We thank the County of San Diego for a Community  Enhancement Grant to help support Destination East County.

Listen to Destination East County, also aired on KNSJ radio, by clicking the audion link.

January 6, 2016 (San Diego's East County)--This week’s Destination East County includes Hawk Watch in Ramona, a Family Fun Fest at Kroc Center, an art show at Mission Trails, a hike into the Jacumba wilderness and a desert oasis, and a bluegrass open mike night in La Mesa. All month long, you can get free health and fitness classes and services as part of Santee’s Health Awareness Month.

Plus we’ll have previews of coming attractions, including the opening of trout season at Santee Lakes,  a Martin Luther King Jr. Day breakfast, civil rights speaker and film showing, plus a hike to a garnet mine near Jacumba Hot Springs. So scroll down for all of these events and more.

East County News Service

January 4, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) – Thieves burglarized two ATM machines in Santee and Rancho San Diego overnight.

East County News Service

January 4, 2015 (Ramona) –  Hawk Watch, a free celebration of raptors will take place at the Wildlife Research Institute in Ramona Grasslands at 10 a.m. each Saturday in January and February—rain or shine.   You can observe both wintering and resident raptors such as the Golden Eagle, Bald Eagle, Ferruginous Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Prairie Falcon, Red-shouldered Hawk, and Burrowing Owl.

Nineteen species of raptors have been recorded at this “raptor hotspot,” where you will learn the life histories of these beautiful birds as well as the importance of the Ramona Grassland ecosystem from WRI biologists.  In addition to wild raptors, you will also see several trained raptors and owls up close.

The Mayan Red Queen: Tz’ aakb’u  Ahau of Palenque, by Leonide Martin (Made for Success Publishing, 2015, 300 pages).

Book Review by Dennis Moore

January 3, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) - Leonide Martin, retired California State University professor, author and Maya researcher, continues her Mists of Palenque Series in Book 3 with a work of historical fiction that has been described as tastefully written with a beautiful weave of historical fact; The Mayan Red Queen: Tz’ aakb’u Ahau of Palenque.

January 3, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) -- Our November 2015 radio shows are now online!  You can listen online now (sound files may take a minute to load). For links to listen to the shows plus a full list of topics and interviews in November, click here and scroll down.

Our newsmaker interviews include Molly Nocom (photo, left) on her amazing achievements helping developmentally disabled adults at Noah Homes, Bobbi Brink at Lions, Tigers and Bears on her latest tiger rescue effort, plus a two-part interview with SDSU’s David McIllwain on terror and refugee issues, as well as tips from his class on emergency preparedness. On Bookshelf, hear from Bill “Santa” Swank on his book, Christmas in San Diego. Our news coverage also included the latest in the Alpine High School case, the Covert Canyon controversy, homeless issues,  Tribal Beat coverage of local and national Native American issues, and much more.

The East County Magazine Show airs Mondays and Fridays from 5 to 6 p.m. on KNSJ, 89.1 FM.  The shows rerun on Tuesdays at 9 a.m. and Saturdays at 8 a.m. Pacific Standard Time.

Crippled America: How To Make America Great Again, by Donald J. Trump (Threshold Editions, An Imprint 0f Simon & Schuster, Inc., New York, NY, 2015, 193 pages).

Book Review by Dennis Moore

January 2, 2016 (San Diego's East County) - Donald J. Trump, the very definition of the American success story, has now delved into politics with his candidacy for the White House, and explains why in his very provocative book; Crippled America: How To Make America Great Again. Trump, a graduate of the Wharton School of Finance, an accomplished author and having written more than fifteen bestsellers, with his first book, The Art of the Deal, being considered a business classic and one of the most successful business books of all time. There is no question that trump has been a very successful entrepreneur and businessman – but does that necessarily translate into his being a great politician or President of the United States?

