Red Lion Hotel, Sacramento CA All information at: http://www.westcoastragtime.com/12wcrf_home.htm
( visit Tom’s website at http://www.yosemitemusic.com )
Admission: $20 CASH/CHECK ONLY; SEATS ARE RESERVED
CALL TO RESERVE TICKETS: (310) 322-2592 140 Richmond St., El Segundo, CA 90245
Phone: 310 322 2592 http://oldtownmusichall.wordpress.com/
WEST COAST RAGTIME FESTIVAL (Sacramento, California) Sunday, Nov. 18 Red Lion Hotel, Sacramento CA All information at: http://www.westcoastragtime.com/12wcrf_home.htm
( visit Tom’s website at http://www.yosemitemusic.com )
Letters supporting District 5 supervisor candidates
Letters supporting Ed Mee
Ed Mee is the best candidate to replace Jim Allen as our Mariposa Supervisor in District 5. Not only was he born in Yosemite and has had a home in Wawona since 1975, his family history goes back to the Gordon and Ashworth families. A graduate of Fresno State, he spent over 30 years in law enforcement before retiring and moving permanently to Wawona.
Ed’s experience makes him the most qualified to become the District 5 Mariposa Supervisor. He has been a member of the Wawona Town Planning Advisory Committee (WTPAC) for 12 years, the Mariposa County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) for 5 years, and a board member of the Wawona Area Property Owners Association (WAPOA). Ed is a founding member and the chairman of the Yosemite-Wawona Educational Foundation (Y-WEF), a non-profit foundation developed to keep the Wawona School open. With Ed’s experience, he knows the value of public safety, land use, and planning issues. He discovered how important planning is to us all on both the community and county level. Knowing how important the Wawona School is to the Wawona and Fish Camp communities, he became involved in the fight to keep the Wawona School open after the Bass Lake Elementary School District closed the school in June, 2010. After countless meetings with the California Department of Education, Madera and Mariposa County Departments of Education, the Bass Lake Elementary School District, the Yosemite High School District, UC Merced and the National Park Service, our school is still open for our kids. Ed is known for his integrity, honesty and common sense. He is the best qualified to represent Mariposa County District 5. Pat and Dave Sischo Wawona More letters |
Letters supporting John Carrier
I met John at a Mariposa County Contractors Association meeting and was amazed at how he managed the budget, as a Cal Fire equipment manager.
The job of Supervisor is about running a business, managing employees and interacting positively with the public. John has these skills and many more. I was not only impressed with his fiscal and budget background, but also his concern with the youth of our community because of his long time involvement with the Boy Scouts in Troop 94 of the Greater Yosemite Council. He described various trips that he took the boys on. The one that stood out the most was when his troop was one of 4 troops that went back to the National Jamboree in 2001 at AP Hill, which is located outside of Washington D.C. There were four troops, 160 boys, 16 adults and a caravan of trailers that carried all of their supplies needed for the 10 day trip. The entire trip consisted of 18 days touring locations in Pennsylvania, Washington D.C., and Virginia. The undertaking was a two year process in which both the adults and youths participated in an interview process, selection of all the participants and then finally four campouts in which they practiced unloading, setting up and packing up all of the equipment back into the trailer. All of this planning and organization allowed the boys a smooth process of setting up their camp within two hours of arriving at AP Hill. He told of numerous neighboring troops that struggled the entire 10 days trying to get their camps in a workable condition. This type of commitment impressed me and showed me that not only does John care about the youth in our community, but also their futures. We need people like John on the Board that not only cares about the county operation but also the entire community. I hope everyone takes a look at John Carrier and considers him for the position of District 5 Supervisor. Enjoy Your Day Dave and Shelly Gerken More letters |
CONSTRUCTION AND TRAFFIC DELAYS Traffic Delays for Tree Removal--Wawona Road--South Entrance Station Kiosk Area
Starting Monday, October 22, 2012>>Expect up to 15-minute delays on Wawona Road as crews will be removing trees just south of the South Entrance Station kiosks. This work is part of a safety improvement project to install three new kiosks approximately 350-ft. feet south of the current kiosks. The tree and brush removal is expected to last thru November 2, 2012.
