Ernest Ewin

PASSAGES: ERNEST EWIN, FORMER LA MESA COUNCILMAN AND CIVIC LEADER

 

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Councilman Ernie Ewin  at the La Mesa railway depot, during kickoff of the city's 2012  Centennial.

January 3, 2024 (La Mesa) -- Former La Mesa City Councilman Ernest “Ernie” Ewin died December 28, 2023 at age 76 in Utah from complications of vascular dementia.  Ewin served 18 years on the City Council, previously serving on the city’s planning commission, and held many other civic leadership positions, contributing to East County communities in the fields of education, healthcare, and more.

Ewin represents the City on the Metropolitan Transit Board (MTS), where he has chaired the audit committee. He chaired the Metro Waste Water Joint Powers Authority and served as Executive Director of the Grossmont College Foundation’ board of directors and as donor relations specialist for the Foundation for Grossmont & Cuyamaca Colleges. In addition, he was Chairman of the Prop G Grossmont Healthcare District's Independent Oversight Committee and served on the board of the East County Visitors’ Bureau.

 He was also  a founding member of the San Diego Trolley Board of Directors, past member of the County of San Diego Finance Review Panel, past Chairman of the San Diego County Organization Assessment Panel, and past Chairman of the Grossmont-Cuyamaca District's Prop R Citizens' Bond Oversight Committee. He also chaired a volunteer finance committee for the city’s 2012 Centennial celebration.


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ERNEST EWIN TAKES ON NEW ROLE WITH THE FOUNDATION FOR GROSSMONT & CUYAMACA COLLEGES

 

 

June 27, 2014 (El Cajon) - From student body president at Grossmont College during the 1960s to his fundraising efforts on behalf of students over the past 10 years, Ernest Ewin is the gift to East County’s community colleges that keeps on giving.


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LEONARD SMITH,OWNER OF LEONARD SMITH REALTY DIES


December 19, 2011 (La Mesa) -- The death of Leonard
 Smith, owner of Leonard Smith Realty on Grossmont Boulevard was confirmed Friday morning, December 16, by his son David.
 
According to his website, he began his real estate career in La Mesa in 1946. A charter member of the La Mesa Board of Realtors and past president, he was instrumental in organizing their Multiple Listing Service. He maintained a La Mesa office for 50+ years, enjoying a reputation of the highest integrity while specializing in selling fine homes in the Mt. Helix and East County areas.

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READER'S EDITORIAL: THE SHAME OF LA MESA--COUNCIL VOTES AGAINST FAIR TRADE, BOWS TO CORPORATE INTERESTS OVER HELPING PEOPLE


“The City, on its own website, already supports many initiatives that show preference to some businesses over others—and rightly so, to promote the public good… Where were the so-called pro-life members of the council last night? Why, casting their votes on behalf of companies represented by an out-of-town Chamber of Commerce instead of showing compassion for unborn babies, children and families.”
 

By Meg Jensen
 

October 13, 2011 (La Mesa) – La Mesa’s City Council fell one vote short last night of joining major cities and small towns across America in becoming a “Fair Trade Towns USA” city. The resolution would not have cost the city a penny. It would, however, have enabled consumers to have information on retailers in La Mesa who have voluntarily agreed to carry at least two fair trade products certified to have been made without the use of child labor, slavery, or use of dangerous chemicals that harm workers and their unborn children.


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READER’S EDITORIAL: ON ELECTION TUESDAY, LA MESA VOTERS HAVE A CLEAR CHOICE


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SEMPRA (SDG&E) & LA MESA COUNCIL ENDORSE “NO ON DIRTY ENERGY” EFFORT TO DEFEAT PROP 23


“It’s the moral and ethical thing to do to protect the health and well-being of our residents,” Mayor Art Madrid

By Miriam Raftery


September 15, 2010 (La Mesa) – La Mesa's City Council voted yesterday to oppose Proposition 23. Sempra Energy, parent company of San Diego Gas & Electric Company, also announced its opposition to Prop 23.  

