You're invited to East County Magazine's "Treasures of East County" event to benefit our nonprofit community news and wildfire reporting! 

 Saturday, January 31 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at 1625 East Main Street, El Cajon

You can help by shopping (just in time for Valentine's Day) and by donating items for our big event, which features 4 sales in one location!

* Multi-community "treasures" sale (drop off yard-sale items in good condition starting at 7 a.m. RSVP to editor@eastcountymagazine.org with description of items you plan to bring)

* Valentine gift baskets to cherish  ($50 value and up)

* Arts and crafts vendors (we have plenty of spaces available - large location, high traffic!)

* Silent auction treasure trove - items valued at $100 to $5,000!

Fabulous items already donated include black pearl/diamonds/white gold earrings, large gallery-quality framed Leroy Nieman signed serograph "Downers" skiers (valued at $4,500), Super Bowl party pack from Cali Comfort, Glitter Coutour hand-made afghan, photography tour for 8 at Mission Trails Regional Park led by photographer David Cooksy, hand-knitted afghan, guided nature walk for 10 at Mission Trails, Glamour Girlz gift basket, his and her Valentine baskets, Carrizo Gorge Rocks & Gems wind chimes, Mediterraneo restaurant gift basket, wine lovers baskets from local wineries, one month of music lessons--guitar or vocal, Heritage of the Americas Museum gift basket, steel drums set, Urbn Pizza & Brewery gift basket, Sophie's Gallery gift basket, book lover's gift basket, gourmet picnic basket for two, crocheted scarf and peppermint scrub from Styla-Rama-Mama, golf clubs, and much, much more!  

Your help and support is greatly appreciated! For details on how to donate items and benefits you will receive, see our flyer. 

East County News Service

January 26, 2015 (San Diego)--If you’re traveling to the Northeast, you may have a long wait. Over 7,700 flights have been grounded—and many may not take off for days.  That’s because the worst blizzard in years is slamming the region. The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning for a 250-mile-wide area where whiteout conditions may occur.

East County News Service

January 27, 2015 (San Diego) --Here’s some news that’s just “ducky” for San Diego ice hockey fans.

It’s been years since San Diego lost its pro hockey team, the Gulls. But now San Diego is poised to once again have a professional hockey team for fans to cheer on.

January 26, 2015 (San Diego) -- The Sheriff's Department is teaming up with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to keep impaired drivers off San Diego's roadways on Super Bowl Sunday.

By Miriam Raftery

January 26, 2015 (San Diego) – Multiple flights have received threats posted on Twitter in recent days, including a threat against a Southwest flight from San Diego to Dallas.  All of the threats proved false – but not before causing added screenings and concerns.

January 26, 2015 (San Diego’s East County)--Spring semester begins Monday for more than 27,000 students at Grossmont and Cuyamaca colleges amid a sense of progress as the campuses benefit from a recovering economy and a state and national focus on the value of community colleges.

From the Editors of E - The Environmental Magazine

January 26, 2015 (San Diego) -- Dear EarthTalk: How are scientists using DNA to conserve wildlife? -- Jake Summerlin, Newark, NJ

Traditionally, conservation biologists have relied on field observation and sample and statistical analysis to help them understand the dynamics behind species loss, but today genetics is taking on an increasingly important role in helping quantify the biodiversity around us and even save some threatened species.

January 25, 2015 (Santee) - EMSTA College, in Santee, has received new institutional accreditation from the "Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools" (ACICS) that will allow students seeking a career as a paramedic to seek financial aid. EMSTA will also be able to provide AA degrees for their paramedic students.

Photo: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

January 25, 2015 (San Diego's East County) - The U.S. Department of the interior announced Sunday that President Barack Obama plans to ask Congress to designate  12 million acres of Alaska’s 19 million acre Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as wilderness to protect it from oil and gas drilling.

East County News Service

January 25, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – Light to moderate rain is forecast starting Monday afternoon, with showers dissipating by Tuesday afternoon.  Up to an inch and a quarter of rain is possible in mountain areas, with less than a half inch in valleys and desert regions.

