I agree with Rob Muir — a glitzy laser show projected on Tahquitz Rock is inappropriate for our village of Idyllwild. Our Fourth of July parade is a wonderful celebration in keeping with our town; this laser show is too glam.
I look at our lovely Tahquitz, a sentinel watching over our town every day. Artists of all kinds have tried to capture its glory. Blasting lasers at it is an insult and damages the very nature of the feeling Tahquitz inspires.
And imagine the terror of the animals as these strange lights pierce the darkness of their habitat. How many will be blinded by the lasers?
In the words of David Miller, “Mountain lions and all sorts of animals will go around chasing the laser beams!”
The idea of conferring with Native Americans about whether lasers lighting up their sacred Tahquitz with patriotic messages is ludicrous. Consider Standing Rock and all the rest. Why not blast the laser on the wall of Morongo Casino? Or if you want to see fireworks, go see fireworks.
I read Dr. Tom’s statements on the Bernie Sanders tirade against Russell Vought with great interest.
It prompted further reading about the incident which was quite illuminating, and in my opinion, much more damaging to Sen.Sanders’ character than Mr. Vought’s.
I appreciate that Dr. Tom is properly concerned about the unconstitutionality of a religious test for government office. This concern is quite appropriately applied considering that Vought’s alarming statement was made in response to Sanders’ repeated question, “Do you think that people who are not Christians are condemned?” a question that has no direct relevance to his serving in a government post.
It is interesting to note that, although he is “personally torn about the proper response,” Dr. Tom summarizes what he does know in the form of two questions: “Whomever you believe your deity to be, if he condemns someone who doesn’t believe like you, then why should you treat that person with the dignity and respect that, as an agent of our government, you should treat all citizens?” And, “Can’t you see that an attitude like that is destructive of your soul?”
The first question would be an excellent follow-up question to Vought’s statement. As he was not given the opportunity to answer, I shall attempt to answer both questions in his stead.
I cannot speak for other religions, but the reason a Christian in government office should treat all citizens (condemned or not) with dignity and respect is because he follows Christ, the deity who issued the command to “love your neighbor as yourself” and even followed this statement with an illustration that placed a despised foreigner in the role of “neighbor.” A Christian’s moral behavior is bound by the highest standard of love and sacrificial service to all. Because of this, I rest even more confidently in Mr. Vought’s fitness to serve.
In answer to the second question: No. I don’t see how an attitude like that is destructive to my soul.
When we started our local nature photography calendar years ago, very few local organizations/businesses offered local calendars. Back then, it was a hit because it was so specific to Idyllwild. We sold lots of calendars.
Now, others offer local calendars in town so we are unable to sell enough to make it worth the cost of printing. So, this year, we decided to scratch the photo contest calendar, unfortunately, so no one needs to submit their photos. Instead, we are launching a new calendar. Stay tuned.
• • •
This week, we’ve learned from Dr. Lucy Jones that the farther away we are in time from the experience of a major earthquake, the less likely we are to prepare for another. The same is true of wildfires and this week, with the increase in earthquakes and the Manzanita Fire.
Our problem is that we’re not nomadic people like Native Americans were before we drove them onto reservations. We can’t just pack up our house and leave so easily if Mother Nature hits.
But that doesn’t mean these events didn’t have a profound impact on Native Americans. They did.
Stories handed down through generations tell of a Jan. 26, 1700, megathrust earthquake in the Pacific Northwest resulting in great loss of life due to landslides, major geological shifts and a tsunami with massive flooding. Through multiple stories both in the PNW and Japan, where a tsunami also occurred, not only the date, but the time of 9 p.m. also was pinpointed.
Wildfires also impacted Native Americans. A large wildfire in the San Diego County area prior to contact with Europeans resulted in a massive migration of peoples to the desert.
The Native Americans adapted. They even fought fire with fire, setting backfires the way firefighters do today.
When Dr. Jones talks about a magnitude 8-plus earthquake hitting this area, those of us surviving the tremor will need to survive the ensuing aftershocks. Then, the lack of housing if ours is destroyed. The lack of medical care if we are badly injured. Neighborhood Collection Points and trained volunteers are limited.
We will need water, food and shelter at the least. We won’t have resources to get those things if roads are destroyed. Supply trucks will stop, mail will stop, banks, pharmacies and stores will close, and our lives as we know them will completely change.
