By Tasha Matthews

ECM Editor Miriam Raftery also contributed to this report

August 4, 2016 (La Mesa)--Councilmember Guy McWhirter opened the La Mesa City Council meeting on Tuesday, July 26^th by expressing concern for our country in the wake of recent shootings of police officers. He thanked police for their brave work helping to protect citizens—two days before two San Diego Police officers were shot, one fatally.

But the Council rejected a Grand Jury recommendation to create a police oversight board aimed at assuring that citizens’ rights are protected if officer misconduct is alleged. The Grand Jury made its recommendations to La Mesa and other local cities in a report on Citizens Oversight Boards of Police Behavior.

July 29, 2016 (La Mesa) – You’re invited to celebrate the era of Great Gatsby, flappers, gangsters, silent film stars, ragtime and jazz. Join East County Magazine at a benefit to support our nonprofit community reporting on Sunday, July 31 from 4-7 p.m. at the San Pasqual Wine Bar (8364 La Mesa Blvd.) in La Mesa--all to benefit our nonprofit reporting and wildfire alerts through East County Magazine.

Festivities include wine tasting, sparkling drinks  and Italian dinner plus dessert,  “All That Jazz” musical performance highlights,  live period music by the Classics, Douglas Fairbanks and Laurel & Hardy film clips, games, opportunity drawings and silent auction, games, surprises and more!

Space is very limited! RSVP by July 30 for discount rates and your “speakeasy” password!  619-698-7617 or editor@eastcountymagazine.org 

• Live“All That Jazz” preview by singers/dancers from Visionary Dance Theatre plus  Laurel & Hardy and Douglas Fairbanks film clips;
• Live music by the Classics
• Toast the Prohibition Era with sparkling “bubbly” drinks ; relish a ‘20s style feast fit for Gatsby & guests, wine tasting, dinner & desserts by Tiramisu Trattoria, Swami’s & Little Roma that Al Capone would relish!
• ‘Cocktail attire or 20s attire encouraged (flappers, film stars, gangsters, robber barons, etc.)
• Opportunity drawings and silent auction; prizes and surprises!  Win a night on the town including steak dinner & “Chicago” theater tickets, Joe’s Crab Shack dinners, The Hills Pub and Lunchbox Cafe gift certificates, wine baskets, Hawaiian pearls, turquoise and coral jewelry, antiques, collectibles, elegant items, CDs, Julian Old Time Photos, T-shirts and more.
  

East County News Service

July 27, 2016 (Rancho San Diego) – The Water Conservation Garden at Cuyamaca College will host a free Customer Appreciation Day for Helix Water and Sweetwater Authority customers on Sunday, July 31 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Discover different varieties of drought-tolerant plants, learn how to "Toss the Turf" and get inspiration on how to incorporate water-wise gardening into your own garden. Plus you can enjoy free activities including docent-led garden tours, tips on butterfly gardening, veggie growing,soils and native habitat, meet Ms. Smarty-Plants, watch a butterfly release, savor free shaved ice, and get discounts on gift shop items.  See full schedule of events below.

No filing fees, ballot statement costs  $315 to $360 in smaller trustee districts

By Miriam Raftery

July 24, 2016 (San Diego’s East County ) – For the first time, the Grossmont Union High School District will hold elections in November for individual trustee districts.   There are no filing fees, though modest fees are charged for candidates to publish ballot statements. With smaller districts, the cost for ballot statements is far less than in the past --just $315 in Trustee Area 1 (Lemon Grove/Spring Valley/La Prensa),which is an open seat, and $360 in Trustee Area 2 (La Mesa/Casa de Oro/Mt. Helix and part of Rancho San Diego) currently represented by Jim Stieringer.

The candidate filing period opened July 18 and closes August 12^th.  August 12 is also the deadline for candidates to submit ballot statements, which for the first time will be accepted electronically.

Source: Heartland Fire Press Release

July 18, 2016 (La Mesa) - On Thursday July 21st at 9:45 a.m., Heartland Fire & Rescue in partnership with La Mesa Police Department and allied agencies, will be conducting our annual Mass Casualty Incident training. The training will include an Active Shooter element. This training allows Law Enforcement and Fire Department personnel to work together in the event of an actual active shooter, like what we have recently seen in Dallas, Texas and San Bernardino, California. To make this training more realistic, we will have live actors in moulage, simulating injuries that we would encounter in this type of emergency.

By Miriam Raftery

July 8, 2016 (Mt. Helix) – Two mountain lions have been reported Monday by a homeowner on Mt. Helix.  La Mesa Today sent an alert warning the lions were seen  off Lemon Avenue in the Lake Helix area.  A CBS 8 news story ran two photos taken by the homeowner in unincorporated  La Mesa and footage of the location outside the home. 

The homeowner, who asked to stay anonymous, said the lions were on a hillside above a pool where her children were playing and two large dogs were present.

A long-time La Mesa resident  posted on a residents’ online forum that through the years he has previously seen mountain lions in the Boulder Hills area of La Mesa near Chevy Chase, above the La Mesa Village. 

