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Opinion
I am the general manager of a winery in Calistoga and live in Marin County. I am writing to you with a full heart after a member of your community came to my rescue Wednesday night – you have a Hidden Valley hero in your midst.
Over a year ago my then-16 year old's car caught fire whilst she was driving it – within seconds of smelling burning my husband who was thankfully with her at the time made her pull over immediately. Within seconds the car was alight and was completely destroyed (the photos were awful and life lessons learned).
With this in mind – as well as the horrific wildfires of October 2017 – I was driving home Wednesday night on Petrified Forest Road in my husband’s rather old Mustang and smelt burning. I opened the windows and couldn't smell anything outside – I knew I was just about to lose my phone signal as I headed over the mountain so pulled over. My biggest fear is to start a wildfire on a mountain that was so devastated by last year’s fires and have no cell coverage to call for help.
It was so scary, the lorries and cars zooming past me on the narrow road. I tried to open the hood and just couldn't. I was stuck there on the side of the road for what seemed like an eternity.
Suddenly a white Mustang zoomed up and a girl jumped out and popped the hood in under 30 seconds (I had the humility to blush at my inadequacy to get the hood open). She took that car apart to ensure nothing was burning – she was quite simply amazing.
Turns out I have an angel: Jacqueline, a Mustang lover and lady with a heart of gold was on her way home from Santa Rosa to Hidden Valley Lake and spotted me struggling in a precarious part of the mountain, so she turned around and come back to help. I have no doubt that she was Heaven-sent.
It filled my heart that, after a day at work and children to get home to, she turned around on that mountain and came back to help. Cal Fire stopped to assist but thankfully no further assistance was needed.
I had to share this story with you because she really deserves recognition for her outstanding community spirit. You have a hidden hero in Hidden Valley Lake.
I have invited Jacqueline to the winery for a VIP visit and will give her a gift as a thank you her for being my Hidden Valley Lake hero.
Emma Blatcher lives in Marin County, Calif.
Over a year ago my then-16 year old's car caught fire whilst she was driving it – within seconds of smelling burning my husband who was thankfully with her at the time made her pull over immediately. Within seconds the car was alight and was completely destroyed (the photos were awful and life lessons learned).
With this in mind – as well as the horrific wildfires of October 2017 – I was driving home Wednesday night on Petrified Forest Road in my husband’s rather old Mustang and smelt burning. I opened the windows and couldn't smell anything outside – I knew I was just about to lose my phone signal as I headed over the mountain so pulled over. My biggest fear is to start a wildfire on a mountain that was so devastated by last year’s fires and have no cell coverage to call for help.
It was so scary, the lorries and cars zooming past me on the narrow road. I tried to open the hood and just couldn't. I was stuck there on the side of the road for what seemed like an eternity.
Suddenly a white Mustang zoomed up and a girl jumped out and popped the hood in under 30 seconds (I had the humility to blush at my inadequacy to get the hood open). She took that car apart to ensure nothing was burning – she was quite simply amazing.
Turns out I have an angel: Jacqueline, a Mustang lover and lady with a heart of gold was on her way home from Santa Rosa to Hidden Valley Lake and spotted me struggling in a precarious part of the mountain, so she turned around and come back to help. I have no doubt that she was Heaven-sent.
It filled my heart that, after a day at work and children to get home to, she turned around on that mountain and came back to help. Cal Fire stopped to assist but thankfully no further assistance was needed.
I had to share this story with you because she really deserves recognition for her outstanding community spirit. You have a hidden hero in Hidden Valley Lake.
I have invited Jacqueline to the winery for a VIP visit and will give her a gift as a thank you her for being my Hidden Valley Lake hero.
Emma Blatcher lives in Marin County, Calif.
- Details
- Written by: Emma Blatcher
Lakeport has stared down a wall of fire and survived. Survival was not an accident. It was a result of the efforts of thousands of people each doing their part to respond to a dynamic and high risk situation.