Fall Fire Prevention Reminder
People can live compatibly with wildland fire if they are aware of and prepared for local fire conditions. The more populated and closer a community is to fire prone areas, the greater the need for a proactive approach and a community’s involvement in the fire risk reduction activities.” ~ Firewise Brochure
This is a reminder to all residents, visitors and employees that fire season is not over, and pile burning restrictions remain in effect throughout the park. The park firefighters continue to respond to escaped campfires, discarded cigarettes or hot ashes from carless smokers, and other kinds of human caused fires. The dead and down fuels remain extremely dry and are very combustible. Combined with the fall leaf and needle litter accumulations the park remains prone to fires during this extremely dry year.
A preventable fire recently occurred when a dog mat was placed carelessly over a floor heater. A 911 call to dispatch, a quick response and extinguishment by Wawona firefighters prevented a loss of a cabin. A fire response, extinguishment and overall can commit fire crews for the entire day. All residents, visitors, and guests need to remember it is your responsibility to maintain a fire safe environment.
Another important fire prevention message is to be sure your chimney has been inspected and cleaned. Inspect and be sure that a non-combustible screen, with a ½ inch or smaller mesh is installed to prevent hot embers from igniting combustible roofs and dry vegetation. Dead leaves may have accumulated over chimneys, gutters and roofs through the summer. Soot from last winter may have restricted the air flow from the chimney. The inside walls of the chimney may also have excess accumulations of soot.
Although the days are shorter and cooler, until the park receives measurable precipitation fire prevention diligence is necessary by all to prevent unwanted fires. Fire defensible space should continue to be on everyone’s mind that lives in Wildland Urban Interface communities. In the fire prone ecosystems of Yosemite National Park, it is not always “if” wildfires will occur, but a matter of “where” and “when”. Individual and collective prevention and preparedness efforts create a safer park for the public, residents, employees, and firefighters. Fire-safe clearance is 100 feet!
Yosemite fire management and firefighting personnel encourage you to prevent, prepare and be aware!
Prevent! Remember, it only takes a spark to start a fire! Be cautious with anything that could start a wildfire – even the unexpected. Recreational activities, based on the time of the year and weather conditions, may lead to unintentional fires. The park is doing as much as possible by mechanically thinning and removing as much debris, ground fuels and hazard trees within communities. Help firefighters in doing your part in protecting your property by providing 100 feet space (or to property lines) of defensible space even during the fall season.
Prepare! How fast can your house Burn?! Homeowners can take effective measures to protect their homes and property. Adopting Firewise principles can reduce the risk of damage or loss due to wildfire. Several resources are available including the Firewise brochures or by contacting Yosemite Fire Management. Please contact Don Coffman (209) 379-1444 or Jack Alviso (209) 375-9541 for specific Yosemite community property fire questions.
Be Aware! Fire Information Sources: Yosemite National Park and its partners, Stanislaus and Sierra National Forests, Mariposa and Tuolumne Counties, and CAL Fire provide statewide current fire information, maps, statistics and more. Additional NPS information sources include: National Interagency Fire Center: www.nifc.gov; Southern California Geographic Area Coordination: http://gacc.nifc.gov/oscc; CAL Fire: www.fire.ca.gov Fire Safe Council: www.firesafecouncil.org or www.firewise.org
For additional Information:
· Yosemite Fire Marschall: [email protected]; (209) 379-1444.
· Yosemite Fire Information and Education Office: [email protected] (209) 375-9574 or 372-0480
This is a reminder to all residents, visitors and employees that fire season is not over, and pile burning restrictions remain in effect throughout the park. The park firefighters continue to respond to escaped campfires, discarded cigarettes or hot ashes from carless smokers, and other kinds of human caused fires. The dead and down fuels remain extremely dry and are very combustible. Combined with the fall leaf and needle litter accumulations the park remains prone to fires during this extremely dry year.
A preventable fire recently occurred when a dog mat was placed carelessly over a floor heater. A 911 call to dispatch, a quick response and extinguishment by Wawona firefighters prevented a loss of a cabin. A fire response, extinguishment and overall can commit fire crews for the entire day. All residents, visitors, and guests need to remember it is your responsibility to maintain a fire safe environment.
Another important fire prevention message is to be sure your chimney has been inspected and cleaned. Inspect and be sure that a non-combustible screen, with a ½ inch or smaller mesh is installed to prevent hot embers from igniting combustible roofs and dry vegetation. Dead leaves may have accumulated over chimneys, gutters and roofs through the summer. Soot from last winter may have restricted the air flow from the chimney. The inside walls of the chimney may also have excess accumulations of soot.