East County News Service

June 25, 2016 (La Mesa)—Hope for Iraqi Christians, a La Mesa based organization that assists Iraqi Christian refugees fleeing genocide in the Middle East, has received a pledge from the  Anahid Oram Memorial Refugee Fund to match $10,000 in monthly donations, sponsoring 100 families per month, but only if they can secure sponsors for at least 100 families by July 4. If that goal is met, the matching funds will mean that 200 families will be helped.

You can sponsor a family for as little as  $1 a day. Each donor will receive information on the family adopted.  Smaller donations will be pooled to help reach the total. Or consider adopting multiple families.

East County News Service

June 24, 2016 (La Mesa) — California Highway Patrol seeks public help to locate a black pickup truck with a male driver that struck and injured a motorcyclist early this morning.  The accident occurred at 3:12 a.m. on westbound Interstate 8 just west of the Jackson Drive exit, said CHP Officer Kevin Pearlstein.

East County News Service

June 23, 2016 (La Mesa) – After 41 years, Sanfilippo Pizza in La Mesa will be closing permanently.

By Miriam Raftery

June 21, 2016 (La Mesa) – Freeway memorial signs commemorating murder victim and Sycuan tribal member Xusha Brown Jr. were unveiled today at the La Mesa Police Department.  Brown was shot and killed while in a vehicle on Interstate 8 in La Mesa in the early morning on May 5, 2013.  The driver of the Nissan Maxima, Malcolm Hune, was also injured.

By Chisato Iverson and Miriam Raftery

June 16, 2016 (La Mesa) –For Donna Neimeier at the La Mesa Historical Society, preparing an exhibit on Grossmont High School students forced into internment camps during World War II provided troubling memories from her own childhood.

“I was in first or second grade when all of this happened. I knew that my Japanese friends were gone…We didn’t know where they went,” she recalled.  After  her friends returned, she recalls, “They were very withdrawn and they never talked about it..”

Now she reflects, “Here I am, 75 years later, learning about this whole thing…I think with prejudice and the way we all feel about prejudice now, it’s something that is very upsetting to me personally, that it happened.”   The most important reason for the museum’s exhibit, she believes, is to teach people about the past, in hopes that it will never be repeated.

We're hosting an emergency benefit "Bohemian Bash" this Saturday, June 18 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at our editor's home on Mt. Helix.  Come celebrate our communities' creative roots and savor summer solstice revelry at the hottest party of the season!

Last week, vandals and thieves knocked our radio show and KNSJ's station off the air, doing thousands of dollars of damage at the transmitter site on Mt. Laguna. Come help us rebuild and assure that our communities' voices will be back on the air!

Festivities at this free-spirited gathering with artists, authors, musicians, and thinkers will support nonprofit media in the public interest, local news reporting, and coverage of arts, music and culture. Hear live musical entertainment, savor delicious food and libations, enjoy comedy with Second Chances for Grace, hear poetry readings, watch San Diego Asian Artists Ensemble performers, and win fabulous prizes!   Share your ideas, mingle with our Bohemian crowd, and meet the media. 

Proceeds benefit KNSJ "people powered radio" and East County Magazine, both nonprofit organizations.

RSVP today for early bird rates! ($19, or 2 for $34 in advance, $22 at the door.)   Call 619-698-7617 or email editor@eastcountymagazine.org to RSVP. You can prepay online at http://www.eastcountymagazine.org/donate, check"East County Magazine" off our publisher's list of options and write"Bohemian Bash" on the designation line to secure your reservation.

Click "read more" for more delicious details:

East County News Service

June 2, 2016 (La Mesa) – The La Mesa Chamber of Commerce will host its eighth annual Taste of La Mesa from 5 to 8 p.m., Monday, June 6, at the La Mesa Community Center, 4975 Memorial Dr., La Mesa.

Participating restaurants as of press time include Anthony's Fish Grotto, BJ's Restaurant and Brewhouse, Bo-beau kitchen + garden, Brigantine Restaurant, Cali Comfort BBQ, Continental Catering, Cucina Basilico, Edible Arrangements, El Torito, Himalayan Cuisine, Hooley’s Irish Pub and Grill, Luna Grill, Marie Callender's, O's American Kitchen, Pick Up Stix, Riviera Supper Club, Souplantation, Sycuan Casino, Tarantino Gourmet Sausages, Terra American Bistro, The Hills Local Pub, Tiramisu Trattoria, and Valley Farm Market.  Samuel Adams is the exclusive beer sponsor of the evening. Wine sponsors include Nonno’s Ristorante Italino, Riviera Supper Club, The Regal Bar and San Pasqual Winery.

East County News Service

June 2, 2016  (La Mesa) — The City of La Mesa introduced a new website yesterday to capture the “essence of the City and its dedication to promoting quality of life in the Jewel of the Hills,” according to the city’s press release.

Customer Appreciation Day June 2; store closes June30

By Miriam Raftery

June 1, 2016 (La Mesa) – For the past 18 years, Antiques in the Village has been a fixture in La Mesa’s downtown village, offering a delightful mix of antiques and collectibles.  But owners Larry and Francis Settle are retiring—and the shop will be closing its doors permanently on June 30^th.

On June 2^nd, the couple is hosting a Customer Appreciation Day.  “Everything will be 30 to 50 percent off,” says Larry, adding that refreshments will be served up along with bargain prices. Discounts will continue to be offered until the final day at month’s end.