On behalf of our residents and city, I first want to thank Cal Fire, all the mutual response fire agencies, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, the Lakeport Unified School District, our Lakeport Fire Department, Lakeport Police and our own City Hall staff. If there is ever a moment for government to execute and deliver for our community, a major public safety threat is the best example, and on that front, we all have much to be thankful for. I am proud of their response and dedication throughout the fire threat.
However, the recognition does not stop there.
Crisis is a chance to see the soul of a community and what I have seen the past weeks are neighbors helping neighbors, the business community rising up to unleash their considerable resources to help, and a spirit of civic duty that has infused everyone.
This is not just government – this is an entire community working for its survival and assured safety of its residents. It is the best of us.
Residents are also to be commended for heeding the warning from our emergency system and responding to public safety messages. An efficient evacuation process is critical to life preservation.
While smoke drifts in the air, we should capture this momentum to prepare for an inevitable future fire risk to our community. Residents in the wildland urban interface should prepare plans and yards to defend their homes with proper spacing and vegetation removal.
Everyone should check their registration with the city’s emergency alert system NIXLE (even though we more than doubled our registration during the fire event), to ensure you are registered and have an updated email, cell phone, home phone and other entries for every member of the family.
Make a plan now for your “go bag” and the items you want in there if you had to walk out of your house in five minutes. It is a sobering effort, but important.
While I ask that residents plan, know that the city is planning, too. We are in pursuit of grants to address wildfire mitigation plans and will be working proactively with authorities to address broader scale fire risks in our county.
Lakeport offers a simpler pace of life, a chance to know your community, a chance to connect with neighbors, a chance to have a positive impact. The actions of our community reaffirmed these community traits.
Stay strong. Stay connected. Stay prepared. Onward.
Margaret Silveira is city manager of Lakeport, Calif.
On behalf of our residents and city, I first want to thank Cal Fire, all the mutual response fire agencies, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, the Lakeport Unified School District, our Lakeport Fire Department, Lakeport Police and our own City Hall staff. If there is ever a moment for government to execute and deliver for our community, a major public safety threat is the best example, and on that front, we all have much to be thankful for. I am proud of their response and dedication throughout the fire threat.
However, the recognition does not stop there.
Crisis is a chance to see the soul of a community and what I have seen the past weeks are neighbors helping neighbors, the business community rising up to unleash their considerable resources to help, and a spirit of civic duty that has infused everyone.
This is not just government – this is an entire community working for its survival and assured safety of its residents. It is the best of us.
Residents are also to be commended for heeding the warning from our emergency system and responding to public safety messages. An efficient evacuation process is critical to life preservation.
While smoke drifts in the air, we should capture this momentum to prepare for an inevitable future fire risk to our community. Residents in the wildland urban interface should prepare plans and yards to defend their homes with proper spacing and vegetation removal.
Everyone should check their registration with the city’s emergency alert system NIXLE (even though we more than doubled our registration during the fire event), to ensure you are registered and have an updated email, cell phone, home phone and other entries for every member of the family.
Make a plan now for your “go bag” and the items you want in there if you had to walk out of your house in five minutes. It is a sobering effort, but important.
While I ask that residents plan, know that the city is planning, too. We are in pursuit of grants to address wildfire mitigation plans and will be working proactively with authorities to address broader scale fire risks in our county.
Lakeport offers a simpler pace of life, a chance to know your community, a chance to connect with neighbors, a chance to have a positive impact. The actions of our community reaffirmed these community traits.
Stay strong. Stay connected. Stay prepared. Onward.
Margaret Silveira is city manager of Lakeport, Calif.
- Details
- Written by: Margaret Silveira
My name is Jennifer Dinsmore Hanson and I am running for the Lakeport Unified School District (LUSD) Governing Board.
I was born and raised in Lake County and received my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in economics from UC Santa Barbara and UC Davis, respectively.
My husband Jeff and I settled in Lakeport to raise our two daughters. We chose Lakeport because, at that time, it had the best schools in Lake County. Both of my daughters attended LUSD from kindergarten through high school with my youngest graduating in 2018.
