East County News Service

Photos courtesy of Darren McClane, Team Depot Captain

April 30, 2025 (El Cajon) -- As a part of the National Volunteer Month campaign, The Home Depot Foundation and 365 Connect teamed up today to upgrade the home of local veteran Lawrason Springwell.  

 Lawrason, a retired Air Force pilot who served in the Vietnam War, lives with his wife on Carob Lane in El Cajon. Since 2023, he has faced significant health challenges, prompting his wife to leave her job and become his full-time caregiver. With Lawrason unable to tend to the property as he once did and his wife occupied with his care, the Springwells needed assistance to clean up their property and restore it to its previous condition.

By Karen Pearlman

Photos courtesy of Legalize Ferrets

Photo:  Pat Wright with a ferret friend

March 18, 2025 (La Mesa) -- Eight years after persuading the city of La Mesa to become a sanctuary city for ferrets, Pat Wright is on a mission next to legalize ferret ownership statewide.

Wright and his nonprofit group, Legalize Ferrets, have attained a key milestone in the quest to remove domestic ferrets from the state’s list of restricted species.

East County News Service

February 10, 2025 (Lemon Grove) - On Saturday, February 1, the spirit of community and compassion was on full display as Lemon Grove nonprofit organizations joined forces at Treganza Park for a heartfelt fundraiser supporting fire relief efforts in Los Angeles. Over $2,100 was raised, according to a press release from organizers.

East County News Service

January 6, 2025 (Santee) – Jordan Marks, San Diego County Assessor-Recorder-County Clerk (ARCC), has announced that early appointments are now available for civil wedding ceremonies between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Valentine’s Day, Friday, Feb. 14, 2025.  Couples can book their Valentine’s Day appointments for marriage licenses and ceremonies at one of four ARCC offices, including Santee, Chula Vista, San Marcos and the San Diego Downtown ARCC headquarters at the County Administration Center, 1600 Pacific Highway, San Diego. The Downtown location also offers indoor ceremony rooms or a picturesque, outdoor marriage arbor on the waterfront. The ARCC Santee branch office in East County is located at 10144 Mission Gorge Ave.

By Miriam Raftery

December 9, 2024 (San Diego) – A 15-year-old San Marcos girl is fighting for her life after suffering serious injuries. After running away from a treatment facility in North County, she was found in Mendocino “on the side of a highway, barely alive, some 600 miles away. Marielynn Watson was the victim of a horrific attack from a pack of off-leash dogs,” says Ron Logan, an East County Magazine photographer and cousin of the injured teen.

Logan, along with Marielynn’s father, David Watson, have started a GoFundMe site to help cover medical expenses for Marielynn, who remains hospitalized after multiple surgeries, with more needed.

“When I first saw her, I almost passed out,” Watson told ECM, adding that he was unemployed at the time of the attack by several pit bull dogs and has no insurance to cover his daughter’s medical bills. In addition to worrying about his daughter’s health, he is concerned that he could face financial ruin as the medical bills mount.

By Cassie N. Saunders, County of San Diego Communications Office

Video by Alex Aguirre

November 30, 2024 (San Diego) - The County’s Child and Family Well-Being Department (CFWB) hosted its annual Adoption Day Party last Friday at the Juvenile Courthouse to celebrate National Adoption Month.

Recognition highlights the often unspoken, but significant need for compassionate healing and support for those suffering from reproductive grief

East County News Service

November 24, 2024 (La Mesa) -- In recently presenting its more than two dozen "Celebrating Women 2024" awards, San Diego Magazine recognized one individual as "Pioneer of the Year" for her groundbreaking work to support those suffering from the very personal and far-too-often unacknowledged grief that follows reproductive loss. 

Dr. Michaelene Fredenburg, Founder and CEO of Institute of Reproductive Grief Care and long-time La Mesa resident, was honored November 6, following a panel of the magazine's judges reviewing hundreds of Pioneer and Rising Star nominations received in 15 different categories.

By Rachel Williams

September 28, 2024 (San Diego, CA) — Autumnal colors begin to glisten across San Diego’s alluring hillsides in time for Mama’s Kitchen’s largest 20th annual Thanksgiving bake sale.  Their pie sales benefit community members combating malnutrition due to critical illnesses, such as HIV, cancer, congestive heart failure, type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease.  Pie sales will close on Friday, Nov. 22, or until pies last.

By Miriam Raftery

September 6, 2024 (La Mesa) – Caleb Carvalho, 14, was riding his bicycle to school yesterday morning when he was struck and seriously injured by a garbage truck at the intersection of University Avenue and La Mesa Blvd. 

A Go Fund Me site has been set up to help the teen, a freshman and football player at Helix Charter High School, with his medical bills as he faces long road to recovery.

His father, David Carvalho, told NBC 7 that Caleb’s pelvis was broken on both front and back. Currently hospitalized, Caleb will need rehabilitation and costly medical treatments. 

Caleb was in the bicycle lane but the trash truck driver didn’t see him, running over Caleb as the truck pulled into a driveway.

By Mimi Pollack

Photo, left: Lauren Botticelli and Alf

August 11, 2024 (La Mesa) -- Nine years ago, I wrote an article on the all-breed dog rescue, the Animal Pad, which was then headed by Rebecca Weinrib and Stephanie Nisan.  A lot has changed since then, and this non-profit dog rescue based in La Mesa has really grown as it continues to save the lives of many dogs. TAP (The Animal Pad) rescues dogs from other shelters, dogs that are owner surrendered, and dogs from various [and sometimes perilous] situations in Tijuana and Baja California.

 Nisan and Weinrib have passed on the torch, with Nisan remaining on the Board of Directors. The present Executive Director and woman of many hats is the formidable Lauren Botticelli, who came in seven years ago. In addition, in 2020, TAP acquired a physical building on Avocado Blvd to run the day-to-day operations and house a kennel for up to 40 dogs.

East County News Service

July 24, 2024 (Alpine) – The Pacific Southwest Association of Realtors (PSAR), one of San Diego’s largest trade associations for San Diego-area realtors, is applauding the volunteer efforts of PSAR member and Alpine resident Jeff Campbell who is collecting new shoes, newborn to size 13, for foster children until August 17.

By Jonathan Goetz

View video, which originally aired on KNSJ Radio 

July 13, 2024 (Mt. Helix) -- Miriam Raftery, Editor of East County Magazine, recently interviewed Melinda Forstey, Chief Operating Officer of Serving Seniors, (www.servingseniors.org) a nonprofit providing services to help seniors thrive including nutrition, housing, health and social services. Serving Seniors has been around since 1970 and provides wrap around services primarily for low-income seniors, including a nutrition program serving over 1.4 million meals.

In the interview,  Forstey discussed the financial stresses on seniors, the root caues of the growing number of seniors becoming homeless, and efforts to help them--including Serving Seniors' senior housing project in Ramona, shallow rent subsidies for seniors, food program for seniors and more.