Although the days are shorter and cooler, until the park receives measurable precipitation fire prevention diligence is necessary by all to prevent unwanted fires. Fire defensible space should continue to be on everyone’s mind that lives in Wildland Urban Interface communities. In the fire prone ecosystems of Yosemite National Park, it is not always “if” wildfires will occur, but a matter of “where” and “when”. Individual and collective prevention and preparedness efforts create a safer park for the public, residents, employees, and firefighters. Fire-safe clearance is 100 feet!
Yosemite fire management and firefighting personnel encourage you to prevent, prepare and be aware!
Prevent! Remember, it only takes a spark to start a fire! Be cautious with anything that could start a wildfire – even the unexpected. Recreational activities, based on the time of the year and weather conditions, may lead to unintentional fires. The park is doing as much as possible by mechanically thinning and removing as much debris, ground fuels and hazard trees within communities. Help firefighters in doing your part in protecting your property by providing 100 feet space (or to property lines) of defensible space even during the fall season.
Prepare! How fast can your house Burn?! Homeowners can take effective measures to protect their homes and property. Adopting Firewise principles can reduce the risk of damage or loss due to wildfire. Several resources are available including the Firewise brochures or by contacting Yosemite Fire Management. Please contact Don Coffman (209) 379-1444 or Jack Alviso (209) 375-9541 for specific Yosemite community property fire questions.
Be Aware! Fire Information Sources: Yosemite National Park and its partners, Stanislaus and Sierra National Forests, Mariposa and Tuolumne Counties, and CAL Fire provide statewide current fire information, maps, statistics and more. Additional NPS information sources include: National Interagency Fire Center: www.nifc.gov; Southern California Geographic Area Coordination: http://gacc.nifc.gov/oscc; CAL Fire: www.fire.ca.gov Fire Safe Council: www.firesafecouncil.org or www.firewise.org
For additional Information:
· Yosemite Fire Marschall: [email protected]; (209) 379-1444.
· Yosemite Fire Information and Education Office: [email protected] (209) 375-9574 or 372-0480
Lewis Resseguie
It is with great sorrow that we must announce the passing of Lewis Resseguie. Lewis passed away at 2:45 a.m. today, October 16, 2012, at Saint Agnes hospital in Fresno. His sister LeEtta, from Oakhurst, and his sister from North Carolina were with him when he passed.
Lewis had been with The Redwoods for over 17 years and at the Wawona Hotel for over 10 years prior to joining The Redwoods team. Lewis had just turned 50 years of age this past May.
Lewis was as much a part of Wawona and The Redwoods as the trees we see out our window. He was highly praised by our guests, our Owners, and the community for his friendliness, generosity, willingness to give whatever it took to resolve an issue, and for his vast knowledge of everything Yosemite.
We will miss him tremendously.
We have offered to assist the family with the memorial. After they've made their final arrangements we'll forward the information to you.
The Redwoods
Lewis had been with The Redwoods for over 17 years and at the Wawona Hotel for over 10 years prior to joining The Redwoods team. Lewis had just turned 50 years of age this past May.
Lewis was as much a part of Wawona and The Redwoods as the trees we see out our window. He was highly praised by our guests, our Owners, and the community for his friendliness, generosity, willingness to give whatever it took to resolve an issue, and for his vast knowledge of everything Yosemite.
We will miss him tremendously.
We have offered to assist the family with the memorial. After they've made their final arrangements we'll forward the information to you.
The Redwoods
Hetch Hetchy and Foresta area Mechanical Thinning Hazardous Fuels Reduction Projects
Foresta
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Hetch Hetchy
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Yosemite Fire Crew 6 and 7 will begin mechanical thinning project work in Hetch Hetchy and Foresta areas. They are cutting, piling and mechanically thinning dense vegetation including shade tolerant conifers such as incense cedar, white fir and ponderosa pine. They are also clearing accumulated dead biomass on the forest floor like sticks and logs. You may see and hear chain saws and see crews cutting trees and piling the brush for burning later in the year when conditions are cool and wet.
The Hetch-Hetchy project is being funded by San Francisco Public Utilities commission to reduce fuels near housing units, historic structures and other infrastructure near O’Shaughnessy Dam. This project begins the first of ………..