So, we need to stop thinking of our current comfort and challenge ourselves to prepare — whether it be to hunker down after an earthquake or evacuate from a wildfire.
Marshall’s interview with Dr. Jones was a wake-up call to me. Either I move out of earthquake and wildfire country, or I adapt. Because these issues aren’t things we can easily control. They can’t predict earthquakes or wildfires.
Native Americans were around for centuries before us. We’re newbies here in the West. We need to adapt to survive.
Betty Jean Dravenstatt was born March 2, 1933, in Lansing, Michigan, and passed away Thursday, June 8, 2017, in Hemet. She is survived by her three children, James, Dawn and Ronald, six grandchildren, one great-grandchild, one brother, and several nieces and nephews.
Betty was retired from the Fullerton Union High School District where she was a transportation secretary, and spent most of her retirement living in Idyllwild, along with her late husband Norman.
Betty enjoyed traveling, crafts and playing the piano/organ while her family sang along. Family was always important to Betty. She had a wonderful sense of humor, loved to play tricks on her children and grandchildren, and loved God most of all.
Betty served in many churches and organizations, sharing her musical talent, singing and playing the organ and piano in worship services, weddings and special events. She passed this musical talent on to her children and grandchildren.
For the last few years of her life, Betty struggled with health issues, but she never lost her smile and her sense of humor. Everyone she encountered was touched by her capacity to love them and by her love of Jesus. She will be missed by all who knew and loved her.
A Memorial Service will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, July 8, at the Hemet Church of the Nazarene, 42655 E. Florida Avenue, Hemet.
Late Monday afternoon, fire officials begin planning their strategy to fight and to contain the Manzanita Fire. The fire had burned 5,000 acres by Tuesday morning. Photo by Ed Sherman, Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department
The Manzanita Fire, burning east of Highway 79 in Lamb Canyon, grew to 5,800 acres by mid-Tuesday and was 20 percent contained as of press time.
Currently, more than 1,300 firefighters, including the Idyllwild Fire Department, are combating the blaze. Three helicopters and eight aircraft are providing air attack.
The fire started Monday afternoon. The apparent cause was a traffic collision between two vehicles. Two patients were transported to hospitals, according to a Cal Fire report.
Evacuation warnings for residents between Highland Home Road and east to Highway 243, including the communities of Poppet Flats and Silent Valley, have not been lifted. Residents of these areas should “ready” themselves for a potential evacuation under Cal Fire’s “Ready, Set, Go” evacuation planning.
Voluntary evacuations have been issued for the following roads: Highland Home Road, Longhorn Road, Death Valley Road and Shirleon Drive.
Highway 79’s northbound lane was closed to traffic on Monday. Highway 243 and the southbound lanes of Highway 79 are open.
A Red Flag Warning was issued Monday for many parts of Southern California by the National Weather Service through 1 a.m. Wednesday because of high temperatures, single-digit humidity and 20- to 25-mph winds with gusts up to 35 mph.
Last week in “Days of Our Nine Lives,” Patrick introduced himself to the ARF cats.
Bobbie
Bobbie: You know, Anabel, I was lying around this weekend, trying to stay cool, when I started thinking about you.
Anabel: Really? What were you thinking?
Bobbie: I was wondering how in the heck it is that you, with your big, gorgeous eyes, are still here?
Patrick: And Tinkerbell. What the heck? You’re a looker, too. I think your eyes are even bigger than Anabel’s! Why are you still here?
Mr. Gray
Bobbie: And you know, they’re not just pretty. They’re also very loving.
Patrick
George: And so am I! I like humans.
Bobbie: You like humans? None of you, and I mean none of you, is as friendly as I am.
Tinkerbell: Oh, Bobbie, I’m not so sure about that.
Pepper: I’m pretty friendly, too, once the human gives me a few minutes to get to know him.
Crue: And how about us dogs?
Jet & Crue
Jet: Yeah! We’re super friendly, too.
George: And what I like about you two is you are friendly with cats.
George
Crue: You know it!
Patrick: So you and Jet want to be adopted together, right?
Jet: That’s right.
Crue: And what we hope humans know is that Jet and I are so well behaved and pretty quiet!
Mr. Gray: I think you guys will be the perfect addition to a forever family.