For complete Calendar including Authors Events, go to www.SDWriteWay.org

East County News Service

January 25, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – Here are some of the most important items on agendas of our local boards, commissions and councils this week in San Diego’s East County.

January 24, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) – Our December radio shows are now online!  You can listen online now (note sound files may take a minute to load). For links to listen to the shows plus a full list of topics and interviews in December, click here and scroll down.

Our top newsmaker interviews included leading environmentalists, musicians, authors, business leaders, police officers, refugee aid leaders, winemakers, and more.   We talked about hot news from UC tuition hikes to energy projects proposed in our region to a nonprofit seeking to build an incubator business model to bring jobs to East County.  Plus we went on location to events from a holiday party for homeless kids in El Cajon to a Nile Sisters program honoring local refugees.

You can hear the East County Magazine Show on KNSJ 89.1 FM on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 5 to 6 p.m., on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m, and on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m.

January 24, 2015 (El Cajon) - Randy Jordan sent in this photo of the new Jimmie Johnson street sign, named after the 5-time NASCAR champion from El Cajon.

East County News Service

January 24, 2016 (Campo)—The Campo Lake Morena Planning Group meets Monday evening at 7 p.m.  The agenda includes a staff update and vote on the latest version of the Star Ranch plan.  Officers will be elected and vacancies on the board filled.  In addition planners will discuss concerns raised by Boulevard and Jacumba planners over the addition of large battery storage facilities at the proposed Soitec Solar project.

To view the full agenda, click “read more” and scroll down.

By Roger Coppock

January 23, 2015 (San Diego)--What will global warming do to our planet?  Specifically, if we continue with "business as usual," burning fossil carbon fuels and dumping CO2 into the atmosphere in increasing amounts, what temperatures will our children see at the turn of the next century?  When climate scientists make projections like these, they use mathematical tools called "Climate Models."  Climate models are collections of mathematical formulas describing our planet.  Usually, these formulas are represented by a computer program.  These computer programs are typically monstrously large and very complex.

January 23, 2015 (La Mesa) - The La Mesa Chamber, with the help of Nick and Norma from Carl Burger Dodge Chrysler Jeep RAM World, delivered 22 gift baskets and the 22 bags of canned goods for the Chamber’s adopted seniors to Maxine Lynch, President of the La Mesa Employees Association on Wednesday, December 17^th. These beautiful baskets were loaded with 30 items each which included  cash, gift cards, toiletries, food items, socks, booties, candy and more.  In addition to these baskets, seniors in need also received a bag of miscellaneous canned foods December 19^th to brighten their holiday season.  In addition to these gifts, the Chamber purchased 22 turkey dinners from Marie Callender's, complete with all of the trimmings, that were also delivered with the gifts.

By Hayden Parsley

January 23, 2015 (Sacramento) - More San Diegans are getting jobs last month as unemployment dropped to 5.2%. This is down from 5.8% in December. This data was gathered in a monthly survey by the California Employment Development Department (EDD).

By Miriam Raftery

January 23, 2015 (San Diego)—Soitec Solar may exit the solar business, Greentech Media reports.  A quarterly report indicates the company plans to “refocus” efforts on its electronics business .

Greentech’s article indicates that the language may be vague, but the publication predicts, “…the message is clear: Soitec is exiting this business as quickly as possible.” 

The news comes as San Diego Supervisors are poised to vote Feb. 7 on whether to approve massive  industrial solar projects proposed by Soitec in Boulevard.

By Hayden Parsley

January 23, 2015 (Lakeside) – Elaina Rose Welch, who was arrested following the deaths of her child and boyfriend on the Barona reservation last week, was released from jail Thursday.

Tribal police responded to a call about an attempted suicide and the Sheriff’s department responded to a call reporting her baby was dead. The police spoke to a man, now known to be her boyfriend, Julio Ricardo Monggiotti; who then entered the home and a shot was heard. Welch exited the home and dropped a shotgun on the road.

When the police entered the home they found the corpse of her baby hidden in a freezer and Monggiotti dead with gunshot wounds to his chest and wrist. This incident had prompted much of the area to be shut down and even SWAT intervention. (See our prior story here.)