The Foresta project is one of an ongoing series of projects within the community. This thinning project is located near Crane Creek falls, and will reduce the threat of fire coming up canyon from the Merced River and threaten the community. Cal Fire’s Mt Bullion fire hand crew will begin this project the week of October 15.
This process of fuel reduction is one tool used by the National Park Service to reduce heavy accumulation of fuels, ultimately to prevent larger fires. In turn, this helps preserve natural and cultural resources, and provide for public and firefighter safety. These projects also serve to protect park and community structures and other cultural and natural values at risk from larger unwanted wildland fires in the Wildland Urban Interface areas (WUI).
The project also removes excess ‘ladder’ fuels that can carry fire from the forest floor to the canopy (tops of trees) in the event of an unwanted wildfire. When the project is completed, visitors and residents will notice clearer, more open forest in these areas. This is more typical of what forests in the Sierra Nevada Mountains looked like under a natural, frequent, lightning caused fire regime. The dense forests are the result of fire suppression for over 100 years which increased the potential for catastrophic wildfire in the park.
For additional Information
Fire Information and Education: [email protected]; (209) 375-9574 or (209) 372-0480.
Yosemite Fire Management Website: http://www.nps.gov/yose/parkmgmt/current_fire.htm
The Hetch-Hetchy project is being funded by San Francisco Public Utilities commission to reduce fuels near housing units, historic structures and other infrastructure near O’Shaughnessy Dam. This project begins the first of ………..
The Foresta project is one of an ongoing series of projects within the community. This thinning project is located near Crane Creek falls, and will reduce the threat of fire coming up canyon from the Merced River and threaten the community. Cal Fire’s Mt Bullion fire hand crew will begin this project the week of October 15.
This process of fuel reduction is one tool used by the National Park Service to reduce heavy accumulation of fuels, ultimately to prevent larger fires. In turn, this helps preserve natural and cultural resources, and provide for public and firefighter safety. These projects also serve to protect park and community structures and other cultural and natural values at risk from larger unwanted wildland fires in the Wildland Urban Interface areas (WUI).
The project also removes excess ‘ladder’ fuels that can carry fire from the forest floor to the canopy (tops of trees) in the event of an unwanted wildfire. When the project is completed, visitors and residents will notice clearer, more open forest in these areas. This is more typical of what forests in the Sierra Nevada Mountains looked like under a natural, frequent, lightning caused fire regime. The dense forests are the result of fire suppression for over 100 years which increased the potential for catastrophic wildfire in the park.
For additional Information
Fire Information and Education: [email protected]; (209) 375-9574 or (209) 372-0480.
Yosemite Fire Management Website: http://www.nps.gov/yose/parkmgmt/current_fire.htm
Opinion: Ed Mee is the best candidate
Ed Mee is the best candidate to replace Jim Allen as our Mariposa Supervisor in District 5. Not only was he born in Yosemite and has had a home in Wawona since 1975, his family history goes back to the Gordon and Ashworth families. A graduate of Fresno State, he spent over 30 years in law enforcement before retiring and moving permanently to Wawona.
Ed’s experience makes him the most qualified to become the District 5 Mariposa Supervisor. He has been a member of the Wawona Town Planning Advisory Committee (WTPAC) for 12 years, the Mariposa County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) for 5 years, and a board member of the Wawona Area Property Owners Association (WAPOA). Ed is a founding member and the chairman of the Yosemite-Wawona Educational Foundation (Y-WEF), a non-profit foundation developed to keep the Wawona School open.
With Ed’s experience, he knows the value of public safety, land use, and planning issues. He discovered how important planning is to us all on both the community and county level. Knowing how important the Wawona School is to the Wawona and Fish Camp communities, he became involved in the fight to keep the Wawona School open after the Bass Lake Elementary School District closed the school in June, 2010. After countless meetings with the California Department of Education, Madera and Mariposa County Departments of Education, the Bass Lake Elementary School District, the Yosemite High School District, UC Merced and the National Park Service, our school is still open for our kids.
Ed is known for his integrity, honesty and common sense. He is the best qualified to represent Mariposa County District 5.
Pat and Dave Sischo
Wawona
Ed’s experience makes him the most qualified to become the District 5 Mariposa Supervisor. He has been a member of the Wawona Town Planning Advisory Committee (WTPAC) for 12 years, the Mariposa County Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) for 5 years, and a board member of the Wawona Area Property Owners Association (WAPOA). Ed is a founding member and the chairman of the Yosemite-Wawona Educational Foundation (Y-WEF), a non-profit foundation developed to keep the Wawona School open.