Anabel
Jet: As will any of you cats!
Bobbie: And the icing on the cake is that cat adoptions are still half-price, thanks to community sponsors.
Tinkerbell
Anabel: Aw, that’s so great. What a great community we have on this mountain!
Will the next adoption be canine or feline? Be sure to keep up with the animal antics of “Days of Our Nine Lives” each week. And please stop in to say hello to the entire adoptable cast at the ARF House, 26890 Hwy. 243 on Saturdays 10-4 and Sundays 10-2, or by appointment M-F by calling 951-659-1122.
Creature Corner is sponsored in memory of all the beloved pets.
Brendan Steele carded a 7-under-par 68-68-69-68 — 273 last week at the Travelers Championship.
The native Idyllwilder bested the field in all strokes-gained categories, garnering 7.279 strokes gained overall. His drives found 73 percent of the fairways and averaged 302 yards, the longest being a huge 354 yarder. He hit 69 percent of the greens in regulation. The result was 12 birdies and an eagle against seven bogeys, producing his ninth top-20 performance in 18 tournaments this year. Seven of his top 20s were top 15s, including three top sixes and a win.
Montreal superfan André Pilon, who followed Brendan hole-by-hole for all 72 holes last week, related that he cannot escape the feeling that the Idyllwild native is on the verge of breaking through with a second win this year, perhaps even at this week’s $7.1 million Quicken Loans National in Potomac, Maryland.
Brendan goes into this week’s tournament in 13th place on the FedExCup points list and in 52nd place in the Official World Golf Ranking. He tees off Thursday at 4:59 a.m. PDT and Friday at 9:59 a.m. PDT.
Capt. Billy Adams, 3, of the Nursery School Volunteers in October 1972. file photo/Norwood hazard
70 years ago - 1947
It was announced that whoever was nearest the button would blow the fire siren daily at noon. No guarantee was made, however, that the timing would be accurate.
65 years ago - 1952
Mike Dunn and Mac McCullog trekked 20 miles over Tahquitz and down into Palm Springs.
60 years ago - 1957
Boyd Lovell, Idyllwild’s new barber, was also a mystery man. His whodunit, “A Rage to Kill,” had just been published.
55 years ago - 1962
Scotty and Elea Allison opened the newly remodeled Alpine Market in Fern Valley.
50 years ago - 1967
Neil Bell, seventh-grader, received a pin for six consecutive years of perfect attendance.
45 years ago - 1972
The Idyllwild Water board held a public meeting to answer questions about the water shortage. One resident called it a “sanctioned gripe session.”
• • •
Ernie Maxwell was appointed to the Watershed Fire Council of Southern California.
40 years ago - 1977
Idyllwild resident Liesl Barnett was confirmed as a one-year appointee to the Riverside Grand Jury.
35 years ago - 1982
The second Idyllwild 10 Kilometer Run brought 234 runners along the course. An added attraction was a 5 Kilometer Run.
• • •
The Bureau of Indian Affairs office in Riverside denied a lease proposal to stage a mammoth three-day rock festival on the Cahuilla Indian Reservation.
30 years ago - 1987
The 37th Summer Program at ISOMATA began without a hitch.
25 years ago - 1992
Doug Henninger and Becky Kelley were the overall men’s and women’s champions of the third Lions Club Timber Fest.
20 years ago - 1997
Another Fourth of July Parade was being planned and entries were being received. The community planned a first-rate Fourth of July weekend.
15 years ago - 2002
A State Department of Health inspection of Idyllwild Water District operations was moved up the schedule and given priority status because of controversy over the district’s plans to use a well that was known to have high levels of radioactivity (Well 1A).
10 years ago - 2007
The historic A.C. Lovekin cedar tree came down to become the material for David Roy’s new Idyllwild Tree Monument. Located on Tahquitz Road in Fern Valley, this tree was allegedly once used in World War II as a defense system to spot enemy fighters on the coast, which could be seen from a platform at the tree’s top.
5 years ago - 2012
Riverside County Sheriff’s Department Reserve Deputy Barney Brause met with a large group of Fern Valley residents to discuss the Neighborhood Watch Program.
1 year ago - 2016
The Riverside County Department of Public Health reported that ground squirrels from Dark Canyon and Marion Mountain campgrounds tested antibody-positive for plague, according to state and local health officials.
