By Helen M. Ofield, Treasurer/Historian to the Board

Lemon Grove Historical Society

May 9, 2022 (Lemon Grove) -- Belated Mother’s Day greetings.  We hearken back to 1909 and the 1920s and 1930s when our ancestral mothers led the charge in Lemon Grove as members of the Forward Club (because they were forward-thinking), a name later changed to the Women's Club when they joined the national Federation of Women's Clubs.  By 1922 the women had built and paid for their own clubhouse. You've done the math. That clubhouse is now 100.

By Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna

May 8, 2022 (San Diego) -- There’s a new wave coming to town – HEAT! Temperatures will exceed triple digit in the deserts and things will be warming up around most all of Southern California.

Here are some safety tips to help you beat the heat:

By Rebecca Jefferis Williamson

May 8, 2022 (San Diego) -- County of San Diego citizens Eddie Michel, Bruce Mezan, Rosa Martinez, and Oscar Stewart were all honored by San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan during a virtual awards ceremony, 2022 Citizens of Courage Awards, on April 26.

“I want to acknowledge the hundreds of people tuned in right now,” started off Stephan, who also acknowledged the hard work of her agency’s crime victim unit. Stephan noted that one crime victim unit advocate typically deals with 100 new victims a year. The unit also works to identify those that should be honored for their courageous acts.

By Matthew Manosh

May 7, 2022 (El Cajon) -- Imagine walking into a building. Instead of being greeted by a person you are greeted by a robot. It sounds like a scene from a sci-fi story but it’s now reality. The San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce had an introduction to its new robot assistant, TEMI, last month. This assistant is able to answer questions about East County.

In a demonstration, a presenter asked a question about Santee Lakes, which Temi responded to in detail. TEMI, also mobile, can move around an area or it can be programmed to follow people. This is not meant to replace human jobs, but to help humans do their jobs better by taking on simple tasks that may take away from more important tasks, Todd Brinkman explained to us. You can view the video here.

Brinkman is the founder of Virtual Reality for Main Street LLC, a company dedicated to bringing new emerging technologies to cities.You can look at their website here. 

Source: San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG)

May 7, 2022 (San Diego) -- SANDAG, Metropolitan Transit System (MTS), North County Transit District (NCTD), and the County of San Diego joined the community on Friday morning to announce the SANDAG Youth Opportunity Pass pilot program. The new program is the first of its kind in the San Diego region, offering free public transit to anyone 18 and under, with a Youth PRONTO account, from May 1, 2022, through June 30, 2023.  To sign up for the pass to receive free rides, visit https://youthopportunitypass.sandag.org/.

May 7, 2022 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Week-long ‘Mother’s Day Strike’ set to protest overturn of Roe (The Hill)
• FDA puts strict limits on Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine (CNN)
• Better ventilation makes a healthier workplace — if companies invest : Shots - Health News (NPR)
• The tick that makes people allergic to red meat is in D.C. (Washington Post)
• Public health expert talks about effectiveness of a second COVID-19 vaccine booster (KPBS)
• E-cigs using synthetic nicotine come under FDA oversight (10 News)

SCIENCE AND TECH

• You can now ask Google to take your personal data out of its search results (NPR)
• Elon Musk launches hostile takeover bid: ‘Twitter needs to be transformed’ (Washington Post)
• Meet the Reddit ‘Aunties’ covertly helping people get abortions (Washington Post)

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

May 7, 2022 (San Diego) -- 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

• Anza-Borrego Park faces claims of neglecting rain ‘guzzlers,’ leading to bighorn sheep deaths (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• San Diego received virtually no rain in April, pushing region closer to ‘severe drought’ ranking (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Sempra to give record profits to investors on heels of SDG&E customer bill spikes (inewssource)
• What military equipment do La Mesa Police have? (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Housing Subsidies Can’t Keep Pace with Surging Rents (Voice of San Diego)
• El Cajon will try sending some 911 calls to nurses, not hospitals. Here’s how it’s gone elsewhere (Los Angeles Times)
• Former tribal chairman accused of embezzling nearly $400K in federal funds in indictment (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Local residents open homes to Ukrainian refugees (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Orbeez shooters invade El Cajon (San Diego Reader)
• El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells doesn’t think Hasan Ikhrata should resign for wasting taxpayer money on steaks (KUSI)
• Supreme Court Sides With La Mesa Resident in Nazi-Looted Painting Suit (Patch)