With Ed’s experience, he knows the value of public safety, land use, and planning issues. He discovered how important planning is to us all on both the community and county level. Knowing how important the Wawona School is to the Wawona and Fish Camp communities, he became involved in the fight to keep the Wawona School open after the Bass Lake Elementary School District closed the school in June, 2010. After countless meetings with the California Department of Education, Madera and Mariposa County Departments of Education, the Bass Lake Elementary School District, the Yosemite High School District, UC Merced and the National Park Service, our school is still open for our kids.
Ed is known for his integrity, honesty and common sense. He is the best qualified to represent Mariposa County District 5.
Pat and Dave Sischo
Wawona
Rescued Wawona Hotel employee recovering from surgery
Patty Guerra
[email protected]
YOSEMITE -- Jessica Rose Garcia, the Yosemite employee rescued after missing for three days, underwent extensive surgery Thursday.
According to her family, the procedure took 12½ hours; it had been anticipated to take eight. Family members said surgery on Garcia’s spine went well, and will know more when she awakens.
Earlier, Garcia’s family said doctors believed she suffered broken vertebrae in a 35-foot fall as she hiked in the Wawona area of Yosemite National Park.
Garcia, who is from Ceres, had just moved to Wawona for a job in a hotel after spending the summer working in Yosemite Valley. Rescue teams started looking for her when she didn’t show up for her first day at work Sunday morning. She had last been seen Saturday after orientation.
Rescuers found Garcia at about 1 p.m. Tuesday. She was taken by helicopter to a nearby meadow, where an ambulance picked her up and took her to a hospital.
Family members have established a bank account to help pay for what they anticipate to be extensive medical expenses. Donations can be made to the account at any Bank of the West branch under Garcia’s name.
Read more here: http://www.modbee.com/2012/10/12/2411162/rescued-yosemite-employee-undergoes.html#storylink=cpy
[email protected]
YOSEMITE -- Jessica Rose Garcia, the Yosemite employee rescued after missing for three days, underwent extensive surgery Thursday.
According to her family, the procedure took 12½ hours; it had been anticipated to take eight. Family members said surgery on Garcia’s spine went well, and will know more when she awakens.
Earlier, Garcia’s family said doctors believed she suffered broken vertebrae in a 35-foot fall as she hiked in the Wawona area of Yosemite National Park.
Garcia, who is from Ceres, had just moved to Wawona for a job in a hotel after spending the summer working in Yosemite Valley. Rescue teams started looking for her when she didn’t show up for her first day at work Sunday morning. She had last been seen Saturday after orientation.
Rescuers found Garcia at about 1 p.m. Tuesday. She was taken by helicopter to a nearby meadow, where an ambulance picked her up and took her to a hospital.
Family members have established a bank account to help pay for what they anticipate to be extensive medical expenses. Donations can be made to the account at any Bank of the West branch under Garcia’s name.
Read more here: http://www.modbee.com/2012/10/12/2411162/rescued-yosemite-employee-undergoes.html#storylink=cpy
Lost Yosemite worker recovering from 35-foot fall
By Patty Guerra - The Modesto Bee
Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2012 | 04:59 PM
Investigators and family today are piecing together what happened to Jessica Rose Garcia after the 23-year-old from Ceres disappeared on a hike at Yosemite National Park on Saturday afternoon.
Garcia apparently fell about 35 feet in steep terrain about two miles from the Wawona base where she was last seen, her aunt, Darlene Cunningham, said Wednesday morning. Search and rescue teams looked for Garcia for 2 1/2 days after she failed to show up for her first day of work at the Wawona Hotel on Sunday morning.
"We know some things, but we're still kind of in the dark on exactly what happened," Cunningham said.
Garcia remains in the hospital, where she's undergoing tests for possible fractured vertebrae, Cunningham said. She also suffered a broken pelvis and leg, as well as potential dehydration from spending three days without food or water.
Garcia, a graduate of Johansen High School in Modesto, spent the summer working in Yosemite Valley. She planned to return to studying filmmaking at the Art Institute of San Francisco, but then got an opportunity to work at the Wawona Hotel through November.
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK - Injured Yosemite National Park worker Jessica Garcia from Ceres.
"She wanted to stay as long as she could," Cunningham said. "She found her peace, her happiness in Yosemite."