I have worked as a full-time professor of economics and business at the Lake County Campus of Woodland Community College since 1996.
During this time, I have also served on curriculum committees, local site councils, faculty labor unions, and staff evaluation committees – all of which have given me valuable experience and perspective about the educational system. In addition, I served as the president of the Lake County Channel Cats for over 15 years and am now their treasurer.
Today, there are three important topics surrounding the LUSD School Board election: teachers leaving the district, a lack of discipline at the school and concerns about the school pool.
Teachers: My philosophy about teachers and staff is simple – they need to be supported by administration – both professionally and personally. A school with a faculty and staff that feel supported will help that school thrive. I also believe in transparency of government decisions and the need to reach out to teachers, staff, parents and students to get a complete picture of what happens at school.
Discipline: While there is a statewide push to reduce punishments and “redirect” bad behavior, we cannot allow our well-behaved students and teachers to suffer. We must implement common-sense discipline policies that incorporate best practices without going to extremes. Our school population is unique, and we must take an approach that works for all Lakeport students and teachers.
Pool: I am a strong advocate for water safety, and a firm believer in swim lessons for our youth. With all the lakes, rivers, and waterways in our area, it is imperative that our children have a place to learn to swim. I am also a disappointed voter who demands fiscal responsibility. When the school bond passed in 2014, a portion was supposed to be used to repair and renovate the school pool. Unfortunately, the funds were spent on other expensive items, and now there is not enough money left to begin the pool project. I believe that fiscal responsibility is a moral and professional mandate, and that a school board should be held accountable to the voters.
As your school board representative, I will immediately work to understand why teachers are leaving the district and find a solution. I will help shape a common-sense discipline policy that works for Lakeport.
And, I will honor the will of our voters by prioritizing our bond funds to meet public expectations, while being conservative about how those monies are spent.
I am running for one of three board seats that will be voted on in November. Please vote for me, Carly Alvord and Dan Buffalo to fill those three seats.
To learn more, visit www.fixLUSD.com, or reach me directly at
Jennifer Hanson lives in Lakeport, Calif.
- Details
- Written by: Jennifer Hanson
Prior to a handful of recent news articles, I was unaware that the Lakeport Fire District was in such financial dire straits.
Knowing the unquestionable need for first responders, I immediately began inquiring about this crisis. As a private citizen of Lakeport, I know the struggles that are faced trying to stay afloat in unpredictable times. This however is a bit different.
It’s one thing to not know where money is coming from for wider sidewalks, paved streets, a manicured park, etc.; it’s another to not have money for an entity like the Lakeport Fire District that provides life-saving services to the community. After all, we can live without wider sidewalks but many cannot live without first responders.
On Tuesday night I attended a special meeting held by the Lakeport Fire Protection District Board where its biggest topic was its financial crisis.
To my utter dismay and shock, the meeting started with a motion and vote to cut three full-time staff members.
It was only after voting to approve the cuts that the board opened the floor to public comment. Wait … huh? Shouldn’t the public have a right to be heard before the vote?
The board members clearly had their minds made up and were closed to any possibility that something may have been said during public comment to postpone the vote.
In fact, one of the board members stated that he did not “think” that the county would agree to another extension. Given the gravity of the situation, the board member should have “known” prior to the vote. Again, lives are at stake with this decision.
What this means and what was not highly publicized prior to the recent news articles is that, at any given time, the Lakeport Fire Department will be able to respond to only one emergency at a time.
So, it’s only natural to ask yourself, if two people are having an emergency at the same time, who gets priority? Which elderly citizen will receive life-saving measures during a medical emergency and which one will not?
To add insult to injury, I believe it was clear that although this financial emergency had been known for quite some time, the board did not start working on a game plan until March of this year.
When I personally inquired why this emergency was not brought to our attention earlier, I was told in essence that their books are always readily available and more or less that I should have inquired into their financial situation prior to learning about this mess. Yes, the board had the audacity to suggest that it is the citizen’s responsibility to go door to door to each and every city agency and inquire about their financial status!