Visiting Rotarians from Southern Africa display their official Idyllwild Rotary squirrels at the weekly meeting of the Idyllwild Rotary Club on Wednesday, June 21. The seven participants in the Rotary Friendship Exchange spent two days in Idyllwild as part of their three-week trip to Southern California, which the Rotary hosted.
Seven members of Rotary Clubs in Botswana and South Africa spent a few days in Idyllwild, from June 19 to 21, as part of the Rotary Friendship Exchange. This Rotary International program aims to build international friendships by letting members experience different cultures, taking turns hosting each other in their homes and clubs.
This particular exchange was sponsored by District 5330 of Southern California and District 9400 of Southern Africa, with local members traveling to Southern Africa last November.
Upon arrival in Idyllwild, the Africans were generously hosted by innkeepers and Rotarians Marc Kassouf and Nathan DePetris at Strawberry Creek Inn after a reception on the deck at Quiet Creek Inn catered by Nam Kim of Mile High Café.
On Tuesday, Amanda Allen, interpreter of the Idyllwild Nature Center, opened the center on her day off and gave a tour of the grounds, illustrating the flora and fauna of the region. After some more sightseeing, the visitors were welcomed to the weekly Rotary meeting on Wednesday morning.
Professor Ulli Schmitt (left) from Botswana talks with Idyllwild Town Crier Co-publisher Jack Clark at a reception for visiting Southern Africa Rotarians on the deck at Quiet Creek Inn on June 19. Schmitt has developed and patented computer software and teaches at a university in Gabarone. Photo by Tom Kluzak
Two of the visitors were from the Rotary Club of Gaberone, Botswana: Professor Ulrich Schmitt and Michael Everingham. Schmitt, originally from Germany, teaches information technology at the University of Stellenbosch Business School and is an expert in personal knowledge management. Everingham is CEO at Sunglass Cabin, a retail business specializing in sunglasses and men’s casual sportswear.
All of the other visitors hailed from South Africa. Renate Bowers is a retired accountant and avid motorcyclist from the White River Club. On a previous trip to the U.S., she rode from Los Angeles to Chicago on Route 66 and then decided it was too much fun to quit so she and her companions continued to New York.
Carol Allais is a retired professor of sociology at the University of South Africa and a member of the Pretoria Hatfield Club. Jonathan GreenGrass was accompanied by his wife, Jill, and is a member of the Centurion Club. He has been in and out of retirement, called back to work as a business analyst with legacy IT systems. Jill is retired from British Airways.
Amanda Van Biljon, an accountant, was the leader of the group and also a member of the Pretoria Hatfield Club.
Ladd Seekins of the Rotary Club of Colton serves as the Friendship Exchange chair for District 5330 of Southern California, and was responsible for travel, lodging and entertainment of the group during their three-week visit to Southern California. After leaving Idyllwild, the group headed for Desert Hot Springs.
Rotary International was started by attorney Paul Harris in Chicago in 1905 so professionals with diverse backgrounds could exchange ideas, form meaningful lifelong friendships and give back to their communities. It didn’t take long for clubs to spring up on six continents so that Rotarians visiting just about any town in the world can find one of the 33,000 local clubs in 529 districts and be welcomed warmly to its weekly meeting.
There are no strangers among the 1.2 million Rotarians throughout the world. But Rotary is very much more than a “good-old-boys club.” Members donate time and money to local projects and the Rotary Foundation, a charity that focuses on six worldwide areas of need: promoting peace; fighting disease; providing clean water, sanitation and hygiene; saving mothers and children; supporting education; and growing local economies.
Money donated to the foundation comes back to the originating district where it can be used for local projects. International projects require cooperation between a local club and one in another country, and go through a rigorous vetting process that ensures they will be successful; sustainability is a strict requirement to prevent people from being left with a good thing that cannot be continued.
The name of the founder is memorialized frequently when a member donates a total of $1,500 to the Rotary Foundation and becomes a Paul Harris fellow. The number of fellows reached one million in 2006, including U.S. President Jimmy Carter and Russian President Boris Yeltsin.
The Idyllwild Rotary Club is well-known in the community, sponsoring the Independence Day Parade, the Harvest Festival and many other events throughout the year, fueled by countless volunteer hours, with any proceeds being funneled back into Idyllwild in the form of scholarships and donations to local charities. The Rotary motto is, “Service above self.”