Cunningham said Garcia has long been an avid walker and fell in love with the park environment. Her family was happy to see the quiet, shy young woman shine in jobs that required her to work with the public.
"She was at the stage where she was finding out what she wanted to do in life," Cunningham said. "She found her niche."
Park rangers called Garcia's family late Sunday morning after she did not show up for work. She had not been seen since leaving an orientation session Saturday. Family members kept in touch with rangers by phone Sunday, then headed to the park before dawn Monday.
"It was the worst thing any family could go through," Cunningham said. "We couldn't eat knowing she wasn't eating. We couldn't sleep knowing she wasn't sleeping."
She said park officials did everything they could to keep the family informed, and she expressed gratitude at the dozens of searchers, some with dogs or on horseback, who looked for her niece. Teams came from the park itself, as well as Madera, Mariposa and Marin counties.
"They took very good care of us while we were there," Cunningham said. "They kept us informed of all the different areas that were being searched and what they were doing."
Searchers found Garcia about 1 p.m. Tuesday. Family members still don't know exactly how long she had been there, nor the circumstances of her fall. They did learn that she had changed from the work outfit she'd last been seen in and was wearing a jacket and a vest.
Now the family has turned its attention toward recovery. Cunningham said it's still not clear if Garcia has any long-term injuries.
"We're all happy she's alive," she said. "We always had hope, but as each day passed, we were definitely more stressed and more nervous about her survival. "We knew she was young and strong and had that in her to make it through."
Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/2012/10/10/3024826/lost-yosemite-worker-recovering.html#storylink=cpy
Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2012 | 04:59 PM
Investigators and family today are piecing together what happened to Jessica Rose Garcia after the 23-year-old from Ceres disappeared on a hike at Yosemite National Park on Saturday afternoon.
Garcia apparently fell about 35 feet in steep terrain about two miles from the Wawona base where she was last seen, her aunt, Darlene Cunningham, said Wednesday morning. Search and rescue teams looked for Garcia for 2 1/2 days after she failed to show up for her first day of work at the Wawona Hotel on Sunday morning.
"We know some things, but we're still kind of in the dark on exactly what happened," Cunningham said.
Garcia remains in the hospital, where she's undergoing tests for possible fractured vertebrae, Cunningham said. She also suffered a broken pelvis and leg, as well as potential dehydration from spending three days without food or water.
Garcia, a graduate of Johansen High School in Modesto, spent the summer working in Yosemite Valley. She planned to return to studying filmmaking at the Art Institute of San Francisco, but then got an opportunity to work at the Wawona Hotel through November.
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK - Injured Yosemite National Park worker Jessica Garcia from Ceres.
"She wanted to stay as long as she could," Cunningham said. "She found her peace, her happiness in Yosemite."
Cunningham said Garcia has long been an avid walker and fell in love with the park environment. Her family was happy to see the quiet, shy young woman shine in jobs that required her to work with the public.
"She was at the stage where she was finding out what she wanted to do in life," Cunningham said. "She found her niche."
Park rangers called Garcia's family late Sunday morning after she did not show up for work. She had not been seen since leaving an orientation session Saturday. Family members kept in touch with rangers by phone Sunday, then headed to the park before dawn Monday.
"It was the worst thing any family could go through," Cunningham said. "We couldn't eat knowing she wasn't eating. We couldn't sleep knowing she wasn't sleeping."
She said park officials did everything they could to keep the family informed, and she expressed gratitude at the dozens of searchers, some with dogs or on horseback, who looked for her niece. Teams came from the park itself, as well as Madera, Mariposa and Marin counties.
"They took very good care of us while we were there," Cunningham said. "They kept us informed of all the different areas that were being searched and what they were doing."
Searchers found Garcia about 1 p.m. Tuesday. Family members still don't know exactly how long she had been there, nor the circumstances of her fall. They did learn that she had changed from the work outfit she'd last been seen in and was wearing a jacket and a vest.
Now the family has turned its attention toward recovery. Cunningham said it's still not clear if Garcia has any long-term injuries.
"We're all happy she's alive," she said. "We always had hope, but as each day passed, we were definitely more stressed and more nervous about her survival. "We knew she was young and strong and had that in her to make it through."
Read more here: http://www.fresnobee.com/2012/10/10/3024826/lost-yosemite-worker-recovering.html#storylink=cpy