To not properly manage and fund a medical crisis is abhorrent. I do not claim to have the answers and I appreciate the challenges that the board faces. My issue is that, at the end of the day, the citizens were not made aware of this issue until the 11th hour, when it was too late.
Had I known of this issue, it would have been my absolute pleasure to assist in whatever way possible.
I appreciate that some of the board members have lived and breathed the fire department for decades. I am certain that each and every one of them cares for the community and its safety.
This writing is not meant to disparage anybody. However, I would be remiss not to help bring this very important mess to light. It has become far too common for us to be reactionary and not proactive. Very few things can be won where only defense is being played.
This crisis reaches far beyond Lakeport. There is no question that the entire county will feel the effects of this disaster. Outside agencies will undoubtedly be asked to provide back-up responders to fill the void created by the board’s decision.
This means that the limited resources of surrounding areas like Kelseyville and Upper Lake will be left more vulnerable as their first responders are forced to abandon their communities to fill in for the inadequately staffed Lakeport Fire District.
I just hope that it will not be at the expense of people’s lives and safety.
Danny Flesch lives in Lakeport, Calif.
Knowing the unquestionable need for first responders, I immediately began inquiring about this crisis. As a private citizen of Lakeport, I know the struggles that are faced trying to stay afloat in unpredictable times. This however is a bit different.
It’s one thing to not know where money is coming from for wider sidewalks, paved streets, a manicured park, etc.; it’s another to not have money for an entity like the Lakeport Fire District that provides life-saving services to the community. After all, we can live without wider sidewalks but many cannot live without first responders.
On Tuesday night I attended a special meeting held by the Lakeport Fire Protection District Board where its biggest topic was its financial crisis.
To my utter dismay and shock, the meeting started with a motion and vote to cut three full-time staff members.
It was only after voting to approve the cuts that the board opened the floor to public comment. Wait … huh? Shouldn’t the public have a right to be heard before the vote?
The board members clearly had their minds made up and were closed to any possibility that something may have been said during public comment to postpone the vote.
In fact, one of the board members stated that he did not “think” that the county would agree to another extension. Given the gravity of the situation, the board member should have “known” prior to the vote. Again, lives are at stake with this decision.
What this means and what was not highly publicized prior to the recent news articles is that, at any given time, the Lakeport Fire Department will be able to respond to only one emergency at a time.
So, it’s only natural to ask yourself, if two people are having an emergency at the same time, who gets priority? Which elderly citizen will receive life-saving measures during a medical emergency and which one will not?
To add insult to injury, I believe it was clear that although this financial emergency had been known for quite some time, the board did not start working on a game plan until March of this year.
When I personally inquired why this emergency was not brought to our attention earlier, I was told in essence that their books are always readily available and more or less that I should have inquired into their financial situation prior to learning about this mess. Yes, the board had the audacity to suggest that it is the citizen’s responsibility to go door to door to each and every city agency and inquire about their financial status!
To not properly manage and fund a medical crisis is abhorrent. I do not claim to have the answers and I appreciate the challenges that the board faces. My issue is that, at the end of the day, the citizens were not made aware of this issue until the 11th hour, when it was too late.
Had I known of this issue, it would have been my absolute pleasure to assist in whatever way possible.
I appreciate that some of the board members have lived and breathed the fire department for decades. I am certain that each and every one of them cares for the community and its safety.
This writing is not meant to disparage anybody. However, I would be remiss not to help bring this very important mess to light. It has become far too common for us to be reactionary and not proactive. Very few things can be won where only defense is being played.
This crisis reaches far beyond Lakeport. There is no question that the entire county will feel the effects of this disaster. Outside agencies will undoubtedly be asked to provide back-up responders to fill the void created by the board’s decision.
This means that the limited resources of surrounding areas like Kelseyville and Upper Lake will be left more vulnerable as their first responders are forced to abandon their communities to fill in for the inadequately staffed Lakeport Fire District.
I just hope that it will not be at the expense of people’s lives and safety.
Danny Flesch lives in Lakeport, Calif.
- Details
- Written by: Danny Flesch