By Miriam Raftery

January 23, 2015 (Alpine) – The Grossmont Union High School District must set aside $14 million in bond money immediately and another $28 million by January 2016 to fund building a high school in Alpine. Superior Court Judge Joel Pressman issued the ruling Thursday, granting an injunction sought by Alpine Taxpayers for Bond Accountability.

Priscilla Schreiber, the only member of the Grossmont Board who has consistently supported building the high school in Alpine, told East County Magazine, “I’m thrilled.” 

But a statement from the district claims that other schools in the district will not get needed improvements due to the court’s decision.  The district indicates it will be back in court January 28 filing for a stay in hopes of halting the injunction.

January 23, 2015 (Santee) – Sheriff’s deputies have arrested Shawn Wood, 30, who was found sleeping in a stolen vehicle in the 7000 block of Mariposa Street in Santee on January 22^nd at 7:25 a.m.

By Miriam Raftery

January 22, 2015 (Lemon Grove) – A woman crossing Skyline Drive at Alton Drive in Lemon was struck by a vehicle on Thursday at 6:10 p.m. and sustained life threatening injuries.

East County News Service

January 22, 2014 (Lakeside) – Crime Stoppers is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of vandals who used paint and epoxy glue to damage a mailbox and signs.  The suspects were caught on video on January 16 bewteen 1:25 and 2:45 a.m. in the 11000 block of Valle Vistas Road in Lakeside’s Eucalyptus Hills neighborhood. 

A reliable source told ECM that  around the same time, El Capitan High School and Lakeside Farms Elementary School also suffered major damage from vandals who put epoxy in door locks, among other damage. 

A Selected Few Just For You, by Jacqueline Carr (Jacqueline Carr, Middleton, DE, 2014, 178 pages).

Book Review by Dennis Moore

“Endurance is one of the most difficult disciplines, but it is to the one who endures that the final victory comes.”  - Buddha -

January 22, 2015 (San Diego's East County) - Jacqueline Carr, an author and Adjunct Instructor at York College (CUNY), and literary enthusiast, has written a novel which is an expression of her innermost thoughts and observations; A Selected Few Just For You. One that stands out to me is that of Ralph Waldo Emerson, which states:

By Robert Gehr © 2015

January 21, 2015 (El Cajon)--I’m the pedestrian you nearly hit with your vehicle. - I’m the person you injured with your vehicle. - I’m the one you killed with your vehicle.

By Miriam Rafttery

January 21, 2015 (Sacramento) – Babies and people of all ages who have not been vaccinated for measles should temporarily avoid Disneyland and all public places likely to have many foreigners, due to a growing number of measles cases linked to the amusement park in Anaheim.

By Hayden Parsley

Note: Full text of the President's speech is posted below this story.

President Barack Obama delivered his State of the Union Address this Tuesday. With the eyes of the nation on Washington, he focused on middle class economics. His main goals are child care, labor, education, and healthcare. President Obama called on Congress and the American people to advance these goals.

He also cited his administration’s accomplishments, including ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as implementing policies that he says resulted in “the fastest economic growth in over a decade, our deficits cut by two-thirds, a stock market that has doubled, and health care inflation at its lowest rate in 50 years.”

Still, he acknowledged that middle class families are struggling, and proposed solutions.

January 21, 2015 (San Diego's East County) - Cuyamaca College will host its first annual pow-wow on February 7^th from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.   The public is invited to enjoy gourd dancing at 10 a.m. followed by a grand entry at 11 a.m. There will also be Native American arts and crafts, fry bread and Indian tacos. Admission is free.

By Miriam Raftery

January 21, 2015 (Washington D.C.) – The official Republican Party response to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union speech was delivered by Senator Joni Ernst of Iowa, a mother and  Lieutenant Colonel in the Army National Guard.

Ernst stated that “rather than respond to a speech, I’d like to talk about your priorities.” She said the newly elected Republican majority in Congress “understands how difficult these past six years have been” citing economic concerns and “frustration with Washington’s dysfunction.”

She then laid out priorities of the Republican party, casting clear differences for voters between the President’s goals and those of the GOP Congress.