The University of California, Riverside Pipe Band returns after a one-year hiatus to highlight the Idyllwild Independence Day Parade — for what is a parade without a band? And now, the always thrilling sound of bagpipes and drums will echo throughout the downtown village core as the parade makes its way down North Circle. Photo by Cheryl Bayse
It’s not big, it’s not boisterous, it’s not ostentatious. It’s small-town America at its most wholesome and charming. That is Idyllwild’s iconic Independence Day Parade, now in its 52nd year and 15th year of Idyllwild Rotary sponsorship.
New Hill residents, unless irredeemably sophisticated, will thrill to a taste of what celebrating American Independence Day was like for years in small towns all over the country. In Idyllwild, the Fourth of July is a Norman Rockwell painting of small-town friendliness and openness that is fading in urban America but is very much alive here.
You know the members of the Honor Guard, your neighbors on home-designed floats and Dr. Chip Schelly on stilts as Uncle Sam. You even recognize your neighbors’ dogs dressed in red, white and blue. And, of course, there’s Idyllwild’s mayor, smiling from the back of his truck. And for those who may not be aware, the mayor has four legs, and he does, in fact, smile.
This year, Riverside County Sheriff Stan Sniff is the grand marshal, sharing the honors with Capt. Leonard Purvis, commander of the Hemet Valley Sheriff’s station that serves the Hill. That is an important nod by Sniff and Purvis to the importance of Idyllwild to the county as its only alpine community and its only historic district in the unincorporated areas.
The parade starts at 10 a.m. Tuesday, July 4, from Fern Valley Corners and proceeds in leisurely fashion down North Circle Drive to the town square. It’s led by the American Legion Post 800 Honor Guard. Along the way, at three different locations along the parade route, Navy Vet Cid Castillo will play the National Anthem on his trumpet. Rotary Parade Chair Chuck Weisbart said this year’s parade will have a band — with the return of the much admired U.C. Riverside Pipe Band. On display as they are each year are a number of off-Hill car clubs: the Valley Cruisers, the Hemet Jeep Club and the Palm Springs Corvette Club.
Weisbart cautioned that there will be barricades in place before the parade to keep the formation streets, as well as North Circle, clear of traffic. Weisbart said traffic would be clearly rerouted for those intending to get to Humber Park.
Road closures will go into effect at 9 a.m. All road closures are for traffic headed up toward Fern Valley Corners from Highway 243 via:
North Circle Drive at Highway 243 all the way up to South Circle Drive (Fern Valley Corners)
Lower Tahquitz at lower South Circle drives
Upper South Circle at upper Tahquitz drives
Pine Crest (middle) Avenue from Alderwood Street up to North Circle Drive
Jameson Drive from Fir Street up to Pine Crest Avenue
South Circle from upper Tahquitz to North Circle drives
Weisbart recommends that in the closure area, spectators get there early so they can both park and secure great seating.
As to parade entrants, “If there are any late entries, they could call me at 760-578-3592 or email at [email protected],” said Weisbart.
Starting off the Fourth of July celebrations, on Saturday, July 1, the American Legion Post 800 will host a deep-pit barbecue from 3 to 7 p.m. Post Commander Danny Richardson said beef and pork roasts will be barbecued, with corn on the cob, cole slaw and homemade barbecued beans. Tickets are $14 for adults on presale and $16 at the door. Kids ages 10 and under are $10.
At night, beginning at 9 p.m,. there will be an inaugural 30-minute laser show on the face of Lily Rock. There are no designated places for watching the display.
The Fourth of July week continues on Thursday, July 6, with Lisa Haley and her Zydekats kicking off the Idyllwild Summer Concert Series. And because it is still at the Idyllwild Community Center site, there will be a dance floor.
If you want fireworks, you’ll have to go off the Hill since fireworks are prohibited on the mountain. But if you stay in Idyllwild, you will be charmingly entertained.
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Betty Jean Dravenstatt was born March 2, 1933, in Lansing, Michigan, and passed away Thursday, June 8, 2017, in Hemet. She is survived by her three children, James, Dawn and Ronald, six grandchildren, one great-grandchild, one brother, and several nieces and nephews.