East County News Service

January 2, 2016 (Lemon Grove) -Lemon Grove’s City Council meets on Tuesday, January 5^th at 6 p.m. The agenda includes a proposed ordinance to ban medical marijuana dispensaries, deliveries and commercial cultivation. Council will also consider an ordinance to shift planning authority from the Planning Commission and  the City Council hear planning matters instead.

Changes to the Water Efficient Landscape ordinance will also be considered, along with a continuing hearing on housing element obligations and awarding a contract for stormwater services.

By Miriam Raftery

January 1, 2016 (Mt. Helix) – The Grossmont-Mt. Helix Improvement Association invites area residents to celebrate the New Year with a walk up Mt. Helix on Saturday, January 2 at 10 a.m. 

Meet at the fire station at 10105 Vivera and stroll as a group to the summit.  At the ampitheater, enjoy live music by Jan McBride Jazz, along with refreshments while savoring scenic views.

East County News Service

January 1, 2016 (Wilderness Gardens Preserve)--The County of San Diego has created a video showing the joys of winter season hiking at Wilderness Gardens Preserve, located in  the picturesque San Luis Rey River watershed in Pauma Valley in northeast San Diego County.

Update January 2, 2016: The Medical Examiner has confirmed that the victim was Mary Faanunu, 34, wife of the suspect. She died of a gunshot wound to her head. 

East County News Service

January 1, 2016 (El Cajon )—Six children apparently lost their mother early this morning and their father is behind bars. Hauati Faanunu, called police at 12:34 to report that he had shot his wife at their home at 82020 Melrose Lane in unincoporated El Cajon.

Deputies from the Sheriff’s Lakeside substation responded and found a woman dead inside the residence with trauma to her upper body.  Soon after, Faanunu turned himself in at the El Cajon Police Department. KNSD 7 News reports that he dropped the couple’s six children, ages 2 to 13, off at a relative’s house; no one was home when police arrived at the family's residence.

East County News Service

December 30, 2015 (Alpine) –After 19 years of working to create gardens friendly to birds, butterflies and other creatures, the nonprofit Center to Instill Respect and Preservation for Garden Wildlife, or CHIRP, is coming to an end.

The board of directors voted in November to dissolve the nonprofit after financial challenges, as many nonprofits have faced in recent tough times.  “I feel it is time for me, the founder and executive director, to move on,” Maureen Austin wrote in a letter published on the Alpine Community Network.

CHIRP, a garden club known for organizing the popular Sage & Songbirds garden tour each year, gained national fame for Alpine after helping the community become first in the nation to receive a Community Wildlife Habitat designation from the National Wildlife Federation.  Austin voiced hope that Alpine will continue to nurture habitats for wildlife to retain the designation, adding that she will happily help transfer NWF’s annual status report to another organization or individual.

By Miriam Raftery

December 30, 2015 (San Diego) –California Attorney General Kamala Harris’ office may file criminal charges against Michael Peevey,  former president of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), over back-room dealings concerning a settlement deal over the shutdown of the San Onofre nuclear facility.

A sworn affidavit by Specia Agent Reye Diaz with the Attorney General’s office in late September and recently unsealed reveals  that Diaz found “probable cause to believe” that Peevey and Southern California Edison vice president Stephen Pickett  “conspired to obstruct justice” by knowingly engaging in illegal private communications to craft a shut-down deal advantageous to Edison, but  disadvantageous to other interested parties.

By  Kiki Skagen Munshi

December 30, 2015 (Julian)--The Hoskings Ranch development will be discussed with staff from the Country Planning Commission and the developers at the Julian Town Hall on January 12, 2015 at 6:00 p.m.  The public is encouraged to attend.

Development plans for the Hoskings Ranch, which extends south and west from the junction of Pine Hills Road and Highways 78/79, include 24 lots each of which may have up to two houses and various other buildings and facilities.  Local residents are concerned about the impact of this upscale subdivision on water resources, local roads, and the rural character of the area.  Plans were originally scheduled to be presented to the Planning Commission for approval on December 11, 2015, but the hearing was postponed to February 5 to allow time for the public to review the planning documents.