 

The ballot initiative would repeal California’s landmark AB 32, the law which protects clean air, requires greenhouse gas emissions reductions, and provides incentives for renewable, clean energy jobs in California.


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LA MESA SPOTLIGHT: INCUMBENT COUNCILMAN ERNEST EWIN

 

From Big Picture to Specifics

By Kristin Kjaero and Miriam Raftery

In part two of this series on election races in La Mesa, East County Magazine spotlights incumbent Ernie Ewin. For this series we asked all candidates the same set of questions on local issues, with an open invitation to bring up anything else they would like to discuss at the end of the session. We want each candidate to speak for themselves.

 

 

September 2, 2010 (La Mesa) --Talk to Councilman Ernie Ewin about issues in the community and you’ll hear a wide-reaching perspective. From his early days in first grade at Murray Manor, to serving as Student Body President at Grossmont Community College, and on to San Diego State University, his roots in the community run deep.


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CANDIDATES SOUND OFF AT POLITICS IN PARADISE FORUM

By Miriam Raftery

 

August 22, 2010 (El Cajon ) – Two Congressmen and four local lawmakers fielded questions from the audience Friday night, trading quips and barbs on topics ranging from healthcare to gay marriage. The occasion was the San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce’s annual “Politics in Paradise” event in the Water Conservation Garden at Cuyamaca College, where the weather was sultry and the politics even hotter.


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LA MESA TO CONSIDER PROGRAM TO TURN IN UNUSED OR EXPIRED PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

 

May 24, 2010 (La Mesa) – Councilmember Ernest Ewin has proposed that La Mesa create a program to encourage residents to turn in unused and expired prescription drugs and also launch a “No Drugs Down the Toilet or Drain” campaign.  The proposal will be considered by Council on Tuesday, May 25 during the Council meeting starting at 6 p.m. at City Hall.

“Prescription drugs have long been recognized as a threat to child health and related criminal activity,” Ewin wrote in a memo to the Mayor and members of the City Council. “Also, drugs in landfills, our streams, bays and ocean are also of concern.”


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SUMMIT SEEKS HELP FOR GROWING REFUGEE POPULATION IN EAST COUNTY

Nearly 85% of local refugees are from war-torn Iraq, straining resources on schools and social services; local leaders call for major changes in treatment of refugees

 

"We can create a national model," -- Sunny Cooke, president, Grossmont College

 

November 12, 2009 (El Cajon) – Impacts of the Iraq War are hitting home in East County, where so many Iraqi refugees have settled that El Cajon's mayor has dubbed a section of his community "Little Baghdad."  From Oct. 1, 2008 to October 1, 2009, the U.S. admitted almost 75,000 refugees—including 18,333 from Iraq.*  Since October 2008, San Diego has been taking in 400 refugee families a month.  Nearly 85% are from Iraq.  Almost 75% of all area refugees have settled in the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District (GCCCD), straining resources beyond capacity in social services, education, and healthcare.

 

“Social Services predicts that 200 to 300 new families will be entering East County each month for the next two or three years,” Mike Lewis, PhD, assistant superintendent of education for the Grossmont Union High School District said at a November 6 summit at Cuyamaca College titled Spotlight on Refugee Education and Employment.  Some have spent weeks or even years in refugee camps.  Many don’t speak English and have not been able to receive an education.  Many refugees are also physically maimed by war or suffer post-traumatic stress.  Often they receive misinformation and find steep barriers to getting the help that they need.


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LA MESA BANS ALCOHOL IN ALL PUBLIC PLACES WITHOUT A PERMIT

By Miriam Raftery

October 28, 2009 (La Mesa) – At last night’s La Mesa City Council meeting, it came as a surprise to many in the audience to learn that alcohol consumption has been prohibited in City parks since 1991. Last night Council voted 5-0 to extend that ban to all public places including City streets, curbs, and sidewalks—drawing praise from some and criticism from others.
 


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EDITORIAL: WHY EAST COUNTY CITIES NEED MODIFIED PERMIT APPROVED FOR POINT LOMA WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT

 

By Ernest Ewin
Chair, Metro Wastewater JPA and Metro Commission


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