STATE

• California energy officials warn of potential summer blackouts (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• California voters agreed to give prisoners shorter sentences. Did they mean violent ones, too? (Sacramento Bee)
• Here we go again: California coronavirus cases rising. Is a new wave coming soon? (Los Angeles Times)
• California Investigating Oil Companies for Alleged Plastic Recycling Deception (NPR)
• California lifts five-day quarantine rule for people exposed to COVID-19 but show no symptoms (Los Angeles Times)

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

East County News Service

May 6, 2022 (Pala) -- Robert Smith, Chairman of the Pala Band of Mission Indians, joined other tribal leaders on Thursday, May 5th at the California State Assembly to support May 2022 as Missing and Murdered Indigenous People Awareness Month. 

Alito and his four cohorts on the Supreme Court are attempting to bury the last fifty years of safe, legal abortion, now supported by at least 70% of the U.S. population.

By Amy Goodman, Dennis Moynihan, staff writers, Common Dreams

Reprinted under a Creative Commons license from Common Dreams

Photo: CC by SA via Bing

May 6, 2022 (Washington, D.C.) - The U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, DC is truly august, its Corinthian columns and ornate pediments reminiscent of ancient Rome's Temple of Mars Ultor, erected by Emperor Augustus to commemorate Mars, the god of war, in his role as avenger. Augustus employed the imperial design to convey that a new order had arrived after quelling a civil war that had consumed the region for fifty years. Two thousand years later, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito has unleashed his own form of vengeance, from within the Supreme Court's columned walls, revealed in a draft opinion he authored, leaked by a person or persons not yet publicly known then published by Politico.

By David R. Shorey, East County Program Manager, Institute for Public Strategies

May 6, 2022 (San Diego’s East County) -- One of the questions I get from community members I work alongside in East County is “How do you determine the most important drug, alcohol and mental health issues to focus on?” The answer is that in addition to listening to the needs of the community, our priorities are also established through a framework established by the County of San Diego. The Behavioral Health Services Division of the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency is designated with addressing these issues and working to promote recovery, discovery, resiliency and well-being through prevention, treatment and intervention. Integrated services are available from BHS for those who may be experiencing mental illness along with substance misuse.

Source:  San Diego Superior Court

May 6, 2022 (San Diego) – The Honorable Joseph P. Brannigan has retired after nearly 18 years of service on the San Diego Superior Court Bench, ending a storied career that started with a stint as an officer in the U.S. Army followed by time spent as an FBI agent, deputy district attorney and assistant U.S. attorney. 

East County News Service

Photo: CC by SA via Bing

May 5, 2022 (San Diego) – With a new Omicron subvariant circulating and cases climbing across the nation as prom and graduation season approaches, the County Health and Human Services Department is urging parents to make sure children are up to date on COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters, and to take other preventive measures.

By Elijah McKee

May 5, 2022 (Lemon Grove) — Tuesday, May 3 at 6:50 p.m. marked exactly three years since Trevon Harris passed away, after he was struck by a vehicle on San Miguel Avenue in Lemon Grove. He was just 13 years old. 

East County News Service

April 5, 2022 (Alpine) - Wild in the Country is the biggest fundraiser of the year for the Lions Tigers & Bears animal sanctuary in Alpine. After a two-year hiatus, the event returns May 21 with a “Denim and Diamonds” theme. You’re invited to  dust off those jeans, put on something sparkly, and get ready to visit with the animals, bid on amazing auction items, and rock out with The KING of Diamonds himself, Rob Garrett America's #1 NEIL DIAMOND tribute artist and impersonator who is a lead Las Vegas act.

Outfielder Irvin Weems drives in both Aztec runs

Source:  goaztecs.com

Photo courtesy goaztecs.com

May 5, 2022 (San Diego) - For the second straight night, San Diego State was unable to overcome an early deficit, as visiting CSUN claimed a 9-2 decision over the Aztecs on Wednesday at Tony Gwynn Stadium.