County and City provide major support for landmark project

By Miriam Raftery

Photo, left: Supervisor Joel Anderson presents half million dollar check to kickstart the incubator business center, joined by El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells and Dr. Noori Barka, Chaldean Community Council.

May 1, 2024 (El Cajon) – Opening an incubator business center to help refugees and immigrants start new businesses has been a dream of Dr. Noori Barka for more than a decade.  On April 11, that dream came to fruition at a ceremony launching the Chaldean Community Council’s new incubator business center at 405 East Lexington Avenue in El Cajon. The center will provide help for low-income and underserved refugee communities.

Supervisor Joel Anderson called the occasion a “joyous day” as he presented a check for a half million dollars from the County to the Chaldean Community Council to kickstart the incubator business center. He also issued a proclamation declarring April 11 El Cajon Small Business Incubator Day. Funding was through the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), the Small Business Stimulus Grant program, and the County’s Community Enhancement program.

 “For years, I’ve said we need an incubator to kick start businesses,” the Supervisor said. “In East County, we’ve got enterpreneurial spirit to be tapped,” he added, predicting that the enterprise will produce new entrepreneurs, “bringing wealth and opportunities to East County.”

He praised El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells after the city agreed to lease office space for the incubator business center for just a dollar a year, over the next five years.

East County News Service

April 30, 2024 (Jacumba) -- A search is underway for a missing Campo woman, Paula Connolly, 28. She was last seen 4/28 at 10 p.m. at a gas station in Jacumba.

She is 5 ft. 4, 151 pounds, with brown hair and eyes, tattoos on shoulder and right forearm.

To volunteer in search, call the Tribal Office (619)478-9046.

If you have any information on Paula Connolly’s whereabouts, please call:

By Miriam Raftery

April 25, 2024 (Lakeside)—The Lakeside Rodeo April 25-28 features events such as bronco and bull riding, barrel racing and more.

Plus Lakeside’s Western Days Parade rolls out on Saturday, April 27 starting at 9:35 am.

April 25, 2024 (San Diego’s East County) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego's inland regions, published in other media.  This week's round-up stories include:

LOCAL

• San Diego region to receive $39M in funding for migrant aid  (KPBS)
• Residents Affected by Jan. Storms Warned of Scammers Posing as FEMA (Times of San Diego)
• Grossmont Union District uses state grant money to fund more community schools (KPBS)
• State Farm reveals 50 San Diego zip codes where policies will be dropped (CBS)
• Employees, Volunteers May Have Been Exposed to Tuberculosis at Joan Kroc Center Shelter  (Times of San Diego)
• Fletcher accuses ex-MTS employee of defamation over sexual abuse allegations (KPBS)
• Chula Vista loses on police drone video in landmark State High Court decision  (Times of San Diego)

STATE

• Google blocks California news in response to bill that would force tech giant to pay (NPR)
• Becerra weighs exit from Biden administration for California gubernatorial bid (Politico)
• Forever chemicals’: Water supplies throughout California will exceed new national limits (KPBS)
• Pic 'N' Save CEO trying to save 99 Cents Only stores in Southern California (ABC 7)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click  “read more” and scroll down.

By Miriam Raftery

April 25, 2024 (Ramona) – A phone call to the Sheriff’s communications center yesterday around 1:40 p.m. reported an individual armed with a firearm outside  Ramona High School. The incident prompted a lockdown of the high school and other nearby schools while deputies from Ramona and Poway stations searched the campus.

The call appears to have been a false report or “swatting” incident to provoke a law enforcement response. Nothing suspicious was found.

By Miriam Raftery

April 25, 2024 (San Diego’s East County)—A cluster of rabbit deaths in the past week in the Jamul-Dulzura areas has residents and wildlife officials concerned. The State Department of Fish and Wildlife is asking anyone who finds a dead or dying wild rabbit to immediately report it online at Wildlife Mortality Reporting (ca.gov), or phone 916-358-2790.

A state wildlife official told East County Magazine that Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus 2 (HDV2) is a likely possible reason for the deaths, though Tularemia, a tick-born disease also known as Rabbit Fever, is another possibility. A third option suspected locally is a parasite infection, which can migrate to the brain.

By Miriam Raftery

April 25, 2024 (La Mesa) – Stolen mail, an illegal semi-automatic ghost gun, live and spent ammunition were among the items found in the vehicle of a suspect apprehended April 20 after a pursuit.

La Mesa Police officers responded to a call reporting a man pointing a gun at a female victim at the Jack in the Box restaurant on Jackson Drive in La Mesa shortly before midnight.  The officers spotted a vehicle leaving the scene that matched a description of the suspect’s vehicle.

By Miriam Raftery

April 25, 2024 (Washington D.C)  – The Jamul Indian Village Land Transfer Act (H.R.6443) authored by Congressman Darrell Issa (CA-48), passed the House of Representatives on April 10.

H.R.6443 incorporates 172 acres of land in San Diego’s East County region into the Jamul Indian Village Reservation, placing the land into tribal trust and preserving it for generations to come. This area also includes a 100-year-old church (photo, left, by Miriam Raftery) and cemetery where their tribal lineage has rested for generations.

The acreage is currently owned by the Jamul Indian Village and includes residential land for homes and council buildings, an ancestral cemetery, and the tribe’s only road for transportation.

If approved by the Senate and signed by President Joe Biden, this would be a dramatic expansion of Jamul’s tribal lands, since the existing reservation has only six acres,  most of which is occupied by the tribe’s casino and a hotel under construction.

April 24, 2024 (Lemon Grove) -- The Lemon Grove Recreation Center will be hosting the 4th annual 3-on-3 Trevon Harris basketball tournament on June 8, 2024, from 8:00 a.m. to 12 p.m. at 3131 School Lane. Basketballers must be ages 10 to 16 to participate in the tournament. 

There is no entry fee and players may register onsite at the event beginning at 8:15 a.m.  The tournament will begin at 9 a.m. with tip-off. This is a free event that will bode a March Madness bracket style basketball competition, free music/entertainment, and free food.

By Miriam  Raftery

April 24, 2024 (El Cajon)—The Cajon Valley Union School District’s board of trustees voted during a special meeting April 22 to appoint Emily “Lily” Schworm to fill the vacancy on the board left by the resignation of Jo Alegria.

A bilingual education teacher, Schworm previously ran for El Cajon City Council in 2012. In an interview then with East County Magazine, Schworm said she has taught in the Cajon Valley, La Mesa-Spring Valley and South Bay school districts before choosing to homeschool her children..

In her application for the position, she describes herself as an "extremely invested parent and an experience teacher" who has resided in El Cajon most of her life.

She has also been an active volunteer with Foothills Christian Church including mentoring at-risk youths, after-school groups and more.